Vol 17, No 4 (2025)

The study discusses the competition among great powers for railway concessions in Persia, with a particular focus on the involvement of French entrepreneur Fabian Boital. The author shows the intensity of the struggle to obtain railway concessions in Persia and traces the fate of F. Boital’s projects after he built the first railway in that country. The research is based on correspondence between the russian mission in Tehran and St. Petersburg, as well as analytical reports from the “Persian desk” in the Archive of Foreign Policy of the russian empire. The author concludes that Boiatal’s success was due to the small scale of his project - the Tehran to Shah Abdul Azim railway, which was only about 10 kilometers long. Key factors included his collaboration with russian capitalist Lazar Solomonovich Polyakov, as well as the Persian monarch Naser al-din Shah’s strong desire to have at least some form of railway in his country. Another contributing factor was that the concession was granted in the name of an anonymous Belgian company. However, when Boital, along with Polyakov, attempted to secure a concession for a slightly larger project - the Tehran to Feshand railway (80 km) and an extension of the Shah Abdul Azim line by an additional 20-30 km - they encountered fierce resistance from the British mission, which ultimately led to the project’s failure. This outcome vividly illustrates the intensity of the Anglo-russian rivalry for control over railway concessions in Persia.

In the modern Iran the problem of wearing hijab is still acute. The secular opposition seeks its cancellation appealing to the past of their country. Therefore the goal of the research is to analyse the experience of cancellation of wearing hijab under Reza-shah in 1935-1936. The research problem is to determine what reasons were behind such a radical measure and its consequences for the feminine part of the society. In the study the internal political circumstances, actions of the government, the monarch’s attitude and reactions of the different population groups are described. The author comes to the conclusion that the ban on wearing hijab corresponded to the request of the progressive part of the society. The fact is recognized that such a measure caused hostility among traditional women however any organized protest did not take place. The scientific contribution is that an expert opinion is given to such an important social reform which had affected nearly a half of the Iranian society. The fact that the study is based on the sources and literature, the most part of which have been introduced into scientific circulation of Iranian studies in Russia for the first time also creates value.

The Anglo-Boer War of 1899-1902 aroused heightened interest among the international community, fuelled by reports of the occupiers’ inhumane treatment of the civilian population of the South African Republic and the Orange Free State. However, despite the availability of peacekeeping instruments such as good offices and mediation provided for in the Hague Convention of 1899, and widespread sympathy for the Boers, the governments of the great powers remained neutral. The purpose of this study was to identify the factors that influenced the positions of the major powers in order to determine why Germany, France, Russia and the United States were unable to work in concert to resolve this conflict. The benevolent neutrality of the United States was the result of its political rapprochement with Great Britain, reinforced by significant exports of military materials and the provision of loans to the British government. Germany’s policy was dictated by its rivalry with London on the one hand and its opposition to the Russian-French alliance on the other, while German neutrality was the price paid for concessions to Great Britain on colonial issues. In France, despite anti-British sentiment after the Fashoda Incident, a pragmatic course of rapprochement with London prevailed in opposition to Germany. In Russia, pragmatic considerations (unwillingness to complicate relations with Great Britain) prevailed over public sympathy for the Boers. The study shows that mutual differences and fears of British naval superiority prevented the major powers from coordinating their efforts. Instead, Germany, Russia, the United States and France used Britain’s distraction in southern Africa to achieve their own geopolitical goals in other regions.

The study examines the history of solving the problem of classification historical sources and the history of the emergence of three classification terms: category (type), sort (species) and “source of personal origin” when selecting biographical sources from the general body of historical sources. The author’s attention is focused on the current issue of terminological unity, or rather, logical purity (rigor) in the classification of biographical sources in scientific research. The study discusses scientific situation in which it is possible to apply the classification taxon “sources of personal origin” or the species classification of historical sources on their pragmatic function. The study concludes that it is advantageous to classify of historical sources by kind based on their pragmatic function.

In three recent decades, the study of the history of European fencing art has been gaining momentum among historians. The main type of source in this area of research are fencing manuals - treatises, textbooks and manuals of the period under consideration. Most of Russian researchers, interested in the history of European martial arts, study fencing treatises of the past by scans in the Internet. And does not suspect that the originals of such editions are much closer. Indeed, in the Middle Ages and Early Modern times such books were not published in Russia. But European fencing treatises are still available in Russian libraries. Thus, in the Rare Books Department of the State Public Historical Library of Russia in Moscow was found the original work of the Italian author Ridolfo Capo Ferro da Cagli “The Great Presentation of the Art and Application of Fencing” of 1610 about fencing on rapiers. Succinctly written and well-published, it enjoyed relative success - subsequent Italian masters referred to it. The purpose of study is to describe a copy of this treatise from the State Public Historical Library of Russia and to clarify how it came to be in this book collection. The conclusions of the study are as follows: the treatise has an early XX century cover and a sticker of the Roman antique shop of C.E. Rappoport, where it was purchased. We connected with this family shop, specifically with senior Bernard Seacombe, grandson of Carl Ewald Rappoport. He provided us with a photo of his grandfather’s catalogue, were it was written as follows: in April 1914 in Rome this book was bought by Stepan Pavlovich Ryabushinsky from a famous family of industrialists, bankers and philantrops Ryabushinsky. After the Russian revolution of 1917, the book, together with the rest of Stepan Riabuschinsky’s confiscated collection, was transferred to the library of the State Historical Museum of Russia. In 1934 this library became a separate State Public Historical Library (SPHL of Russia). Nowadays the treatise is available for study in the reading room of the Rare Book Department of the Library.

Daesoon Jinrihoe (Korean: 대순진리회) is one of many new religious organizations that emerged in Korea in the second half of the 19th - first half of the 20th century as an alternative to traditional religious and philosophical teachings (Buddhism, Taoism, Confucianism) and imposed Western Christianity. Some of them did not go beyond the closed communities, while the Daesoon Jinrihoe organization, relying on rich traditions of intellectual and social resistance to the authorities and expansion of the West, was able not only to survive in the modern world, but also to become successful and the fastest growing in the Republic of Korea. The purpose of the study is to analyze the ideological roots of Daesoon Jinrihoe, the fundamental aspects of the religious doctrine of the movement and its current state. The main source for studying the doctrine, principles and goals of Daesoon Jinrihoe is the canonical work “Jeongyeong”, first published in 1929 and representing a record of the deeds of Kang Jeungsan, who became, according to religious dogma, the earthly incarnation of the Supreme God Sangje and in this capacity began to reorganize the Universe. “Jeongyeong” consists of several sections written in hanja (Korean writing based on Chinese characters) and describing the life and miracles of Kang Jeungsan in specific life situations. Another source - “The Constitution of Dao” is a list of rights, duties and rules of conduct for members of the organization, describes its internal structure and management system. In domestic historiography there are no academic works devoted to the topic under study. The author relied on the works of Korean and Western researchers, who to one degree or another covered the history of the creation and activities of Daesoon Jinrihoe. The conclusions of this study are that the popularity of the Daesoon teaching is based on its appeal to the ideas and images of traditional Korean religions that have become part of the national mentality, and the inclusion of the organization in the modern national and world agenda.

The evolving dynamics of global foreign policy have highlighted economic cooperation as a critical factor in international relations post-Cold War. China’s increasing involvement in the Middle East, particularly in the Persian Gulf, has emerged as a significant development. In fact, China’s international prominence was largely attributed to its need for petroleum imports. However, as the 21st century unfolded, China’s global influence has grown substantially, particularly in the Middle East and North Africa, where it has expanded its economic, diplomatic, strategic, and military engagements. Considering that China-Qatar relations have intensified across political, economic, commercial, and energy sectors, the primary aim of this study is to elucidate the strategic significance of Qatar within China’s foreign policy framework. It seeks to demonstrate how Qatar’s role extends beyond merely providing natural gas, exploring the multifaceted nature of their bilateral relations. The research uses a descriptive-analytical methodology and analyzes diplomatic, economic, and security aspects of the bilateral relationship by focusing on recent developments and shifts in the geopolitical landscape. The findings reveal that Qatar’s strategic value to China extends beyond its role as an energy supplier. The relationship between the two nations is characterized by a deepening network of mutual dependency, encompassing cooperation in energy, investment, and security. This deepening of connection will make the future of China-Qatar relations, as evidenced by this growing cooperation, closer together. And the increasing importance of bilateral relations between China and Qatar for the future will be highlighted by this strengthening cooperation. Additionally, Information and research data are collected through library studies, the Internet, and quarterly journals.