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Riasanovsky, Nicholas V. (39329056): Difference between revisions

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|birth_year=1923
|birth_year=1923
|death_year=2011
|death_year=2011
|nativity=Chn
|nativity=China
|religion=GO
|religion=Greek Orthodox
|enlistment_place=RAYMOND MISSISSIPPI
|enlistment_place=RAYMOND MISSISSIPPI
|state=OREGON
|state=OREGON
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|class_number=10
|class_number=10
|class_display=10
|class_display=10
|birth_place=Harbin, China
|death_place=Oakland, California
|birth_date=21 December 1923
|death_date=14 May 2011
|photo=Nicholas_V_Riasanovsky_39329056_later_portrait.webp
}}
}}


<div class="soldier-lead">
<div class="soldier-lead">
Nicholas Valentine Riasanovsky (born Nicolai Valentinovitch Riasanovskiy; (December 21, 1923 – May 14, 2011) was a professor at the University of California, Berkeley and the author of numerous books on Russian history and European intellectual history.
'''Nicholas V. Riasanovsky''' (21 December 1923&ndash;14 May 2011) was a Harbin-born Russian émigré historian, Camp Ritchie trainee ([[:Category:Class 10|Class 10]]), and longtime University of California, Berkeley professor best known for ''A History of Russia''.
</div>
</div>


== Biography ==
== Biography ==
Nicholas Valentine Riasanovsky (born Nicolai Valentinovitch Riasanovskiy) was born on 21 December 1923 in Harbin, China, the son of lawyer and legal scholar Valentin A. Riasanovsky and Antonina Riasanovsky, a teacher and novelist who wrote as Nina Fedorova. The family remained in China until 1938, then came to the United States. He graduated in history from the University of Oregon, then served in Army intelligence during World War II after training at [[Camp Ritchie]], Maryland ([[:Category:Class 10|Class 10]]); he later recalled participating in the Normandy landings and the Battle of the Bulge.


 
After the war he studied at Harvard under Michael Karpovich, then took a Rhodes Scholarship to Oxford, receiving his D.Phil. In 1949. He taught at the University of Iowa before joining the University of California, Berkeley faculty in 1957, remaining until retirement in 1997. His textbook ''A History of Russia'' (first published 1963) became a standard undergraduate survey through the Cold War and beyond. Riasanovsky died on 14 May 2011 in Oakland, California.
Nicholas Valentine Riasanovsky (born Nicolai Valentinovitch Riasanovskiy; (December 21, 1923 – May 14, 2011) was a professor at the University of California, Berkeley and the author of numerous books on Russian history and European intellectual history.
 
Nicolai Valentinovitch Riasanovskiy was born on 21 December 1923 in Harbin (then in the Republic of China), the son of lawyer Valentin A. Riasanovsky and Antonina Riasanovsky, a novelist. His father, Valentin, was a Russian professor, who had taught at Moscow University, Yaroslavl, Tomsk and Irkutsk and from 1922 to 1934 was teaching at Harbin Normal University (China). His mother, Antonia, was a teacher and novelist who wrote under the pen name Nina Fedorova. In 1938 the family moved to the United States of America, where his father taught at the University of Oregon, and his mother's work The Family, about the life of a Russian community in a Chinese city, received The Atlantic Monthly Prize for fiction in 1940. Nicholas Riasanovsky graduated from the University of Oregon in 1942. During World War II, he trained in Army intelligence at Camp Ritchie and he is considered one of the Ritchie Boys. He received a master's degree from Harvard University in 1947, and a DPhil. from St. John's College, Oxford in 1949 on a Rhodes Scholarship.
 
From 1949 to 1957 Riasanovsky taught at the University of Iowa. During this time he published Russia in the West in the Teaching of the Slavophiles (1952), and spent a year in Finland as a Fulbright Scholar at the University of Helsinki (1954–1955).
 
From 1957 until his retirement in 1997 he taught at the University of California, Berkeley, and published Nicholas I and Official Nationality in Russia (1959) and his best-selling A History of Russia (1963). The latter was in its eighth edition in 2010 (now co-authored with Mark D. Steinberg, a former student of Riasanovsky's) and has been acclaimed for its continued comprehensiveness.
 
Riasanovsky died in Oakland, California, USA, on May 14, 2011, at the age of 87.
 


== Research notes ==
== Research notes ==
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== Gallery ==
== Gallery ==
''After you are autoconfirmed, [[Special:Upload|upload a photo]] and add <code><nowiki>[[File:Example.jpg|thumb|caption]]</nowiki></code> here, or set <code>|photo=Example.jpg</code> in the infobox.''
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<gallery mode="packed" heights="220px">
Nicholas_V_Riasanovsky_39329056_later_portrait.webp|Later portrait of Nicholas V. Riasanovsky (obituary / RB Archive).
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== Technical record ==
== Technical record ==
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== Timeline ==
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* 21 December 1923 — Born in Harbin, China.
* 1938 — Family immigrates to the United States.
* University of Oregon history degree; Camp Ritchie Class 10; ETO service (Normandy, Bulge).
* 1949 — D.Phil., Oxford (Rhodes Scholar).
* 1957–1997 — Professor, UC Berkeley; ''A History of Russia'' (1963–).
* 14 May 2011 — Died in Oakland, California.
</div>
</div><div style="clear: both;"></div>


== Sources ==
== Sources ==
* [https://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/29/world/europe/29riasanovsky.html New York Times — Nicholas V. Riasanovsky obituary (Paul Vitello)]
* [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nicholas_V._Riasanovsky Wikipedia: Nicholas V. Riasanovsky]
* [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nicholas_V._Riasanovsky Wikipedia: Nicholas V. Riasanovsky]
* Camp Ritchie class roster (classes 1–31), merged research file
* Camp Ritchie Museum, Inc. (The Ritchie History Museum), Classes 1–31 roster data
* Dan Gross research spreadsheets, including original Excel timeline/roster work, combined with other research and records
* NARA World War II Army enlistment records (where a NARA ASN is present)
* NARA World War II Army enlistment records (where a NARA ASN is present)
* 1940 U.S. Census (where a census match is present)
* 1940 U.S. Census (where a census match is present)

Latest revision as of 00:43, 19 September 2026

Nicholas V. Riasanovsky
Nicholas V. Riasanovsky
Personal details
Born21 December 1923
Harbin, China
Died14 May 2011
Oakland, California
NativityChina
ReligionGreek Orthodox
Military service
Allegiance United States
Branch United States Army
ASN39329056
RankPrivate
Camp RitchieClass 10 (23 July – 20 September 1943)
Section7D
EnlistedRaymond, Mississippi
Research notes on this page are compiled from the source file and later edits. They may be unverified, incomplete, or incorrect, and should not be treated as established fact. Please correct the article or add sources on the talk page. For class-roster terms, see About the data.
Sources & confidence: Treat Research notes as leads, not settled fact. Prefer NARA, the class roster, newspapers, Find a Grave, or published histories for contested claims. Mark unsourced claims with {{Needs source}}, or explain disagreements on talk. Baseline import notes: About the data.


Nicholas V. Riasanovsky (21 December 1923–14 May 2011) was a Harbin-born Russian émigré historian, Camp Ritchie trainee (Class 10), and longtime University of California, Berkeley professor best known for A History of Russia.

Biography[edit | edit source]

Nicholas Valentine Riasanovsky (born Nicolai Valentinovitch Riasanovskiy) was born on 21 December 1923 in Harbin, China, the son of lawyer and legal scholar Valentin A. Riasanovsky and Antonina Riasanovsky, a teacher and novelist who wrote as Nina Fedorova. The family remained in China until 1938, then came to the United States. He graduated in history from the University of Oregon, then served in Army intelligence during World War II after training at Camp Ritchie, Maryland (Class 10); he later recalled participating in the Normandy landings and the Battle of the Bulge.

After the war he studied at Harvard under Michael Karpovich, then took a Rhodes Scholarship to Oxford, receiving his D.Phil. In 1949. He taught at the University of Iowa before joining the University of California, Berkeley faculty in 1957, remaining until retirement in 1997. His textbook A History of Russia (first published 1963) became a standard undergraduate survey through the Cold War and beyond. Riasanovsky died on 14 May 2011 in Oakland, California.

Research notes[edit | edit source]

  • Also PG Class 10 GerOB
  • OB 20

Gallery[edit | edit source]

  • Later portrait of Nicholas V. Riasanovsky (obituary / RB Archive).
    Later portrait of Nicholas V. Riasanovsky (obituary / RB Archive).

Technical record[edit | edit source]

Field Imported value
Approx Age at Death 88
Nara ASN 39329056
Nara Name RIASANOVSKY NICHOLAS V
Nara State 95
Nara County 34
Nara POE 4580
Nara DOE 120343
Nara Grade Alpha PVT
Nara Grade Code 8
Nara Branch Alpha NO
Nara Branch Code 2
Branch No branch assignment
Nara Term or Enlistment 0
Term of enlistment Unknown
Defer. Date 0
Nara Source 0
Nara Nativity P8
Nara Year of Birth 23
Nara Race J
Nara Race Description White not yet a citizen
Nara Education 8
Nara Civilian Occupation 32
Nara Marital Status 6
Nara Height (inches) 22
Nara Weight (lbs) 145
Class_ASN 39329056
Class_Name RIASANOVSKY, Nicholas V.
match_method asn_exact_name_exact
row_source both

Timeline[edit | edit source]

  • 21 December 1923 — Born in Harbin, China.
  • 1938 — Family immigrates to the United States.
  • University of Oregon history degree; Camp Ritchie Class 10; ETO service (Normandy, Bulge).
  • 1949 — D.Phil., Oxford (Rhodes Scholar).
  • 1957–1997 — Professor, UC Berkeley; A History of Russia (1963–).
  • 14 May 2011 — Died in Oakland, California.

Sources[edit | edit source]

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