Historicism in Russian literature dates back to the national antiquity. On the other hand, the subject matter of historical elements and experiences in various genres of literature began to appear more clearly in the 18th century. Literary historicism, which reached significant proportions in the following century, was undoubtedly made possible by the initiatives of this century. During these preiods in Russia, the motive of guiding the reader with historical memory in historical literature constitutes the basic rule of this framework. Literature gradually takes on a conscious role as a medium to convey patriotic feelings and thoughts to the individual on the ground of national history. Aleksandr N. Radishchev, one of the most contradictory voices of the period, reads and writes national history as a starting point for his revolutionary thoughts. History, a material of the patriotic literary line of the period, becomes an argument of revolt in his works and writings. The aim of this study is to analyse Alexander Radishchev's historical thoughts in the context of the beginning of revolutionary historicism. The historical realities that the thinker's revolutionary thoughts are fed by Russian history and the projections left on his works will be scrutinised. In the study, a general evaluation will be made based on different works and ideas of the author by using descriptive and comparative analysis method. As a result of the study, a different perspective on Russian history will be given through the ground of revolutionary ideas identified with Radishchev. In this sense, an example of the dimension that historical reality will gain with personal perspective and interpretation will be put forward.

Keywords: Russian literature, Russian history, A. N. Radishchev, Historicism, Revolutionary historicism