The author explores how the growing power of towns and trade, a dispersed population, and poor transportation and communications networks influenced this fundamental social relationship underlying Russian society.

[1][2] In the introduction to the work, the author describes their intention to, "trace the history of the lords and peasants, and of the relationships between them" through a period of one thousand years, "against the background of Russian political and economic evolution, " to produce "a study in the history of human freedom" and to "contribute ultimately to an understanding of the history of freedom in the European world"[a][3]The work begins with a brief introduction about the physical geography of Russia and the nature of serfdom.

[2][1] Lord and Peasant in Russia has been widely reviewed within the academic community and has become a part of the reading curriculum at several universities.

[5] Reviews Quotes Jerome Blum was an American historian and professor at Princeton University; Blum was chairman of the Department of History at Princeton from 1961–1967, and was named Henry Charles Lea Professor of History in 1966.

[8] In addition to Lord and Peasant in Russia, Blum is the author of several books, including: Notes Citations