The article examines the views of K.D. Kavelin, formulated by him in the 1840s, on the Russian historical process and especially on the era of Peter I. The place, role and influence of Peter the Great transformations on the formation of the conceptual foundations of the state school of Russian historical science has been determined. The subject of the study is the theoretical views of K.D. Kavelin on the era of reforms of Peter I. The authors pay special attention to the analysis of the influence of these views on the construction of a general theory of the historical process by representatives of the public school. Among the factors that influenced the formation of the main tenets of the public school, one should single out an acute socio-political discussion between Westerners and Slavophiles, as well as the situation within historical science, where the need has ripened to create a new theory explaining the historical process. In the concept of Kavelin, an important place is occupied by the era of Peter I, personifying, according to the author, the victory of the state principle over the patrimonial, which became the borderline between old and new Russia. The historian considered the changes that took place organic and natural. The violent nature of Peter the Great's reforms is justified by their
extreme necessity and objective historical conditions: the immaturity of state principles suppressed by tribal tradition. The views of K.D. Kavelin on the era of Peter I to a large extent determined its theoretical understanding and interpretation by historians of the public school in subsequent years.
For citation: Starikova N.V., Shlyakhov M.Yu. The Era of Peter the Great in the theoretical constructions of the state school during its formation (based on the works of K.D. Kavelin), Ivanovo State University Bulletin. Series: Humanities, 2025, iss. 3, pp. 114—123.