Page:Russian Realities and Problems - ed. James Duff (1917).djvu/181

 particularly during the 18th century and the first half of the 19th, must be stated without hesitation. The philosophical ideas of Leibniz and Wolf, of Kant, Herder, and others, penetrated into Russia chiefly through the Academy of Sciences of Petrograd, and the University of Moscow, founded in 1735. After the philosophers of the period of "Enlightenment" came the turn of idealism as taught by Fichte and especially by Schelling and Hegel; this had great vogue in Russian coteries between 1832 and 1848; and of somewhat later date is the temporary ascendancy of Moleschott's materialism, and the theories of Feuerbach, Marx and Engel, which were eagerly welcomed by socialistic groups.

Various branches of science and learning were also planted on Russian soil by German scholars: the great mathematician Euler assisted in the foundation of a Russian mathematical school; the famous historian Schloezer contributed to the formation of Russian historical studies; somewhat later and at different times Weierstrass, Bunsen, Liebig, Ritter, Grimm, Savigny, Ranke, Droysen and Mommsen, besides many others, trained Russian students in mathematics, chemistry, linguistics and folklore, and in history.