Russian Maiden from the 1770s
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During the 1700s, the Russian Tsars became obsessed with Europe. They thought that by being European the country would become modernized. It did not work much. Only the main cities fell into the European craze. The rest of the country felt alienated from the ruling class.
Whenever the Tsar had to deal with the local elders, he was always on pins and needles. He just did not look like them. He was like a foreigner in his own country. He wanted them to change, but the traditional locals were stubborn. They did not see the reason to be European. They were Russians for crying out loud. People should be proud of their heritage, not ashamed of it.
In the end, this problem was not resolved. Russia became the Soviet Union and the rest is history. Even today, in the fridges there lives minority ethnic groups that have not changed in centuries. They make their money selling furs. You rarely hear of the them because people are obsessed with Europe.
Aside from the silly dresses, there is really not much awesomeness about Europe, if you look at it objectively. They have spent most of their history killing each other. When they were not fighting, the Europeans were killing Africans, Indians and Native Americans. All their wealth, fashion sense and art is built on the bones of these people.
