Russian historian and writer Ilya Budraitskis observes that an imperial consciousness is built around the idea of oneself and one’s culture as “correct”, and having the “right moral values”. In the Russian context, imperial consciousness is rooted in the Russian Empire, which governed all national outposts according to an imperial model, Budraitskis believes, adding however, that such discourse is not a uniquely Russian phenomenon. “Let’s not pretend that Russia is the only empire or imperial relic and that everyone else is completely free of such thinking.”
Budraitskis believes that the desire of smaller so-called “vassal nations” for independence and resistance played an important role in the revolution of 1917.