author
Donald Mackenzie Wallace
1841–1919
A Scottish journalist and man of letters, he became one of the English-speaking world’s best-known interpreters of Russia after years of firsthand travel and study there. His writing combines close observation, curiosity about everyday life, and a reporter’s eye for political change.
1 Audiobook
Russia
by Donald Mackenzie Wallace
About the author
Born in 1841, Donald Mackenzie Wallace was educated in Edinburgh, Berlin, Heidelberg, and Paris. He is best remembered as a writer, editor, and foreign correspondent, and he built his reputation through deep study of Russia at a time when many British readers knew little about it.
After spending several years traveling in the Russian Empire, he published Russia in 1877, a work that drew attention for its detailed account of society and public life. He later worked for The Times and also served in public roles connected with British diplomacy and imperial administration.
Wallace went on to help edit the tenth edition of the Encyclopaedia Britannica and was knighted during his career. He died in 1919, leaving behind books and journalism valued for turning complex international affairs into vivid, readable prose.