Stephen Badalyan Riegg

Stephen Badalyan Riegg is Associate Professor of History at Texas A&M University. He teaches courses on the history of Russia, Eastern Europe, and comparative empires. In the classroom and in his research, he highlights the value of considering the tsarist empire as an ethnoculturally and politically diverse space defined by fluid power hierarchies. Riegg is dedicated to uncovering the nuances of the non-Russian experiences of empire, underscoring for students and broader audiences the enduring legacies of Eurasia as a contested multiethnic space claimed but not always dominated by the various iterations of “Russia.” 

His book, Russia’s Entangled Embrace: The Tsarist Empire and the Armenians, 1801-1914 (Cornell University Press, 2020) won the Best Book Award from Ab Imperio and the Dr. Sona Aronian Book Prize for Excellence in Armenian Studies from the National Association for Armenian Studies and Research, among other recognitions. His current research connects tsarist methods of rule to the wider world by examining a political tradition of self-consciously experimental efforts to outsource the construction of the empire in the Caucasus to colonists, missionaries, and entrepreneurs from Western Europe. 

An engaged member of ASEEES, Riegg views its interdisciplinary nature as one of its core strengths. The range of professional experiences and perspectives our members bring to the table is why he is optimistic about the future of the Association during this challenging time. Riegg recognizes our organization’s record of collaboration across disciplinary (and other) lines and hopes to contribute to its expansion, which is pivotal to a vibrant and inclusive scholarly society.