The period leading up to the unification of the Romanian principalities is one of the most dynamic periods in modern Romanian history. It was a time of effervescence, which witnessed the birth of new ideas and the struggle between revolution and reaction. With the expansion of Russia in the Balkans, amidst the decline of the Ottoman Empire, the struggle against Russia in the Romanian principalities, supported by Anglo-Turkish diplomacy, took on international significance. Written by one of the leading specialists on Romanian history in the United States, The Struggle Against Russia in the Romanian Principalities is a significant contribution to nineteenth-century European diplomatic history. The author, Radu R. Florescu, was a professor of history at Boston College. He received his B.A. and M.A. degrees from Christ Church, Oxford University in Great Britain, before moving to the United States where he completed his Ph.D. at Indiana University. Professor Florescu was a distinguished scholar and the author of numerous books and articles on Romanian and East European history.