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A majestic cultural and environmental history that reveals how forests created and resisted Russia's many empires. From the Baltic Sea to the Pacific Ocean, from the Arctic to the steppes of Central Asia, Russia's forests make up nearly a fifth of the world's forested land. Oaks and Cedar is the first study in English to explore this vast area, and is a fascinating environmental history of Russia that offers an important new understanding of the nature of Russian power, and of Russia's conceptions of itself. Inspired by the majestic oak tree, towering over the country's western heartland, and the mighty Siberian cedar, a symbol of survival in the East, award-winning scholar Sophie Pinkham's fascinating narrative spans centuries, revealing how forests nourished ancient Siberian indigenous communities, defended medieval Slavic settlements from Mongol invasion, and served as an essential natural resource and powerful cultural symbol of Russia at all its stages, from the days of the tsars to the Soviets to Putin's union. By examining the country from the perspective of the forest, Pinkham goes far beyond Russia's contemporary political environment. It draws on literature, history, and art to connect the expanse of the Russian wilderness to the essence of Russian culture, through timeless images of the diverse figures who inhabited and celebrated these forests: legendary indigenous guide Dersu Uzala, literary giants like Tolstoy and Chekhov, political thinkers like Kropotkin, and even Stalin. It addresses the role of the forest in Russia's long history of imperial invasions, and in resisting this invasion.