Russia’s Orthodox civilization diverged from Western Europe through Byzantine and Tatar influences

Evidence

Several scholars distinguish a separate Orthodox civilization, centered in Russia and separate from Western Christendom as a result of its Byzantine parentage, distinct religion, 200 years of Tatar rule, bureaucratic despotism, and limited exposure to the Renaissance, Reformation, Enlightenment, and other central Western experiences. — Samuel P. Huntington, The Clash of Civilizations and the…, 125