The article reassesses some of the recent historiographic developments in studies of the Russian Revolution and the collapse of the Russian Empire. In particular, it focusses on the role of nationalist politics in late Imperial Russia, in 1917, and in early Soviet politics. It also considers the end of the Russian Empire within the context of historiographical approaches to the collapse of other European empires. Based on these considerations, the article concludes that the place of nationalist politics in the Russian Revolution can be exaggerated.