Imperial Russian Rule in the Kingdom of Poland 1864–1918 by Malte Rolf

Abstract

Reviewed by: Imperial Russian Rule in the Kingdom of Poland 1864–1918 by Malte Rolf Theodore R. Weeks (bio) Malte Rolf, Imperial Russian Rule in the Kingdom of Poland 1864–1918, Trans. Cynthia Klohr (Pittsburgh: University of Pittsburgh Press, 2021). 441 pp., ill. Bibliography. Index. ISBN: 978-0-8229-4701-1. For the Russian Empire, the Poles were always a problem. Catholic, arrogant, with a well-developed historical identity, and living between "Russia" and "Europe," the Poles gave Russian officialdom and the tsars themselves heartburn. For official Russia, the uprisings against Russian rule in 1830–1831 and 1863–1864 corroborated their view of persistent Lechite perfidy and an eternal "hatred for all things Russian" (a phrase that one encounters with Kilroy-like frequency in official documents) among the Polish people. And yet the Russian Empire had to deal with this obstreperous nation and the region it occupied. A generation or two back, Russian policy in this region (and in general in the western regions of the empire) tended to be summed up with the rather murkily understood concept "Russification." Happily, since the pathbreaking works of Edward C. Thaden and in many excellent studies in the past few decades, a more nuanced portrait of the complex give-and-take between local population [End Page 307] (here, the Poles–but also the Jews!) and Russian officialdom has developed. And one significant contributor to this more nuanced understanding of Russian policy in the "Vistula Land"– or Kingdom of Poland–is the Bremer historian Malte Rolf. The publication of his book on Russian officialdom in Warsaw and the Polish provinces of the Russian Empire is thus a cause for celebration among historians of the Russian Empire whose German is not quite up to snuff. Rolf divides his book into four parts. First, he provides an excellent overview of Russian rule there in the final half century of Imperial Russia. In particular his coverage is strong at showing the various ways in which official Russia had an impact on these provinces, including censorship and religious policy. The second part of the book considers the city of Warsaw–one of the largest cities in the Russian Empire at this time and by all accounts a flourishing urban center– and the paradoxical situation of a modern city that was administered in an entirely bureaucratic manner. A separate, though rather short section focuses on Russian Warsaw specifically. The impact of the Revolution of 1905 is then examined and the "calm of the graveyard" period up to 1914. The book concludes with remarks on the peculiar nature and development of the "Vistula Land" as a "kingdom within an empire." The longest part of the book looks at imperial rule, in particular the tsar's servitors in the Polish provinces. As is well known, after 1863 ethnic Poles (and often anyone of Catholic faith or married to a Catholic) were barred from highest administrative positions in these provinces. As Rolf points out, salaries paid to these bureaucrats were considerably higher than to those in similar positions within the empire; as one contemporary remarked, the Polish provinces were a Beamtenkalifornien for Russian bureaucrats.1 In official documents one constant complaint concerns the low quality of these men (all men, I'm afraid) who often left positions in the Russian provinces under pressure because of their lackluster performance. At the same time, Russian officials here complained of high prices, hostility expressed in direct and indirect ways, and the distance from their homes and families back in central Russia. Rolf provides excellent short biographies of the governors-general (and others), showing that while they had much in common (such as previous military careers), their outlook on [End Page 308] the "Polish question" often differed quite significantly. As Rolf makes clear, building on previous studies, Russian administrators quite consistently denied a plan to "Russify" the Polish population. Their main task, rather, was to maintain order and prevent threats to imperial sovereignty. One may ask: "Why should we take their word for it?" Of course we should not–but we should also not ignore how these officials saw their own role and policy. In particular Rolf gives a number of excellent and telling details showing...