Implementation of the soviet policy regarding the household industry in the Tambovschina during the years of military communism

Abstract

The aim of the article is to clarify the peculiarities of Soviet policy implementation concerning handicraft industry in the years of war communism on the example of Tambov province. The establishment of Soviet power was accompanied by several years of civil war. With the general decline in industrial production, it was often only the handicraftsmen who could provide for the needs of the new government and the population at large. Soviet power was primarily focused on building a centralised cooperative hierarchy in the handicrafts industry. At the first stages, registration powers, as well as general questions of the development of the handicraft industry, were under the control of the cooperative department of the Supreme Council of National Economy (SCNE) and its local representative offices, the GSCNE and USCNE. A characteristic phenomenon of 1918 was registration red tape. On the one hand, illiterate peasants were unable to draw up a statute in accordance with the regulations in force; on the other hand, the local authorities themselves were often incompetent and could not professionally advise the craftsmen on the requirements for drawing up a document. In 1919, in the framework of implementing the resolution of 26 April 1919 " Concerning Assistance Measures for Handicraft Industry", a Directorate for cooperative affairs, handicraft and small Industry was established under the SCNE, and relevant departments were set up under the GSCNE and the USCNE. Gradually the problem of uncontrolled exploitation of artisans became acute. Although, according to the current resolution, only the departments of cooperative affairs, handicraft and small industry had the right to conclude contracts with artisans, on a practical level this was also carried out by other authorities.In 1920, the trade cooperation was placed under the management of the consumer cooperative. According to another resolution, the Central Administrative Board for crafts,small industry and trade cooperation was put in charge of the handicraft industry, and its local departments were responsible for it.