Russian Government Research Articles

An Authoritative Accessory. The IMF’s Role in the 1993 Russian Constitutional Crisis

Abstract This article examines the role of the International Monetary Fund in Russia’s 1993 constitutional crisis. The IMF’s role in the crisis remains as politically contested as it is empirically unknown. Critics of Yeltsin’s actions have implied that he was acting at the behest of the United States and, by extension, the IMF. By contrast, many scholars of post-Soviet Russia have concluded that the IMF had little effect on Russian political decision making throughout the 1990s. This article adds to this debate by bringing to light for the first time the IMF’s own detailed records of its interactions with the Russian government in the latter half of 1993 and early 1994. The picture that emerges is a complex one: there is no evidence that the IMF was anything more than an observer of the violent standoff between Yeltsin and Parliament. But IMF officials did hope the dissolution of parliament would clear the way for deeper economic reforms, and they pushed the government that emerged from December 1993 elections into accepting a number of austerity measures. Therefore, the Fund’s relations with Moscow at the time of the 1993 crisis form one important chapter in a longer history of the IMF gaining control over Russian economic policy during the course of the 1990s.

Destructively Independent. The Russian Central Bank Leadership in the Runup to the 1993 Constitutional Crisis

Abstract Attempts to get control over the Russian Central Bank are often seen as a key driver of the conflict between the Supreme Soviet and the Russian government in 1993. We argue here that the bank and its leadership were not only an instrument of other power centers but should be considered as active and fairly independent political players with their own interests, stakes, and strategies. In the struggle over monetary policy in the early years of the newly founded Russian Federation, inherited Soviet networks of power were more decisive than legal competences on paper. To the extent that ideas played a role at all in these transitional power struggles, their distinction was not between neoliberal shock therapy and social democratic gradualism, but between different notions of the future realm of Moscow’s financial power. Our paper is based on an assessment of biographical literatures and legal texts as well as a survey of the scholarly literature in economics and history. It shows how, in a phase of post-imperial institutional reconfiguration, different groups of the former Soviet elite competed to preserve their status in the emerging Russian nation state.

Prospects for the development of the Northern Sea Route after February 2022: An analysis of Russia's policy in the new conditions

This paper aims to evaluate Russian state policy towards the development of the Northern Sea Route with all the political, economic, and financial challenges that followed the war between Russia and Ukraine after February 2022. Much attention has been paid to the new plan of the development of the Northern Sea Route until 2035, adopted by the Government in August 2022 since this is a strategic document serving as a starting point in the analysis of Russia's long-term goals in the Arctic. The analysis shows that the Russian authorities do not want to downgrade the importance and potential of Arctic development, including the Northern Sea Route, although demand for Russian oil and gas is declining except in China and a few other countries, and Russia is having difficulties acquiring essential technologies from developed countries. The Russian Government appears to be more focused on the domestic purpose of the Northern Sea Route, i.e., maintaining the local economy in the Arctic region, including cabotage transportation (shipping between two Russian ports) and northern supply (severnyi zavoz).

Establishing Border Commissariats on the Russian-Chinese Border in the 2<sup>nd</sup> Half of the 19<sup>th</sup> – Early 20<sup>th</sup> Centuries

In the mid-19th century, the Russian government started pushing forward the implementation of a policy to move its population eastward. This was done to strengthen the country’s position in the East and required coordination with China to establish state borders. The legal formalization of the boundaries resulted in the development of new mechanisms of border diplomacy for further interaction between both countries. However, there has been relatively little study of the approaches and tools used in Russian-Chinese diplomacy during this time. This article summarizes the history of establishing border commissariats on the Russian-Chinese border in the 2nd half of the 19th – early 20th century. The study is carried out using the narrative, structural, and functional method, the method of variance, and normative comparison. As a result, it finds out that in the 2nd half of the 19th century, diplomatic functions were shared between the Governor-General, border commissars, and diplomatic officials reporting to the Governor-General. The border commissar was a civil position of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and was represented by a civilian with the rank of state adviser. The Commissioner’s powers were subordinated to and supervised by the Far East region's Governor-General (military position), who overlooked diplomatic relations. Four border commissariats were set up in the Transbaikal, Amour, South Ussuri and Uryankhay regions. The author concludes that there was no unified system of border commissariats. Although the commissars shared professional duties, they acted independently and dealt with foreign policy issues specific to their region. Overall, the commissars' activities helped maintain socio-political stability in the Eastern border regions of the Russian Empire.

Peter the Great’s Project to Defend the Philadelphia Metropolitanate

The article uses the materials of the Archive of Foreign Policy of the Russian Empire to study the mission of Hegumen Gerasim Foca, who in 1722 came to ask Emperor Peter the Great for help to the Orthodox of Venice. For the first time, the Greek community appealed to the head of the Russian state, delegating a cleric of St. George’s Church to do so. Correspondence between the College of Foreign Affairs and the Holy Synod provides details of the case and the project of assistance to the Orthodox of Venice. From the case files, we also learn about the decision of the Russian government to open a diplomatic mission in the republic. The documents contain information about the personality of Gerasim Foca, as well as about the circumstances of his life in Russia. At the same time, the project, aimed at helping the faithful of Italy and strengthening Russia's influence in the Apennines and the Balkans, remained unrealized.However, during the 18th century, the cooperation of the Russian government with the Greeks was successful, which led not only to the opening of the consulate and the restitution of the orthodox church but later to the establishment of the regular embassy and the Russian chapel. The Russian consulate, which Greeks invariably leaded, co-existed in parallel with the Russian embassy and continued its activities after the abolition of the Venetian Republic.

Spillover effects of Ruble’s turmoil on foreign exchange markets after the invasion of Ukraine

ABSTRACT Russia’s invasion of Ukraine significantly impacted the global economy. This study examines the asymmetric spillover effects of dramatic fluctuations in the ruble on other currencies when Western countries imposed economic sanctions on Russia. Under the sanctions, the ruble showed not only a large depreciation but also a large appreciation. Using hourly data from late February to mid-March 2022, we explore their effects on 10 major currencies. We find that a large depreciation caused a depreciation in the European currencies. This might reflect the fact that sanctions on Russia damaged European economies, which relied heavily on Russian energy. However, we also find that a large appreciation led to a significant depreciation of the Chinese yuan (CNY) and a significant appreciation of the Swiss franc (CHF). The CNY depreciated by 0.2% and the CHF appreciated by 0.8% when the ruble appreciated by 10%. Noting that a large appreciation occurred because of Russia’s large-scale interventions in the foreign exchange market, this implies that the Russian government defended the ruble at unprecedented scales by selling CNYs and purchasing CHFs. A rise of new bipolarized world currency regimes caused a new spillover effect on economic partners after the invasion.

The Impact of Integrated Business Communications on the Success of Enterprises and Organizations

This paper evaluates the impact of business communications on the performance of companies and organizations and briefly outlines the history of the formation of the conceptual apparatus in the process of integrating integrated communications. Their role in corporate governance, as well as in the implementation of the ESG agenda in Russia, is considered. The relevance of the study is determined by the accelerated changes in the concepts of communication integration, the constant updating of forms, methods, tools and technologies, as well as the ambiguity of interpretations and the insufficient development of methodological approaches, which requires a new understanding of their content and implementation possibilities. The similarities and differences between integrated marketing communications and integrated communications are analyzed, the uncertainty in the use of these concepts is shown, as well as the distinctive features of the latter, which interact with all groups of stakeholders. The subject of the study is the system of relations in the process of interaction of companies and organizations with all groups of stakeholders. The purpose of the article is to show the advantages and possibilities of practical application of integrated communications, as well as new approaches to management strategizing. The article uses such research methods as content analysis of scientific periodicals, comparative analysis of semantic constructions of terms, study of practical experience in managing communications of companies and organizations, criteria and indicators for assessing their quality. The current trends in the development of integrated communications and their growing influence on the performance of companies and organizations are shown. The scientific novelty of the publication is justified by the author’s interpretation of the process of communication integration. The analysis showed that in the methods for compiling ESG ratings, the set of criteria for assessing the quality of block “G” is limited to the indicators of corporate governance codes. Therefore, the authors propose to expand this set using metrics for assessing the effectiveness of integrated communications management taken from the “corporate management” and “communications management” systems. The practical significance of the work is the opportunity to attract the attention of stakeholders to the problem of integrated communications and expand the horizon of their perception in theory and practice. Further directions of research may be related to the consideration of the characteristics of Russian communications practices in the business environment. Effective integrated communications can play a key role in the development of sustainable corporate governance in Russia.

Этнический состав населения арктической зоны Республики Саха (Якутия) и его природная среда обитания

Currently, the Arctic, as it is known, is of strategic importance for Russia, therefore, in this regard, the problems of sustainable development of ethnic groups inhabiting the Arctic zone are also being actualized. In this regard, scientific research of various spheres of life in the Arctic zone of Russia, including Yakutia, is becoming important. Great attention is paid to the problems of the Arctic zone: environmental protection, socio-economic development of the region, creation of favorable living conditions for the population, etc. In this regard, the Russian government has approved the Concept of the Russian Federation's Chairmanship in the Arctic Council, as well as an action plan, during which various issues will be discussed, including strengthening trade ties between states, melting permafrost, global warming, combating environmental pollution, and human capital development. This article is devoted to the territorial development and numerical ratio of ethnic groups living in the Arctic.

�Turkestan Collection� � a source of data on Kazakh names and historical monuments

Relevance. This article explores the significant collection known as the �Turkestan Collection�, which encompasses a vast array of historical data on the Kazakh language and cultural heritage. It highlights the importance of this collection in understanding the socio-cultural transformations experienced by the Kazakh people under tsarist Russian governance during the late XIX � early XX centuries.Purpose. The purpose of this study is to analyze the �Turkestan Collection� in order to uncover insights into the native language and evolving cultural practices of the Kazakh people, shifting from nomadic to semi-sedentary lifestyles, and how these were documented during Russian colonization.Methodology. The research method involves a detailed examination of �Turkestan Collection�, which consists of final materials from a census conducted by the Migration Department of the Main Directorate of Land Management and Agriculture. The analysis focuses on the representation of Kazakh names, places, and cultural practices as recorded in this comprehensive census.Results. Findings reveal that the collection contains extensive information on various ethnic names, historical monuments, and cultural traditions of the Kazakh people. It provides a unique perspective on the transition phases of Kazakh society, with detailed accounts of land names, tribal affiliations, and shifts in living patterns.Conclusions. The �Turkestan Collection� serves as a pivotal resource for understanding the intricate history and cultural evolution of the Kazakh people. Despite being a product of colonial objectives, the collection offers invaluable insights into the rich linguistic and cultural landscape of Kazakhstan during a period of significant change and adaptation.

Restoration of property rights of the subjects of the Central Powers in Ukraine (1918)

During the First World War, the Russian government confiscated, seized, or sequestered a large part of the property belonging to the subjects of the Central Powers in the Russian Empire. After the collapse of the empire and the formation of the Ukrainian state, its leadership faced the question of returning the seized property to its former owners. The article examines the position of the governments of the Ukrainian People’s Republic and the Ukrainian State regarding the ways to resolve this issue. The republican and hetman governments of Ukraine (1918) viewed differently the post-war restoration of property rights of the subjects of the Central Powers, which were limited, violated or canceled during the First World War. The socialists leading the Ukrainian People’s Republic considered it necessary to return lost property to foreign citizens, with the exception of what was subject to the legislation on property socialization, namely, land plots «with their waters, above-ground and underground wealth» (i. e., mines, reservoirs, forests etc.). The Hetman government, upholding the principle of the inviolability of property rights and canceling socialization, intended to restore foreign property in Ukraine on the basis it had existed before the start of the World War, and took initial practical steps for this process. Institutions managing the confiscated property were ordered to stop all measures aimed at the liquidation or sale of the confiscated property. They were not allowed to conclude agreements on use or transfer of such property. They had to provide reports on the management of the property (especially on expenses and profits) at the request of the owners or their representatives acting solely for the benefit of the owner. In September 1918, the draft law on institutions designed to consider appeals from foreign subjects regarding the return of confiscated property («Regulations on District Commissions in the Matter of Restoration of Property Rights of German, Austro-Hungarian, Bulgarian and Turkish Subjects») was completed. According to this document, it was planned to create four commissions – in Kyiv, Kharkiv, Odesa and Katerynoslav. Their composition was to be made up of representatives of the judicial authorities, the State Control, the Ministries of Agriculture, Trade and Industry, and Finance. The overthrow of the Hetman government at the end of 1918 prevented these initiatives from being fully implemented.

Directive model of corporation management with the participation of the state in the sphere of the military-industry complex

The subject. The variety of existing models of management of commercial corporations at the current stage requires the­ir assessment, including in relation to certain areas of economic activity. This article examines the legal aspects of the principles of construction and content of a directive model of organization management using the example of corporations with state participation in the field of the military-industrial complex. The procedure for directive voting in the bodies of the corporation is analyzed.The purpose is to identify the determination and the essence of directive model of corporate management in the field of the military-industrial complex.Methodology of the research includes legal analysis of the Russian corporative legislation, directives of the Russian Government and judicial practice.The main results. The basics of regulatory regulation in this area of corporate relations are disclosed. Local regulations ensuring the formation of a directive model of corporate management are investigated. The review of competence of bodies of corporation with participation of public legal entities is given. Options are proposed for a legal assessment of the liability of persons who are members of the bodies of the corporations in question.General rule is proposed: in the case of voting in the bodies of a corporate organization, a representative of the state is released from responsibility if he acted on the basis of the issued directive (recommendation).Conclusions. The regularities of the development of corporate legislation on the issues under consideration and the influence of various factors on them are revealed.

TRENDS IN EXPANDING THE GEOGRAPHY OF TRADE AND ECONOMIC ACTIVITY AS THE BASIS OF TECHNOLOGICAL SOVEREIGNTY

Bringing business (products or services) to international markets reveals the potential for revenue and profit growth of companies. Statistical data confirm the fact that in modern conditions, the level of involvement in the export activities of Russian small and medium-sized businesses is insignificant. This is often due to the lack of experience and knowledge on the basics of foreign economic activity among owners and business leaders. Entrepreneurs, even successfully developing their business in the Russian market, as a rule, have little idea of the criteria for choosing a country for export, the procedure for selecting a foreign partner, the specifics of all procedures for bringing business to international markets. The Russian government is taking significant steps to support business in this direction. Today, thanks to the improvement of legislation, as well as consulting and marketing support from the state, the procedures for entering the international markets of domestic producers have been significantly simplified. Taking into account the analysis of indicators characterizing global trends in foreign trade activity, the article offers various methodological approaches to determining the geography of trade and economic activity in the conditions of the formation of Russian business.

Karaites in the Ulus Jochi era and in the Crimean Kha­nate: The question of the origin of Karaite communities on the Crimean peninsula

Research objectives: An analysis and generalization of materials on the history of the emergence of Karaite communities on the territory of the Crimean peninsula in the era of the Ulus of Jochi and the Crimean Khanate. Research materials: As a result of comparing published materials on the history of the Crimean Karaites, data from archaeological and epigraphic studies, as well as in the process of studying the funds of the Russian State Historical Archive (RSHA, St. Petersburg) and the State Archive of the Republic of Crimea (SARC, Simferopol), information was analyzed related to the problem of the emergence of Karaite communities on the territory of Crimea in the era of Ulus Jochi and the Crimean Khanate. Results and scientific novelty: Many episodes in the history of the Crimean Karaites still remain outside the field of view of researchers. There is also the problem of interpretation of sources. In particular, this concerns the controversy about the origin of the Crimean Karaites and the time of their appearance on the territory of the Crimean peninsula, a process that had been going on for more than 100 years with the discussion sometimes going beyond scientific argumentation. The stages of the scientific study of the past of the Crimean Karaites are characterized by different levels of intensity, as well as large variety of methods and approaches used. Interest in this problem first arose among representatives of Russian academic circles in the first half of the 19th century. The Russian administration became interested in the history of the Karaites in part because the ideas of the European Enlightenment, which largely determined the policy of the Russian government in a number of key areas, implied the spread of Russian culture and education to the “Asian peoples.” In relation to the Karaites, Krymchaks, and Ashkenazi Jews, the Russian government adopted laws and regulations, in accordance with which the Karaites were able to legislatively strengthen their legal status. The Russian government, however, used restrictive measures by pursuing a discriminatory anti-Jewish policy against the Jewish population. The Karaites managed to get the authorities to recognize them as a community that differed from the Rabbanites while they received various legal and economic preferences. The same time period marked the onset of the large-scale activity of the famous collector of Jewish antiquities, Abraham Firkowicz, who initiated the creation of an extensive collection of manuscripts related to the history of Jewish communities, including in the Crimean peninsula. Based on the materials presented, it was concluded that the Karaite community could have appeared in the Crimea not earlier than the second half of the 13th century. Active resettlement of Karaites to the Crimea from the territories of the Middle East, Byzantium, and subsequently from the Ottoman Empire had been taking place since the middle of the 14th century. These chronological periods are also supported by material evidence of the stay of the Karaites in this region (archaeological and epigraphic studies of medieval Solkhat, Mangup-Kale, and Chufut-Kale).

Правовое обеспечение цифровой трансформации местного самоуправления в Российской Федерации: проблемы и перспективы

Introduction: the article analyzes legal support accompanying the transformation of local self‐government, identifies the legal, social, and technological problems of the changes. Currently, digital transformation in state and municipal administration not only makes it possible to adapt the process of interaction between citizens and authorities but also leads to changes in all areas of activity of local administration, to improvement of municipal services as well as to transformation of the rules and work culture of municipal employees. Consideration of the problem of legal support for digital transformation of municipalities is directly related to finding solutions for the development of municipal governance in Russia in general. That is why this problem is of particular relevance today. Purpose: basing on an analysis of legal regulation of local self‐government digitalization, to identify the main trends and problems that influences not only the implementation of digitalization at the local level but also the quality and uniformity of legal regulation of these processes. Methods: the study employed empirical methods of comparison, description as well as special scientific methods: legal‐dogmatic, method of interpretation of legal norms, comparative‐ legal, and systemic. Results: the authors have identified current problems in legal regulation and implementation of digital transformation of local self‐government and developed proposals aiming to alleviate them. Conclusions: the specific nature of local self‐government requires special approaches to digitalization at the municipal level. First of all, digital inequality of both municipalities and their residents should be taken into account. Another feature is that local self‐government is characterized by proximity to the population, which makes it possible to use electronic forms of direct democracy much more widely than at the level of state authority. Finally, the diversity of municipalities requires legal formalization of uniform requirements with regard to infrastructure and software used in municipal governance at the regional level.

Sposoby religioznoj samoidentifikacii v situacii obshchestvennoj konfrontacii: russkoe obshchestvo v konce XIX – pervoj chetverti XX v. (po materialam religioveda A.S. Prugavina)

The article deals with the problem of religious self-identification in Russian society during the period of historical upheavals - the turn of the 19th - 20th centuries and the first quarter of the 20th century. The relevance of the research is due to the ongoing search for a compromise between the confessional branches of Orthodoxy today. Society and the government in Russia are looking for a common social and spiritual foundation for Russian society. The question of religious searches in different parts of Russian society is considered in the article. The views and conclusions of representatives of various social movements are compared. The key attention in the text is paid to the views of populist researchers. The materials of the famous Russian religious scholar Alexander Stepanovich Prugavin are taken as the basis of the article. A review of publications and archival data has been compiled. Some of the materials are presented by Prugavins personal fund, which is located in the Russian State Archive of Literature and Arts. The views of the religious scholar on the possible path of development for contemporary Russia are analyzed. He singled out the Old Believers as a special social group in the country.

Прогноз экономического роста и развития региона: поиск источников для повышения достоверности

The article discusses forecasting regional development in the Kemerovo Region - Kuzbass. It focuses on selecting and analyzing the dynamics of key regional macroeconomic indicators. The authors define the difference between "economic growth" and "economic development" by identifying a set of quantitative indicators that characterize each concept. Economic growth is achieved through the additional use of labor, space, and equipment in production, as well as increased mining, development of new land, and construction of new facilities. Economic development, on the other hand, is measured by qualitative indicators such as labor productivity, human development, and others. Using the extrapolation method and changes in certain indicators, the authors predict the growth of the gross regional product (GRP), changes in the proportion of high-tech and knowledge-intensive products in GRP, and the labor productivity index. The quality of the forecast model was evaluated using the approximation reliability coefficient, which indicated a low degree of consistency between the trend model and the original data. Based on this, it was concluded that the forecast quality needs to be improved by incorporating additional analytical information. This includes materials from the Ministry of Economic Development of the Russian Federation, the Analytical Center under the Government of Russia, macroeconomic research institutions of major financial and credit organizations, and data from foreign and domestic analytical agencies. The study is based on systematic and structural analysis and statistical data processing using extrapolation methods. The work utilizes official documents, data from the Federal State Statistics Service (FSSS) and its regional (Kemerovo) branch, government agencies of the Russian Federation, and scientific publications available in the public domain.

Perceptions of the Time of Troubles in Russian Social and Political Thought in the Late 18th — Early 19th Centuries

This article examines the changing perceptions of the Time of Troubles in Russian political culture between the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. The author draws on the methods of the Cambridge school of ‘intellectual history’, represented by the works of J. Pocock and Q. Skinner, which allow the historical materials involved to be considered within the framework of the approach of ‘cultural glossaries’ and rhetorical strategies. The study focuses on debates about the ideal form of government, including historical plots of the Time of Troubles, in Russian socio-political thought of the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries, including those based on historical plots of the Time of Troubles. The article demonstrates that the appeal to these plots was connected with the foreign and domestic political spheres relevant to the contemporaries, and with the attempt to change the form of government in Russia or the threat of its change from outside during the Napoleonic Wars in the early nineteenth century. The analysis shows that eighteenth- and early nineteenth-century Russian authors reinterpreted the historical events and personalities of the Time of Troubles using the Aristotelian glossary of forms of government. The application of this glossary to the historical themes of the Time of Troubles in Russian social and political thought effectively ‘reinvented’ the history of the Time of Troubles. In this ‘invention of the Time of Troubles’, the themes of ‘tyranny’ and ‘tyrannicide’ and speculation about the most appropriate form of government for Russia emerged. It is concluded that the emergence of these rhetorical strategies in references to the Time of Troubles played the role of historical argument and evidence in favour of the Russian monarchy for eighteenth- and early nineteenth-century authors.

Роль российского правительства в организации мероприятий по обеспечению помощи населению вследствие землетрясений в Центральной Азии в конце XIX - начале XX в

In the article on the basis of archival materials, deposited in the Russian State Military History Archive, information about Verny 1887 and Andijan 1902 earthquakes, similar in destructive power, when Verny and Andijan were completely destroyed, is given. The paper analyzes the activities of the Russian government during the Verny and Andijan earthquakes and assesses the measures taken to eliminate the causes of the disaster and restore the city's infrastructure. In particular, on the basis of documents preserved in the Russian State Archive of the Russian Federation, for the first time the issue of relocation of the regional center of the Semirechensk region from the city of Verny to the proposed towns of Kopal, Lepsinsk, Iliysk and the village of Gavrilovka in the Semirechensk region in 1887-1888 is considered. Including consideration of the reconstruction of the city of Andijan in 1902-1903 and preparation of the draft "Rules for guidance in the construction of buildings in Andijan, Verny and Pishpek districts of the Turkestan region" 1906. The author concludes that the Vernenskoye and Andijan earthquakes initiated a serious study of geology and seismology of Central Asia by engineers and researchers, including the Russian government, which raised the issue of technical strengthening of residential, administrative and economic buildings.

Russian Joint-Stock Companies and Trading Houses in Manchuria From the Late 19th to the Early 20th Century

Russian trading firms had already been operating in southeastern China by the second half of the nineteenth century. The Russian government’s development policy for the Far East, which was strongly advocated by the then minister of finance Sergei Witte, prompted construction of the Siberian railway line, one trunk of which was the Chinese Eastern Railway (KVZD). This railroad was then instrumental in forming a free economic zone in Manchuria where Russia’s new economic model that supported entrepreneurship could be tested. However, the activities of the Russian colony in Manchuria were confined to the right of way of the KVZD and to certain cities of little commercial interest. As a result, the companies established to extract minerals and develop industry and trade remained relatively small in both their capitalization and financial results. However, economic development of this territory continued despite Russia’s defeat in the Russo-Japanese war and stopped only after the First World War began. The final blow came when Russian businessmen were forced to liquidate their businesses. The trading houses and companies owned by Russian entrepreneurs gradually became property of Chinese, Japanese and European owners. This article gives an account of the operations of Russian joint-stock companies and trading houses established in Manchuria at the end of the nineteenth century through the beginning of the twentieth and indicates the role those firms played in the development of the region. The research analyzed archival sources from the Russian State Historical Archive (RSHA) and statistical reference works along with preRevolutionary and modern scholarly literature.

ДВІ ШЛЯХТИ, ДВІ ДОЛІ: СТАНОВИЩЕ ПОЛЬСЬКОГО ДВОРЯНСТВА НА ПОДІЛЛІ НАПРИКІНЦІ XVIII–XIX ст.

The existence of the Polish nobility on the territory of Podilia can be conventionally divided into two periods. During the first period, which related to 1795–1830, the policy of St. Petersburg in relation to the strata remained relatively loyal. The gentry was transferred to noble status, representatives of the group could apply for positions in the civil service, freedom of religion was preserved. The situation changed radically after The November Uprising of 1830–1831, after which the Russian empire took a course to limit the freedoms of the Polish nobility. The rentier gentry will experience a great collapse. The courtiers, who remained tax-free strata and didn’t hurry to swear allegiance to the emperor, were an obstacle for the Russian empire. In addition, St. Petersburg saw a potential danger in the political activity of the group that had a hand in the uprising. Over time, the rentier gentry were equalized in rights with the Ukrainian peasantry. The great gentry also experienced social and economic oppression, against which the government initiated demonstrative punitive trials. The educational and cultural policy of the anti-Polish direction included the persecution of church clergy and trials of students, the closing of churches and religious schools, the elimination of Greek Catholicism, etc. The Russian government was aware that the fight against culture is an effective tool that will help Poles to forget their ethnicity, so it spared no effort and no money. The initial attitude of the government officials of the Romanov state towards the nobility was the usual deception. The Polish uprisings of 1830–1831 and 1863–1864 were only a pretext for starting a repressive policy against a group that came from Russia’s hated rival, the Rzeczpospolita. The further attitude of the imperial ideologues was aimed at humiliating and subjugating the nobility, turning it into a second-rate figure of the state hierarchy and an obedient tool in the hands of St. Petersburg. A variety of tools were used: discriminatory legislation, humiliating trials, exile to a katorga, transfer of peasants to the rank of peasants in the case of the rentier gentry. However, the Russian Empire remained powerless, because Polish landowners continued to prevail in Podilia and retain strong influence.