The Importance of the Position of Vice-Governor in the Personnel Policy of P. Stolypin’s Ministry (1906–1911)

Abstract

The article analyzes the influence of the experience of service as vice-governor on the subsequent gubernatorial appointment during the ministry of P. Stolypin. The framework of the study was determined by the following tasks: to identify the personnel traditions that had developed in the Ministry of Internal Affairs in relation to the position of vice-governor, to determine the importance of the vice-governor’s position under P. Stolypin, to quantitatively analyze the relationship between the gubernatorial and vice-gubernatorial positions, to identify the factors that negatively influenced the gubernatorial appointment, and to analyze the relationship with the current governor, considered as a factor of subsequent appointment. The geographical scope of the study covers the governorates of European Russia that were ruled in compliance with the General Governorate Regulations and included a total of 49 governorates except for the Don Host Oblast. As a result of quantitative analysis, it was found that slightly more than half of the vice-governors became governors. It was determined that in the personnel policy of Stolypin’s ministry, the position of vice-governor played the role of a “transitional stage,” but not all governors went through it in their careers and not all vice-governors became governors. This approach was characteristic not only of Stolypin’s ministry but also of the previous ministries. The position of vice-governor made it possible to gain the necessary administrative experience before an independent gubernatorial appointment and build candidate pool to be appointed governors. Among the negative factors identified in connection with the vice-governor’s position were low professional training often disguised by a long term of service and a tendency to conflict with immediate superiors. Their identification allowed making the right decision and not to appoint an unsuitable official to the gubernatorial position. Some officials received the governor’s position bypassing the vice-governor’s appointment, which was facilitated by the following factors: patronage, high professional qualities of the officials, and situational necessity, which prevailed over the informally established order. Each appointment represented a unique combination of these parameters and the final answer to how an official received the governor’s position can only be given by an individual microanalysis of each situation.

Keywords

• vice-governors
• bureaucracy
• personnel policy
• provincial administration
• p. stolypin
• russian empire