The Vice-governor in the system of the administrative elite of steppe regions in the West Siberian and Steppe General-Governorships in the second half of the XIX–beginning of XX century

Abstract

The article analyzes the position of Vice-governor in the system of administrative elite of Akmola, Semipalatinsk and Semirechensk regions of the Russian Empire. Using the normative-legal base of local institutions of these regions, the «formal» position of officials in this position in the general structure of administrative power is characterized. Management in steppe regions is characterized by remoteness of territories from the center of decision-making, high share of nomadic population, marginal position. In this regard, the peculiarities of the position of Vice-governors in the steppe regions and in the interior of Russia are revealed. One of the important features of the service of these officials is the combination of military and civil power in the steppe regions and the lack of a clear division of responsibilities between the elements of the administrative elite. For the socio-cultural characterization of the composition of the Vice-governor corps we used the form lists and personal files of officials kept in the archives: the Historical Archive of the Omsk Region, the Russian State Historical Archive and the Central State Archive of the Republic of Kazakhstan. These data are published for the first time. The article concludes with a socio-cultural portrait of a typical Vice-governor of a steppe region, an analysis of the typical career trajectories of the official and a comparison of the scope of authority with similar officials from internal Russian provinces.

Keywords

• historical anthropology
• collective portrait
• prosopography
• vicegovernor
• west siberian governor-general
• steppe governor-general
• steppe region
• akmola region