Peasant movement in Russia in the late 19th – early 20th centuries

Abstract

Background. Currently, the Institute of Russian History of the Russian Academy of Sciences is preparing a generalizing academic publication on Russian history. Of course, such publication cannot but include sections on the most massive segment of the population of pre-revolutionary Russia – the peasantry and the characteristics of the role in social and mass movements that it played in the pre-revolutionary period. The purpose of this work is based on the analysis and generalization of the achievements of domestic historiography to show the characteristic features and features of the peasant movement in the period from the 90s of the 19th century to the beginning of the First Russian Revolution. Materials and methods. The implementation of the tasks was achieved both through the use of published arrays of documents from central and local archives on this topic, and published in the collections of the famous “Druzhininskaya” series “Chronicles of the Peasant Movement”. The use of the latter made it possible to double-check and clarify the tendencies and statistics of the peasant movement. As a methodology, a comparative-historical method was applied, with the help of which it was possible to show a broad picture of the peasant movement in various regions of the Russian Empire; the application of the statistical method made it possible to analyze data related to the dynamics of mass demonstrations and their distinctive features at different stages and in different regions. Results. The prerequisites, dynamics and stages of the peasant movement, as well as the specific weight of peasant performances by region and the composition of participants in the categories of the peasantry are considered. The content and types of peasant demonstrations in 1890–1904 are shown In detail the performances of peasants of Poltava and Kharkov provinces in 1902, peasant protest in Siberia and the outlying provinces are characterized. The punitive policy of the authorities in relation to peasant uprisings is characterized. Attempts to adjust the current agrarian policy by the authorities are shown. The role of anti-government propaganda and spontaneity in the peasant movement is assessed. Conclusions. The generalization of the achievements of Russian historiography with the simultaneous involvement of the fundamental published source base and chronicles of the peasant movement made it possible to draw the final conclusion that the reforms developed by the government and the administrative and financial measures taken could not radically improve the situation of the overwhelming mass of the peasant population of the country. Because of this, the prerequisites for a new rise of the peasant movement were formed. The conclusion about the escalation of violence in the Russian countryside in the pre-revolutionary period will also be emphasized.

Keywords

• russian village
• peasantry
• community
• peasant unrest
• anti-government propaganda
• agrarian policy
• power