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The first Russian censorial statutes approved
On July 09 (21), 1804 Alexander I approved the first statutes on censorship in the Russian Empire. According to the statutes all the editions were subject to censorship by censorial committees specially created under St. Petersburg, Moscow, Kazan, Dorpt and Vilnius Universities.
Russian censorial system started to form back in the beginning of the 18th century. At the time it had two subdivisions: preliminary and punitive. Censorship could be general (domestic or foreign) as well as departmental (military, religious, theatre). One of the first documents which regulated censorial practice was the establishment of the order under which the censorship of theological works was a compulsory prerogative of the Holy Synod. In 1873 police inspectorate agencies were obliged to conduct a preliminary censorship of the issued books.
Censorial policy toughened due to the events of the Great French Revolution. One of the most glaring examples of this toughening was the arrest and exile of the Russian writer A. N. Radishchev in 1790 and the closure of the book publishing by journalist N. I. Novikov in 1792. Under the order of 1796 in St. Petersburg and Moscow were established censorial committees charged with control of issue and import of books to Russia. In 1800 Emperor Paul I prohibited the import foreign literature to the country at all.
Censorial policy of Paul I could not satisfy the aspirations of Alexander I and his assistants who relied on the traditions of Catherine’s age of enlightenment. In accordance with emperor’s desire the first censorial statutes in Russia was instituted in 1804. It regulated the entire publishing and printing activity in the country, from the moment the author submitted his manuscript to publisher until the publishing of the completed edition. According to the statutes there was implemented a preliminary censorship at the initial stage of preparation of the edition.
Censors were obliged to interpret in favor of writer those extracts from the text which were considered by them as “twofaced”. In accordance with the statutes subject to the prohibition were all the works “opposing to the Orthodox religions and monarchy”. One of the statutes clauses read: “If for censorship is submitted a manuscript full of ideas and expressions rejecting God’s existence, setting against the faith and laws of the Fatherland, insulting the supreme power and completely contradicting with the spirit of social structure and silence, the Committee should immediately inform the government of such a manuscript in order to find its author and treat him under law”.
In case of censorial conflicts the role of arbiter played University Council. One could appeal against the resolution of University censorship by addressing the Main college board of administration which became the highest instance for censorship affairs.
In 1826 Emperor Nikolai I adopted a new censorial statutes which toughened significantly the control over the issue of literature works.
Lit.: Гринченко Н. А. Организация цензуры в России в I четверти XIX века [Электронный ресурс] // Открытый текст: электронное периодическое издание. 2004-2013. URL: http://opentextnn.ru/old/censorship/russia/dorev/libraries/book/index.html@id=2361; Жирков Г. В. История цензуры в России XIX-XX вв. М., 2001. Разд. 1, Первый цензурный устав (1804 г.): иллюзии и практика; Законы и постановления. СПб., 1804. С.85-96; Полусмак Т. Л. Цензурное законодательство дореволюционной России: Автореф. дис. к. ю. н. Нижний Новгород, 2003; То же [Электронный ресурс]. URL: http://opentextnn.ru/old/censorship/russia/dorev/libraries/book/index.html@id=641; Пушкарёв Е. Ю. Из истории принятия первого цензурного устава 1804 г. Тюмень, 2006; Русская журналистика в документах: История надзора / Сост. О. Д. Минаева; под ред. Б. И. Есина, Я. Н. Засурского. М., 2003; Устав о цензуре. 1804. 9 июля [Электронный ресурс] // Открытый текст: электронное периодическое издание. 2004-2013. URL: http://opentextnn.ru/old/censorship/russia/encslov/index.html@id=5552; Энгельгардт Н. Очерк истории русской цензуры в связи с развитием печати (1703-1903). СПб., 1904; То же [Электронный ресурс]. URL:http://opentextnn.ru/category/censorship/russia-until-1917/library/nikolaj-jengelgardt-ocherk-istorii-russkoj-cenzury-v-svjazi-s-razvitiem-pechati-1703-1903/.
Based on the Presidential Library’s materials:
Полное собрание законов Российской империи, с 1649 года. СПб., 1830. Т. 28. № 21388;
Скабичевский А. М. Очерки истории русской цензуры: 1700-1863 г. СПб., 1892.