Unique materials on abolition of serfdom in the spotlight of a webinar in the Presidential Library

The Presidential Library held a webinar, which was focused on the Russian State Historical Archive’s 577 fonds. It contains documents relating to the activities of the Main Redemption Institution of the Ministry of Finance of the Russian Empire - a special body that existed in 1861–1895 and was associated with the introduction of the Emancipation Reform in our country.

On February 19, 1861 Emperor Alexander II signed the Emancipation Manifesto. “The General Statute concerning Peasants Leaving Serf Dependence” and a number of additional regulations were also adopted. Basically, they dealt with three issues: personal liberation of peasants, land allotment and the regulation of redemption transaction between a landowner and a commune. The government provided long-term loans with a 6% annual interest for 49 years. Redemption payments were completely abolished in accordance with the manifesto of Nicholas II of January 1, 1907.

The Russian State Historical Archive’s 577 fonds contains the following documents: redemption acts, statutes, correspondence and statistics materials. In total, there are roughly 90,000 files grouped according to governorates, in which the reform was carried out. Each set of records contains from 25 to 100 pages.

Acquisitions from the Russian State Historical Archive make up a significant part of the Presidential Library’s electronic collections - more than 280,000 items out of the total number of 770,000. These unique documents are available for study in the centers of remote access to the resources of the Presidential Library, which are open in 85 regions of Russia and in 30 foreign countries. There are about 900 centers in all.

There are a lot of materials of the Russian State Historical Archive highlighting the phenomenon of serfdom and the process of its abolition, which are available in the Presidential Library’s electronic collections. They include “The Papers of the Main Committee on Rural Affairs”, which cast light on the very first steps taken by the Russian government shortly after the abolition of serfdom in February 1861.

It is worth noting that the need for urgent reform was well understood in Russia throughout the first half of the 19th century. But it was Alexander II who succeeded in introducing it. A drafting committee chaired by Ya. I. Rostovtsev was convened in 1859 to draft the corresponding reform. In the electronic collections of the Presidential Library you may find his note "on obligated peasants and a document containing requests of various landowners." There are also electronic copies of the inventory of archives of the Secret and Main Committees on Peasant Affairs.

The collected edition of Imperial Resolutions (The Russian State Historical Archive’s 1161 fonds) may attract interest on the part of researchers. It includes a variety of orders of Emperor Alexander II regarding the reform, for example, the one on appointment of Grand Duke Konstantin Nikolayevich as chairman of the Committee on Peasant Affairs.

The Presidential Library provides access to the study of historian Pyotr Struve on the system of legal relations between a peasant and landowner, and an unusual book with illustrations entitled "Serfdom and Liberation of Peasants" (1911) by children's writer Maria Klokova.

Some books and articles (such as A. Ya. Polenov’s essay  “On Abolition of Serfdom in Russia” (1865), and “Materials on History of Liberation of Peasants in Russia during the Reign of Emperor Alexander II” published in Berlin) came out during the introduction of the reform, while others were published later.

In the early 20th century the Emancipation Reform was again in the spotlight of literature partly due to the final abolition of redemption payments and introduction of the Stolypin agrarian reform. “The Fall of Serfdom in Russia” (1882) by economist I. I. Ivanyukov, essays  “The Fall of Serfdom” (1911) by T. P. Sokratova and “On the Origin and Fall of Serfdom in Russia” (1904 ) by S. A. Knyazkov along with many others were published during that time.

Neither was this issue neglected in Soviet historiography. You may study “The Abolition of Serfdom in Russia” (1939) written by historian A. L. Freiman.

Finally, the latest historical and source studies of the Emancipation Reform are available as part of the collected works “150 Years since the Abolition of Serfdom in Russia” edited by S. G. Kashchenko.

Sergey Kashchenko, Head of the Department of Source Studies of Russian History at St. Petersburg State University, Ph D in History, took part in the webinar. He highlighted the significance of 577 Fonds’ materials for studying the process and results of the Emancipation Reform in regions of Russia, and also such issues as demography and statistics.

Centers of remote access to the resources of the Presidential Library in Russia and abroad took part in the webinar. The Ural Federal University named after the first President of Russia B. N. Yeltsin joined the event via videoconferencing.

The Russian State Historical Archive’s 577 fonds is the basic source of all modern studies regarding the Emancipation Reform of 1861, which had a powerful influence on the development of our country. The Presidential Library gives specialists a unique opportunity to quickly find an electronic copy of the necessary document among thousands of others.