Zemsky reform of 1864 became one of the "Great Reforms" of Alexander II. Its implementation was not marked by success; moreover, it was one of the most unsuccessful liberal reforms of that time. However, the importance of introducing local self-government in the Russian Empire cannot be underestimated.
Background and reasons for the introduction
The “Regulation on Provincial and County Zemstvo Institutions” became one of several reforms that went into Russian historiography under the name of the Great. This is the name of the complex of measures adopted during the reign of Emperor Alexander II in the sixties and seventies of the nineteenth century. In the course of large-scale liberal reforms, serfdom was abolished, military settlements were abolished, the judicial system, the system of higher and secondary education were completely changed, economic transformations were carried out, and so on.
In any case, gradual changes required a reform of the management system. It was necessary to better and faster self-government. Prior to this, all the provinces were subordinate to the central government, orders reached the local authorities for a very long time, often even changing. All this led to wrong decisions on the ground.
History of the creation and implementation of reform
The preparation of the “Regulation on Provincial and County Zemstvo Institutions” began five years before the introduction of the reform. At the same time, the preparation of another document was under way, which had a significant impact on the course of Russian history - the peasant reform of 1861, which provided for the abolition of serfdom in Russia.
The leader in the government’s activities in preparing the reform provisions was N. A. Milyutin, a well-known statesman, secret adviser to the tsar of the Russian Empire, the developer, including peasant reform, and the state secretary of Poland. The main principles of the future package of laws, he singled out omniscience, free elections, self-government in some issues (according to local needs). This was highlighted even before the resignation of Milyutin in 1861.
Then work on the project was continued by a longtime opponent of Milyutin, P. A. Valuev, the new Minister of the Interior of the Russian Empire. Pyotr Aleksandrovich was forced to take into account the achievements of his predecessor regarding the Zemstvo reform of 1864.
The idea of the "Regulation on Zemstvo institutions"
The main idea of introducing the Zemstvo reform was to give real power into the hands of those who knew much better the realities of a particular region of the Russian Empire than officials appointed by the central government. It was clear that the programs and decrees followed by the officials sent could not help in the development of the region, because they were far from the real situation.
Key Points of the 1864 Reform
According to large-scale liberal reform dating back to 1864, new governing bodies were created, namely Zemstvo assemblies and councils, which included the local population. Along with the Zemstvo reform, a city reform was prepared. As a result of the implementation of the reforms, they actually created a new system of local self-government.
The subjects of the department and the limits of power of zemstvo institutions included issues of healthcare, road construction, veterinary medicine, education, organization of statistical accounting, agronomy, and local economy. Zemsky assemblies possessed a certain authority and independence (exclusively within their competence). These local authorities were under the leadership of the governors, so they had absolutely no political power.
The adopted electoral system provided in the zemstvos the overwhelming majority of representatives of the nobility. The elections to local self-government were unequal and multi-stage, with a complex system inaccessible to all classes.
Local government formation
The position adopted by the government provided for the creation of zemstvos in thirty-four provinces of Russia. The reform did not extend to the Orenburg, Arkhangelsk, Astrakhan provinces , Siberia, and also to the national suburbs - the Baltic states, Poland, Central Asia, the Caucasus, and Kazakhstan. In 1911-1913, zemstvos were created in nine more provinces of the Russian Empire.
According to the provisions of the reform, Zemstvo institutions were created in the province and county. As for the principle of electivity, it was observed as follows: every four years, from fourteen to a hundred or more deputies ("vowels") were elected. Elections were held in parts - estates. The first part consisted of peasants who owned land allotment or other property worth fifteen thousand rubles, and whose annual income ranged from six thousand rubles. The second part - the townspeople, the third - representatives of rural communities. A special property qualification was not required only for the latter category.
Zemsky assembly
The procedure for the Zemstvo institutions was as follows: at least once a year meetings were held at which the necessary issues were resolved. Meetings could be held more often if necessary. The order on the meeting of members of the zemstvo council was given by the governor. Meetings resolved, as a rule, exclusively economic issues; they did not have executive power. The responsibility of the Zemstvo institutions extended, as mentioned above, to the construction of schools and hospitals, the provision of public food, the hiring of doctors, the installation of a sanitary unit in villages, the care of the development of livestock and poultry farming, and the maintenance of communication routes. The actions of the zemstvos in these areas were controlled by the Minister of the Interior and the governors.
Key Reform Issues
The composition of zemstvo institutions (on paper) was elective. But in addition to the complex election system, which provided the majority of seats in zemstvos to representatives of the nobility, there were other, rather significant problems of the "Regulation on Provincial and County Zemstvo Institutions." The organization of a zemstvo was not provided for representatives of all classes, so no one thought to listen to the needs of the local population.
In addition, there was no general all-Russian institution that monitors and coordinates the work of zemstvos. The government was afraid that the zemstvos, if they were connected with each other, would want even more liberalization, which would already threaten the weakening of the central, tsarist government in the Russian Empire. Thus, the Zemstvos supported the idea of autocracy, but this made the new system vulnerable.
Under Alexander III, the “Regulation on Provincial and County Zemstvo Institutions” was revised, but already in 1890 the rights of these local governments were significantly limited.
The results of the implementation of the Zemstvo reform
Zemsky reform organized a new institution of self-government in Russia, promoted the development of beautification in settlements, and introduced the completely disempowered peasantry to public life. The Zemstvo worker described by Anton Pavlovich Chekhov in literary works became the personification of the best features of the Russian intelligentsia.
But the Zemstvo reform went down in history as one of the most unsuccessful for the entire reign of Alexander II. The actions of the central apparatus were extremely poorly thought out. The central government and local officials did not want to share power, so the Zemstvos solved only a limited range of issues, which was not enough for a full-fledged work. Local governments also could not discuss the decisions of state authorities, otherwise the situation could even lead to the dissolution of the Duma.
Despite many problems, self-government reform gave impetus to further self-development, so its importance for the Russian Empire cannot be underestimated.