The Stolypin agrarian reform has become a logical effort to eliminate the problems identified by the 1905-1907 revolution. There were several attempts to solve the agrarian question before 1906. But they all boiled down either to seizing land from the landlords and endowing it with peasants, or to using nationalized lands for these purposes.
P. A. Stolypin, not without reason, decided that the landowners and wealthy peasants were the only support of the monarchy. The seizure of landowner lands meant undermining the authority of the emperor and, as a consequence, the possibility of another revolution.
To maintain tsarist power, Peter Stolypin announced in August 1906 a government program that proposed a series of reforms regarding freedom of religion, equality, police regulations, local government, the peasant question, and education. But of all the proposed incarnations, only the Stolypin agrarian reform found embodiment. Its purpose was to destroy the communal system and endow the peasants with land. The peasant was to become the owner of the land, which previously belonged to the community. There were two ways to determine the allotment:
- If the communal lands were not redistributed over the past twenty-four years, then every peasant could at any time claim his allotment for personal ownership.
- If there was such a redistribution, then the land that was last processed went into land ownership.
In addition, the peasants had the opportunity to buy land on credit at low mortgage rates. For these purposes, a peasant credit bank was created. The sale of land allotments made it possible to concentrate significant areas in the hands of the most interested and able-bodied peasants.
On the other hand, those who did not have sufficient funds to buy land, the Stolypin agrarian reform was supposed to be relocated to free territories where there were uncultivated state lands - to the Far East, Siberia, Central Asia, and the Caucasus. Migrants were provided with a number of benefits, including a five-year tax exemption, low cost of train tickets, forgiveness of arrears, a loan in the amount of 100 - 400 rubles without interest.
Stolypin agrarian reform, in its essence, put the peasants in a market economy, where their prosperity depended on how they were able to manage their property. It was assumed that in their areas they will work more efficiently, causing the flourishing of agriculture. Many of them sold land, and left for the city to earn money, which led to an influx of labor. Others emigrated abroad in search of better living conditions.
The Stolypin agrarian reform and its results did not meet the expectations of Prime Minister P. A. Stolypin and the Russian government. In total, less than one third of the peasant households left the community during its holding. The reason for this was that the reform did not take into account the patriarchal way of life of the peasants, their fear of independent activity, and the inability to manage without community support. Over the years, everyone has become accustomed to the fact that the community takes responsibility for each of its members.
But, nevertheless, the Stolypin agrarian reform also had positive results:
- The foundation of private ownership of land was laid.
- The productivity of peasant land has grown.
- Demand for the agricultural industry increased.
- The labor market has grown .