In the article it is considered the functioning of Steppe region’s governmental police officials in the end of XIX – beginning of XX centuries. There are considered new archive data for officials of police apparatus of district and regional centers of Steppe general governorship. According to the Steppe’s regulations of 1891 police power were concentrated at the district heads, their assistants, grabs and other officials of colonial power apparatus. On the whole, evolution of administrative government in Kazakh steppe mostly depended on the officials of military and police departments, the central role of which was acted by district heads and their assistants who had both police and civil functions. The purpose of the article is to show the peculiarity of Steppe region’s police apparatus officials functioning during the studied period.
In the end of XIX century according to the Steppe’s regulations of 1891 police department officials had an important role in the administrative apparatus of Steppe’s general governorship.
District heads, oral translators and postman of the district heads’ office, officials of gendarmerie department who form the states of police officials of Steppe’s region administrative colonial government are of special interest. The main burden of police functioning was at district heads and their assistants in local places. Their biographical data can be studied by service records, in the reports of district heads to governors, in the orders of steppe general governors and military governors of regions as well as requests of steppe general governors to increase the state to the Ministry of Internal affairs of Russian Empire.
By our sight, Steppe’s region police officials functioning study by official clerical work papers is actual problem today as the origins of police apparatus formation start in the end of XIX century when the states of Steppe general governorship police department were formed.
During the last period of time the problem of formation and functioning of officialdom in XIX–XX centuries in the territory of Kazakhstan is paid a lot of attention. Most scientific works are devoted to officials functioning of Orenburg region, Turgay region, Turkestan general governorship, less attention is paid to officials of administrative apparatus of Steppe general governorship. Researchers of Kazakhstan study the history of military governors, regional governors, aul heads institutions.
Today in modern Kazakhstan’s historiography great attention is paid to the theme of status and functioning of Steppe’s region administrative apparatus officials. Kazakhstan researchers study the institutions of XIX–XX centuries colonial systems starting with the lowest level as volost governors and aul heads and finishing with the highest level of colonial administrative hierarchy as Orenburg, West Siberian, Turkestan and Steppe general governors. There are some scientific works and publications devoted to this theme. As we can see, the problem of formation and functioning of officialdom has just come to the view of Kazakhstan researchers and requires further study.
The book of special interest for us is monograph of Z. Dzhampeisova «Kazakh society and right in post-reform steppe» where one of the part is devoted to the problem of volost governors and aul heads role in the structure of local power [1; 188–201].
Talking about social status and functioning of volost governors this theme is continued by G.K. Kaliyeva. She notices that the highest level of Russian colonial system in Kazakhstan was represented by officials of mother country as they are called — from general governors to district heads, the lowest level of administration — volost governors and aul heads who were chosen from the representatives of aborigines [2; 17, 18].
One article of famous native historian G.T. Musabalina requires much attention. In the article the author studies the history of military governorship institutions evolution in West Siberian and later Steppe general governments [3]. In the article it is defined the role, rights and duties of military governors depending on the accepted legislative papers.
The article of G.S. Sultangaliyeva is devoted to source study analysis of service records of Kazakh governors in XIX century in some regions of Kazakhstan [4; 37–42]. As the author notices, service records of Kazakh officials are the important source which let us define social descent, education and role in relations of Kazakh population to central and local power.
The scientific article of S.K. Uderbayeva is devoted to analysis of formation and integration process of Kazakh officials to administrative governmental apparatus of Russian Empire in XIX– beginning of XX centuries [5; 171–175]. It divides formation of administrative governmental top of Kazakh society to four periods.
In the article of A.Z. Kairalapina much interest is devoted to the role of district governorship in Kazakh steppe [6; 17–21]. It analyses functions, rights and duties of district heads according to administrative legislative regulations of tsarism in the territory of Kazakhstan. As a legislative paper there is one instruction of military governor of Turgay region A.K. Geins. Having studied record cards of district heads of Turgay region separately, A.Z. Kairalapina defined social structure and gives their biographies. In scientific publication there are noticed following district heads as N.M. Krasnokutskiy, I.I. Shlitter, P.I. Sungurov, Sukhin, A. Lazaryev, T. Seidalin, S.A. Ludwig. This is the only study which by implication combines both civil and public functions as well as skin-deep there can be seen functional duties of district heads.
As we can see from the analyzed literature today no one of the Kazakhstan researchers did not study the problem of Russian colonial apparatus police officials functioning.
In Soviet period theme of formation and functioning of police governmental apparatus was not considered. It is explained with the fact that because of ideological thoughts in the view of historian Marxists officials of police states were «defenders of tsar autocracy».
Source basis of study is represented by archive papers and materials saved in the funds of State Archive of Russian Federation, Central state archive of Kazakhstan Republic and periodical press of prerevolutionary period. On the whole, this is written source among clerical work papers: official correspondence between steppe general governor and minister of internal affairs of Russia, official orders of steppe general governors and regional military governors, service records of police officers.
Study methodology is based on the principles of historical method and objective character. There are used methods of structural functional analysis, analysis and synthesis. Historical comparing method is widely used.
During social and political process happened in the territory of Kazakhstan, especially national emancipatory process of Kazakh people, formation of revolutionary organizations in Steppe region and strengthening of emigrant policy Russian colonial administration had a purpose to form and increase amount of police states among the number of Russian officials and representatives of aborigine nationality who had wish to serve for colonial power apparatus. During the studied period tsar government and local colonial apparatus gave following functions to police officials as:
- Watch the public order in the region (especially in city);
- Solution of international conflicts among farmers and aborigines;
- Execution of legislative regulations and orders of higher agencies;
- Neutralization of any dissidence and fight with revolutionary ideas of political exiles, former participants of rebellions and activists of national
All the clerical work documentation on the functioning of police states officials of Steppe region can be divided to some groups:
- Orders of steppe general governors and military governors;
- Official correspondence and reports of top officials;
- Service records of police
One of the first clerical work sources can be marked orders of steppe general governors about getting position, grabs, district heads and their assistants. For example, order to nominate lieutenant colonel Melnikov and captain Mikhailov on 25 April 1901, № 32 as assistants of district heads: «With the highest order of military agency from 3 April this year are nominated: grab of Semipalatinsk who is reckoned in army cavalry. Melnikov lieutenant colonel as an assistant of Ustkamenogorsk district head who is left in army cavalry, assistant of Pavlodar district head who is reckoned in army infantry, captain Mikhailov, who has the position of Semipalatinsk grab left in army» [7; 2].
In the analogue order of acted steppe general governor Sannikov about nomination of colonel Troitskiy it is said: «With the highest order of military agency on 31 January 1901 the person acted the position of Akmola district head who is reckoned in army cavalry lieutenant colonel Troitskiy is nominated to the position of acted district head of Kokchetav leaving the army cavalry. I announce that in Steppe general government» [8; 4].
It is necessary to mark specially functioning of Petropavlovsk district head, staff-captain Stein. In his order on12 August 1901 № 65 steppe general-governor N.N. Sukhotin expresses his gratitude to him : «As it is certified by military governor of Akmola region about very energetic functioning, chairman of sanitary commission congress in Petropavlovsk city, Petropavlovsk district head, staff-captain fon Stein, on leadership of the congress, I consider it as my duty to express my gratitude to staff-captain fon Stein» [9; 1].
In another order about reward on 3 October 1901 № 78 it is said that fon Stein was awarded with the order of St,Stanislav of 2 degree and police officer with Christmas order of St.Anna of 3 degree: «The emperor the kindest in the first day of September vouchsafed to make rewards to people named below for their special great work which was called with Chinese events of 1900: to acted of Petropavlovsk district region, staff-captain fon Stein — order of St.Stanislav of 2 degree to impressment from regulations; to police officer of Semipalatinsk, titular councellor Rozhdestvenskiy — order of St. Anna of 3 degree. About such emperor wish I announce in Steppe general governorship» [10; 3].
According to political events happened in Russian Empire in the beginning of XX century there has appeared a problem of increasing the amount of police officers states in the territory of Steppe region. Hence, we can define the second group of clerical work papers as official correspondence of the highest officials.
At first we would like to observe the official letter of steppe general governor, general lieutenant Sukhotin «About increasing additional staff to organize supervision in Akmola and Semipalatinsk regions» which was addressed to the Ministry of Internal affairs on 5 May 1903. In his letter he divides marginal elements of Omsk city to some groups. He writes: «Omsk city is overfilled with: а) people of political unreliability, b) refuses from all the Russia who because of construction of Siberian railroad are tended to easy and criminal profit in the cities which are not provided with enough police staff, c) exiled and their descendants, and finally, d) semi-barbarian nomads who mostly temporary visit the city because of their needs and permanently live in the city as dzhataks…» [11; 2].
Further, he writes about unsatisfactory work on supervision after unreliable people in Omsk and shows relation of citizens amount to unreliable and officers of city gendarmerie agency: «Especially for outdoor police it is difficult to supervise after politically unreliable people who are under secret supervision of police. We should admit this supervision unsatisfactory enough in Omsk city because at population 53 thousand people, at so many educative institutions and at 42 people who are under the secret supervision of police in this city there are only two gendarmerie officers as the head of agency and his adjutant who are unable to organize supervision to their full capacity and that is why increasing of Omsk gendarmerie staff is necessary as the competence of this agency has one very important point as Petropavlovsk city which is in worse conditions than Omsk city about public safety and calm».
As we can notice from the letter of general governor N.N. Sukhotin position of police state was very difficult and it was necessary to increase the amount of staff in gendarmerie agency of Akmola district in Steppe region. To do this it was necessary to provide finance and prepare necessary amount of gendarmes. The letter of N.N. Sukhotin was a signal for routine correspondence of tsar bureaucratic apparatus starting with heads of gendarmerie corps, Ministry of Internal affairs and finishing with the Ministry of finance. This problem was also discussed in the meeting of State council members.
In his report № 81 «About strengthening the staff of Omsk Gendarmerie Agency» minister of internal affairs V.K. Pleve on 11 August 1903 said following: «Considering that Steppe general governorship is formed by Akmola and Semipalatinsk regions and that the staff of Named above Gendarmerie Agency is limited with only 1 head of Agency, 1 adjutant and 7 non-commissioned officers 2 of which are in Petropavlovsk I have to admit that named amount is not enough to supervise in two named regions. That is why sharing the offers of general governor I suppose it corresponding to add to the staff of Omsk Gendarmerie Agency 2 assistants of Agency’s head, 2 sergeants and 8 non-commissioned officers increasing the total staff of additional state of Gendarmerie Agency for necessary amount.
Offers of Secretary of State V.K. Pleve were satisfied and were corresponding to the period of time as amount of crimes increased not only in Steppe general governorship but alsi in all the territory of Russian Empire on the threshold of first Russian revolution and Russian Japanese war which led to political crisis of tsar power.
In his report V.K. Pleve summarizes following: «This action requires new expenses of treasury on the estimate of Military Ministry: one time 798 rubles 60 coins and annually 10 193 rubles 5 coins. I cannot see any obstacles from Military Minister, Finance and Juridical Ministers to organize it» [12; 15].
Service records of police officials are of special interest also. As it is known service records consist of few columns and the information is very poor but they give us short information about appearance, social status, position, salary scale, education of the lowest officials and employees of administrative police apparatus still saved. One of the archive paper attracted our attention called «Short list of Oral Translator Service of the Pavlodar District Office head’s Svetashov Dmitriy Adrianovich» composed on 16 October 1914» where he is awarded with police nomination by Pavlodar district head.
There is following information about D.A. Svetashov As it is seen from the service record he was a translator of Pavlodar District head office and was not on the permanent staff since 5 June 1913. He does not have any rank. He is in the state service since 16 October 1912, was not attracted to cognizance. Based on 295 of the volume III of Regulations about service on the right of Government with the Highest decree on 5 October 1906 he is nominated to rank [13; 5].
Also it is interesting to observe service record of acted postman of Pavlodar district head office provincial secretary Mikhail Sergeevich Chernov made on 16 October 1914. M.S. Chernov was born on 10 November 1888, religion is Christianity, single. He gets annual salary: livelihood 533 r. 33 c., diner money 266 r. 662 c. Totally 800 r. Talking about social status and property of Chernov M.S. he was bourgeois from Zaisan city and had family estate [14; 13].
He graduated Zaisan 3 classes city college. With the act of vice governor of Semipalatinsk region on 8 May 1906 № 10 he was nominated to position of office attendant to District congress of Zaisan district’s peasant heads.
On the whole, we can follow all the carrier growth of acted official M.S. Chernov On 6 April 1908 with the highest act № 22 he was nominated to position of Manraksk volost clerk. On 23 February 1909 with the order № 2 for long service he was nominated to collegiate registrar to seniority on 8 May 1908. Later, with the order on 27 February 1912 № 10 for long service he was nominated to position of governor secretary to seniority on 8 May 1911.
With the act of vice governor on 2 August 1913 № 34 he was transferred to Semipalatinsk regional governorship. With the order of Semipalatinsk governor on 19 September 1913 № 200 he was nominated as temporary acted postman of Pavlodar district head office [15; 14].
We should specially mark the service of Kazakh nationality representatives in police departments. Information about them is obviously very poor, there is information about them in orders of steppe and military governors about rewards, hiring and firing of Kazakh employees.
One of the first can be marked clerical worker of Omsk city police department of sultan Madalkhan Ablaykhanov who served for several decades in named above organization (Akmola regional register; № 24, 1901).
In orders we can meet also names of such employees of city police department as Bolatbek Tleukin and Dzhusup Satybaldin [16; 4].
Also there are well-known warders of Atbasar district department as Suyunduk Argynbayev awarded in the order of Steppe general governor with robe of 3 class [17; 3].
As it is seen from data of clerical work papers we can get much interesting information about service of police officers of administrative apparatus in Steppe region. As it was marked above, all the burden of police officer work was at district heads and their subordinates. As a result of started migrant policy of tsarism in the second part of XIX century, especially after land reform of prime-minister P.A. Stolypin, huge mass of peasants started to arrive to Steppe land from central governorships of Russian Empire.
Many district heads hardly managed to the peasants moving to the territory of Kazakhstan. They had to solve many routine problems, for example, non-payment of taxes by peasants. So, district head of Kokchetav district A. Soloviyev in the letter to Akmola governor Losevskiy V.S. on 24 October 1907 wrote following:
«My assistant, collegiate councilor Vinogradov who made collecting of tribute tax arrears and territorial duty which was saved for years at peasants of village Preobrazhenskoye in amount of 12 thousand rubles showed local peasant from the village Preobrazhenskoye Peter Klokov who came to him first to village department and announced in a rude form that peasants do not have anything to pay duties and if to talk about property it will hardly be possible to take it and he will be first who is not going to give his cattle. My assistant who considered such behavior of peasant Klokov in presence of volost and local officials and some part of village society as either harmful and not safe immediately ordered to adjust to him point 21 of regulations about state security. My resolution on 10 October this year about imprisonment of Klokov on the basis of the law was sanctioned by Your Excellency on 14 October» [18; 1].
Further, in the letter Kokchetav district head writes in conclusion: «Aimimg that all the arrears of peasants in the village Preobrazhenskoye were not possible to take (it was taken by Vinogradov only 3 652 rubles 35 coins) because of unharvested bread and according to that lack of money at population and considering return of Klokov after a month imprisonment very objectionable in order not to stop taking arrears whch peasnts of the village Preobrazhenskoye promised [to give] this year I ask Your Excellency to deport Klokov outside the Steppe general governorship for the period of operation of regulations about state security. This example will influence very well to other perverse villages» [19; 1].
It can be seen from the letter that the events happen during the first Russian revolution (1905–1907). For this period of time peasants rebellions, agitations and refuse of paying duties were very typical. Administration of Steppe general governorship tried to stop and fight inveterate spiteful non-payers of taxes with all the ways.
Thus, as we can see, archive clerical papers are of much value for us. With these papers it is possible to reconstruct biographies of police officials and employees of colonial apparatus in Steppe region. For researchers service records, reports, official correspondence are of big interest as with them we can reconstruct the story of forgotten tsar officials functioning, in this case police officers of administrative apparatus of Steppe general governorship in the end of XIX– beginning of XX centuries.
At the same time it is necessary to notice that status of police officers and their functioning in the territory of Steppe region was not the subject of special research among Kazakhstan historians. This article is one of the first attempt to observe the history of formation and functioning of police apparatus of Steppe region on the materials of official clerical papers.
Also it should be said that the role of district heads in the studied period is different with its originality. He was given both police and civil functions. Most of the time they paid attention to accomplishment of Russian peasants-migrants, public city deals and only in the final accomplishment of Kazakh auls. It was often that for assistance in organization some event they were awarded with gratitude or gift from the higher official.
Thus, especially employees of police states consisting of gendarmes, city district police officer, employees of regional department, district heads and their assistants were guardians of order in Steppe region. They were entrusted with special hopes to keep peace and stability, order in the region, especially in the period of first Russian revolution (1905–1907) and first world war (1914–1918).
References
- Dzhampeisova Kazakh society and right in post-reform steppe, Astana: Dike-press, 2006, р. 269.
- Kaliyeva K. Vestnik Karaganda State University. Series. History, Philosophy, 2010, 3 (59), р. 17–21.
- Musabalina G.T. Military governors of steppe regions in the hierarchy of power structures of Russian Empire in the second part of 19 century, [ER]. Access mode: http://sibistorik.narod.ru/project/conf2011/mussabalina-gt.htm# [10.06.2014]
- Sultangaliyeva S. Vestnik Kazakh National University. Series of history, 2010, 4 (67), p. 37–42.
- Uderbayeva S.K. Reports of Scientific Academy of Kazakhstan Republic, 2014, 3, p. 171–175.
- Kairalapina A.Z. Vestnik of Eurasian Humanitarian Institute, 2009, 3, p. 17–21.
- Akmola regional lists, 2 May, 1901, 18, 8
- Akmola regional lists, 7 March, 1901, 10, 8
- Akmola regional lists, 15 August, 1901, 33, 8
- Akmola regional lists, 10 October, 1901, 40, 8
- State Archive of Russian Federation.F.110, L.3, D.2706, p.
- State Archive of Russian Federation. F.110, L.3, D.2706, p.
- State Archive of Russian Federation. F. 15, L.3, D.9, p.
- State Archive of Russian Federation. F. 15, L.3, D.9, p.
- State Archive of Russian Federation. F. 15, L.3, D.9, p.
- Akmola regional lists, 13 June, 1901, 24, 8
- Akmola regional lists, 20 June, 1901, 25, 8
- Akmola regional lists, 4 July, 1901, 27, 8
- Central State Archive of Kazakhstan Republic. F. 64, D. 528, p.