Русские в Царстве Польском во второй половине XIX в. и начале XX в.
Russians in the Polish Kingdom in the second half of the 19th century and the early 20th century

Summary/Abstract: This article describes certain aspects of the lifetimes of Russian-origin officials and militaries in the Polish Kingdom after the suppression of the January Uprising. Constant inflow of Russians and increase of their participation in social, economic, cultural and political life of the Polish Kingdom was an effect of the political aspirations and the fears of war of the imperial authorities (the threats of war, plans of the integration of the west borderland with the Russian Empire). Russians stood out in the society of the Polish lands not only because of their rights and privileges, but also due to their demographic potential. In the years 1862–1897 the number of the Russian officials has increased from few hundreds to 11,5 thousands, and the number of Russian soldiers of the District of Warsaw has increased by 250 % (from 107 750 soldiers to 253 229), when in the same time the number of the inhabitants of the Polish Kingdom has increased only by 50 % (from 6 million to 9 million). Life in the western borderland was often disappointing to Russians. Place, time and conditions in which Russians official have been working, were classified by modern researchers as particularly burdensome, hard and almost harmful for physical and mental health. But Russian officials and militaries were trying to create their own culture, with different results. Russian colonies were able to create such rich and various cultural life, that its forms were attractive not only for Russians but also for Polish society. In the Polish society, Russian officials were identified as «russification activists». Russian political police, assessing the influence of Russians on the situation of the Polish Kingdom, was convinced that permanent inflow of Russians and increasing number of Russian-origin inhabitants of the Polish Kingdom will guarantee the success of the russification and will bring Poles to the end of their fight for national and political freedom.

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