Administrative reform (January-March, 1882)
Administrative reform: Veche, Zemstvo, and Duma]
As the Emperor Alexander III likes, he launches his important reforms at the beginning of the year after periods of preparation. The Ministry of the Interior under Mikhail T. Loris-Melikov under Emperor Alexander III, launches the Consultative Reform or the Administrative Reform of 1882, which transforms the administration of the Russian Empire at the national level.
An administration that adds three levels (there were no changes in the governors or governorates as such): Veche-Duma, Zemstvo, and State Duma.
At the first level, the self-government of the city is divided into two, on the one hand there is the Veche (вече, from the Old Slavic 'council') and the Provincial Duma or City Duma (дума, from думать or 'Dumat' which relates to thinking or considering).
El Veche is for urban centers or population centers with city status, but the Provincial Duma, as its name suggests, is only for cities that are the administrative capital of a province.
The main function of these two institutions is the election of local representatives for a period of four years.
To vote in the Veche or the Provincial Duma one has to fulfill the following conditions.
* Be a male subject of the Russian Empire.
* Be over 21 years old.
*Property owner.
* No arrears in payment of taxes.
The Veche and / or the Provincial Duma receive certain powers, as long as the government of the Russian Empire (the central-national government of the emperor) does not oppose or have its own projects.
* Management of the economy and city administration.
* Collection of data and statistics relevant to the state.
*Tax collection.
* Inform the central government (and / or the provincial Duma in case of being a Veche) about reports, activities, etc.
* Supply and care of food for the population (if necessary).
* Supply and care of the fire service.
* Supply and care of the city's medicine service.
* Supply and care of local credit institutions.
* External and infrastructure improvements relevant to the city.
** Care and protection of buildings, monuments and historical sites (so an 'upgrade' has to take this into account).
* Care and protection of local fauna and flora.
The second level was the County Zemstvo and the provincial Zemstvo. Institutions that already existed, established by Tsar Alexander II but Tsar Alexander III the Zemstvos were introduced to all the provinces of the Russian Empire and the Grand Duchy of Finland (some Zemstvos more closely watched than others ...).
In essence the qualities of the Zemstvo did not change, only that this form of self-government spread from Russian Poland to Alyáska (in short, any part of the Russian Empire admitted as such).
The following powers were delegated to the Zemstvos, provided that the Russian state did not decide to intervene:
* Surveillance and care of local economic affairs.
* Construction and maintenance of infrastructure: roads, schools, hospitals, grain and seed warehouses, postal buildings, communication lines, health organization, buildings for firefighters. In short, what helps to improve the quality of life of the population.
* Protection of historical sites and monuments.
* Protection of the local fauna and flora.
* Hiring of medical, educational, and labor personnel for work related to Zemstvo projects.
* Statistics and data collection at the local level.
* Work on collecting taxes.
* Surveillance and / or administration of local mutual insurance.
Of course the central state, concentrated in Emperor Alexander III, would still retain the most important powers, foreign and domestic policy at the national level, control over the armed forces, control over the ministries, control over the minting of coins (and also preventing them from the Zemstvos and Veches took too many loans that they could not pay later), control over education programs, etc.
In essence the Autocracy as such had not moved, but Tsar Alexander III adopted the formation of a purely advisory body. The State Duma.
The State Duma would be conformed by 30 members (that the emperor could increase or decrease later) chosen by the central government from among recommendations of the Zemstvos and provincial Dumas.
Said State Duma would be divided into two commissions, an administrative commission and an economic commission, with which Emperor Alexander III was willing to discuss bills, although the emperor himself retained the right of legislative initiative, and the final word.
It was not a constitutional limitation on autocracy in any sense, but it encouraged people to cooperate with the government that was still important.
The reform was received in a mixed way, most of the population (the peasantry, middle class, etc.) probably did not care so much or it seemed positive because it was an order of Tsar Alexander III (in a considerably popular point).
The most extreme liberals and reformers, and revolutionaries in general, viewed the reform negatively, because it was not a constitutional or political reform at all. The autocracy, and more importantly, the autocrat, were still there.
Conservatives and nationalists had mixed opinions, some like the jurist Konstantin Petrovich Pobedonostsev were against such reform.
But Slavic and nationalist views could still support such a reform, because it found its roots in ancient Slavic institutions. The Veche for example (not very important in Moscow but in Novgorod for example) and even the Duma (the Boyar Duma in the case of Moscow was more important).
Furthermore, undoubtedly most of the institutions would be occupied by Russians or Orthodox citizens of the Empire and Jewish participation was still legally limited. The 'problem' was the Catholic regions of the Empire, but the Okhrana, police forces and the army were still a matter of the central state and kept an eye on the 'troublesome' so everything must be fine.
We can say that the reform of Alexander III in the beginning was quite timid, and it was more of a base for future projects.
The overall goal of the reform was the economic growth of the Russian Empire, as well as getting more people into the government (to some extent).
*******
[International soccer matches]
The international teams gathered in Kharkov (which already had the infrastructure for said event, and Arkhangelsk reserved for the fourth edition of the Russian Soccer League) were:
*Russia.
*Germany.
*Italy.
*Bulgaria.
* Romania.
* Serbia.
*Greece.
* Montenegro.
The order of the matches was then decided by lottery.
* Bulgaria vs Serbia: Bulgaria wins 4-1 against the Serbian team.
* Italy vs Romania: Italy wins 2-1 against the Romanian team.
* Russia vs Montenegro: Russia beats the Montenegrin team 3-0.
* Germany vs Greece: Germany beats the Greek team 1-0.
The next matches are:
* Bulgaria against Italy.
* Russia against Germany.
The first international event of its kind is notable in newspapers, especially in Russia and other regions with a taste for football.
It also serves to promote soccer and good relations with the participating nations, tourism, and the sale of some souvenirs.
*******
[The first Russian flight?]
Emperor Alexander III had met with Rear Admiral Alexander Fedorovich Mozhaisky and Nikolai Ivanovich Kibalchich, of course accompanied by a series of guards who kept Kibalchich under surveillance.
"Very good. So this is the first test with the Kibalchich engine, right?" Emperor Alexander III asks cautiously.
"Yes, we had to improve some ... bugs, Kibalchich's design." Mozhaisky explains carefully. The Mozhaisky aircraft was a monoplane that featured many of the elements of a modern aircraft, a glider that includes a wing, fuselage and empennage, landing gear, control wiring, and an engine.
"Let's start the tests then." The emperor accepts.
The first full flight attempt of the Mozhaisky plane was a failure, the plane lifted for a few moments gargling Rear Admiral Mozhaisky before crashing. Not generating damage to man or causing irreparable damage to the aircraft model.
It was still a considerable achievement that it was at least for a few seconds.
*******
Kibalchich seemed calm. "Am I going to be executed for this?"
"We can't say yet if the plane failed for external or internal reasons, you will live another day at least." Mozhaisky responds, waiting for a word from the Tsar who, together with the scientists, was inspecting the remains and information obtained in the short test.
"This does not seem to me to be enough of a reason to be discouraged. I will grant funding for further tests and future attempts." Tsar Alexander III mentions sure, certainly exciting news for Mozhaisky.
Tsar Alexander III's investment in aviation projects attracted the attention of an acquaintance of his, Konstantin Eduardovich Tsiolkovsky would join the 'aviation team' of the Russian Empire. Made up of a rear admiral, an ex-revolutionary and a professor.
In turn, the introduction of Tsiolkovsky and tsarist money would lead to the creation of the first wind tunnel of the Russian Empire, dedicated to aeronautics (until now similar devices had only been used in the Russian Empire for tests with bullets and weapons).
The race to conquer the skies continued.
*******
[International]
On January 5, King William IV finally passes away, leaving behind a state in debt and in decline, but even more important is the issue of the succession and republican-liberal disturbances that take place in the country.
The successor of William IV, by the law of the Netherlands, is the younger brother of William IV, that is, the Grand Duke of Luxembourg of the German Empire, Willem Alexander Karel Hendrik Frederik. Although there are theoretically other relatives, the law did not change during William III and William IV, and Willem Alexander is the rightful heir.
This triggers concerns at the international level because France refuses this type of union between Germany and the Netherlands, while on the other hand Bismarck's Germany supports the sending of the king but with the German army to reestablish order due to the Republican problems (similar to how Russia reestablished order in Hungary in 1848).
While Queen Victoria is not against the Germans, there are problems due to the possibility of a threat to Belgium and general French discontent with the idea. For this reason, the English began the attempts to coordinate a diplomatic summit to solve the succession problems of the Netherlands, but the discussion extends to February and in March there are more problems for the United Kingdom.
London's first public coal-fired power station opens on January 12.
February 3, although there is opposition from the English public, P. T. Barnum acquires Jumbo the Elephant to make circus travel in the U.S.
On March 3, Empress Victoria of the United Kingdom is assassinated by the Scottish 'poet' Roderick Maclean through a pistol, while the Queen was on the Winsdor estate.
A news that obviously shakes the United Kingdom and Europe to a certain extent, carrying out a derailment of part of the diplomatic discussions regarding the Netherlands.
On March 18, the Principalities of Serbia and Bulgaria become, respectively, the Kingdom of Serbia and the Tsardom of Bulgaria.
On March 22, Congress officially banned polygamy.
Heinrich Hermann Robert Koch on March 24 announces the discovery of the bacteria responsible for the generation of tuberculosis (Mycobacterium tuberculosis).
On March 28 certain events occur in the Second French Empire, on the one hand the Emperor Napoleon IV in an attempt to win some support from the lower classes makes public education free and compulsory. However within the French state education still has notable clerical and nationalist (irredentist) elements directed against Germans (and to a lesser extent Italians).
The French also reject Russian participation in the investigation of the case against Eliezer Ben-Yehuda, a Jew of Russian origin, causing to some degree outrage among the Jewish community and some nationalists, as the Russian authorities insist that (probably) Eliezer he is innocent of charges of espionage or rebellion.
In addition, the negotiations for a marriage between Napoleon IV and Princess Beatrice (youngest daughter of the late Queen Victoria) deepen.
Also around this time, problems begin to occur in the Joseon dynasty regarding the climate, which could cause problems in the industrializing agricultural-rural areas (and the Korean administration is also a problem in dealing with this).
The Russian authorities urge King Gojong and Queen Min to take action to avoid problems, for example by firing incompetent officials, collaborating with Russia and Russian-trained Korean officials, etc.
However, the Koreans are slow to respond, which will obviously cause problems in the future.
*******
*[New crisis in Luxembourg?]
The death of William IV not only left a somewhat empty treasure and ruined palaces that had to be cleaned, but it had also caused dangerous revolts (liberal-republican) in the main urban and industrial centers of the country.
Given this, a couple of German regiments began to transport the Grand Duke of Luxembourg, Willem Alexander or also 'William V' (to add legitimacy) to the capital to reestablish order and place him on his throne. Also the king supposedly declared the German military presence as a way to maintain order until further notice.
However, Emperor Napoleon IV rejected the idea of such a union fearing the expansion of German influence and domination throughout more parts of Europe. In addition, the French government insisted on the payment of recent debts of William IV in Paris, something more difficult to verify than the debts in London, Berlin and Saint Petersburg, but not improbable.
Britain obviously set out to intervene when German troops were entering the Dutch border, which had stopped Chancellor Bismarck momentarily, but then Queen Victoria's death came and it was more obvious that King Edward VII would not bring favorable results before. Germany.
The German mobilization supporting William V under Dutch law continued under the argument of liberal revolutions so close to the German border they were a danger to the security of the country.
* Perspective of William V, or Willem Alexander.
"Now I am definitely alone in the world. Without father, without mother, without brothers, without wife or children, and my cousins do not live or coexist with me.
My palace will be my prison ... ".
-Letters from William V to some German nobleman.
William V was a tragic figure in a sense, a severe blow early in his life was the death of his mother, and the bad influence his parents' marriage had left on his psyche.
He had led Willem Alexander to find a wife who was compatible with him, but had not had much success. His position as Grand Duke in the German Empire had also separated him from his older brother (they did not always have the best relationship, but they were brothers) who despite visiting Berlin never stopped by Luxembourg.
It should also be taken into account that Willem Alexander began to suffer from mental problems (probably with hereditary origins), which made it even more difficult for him to interact in public and private affairs.
One reason why the German army among their claims is soon a reason to demand a 'regency' (pro-German of course) with respect to William V, within the second Luxembourg-Netherlands crisis.
The Grand Duchy of Luxembourg was neutral, they were still part of the German Empire and had already been ruled by the King of the Netherlands before. But the Netherlands were concerned about German influence in the state.
* Russian perspective.
"We are not yet going to provide a clear answer regarding the German or French demands." Tsar Alexander III testifies in a meeting with Nikolai de Girs.
"Understood, but we should still press for the debts left by William IV and perhaps the Ben-Yehuda affair with the French." Minister Girs proposes.
"Of course." Tsar Alexander III exclaims.
Before the assassination of Queen Victoria the Russian Empire was more willing to just keep quiet, wait and watch, but the political change in the UK brought about by Victoria's death inclined Russia to be somewhat more cooperative with the idea of a diplomatic meeting. to try to solve the second crisis in Luxembourg.
*******
*[Russia and Indonesian artifacts]
The situation also caused Tsar Alexander III to also buy (legally) Dutch-owned artifacts amid the chaos, a transaction accepted by Germans and by the remaining Dutch pseudo-authorities in the midst of the crisis.
The objects would be mainly objects of colonial origin, or rather originating from the Dutch East Indies (and to a lesser extent from former African colonies) for their 'historical preservation'.
Among the artifacts bought by the Emperor of Russia is for example the Kris Diponegoro, formerly belonging to Prince Diponegoro, born in Yogyakarta, on the island of Java. A fighter against Dutch rule over Indonesia.
*******
*[The Edwardian Era]
The death of Queen Victoria marks the (somewhat abrupt) end of an era, the Victorian era now morphing into the Edwardian Era with the rise of King Edward VII at the age of 40, formerly Albert Edward, the Prince of Wales.
Turning his eldest son, Albert Victor, into the new Prince of Wales.
This of course is a major change to some extent, the English king reigns but does not 'rule' but still has influence to some extent in state affairs.
Edward VII is of course different from his mother, and this could bring differences between Victorian politics and Edwardian politics on a national and international level.
*******
*[Russia and Egyptian artifacts?]
General Ahmed Urabi becomes war minister in Mahmoud Sami al-Barudi's Egyptian cabinet. What in Anglo-French circles causes certain fears about the effects it would have on the Suez Canal and the possibility of it passing to an independent-nationalist Egyptian control.
Emperor Alexander III sends a diplomatic mission, to the still nominal Ottoman vassal, since incidentally the Ottoman Empire doubts and has many issues to attend to (Kurds, Albanians and Bosnian-Croatian Serbs making trouble).
In the diplomatic mission the Russian Empire offers to save (and in the case of damage restore) Egyptian archaeological, historical and cultural relics that may be in danger in the event of an Anglo-French intervention.
Fearing Western repressions, Ahmed Urabi urges the government to accept what brings various Egyptian artifacts into Russian possession for the care of said objects.
*******
*[Russia and Abyssinia]
Russia and Abyssinia during this period initiate diplomatic relations, directed mainly by the military man Victor Fedorovich Mashkov and Russian Orthodox priests.
The Ethiopian Emperor Yohannes IV receives the Russians honestly and with luxury, who on the other hand, according to the orders of Alexander III, treat the Ethiopian Empire (Abyssinia) and its people with dignity and seriousness.
Russia gives rifles, gold and some objects to Emperor Yohannes IV, who on the other hand accepts the beginning of official diplomatic relations, for the moment without clear commitments.
Both nations in the future plan to further discuss the relations between the two states to possibly establish more weapons for Ethiopia, and obviously some advantages for Russia, because international politics is not free.