Completion of reforms

Pobiedonostsev's abilities were exceptional, but like many of the old guards from Alexander III's era, they shared the previous emperor's staunch commitment to autocracy.

"In my view, neither Preobrazhensky nor Sipyagin is suited to the heavy responsibilities of the Interior Minister position."

When Pobiedonostsev heard Nicholas solicit his opinion, he understood the Emperor was considering candidates for the Interior Minister role.

"Oh? Do you have a better recommendation?"

"Certainly, Your Majesty. I believe Witte would be an excellent choice."

Pobiedonostsev said this with a straight face, which made Nicholas laugh.

"If Witte were appointed Interior Minister, who would then take on his current responsibilities?"

Pobiedonostsev responded with a line from Gogol's Dead Souls, quoting Sobakevich: "There is only one honest person there, the prosecutor, but honestly, even he is a pig."

Dead Souls is one of the works by the Russian realist satirist Gogol, whose influential comedy The Government Inspector led to his exile by the dissatisfied Russian government.

Pobiedonostsev was generally critical of everyone, holding an old-fashioned intellectual pride. His approach was meticulous and principled, though his stance was rooted in the autocratic, Orthodox, and Great Russian nationalist views of Alexander III.

"From my perspective, Witte is indeed the best candidate. However, since Your Majesty has rejected him, I believe another Deputy Interior Minister, Goremykin, might be suitable."

Pobiedonostsev proposed a new candidate without providing much detail, simply stating that the individual's abilities were sufficient.

After reporting on his current tasks, Pobiedonostsev took his leave.

"Ivan Logginovich Goremykin? I'm not very familiar with him, but he gives the impression of a noble who has expressed liberal views. Konstantin Petrovich may have recommended him because they both graduated from the Noble Law School, similar to how graduates of the Higher School of Jurisprudence support one another."

When State Secretary Polovtsev brought the government gazette to Nicholas, the Emperor inquired about Polovtsev's knowledge of Goremykin.

Polovtsev pondered briefly and then nodded, saying.

After considering various opinions, Nicholas had a general idea but needed final confirmation.

Nicholas placed great importance on the selection of the Interior Minister, as this role would be crucial in advancing Russian reforms—one leg would be the Ministry of Finance and the future Ministry of Commerce handling economic matters, while the other leg would be the Ministry of the Interior handling political issues.

"If there are student uprisings or constitutional petitions in the future, how would you handle them?"

Nicholas interviewed the three candidates in his office.

"I would deploy Cossack cavalry to suppress these disturbances," Sipyagin stated decisively.

"According to the laws of the Russian Empire..." Preobrazhensky started vaguely, but ultimately hinted at repression and division as his methods.

"I believe there are still loyal and patriotic figures among the student groups… However, it is undoubtedly necessary to act according to the law," Goremykin hesitated but ultimately adhered to traditional Russian bureaucratic methods: suppression.

Nicholas had his answer.

Meanwhile, Witte was busy dismantling and reorganizing the relationships between Russia's ministries.

The initial task was to dismantle the Ministry of the Interior, which sparked a significant uproar in the Russian bureaucracy.

In contrast, Durnovo showed no resistance and cooperated. Many senior officials speculated that these moves were not Witte's idea alone, suggesting that behind the Russian "Prime Minister" stood a powerful autocratic monarch.

The advantage of an autocratic system is that once the ruler decides to act, the entire bureaucratic machine, whether willing or coerced, moves in the direction of the ruler's will, regardless of the outcome.

Witte's role as Chairman of the Council of Ministers was to integrate the Russian bureaucratic system effectively, sparing Nicholas from having to struggle with bureaucratic intricacies.

Under Witte's firm direction, the sweeping changes continued to progress. Specific changes included:

The Immigration Bureau and all agricultural management functions of the Ministry of the Interior were transferred to the newly established Ministry of Agriculture and State Property, which was reorganized from the previous Ministry of Agriculture and State Property. The former Ministry's agricultural management agencies were seamlessly integrated into the new Ministry of Agriculture.

The Department of Factories and Handicrafts and Domestic Trade, which existed in both the Ministry of the Interior and the Ministry of Finance, were abolished, with their staff transferred to the newly established Ministry of Commerce.

The mining management agencies under the Ministry of State Property were separated and incorporated into the new Ministry of Commerce.

The Trade, Navigation, and Port Management Directorate was abolished, with its functions transferred to the new Ministry of Commerce.

All department-level agencies in the Ministry of Finance dealing with industrial and commercial management were transferred to the Ministry of Commerce.

The Tax Advisory Committee, Tax Committee, and Railway Department under the Ministry of Finance were separated and transferred to the Ministry of Commerce.

It appeared that the Ministry of the Interior and the Ministry of Finance suffered the most from this overhaul, but it was not the same for Witte.

Although Witte lost some authority in the Ministry of Finance, he nominated his capable deputy, Ivan Shchelokov, as the Minister of Commerce.

Given Witte's role as a key proponent of Nicholas's reforms, this nomination was swiftly endorsed by the Emperor.

In other words, with Witte holding authority over the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Commerce would also be aligned with his directives, and Witte had a good relationship with the Minister of Transportation, Shilkov.

In addition to support within the civil service, Nicholas II and Empress Maria's support and trust in Witte ensured that his position was unlikely to be undermined by Nicholas's relatives.

Given the current political landscape, it would not be an exaggeration to call Sergei Yurievich Witte the Prime Minister of Russia.

Thus, Nicholas achieved his goals, and Witte solidified his position.

"Today, the Emperor has ordered me to draft the decree appointing Goremykin as the Interior Minister."

A secretary from the Fifth Office, bringing some memoranda from the Emperor to Witte, conveyed this with satisfaction.

By mid-June, Witte's pursuit of efficiency had led to the completion of the restructuring of Russia's ministerial system.