The Quantitative Analysis of Materials from the General Land Survey of the Russian Empire: The ‘Bear’ Angle

This article analyses data about the Russian bear from the Economic Notes to the plans of the General Land Survey of the Russian Empire. Despite the official symbol of the Russian Empire being the double-headed eagle, the bear was perceived as the country’s main symbol as early as the formation of the Russian state. The purpose of this article is to find out how common bears were in the Russian Empire between the late eighteenth and the early nineteenth centuries. The quantitative analysis of data from the General Land Survey is based on the method of continuous sampling, which allows the author to include information about animals from the Complete and Cameral Economic Notes to the General Land Survey. The author refers to the Economic Notes for eight uyezds and three provinces. The study covers both old and new lands of the Russian state. The analysis makes it possible to conclude that between the late eighteenth and the early nineteenth centuries, the Russian bear was not equally common in every region. It was found mainly in the forests of the historical core of the Russian state. But the bear was not a predominant species. Overall, according to the Cameral and Complete Economic Notes covering four St Petersburg uyezds and Novgorod province, there were 15 animal species in this territory, while there were 11 species in four uyezds of Taurida province. Continuous processing of the Economic Notes makes it possible to identify previously unknown mentions of moose, lynx, ferrets, and badgers in Luga district, St Petersburg province. Wild horses, camels, wild boars, and otters were described in Economic Notes in Dnipro district, Taurida province. However, the most common animals in these territories were hares, as well as smaller predators like foxes and wolves. The analysis of quantitative indicators helps to establish that the bear did not become the personification of the Russian state because of its predominance. Instead, this was due to the remarkable characteristics and qualities that made the animal stand out.

Lands of the cities of the Vologda province at the end of the 18th century: size, typology, ownership

The information of the Economic Notes to the General Survey on the size, types and owners of urban land in the Vologda governorship is discussed in the article. Conclusions about the prevalence in this region of simple suburban land complexes with an area of 0,5–2,5 thousand hectares with a significant share of forests belonging to representatives of the urban class either as a «city society» in general, or as representatives of influential merchant families are the results of the study.

Economic Data in the Surveyors’ Field Notes on the Crimean Economy at the Turn of the 19th Century

The article is devoted to the identification and analysis of the source documents used by land surveyors to compile Economic Notes to the General Land Survey plans. The landmarking on the Crimean Peninsula began in the late 18th century, but by the early 19th century it was judged premature and suspended until development of special rules taking into account the peculiarities of land use in the region. And yet the field notes of land surveyors on the Crimean Peninsula of the turn of the 19th century preserve primary economic information to a greater extent than those on other territories of the Russian Empire. This information is presented in the “Skazki to the Economic Land Survey,” data collected from the local population. Skazki (“tales”) containing initial data for Economic Land Survey remain a poorly studied and rarely encountered source. Their identification in these field notes makes it possible to verify the accuracy of the Economic Land Survey and to restore the information excluded from the Brief Economic Notes and descriptions of specific lands in the lost Full and Cameral Economic Notes. The discovered “Skazki to the Economic Notes” on the Tauride gubernia are a unique source that makes it possible to assess the economy of Crimea at the turn of 19th century. They characterize natural environment, economic activities on the peninsula and occupations of its population, provide information on the soil conditions, available water resources, common species of trees, animals, birds, and fish. In their structure, they coincide with the skazki compiled in other regions of Russia, but have characteristic features that are associated with the identity of the Crimea and its economic condition in the late 18th century. The process of the Crimea development made its own adjustments to the land survey documentation. Unlike other regions, here the authors of the skazki were not only landowners’ attorneys, but also land owners themselves — local beys and murzes. The introduction of the skazki into scientific use opens opportunities for comparing their data with the preserved texts of the Economic Notes and for studying the history of the region at the micro level of individual settlements.

Cartographic Method in the Last Quarter of the 18 Century Landlord Estates of Pskov Province Study

The study of the possessions of Pskov landowners requires cartographic material involvement but there are still no cartographic constructions on the basis of which it would be possible to present the spatial distribution of landlords ‘ villages in different districts of the Pskov province in the 18 century. “The Economic notes to the General surveying” and related cartographic material are considered by historians the most reliable source for this purpose. For spatial distribution of nobles’ estates on the territory of the Pskov province the data of the geometrical map made according to the General land surveying in 80 - 90ies of the 18 century from the Russian state Archive of ancient acts was involved.