Russia

Prerevolutionary Stage

Social networks during this stage formed in conditions of preindustrial and early industrial society and usually were enclosed within local territorial or class boundaries. Networks of mutual obligations and reciprocal exchanges between members of same class were widespread and could be hardly considered as a unique Russian phenomenon.

A Russian military honor guard observes a wreath-laying ceremony at the Russian Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Moscow, June 26, 2009. The ceremony brought U.S and Russian diplomats together to discuss international security.

One of the forms of between-class social networks became zemstvo, an elective district council, legally established by Alexander II in 1864 but in fact originated from social networks and movements that emerged after the abolition of serfdom. The members of zemstvo were elected from among the most active members of local communities from different estates. The main aim of zemstvo was the economic management of a district. The economic issues to be solved were establishing schools and hospitals, building roads, public education, and professional training. Soon, [Page 751]zemstvo took responsibility for solving a wide range of social problems. The civic and political influence of zemstvo reached its peak in the period of World War I, until its dismantling by Soviet rule.

Another characteristic type of social network in prerevolutionary Russia were various civil movements, circles, and societies. Some well-educated and usually young noble people with a high level of civic consciousness organized and took part in such networks. Inspired mostly by contemporary French philosophy and literature, they critiqued the state of affairs in Russia and developed their own projects of societal reconstruction. Many Russian political movements, organizations, and parties were born in literary and intellectual salons. The ideas of universal suffrage, abolition of serfdom, and the transfer of land into the peasants' ownership were being developed and discussed.

As these ideas were considered as opposition to the current regime, such networks often took the form of secret societies. The forms these networks and movement took varied from “soft” political parties trying to perform desired social reforms through legal political tools to revolutionary and terrorist organizations forcing social changes. One of the brightest examples of such movements is the Decembrists, the Russian aristocrat revolutionaries who led the 1825 uprising aimed at ousting the monarchy and abolishing serfdom. Over 175 years after the original revolt, ancestors of the original Decembrists still lived in St. Petersburg and celebrate their bravery with memorials.

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