Pyotr Dmitrievich Sviatopolk-Mirskii
Encyclopedia
Prince Pyotr Dmitrievich Sviatopolk-Mirskii ( - ) was a Russia
n politician and police official, Minister of the Interior in 1904–1905. He was the son of the general Dmitry Ivanovitch Sviatopolk-Mirskii
and father of the literary historian D. S. Mirsky
.
Pyotr was born in the Vladikavkaz
into a well-known and distinguished family. He was educated at Page Corps
(graduated in 1874 with the first-class honours) and was appointed Page of the Chamber. In 1875 he became a coronet
at Her Empress Leib-Guards Hussar
s.
Pyotr Dmitrievich took part in the Russo-Turkish War, 1877–78 and was decorated for his valor in the Battle of Kars
. Then he studied at the General Staff Academy
(graduated in 1881). In 1884 he was the acting commander of staff of 31st Infantry division, in 1887 he was the commander of staff of 3d Grenadier division.
In 1895 he was appointed the Governor
of Penza
, and in 1897 the Governor
of Yekaterinoslav.
In 1900 Sipiagin appointed him Assistant Minister of the Interior and Commander of the Imperial Corps of Gendarme
s. After Sipiagin's assassination (1902) Sviatopolk-Mirskii resigned as Assistant Minister but was persuaded to accept the position of Governor-General
of the North-Western province that included gubernias of Vilna, Kovno and Grodno (that is modern-day Lithuania
and most of the Belarus
). As the Governor-General, Sviatopolk-Mirskii was credited with successful liberal reforms, defusing national tensions in the provence by allowing more rights to the national minorities, stopping pogrom
s against the Jews.
In July, 1904 he succeeded to the position of Minister of the Interior after Plehve
's assassination. His appointment was seen as a victory of Liberals
over the Conservatives and in the Court term as a victory of the party of widow Empress Maria Fyodorovna (who supported the liberal reforms and was a patroness of Pyotr's sister Olga) over the party of Empress consort Alexandra Fyodorovna
.
Conservative Ministers Witte
and Sipiagin credited Sviatopolk-Mirskii with being an honorable, intelligent man of the highest moral principles, which is notable due to his attempts at liberal reform in Imperial Russia while Minister. These reforms began with permitting members of the local Zemstvo
s to gather to discuss broader policy issues and coordination of Zemstvo programs, something that had not been permitted in Russia regularly. The remaining reforms were embodied in a decree that called for the inclusion of elected members to the State Council, removal of the restrictions on the Old Believers, measures to strengthen legality, extend freedom of the press and religion, broaden the authority of local self-government, eliminate unnecessary restrictions on non-Russians, and do away with exceptional laws in general. Sviatopolk-Mirskii not only allowed the congress, but also participated in its work and personally delivered its decision to Tsar Nicholas II along with his own plan for constitutional reforms.
The Sviatopolk-Mirskii's plan included transferring more power to the State Council of Imperial Russia
. The plan was much less radical than the reforms implemented by the October Manifesto
1905, but in December 1904 it was considered ultra-radical and was dismissed.
On occurred the massacre of a peaceful demonstration in Saint Petersburg
, known as Bloody Sunday
. According to Pyotr Dmitrievich Sviatopolk-Miirskii, he never had authorised the shooting of the demonstrators, but still fulfilled his final duty to the tsar, becoming the scapegoat
for the massacre. According to Miirskii's opponents, he not only did authorise the shooting but also in order to push his own political agenda actively encouraged the demonstration.
Sviatopolk-Mirskii was replaced as Minister of the Interior by Bulygin in February 1905 and retired from government service. As a retired Minister of Interior, he was expected to be appointed a member of the State Council of Imperial Russia
, but it was not the case. He retired from the political life until his death on May 16, 1914.
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
n politician and police official, Minister of the Interior in 1904–1905. He was the son of the general Dmitry Ivanovitch Sviatopolk-Mirskii
Dmitry Ivanovitch Sviatopolk-Mirskii
Dmitry Ivanovitch Sviatopolk-Mirskii was a Russian infantry General and a politician, of the Svyatopolk-Mirsky family.Dmitry was born to the family of Thomas Bogumile Jean Sviatopolk-Mirskii, the ambassador of the semi-independent Kingdom of Poland to Russia. Dmitry's patronymic Ivanovich was...
and father of the literary historian D. S. Mirsky
D. S. Mirsky
D.S. Mirsky is the English pen-name of Dmitry Petrovich Svyatopolk-Mirsky , often known as Prince Mirsky , a Russian political and literary historian who promoted the knowledge and translations of Russian literature in Britain and of English literature in the Soviet Union.-Life:A scion of the...
.
Pyotr was born in the Vladikavkaz
Vladikavkaz
-Notable structures:In Vladikavkaz, there is a guyed TV mast, tall, built in 1961, which has six crossbars with gangways in two levels running from the mast structure to the guys.-Twin towns/sister cities:...
into a well-known and distinguished family. He was educated at Page Corps
Page Corps
Page Corps was a military academy in Imperial Russia, which prepared sons of the nobility and of senior officers for military service....
(graduated in 1874 with the first-class honours) and was appointed Page of the Chamber. In 1875 he became a coronet
Coronet
A coronet is a small crown consisting of ornaments fixed on a metal ring. Unlike a crown, a coronet never has arches.The word stems from the Old French coronete, a diminutive of coronne , itself from the Latin corona .Traditionally, such headgear is – as indicated by the German equivalent...
at Her Empress Leib-Guards Hussar
Hussar
Hussar refers to a number of types of light cavalry which originated in Hungary in the 14th century, tracing its roots from Serbian medieval cavalry tradition, brought to Hungary in the course of the Serb migrations, which began in the late 14th century....
s.
Pyotr Dmitrievich took part in the Russo-Turkish War, 1877–78 and was decorated for his valor in the Battle of Kars
Battle of Kars
The Battle of Kars was a decisive Russian victory over the Ottoman Empire during the Russo-Turkish War .In June, 1877 Russian forces attempted a siege of Kars but were driven off by an Ottoman army at the Battle of Kizil-Tepe. In November Russian commander in the Caucasus, Grand Duke Michael,...
. Then he studied at the General Staff Academy
General Staff Academy (Imperial Russia)
The General Staff Academy was a Russian military academy, established in 1832 in St.Petersburg. It was first known as the Imperial Military Academy , then in 1855 it was renamed Nicholas General Staff Academy and in 1909 - Imperial Nicholas Military Academy The General Staff Academy was a...
(graduated in 1881). In 1884 he was the acting commander of staff of 31st Infantry division, in 1887 he was the commander of staff of 3d Grenadier division.
In 1895 he was appointed the Governor
Governor
A governor is a governing official, usually the executive of a non-sovereign level of government, ranking under the head of state...
of Penza
Penza
-Honors:A minor planet, 3189 Penza, discovered by Soviet astronomer Nikolai Stepanovich Chernykh in 1978, is named after the city.-Notable residents:...
, and in 1897 the Governor
Governor
A governor is a governing official, usually the executive of a non-sovereign level of government, ranking under the head of state...
of Yekaterinoslav.
In 1900 Sipiagin appointed him Assistant Minister of the Interior and Commander of the Imperial Corps of Gendarme
Gendarmerie
A gendarmerie or gendarmery is a military force charged with police duties among civilian populations. Members of such a force are typically called "gendarmes". The Shorter Oxford English Dictionary describes a gendarme as "a soldier who is employed on police duties" and a "gendarmery, -erie" as...
s. After Sipiagin's assassination (1902) Sviatopolk-Mirskii resigned as Assistant Minister but was persuaded to accept the position of Governor-General
Governor-General
A Governor-General, is a vice-regal person of a monarch in an independent realm or a major colonial circonscription. Depending on the political arrangement of the territory, a Governor General can be a governor of high rank, or a principal governor ranking above "ordinary" governors.- Current uses...
of the North-Western province that included gubernias of Vilna, Kovno and Grodno (that is modern-day Lithuania
Lithuania
Lithuania , officially the Republic of Lithuania is a country in Northern Europe, the biggest of the three Baltic states. It is situated along the southeastern shore of the Baltic Sea, whereby to the west lie Sweden and Denmark...
and most of the Belarus
Belarus
Belarus , officially the Republic of Belarus, is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe, bordered clockwise by Russia to the northeast, Ukraine to the south, Poland to the west, and Lithuania and Latvia to the northwest. Its capital is Minsk; other major cities include Brest, Grodno , Gomel ,...
). As the Governor-General, Sviatopolk-Mirskii was credited with successful liberal reforms, defusing national tensions in the provence by allowing more rights to the national minorities, stopping pogrom
Pogrom
A pogrom is a form of violent riot, a mob attack directed against a minority group, and characterized by killings and destruction of their homes and properties, businesses, and religious centres...
s against the Jews.
In July, 1904 he succeeded to the position of Minister of the Interior after Plehve
Vyacheslav von Plehve
Vyacheslav Konstantinovich von Plehve , also Pléhve, or Pleve was the director of Imperial Russia's police and later Minister of the Interior.- Biography :...
's assassination. His appointment was seen as a victory of Liberals
Liberalism
Liberalism is the belief in the importance of liberty and equal rights. Liberals espouse a wide array of views depending on their understanding of these principles, but generally, liberals support ideas such as constitutionalism, liberal democracy, free and fair elections, human rights,...
over the Conservatives and in the Court term as a victory of the party of widow Empress Maria Fyodorovna (who supported the liberal reforms and was a patroness of Pyotr's sister Olga) over the party of Empress consort Alexandra Fyodorovna
Alexandra Fyodorovna of Hesse
Alix of Hesse and by Rhine later Alexandra Feodorovna Romanova , was Empress consort of Russia as spouse of Nicholas II, the last Emperor of the Russian Empire...
.
Conservative Ministers Witte
Sergei Witte
Count Sergei Yulyevich Witte , also known as Sergius Witte, was a highly influential policy-maker who presided over extensive industrialization within the Russian Empire. He served under the last two emperors of Russia...
and Sipiagin credited Sviatopolk-Mirskii with being an honorable, intelligent man of the highest moral principles, which is notable due to his attempts at liberal reform in Imperial Russia while Minister. These reforms began with permitting members of the local Zemstvo
Zemstvo
Zemstvo was a form of local government that was instituted during the great liberal reforms performed in Imperial Russia by Alexander II of Russia. The idea of the zemstvo was elaborated by Nikolay Milyutin, and the first zemstvo laws were put into effect in 1864...
s to gather to discuss broader policy issues and coordination of Zemstvo programs, something that had not been permitted in Russia regularly. The remaining reforms were embodied in a decree that called for the inclusion of elected members to the State Council, removal of the restrictions on the Old Believers, measures to strengthen legality, extend freedom of the press and religion, broaden the authority of local self-government, eliminate unnecessary restrictions on non-Russians, and do away with exceptional laws in general. Sviatopolk-Mirskii not only allowed the congress, but also participated in its work and personally delivered its decision to Tsar Nicholas II along with his own plan for constitutional reforms.
The Sviatopolk-Mirskii's plan included transferring more power to the State Council of Imperial Russia
State Council of Imperial Russia
The State Council was the supreme state advisory body to the Tsar in Imperial Russia.-18th century:Early Tsars' Councils were small and dealt primarily with the external politics....
. The plan was much less radical than the reforms implemented by the October Manifesto
October Manifesto
The October Manifesto was issued on 17 October, 1905 by Tsar Nicholas II of Russia under the influence of Count Sergei Witte as a response to the Russian Revolution of 1905....
1905, but in December 1904 it was considered ultra-radical and was dismissed.
On occurred the massacre of a peaceful demonstration in Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg is a city and a federal subject of Russia located on the Neva River at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea...
, known as Bloody Sunday
Bloody Sunday (1905)
Bloody Sunday was a massacre on in St. Petersburg, Russia, where unarmed, peaceful demonstrators marching to present a petition to Tsar Nicholas II were gunned down by the Imperial Guard while approaching the city center and the Winter Palace from several gathering points. The shooting did not...
. According to Pyotr Dmitrievich Sviatopolk-Miirskii, he never had authorised the shooting of the demonstrators, but still fulfilled his final duty to the tsar, becoming the scapegoat
Scapegoat
Scapegoating is the practice of singling out any party for unmerited negative treatment or blame. Scapegoating may be conducted by individuals against individuals , individuals against groups , groups against individuals , and groups against groups Scapegoating is the practice of singling out any...
for the massacre. According to Miirskii's opponents, he not only did authorise the shooting but also in order to push his own political agenda actively encouraged the demonstration.
Sviatopolk-Mirskii was replaced as Minister of the Interior by Bulygin in February 1905 and retired from government service. As a retired Minister of Interior, he was expected to be appointed a member of the State Council of Imperial Russia
State Council of Imperial Russia
The State Council was the supreme state advisory body to the Tsar in Imperial Russia.-18th century:Early Tsars' Councils were small and dealt primarily with the external politics....
, but it was not the case. He retired from the political life until his death on May 16, 1914.