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PHJ №1 (45) 2025 — M. D. Novikov. DEVIATIONS IN THE PROCESS OF CONDUCTING INTERNAL GOVERNMENT LOANS IN THE USSR IN 1946–1957

The present article investigates the problem of deviations during the state domestic loan campaigns of 1946–1957 in the USSR. Existing studies have not considered this subject as an independent one. To address this lacuna, an extensive array of documents from federal and regional archives was analysed. A comprehensive analysis was conducted, encompassing both positive and negative manifestations of deviant behaviour. Additionally, the study delved into the intricacies of criminal activities within the Soviet financial sector. The study revealed that deviations were caused by organisational imperfections in loan campaigns, where the state itself, by establishing a norm, prompted citizens to engage in positive deviations, using informational influence as means to this end. In instances where these measures proved ineffective, recourse was headed to methods that, while not always fully legal, did not constitute a breach of criminal law. The necessity to accomplish the designated objectives necessitated a degree of persistence from the actors responsible for implementing state directives, which can be conceptualised as deviant behaviour. Furthermore, the article provides a detailed exposition of criminal activities that were prevalent during the mass-political campaigns under scrutiny. The documents of law enforcement agencies demonstrate a variety of methods of violating socialist legality, as well as an extensive list of citizens from different socio-professional groups who resorted to criminal methods of interaction with Soviet security forces. However, these materials pay little attention to the reasons that motivated citizens to commit such acts, thereby emphasised the problematic nature of the practice of state borrowing in the USSR.

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PHJ №1 (45) 2025 — A. A. Sorokin. DISCUSSIONS ON THE ORGANIZATION OF ZEMSTVO SELF-GOVERNMENT IN SIBERIA IN THE EARLY 20TH CENTURY

The article at first discusses the establishment of an elected zemstvos’ self-government in Siberia, as well as projects on the organisation of a zemstvos’ electoral system in Siberian provinces and regions in the early 20th century. The study was carried out on the materials of the proceedings of the local committees of the Special Council on the Needs of the Agricultural Industry. The author highlights the essence and content of the attitude of the Siberian public to the institution of elected zemstvos’ self-government, and presents the arguments of Siberian officials in favour of introducing the principle of appointment in the zemstvos’ selfgovernment in Siberia. The attitude of the authors of the projects and participants in discussions in local committees to the problem of the class composition of potential voters is also demonstrated. The article goes on to highlight the positions on the issue of suffrage and proposals for its expansion at the expense of tax and educational qualifications. The analysis then shifts to the national composition of Siberian provinces and regions in the context of granting voting rights to foreigners, before concluding with a discussion of the characteristics of the electoral rights of rural and urban populations in various projects of the organisation of the zemstvos’ electoral system. Finally, the article considers the organisation of a small zemstvos’ unit in the context of the significant remoteness of Siberian settlements from each other.

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PHJ №1 (45) 2025 — D. A. Barinov, E. A. Rostovtsev. GRADUATES OF THE FACULTY OF HISTORY AND PHILOLOGY OF ST. PETERSBURG UNIVERSITY AT THE TURN OF THE 19TH–20TH CENTURIES: COLLECTIVE PORTRAIT AND CAREER PROSPECTS

Throughout the imperial period, St. Petersburg University functioned not only as the largest scientific and educational center in the country, but also as a training ground for the political and cultural elite, thus serving as the most significant source for the formation of the domestic intelligentsia. This study examines the role of the historical and philological faculty of the capital’s university in the formation of the national elite. The primary research method employed by the authors involved the compilation of a collective biography of бfaculty graduates, encompassing an analysis of their career trajectories, social compositions, and other relevant factors. A sample of issues from the turn of the 19th–20th centuries (1895–1904) was taken for analysis. The analysis revealed that the further professional paths of graduates developed in three main ways: a bureaucratic career, a career as a teacher in gymnasiums and colleges, and a scientific career, usually associated with work in higher education or the Academy of Sciences. Concurrently, the proportion of teachers and scientists among the graduate population increased, while the proportion of bureaucrats decreased. However, many individuals who opted for careers in the government apparatus did not forsake scientific studies, continuing to publish works, compilations, or organise expeditions. The article also provides comparisons with analogous indicators for other faculties, including law, physics, mathematics, and oriental languages. One of the objectives assigned to the article was to identify the connections that students established during their studies and that influenced the trajectory of their future careers. A thorough analysis of biographies revealed that these connections played a pivotal role in the development of academic and political careers, where the ties of student friendship could prove to be a significant asset.

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PHJ №1 (45) 2025 — A. Yu. Andreev, D. A. Tsygankov. SCIENTIFIC TRIPS OF MOSCOW HISTORIANS TO EUROPEAN UNIVERSITIES OF THE 19TH CENTURY

The subject of study in the article is scientific trips, during which young historians from Moscow University underwent additional training and engaged in their own research at European scientific centres, primarily at universities. The article addresses the organisation of such trips during the 1830–1890s, the selection of routes, the preferred destinations for Moscow historians, and the nature of their activities there. The article goes on to discuss the role of university authorities (curators) and history professors, such as V. I. Guerrier, in the initiation and organisation of these trips. Drawing upon a comprehensive array of sources, including reports sent back to Russia and personal correspondence, it is concluded that Moscow historians embraced the concepts of world science, and that they, to a certain extent, were themselves integrated into the European university environment.

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PHJ №1 (45) 2025 – G. S. Tziafetas. OLD PROBLEM, MODERN SOLUTION: FLOODS AND PROTECTION IN ST. PETERSBURG/LENINGRAD (1703–1924)

The article contains a scientific view of environmental management, projects for protecting St. Petersburg from floods, which were proposed by engineers of the 18th and early 20th centuries, as well as a social justification for why flood supports began to be seriously designed only after the catastrophic floods of 1924. Was it a catalyst for the authorities and engineers — or was this design phase more dependent on other (social) processes?

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PHJ №1 (45) 2025 — O. Yu. Malinova-Tziafeta. THE СATASTROPHIC FLOOD 1924 AND THE URBAN ECONOMY OF LENINGRAD — WAS THERE A CATASTROPHE?

The article examines the use of the word “catastrophe” in relation to the floods and epidemics in St. Petersburg/Leningrad, and analyses the transformation of its meaning in relation to the catastrophic flood of 1924. The study shows that prior to the revolution, both floods and epidemics were perceived rather as routine and part of state and urban order that was in no hurry to change. However, the flood of 1924 served as a catalyst for change, prompting the Soviet government to take decisive action. The flood presented a challenge to the Kremlin, the Leningrad city authorities, the Leningrad police and the Department of Public Utilities of Leningrad, and led to the implementation of new strategies for combating disasters. The flood also presented a significant opportunity to undertake comprehensive repairs and modernisation of urban infrastructure, particularly water supply, sewerage, and road surfaces. Prior to the revolution, these networks, particularly those located beyond the city centre, should have been subject to repairs; however, financial resources for these endeavours were only made available through the all-Soviet-Union assistance to Leningrad, which itself was grappling with the aftermath of a natural disaster.

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PHJ №1 (45) 2025 — T. A. Bazarova. PETRINE ST. PETERSBURG AND THE WATER ELEMENT

The waters of the Neva and the Gulf of Finland were a source of danger for the inhabitants of Petersburg. In the city, an alarm was organized for the time of the opening and freezing of the Neva, as well as for the beginning of the flooding. The article analyses the decrees of Peter I and the orders of the local administration, which were designed to minimize the damage, and established standards for the construction of new buildings and piers. The article is accompanied by a letter of the Kotlin commander Vasily Poroshin on the consequences of the flood of 5 November 1721.

PHJ № 4 (44) 2024 – B. N. Kovalev. KILLERS ABOUT KILLERS: TESTIMONY OF FORMER PUNISHERS AGAINST THEIR ASSOCIATES (THE CASE OF G. M. GUREVICH-GURVICH)

The 667th Shelon Battalion, comprising individuals who had collaborated with the Nazi regime, left a trail of violence and destruction in the vicinity of Leningrad. The Soviet state security agencies continued their search for war criminals until 1991. It is regrettable that, following the conclusion of the Second World War, a considerable number of these individuals were able to regularise their immigration status in a number of Western countries, including the USA, the UK, Australia, Canada and West Germany. However, some former punishers who returned to the USSR were subsequently held to account for their actions. From 1947 to 1950, the death penalty was abolished in the Soviet Union. In 1955, an amnesty was proclaimed. The sentences handed down to those who had collaborated were reduced by a factor of two or three. Following their release from incarceration between the 1960s and 1980s, these individuals provided testimony as witnesses to the crimes of their former associates. One of the most notable trials occurred in Novgorod in 1962.

PHJ № 4 (44) 2024 – A. A. Amosova. RESTORATION OF THE URBAN ECONOMY OF LENINGRAD IN 1944–1946: THE ACTIVITIES OF INSTRUCTORS AND PERMANENT COMMISSIONS OF THE LENINGRAD CITY COUNCIL

The leadership of Leningrad during the Great Patriotic War and the Siege, and the role of local government bodies — the Soviets — in particular, remain relatively understudied. For an extended period, the subject was not subjected to comprehensive investigation due to the distinctive characteristics of the political climate. Notwithstanding the considerable quantity of pertinent archival materials now accessible to scholars, the methodologies and analytical frameworks employed to examine the exercise of authority in emergency military contexts remain underexplored. This article focuses on the activities of the Organizational and Instructional Department (sector) of the Leningrad City Council as part of the ongoing work to restore the urban economy of Leningrad in 1944–1946. This study presents a description of the activities and instructors, standing committees and deputies of the Leningrad City Council during this period. Furthermore, it identifies the most significant activities aimed at reviving the Leningrad municipal economy implemented after the liberation of the city from the siege. The principal methodological approaches employed were historical reconstruction and specific historical and problem-chronological methods. The principal sources consulted in the course of this study were the normative and office documents of the Leningrad City Executive Committee.

PHJ № 4 (44) 2024 – T. Yu. Tolstikov. OVERCOMING THE FOOD AND TRANSPORT CRISIS: HISTORY OF THE ENGINEERING AND CONSTRUCTION OF ICE RAILWAY CROSSINGS ACROSS LAKE LADOGA DURING 1941–1943

One of the most pivotal occurrences in the history of the defense of Leningrad during World War II was the food crisis that occurred between 1941 and 1942. The event was precipitated by the imposition of a land blockade by German forces on the city and the seizure of vital transportation routes. The sole viable route for the delivery of supplies to Leningrad from the remainder of the country was via Lake Ladoga, a previously unused transportation corridor. The authorities were confronted with a significant challenge in the organisation of supplies during this period, given the inability to utilise water transportation during the winter months. A solution was devised in the form of a highway through Lake Ladoga, which came to be known as the “Road of Life”. However, alternative supply routes were proposed in the form of ice railway projects, the history of which is not well documented in the scientific literature. The successful construction of these highways could facilitate the resumption of communication between Leningrad and the rest of the Soviet Union, potentially enabling the lifting of the German blockade without the necessity for military intervention. This article presents an analysis of the various projects that were considered, the process by which they were evaluated by the relevant authorities, and the history of the construction of an ice bridge on stilts and a narrowgauge railway across Lake Ladoga during the winter months of 1942–1943.