This week, while researching the land registry, I decided to look for additional information about the redemption of peasant farms. In this post, I will share some facts about the process of redeeming peasant farms in 19th century.
The right for peasants to purchase land was recognized as early as 1804, but by the 1860s, only a small number of farms had been sold. Peasants lacked money, and landowners were not particularly interested in selling their land.
In 1849, a provisional law was issued in Vidzeme, dividing land into that belonging to landowners and that for peasants. At that time, all the land still belonged to the landowners, but a section was designated as peasant land. Landowners were prohibited from using this peasant land for their own needs. Instead, it had to be leased or sold to peasants.
Approximately one-fifth of this peasant land became known as "quota land." This land was used to compensate the estate's servants. The aim was to gradually replace the inefficient system of corvée (unpaid labor) with monetary rent.
A peasant who was motivated to earn more from his farm would work more effectively, requiring fewer servants. A tenant farmer seemed a better solution than the unmotivated, corvée-bound laborer. However, in this system, the tenant never knew whether the lease would be renewed or what the rent would be. Transferring land ownership would solve this problem.
However, the proposed changes faced significant resistance, particularly from the landowners themselves. Although it was clear that monetary rent would be a more efficient way to manage estates, it required much effort. Landowners had to build houses for the servants to live in and set aside land for the estate servants to work on. In Vidzeme, this was the aforementioned "quota land," but in Kurzeme, such land had not been designated. The estate also had to purchase equipment to work its own land.
The sale of land did not proceed smoothly until the 1860s, when several government decisions and orders began to push the process forward.
In 1861, serfdom was abolished throughout Russia, including Latgale. In Kurzeme and Vidzeme, serfdom had already been abolished earlier (in 1817 and 1819, respectively), but initially, the peasants in Kurzeme and Vidzeme had very limited opportunities to purchase land. The new law provided for a government-set price at which peasants could redeem their land. Loans were made available through the State Land Bank. Although the law did not apply to the Baltic provinces, local landowners were forced to act to prevent the state from setting land prices in their place.
In 1865, instructions were issued regarding crown estates in the Baltics. Crown estates were properties owned by the state, not the landowners. The new regulations called for the creation of small land parcels to be granted to retired soldiers, servants, and settler tenants. Such crown estates were more common in Kurzeme, which is why more small landholdings were established there.
The price of land was determined by sellers, and it was relatively high—higher than the average price in Russia. In the 1860s, one "desyatina" (1.0925 hectares) in Vidzeme cost 68 rubles, but by the early 20th century, it had risen to 101 rubles.
Peasants mortgaged their farms and took out loans. In Vidzeme, three-quarters of all purchased farms were mortgaged, while in Kurzeme, the figure was one-third. In Vidzeme, loans were issued by the Vidzeme Landowners' Credit Association. Its records (Fund 218) in the History Archives contain information about many Vidzeme peasant farms.
The average peasant farm in Kurzeme was 44.90 hectares, while in Vidzeme, it was 46 hectares. These were relatively large and economically strong farms.
By the time of World War I, practically all peasant land had been sold. However, as a result of this process, a significant portion of the rural population was left without land and had to become servants either on estates or for the new landowners—the peasants themselves.
Literature:
Latvija 19. gadsimtā. Latvijas Vēstures institūta apgāds (2000)
A.Boruks: Zemnieks, zeme un zemkopība Latvijā (2003)
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