Who is "Policeman" and why he got it in 1917

2024 Author: Seth Attwood | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 15:55

Almost 30 years have passed since the collapse of the Soviet Union, and society is still divided. Despite the impressive time frame, we still fail to "marry" our past. On the one hand, we have monarchists who scream about "the country we have lost", and on the other, we have the same admirers of the communist regime. In all this ideological madness, a huge number of myths are created. Today we will talk about the police. We will find out who they were in the Russian Empire and why they got it in 1917.

Tightening the nuts

In 1863, during the reign of Alexander II Nikolaevich, numerous reforms were carried out in the empire. As is always the case, the very late reforms were very difficult and painful. It quickly became clear to the authorities that there were not enough law enforcement officers in the country. As a result, it was decided to increase the staff of city police officers, change their uniform and equipment.

Interesting fact:Alexander II was killed by the Narodnaya Volya terrorists, who ideologically believed that the death of the tsar would make it possible to change something for the better in the country. This was the first time in the history of Russia when a monarch was killed by people from the people, and not by representatives of the nobility. Subsequently, about the death of Alexander II and "Narodnaya Volya" will write that "not the worst people in Russia, they killed not the worst Russian Emperor."

Actually, ordinary officers of the Russian police, representatives of the lower ranks of this organization, began to be called "policemen". The word "policeman" itself is a direct tracing paper from the Greek language. Each policeman was subordinate to a district warden - an official of the city police who was in charge of the district (in fact, this is the one who is called the "district police officer" today).

According to the "Table of Ranks" (the table of the ratio of civilian positions and military ranks / positions in the Russian Empire), the policeman corresponded to 14 - the lowest point. Thus, a city policeman in wartime could be a midshipman in the navy, a cornet in the cavalry, a cornet for the Cossacks, a warrant officer in the infantry.

Mister policeman

Russian policemen did not enjoy the rights and privileges of the civil service, thus being considered civilian employees in the police squad. Ordinary police officers were kept at the expense of the city budget. The salary of the police is about 150 rubles per year. This is almost two times less than that of the lowest city official in the Russian Empire. The low standard of living of the policemen did not contribute to the fight against corruption among the police. Although the townspeople lived somewhat better than the workers, their situation was just as dire.

Note: "Veterans" of the city service could receive up to 180 rubles a year. At the same time, in addition to the salary for each policeman, 25 rubles a year were allocated from the budget for equipment and uniforms.

The country saved not only on salaries. The equipment of the policemen was not of high quality. The cheapest sabers were purchased for the city police officers. Since the 1880s, they also relied on revolvers, but they were not enough for everyone, so many wore empty holsters. What every law enforcement officer had was a whistle! "The most useful" tool in the fight against criminals, terrorists and revolutionaries.

Policemen were recruited from retired soldiers, dragoons and gamekeepers. Non-commissioned officers also fell into service. Thus, we can say that the majority of the townspeople were from the common people - workers, peasants, less often from representatives of the lower intelligentsia, the impoverished petty bourgeoisie. When choosing candidates for the service, preference was given to physically developed married men. Without fail, the future policeman had to be able to read and write.

According to the law of the Russian Empire, 1 policeman was relied on for 500 people. For comparison, now in Russia there is about 1 policeman per 200 people. In 1903, 2,115 policemen served in St. Petersburg. The duties of the lower ranks of the servants of the law included monitoring order in the street, controlling the distribution of newspapers, monitoring order in drinking establishments and brothels, and checking street lamps. The police were responsible for removing beggars from the streets, traffic rules, and controlled the removal of sewage. They also had to answer questions about navigation in the settlement, know the composition of the Russian imperial house and the representatives of the first four points of the Table of Ranks.

The cauldron of the Russian revolution

Why did the policemen get it in 1917, when the February Revolution broke out? There is nothing complicated here. The police were representatives of the authorities, which means that in the eyes of the common people they were responsible for all troubles and injustice. If only professional terrorists from the camp of revolutionaries could reach a minister or a representative of the royal house, then everyone could reach the policeman. At all times, during riots, the lower ranks of the law enforcement officers become scapegoats.

Of course, this does not mean at all that all the policemen were saints. However, it would also be false to say that they were all corrupt and unfair. However, the embittered people, who felt the "freedom" given to them by the revolutionary disorder, immediately unleashed a wave of spontaneous violence on the policemen. After "February" many policemen left the service and began to hide, fearing reprisals.

In the future, the fate of the policemen were very different. Someone joined the Revolution, joining one of the camps, someone remained on the pro-monarchist position, but the majority simply tried to wait out the storm that had broken out in the country.