Russian History 5: Catherine II and Mennonites

Catherine the Great (1762–1796) was, as observed in the previous post, one of the most consequential rulers in Russia’s history. Peter the Great (1682–1725), to be sure, turned Russia from a kingdom into an empire (see here); however, Catherine transformed that empire into domestic powerhouse and an international force. Thus it is no surprise to learn that Catherine’s influence extended far beyond those who were her subjects, even to encompass the Mennonites. In fact, Catherine’s foreign and domestic policies affected the lives of our ancestors and other Mennonites in at least two significant ways.

1. The Partitions of Poland

As noted earlier, Catherine was a key player in the three partitions of Poland (1772, 1793, and 1795). The First Partition was the most significant for our family, since it led to those Bullers living in the Przechovka vicinity to be transferred from Polish to Prussian rule. Most other Mennonites inhabiting Poland likewise came under Prussian governance at the same time.

This political shift did not lead immediately lead to change in the Mennonites’ daily lives; however, over time the Prussian authorities proved increasingly less sympathetic to the Mennonite refusal to take up arms against the enemies of the empire. This changing climate engendered a willingness among many Mennonites to consider leaving Prussia for a more welcoming location.

2. Emigration to Russia

Catherine’s greatest contribution to and influence on the Mennonite community was to provide that location where these people of faith could live in peace and prosperity. To be clear, Catherine did not focus her attention on the Mennonites above all others. In fact, her first invitation for new settlers was made to anyone who wished to relocate within Russia. She opened Russia’s borders shortly after she came into power, in 1762 and then again in a more broadly circulated manifesto in 1763. The latter document explained (see here for additional background and the translation of the full manifesto):

We, Catherine the second, by the Grace of God, Empress and Autocrat of all the Russians … As We are sufficiently aware of the vast extent of the lands within Our Empire, We perceive, among other things, that a considerable number of regions are still uncultivated which could easily and advantageously be made available for productive use of population and settlement. … I. We permit all foreigners to come into Our Empire, in order to settle in all the governments, just as each one may desire.

The manifesto goes on to describe the process that foreigners were to follow to enter and settle within Catherine’s empire, then follows with a series of privileges that those who relocated to Russia would enjoy:

1. We grant to all foreigners coming into Our Empire the free and unrestricted practice of their religion according to the precepts and usage of their Church. … On the other hand, everyone is hereby warned not to persuade or induce any of the Christian co-religionists living in Russia to accept or even assent to his faith or join his religious community, under pain of incurring the severest punishment of Our law.
2. None of the foreigners who have come to settle in Russia shall be required to pay the slightest taxes to Our treasury, nor be forced to render regular or extraordinary services, nor to billet troops. Indeed, everybody shall be exempt from all taxes and tribute in the following manner: those who have been settled as colonists with their families in hitherto uninhabited regions will enjoy 30 years of exemption….
3. All foreigners who settle in Russia either to engage in agriculture and some trade, or to undertake to build factories and plants will be offered a helping hand and the necessary loans required for the construction of factories useful for the future, especially of such as have not yet been built in Russia.
4. For the building of dwellings, the purchase of livestock needed for the farmstead, the necessary equipment, materials, and tools for agriculture and industry, each settler will receive the necessary money from Our treasury in the form of an advance loan without any interest. The capital sum has to be repaid only after ten years, in equal annual installments in the following three years.
5. We leave to the discretion of the established colonies and village the internal constitution and jurisdiction, in such a way that the persons placed in authority by Us will not interfere with the internal affairs and institutions. In other respects the colonists will be liable to Our civil laws. …
6. To every foreigner who wants to settle in Russia We grant complete duty-free import of his property, no matter what it is, provided, however, that such property is for personal use and need, and not intended for sale. …
7. The foreigners who have settled in Russia shall not be drafted against their will into the military or the civil service during their entire stay here. Only after the lapse of the years of tax-exemption can they be required to provide labor service for the country. …
8. As soon as the foreigners have reported to the Guardianship Chancellery or to our border towns and declared their decision to travel to the interior of the Empire and establish domicile there, they will forthwith receive food rations and free transportation to their destination. …

Catherine’s open-door policy prompted a significant number of Germans to emigrate to Russia, but few, if any, Mennonites were found among them. Presumably the temporary nature of the exemption from military service (thirty years, per term 2) discouraged Mennonites from accepting the offer. That all changed two decades later, when Prince Potemkin, representing Catherine, and the Mennonite representatives Johann Bartsch and Jacob Höppner negotiated special privileges for Mennonites who wished to relocate to Russia:

1. Free transportation and board from the Russian border to the settlement area.
2. The right to settle anywhere and pursue any occupation.
3. Loans to build houses and factories or purchase farm equipment.
4. Perpetual exemption from military and civil service.
5. Tax exemption for periods that varied with occupation and place of settlement.
6. Freedom of religion, except to establish monasteries.
7. The right to proselytize among the Muslims, but not among Christian subjects.
8. The right of self-government in agricultural communities.
9. The right to import family belongings duty-free.
10. The right to buy serfs and peasants for those who established factories with their own money.
11. The right to negotiate other terms with the Russian authorities. (Rempel and Carlson 2002, 263)

Obviously the terms given the Mennonites were largely the same as those granted to all foreign settlers. The one significant difference is the granting of perpetual exemption from military and civil service.

Because of Catherine’s granting of these privileges and protections, a significant body of Mennonites  (over two hundred families, according to Urry 1989, 54) moved from West Prussia/Poland to New Russia (modern Ukraine) in 1788–1789, and the first colony of Mennonites, the Chortitza colony, was established in 1789. Our family was not among that group; however, three decades later Bullers walked through the door she had opened and became subjects of the Russian Empire. Catherine was, without doubt, a pivotal and transformative figure in the histories of both Mennonites in general and our family in particular.

Works Cited

Rempel, David G., with Cornelia Rempel Carlson. 2002. A Mennonite Family in Tsarist Russia and the Soviet Union, 1789–1923. Toronto: University of Toronto Press.

Urry, James. 1989. None but Saints: The Transformation of Mennonite Life in Russia 1789–1889. Winnipeg: Hyperion.