Convicts from Russian Finland in Siberian exile (19th century)

The author of the article is a well-known expert in the history of the Siberian exile in pre-revolutionary Russia. Her new article based on the published laws and hitherto unknown documents from Siberian archives analyses Finnish convicts’ exile in Siberia in the 19th century. This is the first attempt in Russian historiography to examine the evolution of the legislation, financing mechanisms, prisoner transfer from Finland to Siberia and the Finnish convicts’ life in Siberia. The focus is made on adaptation aspects of the Finnish convicts in Siberia, their interaction with other convicted criminals’ groups and the attitude of local Siberian authorities and population toward them. It is concluded that in the 19th century criminal convicts exiled from Finland to Siberia, together with other convicts, became a source of cheap labour force for state plants and mines. At the same time the legal status of the Finnish counterparts reflected Finland’s special position in the Russian Empire: in terms of legislation the opinion of the Finnish authorities was taken into consideration and more humane regulations were applied to the Finnish convicts. For instance, they were allowed to settle down according to ethnic and confessional principles, tax relief was available for them, their Lutheran confession was respected and protected. Thanks to their isolated location they were able to preserve their ethnic and religious identity. Finally, friendly attitude to the exiled on the part of the local population facilitated their survival in the severe conditions of the Siberian exile and made it possible to pass on this survival experience to their descendants.