Problem of the organization of noble self-government and preparation of «the order for the administration of governorates» (1777)

The paper analyses the question of the establishment of noble self-government in Russia in the period preceding the publication of "The Order for the Administration of Governorates". Since the middle of XVIII century such Russian nobles as count Peter I. Shuvalov and count Roman I. Vorontsov submitted some projects and proposed to elect representatives of nobility into provincial administration. In the 1760s, noble representatives in the Legislative Commission of 1767-1768 proposed to create the organs of noble self-government, which were to take some functions of provincial administration. The proposals of forming bodies of noble self-government indicated high level of self-consciousness of the Russian nobility. During the preparation of the provincial reform of 1775 those proposals were taken into account by the Empress Catherine II. According to the initial drafts of the new legislation, Catherine II planned to include a special chapter devoted to noble self-government into "The Order for the Administration of Governorates", ten years before "The Charter to the Nobility" (1785). As a result, the reform of provincial administration was closely intertwined with the formation of noble self-government. Those bodies had to take an active role in the formation of provincial administration. For some reasons, the regulations devoted to noble self-government were not included into "The Order for the Administration of Governorates". However, Catherine II decided to create a separate law devoted to the rights and duties of the Russian nobility, and a significant part of the regulations, prepared in 1775, was included into "The Charter to the Nobility" in 1785.