The Historical Background of the Emergence of Autonomies in Russia

The author examines the historical evolution of the process of autonomization in Russia and the political mechanisms that contribute to the emergence of autonomies. It is noted that the process of forming autonomies in Russia has been developing for many centuries, it continued after the revolution of 1917, already in the system of cardinal transformation of the internal state structure, and with some changes it was preserved by the beginning of the 21th century. The study of the historical prerequisites for the emergence of autonomies is particularly in demand in the context of the need to unite the country, actively improve the forms of statehood and implement effective national policy. The emergence of autonomies in Russia throughout its history is associated with the constant increment of state lands, with the intensive or extensive expansion of the state, with the diversity of national characteristics of their population. However, despite the fact that the autonomies in Russia in most cases were voluntarily attached to the Center and had some degree of independence, these territories did not violate the principle of unity of the vast empire due to their subordinate position. At the same time, granting partial autonomy to certain regions of the Russian Empire did not contradict the principle of the integrity and indivisibility of the country as a single political entity and was culturally, economically and politically expedient.