“Official Loyalty”: Monarchist Sentiments Among Population of Tambov Province in Early 20th Century (Based on Loyal Letters)

This article examines the processes of demonstrating official loyalty to the authorities by the population of the Tambov Province through the submission of loyal letters from 1898 to August 1914. It identifies the reasons and motivations behind the expression of “official loyalty” by residents of this region. The study establishes a correlation between the manifestation of loyalist sentiments and key events in the domestic and foreign policy of the Russian Empire in the early 20th century, including the Russo-Japanese War, the First Russian Revolution, and the Imperial Manifestos of August 6, October 17, and November 3, 1905, as well as the onset of World War I. The influence of situational factors, such as the crop failures of 1905-1906 and seasonal agricultural work, on the activity of peasants — who constituted the majority of the Tambov Province’s population — in expressing loyalty to the Emperor is also considered. The article explores how monarchist sentiments were manifested by local government bodies, various societies, political organizations, and recipients of the Order of St. George through the submission of letters of gratitude. The authors conclude that this particular expression of loyalist devotion was often under the control of official authorities and was frequently initiated by them or exhibited by those addressees who already had a high level of commitment to the monarchical form of governance.