After long hesitation, caused by the fact that the oath given to him upon accession to the throne was actually violated, Nicholas II put his signature under the Manifesto prepared by the SU. Witte and promulgated on October 17, 1905, the Manifesto boiled down, in fact, to three main elements: 1) granting the people civil liberties based on bourgeois-democratic principles - the inviolability of the individual, freedom of conscience, speech, meetings and organizations; 2) ensuring the participation in the elections of those segments of the population who, by decree of August 6, 1905, were deprived of the right to vote on the basis of the new electoral law; 3) the introduction as an indispensable rule that no law can come into force without the approval of the State Duma - a way to control the legality of the actions of the emperor.
The manifesto was a step forward compared to the legislative acts of February 18 and August 6, 1905. However, it left many important questions unresolved: about the role and place of the autocracy in the new political system, about the powers of the State Duma, about the essence of the constitutional order.
The revolution continued. The high point of the revolution was the December armed uprising of 1905 in Moscow. The tsarist government managed to play on the split of the opposition forces and did not keep most of the promises contained in the Manifesto of October 17, 1905. The defeat of the uprising was the defeat of the social revolution.
The electoral law, adopted on December 11, 1905, softened the electoral qualification, but left the elections multi-stage, and the rights of voters - unequal and not universal. All voters were divided into four curia: landowners, city owners, workers and peasants. Each of them chose their own electors for constituencies. The electoral law, very complex and intricate, primarily ensured the rights of the landowners. The powers of the Duma were severely limited in advance.
On the eve of the election campaign, the government reformed the State Council, which was transformed from a legislative body, all members of which were previously appointed by the tsar, into the upper house of the future parliament, which has equal legislative powers with the Duma. The composition of the State Council was also changed. The number of members tripled, half of them were still appointed by the king, while the other was elected on the basis of a high property qualification. Thus, the local nobility and the big bourgeoisie dominated the State Council. On October 19, 1905, a united government was established - the transformed SU. Witte is the highest executive body of the country - the Council of Ministers. As before, the emperor appointed and dismissed ministers who were responsible only to him, and not to the Duma.
The electoral law relied on the monarchist and nationalist feelings of the peasant masses. But in reality the peasants supported the opposition parties. The majority of the peasants, instead of supporting the landowner or local civil servants in the elections, as was supposed, voted for their own candidates or for those of the opposition. The elections dealt a severe blow to the main dogma of the autocracy - the indestructible unity of the tsar and the people. The conflict between the opposition-minded Duma and the emperor, who claims to be the bearer of historical and monarchical legitimacy, became inevitable.
One of the important results of the revolution of 1905-1907. was the formation of political parties. The right to form unions was one of the most important freedoms introduced by the Manifesto. During the revolution, about 50 parties arose, defending various paths for the development of the country. The number of radical socialist parties, which had previously been deeply underground, increased markedly. The divergence between the branches of social democracy was clearly manifested: the Bolsheviks proclaimed the peasantry the main ally of the proletariat in the revolution and assumed, after the overthrow of the autocracy, the establishment of a "revolutionary-democratic dictatorship" of the working class and peasantry; the Mensheviks, who saw the masses of liberals as their ally, advocated the transfer of power after the revolution to a bourgeois government.
36. Manifesto of October 17, 1905. “On the improvement of the state order” History of development, legal nature and political significance
Early 20th century - the time of the emergence of political parties, the official basis for the emergence of which appearedManifesto October 17, 1905,proclaimed freedom of speech, assembly and association.
In October, a strike began in Moscow, which swept the whole country and grew into the All-Russian October Political Strike. The government and Nicholas II were faced with the need to make a choice: restore order with an "iron hand" or make concessions. Count Sergei Witte, soon appointed head of the government, vigorously defended the second possibility. At the beginning of October 1905, Witte submitted to the tsar a "most submissive report", in which the Government's task was proclaimed "the desire to implement right now, pending legislative sanction through the State Duma," civil liberties. It was immediately emphasized that "establishment of law and order" is a long process. Here, Witte called the unification of ministries and the transformation of the State Council the most important measures to resolve the situation. this report was too moderate, and so it seemed even to Nicholas II. As a consequence, on October 14, he ordered Witte to draw up a manifesto for freedoms. Witte, in turn, instructed the Minister of Finance A.D. Obolensky. On October 17, Nicholas II signed the manifesto in the form in which A.D. Obolensky and N.I. Vuchetich under the leadership of Witte. The Supreme Manifesto on the improvement of the state order was promulgated on October 17, 1905. The historical significance of the Manifesto was in the distribution of the sole right of the Russian Emperor to legislate between, in fact, the monarch and the legislative (representative) body - the State Duma. Thus, a parliamentary system was introduced in Russia. The State Council (the highest legislative body of the Russian Empire, existing since 1810) became the upper house of parliament, the State Duma - the lower house. Sectors of the population that had previously been deprived of voting rights were involved in parliamentary elections. Without the approval of Parliament, no law could come into force. At the same time, the Emperor retained the right to dissolve the Duma and block its decisions with his right of veto. Subsequently, Nicholas II used these rights more than once.
Also, the Manifesto proclaimed and granted civil rights and freedoms, such as: freedom of conscience, freedom of speech, freedom of assembly and freedom to form associations. Thus, the manifesto was the forerunner of the Russian constitution.
The liberal public greeted the manifesto with jubilation. The goal of the revolution was considered achieved, the formation of the party of the Cadets was completed, the "Union of October 17" and other parties arose. The left circles, the Social Democrats and Socialist-Revolutionaries, were not in the least satisfied and decided to continue the struggle to achieve their programmatic goals. The publication of the manifesto also led to the most massive Jewish pogroms in the history of the Russian Empire.
The manifesto of 1905 on the improvement of the state order was issued by Emperor Nicholas II on October 17, 1905 under the pressure of growing popular unrest: a general political strike and armed uprisings in Moscow and in many other cities. This manifesto satisfied some of the strikers, as it was a real step towards a limited constitutional monarchy.
The manifesto was the first liberal-minded legislative act of tsarist Russia.
The main provisions of the Manifesto: securing freedom of conscience, speech, meetings and gatherings; involvement in the elections of the general population; obligatory procedure for the approval by the State Duma of all published laws.
Under these conditions, the Russian bourgeoisie not only did not lead the revolutionary struggle for bourgeois-democratic transformations, but sought to prevent the further development of the revolution.
The manifesto changed the system of state administration - the Soviets of Workers' Deputies appeared. Initially, they were strike committees, but gradually turned into bodies of political struggle.
Principles of organization and activity of the Councils:
- representative character;
- democratic elections by secret or open voting;
- they could include women;
- they formed executive committees (presidiums) and commissions on certain issues;
- accountability of deputies to voters;
- the possibility of replacing deputies who have not justified the trust of voters;
- work according to the orders of voters;
- wide involvement of workers in meetings.
In 1905-1907. 55 Soviets were formed, of which 44 were Bolshevik-minded, so they became the rudimentary organs of the new revolutionary power.
The Soviets had the right to take measures of a revolutionary-democratic nature: to form fighting squads, workers' militia. The Soviets opened and seized printing houses, had their own publications, spread revolutionary ideas, thereby introducing de facto freedom of the press.
The manifesto preserved the class inequality of the bourgeoisie with the nobility and the limitation of the former in the right to occupy the highest positions in the state apparatus.
The main state laws were signed by Nicholas II on April 23, 1906. They were an act of autocracy, on which Nicholas II decided after the suppression of the largest uprisings. These laws could only be changed by the emperor.
The main state laws of 1906 forbade the tsar to change the right to vote on his own, but Nicholas II violated this provision and passed a law that limited the voting rights of workers, non-Russian peoples and some other groups of the population.
The population in Russia was divided into nobility, clergy, urban and rural inhabitants.
Throughout 1905, the government could not take the initiative into its own hands and dragged along at the tail of events, although the police managed to carry out successful operations to stop the preparation of "revolutionary parties" for an uprising. It was more difficult to cope with the strike movement. The "revolutionary" parties skillfully carried out anti-state agitation and had an agreement on joint actions against the government. The question arose of convening a broader representative parliament, but first it was necessary to grant political rights to the population of Russia.
In the meantime, events have been escalating. In October, a political strike began in large cities, in which, along with the workers, representatives of the technical intelligentsia also took part. On October 8, 1905, traffic on the Moscow railway stopped; by October 17, a significant part of the roads was paralyzed. Factories were closed, newspapers were not published, there was almost no electricity in large cities. Nicholas II rejected the proposal for emergency measures and the appointment of a "dictator".
Seeing the urgency of the situation, Nikolai turned for help to Wit-te, who had recently managed to sign an agreement with Japan on more or less acceptable terms. On October 9, Witte presented the sovereign with a memorandum outlining the current state of affairs and a program of reforms. Stating that since the beginning of the year "a true revolution has taken place in the minds", Witte considered the decrees of August 6th outdated, and since "the revolutionary ferment is too great", he came to the conclusion that urgent measures must be taken, "until a hundred - No, it's too late. He advised the tsar: it is necessary to put an end to the arbitrariness and despotism of the administration, to grant the people basic freedoms and to establish a real constitutional regime.
After hesitating for a week, Nikolai decided to put his signature under the text prepared by Witte on the basis of the memorandum. But at the same time, the king believed that he was violating the oath given at the time of accession to the throne. On October 17, 1905, a manifesto was issued, which formally meant the end of the existence of an unlimited monarchy in Russia.
1) to grant the population the unshakable foundations of civil freedom on the basis of the inviolability of the person, freedom, conscience, speech, meetings and unions;
2) without stopping the scheduled elections to the State Duma, to immediately attract to participation in the Duma ... those classes of the population who are now completely deprived of voting rights, leaving the further development of the beginning of the development of general suffrage to the newly established legislative order, and
3) to establish as an unshakable rule that no law could take effect without the approval of the State Duma and that the elected representatives of the people should be provided with the possibility of real participation in the supervision of the regularity of the actions of the authorities appointed by us.
The "United Government" formed the Council of the Ministry, whose chairman (ie the first Russian prime minister) was appointed Witte.
The manifesto established political rights for citizens of Russia: personal immunity, freedom of conscience, freedom of speech, freedom of assembly and unions (trade unions and parties). Segments of the population, previously deprived of voting rights, were involved in parliamentary elections. According to the Manifesto, the State Duma changed its meaning and acquired the features of a developed parliament; it was proclaimed that the law could not take effect without the approval of the State Duma. Thus, Russia has embarked on the path of a fairly mature parliamentarism.
The appearance of the Manifesto on October 17 caused confusion in the local authorities and did not bring any immediate calm. If the moderate liberal circles were ready to accept the position created by the manifesto as the fulfillment of their desires for the constitutional transformation of Russia, then the left circles, the Social Democrats and the Social Revolutionaries, were not in the least satisfied and decided to continue the struggle to achieve their program goals ( "they didn't want a whip wrapped in parchment of the constitution"); on the other hand, right-wing circles rejected the concessions to the revolution contained in the Manifesto of October 17 and demanded the preservation of unlimited tsarist autocracy.
Soon after the appearance of the manifesto, the railway strike ceased, but the "disturbances and unrest" not only did not stop, but spread throughout the country: in the cities there were either revolutionary or counter-revolutionary demonstrations, and in many cities the counter-revolutionary crowds of the "Black Hundreds" smashed intellectuals and Jews ; in the villages, a wave of agrarian pogroms spread - crowds of peasants smashed and burned the landowners' estates.
On November 3, a manifesto was issued calling on the peasants to stop the unrest, promising to take possible measures to improve the situation of the peasants and abolishing redemption payments for peasant allotment lands.
2. State Duma on fundamental laws
Russian Empire 1906
On February 20, 1906, an act was issued on the establishment of the State Duma, which determined its competence: preliminary processing and discussion of legislative proposals, approval of the state budget, discussion of issues on the construction of railways and the establishment of joint-stock companies. The Duma was elected for five years. Duma deputies were unaccountable and voters, their removal could be carried out by the Senate. The Duma could be dissolved ahead of schedule by the decision of the emperor. With a legislative initiative, the Duma could include ministers, commissions of deputies and the State Council.
The State Chancellery and the Council of Ministers prepared the text of the Basic State Laws, approved by Emperor Nicholas II on April 23, 1906.
The adoption of the Basic Laws and the restructuring of the central government on the basis of "legality" and "public involvement" required a revision of the principles of local government and self-government.
The Basic Laws formulated civil rights and freedoms (inviolability of home and property, movement, choice of profession, speech, press, assembly, creation of unions and associations, religion, etc.).
Legislative power was assigned to the State Duma and the State Council. Any law needed the approval of both bodies and approval by the emperor. In the event of termination or interruption of the activities of the Duma and the State Council "under emergency circumstances", bills could be discussed in the Council of Ministers and approved by the emperor in the form of decrees. The effect of the decree was temporary and was subject to approval in the Duma and the Council within two months after the resumption of their work.
In accordance with Art. 87 of the Basic Laws, the emperor was given the opportunity, on the proposal of the Council of Ministers, to adopt legislative decrees in cases where there was such a need, and the session of the Duma and the Council was interrupted. But after the opening of the legislative session, within two months, such a decree had to be submitted for the approval of the Duma, otherwise it would automatically cease to have effect.
The issues of excluding or reducing payments on state debts, loans to the Ministry of the Court, and state loans were not subject to discussion by the State Duma.
The term of the Duma was determined at five years, by decree of the tsar it could be dissolved ahead of schedule, in which case elections and terms for convening a new Duma were appointed. The duration of the annual sessions and the timing of the break in the work of the Duma were determined by decrees of the emperor.
The competence of the Duma included: issues requiring the issuance of laws and the approval of states, discussion and approval of the budget, hearing reports from the state controller on the execution of the budget, cases on the construction of state railways, on the establishment of joint-stock companies. At the beginning of 1906, budget rules were issued, according to which the budget could be executed even if the Duma refused to approve it, which sharply limited the budgetary rights of the Duma.
The main state laws gave the king the right to an absolute veto. However, the Duma could again return to the discussion of the issue rejected by the tsar, thereby putting pressure on him.
The deputies had the right to interrogate the ministers, which gave the possible Duma a public discussion of the actions of the executive branch and demanded answers from the government. Based on the results of these answers, the Duma made judgments.
To avoid a flood of requests (as was the case in the First Duma), the Second Duma created a special commission to select requests.
The State Duma received the right to approve, reject or rework bills submitted by the government, it also enjoyed the right to legislative initiative (except for changing the Fundamental Laws, carried out at the initiative of the tsar. Extending the Duma's right to legislative initiative to the Fundamental Laws could, according to Witte, turn it into a Constituent Assembly ).
In case of emergency, the government had the right, in the intervals between sessions of the Duma and with the approval of the king, to issue decrees equivalent to laws (Article 87). (This provision was borrowed from the Austrian constitution.) These decrees, however, could not change either the Fundamental Laws or the status of the Duma.
The ministers were responsible not to the people's representation (the Duma), but to the monarch.
3. New electoral law after the coup
Assessing the situation in the State Duma. P.A. Stolypin, in a closed meeting on June 1, 1907, said that delay "would make it impossible for the government to further ensure peace and order in the state." The new electoral law was adopted without the approval of the State Duma, as required by the Basic Laws. In this regard, in the Marxist-Leninist literature, the events of June 3, 1907 are called a coup d'état.
The Supreme Manifesto of October 17, 1905 is a legislative act of the supreme power of the Russian Empire. According to one version, it was developed by Sergei Yulievich Witte on behalf of Emperor Nicholas II. According to other sources, the text of the Manifesto was prepared by A.D. Obolensky and N.I. Vuich, and Witte carried out the general leadership. Information has been preserved that on the day the manifesto was signed, two drafts lay on the table in front of the tsar: the first was to introduce a military dictatorship (his uncle Nikolai Nikolayevich was planned to be a dictator), and the second - a constitutional monarchy. The tsar himself leaned towards the first option, but the decisive refusal of the Grand Duke forced him to sign the Manifesto. Adopted under the pressure of the general October political strike and, above all, the strike of the railroad workers, the Manifesto granted democratic freedoms to society and promised the convocation of a legislative State Duma. The main significance of the Manifesto was that it distributed the earlier sole right of the emperor between the monarch and the legislative State Duma. As a result of the adoption of the Manifesto by the emperor, changes were made to the Basic State Laws of the Russian Empire, which actually became the first Russian Constitution.
Under the conditions of the First Russian Revolution, it is with this act that the transition from an autocratic form of government in Russia to a constitutional monarchy is traditionally associated, as well as the liberalization of the political regime and the entire way of life in the country. On October 17, the Manifesto granted civil liberties to Russian citizens, and the future State Duma was endowed with legislative rights instead of the deliberative ones promised earlier on August 6. This Manifesto was based on a new draft of the State Duma, which was aimed at "the speedy end of the turmoil so dangerous for the state." In addition to taking measures to "eliminate direct manifestations of disorder", the government was entrusted with the fulfillment of three tasks: to give the population an unshakable foundation of civil freedom on the basis of real inviolability of the person, freedom of conscience, speech, assembly and association; to attract to participation in the Duma those classes of the population who are completely deprived of voting rights (we were talking about workers); establish that no law could take effect without the approval of the State Duma. At the same time, the emperor retained the right to dissolve the Duma and block its decisions with his right of veto.
The document ended with an appeal "to all the faithful sons of Russia" together with the sovereign "to exert all efforts to restore silence and peace in their native land." But the period from October 18 to 29, 1905 was marked by another outbreak of violence: during these days, about 4 thousand people were killed, and about 10 thousand were injured. Such violence became possible due to the confusion of the central and, especially, local authorities, after the publication of the Manifesto. The fact is that the Manifesto was prepared in complete secrecy, and after its publication no explanations were made. There is evidence that even the Minister of the Interior found out about him at the same time as everyone else. What can we say about the governors and chiefs of police in the provinces, even if the city officials did not know how to act in the conditions of the "constitution".
The manifesto was published simultaneously with the note by S.Yu. Witte in the name of the emperor, which emphasized that the principles of the new order for Russia should "be embodied only insofar as the population acquires a habit and civil habit for them." In practice, despite the abolition of corporal punishment, the Cossacks and peasants in the community continued to flog the guilty. As before, "lower ranks (soldiers) and dogs" were strictly forbidden to enter the parks for the "clean" public. Merchants continued to imprison debtors from the merchant guilds in a debt commercial prison.
Decree "On strengthening the principles of religious tolerance" of April 17, 1905 and the provisions of the 7th chapter of the Code of Fundamental State Laws (of April 23, 1906), by which the Orthodox were allowed to freely convert to other faiths, and to all subjects of the Russian Federation who did not belong to the dominant church states and foreigners to enjoy "everywhere the free practice of their faith and worship according to its rites" only led to the penetration of ideas of proselytism and missionaries into Russia, the creation of various kinds of sects and the intensification of the split in the higher Orthodox clergy.
In addition to the State Duma, the Manifesto of October 17, 1905 also changed the functions of the other highest state institutions of the empire. By a decree of October 19, 1905, the Council of Ministers became a permanent body responsible to the tsar. That is, he did not become a cabinet in the European sense, since he was not responsible to the Duma. Ministers were also appointed by the emperor. The State Council, by decree of February 20, 1906, was turned into the upper house of parliament as a counterbalance to the Duma. Now half of the members of the State Council were appointed by the tsar (including the chairman and vice-chairman), and the other half were elected from zemstvos, noble assemblies and universities.
However, the hopes for the "appeasement" of Russia did not come true, since the Manifesto was regarded in the left circles as a concession to the autocracy, and in the right - as royal mercy. This, in turn, determined the very contradictory and half-hearted nature of the transformations associated with the implementation of the civil liberties proclaimed by the Manifesto. A direct consequence of the release of the October Manifesto was the emergence of legal political parties, trade unions and other public organizations, as well as the legal opposition press.
The Decree of March 4, 1906 "On the Provisional Rules on Societies and Unions" regulated the activities of political parties, whose activities were legalized by the Manifesto on October 17. It was the first legal act in the history of Russia that officially allows and establishes certain rules for the activities of various political entities, including opposition ones. Societies and unions could be formed without "requesting the permission of the government" on the basis of compliance with the rules established by decree. First of all, societies were prohibited that pursued goals that were contrary to public morality or prohibited by criminal law, threatening public peace and security, as well as managed by institutions or persons located abroad, if the societies pursued political goals.
At the beginning of the century, about 100 parties were created, which can be divided into: conservative-monarchist, conservative-liberal (Octobrists), liberal (Kadets), neo-populist, social democratic and nationalist. The Constitutional Democratic Party (self-name - "Party of People's Freedom") organizationally took shape at its first congress in Moscow on October 12-18, 1905. In the spring and summer of 1906, there were about 50 thousand people in the party (of which 8 thousand in Moscow and St. Petersburg each). The Union of October 17 party was formed after the publication of the tsar's manifesto on October 17, 1905. The total number of the party in 1905-1907 was about 50-60 thousand members. At the same time, the number of the Moscow organization reached about 9-10 thousand, and the St. Petersburg - about 14 thousand people. Among the law-abiding parties of the center, which later merged with the Octobrists, are the Trade and Industrial Union (which arose in St. Petersburg in October-November 1905 and collapsed at the end of 1906), the Moderate Progressive Party (formed in October-November 1905 in Moscow); the St. Petersburg Progressive Economic Party (established in October-November 1905) and the Right Order Party (established in St. Petersburg in mid-October 1905). As for the Black Hundred organizations, they arose even before the publication of the Manifesto. Thus, the Russian Assembly was formed in the autumn of 1900, the Union of Russian People (in October 1905 it was transformed into the Union of the Russian People) and the Russian Monarchist Party - in March 1905. The total number of these organizations by the summer of 1906 was more than 250 thousand members. The leftist parties, whose formation began at the end of the 19th century, did not wait for the tsarist Manifesto either. The formation of trade unions also proceeded without prior notice, without waiting for the appearance of the Manifesto.
In the semi-annual activity of the cabinet of S.Yu. Witte, a great place was given to the transformations associated with the implementation of the civil liberties proclaimed by the Manifesto - the laws on societies and unions, on meetings and the press. But on the other hand, already in mid-February 1906, Witte switched to the position of a supporter of unlimited tsarist power and began to prove that the Manifesto of October 17 not only did not mean a constitution, but could also be canceled “hourly”.
A clear example of the limited nature of reforms in the sphere of citizens' rights is the censorship legislation, which, as a result of all the amendments and innovations, by 1904 was essentially reduced to the Charter of 1828. Another thing is that in the wake of the revolution, publishers actually stopped turning to censorship for permission. Under these conditions, the government was satisfied with the hastily prepared next Provisional Rules on time-based publications dated November 24, 1905. They abolished preliminary censorship and the system of administrative penalties. The latter, however, continued to be applied on the basis of the 1881 Law on an exceptional position, which was extended to a significant part of the territory of Russia. The right of the Ministry of Internal Affairs to prohibit the discussion in the press of any issue of national importance was canceled, but certain issues of newspapers and magazines could be seized by order of an official with the simultaneous initiation of prosecution.
On April 23, 1906, four days before the start of the Duma, Nicholas II approved the “Basic Laws” (Constitution) of the Russian Empire, prepared by a special commission headed by S.Yu. Witte. The count himself defined the established regime as "legal autocracy". The constitution broadly declared the fundamental freedoms and rights: judicial protection of private property of subjects (compulsory confiscation of the latter was allowed only by court order and with preliminary equivalent compensation); the right to legal protection in case of arrest and transfer of the case to a jury trial; the right to freely choose a place of residence and freely travel abroad. True, there was no mass exodus of "non-noble estates" (80% of the population) abroad, with the exception of small groups of revolutionaries. From the Fundamental Laws, the definition of the tsar's power as unlimited was eliminated (he exercised legislative power together with the Duma and the State Council), but the title "autocratic" was retained. The prerogatives of the tsar were declared: the revision of fundamental laws, the highest state administration, the leadership of foreign policy, the supreme command of the armed forces, the declaration of war and the conclusion of peace, the declaration of an exceptional and martial law, the right to mint coins, the appointment and dismissal of ministers, the pardon of convicts and a general amnesty. But the imperial family was not subject to civil and criminal law.
GOD'S GRACE,
WE, NICHOLAS II,
EMPEROR AND AUTOCRATOR OF ALL-RUSSIAN,
Tsar of Poland, Grand Duke of Finland
AND OTHER, AND OTHER, AND OTHER.
We declare everything to Our faithful subjects:
Troubles and unrest in the capitals and in many areas of our empire fill our hearts with great and heavy sorrow. The good of the Russian sovereign is inseparable from the good of the people, and the sadness of the people is his sadness. From the unrest that has now arisen, there may be a deep disorganization of the people and a threat to the integrity and unity of our state.
The great vow of royal service commands us to strive with all the forces of reason and our power to end as soon as possible the turmoil that is so dangerous for the state. Having ordered the subordinate authorities to take measures to eliminate direct manifestations of disorder, outrages and violence, to protect peaceful people striving for the calm fulfillment of their duty, we, for the most successful implementation of the general measures intended by us for the pacification of state life, recognized the need to unite the activities of the highest government.
We make it the duty of the government to carry out our inexorable will:
1. Grant the population the unshakable foundations of civil freedom on the basis of real inviolability of the person, freedom of conscience, speech, assembly and associations.
2. Without stopping the scheduled elections to the State Duma, now to enlist in participation in the Duma, to the extent possible, corresponding to the shortness of the period remaining until the convocation of the Duma, those classes of the population who are now completely deprived of suffrage, leaving the further development of the beginning of the general suffrage again established legal order.
3. Establish, as an unshakable rule, that no law can take effect without the approval of the State Duma and that the elected representatives of the people be provided with the opportunity to really participate in supervising the regularity of the actions of the authorities decreed by us.
We call on all the faithful sons of Russia to remember their duty to the Motherland, to help put an end to this unheard-of turmoil and, together with us, exert all their strength to restore silence and peace in their native land.
Given at Peterhof, on the 17th day of October, in the year 1905 from the Nativity of Christ, the eleventh of our reign.
On the original, His Imperial Majesty's own hand is signed:
"NICHOLAS".
Witenberg B. Political experience of Russian parliamentarism (1906-1917): Historical essay // New Journal. 1996. No. 1. S. 166-192
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Orlova N.V. Political parties of Russia: pages of history. M., 1994
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On what basis did the Manifesto bestow upon the population "the unshakable foundations of civil liberty"?
What exclusive right did the State Duma receive in the field of passing laws?
Why did the emperor decide to publish the Manifesto?
What legal acts were adopted on the basis of the Manifesto?