Transformation of the Civil Mediator's Image in the Context of the Implementation of the Peasant Reform of 1861

In: Obščestvo: filosofija, istorija, kulʹtura = Society : philosophy, history, culture, Heft 8, S. 163-171

Abstract

The position of a civil mediator appeared as a result of the necessity to implement the ideas of the Peasant Reform. Initially, the public reacted to the new institution with great interest, the number of people wishing to take up the position of mediator was large. In this regard, it seems significant to identify the circumstances that caused the transformation of the image of the civil mediator. The urgency of the problem is explained by the fact that the figure of the peace arbitrator was the key in the process of implementing the abolition of serfdom in 1861. On the efficiency of these officials depended the result of the transformation that was underway. The public perception of the institution began to change after the resignation of the mediators of the first composi-tion and the entry into office of subsequent officials. This circumstance has become critical in the matter of the decline of the entire institution. Over time, the position of the institution of civil mediators and its reputation rap-idly deteriorated being severely criticized. The institution reached its crisis by the 1870s. Meanwhile, the image of the civil mediator, which was later described by contemporaries, based precisely on the impression left by the first civil mediators, who eventually became an example of service for the benefit of society and the state.