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REIGN OF THE SOVEREIGN EMPEROR NICHOLAS I
1830 yr.
208. -- June 10. The Highest approved provision of the Committee of Ministers,
registered in the decree of the Senate on July 31.-
About the measures for the resettlement of Jews from Sevastopol and Nikolaev.
The Governing Senate listened to the report of the Mr. Minister of the Interior – that in the
Nominal His Imperial Majesty's Decree, given on November 20th, 1829, *) on the name of Mr.
Admiral Greig, the Military Governor of Nikolaev and Sevastopol, there were ruled the
following measures on the account of those Jews who settled in the cities - Nikolaev and
Sevastopol, stating: 1) Jews should not have [neither] permanent residence in Sevastopol and
Nikolaev, nor institutions for the conduct of their rites of faith, and equally they cannot ascribe
themselves to the local municipal communities there. 2) Jews who currently live in Sevastopol
and Nikolaev, or those who are only assigned to these cities, in the course of one year must re-
register in other cities which are open to the permanent settlement [for Jews].
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3) Jews who are being lead out from Sevastopol and Nikolaev, but who have houses, lands,
shops and other real estate there, should be allowed to sell them in the course of two years; but if
they do not sell their estates in the continuation of this period, then it is necessary to evaluate
them (estates) by the government and sell them within three months at a public auction [with
profit] in favor of the owners of the property. 4) Prior to the sale of a real estate, that is, during
the two years, Jews, who own it, can remain in Sevastopol and Nikolaev with their families, but
for the last year in no other way as with the new passports of the city to which - after the
expiration of the first of the year - they are reassigned [to move]. 5) The final expulsion of Jews
from Sevastopol and Nikolaev should be conducted: after expiration of the 2 years, for those who
own real estate, after the expiry of one year for those assigned to these cities, but not possessing
such property, and after expiry of 6 months since the issuance of these regulations for those
[Jews] living there without attribution (registration) to them (these cities). 6) Jews who have
some obligations to the treasury in the cities mentioned above, should be allowed to remain there
until the end of their obligations. 7) The Jews may, temporarily, as for their needs, visit Nikolaev
and Sevastopol but not otherwise, as on the exact basis of the rules, issued for the temporary
arrival of Jews to the cities of Russia. In this case, the local Authorities are obligated to execute
without any indulgences all the above-mentioned regulations. And 8) all these measures should
not refer to the Jews-Karaites, who are not at all forbidden to live and own property in
Sevastopol and Nikolaev on the same basis as heretofore. After that [report of the Mr. Minister
of the Interior], Mr. Admiral Greig, the Military Governor of Nikolaev and Sevastopol, informed
him, Mr. Minister of the Interior, that the Jews of the 1st Merchants’ Guild of Nikolaev,
Serebrenniy and Rafalovich, and the Merchant's son Zelenskii, from Poltava, who was living
there [in Nikolaev] in his own house, in the submitted to him, the Admiral, petitions explicated
the difficulties they encountered in fulfilling their official (to the treasury) obligations under
contracts and deliveries, for reasons of the approaching and determined by the Highest Decree on
Nov. 20
th
, 1829, term of the expulsion from Nikolaev of those Jews who are staying there for the
service-matters, occupying different positions in their commerce duties and in domestic services;
thus, upon these petitions, it was entrusted to the Nikolaev City Police, together with the
Magistrate and the Duma, to get ascertained with the validity of such described circumstances,
and apprise: by what measures such difficulties could be averted; and that this presence - in the
report to the temporary administrative Committee, explaining that the circumstances presented
by the petitioners are indeed fair, and that inevitably they would have to turn out faulty (failing)
in fulfilling their obligations with the treasury, if they would be deprived of those servants, with
whom they hitherto have been provided, besides it was reported, that for the prevention of such
consequences, the collegial assembly (committee) does not find any other means, except for the
same Highest/Supreme Authority, according to Whose decree the resettlement of the Jews has
been taken into directive. Such a conclusion from the committee of the municipal Collegial
Assembly, Admiral Greig recognizes as absolutely thorough and deserving special attention of
the Government; for reasons of the same circumstances, he from his side presented (the
following): 1) that not only Jews who have obligations to the treasury but also others who have
residency in Nikolaev
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and Sevastopol, if they will lose their fiduciaries (trustees, confidants) and domestic servants due
to this short term (which has come in May of this year) for the expulsion of all nonresident Jews,
they themselves would face a complete impossibility to stay in their homes, even for permitted
two-years period, which is allowed for the sale of their properties; because without helpers in
commercial turnover and without domestic servants, neither the first nor the last can get by. 2)
According to the local Provisions (regulations) in the cities of Nikolaev and Sevastopol, it is
possible to foresee with all probability, that the proposed sale of many Jewish real estate at the
same time would either not be possible at all because of the lack of bidders, or the bidders would
give offers/prices that are far lower from the real value of the purchased properties, which would
cause the greatest losses even for the prosperous Jews, and as for the poor artisans, petty traders
and others like that, it would be a complete devastation; because these (poor) ones would not
have any opportunity to purchase any properties in other cities of their new dwelling, nor even
have ways/means to provide subsistence for themselves and their families; and therefore, for the
sake of fulfillment of the Highest behest, and for the avoidance of such consequences, there
remain no other means but to pay the money/value at the rate from the treasury for the homes
and other estate/establishments, owned by the Jews, if those would not be sold by/through free
bargain (auction). 3) Widows and orphans, belonging to the Jewish communities, deserve
equally special respect/concern of the Government. 4) By all means, all that the current Jewish
owners remain due/owing to the treasury/capital, belonging to the city of Nikolaev, more than
100 thousand rubles, and what was determined for the sale of their properties (real estate) within
the present short period of time, would not be enough to pay them, and there could not be
expected any proceeds and reimbursement of this amount from public sales of their estates. 5) At
the present time in the city of Nikolaev, the Jewish society consists of 24 families of merchants
of various guilds and 691 of burgers/townsmen, in addition 424 more are assigned to this city,
and that in general there are 1,115 male-folk/population, and all of them have so far participated,
depending on their position/condition, on a par with other citizens, in the service of a military
standing, with which the city is utterly burdened; as well as in the maintenance of the city’s
Prisutstvennoye mesto (Collegial Seats), the Housing Commissariat/Committee and other duties.
With the relocation of the Jews, these burdens will fall on many townspeople of only the
Christian faith, who will unlikely be able to perform/carry out them all, and besides, in such case
the city of Nikolaev will be deprived of almost all the artisans of its own, such as: tailors,
shoemakers and others, as these crafts and other arts/trades are mostly fulfilled by the Jews. As
by the aforementioned Highest decree it was strictly ordered as a duty to the local Authorities to
fulfill, and so that while this decree is being executed, in order to avoid by any pretext, any
oppression/offence for the Jews, thus, Admiral Greig presented for further examination all the
above-mentioned circumstances. According to the affiliation of the cities of Nikolaev and
Sevastopol, in which the military ports are located, to the jurisdiction of the Naval Authority, he,
the Ministers of Internal Affairs (of the Interior), directed to report to the Head of the Marine
Staff of His Imperial Majesty, Mr. General Adjutant, Prince Menshikov, about all the above-
mentioned circumstances for his preliminary consideration, who (Prince Menshikov), wishing to
avoid all reproaches to the Government in the devastation of the Jews, considered the following:
1) For those Jews
267
who have immovable property in Sevastopol and Nikolaev, determine the deadlines for their
deportation from these cities on December 31
st
, 1832. 2) To allow Jews, whose stay in these
cities is allowed for a certain period of time, to keep servants from the Jews at all this time as
long as needed. 3) The Jews, who have entered into obligations with the treasury, should be
allowed to keep the necessary number of stewards and advocates up to the end of their
obligations, and 4) For the Jews who do not have the registered residency in Sevastopol and
Nikolaev, should be set up the final deadline for their stay in these cities until May 1
st
, 1831. By
agreeing to the Adjutant-General Prince Menshikov’s proposition for the resolution of the issue,
he, the Minister of Internal Affairs, in his turn presented it to the Committee of Messrs.
Ministers, and to this added from himself: a) The consent for the Hebrews to have stewards and
trustees/advocates could be permitted only with the order to the local Authorities to have the
strictest supervision, so that under this pretext in Nikolaev and Sevastopol would not remain
those Jews who do not have the right to use this permission; b) and the expulsion of the Jews, by
the expiration of the time/terms appointed for their stay in Nikolaev and Sevastopol, must be
carried out without any indulgence; and immovable property of them, in cases if it remains
unsold past this time, should be subjected to public sale through the local Authorities.
The Committee of Messrs. Ministers resolved that: this proposition explained in the proposal of
the Chief of the Marine Staff and the conclusion of the Minister of Internal Affairs, should be
approved. On June 10
th
, it was announced to the Committee that the Emperor deigned to give His
Highest affirmation to the proposition of the Committee. On such the Highest Approved
Provision of the Committee of the Messrs. Ministers, the Military Governor of Nikolaev and
Sevastopol, Mr. Admiral Greig, was informed for the proper execution of it and further regular
report to the Governing Senate. Thus was ordered: about this Highest Approved Provision of the
Committee of Messrs. Ministers for record/accession and a required appropriate in this case
performance, should be notified by the decrees (the local authorities): Messrs. General Governor
of Novorossiysk and Bessarabia, the Minister of Finance, the Provincial Governments and the
Treasury Chambers of those Provinces (Gubernias), in which permanent residence is permitted
for Jews; about that also should be notified with decrees Messrs. Military Governor of
Sevastopol and the Minister of Internal Affairs; all the same, to all Departments of the Governing
Senate should be sent notifications (V.P. S. Z. vol. V, No. 3,703).
*) See No. 201, p. 257.
Translation by Anastasia Savenko-Moore and Rick Moore, Eugene OR.Funded by
the Memorial Foundation for Jewish Culture NYC, http://mfjc.org/.
Copyright easteurotopo.org 2019.