The Formation of the Bessarabian Nobility and the Politics of Regional Autonomy, 1810–1820

Debates over “autonomy” and “centralisation” have long shaped interpretations of the relationship between local elites and the imperial centre in the Russian Empire. A common view holds that efforts by St Petersburg to impose greater administrative uniformity in the borderlands met with resistance from regional nobilities defending their laws and customs. The early history of Bessarabia after its incorporation into the empire under the Bucharest Treaty of 1812 complicates this picture. Although imperial policy initially granted the new province considerable autonomy, relations between Russian governors and the local nobility were marked by persistent tension. These tensions diminished in the second half of the 1820s, when the curtailment of Bessarabian autonomy coincided with the introduction of the institutions and practices of the Russian nobility. The consolidation of the social and legal status of Bessarabian noblemen facilitated their relatively successful integration into the imperial elite, revealing the interplay between concession, adaptation, and integration in the governance of newly acquired territories.