Procopius
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- Joined
- Dec 30, 2022
Another stop-off point for another batch of unemployed Germans on their way to America? Sounds familiar. A lot of the Mennonites came that way.
Shortly after becoming the next Empress of Russia, a young Catherine II approved a new colonization policy designed to benefit her empire on October 14, 1762.
Catherine’s first Manifesto, issued on December 4, 1762, was printed in Russian, German, French, English, Polish, Czech, and Arabic. This Manifesto was largely symbolic given that the Russian government had not yet established an administrative structure to plan and manage such a large colonization program.
Catherine ’s second Manifesto was issued on July 22, 1763, at the end of the Seven Years' War. She was 34 years old at the time. This Manifesto was perfectly timed to appeal to the war and tax-weary European populace. Copies of the Manifesto were printed in newspapers and on leaflets distributed throughout Europe, focusing on the German-speaking lands where much of the war had been fought. These lands had no national government and comprised many small principalities, counties, duchies, and city-states that were part of the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation. Some of these territories, such as the County of Isenburg, did not have legal restrictions preventing their subjects from traveling or migrating to new lands.
The second Manifesto was enhanced to make the offer more specific and attractive. Among the promises made to the colonists were exemption from military service, freedom of religion, a 30-year exemption from taxes, land provided at no cost, and travel expenses paid by the Russian government. At the time, and even by today's standards, this was a very enlightened and generous offer to prospective immigrants.
The Manifesto of 1763 greatly appealed to many seeking a better life. Between 1763 and 1766, over 30,000 people began migrating to Russia.
An Office for the Guardianship of Foreign Settlers was established under Catherine's trusted friend, Count Grigory Orlov, to plan and administer the colonization program. The Guardianship reported directly to Catherine, and Count Orlov wrote about the conditions in Norka in 1769.
The Manifesto was soon followed by many supplementary stipulations. On February 19, 1764, Catherine approved the "agrarian law" for the colonists, which was developed by Grigory Orlov. The law defined the settlement's primary conditions and the foreign settlers' organization.
Several provisions of the 1763 Manifesto were never truly fulfilled, such as the promise that colonists could settle anywhere in the Russian Empire, including towns and cities, and practice their trade. After arriving in Russia, nearly all the colonists were directed to settle in the Volga region near Saratov, where they would primarily work as farmers and practice their trade as time allowed.
After more than 100 years of settlement in Russia, the remaining provisions of the 1763 Manifesto were revoked between 1871 and 1874. The loss of the privileges promised by Catherine sparked another large-scale migration of these ethnic Germans, this time to the Americas.