Vyazemskiy-Dolgorukiy estate (Znamenskiy lane) 3

''Beseda'' ( rus, Беседа, p=bʲɪˈsʲedə, a=Ru-беседа.ogg, t=debate) was a clandestine discussion circle consisting of

liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

zemstvo A ''zemstvo'' ( rus, земство, p=ˈzʲɛmstvə, plural ''zemstva'' – rus, земства) was an institution of local government set up during the great emancipation reform of 1861 carried out in Imperial Russia by Emperor Alexander ...

men", among them prominent and grand names of the

Russian aristocracy The Russian nobility (russian: дворянство ''dvoryanstvo'') originated in the 14th century. In 1914 it consisted of approximately 1,900,000 members (about 1.1% of the population) in the Russian Empire. Up until the February Revolution ...

.Figes, p. 165 The

intelligentsia The intelligentsia is a status class composed of the university-educated people of a society who engage in the complex mental labours by which they critique, shape, and lead in the politics, policies, and culture of their society; as such, the in ...

discussion group was formed in the wake of resumed persecution of the zemstvos after increased liberties during the

Russian famine of 1891–92 Russian(s) refers to anything related to Russia, including: *Russians (, ''russkiye''), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries *Rossiyane (), Russian language term for all citizens and peo ...

. Beseda was formed in November 1899 and gathered 3 or 4 times a year. Founders of the circle were

Dmitry Shakhovskoy Prince Dmitry Ivanovich Shakhovskoy (1861, Tsarskoye Selo – 1939, Moscow) was a Russian liberal politician. Life Active participant in zemstvo congresses, 1904–1905; one of the organizers of the Union of Liberation. One of the founders of ...

Pavel Dolgorukov Prince Pavel Dmitrievich Dolgorukov (russian: Князь Па́вел Дми́триевич Долгору́ков, tr. ; 1866, Tsarskoye Selo – June 9, 1927) was a Russian landowner and aristocrat who was executed by the Bolsheviks in 19 ...

, and Prince

Sergei Nikolaevich Trubetskoy Prince Sergei Nikolaevich Trubetskoy (russian: Серге́й Никола́евич Трубецко́й; 4 August ld Style and New Style dates, O. S. 23 June1862 – 23 September 1905) was a List of Russian philosophers, Russian Christian ph ...

. It gradually lost its significance and the last meeting was held in October 1905.Kröner, A.W. (1998) "The Debate Between Miliukov and Maklakov on the Chances for Russian Liberalism", p. 23-25 The members, which included among others

Prince Lvov Lvov (russian: Львов) is the name of a princely Russian family of Rurikid stock. The family is descended from the princes of Yaroslavl where early members of the family are buried. Notable members * Knyaz Matvey Danilovich (?–1603), Voiv ...

, met in the palace of the Princes Dolgorukov in Moscow, and initially restricted discussion strictly to the affairs of the zemstvos. After the persecution of the zemstvos was increased in 1900, when it dismissed several hundreds of liberals from the elected zemstvo boards, the circle was forced to confront political issues and questions. In the following two years, the Beseda would become the "leading force of the Russian

constitutionalists Constitutionalism is "a compound of ideas, attitudes, and patterns of behavior elaborating the principle that the authority of government derives from and is limited by a body of fundamental law". Political organizations are constitutional ...

movement", with a wide spectrum of public men, from industrial

magnate The magnate term, from the late Latin ''magnas'', a great man, itself from Latin ''magnus'', "great", means a man from the higher nobility, a man who belongs to the high office-holders, or a man in a high social position, by birth, wealth or ot ...

s and

slavophiles Slavophilia (russian: Славянофильство) was an intellectual movement originating from the 19th century that wanted the Russian Empire to be developed on the basis of values and institutions derived from Russia's early history. Slavoph ...

to civic leaders, supporting it, and its calls for reform. Most members joined the

Constitutional Democratic Party ) , newspaper = ''Rech'' , ideology = ConstitutionalismConstitutional monarchismLiberal democracyParliamentarism Political pluralismSocial liberalism , position = Centre to centre-left , international = , colours ...

. The resumed persecution in 1900 had also banned

Dmitry Shipov Dmitry Nikolaevich Shipov (14 May 1851 – 14 January 1920) was a Russian liberal Slavophile politician of the 19th and 20th centuries.Figes, pp. 164–5 Shipov acted as a political mentor of Georgy Lvov, Russia's future first Prime Minister.Figes ...

's Moscow Provincial Zemstvo Council, formed 1896 and closed shortly after, which drove him, "a reluctant revolutionary", into the circles of the radical constitutionalists.

References

Bibliography

* {{Russia-hist-stub Russian Empire Liberalism in Russia