Stanitsa
Encyclopedia
Stanitsa is a village inside a Cossack host
(voisko) . Stanitsas were the primary unit of Cossack hosts.
Historically, the stanitsa was a unit of economic and political organisation of the Cossack peoples primarily in the southern regions of the Russian Empire
.
Much of the land was held in common by the stanitsa, subject to annual allocation to Cossack families by the Ataman
, the appointed leader of the community. This was an autocratic process, and subject to patronage, nepotism and other forms of corruption, but a degree of consent was required, within the militarised Cossack society, that limited the worst abuses. Stanitsas were hierarchical societies analogous to military and regimental structures, relying on the inbuilt conservatism and long-standing traditions of the subject people, and the element of common landholding should not be confused with either democracy or equality. This form of society can be contrasted with the much more permanent forms of peasant economy operating within the Russian empire of the time, in which each peasant family worked the same area of land on a long term basis and was responsible for its productivity and yield. While the word stanitsa in a modern usage survives, the stanitsa system in its historic context was effectively destroyed in the aftermath of the Russian revolution, when the Civil War
and subsequent collectivisation
of the land by the state in the Stalin
ist period, removed the elements of local practical, economic, and political control which had previously existed.
In modern Russia
stanitsas are classified as a type of rural localities and are mostly predominant in the southern regions of Rostov Oblast
, Krasnodar
and Stavropol Krai
s and most of the Republics of the Northern Caucasus.
Cossack host
A Cossack host or Cossack viysko was an administrative subdivision of Cossacks in Imperial Russia...
(voisko) . Stanitsas were the primary unit of Cossack hosts.
Historically, the stanitsa was a unit of economic and political organisation of the Cossack peoples primarily in the southern regions of the Russian Empire
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...
.
Much of the land was held in common by the stanitsa, subject to annual allocation to Cossack families by the Ataman
Ataman
Ataman was a commander title of the Ukrainian People's Army, Cossack, and haidamak leaders, who were in essence the Cossacks...
, the appointed leader of the community. This was an autocratic process, and subject to patronage, nepotism and other forms of corruption, but a degree of consent was required, within the militarised Cossack society, that limited the worst abuses. Stanitsas were hierarchical societies analogous to military and regimental structures, relying on the inbuilt conservatism and long-standing traditions of the subject people, and the element of common landholding should not be confused with either democracy or equality. This form of society can be contrasted with the much more permanent forms of peasant economy operating within the Russian empire of the time, in which each peasant family worked the same area of land on a long term basis and was responsible for its productivity and yield. While the word stanitsa in a modern usage survives, the stanitsa system in its historic context was effectively destroyed in the aftermath of the Russian revolution, when the Civil War
Russian Civil War
The Russian Civil War was a multi-party war that occurred within the former Russian Empire after the Russian provisional government collapsed to the Soviets, under the domination of the Bolshevik party. Soviet forces first assumed power in Petrograd The Russian Civil War (1917–1923) was a...
and subsequent collectivisation
Collectivisation in the USSR
Collectivization in the Soviet Union was a policy pursued under Stalin between 1928 and 1940. The goal of this policy was to consolidate individual land and labour into collective farms...
of the land by the state in the Stalin
Joseph Stalin
Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin was the Premier of the Soviet Union from 6 May 1941 to 5 March 1953. He was among the Bolshevik revolutionaries who brought about the October Revolution and had held the position of first General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union's Central Committee...
ist period, removed the elements of local practical, economic, and political control which had previously existed.
In modern Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
stanitsas are classified as a type of rural localities and are mostly predominant in the southern regions of Rostov Oblast
Rostov Oblast
Rostov Oblast is a federal subject of Russia , located in the Southern Federal District. Rostov Oblast has an area of and a population of making it the sixth most populous federal subject in Russia...
, Krasnodar
Krasnodar Krai
-External links:* **...
and Stavropol Krai
Stavropol Krai
Stavropol Krai is a federal subject of Russia . Its administrative center is the city of Stavropol. Population: -Geography:Stavropol Krai encompasses the central part of the Fore-Caucasus and most of the northern slopes of Caucasus Major...
s and most of the Republics of the Northern Caucasus.