Some Issues from the History of Russian Imperial Censorship in XIX Century Georgia

Abstract

The Russian Empire carried out a strict conquering policy on its territory, and in the successful implementation of this policy, its punitive bodies - the police and the gendarmerie - were also supported by censorship. The Imperial Censorship was a supervisory body whose functions included the prohibition of disseminating unwanted information, "unacceptable thoughts and reports" on the territory of the Empire. Censorship was to strictly control the text, the subtext, the symbol, the hidden allusion, in a word, anything that the imperial government deemed to be dangerous. The Georgian periodical press was subject to special censorship. The press was forbidden to publish any information covering political and social processes, speeches or any kind of "excitement" in the empire.

In the second half of the 19th century, colonial oppression in Georgia reached its extreme limit. Since 1882, it was officially forbidden to mention the name of Georgia in public, the empire forced Georgians to become Russians in language, mind and feelings. Imperial censorship fiercely fought and persecuted everything Georgian - church, literature, theater, press and the Georgian word in general. The functions of the committee included controlling, if necessary blocking, not only all books, artistic texts, critical-publicist materials, press organs, but also religious literature, customs, typographies, musical notes, artistic canvases, and so on. As for theatrical censorship, it was strictly supervised and controlled any free words and lines spoken on stage. The presence of the police was mandatory at each performance, they had to monitor both the text and the mime of the performers. What could be staged in the capitals - Moscow and St. Petersburg, was prohibited in the provinces, for example in Tbilisi. Censorship was particularly against to show the negative situation in educational institutions, and such correspondences, which were systematically included in the Georgian press, were strictly blocked everywhere. In Georgia, censorship fought particularly aggressively in the field of education, because they knew very well that if the students forgot the Georgian language and history, the empire would achieve the goal more easily, the Georgian nation would gradually become Russian. In the materials of the Censorship Fund, we very often come across reports about the unbearable conditions in theological schools, master's seminars, and classical gymnasiums in various regions. "Teachers of Russian nationality, selected by the empire, systematically cursed students with unworthy words, insulted their national feelings, starved them, mistreated them, punched them and beat them." The Russian Empire issued a circular in 1885. According to the circular, teaching in the Russian language has become mandatory in all types of schools from primary grades. The Georgian language was banished and considered an optional subject. "Teaching the mother tongue has officially been declared a family affair." Georgian classical writers and public figures did not adapt to the "hellish, mute teaching method" of the imperial teaching. In connection with this painful issue, the letters of Georgian public figures and teachers were subjected to very strict censorship, or were completely blocked. And this is natural. Russian officials and exarchs were not at all worried about the "hellish" conditions specially created for Georgian youth in theological seminaries. Georgian writing, press, theater, literacy society and all Georgian cultural and educational organizations stood up to the reactionary threat of censorship. Despite the worst situation, the 19th century is the age of struggle for the national idea, personality and freedom of thought for the Georgian people.