The 1782–1783 Description of the Saratov viceregency and the beginning of Volga regional studies

Abstract

The Description of the Saratov Viceregency (1782–1783) belongs to the large body of topographical accounts produced in Russia from the late eighteenth to the early nineteenth centuries. Shortly after its compilation, the document received a favorable assessment from Academician Nikolai Ozeretskovsky in private correspondence. Nikolai Rubinstein later offered a brief evaluation, pointing out its shortcomings, while Aleksandr Kleitman provided a more detailed analysis, though his conclusions largely echoed those of his predecessor. Both scholars relied on the published version of the description. However, manuscript copies of the text also survive, and their dating allows for a more precise consideration of questions related to its content. The Description of the Saratov Viceregency was compiled at a time when the settlement and study of the Saratov Volga region were only beginning. It is a valuable source that captures key features of the region’s natural environment as well as its socio-economic development at the time. The document also sheds light on the level of knowledge held by local officials who administered the viceregency and on contemporary local conditions. When compared with other similar accounts published in Part VI of the Collection of Essays Selected from Almanacs for Different Years, the Saratov description reveals striking contrasts in the pace of economic development across different regions of the Russian Empire