Organization of supply of products of mining plants in the Urals on military orders in the first quarter of the 19th century

This article characterizes the activities of the supreme and central government authorities in organizing the supply of weapons and metals from the Ural mining plants during the first quarter of the 19th century. It analyzes changes in the structure of the economic bodies within the military and naval departments during the public administration reforms under Emperor Alexander I. Based on regulatory legal acts concerning arms supplies, as well as materials from federal and regional archives, the study concludes that the regulation of military procurement was carried out both by the highest state authorities and by the central bodies of military and naval administration. It notes that Alexander I paid significant attention to equipping the army and navy with weapons. On his orders, committees were established to address problems of military supply from mining plants, and the Izhevsk Arms Plant was founded. The highest state bodies - the State Council and the Committee of Ministers - were responsible for the normative regulation of military procurement. The reform of military administration in the early 19th century led to the creation of the Ministry of Military Ground Forces, later reorganized into the Ministry of War. During the period under study, its structure and functions were defined, identifying the specific units responsible for supplying the army with military goods. The Artillery Expedition, later transformed into the Artillery Department, managed the organization of supplies - such as guns, shells, and other munitions - from the mining plants. It provided information on order volumes to the mining administration and oversaw artillery receivers stationed at the Ural plants and shipping points. The article highlights the measures taken by the first leaders of the military department to organize the supply of troops, and to develop rules for the acceptance of military products and metals from the mining plants. Within the naval department, several divisions were responsible for the supply of military products and metals. During the early 19th-century reforms, these were transformed into departments within the Ministry of Naval Forces. Specifically, the Artillery Expedition handled the supply of guns and shells, while the Economic Expedition was responsible for procuring metals from mining plants for shipbuilding, port construction, anchors, ballast, and other naval necessities. To inspect products against orders, the naval department, like the military, stationed its own commission agents at Ural enterprises. Thus, the article concludes that during this period, a stable structure for military and naval administration was established. Their duties in fulfilling military orders consisted of determining the required volumes of military products and monitoring compliance through military receivers. The author declares no conflicts of interests.

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