The landowners and farmers union and the attempt to establish Russian-Polish cooperation in the Southwestern Krai (1906-1909)

The aim of the research is to study the formation and activities of the Union of the landowners and farmers of the South-Western Krai during 1906-1909. The Union was planned as an organization aimed at protecting the land and the development of agricultural business on the All-Russian scale, which ultimately was to promote the increase of the income of the population as well as to form the strong conservative core non-susceptible to the revolutionary propaganda among the population. The Union of the landowners and farmers of the South-Western Krai functioned as an autonomous entity with its charter. The key regional feature that determined the features of its functioning and further disappearance became a national issue, namely, the problem of interaction between its constituent landowners of the Russian and Polish origin. The causes of the rapprochement between the landowners on the Right Bank Ukraine were the events of the First Russian Revolution, and the need for joint protection of land property, as well as the beginning of the election campaign to the State Duma II. The main subject of the discussion at the founding congress of the Union of the landowners and farmers of the South-Western Krai was the Polish issue at the suggestion of the Russian delegates. The Russian landlords' request for the removal of all the restrictions from the Poles in the region and the formation of a special deputation for its support at the Council of Ministers were to be the basis for the establishment of the friendly and trustful international relations. For its part, the Polish landowners as a compromise had to accept the unity of the Russian Empire and abandon the idea of the Polish Kingdom autonomy. Some of them were inclined to the compromise, but the majority put the national issues above others, based on the ideas of the Polish public opinion in the Right-Bank Ukraine. In addition, Polish landowners opposed any common political campaign activities. These factors, as well as the subsequent completion of the election campaign to the State Duma II and its subsequent dissolution, which marked the end of the First Russian Revolution, contributed to the gradual decay of the Union's activities. One can also add to the causes that determined the disappearance of the Union the factor of the inertness of the landowners and their reluctance to self-organize, which can be proved by the Kyiv congress of landowners at the beginning of 1908. The set of measures implemented by the founders of the Union aimed at reviving its activity was not a success. Having not realized its potential, the Union of the landowners and farmers of the South-Western Krai ceased its activity. The main reasons for it were the national conflicts and the inactivity of the landowners.

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