Zemstvo

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Zemstvo (Russian: Земство) was a form of local government instituted during the great liberal reforms performed in Imperial Russia by Alexander II of Russia. The idea of zemstvo was elaborated by Nikolay Milyutin and the first zemstvo laws were promulgated in 1864. After the October Revolution, the zemstvo system was shut down.

The institution of the zemstvo provided provincial and district government councils in Russia between 1864 and October 17, 1917. Many different classes, including the peasants, took part in elections concerning the zemstvos. They were created as part of the Great Reforms instituted by Alexander II. The zemstvos took up matters of education, medical relief, public welfare, food supply, and road maintenance in their localities, but were met with hostility by radicals, such as the Socialist Revolutionary Party, the intelligentsia, and the nihilists who wanted more reform.

The nobles were given more weight in voting for a zemstvo, as evidenced by the fact that 74% of the zemstvo was made up of nobles, even though they comprised less than 5% of the population. Even so, the zemstvo did allow the greater population more say in the ways they wanted a small part of their lives to be run.