Abstract:
In the present article, the author addresses the issue of social conflict within traditional society and, using Bessarabia as an example, examines the attempts at social modernization undertaken by the imperial administration in the newly annexed territory. The state, in order to prevent the destabilization of the entire system, assumes the role of reformer of the old social structures and institutions. Overcoming the forces that resist change, the state activates those new social elements that advocate for transformation towards modernization, a process that takes a cyclical form – reform or stagnation, evolution or revolution. Using the implementation of several agrarian regulations as an example, the author provides detailed evidence of the difculties, specifics, and main stages of the social policy promoted by the imperial administration in Bessarabia, a policy that ultimately culminated in the application of the Agrarian Regulation of July 14, 1868.
