Ancient Sumy Land

19-27

Authors: Demydenko N.M.

The article deals with the issues of Ukrainian women‘s individual rights in marriage based on customary law, in particular, the author describes the property rights of women etc. The author analyzed the influence of the Orthodox Church on marriage life in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. The different views of the church and the community on wedding and divorce were also highlighted. Under the customary law marriage as legitimate community act recognized subject to certain conditions as: zmovyny (agreement between groom‘s and fiancée‘s relatives); engagement (confirmation the results of zmovyny); the wedding as the final wedding ritual. Wedding under the customary law is not obligatory. And all the family and legal relations that resulted from unwed marriages (marriage “in good conscience”) recognized in the same way as religious marriage. The reasons of «free» divorce of that time were analyzed. According to the Lithuanian Statute divorces were the competence of the clergy, and in practice people get married and divorce without church ministers to the second half of the sixteenth century, just in the presence of a family where the husband and wife stated intention to divorce. That divorce was possible with the agreement of both parties. In that case, a man and a woman, in consultation with their relatives and friends give each other “divorce letters” which were signed by witnesses. Typical marital customs of that time were disclosed: the future bride kidnapping; matchmaking of guy and girl etc. The publication proved that customary law, transferring the moral experience of generations, influenced the traditions of Ukrainian marriage up to the end of the seventeenth century. The clergy and the government do not intervene strongly in family life, believing that “man and woman are the best judges of their lives.” Key words: marriage, customary law, the Lithuanian Statute, unwed marriages, wedding traditions.

36-42

Authors: Mikhaylichenko M. А.

In the article the peculiarities of the Kharkiv noble deputy assembly from the beginning of its functioning and to the temporary suspension of its nobilitation activities are considered. According to the Charter to the Nobility 1785, the Deputy Assemblies were chartered in every govenorate for considering the evidences of nobility and making up the genealogical book of the nobility. The Noble Deputy Assemblies included a Marshal of the Nobility and noble deputies elected from every district. The genealogical book of the nobility should have contained all the people owning real estate in the govenorate and having proved their nobility. The nobility considered proven if the evidence provided by the applicants, were found sufficient by at least two thirds of the members of noble deputy assembly. In this case the nobleman was submitted to the genealogical book of the nobility and received a charter to the nobility. Thus, the noble deputy assembly controlled the whole process of ennoblement of local elite, from the examining of nobility evidences and to the issuing of noble charters. Kharkiv noble deputy assembly was chartered at the beginning of January 1786. In its activities it was guided by the Charter to the Nobility and its own “Regulations of Kharkov noble society”, adopted on January 4, 1786. This document regulated issues concerning the functioning of Kharkiv noble deputy assembly, time and duration of meetings, procedure of sessions, order of doing business, etc. Thus, according to the “Regulations” the noble deputy assembly was to assemble annually from the first of December till the first of February in the provincial town of running business. Herewith, the secretary of the Assembly was to be constantly present in the noble assembly, and noble deputies were to take turns. The cases were to be settled in the presence of at least two deputies, marshal of the nobility and a secretary. “Regulations of Kharkov noble society” also defined issues concerning the formation of noble treasury, construction of the building for Kharkiv noble deputy assembly, fees of the servants etc. In October 1786 Kharkiv noble deputy assembly begins to make up the first minutes of the entries into the genealogical books of the nobility of Kharkiv province. Between 1786 and 1795 it took 1083 decisions, according to which 1231 noblemen were entered into the genealogical book of the nobility. In 1796 the Russian Emperor Paul I forbids the noble deputy assembly to provide their own ennoblement. In 1801, after Alexander I accession to the throne, Kharkiv noble deputy assembly was granted the right to enter into nobility again, though it uses this right in a much smaller scale than in the first decade of its activity. Key words: nobility, noble deputy assembly, nobilitation, Kharkiv province, Sloboda Ukraine.

54-66

Authors: Kravchenko O.M.

The article is devoted to the analysis of the state of knowledge of the problem localization of the annalistic cities of Sivershchyna. The main avenues of studying the annalistic cities and issues are related to correlation between the specific archeological object and the written data. For the first time the Old Russian cities drew attention of the Ukrainian historians in the first half of the ХІХ c. Significant amount of annalistic data were analyzed. They contained names of the cities and description of historical events related to them. Nevertheless the process of correlation of the name and the specific archeological monument is very difficult and problematic. The discussion that the name is independent from the remains of the fortifications of the princes epoch appeared in the middle of the ХІХ c. In the course of archeological science development and accumulation of knowledge about the material culture, the process of localization the annalistic cities gained the scientific character. The data of the historical geography, archeology, linguistics, museology were used. The opening of the new complexes on the territory of the Old Russian cities let us refer them to certain historical events described on the pages of chronicles. Of course the process of identification the name and the specific monument is very difficult and to certain extend subjective. The paper contains data about almost two hundred years work of few generation of archeologists and certain number of current issues related to the solution of the problem. Key words: Ancient State archaeological sites, city chronicles, exploration, excavation, burial mounds, settlement, location.

90-95

Authors: Grebenyuk V. S.

The presented article is an attempt to analyze the features of the colonial policy of the first cabinet of William Pitt the Elder. Research has shown that this government, formed in the beginning of December 1756, has laid new and to some extent revolutionary course for London, according to which the struggle for colonies was proclaimed the most priority in the foreign policy of the state during the war. Following a marked course, Pitt gave military and naval support to overseas possessions of Great Britain in North America, the West Indies, India, and also supported the expansionist project of the British merchant T. Cumming in Africa. To achieve supremacy over the ocean Premier paid particular attention to the naval forces, increasing the number of military ships and sailors serving His Majesty. As part of the main course of the colonial struggle the new head of the government also was forced to reconsider his attitude to the conduct of the continental policy. According to the previously signed agreement Pitt supported the initiative of providing subsidy for Prussia and formation of the “observation army” in Hannover. However, contrary to the critics’ opinion about the repeating of policy of the previous Ministry, he intended to use these measures not for retraction Britain into the war in Europe, but to distract forces of France on the continent for colonial conquest overseas. At that moment main ideologist of overseas expansion W. Pitt realized that for the further conduct of an independent policy his influence on the power structure of London is not enough. So, being sent into retirement in April 1757, he set a goal of searching of allies for the future. Thus, despite of the short period of its work, the first cabinet of W. Pitt the Elder formed a new foreign policy, which subsequently followed Britain during the Anglo-French confrontation 1755-1763 gg., and that led it to the creation of the colonial empire. Therefore, study of the features of colonial policy of the next cabinets of London in this period will be continued. Key words: Great Britain, the Seven Years War, colonies, metropolitan power, Navy.

106-111

Authors: Yepik L.I.

The author pays a special attention to the process of the liquidation of the illiteracy in Ukraine looking at the realization of the language rights of the population because just during the 20-30ies of the 20th century a peculiar system was created and following just this system guaranteed s real success. General literacy is an elementary basis and an index of the development of any people’s culture. The illiteracy was practically abolished in many European countries up to the end of the19th century. At the same time a general literacy of the population in Ukraine at the end of the 19th and at the beginning of the 20th centuries was quite low because of the state policy led by the Russian Empire. The beginning of the campaign for the liquidation the illiteracy in Ukraine is supposed to be the Decree of the Rada of People’s Commissars of Ukrainian Republic declared on May, 21 1921 in Kharkiv. It contained both some organization moments and language principles. All the uneducated population of the Republic from 8 till 50 years old had to be taught to read and write in Ukrainian and Russian or any other language according to the wish of a person. Training was made both at the state schools and the special schools for uneducated population. People’s Houses, churches, synagogues, school clubs, private houses and suitable buildings at the factories, plants and offices were used for the purpose to liquid the illiteracy. People who tried to avoid the duty established by the Law ant to make the obstacles for those who wanted to attend schools were prosecuted. There were special inspections for determination of real opportunities of organizations for liquidation of illiteracy. Their aim was to define the people’s attitude to education and availability of specialists who can teach any language. A bright example of such an inspection was a report of a school instructor from Konotop district (povit) about the state of education in the district (povit). Following the facts from the report one can make a conclusion that there were real conditions for a campaign of liquidation the illiteracy in Sumy Region just by the way of using Ukrainian language. Above all in the summer of 1920 the povit education in Konotop got aninstructive document where the expression “national - cultural autonomy of Ukrainian peasants” was introduced. It was mentioned that school education in Nizhyn, Oster, Krolevets districts had to be done in Ukrainian language. There was an opinion that dividing into nationalities had to assist the classical consciousness of the peasants. Moreover Ukrainian language had to help to liquid national distrust to the power and to propagandize the ideas of socialism and proletarian internationalism. Konotop povit education was recommended to struggle on one hand with russiafication and on the other hand to fight with Ukrainian shovinism, to direct the efforts for neutralization the displays of “Petlura agitation” and to explain the population their rights for free cultural development. The campaign for literacy was not only educational but political as well. So, there was a lack of books containing new political contests. The paper crisis of that time was one more obstacle for a quick decision of such a problem. The education was provided using the texts from the newspapers: “Illiteracy, Go Away!” he first new ABC-books were published in 1923 -1924 in Russian. Not long ago they were translated in necessary way. Publishing ABC-books for national minorities was begun in1926. Books for reading (chytanky) for German, Jewish and Polish organizations were bought in Kharkiv uo to the end of 1920ies but it was limited. Key words: a liquidation of illiteracy (liqunep), prosvita, a native language of the population, a book for reading (chytanka), Ukrainian language.

121-136

Authors: Kudinov D.V., Opanaschuk P.V.

«New hero» of Ukrainian literature on the cusp of the 19th and the 20th centuries is a man from the underclass, who, due to the reverses of fortune, raised to the level of realizing his social aspirations, high political culture and ethic willingness to defend class interests. Such description fully suits the image of new generation of litterateurs of peasant or working origin and conforms fully to Anton Shablenko, whose private, public and creative life is an object of present article study. Considering the particular nature of life description of a public person who is simultaneously a man of letters, the authors applied cross-disciplinary approach in the analysis of Ukrainian writer’s biography via combination of literary criticism, biographical methods and research techniques (historical genetical method, diachronic analysis, etc.) This made possible to explain both qualitative changes in Shablenko’s oeuvre and the evolution of his ideology as well as to approach structurally to interpretation of cultural figure biography in which creative and public works are inseparable. In the article axiological analysis of A. Shablenko’s legacy in national literary studies was generalized and blank spots in his biography determining oncoming perspective of “writer-worker’s appealing personality” study were specified. Key words: Anton Yakovlevich Shablenko, “Vilna Ukraina”, USLDP, workers, poetry, short stories.