The Merchants of the Old Belief

Vladimir Bogdanov

This is an article on the nature of the merchant classes in Imperial Russia of the Old Faith. It was originally published by the Old Believers of Volograd a few years ago. Its basic thesis is that the Old Believers did not function like others within the merchant world. For the Old Belief, all wealth was social, and given by God for the use of the public good and the service of Old Russia. Interestingly, Mr. Bogdanov makes it clear that many of the Old Believer families involved in trading were collectors of old books and manuscripts so sacred to the history of early Russia, and the Old Belief in particular. Hence, it is these men that we have to thank for the spiritual heritage of ancient Russia, much of which was preserved in their collections, in that the Petrine “aristocracy” often contemptuous of Old Russia, had few qualms about letting these go into obscurity. This article was originally much longer, and contained many repetitions. I certainly hope Mr. Bogdanov does not mind my editing work here. It appears in English for the first time, and I apologize to Mr. Bogdanov in advance for any errors in translation–MRJ.


The church division of Nikon’s reign is considered one of the most important events of Russian history. In modern times, it is possible to speak in some detail about the differences in the world view and the daily life between the supporters of the Old Faith and the followers of Nikon. These differences proved to shrink in the years of the Soviet regime; however, they remain until our time. This article will explore these in reference to the merchant and trading classes.

Old Faith communities existed in large numbers in Moscow, Saint Petersburg, Nizhni Novgorod and in many other cities. Their representatives dominated trade and enterprise. It is difficult to determine the portion occupied by the Old Believers among the merchant class. If we take the Moscow industrial elite of the end of the 19th century, then the adherents of the Old Faith comprised in it more than 70%. Some surnames, for example, Ryabushinskiye, belonged first to the State church, and then converted to the Old Faith.

The majority of Moscow Old Believer merchants derived from the natives of central Russia, suburbs and provinces. The Morozov clan were former serfs, but of Old Rite masters.

Max Weber in the beginning 20th century wrote of the “spirit of capitalism,” which arose in Western Europe in the course of the Reformation as one of the central ideas maintaining bourgeois relations. The first Protestants preached asceticism in daily life, centering around labor as the central objective of human existence. They considered themselves the recipients of God’s grace in that they labors were successful. It was God who controlled wealth. It did not take long for this spirit to turn to one of luxury and avarice.

In Russia, the Orthodox owner of capital developed in a very different way from that of the westerner. Poverty in Russia was never proof of the anger of God, but was a part of the Russian idea of asceticism. Any state of affairs was received by the Old Belief as a blessing, each with its own benefits. All classes accepted this idea, for goodness can be brought out of even misery.

There was no distinction made between the social function of wealth and that of the individual’s possession of it. These ideas were never stored in separate containers. Each successful merchant realized that there was a social connection to wealth, and wealth always contained social responsibilities prior to the idea of individual ownership. Wealth was justified by its social content.

V.P. Ryabushinskim wrote about the four gifts God gives to each man, and it is appropriate here to deal with these. The first gift, that of “cross and prayer.” The second, “love and alms;” the third, praying the night vigil, and the last, holy reading. This notion of the four gifts was taken seriously by the Old Believer merchant classes. It all centered around charity. The church was served first of all. Secondly, the alms house, distribution of food and free hospitals. Third, that of a lifetime of prayer, and lastly, the demand that all Old Believers be literate and love reading and learning. Labor, in fact, was called “holy responsibility.”

Many of the merchants developed from simple trading to that of an important contributor to society. So Ivan Ivanovich Khludov, after the war of 1812 began simply, then moving into Moscow where he developed a successful business.. Mikhail Yakovlevich Ryabushinskiy succeeded, beginning from the trade in canvas, paper and woolen articles, purchasing them from peasants and craftsmen, then, once business took off, began to give out material to handicraftsmen and to order goods from them.

The Old Believers themselves chose their most talented and enterprising people to handle the business matters of the community, and from which we was supplied with his base capital. Apparently, this is how the famous Guchkovymi clan received its start.

It was from among the Old Believers that the sale of vodka and other beverages received its start as a matter of commercial trading, usually based territorially. The Kokorev’s clan, eventually becoming nationally famous, was important in this trade.

Light industry, or more precisely textiles, was the most important industry in Moscow. Specifically, it was here where money was to be made. For this reason the majority of Moscow merchants, and not only Old Believers, were in some regard connected. So after Ivan Ivanovich Khludov’s death, his sons opened a cotton-spinning production in Yegor’evske in 1845, and in 1874 they established a major corporation in this field. Mikhail Yakovlevich, as well as the branches of the Morozovs, were involved in this industry around the middle of the 1840s. The Morozovs were divided into four branches: Vikulovichey, Zakharovichey, Abramovich and Timofeyevichey. These groups created corporate enterprises, largely based in the textile industry. Daughters were married into the same field, to other Old Believers such as the family of V.A. Gorbunov. The Onovalovs and the Alekseyevs were also involved with these developments.

. The Old Faith entrepreneur Matvei Sidorovich Kuznetsov 1864 combined all the enterprises of the Kuznetsov clan and he became the “king of porcelain.” Under the reign of Alexander II, this Old Believer became the “supplier of the court of His Imperial Majesty.”

Among the Russian old believers was also the lucrative management and ownership of hotels and inns. In this respect it was the Kokorev clan that dominated here, but it should also be mentioned that it was this same clan that developed the Baku oil fields.

The Botkinykh clan dominated the regions of the medical arts in Moscow, as well as in the arts. Old Believers became merchants in good standing among Moscow guilds. Banking was also very important in the Old Believers economic conquests. It was their savings and loans that were known for their stability and reliability. They were small institutions, but were considered in Moscow to be the best of their kind. A larger example of this was the Ryabushinskeye Bank, later to be known as the Moscow Bank, had its origins in 1902, and became the major investor in rail transport and the production of automobiles at the start of the First Great War.

It remained, however, for the Old Belief to dominate in the middling size of trade, which was sometimes carried out in the area of church utensils. Rare coins, dishes, church utensils and icons were the normal fair of these particular traders. Yegoriv, Morozov, Tyulin and many other names could be lent to this particular enterprise. Old manuscripts were also stored, and cherished by this class of collectors and traders. Some fo the largest museums and libraries in Russia were maintained in business due to these very shrewd collectors in antiques.

There are three major reasons why the Old Belief developed such a powerful trading class. The first is the respect due to labor: it was a podvig, ascetic struggle, in itself. Owners of capital did not stop their labors to rest, and routinely increased production for the sake of charity. They did not worship money, but their profits were invested in public goods, alms and education (especially in the old manuscripts). Secondly, the hostile environment of Russia made the Old Faith depend more and more on the business practices of its members for survival. Thirdly, because of the power of community, the powerfully shared beliefs of these groups, they became more enterprising than the remainder of the people. They had a network, a strong community, and this served them. . .

In the 19th century the family Of Khludovykh was famous not so much for its commercial and industrial activity, but due to its remarkable collections. Aleksey Ivanovich Khludov, collected and preserved many ancient texts. The Monastic writings of St. Joseph of Volok the compositions of Maxim the Greek were preserved.. All told, the collection amounted to 430 manuscripts and 624 old books. According to his will, this wealth was transmitted into the Nicol Old Faith monastery, where it was stored up to 1917, then established in a Soviet museum. The same was done with old-style icons. Ivan Nikiticha Tsarskiy was another Old Believer who took it upon himself to preserve many of the great monuments of Old Russia. Pogodin wrote about him, “... His entire life was given, not to marble walls or velvet pillows, or other luxuries, but to the collection and preservation of precious Slav monuments for the glory of the fatherland.” In his collection there were “zhitiynaya” literature, ancient manuscripts, old publication books, official material and so forth. In his will, 240 precious historical documents were given to the Russian Society of History and Antiquities. . . The Botkins were also well-known collectors. Almost all the sons of Peter Kononovich distinguished themselves in this area. Dmitriy Petrovich Botkin distinguished himself both in the collection of western and eastern art forms. Much of these collections ended up abroad after the revolution. . .

It remains, however, that the bulk of the Old Faith merchant class exerted their greatest energy in the areas of charity and poor relief once their basic income was secured. Chief among these is the successful merchant Alexei Alexandrovich Bakhrushin. Well-known Moscow philanthropists of the Old Faith were the Khludovy clan. The representatives of this dynasty established such establishments as the almshouse of Gerasim Ivanovich Khludova, a hospital for incurably sick women, the free apartments of P.D. Khludovoy, the free apartments of Constantine and Helen Prokhorov, a handicraft school, and a children's hospital of Khludova (it was university clinic on the children's diseases). Ultimately, this clan established almost 20 separate, large charitable institutions in Moscow.

Old Believers who owned mills or factories gave quite a bit of attention to the moral and social education of their workers. Schools for labor were founded, and moral, economic and spiritual lectures and seminars were given. Particularly famous for this was the already mentioned Morozov clan.

Old Believers also distinguished themselves in terms of public service. Though originally only interested in local affairs, by the beginning of the 20th century their labors became national in scope. Old Believers, were considered model landowners, and even entered into the state Duma once, in post-1905 Russia, religious tolerance was proclaimed. Alexander and Nikolai Ivanovich were urban executives and managers in Kaluga province in the early 20th century. Nikolai was head of the municipal government of Moscow. Alexander eventually became a minister in the Provisional Government. . . .

This description of the Old Faith in Russia, specifically its contribution to Russian life, is not complete, and does not pretend to be so. However, it is sufficient, to prove that the Old Faith remained vibrant and charitable throughout Russian history, regardless of the level of persecution endured by them.

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