Vilniaus miesto vienuolynai ir Rusijos imperijos vykdoma politika XVIII a. pabaigoje - XIX a.

ENIn general evaluating the policy of the Russian government in the 19th century in regard to monasteries one can make several observations. First of all, one can consider that policy as changeable: from austere measures to partial easing and later again to austerity. This was primarily done by restrictions on the internal life of the monasteries, the destruction of their independence, lowering their economic powers. A second observation is that the Russian government sought to reduce or even totally eliminate the influence of the monasteries in the community. This was done by closing the monasteries, prohibiting the monasteries from accepting new members, and thus leaving the monasteries to self-contained disappearance. Men’s monasteries began to be closed at the end of the 18th century – the beginning of the 19th century. The monastery of the old observance Carmelites was closed and its facilities handed over to the Vilnius Diocesan Seminary. The Piorians sold their monastery in Šnipiškiai to the government. By a direction of the government the hospital of the Rokitai was closed and the monks transferred elsewhere. The premises of the Augustinian monastery were transferred to the Vilnius Seminary, but two buildings and the church were left to the monastery and therefore it continued to function. Later, until the great closing of monasteries in the Russian empire in 1832 the monasteries in Vilnius were not closed down. As a consequence of the czar‘s decree on the closure of the monasteries in 1832 three monasteries were abolished in Vilnius and its suburbs. These monasteries were relatively small. In the 1830s one more monastery was closed.Men‘s monasteries were being closed down also in the 1840s. At that time, seven monasteries were closed. On the eve of the 1863–1864 uprising five men’s and ten women’s monasteries were functioning in Vilnius. After the suppression of the 1863–1864 uprising the monasteries of men and women were closed down. Little evidence of the monks’ involvement in the uprising was found. Usually the closing of the monastery was dispensed with general allegations. The monks from the closed monasteries were transferred to the three remaining not closed monasteries. The Franciscan and Bernardine monks were transferred to other monasteries of the same orders. Most of the former novices were moved to the Vilnius Seminary. However, of the three not immediately closed after the revolt monasteries in the long run only one Benedictine monastery remained operating. So at the end of the 19th century – the beginning of the 20th century only one monastery functioned openly in Vilnius, except for the secret monasteries. Every monastery or their group was closed by a separate order of the czar. After the suppression of the 1863–1864 uprising Vilnius Governor General Mikhail Murav’ev received the czar’s permission to close the monasteries. As a result, after the suppression of the uprising, while closing individual monasteries, the order of the Vilnius governor general was given to close one or another monastery. [From the publication]