Michael Speransky. Statesman of Imperial Russia, 1772–1839 - Marc Raeff

SPERANSKY AND THE DECEMBRISTS 313

a part filed in various offices; the remainder was returned to the State

Chancery. In 1816 Speransky requested that his translation of St.

Thomas a Kempis' Imitation of Christ, which was kept in one of the

trunks together with his political papers, be returned to him. Alexander

I granted the request. Alexander Turgenev was ordered to search the

papers, to take out the translation, and to send it to Speransky. There-

fore, in 1816 already, Alexander Turgenev - whose brother Nicholas

was close to the Decembrists - had had a glimpse into the political

papers of Speransky. In 1820 A. Turgenev made a more searching

examination of these papers when he was directed to extract all those

which might be of value to the Commission on Codification. Alexander

Turgenev gave some of the papers (for instance, a copy of Speransky's

1802 memoire) to his brother Nicholas. Nicholas copied or extracted

the contents of these projects and, in all probability, circulated them

among his Decembrist friends. But either accidentally or by design,

N. Turgenev communicated only excerpts, thereby creating the im-

pression that they were quite liberal. That this was indeed the case is

confirmed by the wording of the extracts of the Plan of 1809, published

in Paris in 1847 by N. Turgenev in his book La Russie et les Russes.

It is not very material for our purpose whether N. Turgenev consciously

slanted Speransky's ideas by his own selection of the passages he cir-
culated or whether he himself possessed only inaccurate and incomplete
versions. The result was that the Decembrists were acquainted with a
liberal interpretation and form of Speransky's ideas. This proved enough

for them to believe that, if successful, they could count on his support

and assistance.
But they never went beyond this vague hope. As Borovkov testified
in his autobiographical notes: "The most searching investigation reveal-
ed that this hope [of enlisting Speransky] was pure invention and loose
talk to win over the gullible." 1 In the final analysis, as the investigating
committee concluded: "The leaders of the Northern Society, planning
the formation of a provisional government, selected for it members of
the Council of State, namely - as they said - Admiral Mordvinov and
Privy Councillor Speransky. But only because the former, Admiral
Mordvinov, often expressed in the Council of State opinions in opposi-
tion to the proposals of the ministers, and because the latter, Privy
Councillor Speransky (in the words of Prince Trubetskoi), 'wa~ not
considered by them to be an enemy of innovations'." 2 The Emperor's
suspicions were allayed, and he resolved to use Speransky's talents (and

1 Borovkov. "A. D. Borovkov i ego avtobiograficheskie zapiski." loco cit., p. 348.

II "Prilozhenie k dokladu sledstvennoi kommissii ... ," loco cit., p. 435.