ZUBATOV, NIKOLAI VASILYEVICH (1863–1917). One of the
cleverest Okhranaleaders, Zubatov sought to undercut support for
revolutionary parties by the strategy of police socialism, aimed at
garnering support for the monarchy from the working class. Zubatov
entered the Okhranaas a penetration agent, working against revolu-
tionary parties in Moscow. After his cover was blown, Zubatov en-
tered the police, rising to head of first the Moscow and then the St.
Petersburg Okhranaoffices.
Zubatov believed that the greatest danger to the tsarist regime was
a revolutionary marriage between the radical intelligentsia and the
working class. His strategy called for regime support of working-
class economic demands and the recruitment of deep penetration
agents within the revolutionary movements. He planned to use these
agents to “guide” the proletariat away from the radical parties.
Among his most famous recruits were the infamous double agent
Yevno Azevand Father Georgi Gapon. Gapon, at Zubatov’s direc-
tion, managed social programs for the St. Petersburg working class,
becoming a major factor in Russian politics. Zubatov believed that
his strategy would produce critical intelligence about terrorist cells
and allow the security police to manipulate the working-class parties
that supported the terrorism.
Zubatov’s strategy smacked of revolution to conservative bureau-
crats, and he was fired by the arch-reactionary Minister of Internal
Affairs Vyacheslav von Plehvein 1903. Zubatov was given 24 hours
to leave the capital. His successors mismanaged his strategy of police
socialism, which contributed to the terrible political and social vio-
lence at the time of the Revolution of 1905. Following the February
Revolution in 1917 that ended the Romanovdynasty and installed a
provisional government, Zubatov returned, but fearing retribution
from the revolutionary parties that he had zealously hunted, he be-
came depressed and took his own life.304 •ZUBATOV, NIKOLAI VASILYEVICH (1863–1917)06-313 P-Z.qxd 7/27/06 7:57 AM Page 304