Marina V. Sidorova On the Officials of the Third Section

Abstract

This article examines the formation of the personnel of the Third Section of His Imperial Majesty’s Own Chancellery, one of the principal state security institutions of the Russian Empire. Drawing on an extensive body of documentary evidence, the study analyzes changes in the agency’s staffing establishment, the characteristics of its recruitment practices, and the system governing the promotion of officials. The methodological foundation of the research is based on archival service records, personal correspondence, and official documents of the agency’s employees. Analysis of these sources makes it possible to examine in detail the social composition of the personnel, their social origin, religious affiliation, and ethnicity. Particular attention is devoted to the mechanisms used in selecting candidates and the conditions of service within the institution. The study demonstrates that throughout its existence the Third Section maintained a relatively small staff, with increases in personnel occurring primarily among the Chancellery employees and copyists. It also establishes that the majority of officials came from noble families, although representatives of other social estates also served in the institution. The practical significance of the study lies in its contribution to the understanding of the imperial civil service in the first half of the nineteenth century. The findings provide new insights into the functioning of the political police and the personnel policies of the autocratic state. The materials presented here will be of interest to historians, scholars of public administration, and specialists in the history of law enforcement institutions. The conclusions also open new avenues for research into the biographies of individual officials of the Third Section and their role in implementing the policies of the Russian Empire. Of particular value are the findings concerning the system of promotion and the criteria used in selecting candidates for service within the institution.

Keywords:

Third Section of His Imperial Majesty’s Own Chancellery; Officials; Personnel; Service records; Staffing establishments; Chancellery employees

For сitation:

Marina V. Sidorova. On the Officials of the Third Section. The Historical Reporter. 2026. Vol. 59. P. 12–39. DOI: 10.35549/HR.2026.2026.59.001

Received 02.03.2026. Revised 02.04.2026. Accepted 04.05.2026.

Marina V. Sidorova

C.Sc. (History), leading specialist of the State Archives of the Russian Federation. Moscow, Russian Federation.
e-mail: sidmari@yandex.ru

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