Georg von Cancrin
Encyclopedia
Count Yegor Frantsevich Kankrin (Russian: Егор Францевич Канкрин) (16 November 1774 – 10 September 1845) was born Ludwig Daniel von Cancrin in Hanau
. He accompanied his father, the mineralogist Franz Ludwig von Cancrin
, to Russia in 1797, joining the imperial service and changing his name to Georg. In 1823, he was appointed Minister of Finance and held the office for 21 years. As a politician, Cancrin was an archconservative who vociferated against the construction of railways and the emancipation of the serfs. Kankrin died in Pavlovsk. Among his writings, The Military Economy (published in German) is the best regarded.
Kankrin's policies often sought to maintain the status quo due to the limitations of the Russian government in carrying out large scale economic reform. Because of his conservatism, he advanced loans to the gentry class in order to preserve, in the words of the historian Walter Pintner, "the social status quo." With a view toward limiting state expenditure, he refused to credit the Russian industry, thus eliminating the budget deficits that plagued the Russian economy for decades. Private banks were forbidden, and every step was taken to stymie the development of capitalism
.
of 1839-43 which sanitized the Russian fiscal system. The reform started with the issue of a new silver rouble equal to 3.5 of the older Assignation ruble
. Then, based on the silver roubles, new deposit notes were issued. Finally, the old Assignation rubles were removed from circulation in 1843, and replaced with the new banknotes. These reforms stabilised the Russian financial system considerably.
Hanau
Hanau is a town in the Main-Kinzig-Kreis, in Hesse, Germany. It is located 25 km east of Frankfurt am Main. Its station is a major railway junction.- Geography :...
. He accompanied his father, the mineralogist Franz Ludwig von Cancrin
Franz Ludwig von Cancrin
Franz Ludwig von Cancrin was a German mineralogist and metallurgist.He was born into a German mining family where he was trained by his father in the science of mining...
, to Russia in 1797, joining the imperial service and changing his name to Georg. In 1823, he was appointed Minister of Finance and held the office for 21 years. As a politician, Cancrin was an archconservative who vociferated against the construction of railways and the emancipation of the serfs. Kankrin died in Pavlovsk. Among his writings, The Military Economy (published in German) is the best regarded.
Kankrin's policies often sought to maintain the status quo due to the limitations of the Russian government in carrying out large scale economic reform. Because of his conservatism, he advanced loans to the gentry class in order to preserve, in the words of the historian Walter Pintner, "the social status quo." With a view toward limiting state expenditure, he refused to credit the Russian industry, thus eliminating the budget deficits that plagued the Russian economy for decades. Private banks were forbidden, and every step was taken to stymie the development of capitalism
Capitalism
Capitalism is an economic system that became dominant in the Western world following the demise of feudalism. There is no consensus on the precise definition nor on how the term should be used as a historical category...
.
Financial reforms of 1839-1843
His major achievement was the monetary reformMonetary reform
Monetary reform describes any movement or theory that proposes a different system of supplying money and financing the economy from the current system.Monetary reformers may advocate any of the following, among other proposals:...
of 1839-43 which sanitized the Russian fiscal system. The reform started with the issue of a new silver rouble equal to 3.5 of the older Assignation ruble
Assignation ruble
Assignation ruble was the first paper currency of Russia. It was used from 1769 until 1849. Assignation ruble had a parallel circulation with the silver ruble; there was an ongoing market exchange rate for these two currencies...
. Then, based on the silver roubles, new deposit notes were issued. Finally, the old Assignation rubles were removed from circulation in 1843, and replaced with the new banknotes. These reforms stabilised the Russian financial system considerably.