Archivum Lithuanicum

This article introduces the activities and publications of Johann Wilhelm Reinhold Clemens (1764–1821), rector of the Tilsit and Gumbinnen schools, school councillor (Schulrath), and educational reformer of the late 18th–early 19th century. While serving as rector, Clemens prepared works related to the history of the Tilsit and Gumbinnen schools as well as school programmes. This study identifies seven such publications authored by Clemens that introduce these educational institutions: six connected with the Tilsit provincial school, and one with the Gumbinnen Friedrich School. These publications span the period of 1791–1815. They include fragments of school history, accounts of reforms implemented, and statements of pedagogical principles. Among them is the first printed programme of the Tilsit school (1791). Clemens devoted more than half of his life (29 years) to pedagogical work and was an enthusiastic and dedicated rector. His tenure as a rector of the Tilsit provincial school lasted around 17 years (1790/1791–1808); he held the same position at the Gumbinnen Friedrich School for 12 years (1809–1821). Soon after beginning his work at the Tilsit provincial school, Clemens criticised the poor organisation of the educational system and initiated reforms. He recognised the need for school reorganisation and reform, introduced new pedagogical ideas, and contributed significantly to restructuring the gymnasium. During his tenure, the Tilsit provincial school was divided into two parts: an academic school (preparing pupils for university studies) and a town school (preparing pupils to become clerks, merchants, etc.).

Statrašos ramščiai [1890] is a 4-page set of orthographic rules duplicated using a hectograph by Vincas Kudirka (1858–1899) for the Varpininkai publications Varpas (1889–1905) and Ūkininkas (1890–1905). This study addresses two questions: (1) on what sources Statrašos ramščiai (hereinafter – StR) was based, and (2) what influence StR had on the language of Varpas. StR states that, when writing inflectional endings, one should rely on Friedrich Kurschat’s Grammatik der littauischen Sprache (1876; hereinafter – KG) and its shortened version, Erdmann Julius Schiekopp’s Litauiſche Elementar=Grammatik (1879–1881; 21881; hereinafter – ŠG). In addition, StR shares with these grammars the use of the character <l> [l], imperative- mood forms with -gk, -kk of verbs whose root ends in -g- or -k-, certain cases of ogonek usage, and words beginning with e-, ei-. However, numerous discrepancies exist. The study shows that in preparing StR, Kudirka consulted with Petras Kriaučiūnas (1850–1916) (especially when selecting which paragraphs to include in StR) and took into account the work of linguists from Lithuania Major, namely Jonas Juška (1815–1886), Kazimieras Jaunius (1848–1908), and Antanas Baranauskas (1835–1905). StR, reproduced via the relatively fast hectographing process by Kudirka, must have reached the Varpas editorial office in East Prussia and its contributors quickly in 1890. Therefore, to determine its impact on Varpas, the language of the 1889 (i.e., pre-StR) and 1890 issues (post-StR) was analysed.

Throughout its existence (1864–1915), the Vilnius Commission for the Study and Publication of Old Acts, more commonly known as the Vilnius Archaeographic Commission, had seven leaders. The last of them was Dmitrij Dovgjallo (Lith. Daugėla; 1868–1942), appointed on 2 September 1913. The word “last” is a fateful one in Dovgjallo’s biography: he was also the last director (archivist) of the Central Archive of Old Act Books of the Vitebsk and Mogilev Governorates in Vitebsk, which closed in 1903. In addition, he served as the last chairman of the Temporary Commission for the Creation and Management of the Vilnius Public Library and Its Associated Museum. The aim of this article is to reconstruct the 13 years of Dovgjallo’s life spent in Vilnius, drawing on previously unused archival documents as well as little-studied printed sources (especially Dovgjallo’s opinion pieces) while also paying attention to the earlier period of his archival and archaeographic work in Vitebsk. Officially, Dovgjallo presented himself as a man of learning – an archivist, archaeographer, historian, and geographer – but in Vilnius he was most active as an opinion writer and public figure. His writing is characterised by strong empathy and resounding Great Russian rhetoric. He readily engaged in the activities of both state-supported secular societies and religious associations, in most of which he held leadership positions. As an active member of the Vilnius Holy Spirit Brotherhood, he also participated in numerous other initiatives, such as the founding of the Count Mikhail Muravyov Museum (he genuinely supported the idea of this institution from the very beginning) and the inauguration ceremonies of the monument to Empress Catherine II (1904); he also served as a member of the Council of the Church of the Transfer of the Relics of St. Nicholas (elected in 1912). In 1913, he took part in the commemorations of the fiftieth anniversary of the suppression of the 1863–1864 uprising, the 300th anniversary of the accession of the House of Romanov, and the consecration of the Church of St. Constantine and St. Michael (also known as the Romanov Church). The commemoration of historically and religiously significant dates via excursions and lectures was likewise an integral part of his pedagogical work at the Vilnius Realschule. Dovgjallo’s biography offers an inside view of the everyday life of the Russian cultural (scholarly) elite in Vilnius: the nuances of archival and archaeographic work, professional relationships (both collegial and hierarchical), domestic and financial affairs, and incentive mechanisms (the system of bonuses). He stood out from his colleagues for his pronounced rationality – he pursued a position (often several at once) only after carefully weighing its financial benefits. Such practicality contrasts with the idealism he proclaimed in his writings and the pathos he expressed regarding his personal contribution to restoring historical truth in the North-Western Province.