ABSTRACT
In pre-reform military society the notion of a regimental economy is largely an abstraction imposed by administrators, publicists, and historians. The regimental economy is basic to any understanding of the lower ranks as a social class. In the soldier's daily life, economic activities were no less important than preparations for war. Despite the government's active role in supplying the army, soldiers still depended upon the surrounding countryside to satisfy most of their material needs. In an admirable study, Dietrich Beyrau has analysed the pre- and post-reform regimental economy in terms of Russia's general economic backwardness. The very existence of the artel implied some degree of popular participation in regulating the company economy. The structure of the artel approximated the structure of the company. In addition to enhancing the economic security of the lower ranks, the artel and other company funds provided an irresistible enticement for venal commanders.
