The Peasants' Land Bank was a Russian financial institution founded during Tsar Alexander III's reign inRussia, by his Minister of Finance, Nikolai Bunge. He created the Peasants' Land Bank in 1882 to help peasants purchase their own farms. By 1904 it had become so successful that 1/3 of the nobility's land had been bought by peasants. Bunge also abolished the Poll Tax, which was only paid for by peasants, in 1886, which helped to reduce the financial burden the peasants faced.
Banks began operations in April 1883, with nine branches. In 1888 its activity was extended to include the Kingdom of Poland; by 1891 it had thirty-nine branches.
Each bank was managed by a council consisting of a manager, an assistant manager, and three others appointed by the Ministry of Finance and another member representing the Ministry of Agriculture
Famous quotes containing the words peasant, land and/or bank:
“The lord is the peasant that was,
The peasant is the lord that shall be.”
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882)
“The great fact in life, the always possible escape from dullness, was the lake. The sun rose out of it, the day began there; it was like an open door that nobody could shut. The land and all its dreariness could never close in on you. You had only to look at the lake, and you knew you would soon be free.”
—Willa Cather (1873–1947)
“It was like passing a boundary to dive
Into the sun-filled water, brightly leafed
And limbed and lighted out from bank to bank.
That’s how the stars shine during the day.”
—Wallace Stevens (1879–1955)