ISSN 0798 1015

Vol. 40 (Number 17) Year 2019. Page 23

Historical-Pedagogical Analysis of Pre-University Military Education Development in Russia

Análisis histórico-pedagógico del desarrollo de la educación militar pre-Universitaria en Rusia

KHAERTDINOV, Ilgizar M. 1; KUZNETSOV, Alexander V. 2; SHVETSOV, Alexander S 3. & LAZUKIN, Vladimir F. 4

Received: 22/02/2019 • Approved: 28/04/2019 • Published 27/05/2019

Contents

1. Introduction

2. Methodology

3. Results

4. Conclusions

Bibliographic references

1. Introduction

The socio-cultural conditions and the economic situation in Russia at the beginning of the 21st century actualize the qualitative transformation of the existing educational paradigm, its orientation towards the development of a creatively active individual able to immediately adapt to changing living conditions and take an active part in a transformative activity. This is fully true for a national military education as well, with its integral part being the system of pre-university military education, which has rich traditions and sociocultural experience to be studied and adapted to the reality of contemporary times.

1.1. Essential Characteristics of Pre-Universitary Military Education Development in Russia

Russian historians believe that the idea to establish national military schools originally came to Peter I in 1698, and he took foreign practices as a basis for the development of the national military education, as from the earliest times, most nations had had special institutions where people were prepared for military service since their early childhood. For example, three cadet academies were established in Prussia in 1653. 

Russian emperors were military officers and received military education and training. Since their childhood, they were used to consider the army as an ideal of organization; their aesthetic perceptions evolved under the influence of military parades, they wore tail coats only travelling abroad incognito. The masculine character of military culture manifested itself even then. The guard accumulated the features of a noble community that had developed by the second half of the 18th century.

Of all the diversity of military schools under study, the Cadet Corps, whose graduates constituted the elite of the pre-revolutionary Russian army, and where the training and education system constituted an extended and dynamically developing process aimed at a holistic personality development, hold a prominent place.

The Cadet Corps became such a sociocultural environment, where a young man from his early age received, in the course of training and education, all the best that was in Russia at that time. They gave Russia countless politicians, commanders, writers, poets, historians, and composers prominent in all walks of life. Almost every significant career started with the cadet corps. Not just graduates, well-educated youths, but the future of the state, its foundation, whose names have entered into the Russian history forever, annually stepped out into a big life.

Outstanding commanders: M.I. Kutuzov, F.F. Ushakov, Rumyantsev-Zadunaisky; cultural, literary and artistic figures: V.V. Vereshchagin, M.P. Mussorgsky, A.N. Radishchev, V.I. Dahl, F.M. Dostoevsky, N.A. Rimsky-Korsakov, A.N. Scriabin, P.A. Fedotov, K.F. Ryleev, N.S. Leskov; public figures: A.A. Bestuzhev, P.I. Pestel, P.A. Kropotkin, V.V. Kuibyshev – this is just an incomplete list of the names of the cadet corps graduates, who at one time glorified Russia each in his field.

2.1. Problem research methods

Study of literary sources, theoretical analysis, synthesis, comparison, methods of logical abstraction (induction and deduction) contributing to implementation of historical-pedagogical analysis of military preparatory schools and pre-university military education development in Russia.

2.2. Discussion

Prior to 1917, a completely optimal officer training system was functioning in Russia. That system was elaborated to consistently develop the military humanitarian environment, where a personal potential of a military expert was developed: cadet corps - military college - military academy. Each step polished and improved the professional and socio-cultural qualities of a Homeland defender.

The word cadet means "juvenile". In knighthood times, that was the name for younger members of noble families, who were trained for the highest military rank [3, p. 3].

P.I. Yaguzhinsky, a right-hand man of Peter I, being an ambassador at the Prussian court, became closely acquainted with the establishment of local cadet corps and raised the question of a similar establishment in Russia. On June 29, 1731, it was decided to establish a szlachta cadet corps under the project of B.K. Minich, the president of the military collegium in the reign of Anna Ioanovna. The corps was opened on February 17, 1732 (szlachta was a common name for the nobility in the 17th and 18th centuries). Earlier, on November 18, 1731, the Senate issued the Cadet Corps Regulations, which included 28 paragraphs. According to the Regulations, all cadets were divided into 4 academic grades. Each grade occupied a separate building, and, moreover, was subdivided into several "camaraderie" or comradeships each comprised of 6-7 people [4, p. 24]. Each cadet was allowed to keep at his own expense two servants, with the following obligatory condition: a Russian cadet ought to have foreign servants, while the foreigners ought to have those of Russian origin. The only reward for success and good behaviour received directly on graduation was, in accordance with the Regulations, the first officer ranks: from a non-commissioned officer and a warrant officer to a lieutenant.

Remarkable is the fact that entering the cadet corps did not entail an irremissible duty to continue military service. This circumstance left its mark on the system of teaching and the structure of subjects. Along with military training, the curriculum of the corps included foreign languages, history, geography, jurisprudence and other subjects.

A lot of deal for the national education establishment and development, including military education, was done in the reign of Catherine II. During her reign in 1766, the Regulations [16] developed by Lieutenant-General I. Betsky were approved in the cadet corps, which put forward the following as the main task: “to grow a healthy, flexible and strong infant; to impart calmness, firmness and fearlessness in his soul, and beautify his heart and mind with work and sciences needed to a civil judge and a warrior." Apart from special military education, the corps being a school of "noble citizens" still had to provide basic education, as the Guidelines stated, "in order to make a war with glory, a warrior must be rather skilful in other spheres." Love, tenderness, and gentleness should have been the guiding principles in the education system, since children from 4-5 years old were admitted to the corps, and their staying there lasted for 15 years [16].

In accordance with the pedagogical ideas of Betsky adopted at that time, education of cadets was aimed at developing their moral qualities, humaneness and philanthropy. For example, for this purpose, “holidays for the poor” were organized. The cadets had to serve the poor, the crippled, and the aged, and listen to their stories.

Noteworthy is the "Schedule of Sciences for the five ages of military and civil rank" found in the Guidelines. All sciences were divided into four categories:

1. Guiding to understanding other sciences (logic, foundations of mathematics, eloquence, general and special physics, sacred and secular history, geography and chronology, general-used languages useful for sciences, mathematics, and mechanics).

2. Preferably required for a civil title (morality, natural law, national law, state law, and state economy).

3. Useful (general and experimental physics, astrology, general geography, tactics, information about marine art, natural history, martial art, fortification and artillery, and chemistry).

4. Arts (drawing, painting, engraving, sculpture, making statues, architecture, music, dancing, and fencing).

The analysis of this list of subjects and their hierarchy allows us to conclude that special (military) training was far from the top place. However, all this is consistent with the position of Betsky, who rejected early specialization [1, pp. 13-14].

Meanwhile, the vastness of the territory, the lack of funds among the majority of nobles to give children appropriate education, and gradually increasing needs of the army for well-trained officers led the government to conclude that the number of relevant military schools was not sufficient. In view of this, in the very first year of the reign of Emperor Alexander I, the chief of the 1st Cadet Corps, General of Infantry, Duke Platon Zubov, presented to the sovereign a project for the establishment of provincial military schools for the purpose of training and educating the sons of nobles by giving them primary general education to enter the cadet corps and universities. “According to the greatness of the empire and the number of poor nobles,” we read in the project of Duke Zubov, “the existing cadet corps are certainly insufficient, and the number of well-educated and best prepared for military service officers is far from the degree of sophistication as required to the benefit and glory of the Homeland” [13, p. 60].

In the late 18th and early 19th centuries, the Artillery and Engineering szlachta cadet corps was opened, which was later transformed into the 2nd cadet corps. In 1802, the Page Corps was established, and in 1812 - the Finnish Cadet Corps. Somewhat later, Aleksandrovsky (1829), Novgorodsky, Count Arakcheyev (1834), Polotsky (1835), Petrovsky-Poltava (1840), Siberian (1845), Mikhailovsky-Voronezhsky (1845) and other cadet corps were established. By the first half of the 19th century there had been about 20 cadet corps in Russia. The idea behind it was as follows: remove noble children from the corrupting, sybaritic environment and locking them in a special barracks, and prepare them from an early age to withstand work and hardships of wartime; foster, above all, a sense of loyalty to the throne and, thus, create first-class officers from the upper class.

The development of military education in Russia at that time was an objective need of the state and society, and was promoted by introduction of social and military reforms. In this regard, the 30s-40s of the 19th century saw a unified curriculum adopted in all cadet corps, and introduction of a unified procedure for arrangement and establishment. A full-time course lasted 8 years and comprised three consecutive divisions: a preparatory course (2 years), a general course (4 years), and a special course (2 years).

Upon completion of the course in the 3rd special grade, the graduates were granted the right to enter the service: A-level students to serve in the guard as warrant officers or in the army as lieutenants, and the rest to serve in the artillery or engineer troops as warrant officers or to the army as second lieutenants. Those who met the established requirements could enter the officer classes of the Artillery or the Engineering College. Students who successfully completed the course of the 2nd special grade graduated as warrant officers to the army or line battalions.

The following age limits were established to enter the cadet corps: Aleksandrovsky and the juvenile department of the 1st Moscow Corps - from the age of 6 to 8 years, and all other corps - from 9 and a half to 11 and a half years, while enrolment at the later educational institutions required passing elementary tests in Scripture knowledge, the Russian language, and arithmetic. The main goal of physical education was to "preserve and reinforce the health, development and improvement of the corporeal forces, in order to make the students capable of withstanding the labour of military life." Special attention was paid to the cadets' constantly living an active life, getting good food, comfortable clothes, and, if possible, using fresh air and being always kept in strict tidiness [3, p. 16].

The future officer education system was greatly influenced by the ideas of amateur educators of the 18th century: Ya.A. Kamensky, J. Locke, Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Johann Heinrich Pestalozzi, who upheld the concept of "nature-helpfulness" of learning. We can find some teaching methods and ideas of instruction used in cadet corps in later views, for example, of J. Dewey, M. Montessori, P. Kergomer and others.

The activity of M.I. Kutuzov in the Land Cadet Corps testifies to the striving for individualization of education, the development of creative abilities in students. When recognizing the most capable students, he invited them to his place and personally taught them.

During training, cadets studied Scripture knowledge, law, mathematics, geography, Russian, French and German, geography, physics, mechanics, logic, statistics, eloquence, and drawing. At the final stage, the cadets were taught the following disciplines: artillery, military topography, tactics, fortification, horseback riding, Guard duty rules. Out-of-school activities included gymnastics, singing, music, dancing, fencing, and outdoor games. Musically gifted children studied in a special class, where they were taught to play wind and percussion instruments. All corps had fundamental and company libraries, well-equipped physics rooms and chemical laboratories, and some corps had meteorological stations.

Thus, by the time of their graduation almost every cadet could fluently speak two foreign languages, knew how to dance waltz, mazurka, and polonaise, had a good knowledge of art and literature, and was a good athlete, while remaining a committed Christian. In our opinion, these are precisely those qualities that constitute the foundation of the social potential of an individual and are still necessary for any young person at the present time.

The cadet corps had a uniform daily routine established. During the summer holidays, all the troop companies (the oldest) were taken to permanent camps, and the younger students were sent home. All this contributed to the formation of a harmoniously developed personality of the future officer.

 The governing bodies in the cadet corps were an educational council that convoked every two months under the chairmanship of the corps director, and the pedagogical council under the chairmanship of the inspector. The first one dealt with issues of moral, aesthetic and spiritual education, while the second one was only in charge of the youth education and raising the general level of their knowledge. These councils were composed of corps command, teachers, education officers, and representatives of the Orthodox Church. At council meetings, they discussed the students' attestation records, performance, behaviour, good and bad deeds, relationships with friends; also, the sexual development of young men was not gone unnoticed.

Established was a 12-point scale to assess the cadets’ behaviour and "moral dignity": excellent behaviour (12 points), very good behaviour (11 and 10 points), good behaviour (9, 8, and 7 points), satisfactory behaviour (6, 5 and 4 points), and bad behaviour (3, 2, and 1 point). Bad behaviour included “lies, theft, reluctant obedience to superiors, rude and ill-treatment of comrades, laziness, nastiness, vindictiveness” [9, p. 77]. In addition to the usual school punishments, the corps practised taking off shoulder straps, putting a name on a black board, putting on a grey jacket and, in extreme cases, birching, but only with the permission of the director of the corps. In addition to indirect effects, including material remuneration, teachers were encouraged to arouse in their students a direct interest in a particular discipline. Interest in the subject, and not the fear of censure or punishment, should have been an incentive to study.

As of the second half of the 18th century, advances in science were awarded with various incentives, for example, salary increase (as in the French Artillery School founded in the city of Douai in 1679, where officers and cadets who achieved better results received a cash reward, and the corresponding amount of money was levied on students who showed the worst results).

Raising cadets in ranks (for special successes), awarding gold and silver medals was also a very significant incentive measure. As of the 80s-90s, the best 18 cadets from all corps were awarded gold medals of various denominations: six cadets were awarded a large medal, six cadets were awarded a medium medal, and six cadets were awarded a small medal [1, p. 19]. In a similar way, the success of pupils was noted when passing the class, for which 18 silver medals were instituted. At the same time, it was believed that the rewards should be fair, consistent with the merits of the cadets, so as not to arouse the envy of other students, not to disrupt the friendly relations between them. Moreover, as of 1897, the Rules of establishment scholarships on interest from donated capital at military schools provided for nomination of merit scholarships. The incentives were as follows: giving commendable sheets, books and tools as a gift, placing the names of the most distinguished students on the red boards, promotion to vice-non-commissioned officers and vice-sergeant-majors. Grey marble plaques with names of the distinguished graduates from each graduating class hung in the recreational halls, and black marble plaques were placed in the institutions' churches to put all the names of former students who died on the battlefield or died from injuries, whatever officer rank they were in.

In case of apparent failure of all educational measures, some rugged disciplinary measures were imposed to indolent cadets. For example, retarded cadets were transferred to cantonist battalions or, on reaching the age of 16-17, they were assigned to serve in lower ranks in the army regiments.

Thus, “the Cadet Corps was an oasis, where the cadets spent their childhood and youth, where they studied and were brought up, where they prank and were punished, had their joys and sorrows, where a small segment of everyone’s life was put in the frame of severe discipline, where almost every step of life was under the control of an educator, where good revelations of children’s natures were encouraged, and bad ones were brutally uprooted. Staying in the corps was a preparatory period, during which everybody was equipped with moral baggage, with which he entered an unknown and slippery path of truth” [6, p. 157].

In the “Manual for students of military schools” dated 1848 and the “General instruction for drawing up educational notes and programs in military schools” dated the same year, outlined were not only the future officer training and education programs, but also the requirements for teachers and education officers [1, p. 22]. These documents indicated that “the spirit of teaching should be essentially practical: purely theoretical abstract thinking should be decisively eliminated. And it is necessary to understand that it is impossible for a cadet to study all the sciences that are part of a training course in a completely perfect manner; that the main goal of cadet education is to give a student a solid foundation in science, so that, with love for work, when his mind will subsequently develop over the years and with experience, he could teach himself and go on without the help of an outsider; for this, it is necessary by all means to teach a cadet to work independently, to strike love of work and respect for science into himself, to make the teaching process simple, lively, tempting, and not confusing or scholastic." As for the military sciences, they had to “implant in the students the information they need in the military field,” while the political sciences were to be “an important means of mental development and a necessary condition for education of a person in society”. Moreover, even at that time attention was paid to the individual training of pupils, who “break out of the general level of the class masses and deserve, either due to their abilities or good home preparation, to go further and beyond the limits of the program designated for their class” [14, p. 62].

It is quite possible to adopt these provisions to the educational institutions of contemporary Russia, as they consolidate the basic skills and abilities that a student should possess; they provide the main promises for the development of creative abilities of the future officer's personality.

The way the created personnel training system worked is illustrated by V. Sviridov on the example of the Aleksandrovsky military college over a period of 1863-1901. 7,639 people entered the college, of whom 6,378 young people graduated the cadet corps. Cadet corps gave almost 87% of enrollers. A total of 4,698 Junkers were promoted to officers of the first category, of whom the overwhelming majority were Cadets [14]. Such an assessment of the activities of the Aleksandrovsky military college suggests that the preliminary training of those entering military colleges of that time fully justified itself. The cadet corps graduates found the use of their knowledge not only in the military field. One in ten enrolled in civilian higher educational institutions.

Special attention should be paid to the system of training education officers and cadet corps teachers in Russia up to 1917. Serious consideration was paid to the education of young people, with strict requirements for educational staff. It was noted that upbringing was the most sacred and difficult task, which required high morality and great spiritual strength from the performers. The best of the military should enrol the educators. In 1900, these strict requirements resulted in the establishment of special courses under the Main Directorate of military schools for training of officers for educational activities in cadet corps. Graduates of higher educational institutions of a civil department or military academy were selected for these courses. The training time was two years and it was divided into general educational and special training. The first year was devoted to the study of fundamentals of anatomy and human physiology, the basics of logic and psychology, school hygiene, essays on history, pedagogy and psychology, practical training was conducted on subjects of study, the literature of the subject the candidate was trained to was studied. Attending demonstration lessons of teachers-leaders was mandatory. In the second year of study, the candidates also attended the lessons of their comrades, studied the method of teaching the subject, drew up education plans, and gave trial lessons, participated in special conferences where they discussed their teaching progress and trial lessons. At the end of the first year of study, nominated teachers tested their knowledge of subjects of general pedagogical training. Upon completion of the courses, each candidate received a special certificate of completion. Prior to teaching in a military school, they had to pass tests either on the basis of one trial lecture without an exam, or on the basis of an exam and a trial lecture.

To develop creative abilities in students, to find the answers to questions originated from the cadet corps life, they were offered various questions related to the problems of mental development and moral education. Here is one of those questionnaires: What are the reasons for the failure of students, especially the lower grades? What are the benefits and harms of the generally accepted point-based knowledge assessment system? What can it be replaced with? Are end-of-year examinations appropriate for secondary schools? Which rewards and punishments should be considered useful and which are harmful in the cadet education? To what extent can we trust our students? What determines the moral authority of the educator? etc. [7, p. 24]; The analysis of the follow-up activities of the courses graduates (it was held in September 1910, i.e. over the past decade of the courses functioning) showed that those courses played a very positive role in the training of officers for the cadet education.

As of the second half of the 19th century, certain privileges were introduced by the military ministry of Russia with regard to the education officers. Thus, serving in the cadet corps, they continued to be listed in their regiments, which gave them the opportunity to obtain military ranks in time. Leaving the Cadet Corps, an educator could optionally continue to serve in the Guards or go to the periphery with a rank a step higher than his current position. Education officers were allowed to enter military academies. This special account made of this category of officers was explained by their ability to solve, together with the teachers, the important task of training future officers, who should exhibit “good morality” [9, p. 79]. 

The measures taken improved the selection of people involved in the training of future officers, and, in turn, contributed to improving the quality of cadets training and education. The imperial government showed unremitting concern for the cadet education. This is the grounds for introduction of a special instruction on the educational part for the cadet corps (published in 1886 and reissued in 1905). It stated that “education in the cadet corps should be vividly imbued with the spirit of Christianity and strict coordination with the general principle of the Russian state structure, and have as its primary goal the training of the young men for the future service of the Tsar and the Homeland by gradual, from their childhood, working out of those true concepts and aspirations, which serve as a solid basis for sincere devotion to the Throne, conscious obedience to power and law, senses of honour, kindness and truth" [5, p. 1].

This Instruction required that the education officers developed such virtues in cadet as: bright and cheerful mood; patience and self-control, keeping up one's end; restraining selfish aspirations; sincere attitude towards one's neighbour; a fair sense of appreciation for caring for their welfare, for their active participation, assistance and services; ability to faithful self-esteem free from conceit; the habit of rigorous criticism of one's qualities by others; the ability to impartially respect someone else's superiority, knowledge and experience; exact duty, habit of order, economical habits; observance of the proprieties, friendliness and politeness."

During all the years of training, the education officers created the foundation for the future personality, first studying the children, then youths who differed so much from each other, instilling high moral qualities, senses of patriotism, basics of Christianity, religion and faith to their students. Along with teachers and spiritual mentors, they were the human soul makers [1, p. 31].

In the Russian cadet corps, the sense of friendship and camaraderie among the students constituted the spiritual foundation which, having arisen in the early years and having matured over the academic years, accompanied them throughout their lives. The formation and development of this sense of spiritual kinship was skilfully and tactfully guided by the cadet mentors. At the same time, introduced were the principles that eliminated      misconception of companionship. In 1913, the Main Directorate of Military Schools, headed by the "Father of Cadets", Grand Duke Konstantin Konstantinovich, sent the "Twelve Commandments of Comradeship" to all cadet corps and military schools, which stated as follows:

- a comradeship is a good mutual relationship between those living or working together based on trust and self-sacrifice;

- the military comradeship entrusts the soul, but sacrifices life;

- on service, friendship is desirable, but comradeship is obligatory;

- the duty of friendship bows to the duty of the comradeship;

- the duty of comradeship bows to the call of duty;

- honour is stark, dishonour in the name of comradeship remains dishonour;

- subordination does not exclude mutual comradeship;

- putting a comrade under the responsibility for one's actions is considered as treason against comradeship;

- comradeship does not diminish the property rights;

- the relations between comrades should express their mutual respect;

- the honour of comrades is inseparable;

- to offer an affront to a comrade means insulting the comradeship.

Cadet togetherness, camaraderie and corporate spirit have always been based on a sense of absolute equality between cadets, a son of an army captain and a son of a division officer, a cadet bearing a dominant historical surname and the one bearing the most ordinary name, rich and poor, Russian and Georgian, Circassian, Armenian or Bulgarian, - everyone within the walls of the Corps found themselves absolutely equal.

By 1912, the number of cadet corps in Russia had reached 29, aside from the Page and the Sea Corps, and the total number of cadets had reached 11070 people. By that time, the status of the cadet corps and the conditions for their recruitment had been clearly defined. Generally, the terms of enrolment to a cadet corps contributed to the noble composition of students. According to the data of 1884, among the cadets of all corps, nobles by birth and individual nobles made up 82.3%, in 1901 - 89.5%, and in 1908 - 92% [15, p. 70].

The February Revolution of 1917 opened up the possibility for radically-minded educators to transform the cadet corps in the direction of their democratization. The main point of those reforms was as follows:

- firstly, the question was raised about changing the purpose of cadet corps as secondary schools;

- secondly, in this connection the question was raised about the cohort of students;

- thirdly, there was a question about the educational level of teachers and educators;

- fourthly, the issue of student and teaching organizations within the corps and their interrelations was to be discussed.

In addition, the reform program included questions on changing students' life, on changing uniforms, on closer interaction between teachers and parents.

New cadet corps admission regulations allowed education at public expense not only for sons of officers, military officials and priests, but also for children of ordinary soldiers and sailors [1, p. 35]. All applicants were divided into nine categories. The 1st category listed orphans, including soldiers; the 2nd category included half-orphans followed by the children of the wounded in the war, children of the Companions of the Order of St. George. The last one, 9th category, included the sons of candidates for a qualified position and re-enlistees who had served for at least 10 years. The number of vacancies also varied. For the 1st category, the probability of admission was twice as high as for the 2nd, etc. The new recruitment system did not become much more democratic than the old one, as the soldiers' children could be enrolled in any category, but did not enjoy any particular advantages [10, p. 140].

The reform conceived "upstairs" could not be consistent at a local level. Conservative sentiments were clearly present in Orel, Tiflis, Nizhny Novgorod, Pskov, Orenburg, Yaroslavl, Simbirsk, and Kiev Corps. The students boycotted the administrations' decisions about student organizations, they disturbed lessons, went on hunger strikes. Raised in the spirit of the monarchy, they could not understand why their mentors had so drastically changed sides. Informal organizations began to form among the cadets. For example, in the Moscow corps, cadets were divided into “monarchists” and “Republicans”, in Poltava - into “cadets” and “high school students”. What is interesting, "monarchists" and "cadets" massively outweighed their opponents. In Petrovsky Poltava Cadet Corps, there were even “supercadets” who established their “cornet” committee, which consisted of adherents of the old regime. They adamantly refused to swear allegiance to the Russian Provisional Government [10, p. 141]. The events of October 1917 affected the destiny of specialized secondary military schools. The Cadet Corps in Russia were disbanded.

During the Civil War, part of the cadet corps was evacuated abroad. In Yugoslavia, the 1st Russian Cadet Corps was established in Sarajevo from Polotsk, Vladimir-Kiev, and Odessa Cadet Corps. The Don Cadet Corps in Yugoslavia included the cadets of the 1st Siberian (Omsk) and Yaroslavl Cadet Corps. The basis of the Crimean Cadet Corps consisted of the Vladikavkaz, Petrovsk-Poltava, Irkutsk, Sumy and Khabarovsk Cadet Corps. Former traditions of the Russian cadet corps remained until the end of the thirties of the 20th century. The cadets of these corps received excellent education and upbringing, found their place in various spheres of life, yet outside our Homeland.

Thus, in most cases, the cadet corps successfully coped with their task to inculcate into young men their readiness to fight "for the state entrusted to the Tsar, for their families, the Orthodox Faith and the Church" [8, p. 130]. Such qualities in cadets as devotion to their ideals, courageous determination in fulfilment of military duty, and comradeship were noted even by those who did not share their political convictions in the least. During the establishment of Suvorov military schools in the Soviet Union, the teacher and historian N.I. Alpatov emphasized that “with different goals and tasks set for the youth education and upbringing, Suvorov military schools have borrowed all the best the Cadet Corps had" [2, p. 244].

For centuries, Cadet Corps in Russia had represented the social elite — young and most educated people of their time. Rather than isolating itself from the community, the nobility would serve it in the most dangerous moments thinking less of awards, honours or glory, but staking their own lives. Moreover, the Cadet Corps functioned in this integral system.

In 1937, the Soviet government addressed seriously the problem of officers education, if not on a caste basis, as it used to be in tsarist Russia at the beginning of the 20th century, but somewhat approaching it. The state felt the need in educated and talented young people primarily in the military sphere. Therefore, in 1937, artillery special schools were established, and in 1940, naval and air-force schools, where young people were enrolled at the age of 15 years after the 8th grade.

During World War II, the country's leaders finally saw the light and realized that the strength of the Russian army had always been the spirit and professionalism of the officer corps. In this connection, a new type of children's militarized institutions - Suvorov and Nakhimov military schools were established based on the model of the cadet corps of the tsarist time [1, p. 38]. On August 21, 1943, the Council of People's Commissars and the Central Committee of the Central Committee of the All-Union Communist Party of the Bolsheviks adopted a resolution "On urgent measures to restore the economy in areas released from the German invasion." One of these measures was a system of specialized secondary military schools. The Resolution stated as follows: "To ensure organisation, training and education of children of the Red Army soldiers, the partisans of the Patriotic War, as well as the children of Soviet party workers, workers and collective farmers who died at the hands of the German occupiers, establish in the Krasnodar, Stavropol, Rostov, Stalingrad, Voroshilovgrad, Voronezh, Kharkov, Kursk, Oryol, Smolensk, Kalinin Oblast: 9 old-cadet-corps-like Suvorov military schools of 500 people in each, total 4,500 people, with a training period of 7 years, with a private boarding school for students ... " [11]. The Tashkent and Kutaisi Suvorov military schools were established for the frontiersmen's children, and the Nakhimov naval schools (Tbilisi, Riga and Leningrad) opened their doors for the sailors' children. In the following years, more new schools were established, while the old schools reorganized, changed their names, and some were transferred to other cities.

Suvorov military schools gained their name in honour of the famous Russian commander A.V. Suvorov. His name is associated with numerous victories glorified Russian people and raised Russia’s international standing. A.V. Suvorov went down in history and the battle chronicle of Russia as a brilliant military thinker and a great commander who gained fame as the Invincible. Nakhimov naval schools were so named in honour of the outstanding Russian naval commander Admiral P.S. Nakhimov, who in the Crimean War defeated the Turkish fleet in the Battle of Sinop in 1853, and led the heroic defence of Sevastopol in 1854–1855.

In the early 1950s, the Suvorov military schools had been already established as a new type of secondary specialized military educational institutions. The experience of the tsarist cadet corps and the best practices of the Soviet school were adopted as the basis of the educational process. In this regard, a number of measures were developed to further improve the training of future officers. One of such measures was an increase in the academic hours in the curriculum (up to two thousand) to master foreign languages, so that pupils can acquire fluency in at least one language - German, English or French. The best teachers were selected to conduct classes in foreign languages, and officers who could speak a foreign language were appointed to a position of education officers.

The 60s of the 20th century saw reorganization of the system of pre-university military education. A part of the Suvorov military schools became boarding schools run by the Ministry of Education of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic. The remaining schools changed the terms of training and the procedure for recruitment. As of 1963, they had switched to a three-year training period. Late adolescence was the required age to enter a military school. The Suvorov military schools adopted secondary school programs, therefore, like a secondary school in 1969, the military schools switched to a two-year training period. That training period remained until the beginning of the 90s of the 20th century.

In the 70s of the 20th century, life set new tasks for secondary schools, as well as the Suvorov military schools. The documents of that time stated the need to “ensure that each lesson contributes to the development of cognitive interests of students and skills acquisition for independent replenishment of knowledge" [12]. Naturally, this required bringing teaching methods in accordance with the requirements of life, increasing the proportion of independent, creative work of Suvorov students in the classroom. It was necessary to arrange the teaching process in such a way that the pupils would not only perceive knowledge as an end-product, but also learn to work independently, so that they were prepared to work independently with books, think independently to develop their creative activity. All this obliged the teachers of secondary specialized military educational institutions to be creative about the learning, make use of problem-based learning methods and laboratories. In this case, the teachers were guided by an old pedagogical wisdom: "A bad teacher gives you truth, and a good one teaches you to find it."

During the Soviet period, the Suvorov military schools accumulated all the best educational practices of that time. Before the collapse of the Soviet Union, young men could get a decent education in 8 Suvorov military schools (based in Moscow, Kalinin, Leningrad, Kiev, Minsk, Sverdlovsk, Kazan, Ussuriysk), in the Nakhimov Naval School (based in Leningrad), and Moscow Military Music College.

The current pre-university military education system includes eight (8) Suvorov military schools, the Nakhimov Naval School, Moscow military music colleges, and six (6) successfully functioning cadet corps (Fig. 1).

Fig. 1
The pre-university military education system within the
structure of the Ministry of Defence of the Russian Federation

As we can see, the number of specialized secondary military schools has greatly increased, while the system of pre-university military education is still being reformed. As of 2009, all educational institutions have switched to a 7-year staining period.

Moscow Cadet Corps “The Ministry of Defence of Russia Boarding School for Girls” was established in 2008. One hundred and eighty-four (184) girls from various parts of the country undergo their training at this boarding school. In a short period, a unique educational institution that meets all international standards was created by the efforts of installers. The boarding school is intended for training and comprehensive education for eligible daughters of servicemen, including those killed in the line of duty. The girls are educated according to a special education system. In addition to general education, they study music, master journalism, photography, and craft. They are given the opportunity to take up 20 sports, including horse riding and figure skating. The Boarding School is located on the territory of the former faculty of military conductors at the Moscow Conservatory.

In the system of the Ministry of Education of the Russian Federation, cadet schools and cadet boarding schools have been established, and their name bears the word “Cadet”. When entering the higher military educational institutions of vocational education of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, their graduates do not enjoy social guarantees defined for graduates of secondary specialized military educational institutions of the Ministry of Defence, i.e. there is a significant difference, first of all, in the status position of this or that graduate.

Based on the available historical information, we can make the necessary generalizations about the tasks facing administrative structures at all levels of military leadership:

-  secondary specialized military educational institutions management is a sphere of a fine tuned politics, special delicacy requiring the highest level of education and skill;

- only highly educated people with a broad outlook and pedagogical talent can effectively manage military school construction;

- the military school leaders should be creative individuals who can create around themselves an atmosphere of creativity and talented creation, involve the finest minds of Russia in solving the problems of military education, and create a team of like-minded people devote themselves to the training of the best officers;

- the secondary specialized military school leaders should have the patronage of the supreme authority and be able to use this patronage for the common good;

- the government itself must understand the importance of training officers and show reasonable protection for military-educational construction;

- the most important task of the secondary specialized military schools leadership should be considered the ability to keep up with the achievements of scientific thought (military and civil);

- the interests of Russia do not allow having as leaders of military education individuals who are loyal to the authorities, but ignorant and undereducated. Miscalculation in the selection of personnel is inexcusable here;

- top leaders can be delegated from the military school system alone. Only a positive experience in the lowest scientific and pedagogical positions along with with potential can serve as one of the qualifications for further promotion in the military schools department.

On the basis of our historical and sociological analysis of the military education system in Russia in terms of specialized secondary military educational institutions, the following conclusions can be drawn:

1. The system of officers training, education, and military vocational training at military schools is multidimensional.

2. The stages of the formation and development of the system of pre-university military education coincide with the periods of major reforms of the Russian army and secondary education in Russia.

3. The development process of pre-university military education had a goal to solve a number of tasks for its optimization:

• firstly, this is the determination of an optimal age to start military training. Historical experience has shown that in this regard, young age (as in the case of the cadet corps in their first version) and adolescence (military schools after gymnasiums) do not meet the necessary requirements. In the first case, the child, because of his age, was not able to decide for himself yet. As a result, without subsequently having the right to choose another profession, he was forced to serve without having any desire for it. In the second case, the motivation for military activities without having sufficient reinforcement while studying at the gymnasium, either disappeared or led to the fact that a young man was not prepared for military higher education in terms of his physical and psychological condition. As a result, adolescence was recognized as the most appropriate age to start military training and education. This age is characterized by a thirst for independence, the choice of ideals, and vocational self-determination. Moreover, it is characterized by rapid social, physical and mental development of an individual. It is in military activity that physical, mental training and psychological readiness are of paramount importance;

• secondly, the definition of an acceptable form of an educational process structuring. A closed system of educational institutions - the cadet corps was recognized as the most optimal form of pre-university military education.   Living in the barracks, by companies division, clearly regulated relations between students and teachers, a strict daily routine, strict discipline, the obligation to fulfil the requirements of the leadership - all these are attributes of a closed system;

• thirdly, the definition of educational content. The selection of its forms, content, and methods took place with the search for an optimal combination of the professionalization of education and its focus on the all-round development of the pupil’s personality, its individuality. In fact, the development and formation of the cadet corps became a global experiment, which could not be repeated in subsequent periods of the military education development. Initially, the cadet corps were independent educational institutions, so all their activities (of course, within the existing social system) depended on the leadership, the conceptual orientation of their views on education and training. In alignment with his worldview, the director of the cadet corps could navigate an educational goals alternative. The experience of the cadet corps functioning showed that high-quality military education requires an optimal combination of these goals. Misalignment in this or that direction will result in failure. Only as of the 20s of the 19th century, due to the emergence of a wide network of institutions of this type, a unified training and education program had been developed. In 1900 - 1917, military education was about moral, mental and physical development. The overall goal of moral education was to develop as fully as possible the spiritual strength in a pupil, to properly educate his ideas, to induce and reinforce his sense of honour, goodness and truth, to properly develop his character, and align his aspirations and actions with moral norms. Mental education was interpreted as “to ensure the development of a conscious habit to be clear in one's own mind about the requirements and tasks set by the service, an ability to quickly assess the situation and make a reasonable decision that is a short cut to the greatest success." Physical education pursued the task of “strengthening the health of a person, developing his muscular and nervous strength, and generally turning him into a tireless, enduring, unpretentious, always kind, clever, courageous, and mobile fighter” [5, p. 27].

4. The average specialized military educational institutions of the Soviet period had many features of the cadet corps of pre-1917 Russia: traditions, symbols, attributes, comradeship, high level, compared to conventional school, which provided educational and physical conditioning.

5. The analysis of the state of the humanitarian environment of pre-university military education in tsarist and Soviet Russia made it possible to identify significant drawbacks in its organization. In our opinion, these are as follows: mixing general education with special education; conjunction in the cadet corps of children and young men of various ages from 6 to 20 years; the extensiveness of training programs with a lack of time for their mastering; difficulties in replacing officer positions that would combine the abilities of teachers with the necessary qualities of battle commanders.

Consequently, Russia has gained a wealth of experience in organizing training in military preparatory educational institutions. With this experience being analysed at various historical stages of the national development, it may be concluded that in the process of its establishment, the organizational forms of teaching and educational activities of military preparatory institutions - cadet corps, military gymnasiums, military specialized schools, Suvorov / Nakhimov military colleges, cadet schools, and presidential cadet schools underwent changes. Resorting to the history of their activities reveals the unique traditions of training military specialists, conducting the educational process, patriotic and spiritual education of the future defender of the Homeland. The development of the pre-university training system is an important reserve for improving the quality of officer training. The analysis of the current state of officer training and the issue of military education cannot be reliable and complete without studying the past experience, which should be adapted to the reality of contemporary times.

Bibliographic references

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1. Candidate of Pedagogical Sciences, Associate Professor, Head of the Ulyanovsk Civil Aviation Institute, Russia

2. Candidate of Pedagogical Sciences, Head of Education, deputy head of the military department of the Ulyanovsk Civil Aviation Institute, Russia

3. Head of the laboratory of the department combat use of aviation weapons branch Military Training Center of the Air Force Academy named after N.E. Zhukovsky and Yu.A. Gagarin in Syzran, Russia

4.Doctor of pedagogical sciences, professor, the professor of chair the general military disciplines of Air Force Scientific and Research Center «The Zhukovsky and Gagarin Air Force Academy» (Voronezh) , Russia

Email contact: aryabkina68@inbox.ru