Peter the Great’s Cameralism and Transformations in Finance and Accounting

Abstract

The Admiralty Regulations of 1722 reformed the administration of the Russian naval fleet and laid the foundation for the system of state accounting. Tsar Peter the Great initiated those reforms in order to create a modern fleet and in so doing developed a new accounting system. The aim of this study is to evaluate the success of the reforms from the viewpoint of finance and accounting. This article’s analysis of the financial and accounting system of the navy indicates that Peter’s economic policy required the state to intervene directly in economic life and use redundant, granular controls for regulating all economic activities. The accounting model introduced by the Regulations is examined in reference to primary sources in order to determine to what extent the economic doctrine of cameralism was incorporated into the practice of public administration. The study also maintains that, within the context of cameralism, Peter’s reforms of public administration and finance were quite rational from an accounting standpoint. The study delves into the emergence and theoretical foundations of what is termed cameralistic accounting, one of the most widespread and influential accounting concepts of its era. Although this concept (also referred to as a model, theory or paradigm) was widely used toward the end of the eighteenth century and even now persists in the public sector, its development and theoretical basis remain poorly understood. The study shows how effective the budgeting efforts inherent in cameralism were in the Russian state administration of the Petrine era and describes the role accounting played in this process