The religious and moral situation of contemporary Belorus was conditioned by a chain of events which antedate the communist revolution. The roots of the problem must be sought in Russia's policies at the end of the 18th century, after the annexation of the eastern provinces of the Polish Commonwealth. Intent on integrating the newly acquired territories with the rest of the empire Moscow sought to destroy all the institutions which hindered that process. A detailed plan of actions, aimed in particular against religious orders which played an important role in shaping the religious culture of the people, was drawn up by General Mikhail Muraviev in 1830. In 1803-1898 the number of convents and parishes run by religious orders fell from 132 to one. After one hundred years (ie. by 1900) the Dominicans and the Bernardines, of whom there were 187 and 226 respectively in 1832, died out completely. During that period the Catholic church lost 202 parish churches and chapels. Meanwhile the network of Orthodox parishes was systematically expanded by conversion of former Catholic churches and construction of new ones. In 1863-1900 the number of Orthodox churches in just one province, the Gubenya of Grodno, rose from 437 to 541. While Russian Orthodoxy enjoyed all the privileges of state religion, the use of Polish was suppressed in public life, schools, offices and even churches. In the diocese of Minsk more that half of the churches were closed when the congregations, both the laity and the clergy, resisted the mandatory use of Russian. Many Catholics who could not stomach the idea of having sermons and religious instruction in Russian drifted away from the church. Similar reactions among the Uniates, forced to join the Orthodox church, led to the slackening of their sacramental practices. The anti-Catholic and anti-Uniate policies of the Russian authorities were responsible for the falling away from religion of some sections of the Belarussian society, a process which was to reach its climax after the triumph of the communist revolution in the 20th century.