After Peter the Great, Catherine the First ascended the throne. In order to navigate state affairs, choose the right direction in leading the country, and receive sensible explanations of the current state of affairs, the Empress, by her highest decree, decided to establish a state body that would consist of men experienced in political affairs, knowledgeable people loyal to the throne and Russia. This Decree was signed in February 1726. Thus, the Supreme Privy Council was created.

At first it consisted of only six people, and a month later their composition was replenished by Catherine’s son-in-law, the Duke of Holstein. All these people were close associates of Peter the Great, and over the years of service they proved themselves to be His loyal subjects. Imperial Majesty. But over time, people in the Council changed: Count Tolstoy was ousted by Menshikov under Catherine, Menshikov himself fell out of favor under Peter the Second and was exiled, then Count Apraksin died in death, and the Duke of Holstein simply stopped appearing at meetings. As a result, only three of the original advisers remained. Gradually, the composition of the Council changed radically: the princely families of Golitsyn and Dolgoruky began to predominate there.

Activity

The government was directly subordinate to the Council. The name also changed. If earlier the Senate was called “Governing”, now it could not be called anything other than “High”. The Senate was demoted to the point that decrees were sent to it not only by the Council, but even by its formerly equal Holy Synod. So the Senate from “Governing” turned into “Highly Trusted”, and then simply into “High”. Under Alexander Menshikov, who led the original Council, this body sought to consolidate its power as firmly as possible: from now on, all ministers and senators swore an oath either directly to the Empress, or to the Supreme Privy Council - equally.

Resolutions of any level, if they were not signed by the Empress or the Privy Council, were not considered legal, and their execution was prosecuted by law. Thus, under Catherine the First, the true power in the country belonged to the Privy Council, or, to be more precise, to Menshikov. Catherine left the “spiritual”, and, according to this last will, the Council was given power and powers equal to those of the sovereign. These rights were given to the Council only until Peter the Second came of age. The clause in the will regarding succession to the throne could not be changed. But it was precisely this point that the advisers ignored and appointed Anna Ioannovna to the throne immediately after the death of Peter the Second in 1730.

By that time, half of the eight members of the Council were princes Dolgoruky. The two Golitsyn brothers were like-minded people. Thus there was a strong coalition in the Privy Council. Dmitry Golitsyn became the author of “Conditions”. This document spelled out the conditions for Anna Ioannovna’s accession to the throne, severely limited the monarchy and strengthened the rights of the aristocratic oligarchy. The plans of the Dolgorukys and Golitsyns were opposed by the Russian nobility and two members of the Privy Council - Golovkin and Osterman. Anna Ioannovna received the appeal of the nobility, headed by Prince Cherkassy.

The appeal contained a request to accept the autocracy as it was among her ancestors. Supported by the guard, as well as the middle and minor nobility, Anna Ioannovna decided to demonstrate her unquestioning power: she publicly tore up the document (“Conditions”), refusing to comply with the rules outlined in it. And then she released a special Manifesto (03/04/1730), abolishing the body of the Supreme Privy Council. Thus, power in Russia returned to the imperial hands again.

After the dissolution of the Privy Council, the fates of the former supreme leaders developed differently. Council member Mikhail Golitsyn was dismissed, after which he soon died. His brother Dmitry, the author of the “Conditions,” and three princes Dolgoruky were executed by order of Empress Anna. Vasily Vladimirovich Dolgoruky was arrested, and then remained in captivity at the Solovetsky Monastery. The new empress, Elizaveta Petrovna, brought him back from exile and even appointed him president of the Military Collegium. But at the top of power under Anna Ioannovna, Golovkin and Osterman remained, holding the most important government positions. Osterman even for some time (1840 - 41) actually ruled the country. But he did not escape repression: Empress Elizabeth in 1941 sent him to the city of Berezov (Tyumen region), where he died six years later.

29
St. Petersburg Institute of Foreign Economic Relations, Economics and Law
Test
on the topic of: State institutions of the Russian Empire since 1725to 1755odes

Discipline: History of Public Administration and civil service Russia
Student Romanovskaya M.Yu.
Group
Teacher Timoshevskaya A.D.
Kaliningrad
2009
Content

Introduction

Supreme Privy Council

1.1 Reasons for creation

1.2 Members of the Supreme Privy Council

Senate

2.1 The Senate in the era of the Supreme Privy Council and Cabinet (1726--1741)

Collegiums

3.3 General Regulations

3.4 Work of the boards

3.5 The importance of boards

3.6 Disadvantages in the work of boards

Stacked commission

Secret Chancery

5.1 Preobrazhensky order and the Secret Chancellery

5.2 Office of Secret and Investigative Affairs

5.3 Secret expedition

Synod

6.1 Commissions and departments

6.2 During the synodal period (1721--1917)

6.3 Establishment and functions

6.4 Chief Prosecutor of the Synod

6.5 Composition

Conclusion

List of used literature

Application

Introduction

Peter the Great created complex system administrative bodies with the idea of separation of powers: administrative and judicial. This system of institutions was united under the control of the Senate and the prosecutor's office and allowed the active participation of class representatives in the regional administration - noble (zemstvo commissars) and urban (magistrates). One of Peter's most important concerns was the national economy and public finances.
After the death of Peter, they retreated from his system in the device central control: according to Peter’s thoughts, the highest institution should have been the Senate, connected with the supreme power through the Prosecutor General. But... the era of palace coups began, and everyone created their own state institutions to govern the Russian Empire.
1 . Supreme Privy Council

The Supreme Privy Council was the highest advisory state institution in Russia in 1726-30. (7-8 people). The decree establishing the Council was issued in February 1726 (see Appendix)

1.1 Reasons for creation

Created by Catherine I as an advisory body, it actually resolved the most important state issues.
The accession of Catherine I to the throne after the death of Peter I created the need for an institution that could explain the state of affairs to the empress and guide the direction of government activities, which Catherine did not feel capable of. The Supreme Privy Council became such an institution. Its members were Field Marshal General His Serene Highness Prince Menshikov, Admiral General Count Apraksin, State Chancellor Count Golovkin, Count Tolstoy, Prince Dimitry Golitsyn and Baron Osterman. A month later, the empress’s son-in-law, the Duke of Holstein, was included in the number of members of the Supreme Privy Council, on whose zeal, as the empress officially stated, “we can fully rely.” Thus, the Supreme Privy Council was initially composed almost exclusively of the chicks of Petrov's nest; but already under Catherine I, one of them, Count Tolstoy, was ousted by Menshikov; under Peter II, Menshikov himself found himself in exile; Count Apraksin died; the Duke of Holstein has long ceased to be on the council; Of the original members of the Council, three remained - Golitsyn, Golovkin and Osterman.
Under the influence of the Dolgorukys, the composition of the Council changed: the dominance in it passed into the hands of the princely families of the Dolgorukys and Golitsyns.
Under Menshikov, the Council tried to consolidate government power; ministers, as the members of the Council were called, and senators swore allegiance to the empress or to the regulations of the Supreme Privy Council. It was forbidden to execute decrees that were not signed by the Empress and the Council.
According to the will of Catherine I, the Council was given power equal to the power of the sovereign during the minority of Peter II; Only on the issue of the order of succession to the throne the Council could not make changes. But the last point of Catherine I’s will was ignored by the leaders when Anna Ioannovna was elected to the throne.
In 1730, after the death of Peter II, half of the 8 members of the Council were Dolgoruky (princes Vasily Lukich, Ivan Alekseevich, Vasily Vladimirovich and Alexey Grigorievich), who were supported by the Golitsyn brothers (Dmitry and Mikhail Mikhailovich). Dmitry Golitsyn drew up a draft constitution.
However, most of the people opposed the Dolgoruky plans. Russian nobility, as well as members of the military-technical cooperation Osterman and Golovkin. Upon her arrival in Moscow on February 15 (26), 1730, Anna Ioannovna received a letter from the nobility led by Prince Cherkassy, in which they asked her to “accept the autocracy that your praiseworthy ancestors had.” Relying on the support of the middle and minor nobility and the guard, Anna publicly tore up the text of the standards and refused to comply with them; By the Manifesto of March 4, 1730, the Supreme Privy Council was abolished.
2 . Senate
The Supreme Privy Council, established on February 8, 1726, both under Catherine I and especially under Peter II, actually exercised all the rights of supreme power, as a result of which the position of the Senate, especially compared to the first decade of its existence, completely changed. Although the degree of power granted to the Senate, especially during the first period of the council’s reign (decree of March 7, 1726), formally did not undergo any significant changes, and the range of subjects of its department sometimes even expanded, but general meaning The Senate in the system of state institutions changed very quickly due to the fact that the Supreme Privy Council became superior to the Senate. A significant blow to the importance of the Senate was also dealt by the fact that the most influential senators moved to the supreme council. Among these senators were the presidents of the first three collegiums (military - Menshikov, naval - Count Apraksin and foreign - Count Golovkin), who become to some extent equal to the Senate. Even more important was the disorganization that was introduced by the Supreme Privy Council into all institutions of the empire. Prosecutor General Yaguzhinsky, an enemy of the party that formed the Supreme Privy Council, was appointed resident in Poland, and the post of Prosecutor General was actually abolished; its execution was entrusted to Chief Prosecutor Voeikov, who had no influence in the Senate; in March 1727 the position of racketeer was abolished. At the same time, the positions of fiscal officers are gradually disappearing.
After the radical change that Peter's local institutions underwent (1727-1728), the provincial government fell into complete disarray. In this state of affairs, the central institutions, including the Senate at their head, lost all effective power. Almost deprived of the means of supervision and local executive bodies, weakened in its personnel, the Senate continued, however, to carry on its shoulders hard labour minor routine government work. Even under Catherine, the title “Governing” was recognized as “indecent” for the Senate and was replaced by the title “High”. The Supreme Council demanded reports from the Senate, prohibited it from making expenses without permission, reprimanded the Senate, and threatened with fines.
When the plans of the leaders failed and Empress Anna again “assumed” autocracy, by decree of March 4, 1730, the Supreme Privy Council was abolished and the Governing Senate was restored to its former strength and dignity. The number of senators was increased to 21, and the Senate included the most prominent dignitaries and statesmen. A few days later the position of racketeer master was restored; The Senate again concentrated all government in its hands. To facilitate the Senate and free it from the influence of the chancellery, it was divided (June 1, 1730) into 5 departments; their task was preliminary preparation all matters that were still to be decided by the general meeting of the Senate. In fact, the division of the Senate into departments did not materialize. To supervise the Senate, Anna Ioannovna at first thought to limit herself to the weekly presentation of two reports to her, one about resolved matters, the other about matters that the Senate could not decide without reporting to the Empress. On October 20, 1730, it was recognized, however, that it was necessary to restore the position of prosecutor general.
In 1731 (November 6), a new institution officially appeared - the cabinet, which had already existed for about a year as the private secretariat of the empress. Through the office, reports from all institutions, including the Senate, ascended to the empress; the highest resolutions were announced from it. Gradually, the empress's participation in the adoption of resolutions decreases; On June 9, 1735, decrees signed by three cabinet ministers received the force of personal ones.
Although the competence of the Senate was not formally changed, in fact, subordination to the cabinet ministers had a very difficult impact on the Senate even in the first period of the cabinet’s existence (until 1735), when it was primarily concerned with matters of foreign policy. Later, when the cabinet began to extend its influence to matters of internal administration, constant direct relations between the cabinet and the collegiums and even with the Senate office in addition to the Senate, prodding for slowness, demands for reports and registers of resolved and unresolved cases, and finally, an extreme reduction in the number of senators (at one time There were only two people in the Senate, Novosiltsov and Sukin, individuals with the most unflattering reputations) brought the Senate to an unprecedented decline.
After the decree of June 9, 1735, the actual dominance of the cabinet ministers over the Senate acquired a legal basis, and resolutions were put on the reports of the Senate in the name of the cabinet. After the death of Anna Ioannovna (October 17, 1740), Biron, Minikh and Osterman were alternately the absolute masters of the office. The cabinet, absorbed in the struggle of parties, had no time for the Senate, the importance of which therefore increased somewhat at this time, which is expressed, among other things, in the appearance of “general discussions” or “general meetings” between the cabinet and the Senate.
On November 12, 1740, the position of court racketeer was established, first to consider the most important complaints against colleges and lower places, and from November 27 of the same year - against the Senate. In March 1741, this position was abolished, but the permission to bring all-subject complaints to the Senate remained in force.

2.2 Senate under Elizabeth Petrovna and Peter III

On December 12, 1741, shortly after ascending the throne, Empress Elizabeth issued a decree abolishing the cabinet and restoring the Governing Senate (before then again called the High Senate) in its former position. The Senate not only became the supreme body of the empire, not subordinate to any other institution, not only was it the focus of the court and all internal administration, again subordinating the military and naval collegiums, but often completely uncontrollably exercised the functions of the supreme power, taking legislative measures, resolving administrative affairs that previously went to the approval of monarchs, and even arrogated to themselves the right of self-replenishment. The Foreign Collegium remained, however, not subordinate to the Senate. The position of the Prosecutor General acquired great importance in the general structure of internal administration, since most of the reports to the Empress (even on the Holy Synod) went through the Prosecutor General. The establishment of a conference at the highest court (October 5, 1756) at first did little to shake the importance of the Senate, since the conference dealt primarily with matters of foreign policy; but in 1757-1758 The conference begins to constantly interfere in the affairs of internal governance. The Senate, despite its protests, finds itself forced to respond to the requests of the conference and fulfill its demands. By eliminating the Senate, the conference begins to directly communicate with the places subordinate to it.
Peter III, having ascended the throne on December 25, 1761, abolished the conference, but on May 18, 1762 he established a council, in relation to which the Senate was placed in a subordinate position. Further derogation of the importance of the Senate was expressed in the fact that the military and naval collegiums were again removed from its jurisdiction. The Senate's freedom of action in the field of internal governance was severely constrained by the prohibition “to issue decrees that serve as some kind of law or confirmation of previous ones” (1762).

2.3 Senate under Catherine II and Paul I

Upon the accession of Empress Catherine II to the throne, the Senate again became the highest institution in the empire, for the council ceased its activities. However, the role of the Senate in common system public administration is changing significantly: Catherine greatly dropped it due to the distrust with which she treated the then Senate, imbued with the traditions of Elizabethan times. In 1763, the Senate was divided into 6 departments: 4 in St. Petersburg and 2 in Moscow. The first department was in charge of state internal and political affairs, the second department was in charge of judicial affairs, the third department was in charge of affairs in provinces that were in a special position (Little Russia, Livonia, Estland, Vyborg province, Narva), the fourth department was in charge of military and naval affairs. Of the Moscow departments, V was in charge of administrative affairs, VI - judicial. All departments were recognized as equal in strength and dignity. By general rule, all matters were decided in the departments (unanimously) and only due to disagreement were transferred to the general meeting. This measure had a very serious impact on the political significance of the Senate: its decrees began to come not from a meeting of all the most dignified people in the state, but only from 3-4 persons. The Prosecutor General and Chief Prosecutors received much greater influence on the resolution of cases in the Senate (each department, except the First, had its own Chief Prosecutor since 1763; in the First Department, this position was established in 1771, and until then her duties were performed by the Prosecutor General). IN business related The division of the Senate into departments brought great benefits, largely eliminating the incredible slowness that characterized Senate office work. An even more sensitive and tangible damage to the significance of the Senate was caused by the fact that, little by little, matters of real national importance were taken away from it, and only the court and ordinary administrative activities remained to its share. The removal of the Senate from legislation was most dramatic. Previously, the Senate was a normal legislative body; in most cases, he also took the initiative for the legislative measures taken. Under Catherine, all the largest of them (the establishment of provinces, charters granted to the nobility and cities, etc.) were developed in addition to the Senate; their initiative belongs to the empress herself, and not to the Senate. The Senate was completely excluded from even participating in the work of the 1767 commission; he was only given, like collegiums and chancelleries, to elect one deputy to the commission. Under Catherine, the Senate was left to fill in minor gaps in laws that had no political significance, and for the most part the Senate submitted its proposals for approval by the supreme power. Upon her accession to the throne, Catherine found that the Senate had brought many parts of government into impossible disorder; it was necessary to take the most energetic measures to eliminate it, and the Senate turned out to be completely unsuitable for this. Therefore, those matters to which the empress attached highest value, she instructed individuals who enjoyed her trust - mainly to the Prosecutor General, Prince Vyazemsky, thanks to which the importance of the Prosecutor General increased to previously unprecedented proportions. In fact, he was like the Minister of Finance, Justice, Internal Affairs and State Comptroller. In the second half of Catherine's reign, she began to transfer affairs to other persons, many of whom competed with Prince Vyazemsky in terms of business influence. Entire departments appeared, the heads of which reported directly to the Empress, bypassing the Senate, as a result of which these departments became completely independent of the Senate. Sometimes they were in the nature of personal assignments, determined by Catherine’s attitude towards this or that person and the degree of trust she placed in him. Postal administration was entrusted either to Vyazemsky, then to Shuvalov, or to Bezborodko. A huge blow for the Senate was the new withdrawal of the military and naval collegium from its jurisdiction, and the military collegium is completely isolated both in the field of court and financial management. Having undermined the overall importance of the Senate, this measure had a particularly hard impact on its departments III and IV. The importance of the Senate and the extent of its power were dealt a heavy blow by the establishment of provinces (1775 and 1780). Quite a lot of cases moved from the collegiums to provincial places, and the collegiums were closed. The Senate had to enter into direct relations with new provincial regulations, which were neither formally nor in spirit coordinated with the establishment of the Senate. Catherine was well aware of this and repeatedly drew up projects for reform of the Senate (the projects of 1775, 1788 and 1794 were preserved), but they were not implemented. The inconsistency between the institutions of the Senate and the provinces led to the following:
1. that matters of the greatest importance could always be reported to the Empress by the viceroy or governor-general directly, in addition to the Senate;
2. that the Senate was overwhelmed by petty administrative matters coming to it from 42 provincial boards and 42 state chambers. The heraldry, from an institution in charge of all nobility and appointment to all positions, turned to the place of maintaining lists of officials appointed by governors.
Formally, the Senate was considered the highest judicial authority; and here, however, its significance was diminished, firstly, by the hitherto unprecedented influence that the chief prosecutors and the prosecutor general had on the resolution of cases, and secondly, by the wide acceptance of the most common complaints not only against departments, but also against general meetings Senate (these complaints were submitted to the racketeer master and he was reported to the empress).
3 . Collegiums

Collegiums are the central bodies of sectoral management in the Russian Empire, formed in the Peter the Great era to replace the system of orders that had lost its significance. Collegiums existed until 1802, when they were replaced by ministries.

3.1 Reasons for the formation of boards

In 1718 - 1719, the previous state bodies were liquidated and replaced with new ones, more suitable for the young Russia of Peter the Great.
The formation of the Senate in 1711 served as a signal for the formation of sectoral management bodies - collegiums. According to the plan of Peter I, they were supposed to replace the clumsy system of orders and introduce two new principles into management:
1. Systematic division of departments (orders often replaced each other, performing the same function, which introduced chaos into management. Other functions were not covered at all by any order proceedings).
2. Deliberative procedure for resolving cases.
The form of the new central government bodies was borrowed from Sweden and Germany. The basis for the regulations of the boards was Swedish legislation.

3.2 Evolution of the collegium system

Already in 1712, an attempt was made to establish a Trade Board with the participation of foreigners. In Germany and other European countries, experienced lawyers and officials were recruited to work in Russian government agencies. The Swedish colleges were considered the best in Europe, and they were taken as a model.
The collegium system, however, began to take shape only at the end of 1717. “Breaking down” the order system overnight turned out to be no easy task, so one-time abolition had to be abandoned. Orders were either absorbed by the collegiums or subordinated to them (for example, the Justice Collegium included seven orders).
Collegium structure:
1. First
· Military
· Admiralty Board
· Foreign Affairs
2. Commercial and industrial
· Berg College (industry)
· Manufactory Collegium (mining)
· Commerce Collegium (trading)
3. Financial
· Chamber Collegium (government revenue management: appointment of persons in charge of the collection of state revenue, establishment and abolition of taxes, compliance with equality between taxes depending on the level of income)
· Staff Office Collegium (maintaining government expenditures and compiling staff for all departments)
· Audit board (budgetary)
4. Other
· Justice Collegium
· Patrimonial Collegium
· Chief Magistrate (coordinated the work of all magistrates and was the court of appeal for them)
Collegial government existed until 1802, when the “Manifesto on the Establishment of Ministries” laid the foundation for a more progressive ministerial system.

Introduction

Peter the Great created a complex system of administrative bodies with the idea of separation of powers: administrative and judicial. This system of institutions was united under the control of the Senate and the prosecutor's office and allowed the active participation of class representatives in the regional administration - noble (zemstvo commissars) and urban (magistrates). One of Peter's most important concerns was the national economy and public finances.

After the death of Peter, they departed from his system in the structure of central government: according to Peter’s thoughts, the highest institution should have been the Senate, connected through the prosecutor general with the supreme power. But... the era of palace coups began, and everyone created their own state institutions to govern the Russian Empire.

The Supreme Privy Council was the highest advisory state institution in Russia in 1726-30. (7-8 people). The decree establishing the Council was issued in February 1726 (see Appendix)

Reasons for creation

Created by Catherine I as an advisory body, it actually resolved the most important state issues.

The accession of Catherine I to the throne after the death of Peter I created the need for an institution that could explain the state of affairs to the empress and guide the direction of government activities, which Catherine did not feel capable of. The Supreme Privy Council became such an institution.

Its members were Field Marshal General His Serene Highness Prince Menshikov, Admiral General Count Apraksin, State Chancellor Count Golovkin, Count Tolstoy, Prince Dimitry Golitsyn and Baron Osterman. A month later, the empress’s son-in-law, the Duke of Holstein, was included in the number of members of the Supreme Privy Council, on whose zeal, as the empress officially stated, “we can fully rely.” Thus, the Supreme Privy Council was initially composed almost exclusively of the chicks of Petrov's nest; but already under Catherine I, one of them, Count Tolstoy, was ousted by Menshikov; under Peter II, Menshikov himself found himself in exile; Count Apraksin died; the Duke of Holstein has long ceased to be on the council; Of the original members of the Council, three remained - Golitsyn, Golovkin and Osterman.

Under the influence of the Dolgorukys, the composition of the Council changed: the dominance in it passed into the hands of the princely families of the Dolgorukys and Golitsyns.

Under Menshikov, the Council tried to consolidate government power; ministers, as the members of the Council were called, and senators swore allegiance to the empress or to the regulations of the Supreme Privy Council. It was forbidden to execute decrees that were not signed by the Empress and the Council.

According to the will of Catherine I, the Council was given power equal to the power of the sovereign during the minority of Peter II; Only on the issue of the order of succession to the throne the Council could not make changes. But the last point of Catherine I’s will was ignored by the leaders when Anna Ioannovna was elected to the throne.

In 1730, after the death of Peter II, half of the 8 members of the Council were Dolgoruky (princes Vasily Lukich, Ivan Alekseevich, Vasily Vladimirovich and Alexey Grigorievich), who were supported by the Golitsyn brothers (Dmitry and Mikhail Mikhailovich). Dmitry Golitsyn drew up a draft constitution.

However, most of the Russian nobility, as well as members of the military-technical cooperation Osterman and Golovkin, opposed the Dolgoruky plans. Upon her arrival in Moscow on February 15 (26), 1730, Anna Ioannovna received a letter from the nobility led by Prince Cherkassy, in which they asked her to “accept the autocracy that your praiseworthy ancestors had.” Relying on the support of the middle and minor nobility and the guard, Anna publicly tore up the text of the standards and refused to comply with them; By the Manifesto of March 4, 1730, the Supreme Privy Council was abolished.

All the time that the monarchy existed in Russia, there was a struggle between desire royalty to single-handedly resolve all issues and the desire of the most high-born and high-ranking representatives of the Russian elite to get into their hands the real powers of state power.

This struggle went on with varying success, leading either to bloody repressions against the nobility or to conspiracies against the monarch.

But after the death of the emperor Peter the Great an attempt was made not just to limit the power of the monarch, but to turn him into a figurehead, transferring all real powers to a government consisting of the most influential representatives of the Russian nobility.

Peter the Great at the end of his life harbored the idea of creating government agency, standing above the Senate. According to the emperor’s plan, such an institution was to exist in a consultative and executive body in his person for assistance in solving state issues.

Peter the Great did not have time to put his idea into practice, nor did he have time to leave a will in order to resolve the issue of a successor. This provoked a political crisis, which ended with the decision to ascend the throne of Peter's wife under the name of Empress Catherine I.

Government under the Empress

Catherine I, aka Marta Samuilovna Skavronskaya, she's the same Ekaterina Alekseevna Mikhailova, did not have her husband's ability to public administration. Moreover, the empress was not eager to shoulder the entire burden of state affairs.

Therefore, Peter’s idea of creating a structure that would become a government under the monarch again became relevant. Now we were talking about a body endowed with real powers.

The new institution was named the Supreme Privy Council. The decree on its creation was signed on February 19, 1726. Its first composition included Field Marshal General His Serene Highness Alexander Danilovich Menshikov, Admiral General Count Fedor Matveevich Apraksin, State Chancellor Count Gabriel Ivanovich Golovkin, count Pyotr Andreevich Tolstoy, prince Dmitry Mikhailovich Golitsyn, baron Andrey Ivanovich Osterman.

In essence, it was a team assembled by Peter the Great, which continued to rule the Russian Empire without its creator.

A month later, the Duke was included in the number of members of the Supreme Privy Council Karl Friedrich of Holstein, husband Anna Petrovna, daughter of Peter I and Catherine I, father of the future emperor Peter III . Despite such a high honor, the Duke could not have any real influence on Russian politics.

Lineup change

There was no unity within the Supreme Privy Council itself. Each fought to strengthen their own influence, and His Serene Highness Prince Menshikov advanced further than others in this, who tried to become a person whose word would be decisive in the Russian Empire.

Menshikov managed to achieve the resignation of Peter Tolstoy from the Supreme Privy Council, whom he considered one of the most dangerous competitors.

The triumph of His Serene Highness, however, did not last long - Catherine I died in 1727, and Menshikov lost the fight for influence over the young Emperor Peter II. He fell into disgrace, lost power, and together with his family found himself in exile.

According to the will of Empress Catherine I, due to her infancy Peter II, grandson of Peter the Great, the Supreme Privy Council was temporarily vested with power equal to that of the sovereign, with the exception of the right to appoint an heir to the throne.

The composition of the Council changed seriously - except for Tolstoy and Menshikov, the Duke of Holstein no longer appeared in it, and in 1728 Count Apraksin died.

In their places, representatives of princely families were included in the Supreme Privy Council Dolgorukov And Golitsyns, who subordinated themselves to the influence of Peter II.

Dynastic crisis

By 1730, the Supreme Privy Council included princes Vasily Lukich, Ivan Alekseevich, Vasily Vladimirovich And Alexey Grigorievich Dolgorukovs, and Dmitriy And Mikhail Mikhailovich Golitsyn. Besides them, only two old members remained on the Council - Osterman and Golovkin.

The Dolgorukovs prepared the wedding of Peter II and the princess Ekaterina Dolgorukova, which was supposed to finally consolidate their dominant position in the empire.

However, in January 1730, the 14-year-old emperor fell ill with smallpox and died. The Dolgorukovs, despairing of the destruction of their plans, tried to forge the will of Peter II in favor of Ekaterina Dolgorukova, but this idea failed.

With the death of Peter II, the male line of the family was cut short Romanovs. A similar situation happened with Rurikovich, plunged Russia into Troubles, which no one wanted to repeat. Representatives of the Russian elite agreed that if a man from the Romanov family cannot be a monarch, then it must be a woman.

Among the candidates considered were the daughter of Peter I Elizaveta Petrovna, daughter John V Anna Ioannovna, and even the first wife of Peter the Great Evdokia Lopukhina, released from prison by Peter II.

As a result, the Supreme Privy Council agreed on the candidacy of the daughter of co-ruler and brother of Peter I John V, Anna Ioannovna.

“Conditions” for Anna Ioannovna

At the age of 17, Anna Ioannovna was married to the Duke of Courland Friedrich Wilhelm. Three months later, Anna became a widow and returned to her homeland, but at the behest of Peter she was again sent to Courland, where she lived in the not very prestigious status of dowager duchess.

In Courland, Anna Ioannovna lived for 19 years in an environment that was more hostile than friendly, and was strapped for money. Due to the fact that she was removed from her homeland, she did not have any connections in Russia, which suited the members of the Supreme Privy Council most of all.

Prince Dmitry Golitsyn, taking into account the position of Anna Ioannovna, proposed to condition her accession to the throne with restrictions that would assign power not to her, but to the Supreme Privy Council. The majority of the “highest authorities” supported this idea.

Unknown artist. Portrait of Prince Dmitry Mikhailovich Golitsyn. Source: Public Domain

The conditions put forward to Anna Ioannovna were enshrined in the “Conditions” drawn up by Dmitry Golitsyn. According to them, the empress could not independently declare war or make peace, introduce new taxes and taxes, spend the treasury at her own discretion, promote to ranks higher than colonel, grant estates, deprive a nobleman of life and property without a trial, marry, or appoint an heir to the throne.

Such restrictions actually deprived the monarch of autocratic power, transferring it to the Supreme Privy Council. The implementation of these plans could direct the development Russian statehood along a completely different path.

Everything secret becomes clear

The “higher authorities” who sent the “Conditions” to Anna Ioannovna reasoned simply - a woman strapped for money without family and support would agree to anything for the sake of the empress’s crown.

And so it happened - on February 8, 1730, Anna Ioannovna signed the “Conditions”, and the next day she went to Moscow, where members of the Supreme Privy Council were waiting for her.

Meanwhile, the “Conditions” were not agreed upon by the “higher-ups” with anyone, although they presented them to Anna Ioannovna as a demand of the entire people. Their calculation was that first the new empress would approve the conditions, and only then all other Russians would be presented with a fait accompli.

However, it was not possible to hide the “Conditions”. The news that the Dolgorukovs and Golitsyns intend to take control of state power, caused sharp discontent among other representatives of the nobility. Fermentation began in Moscow.

After entering Russia, Anna Ioannovna was carefully protected from communication, so as not to let her additional information. However, to prohibit her from meeting with her sisters, the Duchess of Mecklenburg Ekaterina Ioannovna and the princess Praskovya Ioannovna, it was impossible. They explained to Anna that the situation was such that there was no point in giving in to the “higher-ups” and limiting one’s own power.

On February 26, 1730, Anna Ioannovna arrived in Moscow, where troops and senior government officials swore allegiance to her. In the new form of the oath, some previous expressions that meant autocracy were excluded, but there were no expressions that would mean a new form of government, and, most importantly, there was no mention of the rights of the Supreme Privy Council and the conditions confirmed by the Empress.

Anna Ioannovna and her retinue. Photo: www.globallookpress.com

The Empress Strikes Back

On March 6, opponents of the Supreme Privy Council filed a petition to the Empress demanding the liquidation of the Council, the restoration of autocracy, the destruction of the Conditions and the restoration of the power of the Senate.

Everything was decided on March 8, 1730. On this day, the petition was submitted to Anna Ioannovna in the presence of members of the Supreme Privy Council in the Lefortovo Palace. The Empress accepted the petition and immediately invited the “higher-ups” to dinner, thus isolating them from the possibility of taking any action.

The palace where the events took place was surrounded by the imperial guard, whose commanders advocated the preservation of autocratic power.

The discussion of the issue finally ended at four o'clock in the afternoon, when the State Councilor Maslov brought Anna Ioannovna “Conditions” and she publicly tore them up.

The new empress remained an autocratic ruler, and for the Supreme Privy Council and its members it was a disaster.

On March 12, 1730, a new oath to Anna Ioannovna took place, this time on the terms of autocracy, and three days later the Supreme Privy Council was abolished by the imperial manifesto.

Anna Ioannovna tears up the “Conditions”.

Creation of the Council

The decree on the establishment of the Supreme Privy Council was issued in February 1726. Field Marshal General His Serene Highness Prince Menshikov, Admiral General Count Apraksin, State Chancellor Count Golovkin, Count Tolstoy, Prince Dimitry Golitsyn and Baron Osterman were appointed as its members. A month later, the empress's son-in-law, the Duke of Holstein, was included in the number of members of the Supreme Privy Council, on whose zeal, as the empress officially declared, we can fully rely.

The Supreme Privy Council, in which Alexander Danilovich Menshikov took the leading role, immediately subjugated the Senate and collegiums. The ruling Senate was humiliated to such an extent that decrees were sent there not only from the Council, but also from the Synod, which was previously equal to it. Then the title “governor” was taken away from the Senate, replacing it with “highly trusted”, and then simply “high”. Even under Menshikov, the Supreme Privy Council tried to strengthen government power for itself; ministers, as members of the Supreme Privy Council were called, and senators swore allegiance to the empress or to the regulations of the Supreme Privy Council. It was forbidden to execute decrees that were not signed by the Empress and the Council.

Strengthening power, Catherine's testament

According to the testament (testament) of Catherine I, the Supreme Privy Council during the minority of Peter II was granted power equal to the power of the sovereign, only in the matter of the order of succession to the throne, the Council could not make changes. But no one looked at the last point of the testament when the leaders, that is, members of the Supreme Privy Council, elected Anna Ioannovna to the throne.

Alexander Danilovich Menshikov

When created, the Supreme Privy Council included almost exclusively “chicks of Petrov’s nest,” but even under Catherine I, Count Tolstoy was ousted by Menshikov; then, under Peter II, Menshikov himself fell into disgrace and went into exile; Count Apraksin died; the Duke of Holstein has long ceased to be in the Council; Of the original members of the Supreme Privy Council, three remained - Golitsyn, Golovkin and Osterman. Under the influence of the Dolgorukys, the composition of the Supreme Privy Council changed: dominance passed into the hands of the princely families of the Dolgorukys and Golitsyns.

Conditions

In 1730, after the death of Peter II, half of the 8 members of the Council were the Dolgorukovs (princes Vasily Lukich, Ivan Alekseevich, Vasily Vladimirovich and Alexey Grigorievich), who were supported by the Golitsyn brothers (Dmitry and Mikhail Mikhailovich). Dmitry Golitsyn drew up a draft constitution. However, part of the Russian nobility, as well as Council members Osterman and Golovkin, opposed the Dolgorukovs’ plans. However, part of the Russian nobility, as well as Osterman and Golovkin, opposed the Dolgorukovs’ plans.

Prince Dmitry Mikhailovich Golitsyn

The rulers elected as the next empress youngest daughter Tsar Anna Ioannovna. She lived in Courland for 19 years and had no favorites or parties in Russia. This suited everyone. They also found it quite manageable. Taking advantage of the situation, the leaders decided to limit autocratic power by demanding that Anna sign certain conditions, the so-called “Conditions”. According to the “Conditions,” real power in Russia passed to the Supreme Privy Council, and the role of the monarch for the first time was reduced to representative functions.

Conditions

On January 28 (February 8), 1730, Anna signed the “Conditions”, according to which, without the Supreme Privy Council, she could not declare war or make peace, introduce new taxes and taxes, spend the treasury at her own discretion, promote to ranks higher than colonel, grant estates, without trial, deprive a nobleman of life and property, enter into marriage, and appoint an heir to the throne.

Portrait of Anna Ioannovna on silk,1732

The struggle of two parties in relation to the new state structure continued. The leaders sought to convince Anna to confirm their new powers. Supporters of autocracy (A. I. Osterman, Feofan Prokopovich, P. I. Yaguzhinsky, A. D. Cantemir) and wide circles of the nobility wanted a revision of the “Conditions” signed in Mitau. The ferment arose primarily from dissatisfaction with the strengthening of a narrow group of Council members.

Anna Ioannovna tears up the Conditions. Abolition of the Council

February 25 (March 7) 1730 large group nobility (according to various sources from 150 to 800), including many guards officers, came to the palace and submitted a petition to Anna Ioannovna. The petition expressed a request to the empress, together with the nobility, to reconsider a form of government that would be pleasing to all the people. Anna hesitated, but her sister Ekaterina Ioannovna decisively forced the Empress to sign the petition. Representatives of the nobility deliberated briefly and at 4 o'clock in the afternoon submitted a new petition, in which they asked the empress to accept full autocracy and destroy the points of the “Conditions”. When Anna asked the confused leaders for approval for the new conditions, they only nodded their heads in agreement. As a contemporary notes: “It was their luck that they did not move then; if they had shown even the slightest disapproval of the nobility’s verdict, the guards would have thrown them out the window.”

Anna Ioannovna breaks the Conditions

Relying on the support of the guard, as well as the middle and minor nobility, Anna publicly tore up the “Conditions” and her letter of acceptance. On March 1 (12), 1730, the people took the oath for the second time to Empress Anna Ioannovna on the terms of complete autocracy. By the Manifesto of March 4 (15), 1730, the Supreme Privy Council was abolished.