Governing Senate: functions. Establishment of the Governing Senate

In the era of Peter the Great, the Government Senate appeared in Russia. Over the next two centuries, this public authority has been reformatted many times according to the will of the next monarch.

The appearance of the Senate

The government senate was created by Peter I as a "safety cushion" in case the sovereign leaves the capital. The tsar was known for his active character - he was constantly on the road, because of which the state machine in his absence could stand idle for months. These were obvious costs of absolutism. Peter really was the only embodiment of state power in the expanses of the empire.

In the original Government Senate (1711) included the closest associates and assistants of the tsar, who had his long-term trust. Among them are Pyotr Golitsyn, Mikhail Dolgorukov, Grigory Volkonsky and other high-ranking dignitaries.

The creation of the Government Senate under Peter 1 occurred at an epoch when there was not yet a clear separation of powers in Russia (judicial, executive and legislative). Therefore, the terms of reference of this body constantly changed depending on the situation and appropriateness.

In his first order, Peter announced to the senators that they should pay special attention to the state of treasury, trade and court. What is important is that this institution was never to the opposition tsar. In this, the Russian Senate was the complete opposite of the same body in neighboring Poland or Sweden. There, such an institution represented the interests of the aristocracy, which could oppose the policies of its monarch.

Interaction with the provinces

Since the very beginning of its existence, the Senate has worked with the regions a lot. Huge Russia has always needed an effective system of interaction between the provinces and the capital. With the successors of Peter there was a complex network of orders. Due to large-scale reforms in all spheres of the country's life, they have ceased to be effective.

It was Peter who created the province. Each such administrative subject received two commissars. These officials worked directly with the Senate and expressed the interests of the province in St. Petersburg. With the help of the reform described above, the emperor expanded the scope of self-government in the provinces.

Fiscal and prosecutors

Of course, the creation of the Government Senate could not do without the establishment of new posts related to its work. Together with the new body appeared fiscal. These officials were royal overseers. They controlled the work of the institutions and ensured that all instructions of the monarch were executed exactly to the last remark.

The existence of fiscals led to abuse. A person with such power could use his position for mercenary purposes. At first, there was not even a regulated punishment for false denunciation. In connection with the ambiguous service of fiscals in the Russian language, this word received a second negative lexical meaning of informer and slander.

Nevertheless, the creation of this post was a necessary measure. Ober-fiscal (chief fiscal) could demand explanations from any official in the Senate. Thanks to this state of affairs, every nobleman, regardless of the height of his position, knew that his own abuse of power could ruin him. Fiscal existed not only in St. Petersburg, but also in the provinces (provincial-fiscal).

Very quickly, the creation of the Government Senate showed that this state body can not effectively work because of internal strife between the senators. Often they could not come to a common opinion, went into their disputes on persons, etc. This interfered with the work of the whole apparatus. Then Peter in 1722 established the post of Prosecutor General, who became the main person in the Senate. He was a "bridge" between the sovereign and the capital institution.

In the era of palace coups

After the death of the autocrat, the functions of the Governing Senate were seriously cut back for the first time. It happened because of the fact that the Supreme Privy Council was established , in which the aristocrats-favorites of Catherine I and Peter II were in session. He became an alternative to the Senate and gradually took over his powers.

After her accession to the throne, Elizabeth Petrovna restored the old order. The Senate again became the main judicial institution of the empire, it was subordinated to the military and naval collegiums.

Reform of Catherine II

So, what functions did the Government Senate do, we sorted it out. It should be noted that Catherine II did not like this position. The new empress decided to reform. The institution was divided into six departments, each of which was responsible for a specific sphere of the state's life. This measure helped to better delineate the powers of the Senate.

The first department was engaged in internal political affairs, the second - judicial. The third - provinces that had a special status (Estonia, Livonia, and also Little Russia), the fourth - military and naval issues. These institutions were located in St. Petersburg. The two remaining Moscow departments were in charge of the court and administrative matters. Here are what functions was assigned to the government Senate under Catherine II.

Also, the Empress greatly strengthened the influence of the Prosecutor General on the work of all departments. During the era of palace coups, this post lost its former importance. Catherine preferred to keep everything under control and, thus, restored the Petrine order of the autocracy.

During the brief reign of her son Paul, the Senate again lost most of its rights. The new emperor was extremely suspicious. He did not trust the nobles who had at least some influence and tried to contribute to the decision-making process.

In the XIX century

As it was at the very end of its existence (on the eve of the revolution), the Governing Senate was created during the reign of Alexander I. It was then that the political system of the empire stabilized. The palace coups ceased , and the inheritance of the royal title ceased to be a lottery.

Alexander was probably the most democratically-minded Russian emperor. He got into the hands of the state, working on obsolete mechanisms, which had to be changed urgently. The new king understood that the creation of the Government Senate (the year 1711) was dictated by good goals, but believed that over the years this body lost its significance and turned into a pitiful imitation of itself.

Immediately after his appearance on the throne, Alexander I in 1801 issued a decree, in which he suggested that the officials working in this institution give him his projects on the approaching reform. For several months there was an active work to discuss the reformatting of the Senate. The members of the Tacit Committee - young aristocrats, friends and associates of Alexander in his liberal endeavors took part in the discussion.

Progress

The senators were appointed personally by the emperor. They could become only officials of the first three classes (according to the Table of Ranks). Theoretically, the senator could combine his main post with some other one. For example, this amendment was often used in the case of the military.

Immediate decisions on a particular issue were made within the walls of a certain department. At the same time, periodic meetings were convened, attended by all members of the Senate. The decree adopted in this state body could only be abolished by the emperor.

Functions

Let's remember in what year the Government Senate was created. Correctly, in 1711, and since then this institution of power has regularly participated in legislation. In the course of his reforms Alexander I created a special institution for this purpose - the State Council. However, the Senate could still draft draft laws and propose them for higher consideration through the Minister of Justice, which since the XIX century also combined the old post of Prosecutor-General with the new one.

At the same time ministries were set up on the site of the collegiums. At first, there was some confusion in the relationship between the new executive bodies and the Senate. The powers of all departments were finally determined by the end of the reign of Alexander I.

One of the most important functions of the Senate was his work with the Treasury. It was the departments that checked the budget, and also informed the supreme authorities about arrears and a lack of money. In addition, the Senate was placed above the ministries in resolving interdepartmental disputes over property. This state body regulated domestic trade, appointed magistrates. Senators led the emblem of the empire (for this even a special department was created).

Significance of the Senate and its abolition

Peter I needed a state institution that could replace him for a while in the capital. In this emperor helped the creation of the Government Senate. The date of the appearance of the post of the Prosecutor General (1722) is also considered the birthday of the Prosecutor's Office in modern Russia.

However, with time, the functions of the Senate have changed. Executive power of officials was small, but they remained an important layer between numerous colleges (and later ministries).

The Senate had a noticeable importance in judicial matters. There were appeals from all over the country. The dissatisfied provincial prosecutors, as well as governors, wrote to the Senate. This order was established after the judicial reform of Alexander II in the 1860s.

When the Bolsheviks came to power in Russia, they were one of the first laws to prohibit the activities of the Senate. This was a decree on court No. 1, adopted on December 5, 1917.