The ambassador's order is the first sprouts of the Foreign Ministry

In Ancient Rus, orders were given to the organs of central government. They were called chambers and yards, cottages and palaces, thirds and quarters. It is believed that orders as state institutions arose involuntarily, and the first mention of them in this role is found in the literacy sent to the Vladimir Uspensky Monastery by the Grand Duke of All Russia, Vasily III. A certain number of people were ordered to deal with some specific cases - so the definition of "order" appeared. The newly established orders acted on behalf of the sovereign and were the highest governmental places. Complaints on their actions were considered only by the tsar or the tsar's Duma. Orders are the initial stages of the current ministries.

Appearance and purpose

The ambassadorial order arose in 1549 under Ivan IV. He existed until 1720. The Code of Law of 1550, Ivan the Terrible, introduces a system of command administration, which was designed to provide public needs. For almost 200 years the framework of this system was preserved and was replaced only under the Great Reformer Peter I. The duties of the newly created order included relations with other states, ransoms and exchange of prisoners, supervision of certain groups of "servicemen", for example, Don Cossacks.

Main functions

The ambassadorial order also dealt with the management of certain lands in the south and east of the country. He was responsible for sending Russian missions abroad, and receiving foreign missions. In his submission were foreign merchants, during their entire stay in our territory. Preparation of the texts of international negotiations was also made in the duty to the order. He controlled the diplomatic missions.

Structure of the body

Initially, the ambassadorial order consisted of a Duma clerk, under whose head were his "comrade" (deputy), 15-17 scribes (inferior administrative rank) and several interpreters (translators). At the head of the newly created institution was the Prikazny Dyak, who is also the Ambassador of the Embassy . In those days civil servants (besides clerics) were called clerks, in particular, commanders of orders or younger ranks in the boyar Duma.

The structure is gaining weight

The first Ambassador's order was headed by Ivan Mikhailovich Viskovatov, who before this appointment served as ambassador, Duma clerk, was the custodian of the state press. At the head of the order he was until his death, which came in 1570. With the growth of the international weight of Russia, the importance of the Posolsky order also increased, its staff increased at times - in 1689 it was served by 53 scribes instead of 17 and 22 interpreters plus 17 interpreter (interpreter). By the end of the 17th century the ambassadorial order had gained strength so much that it became one of the most important constituent parts of the central state apparatus of Russia. In this century, he went from the Office of External Relations to the state structure, which has considerable independence and broad powers.

Milestones

The whole period of the existence of the Posolsky order can be conditionally decomposed in accordance with three epochal gaps of the time. This is the Time of Troubles, the restoration of the Russian monarchy under Mikhail Romanov, the first Russian tsar from this dynasty, and the period of the heyday of statehood that came under Tsar Aleksei Mikhailovich.

Bright representatives

Since 1621, Ivan Tarasievich Gramotin, then head of the Posolsky Prikaz, began to prepare for the tsar systematic information about the state of affairs in other countries. They were drawn from periodicals of countries, as well as from observations and conclusions of ambassadors. These "Vestal Letters" were in fact the first Russian newspaper. I must say a few words about this eighth chapter of the Posolsky order separately. He began his career as a scribe, and three times with various kings he held the highest post of the Posolsky order. In troubled times, he was one of the most prominent politicians.

Enhancement

The structure of the order was divided into departments that dealt with office work on territorial grounds (promotion). There were five in total. The functions of the Ambassadorial Order, according to these five documentary units, were distributed as follows: the first stage included the countries of Western Europe - England and France, Spain and the Holy Roman Empire, as well as the Papal States. The second summit dealt with relations with Sweden, Poland and Wallachia (south of modern Romania), Moldavia, Turkey and the Crimea, Holland, Hamburg. Relations with Denmark, Brandenburg and Courland were occupied by the 3rd branch in the order, which is in charge of the office work of these countries. Persia, Armenia, India and the Kalmyk state were in charge of the 4th stage. The last fifth dealt with interconnections with China, Bukhara, Khiva, the Zhonggar State and Georgia.

The scope of work is growing

Since the moment when the Ambassador's order was established, he was charged with the general management of the country's foreign policy. From the second half of the 17th century the following orders directly follow him: the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, Smolensk and Malorossiysk. It also stored the archive of important external and internal documents accumulated over time.

Heads of order

With the growth of the international importance of Russia, the deacon of the Posolsky order is replaced by the representative of the country's supreme feudal estate, the boyar, and the institution itself since 1670 is called the "State Order of the Embassy Press". During the whole period of the existence of the Posolsky order, 19 leaders were replaced at the post of its head. The last was the Earl and the first Chancellor of the Russian Empire, Peter the Great's associate Gabriel Ivanovich Golovkin. As a result of the reforms of Peter I , the Embassy Chancellery was created, which in 1720 was replaced by the College of Foreign Affairs.