Tsar's title As we have already said, both Ivan III and Vasily III were sometimes called tsars. But officially it was Ivan the Terrible who became the first Russian Tsar. The word “Tsar” itself comes from the Latin “Caesar” (from the personal name of Gaius Julius Caesar, which gradually turned into

Why did the title "king" fall out of use? Now about the details of another mentioned event, which was also related to the Caucasus - perhaps even motivating the cause of the Caucasian War... How and why did the tsar appear in Moscow and how did he end? I already said something about this

The system of Russian titles, like many other innovations, developed under Peter I. The title “prince” - chief, ruler, owner of a region or principality - was once the only one in Russia. E.P. Karnovich in his book “Patrimonial nicknames and titles in Russia” “Karnovich E.P. Family nicknames and titles in Russia and the merger of foreigners with Russians. - St. Petersburg, 1886." considers this word to be purely Slavic in origin, although its Scandinavian origin is usually assumed: “prince” is derived from the Swedish “konung”. The same is said in the “Dictionary of the Living Great Russian Language” by V.I. Dahl, but the Finnish scholar M. Ryasanan believes that the title “prince” is of Chinese origin, as is the title of his closest assistant, tiun (the Chinese equivalent is tudun). The borrowing of this title seems somewhat incomprehensible, because in China tudun was the “keeper of water”, and in Rus', as is known, there was no irrigated agriculture in the 10th-12th centuries.

E.P. Karnovich claims that the title "prince" has long existed among Slavic tribes who had no relations with the Normans and Varangians. But if in other countries it lost its meaning, in Rus' it remained longer, and for many centuries it was worn by Russian rulers - appanage princes and great (senior) princes. There were many Grand Dukes in Rus' - Ryazan, Smolensk, Tver and Yaroslavl, but with the subordination of these principalities to Moscow, only the “Grand Dukes of Moscow” remained. However, they also subsequently added a new title to their already seemingly modest title - the title of “tsar” (sovereign, monarch, supreme ruler of a people, land or state), retaining for themselves the title of “Grand Duke”.

An interesting version is put forward by Candidate of Philological Sciences E.I. Kucherenko about the Middle Eastern origin of this title. The Assyrians and Babylonians called their rulers “kings,” only they pronounced this word as “sharr” or “sar.” Sometimes this title was included in the king’s own name. Thus, the Akkadian ruler Sargon I, who seized power, and did not receive it according to the law of succession, called himself “Sharrukin” (true king). The word “sar”, as a component, is also present in the names of such kings as Nabopolassar, Salpanassar and Tiglath-pileser.

After Grand Duke Ivan IV accepted the royal title, the royal sons began to bear the titles of “princes” and “grand dukes,” and the daughters began to bear the titles of “princesses” and “grand duchesses.” “Tsar” in Russia was supplemented by the title “autocrat,” which historically meant the independence of the tsarist power from the Golden Horde.

The family of the Romanov boyars, from whom the new Russian Tsar came, was not princely, but it had long been close to the Rurik family and was even akin to it. Andrei Ivanovich, the first ancestor of the Romanovs, left Prussia for Russia at the beginning of the 14th century under Ivan Kalita and immediately became close to the Grand Duke. His son Fyodor and grandson Ivan (under the name Koshkins) are already considered the main advisers of Grand Duke Vasily I. From Zakhar, the son of Ivan, this family began to bear the surname Zakharyins, and from Yuri (son of Zakhar) - the Zakharyins-Yuryevs. And finally, Yuri’s son, Roman, became the founder of the Romanov family. It was from this family that Ivan the Terrible chose his wife Avdotya Romanovna, the daughter of Roman Yuryevich.

In 1721, Peter I took the title of "emperor". In Western Europe, this title usually belonged to the ruler of a powerful monarchy, and its receipt was sanctioned by the authority of the Pope. By the beginning of the 18th century, the head of the Holy Roman Empire of the German nation was called emperor. With the introduction of the title of emperor in Russia, the title “prince” remained with the tsar’s sons, and daughters began to be called not “princesses”, but “crown princesses”. Subsequently, Emperor Paul I abolished these titles, and granted the titles of “Grand Dukes” and “Grand Duchesses” along with “Imperial Highness” to all his descendants up to the fifth generation.

A special class category included noble titles - the most serene princes, princes, and count and baronial dignities introduced by Peter I. Historically, each title signified a degree of feudal independence. The patrimonial title could only be granted by the monarch, and it was passed on to descendants only through the male line. When a woman got married, she joined her husband’s family name and became a princess, baroness or countess. When their daughter got married, she lost her title, since it was impossible to transfer it to her husband.

Before the October Revolution, there were only three noble titles in Russia: prince, count and baron. Although there were no honorary titles awarded in Ancient Rus', there were many princes. They belonged to the descendants of the Grand Duke Rurik (“Cornet Obolensky” belonged to the Rurikovichs), the descendants of the Grand Duke of Lithuania Gediminas (the “Lieutenant Golitsyn” belonged to the Gediminovichs) and foreigners, mainly Mordovians and Tatars.

The importance of many princely families fell due to the fragmentation or general decline of their ancestral domains. Even Ivan III strengthened his power over the possessions of the princes, weakened their personal authority as advisers to the sovereign, and limited the right of the princes to dispose of their estates. However, even all this was not enough to destroy the appanage orders, and then Ivan III resorted to a decisive means - he deprived many princes of their hereditary possessions.

But despite the suppression of many appanage princely families by 1700, the princely clans descended from them numbered 47. So, for example, the Gagarin clan had 27 representatives at that time, and the Volkonsky clan had 30. In the descendants of Gediminas, by 1700 in Russia there were four princely families: Kurakins, Golitsyns, Trubetskoys and Khovanskys. Princely families of Tatar, Mordovian and Georgian origin were a total of 10 times more numerous than princely families of Russian origin. This happened because in the 16th-17th centuries, in order to spread Christianity among the Tatars and Mordovians, the Russian tsars ordered the Tatar Murzas and Mordovian “punks” to write with a princely name if they accepted the Christian faith. Subsequently, the Tatar princely families (Igoberdyevs, Shaisupovs, etc.) acquired great wealth and nobility. Among them were the princes Urusov (descendants of the Nogai prince Edigei - one of the leaders of Tamerlane), Cherkasy (considered the descendants of the Egyptian Sultan Inal and the rulers of Kabarda) and Yusupov (they were of the same family as the Urusovs, and owed their rise to the favor of the powerful Biron).

Before Peter I, the granting of princely or any other honorary titles did not occur, with the exception of only the title of an “eminent” person. It was granted by Ivan the Terrible to one of the Stroganovs, who was engaged in healing. Subsequently, Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich granted the title “eminent people” to the entire Stroganov family, but this was not a noble title and did not introduce noble dignity. True, in the Siberian chronicles there is a story that Ermak Timofeevich, the first conqueror of Siberia, was allegedly granted the title of Siberian prince by Ivan the Terrible, but this raises doubts among historians.

The title of His Serene Highness Prince was very rare: A.D. was the first to receive it in Russia. Menshikov in 1707, the last - A.M. Gorchakov in 1871.

After Peter I, the Russian tsars for 90 years did not grant the princely title to anyone, because by that time the Rurik family had already become so impoverished that no one was flattered to receive this title. Even less did anyone want to become like the many Tatar and Georgian princes. In order to raise princely dignity in Russia, it was necessary to show the brilliance of the power and nobility of this title, which happened during the reign of Catherine II.

Under her, the princes appeared in such a situation that later Emperor Paul I could with good reason consider the award of the princely rank an extraordinary reward, especially with the title of “lordship.” Under Paul I, the first such award was granted on April 5, 1797 to Vice-Chancellor Count A.A. Bezborodko, then the emperor granted princes to Prosecutor General P.V. Lopukhin and Field Marshal Count A.V. Suvorov (with the title of Prince of Italy). The highest degree of princely title was the title "Grand Duke", which belonged only to members of the imperial family.

At the turn of the 17th-18th centuries, a new noble title appeared in Russia - count. At first, the meaning of this title was not very clear to the Russian people, and the persons receiving it did not even know how to write correctly in their signatures; they replaced the letter “fert” with the letter “fita”. However, this title soon became very honorable, as prominent nobles, noble dignitaries and people close to the sovereign began to wear it.

Since the time of Peter I, count titles appeared in Russia, different in their grant: counts of the Russian Empire and counts of the Holy Roman Empire, and then foreigners began to appear who entered into Russian citizenship with such a title or received it later from various influential persons. Field Marshal F.A. became the first count in Russia. Golovin is an admiral general, boyar and president of the Ambassadorial Prikaz. After him, this title was awarded to A.D. Menshikov and G.I. Golovkin, but all of them were not “Russian” counts, since these titles were granted to them by emperors of other states. The first actual Russian count was Field Marshal B.P. Sheremetev, who received this title from Peter I in 1706 for pacifying the Streltsy revolt in Astrakhan.

In 1709, Peter I granted this title to Chancellor G.I. Golovkin, who had it since 1706 from Emperor Joseph I. In 1710, the tsar was especially generous in distributing count titles. He granted them to boyar I.A. Musin-Pushkin, Admiral General V.M. Apraksin and boyar P.M. Apraksin, as well as his former teacher Nikita Zotov - with the extension of this title to his descendants.

Catherine II granted relatively few titles of counts of the Russian Empire. However, during her long reign, several Russian subjects, of low rank or without any rank at all, received the dignity of count from foreign sovereigns. Emperor Paul I, unlike his mother, was unusually generous in distributing the title of count. 6 days after his accession, he granted it to Major General A.G. Bobrinsky, and on the day of his coronation he granted three Vorontsovs, A.A., “counts of the Russian Empire”. Bezborodko, State Councilor I.V. Zavadovsky and some others, who were already counts of the Holy Roman Empire.

Quite a few noble families in Russia had several family titles. For example, A.V. After the defeat of the Turks at Focsani and Rymnik in 1789, Suvorov received the title of Count of Rymnik, and from the Austrian Emperor - the title of Count of the Holy Roman Empire. Ten years later, after several victories over the French army, Emperor Paul I granted A.V. Suvorov received the title of Prince of Italy and ordered the erection of a monument to him in St. Petersburg. Field Marshal General I.F. Paskevich, one of four full holders of the Order of St. George, received first the title of Count of Erivan, and then Prince of Warsaw.

The most honorable title in medieval Europe was the title of baron, where “baron” meant not only the highest government officials, but generally all feudal rulers, even if they had other titles (ducal, princely, margrave, etc.). During the Crusades, this title was brought to the East and there also acquired great honor, as it preserved the memory of the leaders of the crusaders who took Jerusalem from the Muslims. Over time, in Western Europe, the baronial title gradually began not only to lose its former meaning, but even to come into disdain.

There were especially many barons by title only, and not by land holdings, when the former German rulers arrogated to themselves the right to distribute this title.

In Russia, the word “baron” was translated as “free master,” but before the reign of Peter I there were no “Russian” barons at all. In 1710, this title was first granted to the sub-chancellor P.P. Shafirov, 11 years later - Privy Councilor A.I. Osterman for concluding the Peace of Nystadt, and in 1722 the three Stroganov brothers, who until that time had held the title of “eminent people,” were granted baronship. In many cases, the grant of barony also meant the grant of nobility.

Along with aristocratic titles, Peter I also borrowed external signs of noble dignity from Europe - coats of arms and diplomas for nobility. In 1722, he established the position of master of arms, who ordered to issue diplomas of nobility and coats of arms to all nobles who rose to the rank of chief officer. Interest in heraldry in Russia began to grow so quickly that many willfully invented coats of arms for themselves, and some even appropriated the coats of arms of crowned sovereigns and noble families.

According to the “Table of Ranks”, when addressing persons who had certain ranks, persons of equal rank or inferior had to use the following titles: “Your Excellency” (to persons in the ranks of I and II classes), “Your Excellency” (to ranks of the III and IV classes), etc. In addition, in Russia there were titles used when addressing members of the imperial family and persons of noble origin:

"Your Imperial Majesty"- to the Emperor, Empress and Empress Dowager;

"Your Imperial Highness"- to the great princes (children and grandchildren of the emperor), and in 1797-1886 to the great-grandsons and great-great-grandchildren of the emperor;

"Your Highness"- to the princes of imperial blood;

"Your Mightiness"- to the youngest children of the great-grandsons of the emperor and their male descendants, as well as to the most serene princes by grant;

"Your Excellency"- when addressing princes, counts, dukes and barons.

When addressing clergy in Russia, the following titles were used:

"Your Eminence"- to metropolitans and archbishops;

"Your Eminence"- to the bishops;

"Your Reverence"- to archimandrites and abbots of monasteries, archpriests and priests;

"Your Reverence"- to protodeacons and deacons.

But after the February Revolution, by order of the Petrograd Council of Workers' and Soldiers' Deputies, the mandatory salutation outside of service, standing "at the front" and addressing officers using the titles "Your Honor", "Your Excellency", etc. were abolished. Instead, the addresses "Mr. General" were introduced. , “Mr. Lieutenant”, etc.

In November 1917, the Council of People's Commissars approved a decree on the abolition of estates and civil ranks. Within a month, the Senate and State Council were abolished, and with them the titles of senators and members of the State Council. The decree of December 16 “On the equalization of rights of all military personnel” abolished all ranks, all imperial and royal orders, prohibited the use of private titles with the address “master” and destroyed all other class differences between citizens of Russia.

Y. Pantyukhin "Prince Alexander Nevsky"

But first, let’s deal with the concept of “nobility” itself. “What is nobility? – wrote A.S. Pushkin. “The hereditary class of the people is the highest, that is, awarded with great advantages regarding property and private freedom.”

The emergence of the nobility in Russia

The word "nobleman" literally means "a person from the princely court", or "courtier".

In Russia, the nobility arose in the 12th century. as the lowest part of the military service class, which made up the court of a prince or a major boyar.

The Code of Laws of the Russian Empire states that belonging to the nobility “ is a consequence flowing from the quality and virtue of the men in command in ancient times, who distinguished themselves by merit, by which, turning the service itself into merit, they acquired a noble name for their offspring. Noble means all those who were born from noble ancestors, or were granted this dignity by monarchs.”

Rise of the nobility

Since the 14th century nobles began to receive land for their diligent service. This is how the class of landowners - landowners - emerged. Later they were allowed to buy land.

The Code of Law of 1497 limited the right of peasants to move and thereby strengthened the position of the nobles.

In February 1549, the first Zemsky Sobor took place in the Kremlin Palace. Ivan IV (the Terrible) gave a speech there. The Tsar set a course towards building a centralized monarchy (autocracy) based on the nobility, which meant a struggle with the old (boyar) aristocracy. He accused the boyars of abuse of power and called on everyone to work together to strengthen the unity of the Russian state.

G. Sedov “Ivan the Terrible and Malyuta Skuratov”

In 1550 chosen thousand Moscow nobles (1071 people) were placed within 60-70 km around Moscow.

In the middle of the 16th century. The Kazan Khanate was annexed, and the patrimonial people were evicted from the oprichnina region, which was declared the property of the tsar. The vacated lands were distributed to the nobles under the condition of service.

In the 80s of the 16th century. were introduced reserved summers(the period during which in some regions of the Russian state peasants were prohibited from going out on the autumn St. George’s Day, provided for in the Code of Laws of 1497. Reserved summers began to be introduced by the government of Ivan IV (the Terrible) in 1581.

The “Conciliar Code” of 1649 secured the right of nobles to perpetual possession and indefinite search for fugitive peasants.

But Peter I began a decisive struggle against the old boyar aristocracy, making the nobles his support. In 1722 he introduced Table of ranks.

Monument to Peter I in Voronezh

The table of ranks replaced the principle of birth with the principle of personal service. The table of ranks influenced the official routine and the historical destinies of the noble class.

Personal length of service became the only regulator of service; “fatherly honor”, ​​the breed has lost all meaning in this regard. Under Peter I, the rank of the lowest XIV class in military service gave the right to hereditary nobility. Civil service in the rank up to VIII class gave only personal nobility, and the right to hereditary nobility began with the rank of VIII class. “For this reason, we do not allow anyone of any rank,” wrote Peter, “until they show us and the fatherland any services.”

The table of ranks was subject to numerous changes, but in general it existed until 1917.

After Peter I, the nobles received one privilege after another. Catherine II actually freed the nobles from compulsory service while maintaining serfdom for the peasants, which created a real gap between the nobles and the people. The pressure of the nobles on the peasantry and their embitterment became one of the reasons for Pugachev's uprising.

The apogee of the power of the Russian nobility was the receipt of “noble liberties” - a charter from Catherine II, which freed nobles from compulsory service. But this began the decline of the nobility, which gradually turned into a “leisure class,” and the slow ruin of the lower nobility. And after the peasant reform of 1861, the economic position of the nobility weakened even more.

By the beginning of the 20th century. the hereditary nobility, “the first support of the throne” and “one of the most reliable tools of the government,” is gradually losing its economic and administrative dominance.

Noble titles

In Muscovite Rus' there was only one aristocratic title - “prince”. It came from the word “to reign” and meant that his ancestors had once ruled some part of Russia. Not only Russians had this title; foreigners who converted to Orthodoxy were also allowed to become princes.

Foreign titles in Russia appeared under Peter I: “baron” and “count”. There is the following explanation for this: in the territories annexed by Peter there were already people with such titles, and these titles were also borne by foreigners whom Peter attracted to Russia. But the title “count” was initially burdened with the words “Holy Roman Empire”, i.e. this title was assigned at the request of the Russian monarch by the German emperor. In January 1776, Catherine II petitioned the “Roman Emperor” Grigory Orlov “ give the Roman Empire princely dignity, for which he greatly obliged himself».

Golovin (1701) and Menshikov (1702) become the first counts of the Holy Roman Empire in Russia, and under Catherine II, four of her favorites received the titles of princes of the Holy Roman Empire: Orlov, Potemkin, Bezborodko and Zubov. But the assignment of such titles ceased in 1796.

Title "Count"

Earl's heraldic crown

Graph(German) Graf) - a royal official in the Early Middle Ages in Western Europe. The title arose in the 4th century. in the Roman Empire and was originally assigned to high dignitaries.

During the period of feudal fragmentation graph– feudal lord of a county, then becomes a title of the highest nobility. Woman - countess. It continues to be formally retained as a title in most European countries with a monarchical form of government.

Sheremetyev became the first Russian count in 1706.

Boris Petrovich Sheremetyev (1652-1719)

Russian commander during the Northern War, diplomat, one of the first Russian field marshals.

Born into the old boyar family of the Sheremetyevs.

In 1681 he commanded troops against the Tatars. He proved himself in the military and diplomatic fields. In 1686 he participated in the conclusion of the “Eternal Peace” with the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, and then was sent to Warsaw to ratify the concluded peace.

Protected Russia from Crimean raids. In 1695 he took part in the first Azov campaign of Peter I.

In 1697-1699. visited Poland, Austria, Italy, the island of Malta, carrying out diplomatic assignments of Peter I. During the Northern War of 1700-1721. proved himself to be a cautious and talented commander who earned the trust of Peter I. In 1701 he inflicted a defeat on the Swedes, from which they “remained ignorant and would not recover for a long time,” for which he was awarded the Order of St. Andrew the First-Called and granted the rank of Field Marshal. Subsequently he won several victories over the Swedes.

In 1705-1706 Sheremetyev suppressed the mutiny of the archers in Astrakhan, for which I was first in Russia awarded the title of count.

In recent years, he expressed a desire to become a monk of the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra, but the tsar did not allow this, just as he did not allow Sheremetyev’s will to be buried in the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra to be fulfilled: Peter I ordered Sheremetev to be buried in the Alexander Nevsky Lavra, forcing even the dead to serve the state companion.

At the end of the 19th century. There were over 300 count families in Russia. The title of count in Soviet Russia was abolished by the Decree of the All-Russian Central Executive Committee and the Council of People's Commissars of November 11, 1917.

Title "baron"

English baronial crown

Baron(from Late Lat. baro with the original meaning “man, man”). In medieval feudal Western Europe, a major ruling nobleman and feudal lord, later simply an honorary title of nobility. Woman - Baroness. The title of baron in England continues to this day and is located in the hierarchical system below the title of viscount. In Germany, this title was lower than the count's.

In the Russian Empire, the title of baron was introduced by Peter I, and P. P. Shafirov was the first to receive it in 1710. Then A. I. Osterman (1721), A. G., N. G. and S. G. Stroganov (1722), A.-E. Stambken (1726). The families of the barons were divided into Russian, Baltic and foreign.

Pyotr Pavlovich Shafirov (1669-1739)

Diplomat of Peter's time, vice-chancellor. Knight of the Order of St. Andrew the First-Called (1719). In 1701-1722 in fact, he was in charge of the Russian postal service. In 1723 he was sentenced to death on charges of abuse, but after the death of Peter he was able to return to diplomatic activity.

He came from a family of Polish Jews who settled in Smolensk and converted to Orthodoxy. He began serving as a translator in 1691 in the same embassy department where his father served. Accompanying Peter the Great during his travels and campaigns, he took part in concluding an agreement with the Polish king Augustus II (1701) and with the ambassadors of the Sedmigrad prince Rakoczi. In 1709 he became a privy councilor and promoted to vice-chancellor. In 1711 he concluded the Prut Peace Treaty with the Turks and he himself, together with Count M. B. Sheremetev, remained hostage with them. He concluded agreements with Denmark, Prussia, and France to maintain peace in Europe.

In 1723, Shafirov quarreled with the powerful Prince A.D. Menshikov and Chief Prosecutor Skornyakov-Pisarev, convicting them of embezzlement. In response, he was accused of embezzlement and sentenced to death, which Peter I replaced with exile to Siberia, but on the way there he allowed him to stop “to live” in Nizhny Novgorod “under a strong guard.”

Empress Catherine I, upon her accession to the throne, returned Shafirov from exile, returned his baronial title, awarded him the rank of actual state councilor, made him president of the commerce board and commissioned the compilation of the history of Peter the Great.

Barons enjoyed the right to appeal "your honor"(like untitled nobles) or "Mr. Baron".

At the end of the 19th century. in Russia there were about 240 baronial families (including extinct ones), mainly representatives of the Baltic (Baltic) nobility. The title was abolished by the Decree of the All-Russian Central Executive Committee and the Council of People's Commissars of November 11, 1917.

Baron P.N. Wrangel

Title "prince"

Prince- head of a feudal monarchical state or a separate political entity (appanage prince) in the 9th-16th centuries. among the Slavs and some other peoples; representative of the feudal aristocracy. Later it became the highest noble title, equivalent to a prince or duke in Western and Southern Europe, in Central Europe (the former Holy Roman Empire), this title is called Fürst, and in Northern Europe - konung.

In Russia Grand Duke(or princess) is a noble title for members of the royal family. Princess also called the prince's wife, prince(among the Slavs) - the son of a prince, princess- daughter of a prince.

Y. Pantyukhin “Prince Alexander Nevsky” (“For the Russian Land!”)

Princely power, at first most often elective, gradually becomes hereditary (Rurikovich in Rus', Gediminovich and Jagiellon in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, Piasts in Poland, etc.). With the formation of a centralized state, appanage princes gradually became part of the grand ducal (from 1547 - royal) court in the Moscow principality. In Russia until the 18th century. the title of prince was only generic. From the beginning of the 18th century. The title of prince also began to be granted by the tsar to the highest dignitaries for special merits (the first prince granted was A.D. Menshikov).

Russian princes

Before Peter I, there were 47 princely families in Russia, some of which traced their origins to Rurik. Princely titles were divided into "His Excellency" And "his lordship", which was considered higher.

Until 1797, no new princely families appeared, with the exception of Menshikov, who was granted the title of Prince of Izhora in 1707.

Under Paul I, awards with this title began, and the annexation of Georgia literally “exploded” the Russian nobility - 86 families recognized the princely title.

By the end of the 19th century. in the Russian Empire there were 250 princely families, 40 of which traced their origins to Rurik or Gediminas. 56% of the princely families in the empire were Georgian.

In addition, there were about 30 Tatar, Kalmyk and Mordovian princes; the status of these princes was considered lower than that of barons.

Did you know?

Portrait of A.V. Suvorov. Unknown artist of the 19th century.

Did you know that Alexander Vasilyevich Suvorov, the national hero of Russia, the great Russian commander, who did not suffer a single defeat in his military career (more than 60 battles), one of the founders of Russian military art, had several titles at the same time: prince Italian (1799), graph Rymniksky (1789), graph Holy Roman Empire, Generalissimo of the Russian land and naval forces, Field Marshal General of the Austrian and Sardinian troops, Grandee of the Kingdom of Sardinia and Prince of the Royal Blood (with the title "King's Cousin"), Knight of all Russian orders of his time awarded to men, as well as many foreign military orders

EMPERORS

Emperor (from Latin imperator - ruler) is the title of the monarch, head of state (empire).

There were emperors in Russia from 1721 to 1917. The title All-Russian Emperor (Emperor All-Russian) was adopted for the first time after the victory in the Northern War by Peter I the Great on October 22, 1721 at the request of the Senate “as usual from the Roman Senate for the noble deeds of emperors, such titles were publicly presented to them as a gift and on statutes for memory in eternal birth is signed.” The last Emperor Nicholas II was overthrown during the February Revolution of 1917.

The Emperor had supreme autocratic power (since 1906 - legislative power together with the State Duma and the State Council), he was officially titled “His Imperial Majesty” (in abbreviated form - “Sovereign” or “E.I.V.”).

Article 1 of the Basic Laws of the Russian Empire indicated that “The All-Russian Emperor is an autocratic and unlimited Monarch. God himself commands to obey his supreme authority not only out of fear, but also out of conscience.” The terms “autocratic” and “unlimited”, coinciding in their meaning, indicate that all functions of state power on legal formation, expedient activities within the law (administrative-executive) and the administration of justice are performed undividedly and without the obligatory participation of other institutions by the head of state, who transfers the implementation of some of them by certain bodies acting on his behalf and with his authority (Article 81).

Russia under the emperors was a rule of law state with a monarchical-unlimited form of government.

Full title of the emperor at the beginning of the 20th century. was like this (Article 37 of the Basic Laws of the Russian Empire):
By God's hastening mercy, We, ΝΝ, Emperor and Autocrat of All Russia, Moscow, Kiev, Vladimir, Novgorod; Tsar of Kazan, Tsar of Astrakhan, Tsar of Poland, Tsar of Siberia, Tsar of Tauride Chersonis, Tsar of Georgia; Sovereign of Pskov and Grand Duke of Smolensk, Lithuania, Volyn, Podolsk and Finland; Prince of Estland, Livonia, Courland and Semigal, Samogit, Bialystok, Korel, Tver, Yugorsk, Perm, Vyatka, Bulgarian and others; Sovereign and Grand Duke of Novagorod of the Nizovsky lands, Chernigov, Ryazan, Polotsk, Rostov, Yaroslavl, Belozersky, Udora, Obdorsky, Kondiysky, Vitebsk, Mstislavsky and all northern countries Sovereign; and Sovereign of Iversk, Kartalinsky and Kasardinsky lands and regions of Armenia; Cherkasy and Mountain Princes and other Hereditary Sovereign and Possessor; Sovereign of Turkestan; Heir to Norway, Duke of Schleswig-Holstin, Stormarn, Ditmarsen and Oldenburg, and so on, and so on, and so on.

In some cases determined by law, an abbreviated form of title was used: “By God's hastening grace, We, ΝΝ, Emperor and Autocrat of All Russia, Moscow, Kiev, Vladimir, Novgorod; Tsar of Kazan, Tsar of Astrakhan, Tsar of Poland, Tsar of Siberia, Tsar of Tauride Chersonis, Tsar of Georgia, Grand Duke of Finland and so on, and so on, and so on.”

After Peter the Great accepted the title of Emperor on October 22 (November 2), 1721 and the recognition of his title by other countries, the Russian state began to be called the Russian Empire (Russian Empire).

On February 5 (16), 1722, Peter the Great issued a Decree on Succession to the Throne, in which he abolished the ancient custom of transferring the throne to direct descendants in the male line, but allowed, at the will of the monarch, the appointment of any worthy person as heir.

On April 5 (16), 1797, Paul I established a new order of inheritance. From that time on, the order of succession to the Russian throne was based on the principle of primogeniture, i.e. with the accession to the throne by descendants of their ascendants in the event of death or abdication of the latter by the time of the opening of the succession. In the absence of direct heirs, the throne should pass to the lateral ones. Within each line (straight or side), males are preferred over females, and male sidelines are called before females. Accession to the throne for those who are called must be limited to the confession of the Orthodox faith. The reigning emperor (and heir) comes of age at the age of sixteen; until this age (as well as in other cases of incapacity), his power is exercised by the ruler, who can be (if there is no person specially appointed by the previously reigning emperor), the surviving father or mother of the emperor , and in their absence - the closest adult heir.

All the emperors who ruled Russia belonged to the same imperial family - the House of Romanov, the first representative of which became monarch in 1613. Since 1761, the descendants of the daughter of Peter I Anna and the Duke of Holstein-Gottorp Karl-Friedrich, who descended from the family in the male line, reigned Holstein-Gottorp (a branch of the Oldenburg dynasty), and in the genealogy these representatives of the House of Romanov, starting with Peter III, are called Romanov-Holstein-Gottorp.

By right of birth and by the scope of his powers, the emperor was the supreme leader of a great world power, the first official in the state. All laws were issued on behalf of the emperor and he was appointed to positions.

All government ministers, governors and other senior officials. It was the emperor who determined the most important areas of government activity, including issues of war and peace, and had almost no control over public finances.

The organic nature of the Russian autocracy is inextricably linked with the historical conditions of development and the fate of the Russian Empire, and the peculiarities of the Russian national mentality. The supreme power had support in the minds and souls of the Russian people. The monarchical idea was popular and accepted by society.

In terms of their objective role, all the emperors of Russia were major political figures, whose activities reflected both public interests and contradictions, as well as their personal qualities.

Intelligence and education, political preferences, moral principles, life principles and psychological characteristics of the monarch largely determined the direction and nature of the domestic and foreign policy of the Russian state and, ultimately, were of great importance for the fate of the entire country.

In 1917, with the abdication of Nicholas II for himself and his son Tsarevich Alexei, the imperial title and the empire itself were abolished.

All-Russian Emperor , Empress of All Russia(Russian doref. Emperor All-Russian, Empress All-Russian) - the title of the monarch of the Russian Empire from 1721 to 1917.

Article 1 of the Basic Laws of the Russian Empire stated that “The All-Russian Emperor is an autocratic and unlimited Monarch. God himself commands to obey his supreme authority not only out of fear, but also out of conscience.” The terms “autocratic” and “unlimited”, coinciding in their meaning, indicate that all functions of state power on legal formation, expedient activities within the law (administrative-executive) and the administration of justice are performed undividedly and without the obligatory participation of other institutions by the head of state, who transfers the implementation of some of them by certain bodies acting on his behalf and with his authority (Article 81).

Based on this, Art. 1 characterizes Russia as a rule of law state with a monarchical-unlimited form of government.

Full title of the emperor at the beginning of the 20th century (Article 37 of the main Law):

By God's hastening mercy, We, ΝΝ, Emperor and Autocrat of All Russia, Moscow, Kiev, Vladimir, Novgorod; Tsar of Kazan, Tsar of Astrakhan, Tsar of Poland, Tsar of Siberia, Tsar of Tauride Chersonis, Tsar of Georgia; Sovereign of Pskov and Grand Duke of Smolensk, Lithuania, Volyn, Podolsk and Finland; Prince of Estland, Livonia, Courland and Semigal, Samogit, Bialystok, Korel, Tver, Yugorsk, Perm, Vyatka, Bulgarian and others; Sovereign and Grand Duke of Novagorod of the Nizovsky lands, Chernigov, Ryazan, Polotsk, Rostov, Yaroslavl, Belozersky, Udora, Obdorsky, Kondiysky, Vitebsk, Mstislavsky and all northern countries Sovereign; and Sovereign of Iversk, Kartalinsky and Kabardinsky lands and regions of Armenia; Cherkasy and Mountain Princes and other Hereditary Sovereign and Possessor; Sovereign of Turkestan; Heir to Norway, Duke of Schleswig-Holstin, Stormarn, Ditmarsen and Oldenburg, and so on, and so on, and so on.

The highest imperial title of Emperor Nicholas II:

“By God's mercy, We, Nicholas II, Emperor and Autocrat of All Russia, Moscow, Kiev, Vladimir, Novgorod; Tsar of Kazan, Tsar of Astrakhan, Tsar of Poland, Tsar of Siberia, Tsar of Tauride Chersonis, Tsar of Georgia; Sovereign of Pskov and Grand Duke of Smolensk, Lithuania, Volyn, Podolsk and Finland; Prince of Estland, Livonia, Courland and Semigal, Samogit, Bialystok, Korel, Tver, Yugorsk, Perm, Vyatka, Bulgarian and others; Sovereign and Grand Duke of Novagorod of the Nizovsky lands, Chernigov, Ryazan, Polotsk, Rostov, Yaroslavl, Belozersky, Udorsky, Obdorsky, Kondiysky, Vitebsk, Mstislavsky and all northern countries Sovereign; and Sovereign of Iversk, Kartalinsky and Kabardinsky lands and regions of Armenia; Cherkasy and Mountain Princes and other Hereditary Sovereign and Possessor; Sovereign of Turkestan; Heir of Norway, Duke of Schleswig-Holstin, Stormarn, Ditmarsen and Oldenburg, and so on, and so on, and so on.”

or briefly:

“By the grace of God, We, Nicholas II, Emperor and Autocrat of All Russia, Tsar of Poland, Grand Duke of Finland, and so on, and so on, and so on.”

In some cases specified by law, the abbreviated form was used: “By God's hastening mercy, We, ΝΝ, Emperor and Autocrat of All Russia, Moscow, Kiev, Vladimir, Novgorod; Tsar of Kazan, Tsar of Astrakhan, Tsar of Poland, Tsar of Siberia, Tsar of Tauride Chersonis, Tsar of Georgia, Grand Duke of Finland and so on, and so on, and so on.”

The title of All-Russian Emperor was introduced under Peter I. After the victory in the Northern War and the signing of the Treaty of Niesstadt in September 1721, the Senate and Synod decided to present Peter with the title of All-Russian Emperor with the following wording: “ as usual, from the Roman Senate, for the noble deeds of emperors, such titles were publicly presented to them as a gift and signed on statutes for memory for eternal generations. »

On October 22 (November 2), 1721, Peter I accepted the title. Prussia and Holland immediately recognized the new title of the Russian Tsar, Sweden in 1723, Turkey in 1739, the United Kingdom and Austria in 1742, France and Spain in 1745, and finally the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth in 1764. The Russian state, accordingly, began to be called the Russian Empire (Russian Empire)

On February 5 (16), 1722, Peter issued a Decree on Succession to the Throne, in which he abolished the ancient custom of transferring the throne to direct descendants in the male line, but allowed the appointment of any worthy person as heir at the will of the monarch.

On April 5 (16), 1797, Paul I established a new order of inheritance. From that time on, the order of succession to the Russian throne, and then to the Polish and Finnish ones associated with it, was based on the principle of primogeniture, that is, with the descendants interceding for their ascendants in the event of the death or abdication of the latter by the time the succession was opened. If there are no direct heirs, the throne passes to the lateral ones. Within each line (straight or lateral), males are preferred to females, and male laterals are called before females. Accession to the throne for those who are called is limited to the confession of the Orthodox faith. The reigning emperor (and heir) comes of age at the age of 16; until this age (as well as in other cases of incapacity), his power is exercised by the ruler, who are (if there is no person specially appointed by the pre-regnant emperor) the surviving father or mother of the emperor, and in the absence of such - the nearest adult heir.

All the emperors who ruled Russia belonged to the same imperial family - the House of Romanov, the first representative of which became monarch in 1613. Since 1761, the descendants of the daughter of Peter I Anna and the Duke of Holstein-Gottorp Karl-Friedrich reigned, who in the male line descended from the Holstein-Gottorp family (a branch of the Oldenburg dynasty), and in genealogical literature these representatives of the House of Romanov, starting from Peter III, are called Romanov-Holstein- Gottorp.

Upon the abdication of the throne on March 2 (March 15), 1917, Emperor Nicholas II for himself and his son Tsarevich Alexei, and the refusal of his brother Michael to “assume Supreme Power” on March 3 of the same year, the empire de facto ceased to exist. On September 1, 1917, the Provisional Government declared Russia a republic.

Bibliography:

1. When officially listing titles, all words are written with a capital letter. - Question No. 246116 // Reference Bureau "Gramoty.ru"

2. Shubinsky S.N. Historical essays and stories. – 6th ed. – St. Petersburg, 1911. p. 44 – 51

3. Shubinsky S.N. Historical essays and stories. - 6th ed. - St. Petersburg, 1911, p. 44–51

4. Russia//Big Encyclopedia / ed. S. N. Yuzhakova. - St. Petersburg: Education, 1903