Year under the name "Ministry of the Imperial Court and Fate." With the overthrow of the monarchy, the ministry lost its main meaning of existence, but the process of its liquidation dragged on until early 1918.

Ministry of the Imperial Court
Date of foundation / creation / origin August 22 / September 3
The state
End date
Ministry of the Imperial Court at Wikimedia Commons

The ministry united all parts of the court administration outside the control of the senate or any other higher institution. It was headed by the minister of the court, who was under the direct supervision of the sovereign. The minister of the imperial court received all orders directly from the sovereign, and on matters requiring the Highest permission, he also had the right to report directly to the sovereign. This position of the ministry of the imperial court is explained by the fact that the objects of its activity did not have a national character, but concerned exclusively the reigning house.

In 1858, an expedition of ceremonial affairs was joined to the Ministry of the Imperial Court, and in 1859 - the Imperial Archaeological Commission. During the reign of Emperor Alexander III, the ministry underwent significant transformations in all its parts: the collegial principle, which until then dominated the institutions of the ministry of the imperial court, was replaced by a sole principle. These transformations were completed by the publication of a new ministry institution on April 16, 1893. Under the new legislation, the minister of the imperial court is the chief superior over all parts of the court department, and at the same time the minister of destinies and the chancellor of the imperial orders. Its main jurisdiction included the Imperial Academy of Arts and the Moscow Art Society.

In 1893, the position of assistant minister of the imperial court was established, with the rights and duties of assistant minister.

Organizational structure of the ministry

The Ministry of the Imperial Court consisted of the following parts:

  • council under the minister, convened if necessary and chaired by the minister or another person, at his appointment, from the heads of the establishment of the ministry,
  • general regulations,
  • special regulations,
  • chapter of the Imperial and Royal Orders,

TO general regulations the ministries of the Imperial Court belonged to:

  • chancellery of the Minister of the Imperial Court and Appanages;
  • control of the Ministry of the Imperial Court, which is under the direction of the head of the audit, accounting and technical departments;
  • the cashier of the Ministry of the Imperial Court, with branches in Moscow, Barnaul and Nerchinsk;
  • general Archives of the Ministry of the Imperial Court
  • inspection of the medical department of the Ministry of the Imperial Court, head of the court pharmacy and hospitals of the palace department.

Special provisions ministries of the Imperial Court:

  • expedition of ceremonial affairs;
  • court musician choir;
  • own EI V. ("his imperial majesty") libraries;
  • directorate of the Imperial Theaters;
  • management of the Own E. I. V. palace;
  • the palace administrations of St. Petersburg, Moscow, Tsarskoye Selo, Peterhof, Gatchina, Warsaw;
  • management of Pavlovsk;
  • the courts of Their Imperial Highnesses, the Grand Dukes and Grand Duchesses;
  • electrotechnical department under the Ministry of the Imperial Court;
  • management of the principality of Lovichsky;
  • chancellery of H.I.V. Empress Empress (by the beginning of the 20th century there were two such offices: the office of Her I.V. Empress Empress Alexandra Feodorovna and the office of the Dowager Empress Maria Feodorovna.)

By the end of the XVIII century. In the Russian Empire, a motley mosaic of colleges, expeditions of the Senate, speakers to the monarch on a certain range of issues on a personal assignment and, finally, governors-general and simply governors who were in charge of almost all issues within the territory entrusted to them developed. This archaic structure in 1802-1811. was replaced by a system of sectoral management in the form of ministries and departments. In 1826, instead of numerous orders - the Grand Palace, fodder, bread, falconer, stables, bedding and others, the Ministry of the Imperial Court (MFA) was established. Of the institutions that became part of the new ministry, the earliest was the Cabinet of His Imperial Majesty, which arose back in 1704 as the personal office of Peter I. Starting in 1741, the Cabinet was in charge of the personal property of the emperors, including lands, mining plants and mines. He was subordinate to the Imperial Porcelain and Glass factories, the Kiev-Mezhigorsk faience factory, the Vyborg mirror factory, the Peterhof and Yekaterinburg lapidary factories, the Peterhof and Ropsha paper factories, the Gornoshitsky marble factory, and the Tivdia marble quarries.

Through the Cabinet of e.i.v. correspondence was held on the purchase and receipt of a gift of works of art, awards, grants and pensions to artists, sculptors, artists, composers, on the manufacture of art objects (dishes, carpets, furniture) for members of the imperial family, gifts to foreign monarchs and ambassadors; In the Cabinet, gifts of the emperor (gold and gem-studded rings, snuff-boxes, watches, etc.) were prepared, stored and handed out to state dignitaries and officials, as well as non-employees for official and non-official distinctions (for example, for literary or artistic activity). These gifts were not state awards, rather - a sign of personal gratitude or favor of the emperor, but were highly valued, records of such a gift were entered into the official lists of employees.

The Office of the Court of His Imperial Majesty, which was formed in 1786 and then took over the affairs of the governed Palace Chancellery, became a part of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Her functions included managing the maintenance of the St. Petersburg imperial palaces, the Hermitage, gardens and parks of the court department. The office was also in charge of the food for the imperial family, the court staff and the arrangement of court ceremonies.

The Gough-Indendant office, transformed in 1797 from the former Office of the buildings of Her Imperial Majesty's houses and gardens, was also included in the ministry. This office was in charge of construction and renovation, as well as the interior decoration and furnishings of the imperial palaces.

In 1842 he was included in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and became one of its most important structural parts of the Chapter of Russian Imperial and Tsarist Orders. It concentrated the management of the entire reward system of the empire. The Chapter was headed by the Chancellor of the Orders, this position was held concurrently by the Minister of the Imperial Court.

Since 1843, the Court Medical Unit was formed to manage the medical and pharmaceutical personnel of the institutions of the Ministry of the Imperial Court, sanitary supervision over the state of palaces and palace cities, which existed until 1918. (from 1888 to 1898 it was called the Inspection of the Medical Unit).

In 1857, a Construction Office was established as part of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which considered projects and estimates for construction and repair work on the buildings of the court department. In 1882 it was abolished with the transfer of part of the functions to the Control of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. In the same year, the Court e.i.v. was abolished. office. In 1882, to manage the palace buildings, gardens and parks, the Main Palace Administration was formed, abolished in 1891 with the transfer of some functions to the Petersburg Palace Administration.

Other functions of the Main Palace Administration were transferred to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, formed at the same time at the Hoffmarshal's part, which was in charge of the contentment of the imperial court, the management of the palace storerooms (service, bathroom, linen), as well as the preparation of various ceremonies. The main concern of the Hoffmarshal's unit was the daily maintenance of the "highest table" and numerous "small tables".

One of the most important functions of the Ministry of the Imperial Court was the maintenance of the so-called chamber-furrier journals, in which, in 1734, records were made daily about all court ceremonies and official actions of members of the imperial family (including dinners, receiving visitors, etc.), a kind of diary of life of crowned heads. These journals were initially kept at the Court Household Office in the office, then at the Main Palace Administration, and from 1891 to 1917 (up to the record of the abdication of Nicholas II) at the Hoffmarshal's unit.

When the Ministry of the Imperial Court was created, the Department of Appanages, formed in 1797 to manage the lands and estates allocated for the maintenance of members of the imperial family, was included in its composition, since 1892 - the Main Directorate of Appanages. Numerous court offices and offices of various grand dukes and princesses, who were in charge of their palaces, real estate and other property, were also subordinate to the specific department.

Thus, in the activities of the Ministry of the Imperial Court, purely court functions (economic support for the life of the imperial family, the construction and maintenance of palaces belonging to it, etc.), representative (organization of official ceremonies) and even the most important state (management of the system of state awards, receptions foreign heads of government and states, ambassadors), as well as cultural and educational (managing the Hermitage, the Academy of Arts, imperial theaters, the Court Chapel and the Court Orchestra, etc.).

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs had a special system of court ranks and titles. Court ranks - from chief chamberlain to goff furrier, were assigned to persons belonging to the court staff. At the highest levels of public service, the presence of a court rank was considered more honorable than a civilian equal to him in the table of ranks. For example, for a minister to be listed as a jägermeister or chief-stallmeister was more prestigious than just a secret or actual secret adviser. Since 1809, chamberlain and chamberlain were not ranks, but honorary court titles, but the presence of such a title greatly facilitated access to the imperial court.

It is characteristic that over the entire 90-plus years of the existence of the Ministry of the Imperial Court, only 5 ministers have been replaced, less than in any other department.

The employees of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, down to the lowest, were in a comparatively better position than the officials of other departments. They had pension benefits, received numerous benefits and bonuses, had good medical care, and were provided with state-owned apartments.

After the overthrow of the monarchy, the Ministry of the Imperial Court lost its main meaning of existence. But since his department included both cultural and educational institutions of national value, palaces, parks, etc., and significant property (specific estates), the process of liquidation of the department lasted until the beginning of 1918.

For many decades, in the yearbooks with the list of officials of the Russian Empire, the list of state shock figures was opened by the Minister of the Imperial Court - “the chief superior over all court authorities and the Theater Directorate. He is also the Minister of the Department of Fates and the Manager of the Cabinet together. "

The Ministry of the Imperial Court was established on August 22, 1826. A powerful, complexly organized state body united several previously existing court offices and chanceries. The department stood apart from other ministries, its head reported directly to the emperor, bypassing both the Senate and the State Council. The management of the personal property of the autocrat and members of the imperial family, the construction and maintenance of palaces, gardens, parks, the management of palace cities, financial control over all institutions subordinate to the court - listing a complete list of the ministry's spheres of responsibility could take many pages.

The office of the ministry was located in the Winter Palace, and the minister himself, as reported by the Address-Calendar, since 1853 received visitors “across the Fontanka, opposite the Engineering Castle in the state house,” that is, in house number 20 on the embankment of the Fontanka River. The office of His Imperial Majesty, in charge of the administrative, economic and financial affairs of the court department, was located “near the Anichkin bridge, in his own H.I.V. palace ".

Among other things, at different times, the Minister was subordinate to the Office of the Head of the Court Clergy, the Chapter of the Russian Imperial and Tsarist Orders, the Imperial Public Library, the Academy of Arts, the Opera Committee, the Court Medical Unit, the Theater and Literary Committee, the Coronation Commission, the Imperial Hunt Administration and much, much more.

Throughout the history of the institution, its invariable duty was to fully service the palaces and residences of the reigning emperor: the Winter Palace, Tsarskoye Selo, Peterhof, and since 1828, Gatchina. Changed - structurally and nominally - the intermediate levels of government, but the palace boards of these cities were subordinate to the Ministry of the Imperial Court.

After March 2, 1917, the fate of the ministry literally hung in the air. The emperor, around whose needs, in fact, this bureaucratic apparatus was built, signed the abdication. During the week, the newly formed Provisional Government did not give any instructions, finally, on March 10, Order No. 1 of the Commissioner of the Provisional Government for the Department of the Former Ministry of Courts and Districts was issued and sent: “... I call on all persons serving in individual departments of the department to continue their duties and occupations according to the established order, remembering that from now on, when the fate of the people is in its own hands, all of them no longer serve individuals, but the entire Russian people and the homeland. " The order contained a separate appeal to the employees of the palace administrations: "I thank them on behalf of the Government for the zealous protection of the state property entrusted to them."

The new government added to the name of the ministry the definition “former”, which is unusual for the official structure, and the word “imperial” dropped out. For several months after March 1917, one could find official letterheads on which it was literally crossed out. At the same time, more than three dozen "regulations" of the ministry were transferred under the leadership of not the minister, but only the commissar of the Provisional Government, who was not even part of it.

The exclusive position of the Ministry was explained by the fact that it could not be simply liquidated, as, for example, His Imperial Majesty's own office, because it was in charge of the Hermitage, the Russian Museum, the Academy of Arts, the Directorate of the imperial theaters, and historical palaces that needed to be preserved. It was also impossible to completely duplicate it in the new composition of the Provisional Government, it obviously needed a serious reorganization. Fyodor Aleksandrovich Golovin was appointed commissioner for the affairs of the "former" ministry. At one of the meetings in the spring of 1917, explaining why the ministry was left without a minister, he commented on his task as follows: “Excuse me, gentlemen, how can the Ministry of the Imperial Court exist when the Imperial Court itself does not exist, and, one must assume and hopefully, that won't exist.<...> The former ministry should be dispersed among the various ministries that currently exist. "

Nicholas II, Minister of the Court and Appanages Count VB Fredericks (center) and Grand Duke Nikolai Nikolaevich (right) at Headquarters. September 1914. Archival photography

So, the commissioner was faced with a task that was not trivial for a statesman: to separate the important from the secondary, to distribute the responsibilities of the disappearing department, to preserve the treasures of architecture and art that were under his control. The question of the future fate of the palaces of Petrograd and the surrounding area was ambiguous. At the beginning of March 1917, the so-called "Gorky Commission" was formed in Petrograd - a collection of the leading figures of art of Petrograd (A. M. Gorky, A. N. Benois, N. Roerich, M. V. Dobuzhinsky and others). Since mid-March, wishing to take an active part in the preservation of monuments, the commission was officially formalized as a Special Meeting on Arts Affairs under the Commissar of the Provisional Government over the former Ministry of the Court. In a short period of their existence, they managed to draw the attention of the authorities to the highest value of the monuments left by the owners and the need to protect palaces and palace property.

It is curious that after the February revolution, it was about the preservation of only the so-called "sovereign possessions" - Tsarskoye Selo, Peterhof and Gatchina, that is, about the lands, palaces and property owned by the ruling representative of the dynasty, not subject to division and inheritance. The proposal to separate them from the "palace estates" - Oranienbaum, Pavlovsky, Strelninsky, which are the personal property of members of the Romanov family, was made by the Minister of the Imperial Court back in 1834 and approved by the emperor.

On March 20, 1917, at a meeting of the Provisional Government, a draft statement prepared by F. A. Golovin “on the transfer of all property, enterprises and capital was adopted and approved. Of the Ministry of the Court in the ownership of the state and on the procedure for the protection of these properties. " Thus, among other things, the former "sovereign" possessions also became state property, but this did not help to decide what to do with them in the future. Art workers actively discussed the creation of the Ministry of Arts, under whose leadership all historical monuments would be, but they did not yield any results.

Most of the palaces remained virtually without official control, there were constantly rumors of varying degrees of reliability about the outrages that were happening there. The anonymous author of the newspaper Novaya Zhizn for May 21, 1917, eloquently and passionately speaks about the situation: “Tsarskoe Selo, Peterhof - palaces that we can be proud of in front of Europe as monuments of art have become the property of the people. They have, as it were, paid off a part of the huge debt that crushed the old masters, who turned out to be insolvent before the demands of the people.<...> However, so far these monuments are not sufficiently protected.<...> In Tsarskoe Selo, the interior of the Mauritanian bath on the lake was destroyed,<...> in Pavlovsk, soldiers throw stones at statues, break off pieces of granite at the Mausoleums. In Peterhof, thanks to the increased security, the buildings were not damaged, but many things were looted from Monplaisir, the Grand Palace, the “farm” in Alexandria and the English.<...> ... an inviolable fish has been caught from the pond in front of the Marly Palace, the gazebos in the Lower Garden are disfigured by obscene drawings. "

Only on May 27, that is, more than two months later, F.A.Golovin issued Order No. 32, known today among museum workers: “For the acceptance, registration and systematization of both the artistic and economic aspects of all movable and immovable property of the former palace administrations, to form commissions for the acceptance and protection of the property of the former palace administrations of Tsarskoye Selo, Peterhof and Gatchina ... "From that moment," acceptance commissions "began to work in the residences, which later turned into artistic and historical commissions, which laid the foundation for the museification of palaces.

In the fall of 1917, on the initiative of Commissioner F.A.Golovin, a specially assembled commission began a global revision of the staff of the department. The former Ministry of the Imperial Court was planned to be transformed into the "Main Directorate of State Artistic Property and Institutions". Judging by the name, all economic offices and divisions that did not relate to the management of arts affairs were supposed to get out of his control in the end. However, the reform did not take place, on October 25 the Bolsheviks crossed out Golovin's plans.

Fedor Aleksandrovich Golovin Chairman of the State Duma of the Russian Empire of the II convocation. From March 8 to December 4, 1917 - Commissioner of all institutions of the former Ministry of the Court. Archival photography

In the issue of Izvestia dated November 7, 1917, an order was published under the department of the former Minister of the Court, signed by A. V. Lunacharsky. Its first lines were strikingly reminiscent of Golovin's Order No. 1: “I, the People's Commissar for Education, the temporary head of the former Ministry of the Court, declare: 1) Until further notice, all employees remain in their places. 2) Conduct all affairs in perfect order ... "On the same page, the following order was published" to amend the order of November 4th, 1917 ", where the People's Commissar of Education gives more specific instructions. In particular: “Art. History. Commiss. for the palaces: Petrograd, Tsarskoe Selo, Gatchina and Peterhof, I ask you to continue the work begun on the verification, inventory, acceptance of the palace property and the compilation of an artistic and historical catalog of all outstanding and noteworthy in the artistic, historical and everyday significance of objects in the Winter Palace, etc. state palaces of the Petrograd region. "
Already on November 6, 1917, the Commissariat of Property of the Republic was formed. Its tasks were declared nationalization, protection, registration of historical and artistic heritage, ancient monuments and works of art, systematization of artistic values. A month later, however, it became clear that the tasks of the People's Commissariat of Education and the Commissariat of Property were very difficult to separate. Therefore, on December 16, a resolution was issued, signed by both commissars - A.V. Lunacharsky and V.A.Karelin:

Vladimir Aleksandrovich Karelin - Russian revolutionary, one of the organizers of the Left Socialist Revolutionary Party, People's Commissar of the RSFSR Property from December 1917 to March 1918. Archival photography

“Bearing in mind the inextricable link connecting the institutions of the department of public education and the former ministry of the court, and now the department of property of the Republic (such as theaters, museums, the academy of arts, historical palaces), only due to historical conditions not related to the department of education, - People The commissars of these departments, with the knowledge and consent of the Council of People's Commissars, decided to manage all related institutions by agreement. " In July 1918, the Commissariat of Property as a department was included in the People's Commissariat for Education.

It is difficult to get around the symbolic significance of this merger. The treasures that had belonged to the elite for centuries were transferred not just to state ownership - in which formally, by the way, they were always - but to the department of public education. It was the People's Commissariat of Education that accepted all the artistic values, it was he who had to in the next few years through trial and error, sometimes huge! - to develop a functional system for the protection of inherited monuments, administration of new and existing museums, scientific work.

The imperial administrative machine was completely dissolved in the Soviet state apparatus. Separate institutions of the Ministry of the Court continued to exist until February 1918, but already on January 24, an order was issued to rename the former Ministry of the Court to the Department of Property of the Republic, which is why it was proposed that “all institutions of the former Ministry of the Court should correspond on forms with the designation of the new name of the department, according to the following form: “People's Commissariat of Property of the Republic, name of institution, date, month, year, number, Petersburg and address”.

State organization of the Russian Empire, established on August 22, 1826, serving the needs of the imperial family and court. After the collapse of the monarchy, the ministry lost its meaning of existence, but its liquidation began only in 1918. The ministry united all the court administration, which was carried out outside the powers of the Senate or other higher method of administration.

At the head of the Ministry was the Minister of the Court, who was under the direct control of the sovereign. The minister received any orders from the Sovereign, and matters of the highest importance were decided with him, with which the minister had the right to enter the sovereign. The ministry's activities were limited by the scale of the reigning house, and not the entire state, judging by its behavior.

In 1858 the Ministry of the Imperial Court was reunited with the expedition of ceremonial affairs, and in 1959 it was supplemented by an archaeological commission. In the previous period of government, the ministry underwent significant changes: the collegial beginning was replaced by a sole one. Such innovations culminated in the creation of a new ministry on 04/16/1893. According to the new provision of legislation, the minister acted as the chief commander of the entire court department, was the minister of destinies, and also the chancellor of the Imperial Orders. Under his leadership was the Imperial Academy of Arts and the Society of Artists of Moscow. In 1893, the post of assistant minister was introduced, the powers of which consisted of the rights and duties of the minister.

The Ministry of the Imperial Court included:

  1. A ministerial council, activated when necessary and under the direction of a minister or other official appointed by the head of the ministry's establishment.
  2. General statements.
  3. Establishments of a special nature.
  4. Chapter of the Imperial and Royal Orders.
  5. Main Directorate of Appanages.

General provisions ministries included:

  • The Office of the Minister;
  • Emperor's Cabinet;
  • control body of the ministry, subordinate to the head of the accounting department, the audit commission and the technical department;
  • the cashier of the ministry and its branches in Moscow, Nerchinsk, Barnaul;
  • archive of the ministry;
  • Inspection of the medical unit of the ministry, under which the court pharmacy and hospitals of the palace department are located.

Special provisions ministries:

  • management of the knight marshal's unit;
  • representation of ceremonial affairs;
  • court stables department;
  • imperial hunting unit;
  • imperial clergy;
  • the imperial singing chapel;
  • the imperial choir and a group of musicians;
  • the court hermitage;
  • imperial libraries;
  • palace administration;
  • management of court theaters;
  • palace regional administrations;
  • Pavlovsk management;
  • academy;
  • court archaeological commission;
  • princely courts;
  • electrotechnical court department;
  • a company of palace grenadiers;
  • management of the Lovici principality;
  • the empress's office.

Analogues of ministries of other states

Not every Western European state had separate ministries of the Court. In England there was no institution in which the entire court administration would be united; such was the management, which was divided into three departments: the knight marshal, the chamberlain and the equestrian. The lord chamberlain's administration also included ladies of the court. The change in cabinet entails a change in the leading positions in the court. The Italian royal court is entrusted to the minister of the court, the head of the economic department, the prefect of the palace and the first general. These positions are occupied by persons who are absolutely far removed from political life. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Austria-Hungary is also the Ministry of the Court. In Prussia, there is a special ministry of the court, subordinate to which are affairs about the powers of the noble state, and for this purpose a special institution is subordinated to it - heraldry.