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Privy Councillor (russian: тайный советник, tayniy sovetnik) was the civil position (class) in the Russian Empire, according to the
Table of Ranks
The Table of Ranks (russian: Табель о рангах, Tabel' o rangakh) was a formal list of positions and ranks in the military, government, and court of Imperial Russia. Peter the Great introduced the system in 1722 while engaged in a ...
introduced by
Peter the Great
Peter I ( – ), most commonly known as Peter the Great,) or Pyotr Alekséyevich ( rus, Пётр Алексе́евич, p=ˈpʲɵtr ɐlʲɪˈksʲejɪvʲɪtɕ, , group=pron was a Russian monarch who ruled the Tsardom of Russia from t ...
in 1722. Initially, it was a civil rank of 4th class, but from 1724 it was upgraded to the 3rd class. The rank was equal to those of
Lieutenant-General
Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a three-star military rank (NATO code OF-8) used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the ...
in the Army and
Vice-Admiral in the Navy. The rank holder should be addressed as ''
Your Excellency
Excellency is an honorific style given to certain high-level officers of a sovereign state, officials of an international organization, or members of an aristocracy. Once entitled to the title "Excellency", the holder usually retains the rig ...
'' (russian: Ваше Превосходительство, Vashe Prevoskhoditelstvo).
Overview
The name of the rank can be associated with the original meaning of the words "secret" and "trustworthy". Those awarded this rank occupied the highest public offices, such as Minister or Deputy Minister, the head of a large department, senator, academic of the
Imperial Academy of Sciences
The Russian Academy of Sciences (RAS; russian: Росси́йская акаде́мия нау́к (РАН) ''Rossíyskaya akadémiya naúk'') consists of the national academy of Russia; a network of scientific research institutes from across t ...
. Occasionally, the rank was awarded to the long-time province governors to recognize their merits before their transfer to the capital. In addition to St. Petersburg, Privy Councillors could serve in Moscow and other large cities of the Russian Empire, for example in Tbilisi. The rector of
Moscow State University
M. V. Lomonosov Moscow State University (MSU; russian: Московский государственный университет имени М. В. Ломоносова) is a public research university in Moscow, Russia and the most prestigious ...
, well-known historians
Sergey Solovyov and
Vasily Klyuchevsky
Vasily Osipovich Klyuchevsky (russian: Василий Осипович Ключевский; in Voskresnskoye Village, Penza Governorate, Russia – , Moscow) was a leading Russian Imperial historian of the late imperial period. Also, he addres ...
, Professor of the
Moscow Theological Academy
Moscow Theological Academy (russian: Московская духовная академия) is a higher educational institution of the Russian Orthodox Church, training clergy, teachers, scholars, and officials.
The Academy traces its origin to ...
Nicolay Subbotin were Privy Councilors. In 1903, there were 553 Privy Councilors in Russia.
The rank was abolished in 1917 by the Soviet decree on estates and civil ranks.
See also
*
Supreme Privy Council
The Supreme Privy Council (russian: Верховный тайный совет) of Imperial Russia, founded on 19 February 1726 and operative until 1730, originated as a body of advisors to Empress Catherine I.
History
Originally, the council com ...
of Imperial Russia, founded on 19 February 1726
*
Geheimrat
''Geheimrat'' was the title of the highest advising officials at the Imperial, royal or princely courts of the Holy Roman Empire, who jointly formed the ''Geheimer Rat'' reporting to the ruler. The term remained in use during subsequent monarchic r ...
, a similar title in Germany
*
Privy council
A privy council is a body that advises the head of state of a state, typically, but not always, in the context of a monarchic government. The word "privy" means "private" or "secret"; thus, a privy council was originally a committee of the mo ...
References
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, width="30%" align="center", Junior rank
Active State Councillor
Active State Councillor (russian: действительный статский советник, deystvitelnyi statskiy sovetnik) was the civil position (class) in the Russian Empire, according to the Table of Ranks introduced by Peter the Great ...
, width="40%" align="center",
Table of Ranks
The Table of Ranks (russian: Табель о рангах, Tabel' o rangakh) was a formal list of positions and ranks in the military, government, and court of Imperial Russia. Peter the Great introduced the system in 1722 while engaged in a ...
Privy Councillor
, width="30%" align="center", Senior rank
Active Privy Councillor Active Privy Councillor (russian: действительный тайный советник, deystvitelnyi taynyi sovetnik) was the civil rank (ru: чин / chin) in the Russian Empire, according to the Table of Ranks introduced by Peter the Great ...
Titles in Russia
Civil ranks of the Russian Empire