M.A. Prikhodko. The Historical and Legal Systematization of Central Institutions of Public Administration in the Russian Empire by September 8, 1802

Abstract: The problem of the systematization of central institutions of public administration in the Russian Empire in the beginning of XIX century is still one of not adequately explored and vexed points in the Russian history of state and law. Pre-revolutionary, Soviet and contemporary Russian researches give just an approximate picture of the system of central institutions of state administration in Russia in XVIII–XIX centuries. Basically 8 collegiums are listed: The Department of Water Communications, the Main Postal Directorial Board, The Expedition of State Economy, the Guardianship of Foreigners and Rural Home Economics, the Department of State Treasurer, sometimes – the Department of Independent Principalities, the Cabinet of His Imperial Majesty, the Court Chancellery, and, as a rule, this is the end. The same applies both to the latest textbooks and to the schematic material devoted to the given problem. Meanwhile, the actual system of central institutions of public administration in Russia in the beginning of XIX century was much more diverse and multifold. Such discrepancy is explained by objective difficulties in the research of the history of state and law, and the history of public administration in Russia at the turn of XVIII–XIX centuries. One of the major difficulties is a lack of a legally vested legal status of a central institution for many public administration institutions of that historical period that makes their strict identification practically impossible. Besides, in accordance with the choice words of the Soviet historian of state institutions, A.V. Chernov: “The institutions of XVIII century had not been formed in centralized administrative authorities (departments) that existed in XIX–XX centuries),” that complicates the research. In spite of a lot of difficulties the systematization of central institutions of public administration, seems to be possible. More than that, there is a need in this systematization for the research of the structure of state institutions of that period. For that we have to make the classification of all central institutions (as well as relative ones) of public administration in the following groups: collegiums, institutions with a status of collegium, collegiate institutions and court administration institutions. The similar systematization of central institutions of public administration in the Russian Imperia in the beginning of XIX century gives an opportunity to understand more precisely a lot of structural and organizational aspects of the history of state and law in Russia in that period. Along with that the given systematization is important indirectly, from the historical and legal point of view, for the present system of public administration as well, in connection with the administrative reform, that is under way in Russia.

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