The Senate as the highest body of state power. While the king is away

The highest governing body in the Russian Empire, combining three aspects of power: lawmaking, executive and judicial functions. This is the general definition of the Governing Senate.

Despite the wide range of powers, this authority was completely subordinate to the emperor, appointed by him, controlled and responsible to him.

Over the centuries, its functions changed in accordance with the instructions of the reigning persons. The establishment of the Governing Senate, its work and transformation will be discussed today.

Stages of development. Under Peter the Great

The creator of the Governing Senate is Peter I. Due to his constant travel, which was required by the vigorous activity of the tsar-reformer, he was forced to organize the work of the state machine so that it would function during periods of his long absence.

This reason was the impetus for the emergence of the Governing Senate. The date of its formation is 02/19/1711. The separation of powers did not exist at that time, since we are talking about an absolute monarchy, therefore the body replacing the tsar, who was away, was “one in three persons.” He united three branches of government at once: he wrote laws, monitored their implementation and punished.

After Peter I

After the death of Peter the Great, from 1726 to 1730, the Senate began to be called the High Senate and lost a large share of the powers it had. His activities mainly extended to the financial and administrative spheres.

During the reign of Catherine II, the Senate was divided into departments and lost legislative powers.

Since the beginning of the 19th century, the functions of this body included supervision of the work of various government agencies. And starting from 1864, another aspect of its activity was added - it became the highest court of cassation. Some of the departments of the Governing Senate were involved in the registration of trade transactions.

The dissolution of this authority occurred on November 22, 1917, after the October Revolution. However, during the events that occurred during the Civil War, its activities were resumed in the southern and eastern regions of Russia. But the period of work was short-lived and ended when Admiral Kolchak was captured. The place where the Senate sat changed several times, but its main locations were St. Petersburg and Moscow.

Establishment of the Governing Senate

As already noted, this body is the brainchild of Peter I. The Tsar was not at all eager to simply share power with anyone. The creation of the Governing Senate was a necessary measure. The grandiose tasks that were set for the country required improvement of the state apparatus.

But, unlike other countries, such as Sweden or Poland, the Senate was by no means a body that in any way limited the autocracy.

• Firstly, this institution was not elective; its members were appointed by the tsar himself. And these were the closest associates, invested with the personal trust of the sovereign. Among them are such names as P. Golitsyn, M. Dolgorukov, G. Volkonsky and other eminent nobles.
• Secondly, the Senate was not an opposition structure. He was completely subordinate to the royal person and controlled by her. And also bore responsibility to the monarch. The Senate seemed to represent the “second self” of the sovereign, and did not at all protect the interests of the aristocratic elite. And they had to obey him like the king himself. Thus, in one of the orders, Peter warned that anyone who dares to disobey the decrees of the Governing Senate will be subject to severe punishment or even death - “depending on the guilt.”
• Thirdly, the functions of this body were not clearly defined at the first stage. The field of his activity was subject to constant changes, depending on a particular situation. And he did what His Majesty the Emperor deemed appropriate. In his decree, Peter determines that after his departure, the Senate should: judge impartially, not make unnecessary expenses, try to farm out salt, increase Chinese and Persian trade, caress the Armenians and establish a fiscal body. That is, the senators did not have a list of responsibilities; they only received instructions from the king.

Secret surveillance

The formation of a new management structure dictated the need to create new positions. In March 1711, a new position was established - fiscal. His responsibilities included:

• “Secretly supervise” all matters.
• Learn about various crimes.
• To expose bribes, embezzlement and other “silent cases” in court.

The position of chief fiscal officer, attached to the Senate, was also established. Later she began to sound like a fiscal general. He had four assistants. Each province had a provincial fiscal, to whom three assistants were assigned. And in each city, depending on its size, there are one or two police fiscals.

The existence of such secret informers in the public service was not without a number of abuses and score-settling. Moreover, until 1714, no sanctions were provided even for false denunciation. On the other hand, the institution of fiscal officials cannot be denied a certain positive influence on establishing order in local institutions.

System of prosecutorial supervision

Initially, the head of the Governing Senate was the chief secretary. Peter I was forced to appoint him due to the discord that was constantly observed at the meetings. In 1720, he became A. Shchukin, who turned out to be unsuitable for performing duties of this kind. After Shchukin died in 1721, guards staff officers, who changed every month, were entrusted with maintaining order at the meetings.

In 1722, the officers were replaced by the prosecutor's office, which not only monitored the Senate, but also served as a system of supervision over other institutions - at the center and locally - that carried out administrative and judicial functions.

At the head of this system was the prosecutor general. He was also the head of the Senate Chancery and supervised this body. And not only in terms of order at meetings, but also from the point of view of the legality of his decisions.

The Prosecutor General had an assistant - the Chief Prosecutor. The establishment of the position of Attorney General played a dual role in the development of the Senate. On the one hand, his supervision contributed to the establishment of order in the proceedings. On the other hand, the independence of this body has greatly decreased.

Liaison with local government

The vast territory of Russia has always needed an extensive and effective management system. Peter I also paid special attention to this issue. It was under him that the division of the state into provinces took place, as well as the gradual replacement of outdated governing bodies - orders - with collegiums.

The signal for their formation was the establishment of the Senate. All presidents of the newly created boards became its members. Thus, a direct connection between the Senate and the regions was visible.

Metamorphoses

After the death of Peter the Great, the functions of the Governing Senate underwent serious changes in the direction of their reduction. Under Catherine I and Peter II, essentially an alternative body was formed - the Supreme Privy Council. The empress's favorites became its members.

This council, step by step, pulled the blanket over itself, taking over the powers of the Senate. Over time, the Senate almost completely lost its rights and was engaged in the analysis of minor cases. However, under Anna Ioannovna, she abolished the Privy Council, and the Senate was restored to its former status.

But under the reign of Empress Anna, another institution arose - the Cabinet, which became a kind of cushion between the Senate and the monarch. Over time, this had a negative impact on the work of the Senate. After the abolition of the Cabinet by Elizaveta Petrovna, the latter regained its status quo by her decree.

Reform under Catherine II

Having come to power, Catherine II decided to reform the Governing Senate. She divided this body into 6 departments. Each of them was assigned one or another sphere of government activity. This allowed the Empress to make her understanding of the powers of the Senate clearer. The areas of activity between departments were distributed as follows.

• 1st department - internal policy.
• 2nd - judicial activity.
• 3rd - supervision of provinces with a special status - Livonia, Estland, Little Russia, Narva and Vyborg.
• 4th - solving military and naval issues.
• 5th - administrative matters.
• 6th - conducting legal cases.

At the same time, the first 4 departments worked in St. Petersburg, and the last two - in Moscow.

In addition, the influence on each of the departments of the Prosecutor General was expanded. During the short period of the reign of Paul I, the Senate again lost a wide range of its powers.

Under Alexander I

In the form in which the Senate existed before its abolition, it was created by Emperor Alexander I. He inherited a state with an outdated administrative apparatus, which he undertook to remodel.

Understanding the important role played by the Governing Senate, the young king was aware that over time his importance had sharply decreased. Soon after ascending the throne, Alexander, by his decree, obliged the senators to submit to him for consideration projects related to the reform of this institution.

Work to discuss a package of necessary improvements in work took place over several months. Members of the newly created Secret Committee, an unofficial body with advisory functions, took an active part in it. It included supporters of Alexander I in his liberal endeavors: P. A. Stroganov, V. P. Kochubey, A. E. Chartorysky, N. N. Novosiltsev. As a result, the transformations described below were carried out.

Work regulations

As under Peter I, senators were appointed by the emperor himself. Only officials belonging to the first three classes could apply for membership in this body. In certain cases, a senatorial position could be combined with some other one. In particular, this concerned the military.

Specific decisions on this or that issue had to be made within the walls of the department that was authorized to decide them. But general events were also periodically held, involving the presence of all members of the Senate without exception. Decrees passed by this body could only be revoked by the emperor.

New features

In 1810, Alexander I decided to create the State Council - the highest legislative body. Thus, this part of the functions of the Government Senate was abolished.

But the prerogative of lawmaking was left to him. Draft laws could be submitted to them for consideration by the Minister of Justice. Since the 19th century, he was also the prosecutor general.

During the same period, collegiums were replaced by ministries. Although at first there was confusion between the Senate and the newly created executive bodies. It was possible to bring everything into compliance only by 1825 - towards the end of Alexander’s reign.

One of the main functions of the Senate was financial. Departments were obliged to monitor budget execution and report to higher authorities about identified arrears.

Another important area of ​​work was resolving interdepartmental property disputes. The Senate was also responsible for regulating trade, appointing justices of the peace and maintaining the imperial armorial. As mentioned above, this body ceased to exist after the revolutionary events at the end of 1917.

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History of the establishment of the Senate in Russia in 1711

The Senate is a government agency that has historically had different functions in different countries. The Governing Senate in Russia, established on February 22, 1711, by Peter I - the main reformer, statesman, under whom Russia entered a new stage of development, was “the supreme place to which, in the civil order of court, administration and execution, all places and institutions of the Empire are subordinated , except for those who are excluded from this dependence by a special law.”

Prerequisites for the establishment of the Senate

By 1700, it ceased to exist as a permanent state body and was replaced by the nearby office of Tsar Peter the Great, in which the boyars sat as before. At the same time, during the period of frequent absences of the ruler, the conduct of state affairs is entrusted not to the boyars, but to persons close to Peter from the old Duma ranks, as well as other trusted persons.

However, a year later, when setting out on the Prut military campaign, the sovereign entrusted the governance of the country to a newly formed institution - the Senate. The very existence of this organ, according to Peter, is the reason for the king’s frequent absences. Thus, the work of the Senate was initially conceived by Peter as a temporary measure. The Senate replaced:

• old Duma commissions, which were appointed to “in charge of Moscow” during the absence of the sovereign;
• the permanent “Execution Chamber”, which was the judicial department of the Boyar Duma.

Stages of creating the Senate in Russia

At the same time, upon returning from the campaign, the Senate was not disbanded by the tsar, but on the contrary, Peter affirms it as a permanent body in the organization of which, during the Petrine period, historians note three phases:

The first stage of creating the Senate: in the period from 1711 to 1718, the Senate was a body whose members were appointed to attend;

The second stage of creating the Senate: from 1718 to 1722 it represented a meeting of the presidents of the colleges;

The third stage of creating the Senate: and since 1722 the body has had a mixed composition, which includes senators and presidents of some colleges.

Functions of the governing Senate

The actual department of the governing body in question considered cases that were beyond the competence of the boards, representing the highest administrative state body. At the end of the reign of Peter the Great, it was also endowed with judicial functions, becoming the highest state judicial authority.

The legislative activities of the Senate are still controversial. Some historians claim that in the initial period this body not only had legislative power, but even canceled royal decrees! The other side disputes this claim. At the same time, they all admit that by changing the situation in 1722, Peter the Great deprives the Senate of legislative power. Quite reasonable, because not a single ruler wanted to share his own power. Thus, it is only possible to formally recognize the assignment of legislative power to the Senate for a certain period.

The difference in views of historians on the competence of the Senate also determines its significance for the state. Some researchers consider the Senate to be the highest state institution, which united and directed the work of the administration, not recognizing any authority over itself except that of Peter. Others argue that by directing and controlling the administration, this body was completely controlled and its decisions actually depended on the orders of the “supreme ministers” - persons close to the king who managed foreign affairs, the fleet and troops. Also, the Senate depended on the decisions of the Prosecutor General.

Composition of the Governing Senate

The composition of the Senate members was determined personally by the emperor from civil and military ranks of the first three ranks of the Table of Ranks. Moreover, their ranks included ministers and comrades (deputies) of ministers, and the chief prosecutor of the Holy Synod. Other persons could also be invited to the Senate - with the right of an advisory vote - on issues related to them.

The Senate consisted of six departments, including criminal cassation and civil cassation.

With the change of monarchs, the position of the Senate also changed: in an unstable situation it was in decline, but in a stable situation, on the contrary, it had a huge influence on the emperor. The Senate united all three branches of government, thus doing the most difficult work.

Powers of the Governing Senate

The outstanding Russian historian Vasily Osipovich Klyuchevsky noted in his writings that the Senate was endowed with very extensive powers. The Prosecutor General of the government Senate was given the right of legislative initiative. Klyuchevsky identifies the following powers of the Senate under Peter: The Senate had great, but only administrative powers; the initiation of legislative issues remained the task of the king alone. The Senate was left with a rather painful role in the development of laws. The Prosecutor General, seeing cases not explained by law, proposed that the Senate issue clear decrees on them. The Prosecutor General was given a legislative initiative.

KKlyuchevsky believed that other powers of the Senate were also constrained. Under him, at the same time as the prosecutor's office, the positions of racketeer and herald master were also established. The first was in charge of the “administration of petitioners’ cases,” accepted and considered complaints about the slow or incorrect resolution of their cases in the boards, forced cases to be resolved within the specified time frame, and himself inquired about judicial bias, interceding for the offended.

The Senate was the supreme guardian of justice; but the appeal at the collegium went past the Senate, through the racketeer directly to the sovereign, and only after his inscription on the appeal passed to the Senate. The Master of Arms was the successor to the Rank Order, which later became part of the Senate Chancellery as one of its tables, and was in charge of the nobility and its service; by the way, he was supposed to represent the nobles in cases “when asked” to fill positions and carry out assignments. The Senate filled many positions, starting with very high ones, but only choosing from two or three candidates who were presented for each noble place by the king of arms as worthy.

Thus, the institutions attached to the Senate as if with the significance of its auxiliary instruments, in fact, constrained it and screened it from society, served as ramparts for it, defending this “fortification of truth,” but at the same time preventing its expansion.

Introduction of the position of Prosecutor General

The new position of prosecutor general, which was established in 1722, was supposed, according to the plans of Peter the Great, to serve as a real connection between the central governing bodies and the tsar’s entourage. At the same time, the ruler repeatedly tested other methods of control, gaining strength in the Senate. At first (in 1715), the body was supervised by an auditor general, after which (in 1721) guard headquarters officers were on duty in the Senate, who were supposed to provide security and help speed up matters. In addition, mandatory minutes of meetings also served as a means of control of the Senate. At the end of such experiments, the tsar finally established a prosecutor's office.

The duties of the Prosecutor General included communication between the Tsar and the Senate. That is, he had to tell the ruler about the conduct of the affairs of the Senate and convey the will of Peter. At the same time, he had the right to stop the decision made by the Senate. In general, most decisions received force only after consideration and approval by the king. Also, the Prosecutor General was in charge of the senatorial office.

Other agents of government supervision (for example, prosecutors and chief prosecutors, fiscal officers and chief fiscal officers) also acted under the direct command of this official. Such powers made the prosecutor general the most powerful person in the administration. For example, Yaguzhsky, who assumed the post of Prosecutor General, was the first to be generally considered the head of the Senate, and many represented him as the first person in the state after Tsar Peter.

This view of the situation is shared by those historians who are accustomed to belittle the power and importance of the Senate. Even more, for example, in his works, the historian Gradovsky claims that the Prosecutor General, merging into one with the Senate itself, only increased the state significance of this state body and its significance for the country as a whole!

The Governing Senate and its places in the system of government bodies (diagram)

Governing Senate - supreme body of central government, created by Peter I on March 2, 1711 to perform legislative, administrative and judicial functions during the Tsar's absence from the Northern War with Sweden. All members of the Senate were personally appointed by Peter I and personally reported to him on the state of affairs in the country, as well as on the implementation of his orders

Creation of the Senate under Peter I

Functions of the Governing Senate

Let us briefly list the main functions of the Senate, for the sake of which this supreme body of government was created by Peter I:

• Control over government income and expenses - management of trade, taxes and farming
• Exercising the function of the highest court
• Foreign policy - establishing diplomatic relations with neighboring states
• Monitoring the activities of government officials at all levels - appointment to positions, quality control of duties performed, etc.

History of the creation of the Governing Senate under Peter I

The establishment of the Senate is primarily associated with the desire of Peter I to rule the state individually (a form of absolutist monarchy) with the assistance of personally devoted people in key positions. Preparations for the creation of the Senate began in 1701, when the functions of the Boyar Duma, as a government body of the highest authority, began to be performed by "Consultation of Ministers"- a collection of the heads of the most significant government departments (many of whom were not boyars). It was on the basis of this “Concilia” that Peter I selected people for meetings in the Senate, which was established March 5, 1711

Composition of the Senate under Peter I

The original composition of the Senate consisted of nine people: boyar T. N. Streshnev, Prince P. A. Golitsyn, Count I. A. Musin-Pushkin, Prince M. V. Dolgorukov, Prince G. I. Volkonsky, Kriegszalmeister General M. M. Samarin, Prince G. A Nephews, Quartermaster General V. A. Apukhtin and N. P. Melnitsky. The role of chief secretary was performed by A. Shchukin.

Also, for additional control, the position of fiscal officers was created, who supervised the activities of officials. Under the Senate there was an ober-fiscal (a little later the general-fiscal) with four assistants, for each province there was supposed to be a provincial-fiscal with three assistants, in cities there were one or two city fiscals, depending on the population.

Structure of the Senate under Peter I

Further transformations of the central government bodies concerned the system of executive bodies - during the years 1718-1722, the outdated order system was replaced by a collegial one, and the collegiums themselves saved the Senate from considering minor issues. Initially, the presidents of all colleges were included in the Senate, but later this was recognized as ineffective and only the presidents of the Admiralty-Military- and Foreign Affairs Collegium remained in the Senate.

On January 12, 1722, the prosecutor's office was established as a system of supervision over all local and central government bodies and courts (including the Senate). The prosecutor general, who headed the prosecutor's office, served as the head of the Senate Chancellery and exercised supervision over the Senate. The chief prosecutor served as assistant to the prosecutor general in the Senate.

2.1 Composition and structure of the Senate

The original composition of the Senate did not include representatives of the political elite; rather, they were the largest political figures of that time.

When appointing Senators, Peter I was not guided by origin, rank and rank. Perhaps that is why the position of Senator was not included in the Table of Ranks and was not classified as a class.

In other words, we can say that the basis for staffing the Senate was not the principle of nobility, but competence, length of service and closeness to the king. The Senate is composed of persons of the first three classes; Senators were determined by the direct election of the Imperial Majesty, both from civil and military ranks, and senators were not deprived of their rank and could hold other positions. The exception was the senators of the cassation departments, who could be appointed only from persons who had served for at least three years in the positions of chief prosecutor, his comrade or chairman, member or prosecutor of the judicial chamber.

Initially, it consisted of 9 people: 3 representatives of the titled nobility, 3 members of the Boyar Duma, 3 noblemen. The Senate was headed by the Prosecutor General.

The organizational structure of the Senate included the presence (general meeting) of Senators and the office, which carried out office work. All Senators had equal rights and had to make decisions collectively. Over time, the Senate underwent a number of structural and functional changes, remaining until 1917 the highest administrative, judicial, control, and cassation body of the Russian Empire.

The tsar's decree, issued on April 27, 1722, “On the position of the Senate,” established in detail the procedure for organizing the conduct of affairs in this institution. The case was first listened to carefully and then discussed. The issue was resolved by voting. Those cases “...that are being carried out...” were ordered” ... to be recorded in the protocol and noted in the register.” The secretary recorded the statements of the members of the Senate on each of the issues discussed, and the members of the Senate secured them with their signatures.

The Senate was subject to strict principles of collegiality. “Without the consent of the entire Senate, nothing should be done...” It was strictly punished that “... in the Senate, no business should be conducted verbally, but everything in writing...” So, the Senate was a more perfect body than the Boyar Duma, having strict regulation of its work.

The Office was in charge of office work in the Senate. It was organized by analogy with the offices of the collegiums. The decree of February 19, 1719 “On the organization of the office of the Senate on the model of the State Collegiums” determined its composition: “To be in the Senate the lower ranks against other Collegies, from the clerks of the Senate Secretaries and to manage the affairs of the Secretary alone..., Yes, one translator, a notary from the clerks, to the actuary from the clerks, registrars, clerks.” At the head of the Office was the chief secretary. “All governors and voivodes should write to that office about the start of a war, a pestilence, and what are the comments on the orders.” The Office also received petitions, which were in charge of the racketeer master. State affairs decided in the Senate were secured by the signature of the Senate Chief Secretary, who was in charge of the Chancellery and the state seal.

The leadership of the Senate was carried out by the Prosecutor General of the Senate. His position was introduced by Peter I in 1722 and was regulated by the decree “On the position of the Prosecutor General” dated April 27 of the same year. It defined the main functions and responsibilities of the Prosecutor General: “The Prosecutor General is responsible for sitting in the Senate and ensuring that the Senate maintains its position in all matters that are subject to Senate investigation, truly, zealously and decently,” performs its position according to the regulations and decrees, recorded the dates of the decrees and their contents in a special journal, and also indicated in it whether the matter was executed or not. Also, the Prosecutor General “oversaw the activities of all government places in the empire. His instruments were the fiscals subordinate to him, with the chief fiscals at their head.” He received reports from fiscal officials, which he was obliged to submit for discussion in the Senate. The Prosecutor General was also subordinate to the Chancellery with two chief secretaries assigned to him as assistants.

Fiscals. Along with the establishment of the Senate, the establishment of fiscals followed. The main fiscal for the entire state was called the chief fiscal. He had to watch secretly and inspect whether there were any omissions and abuses in the collection of the treasury, whether an unjust judgment was being taken somewhere, and whoever he noticed was untruthful, even if it was a noble person, he should declare before the Senator; If the denunciation turns out to be fair, then one half of the fine collected from the perpetrator went to the treasury, and the other went to the chief fiscal for the discovery of the abuse. Under the authority of the chief fiscal there were provincial fiscals, with the same responsibilities and rights in the provinces as the chief fiscal in the whole state. The latter were under the authority of the city fiscals. The fiscals were supposed to supervise everyone; everyone had to assist them in every possible way - everyone, for their own benefit, was invited to “snitch” Pushkarev A.T., Review of Russian History. M, Knowledge 1991, 161 p. .

The Execution Chamber and the Senate Office. However, in the future, due to the fact that the Senate was the highest national institution with an exceptionally wide field of activity, the need arose to create auxiliary bodies. They were supposed to assist the Senate in carrying out its functions. Thus, the structure of the Senate evolved gradually. It formed two branches: the Execution Chamber - for judicial matters and the Senate Office - for management issues.

Senators of the cassation departments cannot hold any other position in the state or public service. Of the Senators, some are appointed to attend departments, some are present only at general meetings, and some are completely exempt from any activities in the Senate. The latter usually include high dignitaries, members of government. councils, ministers, etc. The main work is carried out by the Senators present in the departments. Since the state and political position of an institution is determined by the social position of its members, the position of the Senate depends precisely on these Senators present in the departments. These are almost always persons who held positions of III, sometimes IV class, and their appointment to the Senate is the crown of their career. This disadvantageous position of the Senate among the other highest institutions of the empire greatly paralyzes the power granted to the Senate as the supreme seat of the empire.

The Senate acted in the form of departments, general assemblies and joint presences. Although in some cases the general meetings are, as it were, an authority above the departments, but as a general rule each department has the power to act on behalf of the entire Senate; his decrees “are executed by all places and persons subordinate to him, as the own of the Imperial Majesty, and one Sovereign or his personal decree can stop the Senate command.” The number of departments reached 12. In 1871 and 1876. the Moscow and Warsaw departments of the Senate were abolished. With the spread of the judicial reform of Emperor Alexander II, the judicial departments of the old system (II-V and boundary) were gradually reduced and were merged into one. There are two general meetings of the old Senate: the first, consisting of Senators of the first and second departments and the department of heraldry, the second - of Senators of the judicial department and one of the cassation, criminal or civil, by affiliation. The subjects of the department of these general meetings are: cases transferred from the old departments of the Senate by the highest commands as a result of the most common complaints; cases transferred from departments due to disagreement; cases requiring clarification or addition of laws. From the cassation departments, sometimes with the participation of the first or second, a number of general meetings and joint presences are compiled. In addition to general assemblies and joint presences consisting of Senators of only a few departments, in certain cases the general presence of the entire Senate meets. Each department is composed of Senators appointed at the highest discretion. To supervise the proceedings and (in the old departments) the correctness of decisions in each department, in the general meeting of the cassation departments, in the combined presence of the first and cassation departments and the highest disciplinary presence, the Governing Senate consists of chief prosecutors and comrades. In the department of heraldry, the chief prosecutor is called the herald master. In the general meetings of the old Senate, prosecutorial duties as the Prosecutor General are borne by the Minister of Justice. In each department, in the general meeting of the cassation departments, in the combined presence of the first and civil cassation departments, in the combined presence of the first and criminal cassation departments and in the combined presence of the first and cassation departments, there is an office consisting, under the control of the chief prosecutor, of chief secretaries and their assistants.

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The concept of the Senate, history of senates, description of the Senate

Information about the concept of Senate, history of senates, description of the Senate

Section 1. Origin of the concept of the Senate.

Subsection 1.

Section 2. Senate in Ancient Rome.

Section 3. Senate in the Russian Empire: evolution of legal status and competence.

Subsection 1. Senate during the reign of Peter the Great.

Subsection 2. The Senate in the era of the Supreme Privy Council and Cabinet (1726-1741).

Subsection 3. Senate under Elizabeth Petrovna and Peter III.

Subsection 4. Senate under Catherine II and Paul I.

Subsection 5. Senate from the reign of Alexander I to the end of the 19th century.

Subsection 6. Participation of the Senate in legislation.

Subsection 7. Participation of the Senate in governance matters.

Subsection 8. Participation of the Senate in judicial matters.

Subsection 9. Composition and division of the Senate.

Subsection 10. Complaints against the Senate.

Section 4. United States Senate.

Section 5. French Senate.

Section 6. Italian Senate.

Section 7. Senate of Australia.

Section 8. Senate of Poland.

Section 9. Senate of the Oliy Majlis of the Republic of Uzbekistan.

Section 10. Senate of the Parliament of Kazakhstan.

Section 11. Senate of Canada.

Section 12. Spanish Senate.

Section 13. Berlin Senate.

The Senate is an advisory body, often the upper house or one of the houses of the legislative assembly (parliament).

The Senate is one of the highest government bodies.

The Senate is the highest government body subordinate to the emperor.

The Senate is the name of the upper house of parliaments (Italy, France, USA, Canada, Brazil, Australia, Poland, Kazakhstan).

The Senate is highest body of city government (Berlin).

Origin of the concept of the Senate.

The word "senate" comes from the Latin word sentus, which in turn comes from the word senex, meaning "old man." Members of the Senate are called senators. The origin of the word is associated with one of the oldest forms of social order, in which power belongs to the oldest members of society.

The first Senate in world history was the Roman Senate, founded around the 6th century BC. e. and ceased its activities in the 6th century. In the Byzantine Empire, the Senate existed until the Fourth Crusade.

Senate in Ancient Rome.

The Senate in Ancient Rome, one of the highest government bodies. It arose from the council of elders of patrician families at the end of the royal era (around the 6th century BC). The Senate was the state council under the king. During the period of the republic, during the class struggle of the 5th-3rd centuries. BC e. Plebeians and patricians the power of the Senate was somewhat limited in favor of comitia (people's assemblies).

In the III-I centuries. BC e., the Senate preliminary considered bills proposed for voting in the comitia, it had senior management of military affairs, foreign policy, finance and state property, supervision of religious cults, the right to declare a state of emergency, etc. The Senate approved laws and election results, controlled the activities of magistrates. Thus, the Senate actually governed the state.

The resolutions of the Senate had the force of law, as well as the resolutions of the people's assembly and the assembly of plebeians - the plebiscite.

According to Polybius (i.e. from the point of view of the Romans), decisions in Carthage were made by the people (plebs), and in Rome - by the best people, that is, the Senate. And this despite the fact that, according to many historians, Carthage was ruled by an Oligarchy.

During the period of the Empire, the power of the Senate was increasingly limited, concentrating in the hands of the emperor, although formally the Senate continued to be considered one of the highest state institutions. In reality, the Senate became a collection of representatives of noble families, without much political influence. The resolutions of the Senate retained the force of laws, but were usually adopted at the initiative of the emperor. Beginning with Octavian Augustus, the actual emperor of Rome bore the title “princeps” - that is, “first of the senators.”

The number of senators has changed several times:

initially - 100; during the early republic (before 88 BC) - 300; since the time of Sulla - 600; under Caesar - 900; since the time of Augustus - again 600; in the period of late antiquity (dominant) - 2000.

Initially, the Senate included only members of native Roman families, but from the 1st century BC. e. Italics also received this right, and during the Empire, even noble provincials.

From 313 BC e. The censor was accepted as a member of the Senate - he compiled a list of persons who held or are holding a magistracy, with a certain property qualification (for example, under Augustus (1st century AD) - 1 million sesterces). During the empire, this became the prerogative of the emperor.

Under Diocletian (end of the 3rd century), the Senate was turned into the city council of Rome; under Constantine (4th century), a Senate was established in Constantinople - the “second Rome”, equal in rights to the Senate of Rome.

Senate inRussian Empire: evolution of legal status and competence.

It should be noted that the Senate appeared in Russia for the first time in 1606 - this is how the Poles of False Dmitry, who captured Moscow, called the Boyar Duma. During the reign of Peter the Boyar Duma in 1699 was replaced by the Near Chancellery, from 1708 called the “Concilia of Ministers”. She became the predecessor of the Governing Senate. It was finally established by Peter I on the eve of the Prut campaign 30 IN 1711-12 IL 1711 11 FV 1711 as the highest body for legislation and administration (during his absence in the capital), and consisted of 9 (10) people. Three were members of the nobility, three were former members Boyar Duma and three from nobles. Senate decisions were made collegiately at the general meeting and sealed with the signatures of senators. The Senate Office, headed by the chief secretary, was in charge of office work. Headed the Senate prosecutor general. The functions of the Senate in the first years of its existence were wide and varied. Cases were transferred to him Bit And Local orders, he took care of state revenues and expenses, and was in charge of the appearance of nobles for service. It was also a supervisory body over the extensive bureaucratic apparatus. For this purpose, in 1711 positions were introduced in the center and locally fiscals(provincial and city officials), who reported on all violations of laws, bribery, embezzlement and similar actions harmful to the state. They were led by the chief fiscal, who was part of the Senate. The denunciations of the fiscals were reported to the Senate monthly by the Execution Chamber - a special judicial presence of four judges and two senators. Peter encouraged the fiscals, freeing them from taxes, jurisdiction of local authorities and even liability for false slander. Although the Senate was a governing and supervisory body, control was also established over its activities. From 1715, the work of the Senate was monitored by the Senate Auditor General (supervisor of decrees), then by the same Senate Chief Secretary and staff officers guard and, finally, the Prosecutor General (P.I. Yaguzhinsky) and the Chief Prosecutor, to whom prosecutors in all other institutions were subordinate. The Prosecutor General controlled the entire work of the Senate, its apparatus, the office, the adoption and execution of all its sentences, their appeal or suspension. The Prosecutor General himself and his assistant Chief Prosecutor were subordinate only to to the king, were subject only to his judgment. Acting through his subordinate prosecutors (public supervision) and fiscal officials (secret supervision), the Prosecutor General acted as “the Tsar’s eye and solicitors in state affairs.” The new regulations on the Senate in 1722 fixed its status as the highest government institution of the empire. From the first half of the 19th century. - the highest judicial body, since 1864 - the highest cassation (appeal, protest) authority. Since 1722, senatorial audits have been carried out to check the activities of the local state apparatus by specially appointed senators.

Senate during the reign of Peter the Great.

Peter I, during his constant absences, which often prevented him from dealing with the current affairs of government, repeatedly (in 1706, 1707, 1710) entrusted affairs to several selected persons, from whom he demanded that they, without turning to him for any clarification, carry out the affairs, how to give them an answer on the day of judgment. At first, such powers were in the nature of a temporary personal assignment; but in 1711 they were entrusted to the institution created on February 22, which received the name Governing Senate.

The Senate founded by Peter did not bear the slightest resemblance to foreign institutions of the same name (Sweden, Poland) and met the unique conditions of Russian state life of that time. The degree of power granted to the Senate was determined by the fact that the Senate was established in place of His Royal Majesty himself. In the decree of March 2, 1711, Peter says: “we have determined the governing Senate, to which everyone and their decrees will be obedient, as we ourselves, under severe punishment, or death, depending on the guilt.”

In the absence at that time of the division of cases into judicial, administrative and legislative, and due to the fact that even the most insignificant matters of current administration were constantly subject to the permission of the monarch, who was replaced by the Senate, the circle of the Senate’s department could not receive any definite outlines. In a decree issued a few days after the establishment of the Senate (Complete Collection of Laws No. 2330), Peter determines what the Senate should do after its departure: “the court is unfeigned, put aside unnecessary expenses; collect as much money as possible; nobles to gather young; bills to correct; and try to farm out the salt; multiply Chinese and Persian bargaining; caress the Armenians; inflict fiscals." This is obviously not an exhaustive list of departmental items, but instructions on what to pay particular attention to. “Now everything is in your hands,” Peter wrote to the Senate.

The Senate was not a political institution that in any way limited or constrained the power of Peter; he acted only on instructions from the king and was responsible to him for everything; the decree of March 2, 1711 says: “And if this Senate, through its promise now made before God, is unrighteous, what to do... and then it will be judged by us, and the culprit will be severely punished.”

The practical, business significance of the Senate was determined not only by the degree and breadth of powers granted to it, but also by the system of those institutions that were grouped around it and formed one whole with it. These were, first of all, the commissars, two from each province, “for the demand and adoption of decrees.” Through these commissioners, appointed by the governors, direct relations between the Senate and the provinces were created, where Peter in 1710, in the interests of the economic structure of his army, transferred a significant part of the affairs that had previously been carried out in orders. The commissioners not only adopted decrees, but also monitored their implementation, delivered the necessary information to the Senate, and carried out its instructions locally. Subsequently, with the establishment of collegiums, the importance of commissars decreases: collegiums become an intermediary link between the Senate and the provinces. Simultaneously with the establishment of the Senate, Peter ordered “instead of ordering a discharge, there should be a discharge table under the Senate.” Thus, “writing to ranks” was assigned to the Senate, that is, appointment to all military and civilian positions, management of the entire service class, maintaining lists for them, conducting reviews and monitoring non-concealment from service. In 1721-1722 The discharge table was first transformed into a collapsible office, also located under the Senate, and on February 5, 1722, a king of arms was appointed under the Senate, who was in charge of the service class through the king's office.

A few days after the establishment of the Senate, on March 5, 1711, the position of fiscals was created, their duty was to “secretly supervise all matters,” investigating and denouncing in court “all sorts of crimes, bribes, theft of the treasury, etc., as well as other silent cases, those who do not have a petitioner about themselves.”

Under the Senate there was an ober-fiscal (later the general-fiscal) with four assistants, in each province there was a provincial-fiscal with three assistants, in each city there were one or two city fiscals. Despite the abuses with which the existence of such secret spies and informers is inextricably linked (until 1714, they were not punished even for false denunciations), fiscals undoubtedly brought a certain amount of benefit, being an instrument of supervision over local institutions.

When Peter's constant absences, which caused the establishment of the Senate, ceased, the question of closing it did not arise. With orders increasingly losing their meaning, the Senate becomes the place where all the most important matters of government, court and current legislation are carried out. The importance of the Senate was not undermined by the establishment (1718-1720) of the collegiums, despite the fact that their regulations, borrowed from Sweden, where the collegiums were the highest institutions in the state, did not determine the relationship of the collegiums to the Senate, which the foreign leaders of the reform - Fick and others - assumed , apparently, to be abolished. On the contrary, with the establishment of collegiums, where a lot of current small matters were transferred, the importance of the Senate only increased. According to the decree of 1718 “on the position of the Senate,” all presidents of the colleges were made senators by rank. This order did not last long; the slowness of Senate office work forced Peter to admit (in a decree of January 12, 1722) that the presidents of the colleges did not have enough time to carry out, in addition, the “incessant” work of the senator. In addition, Peter found that the Senate, as the highest authority over the collegiums, could not consist of persons who sit on the collegiums. Contemporaries also point out that the presidents of the collegiums, being dignitaries like the senators of that time, completely suppressed their “advisers” and thereby destroyed any practical significance of collegial decision-making. And indeed, the newly appointed presidents, instead of the previous ones who remained senators, were people incomparably less noble. On May 30, 1720, Peter ordered a noble person to petition the collegium and the chancellery for admission to the Senate; The duties of this position were defined on February 5, 1722 by detailed instructions, and the “person” vested with it received the name racketeer. The racketeer very soon acquired enormous importance as a body supervising office work in the boards and the course of justice.

Of all the institutions that have ever existed under the Senate, the institution of the prosecutor's office, which also appeared in 1722, had the most practical significance. Peter did not immediately come to the establishment of the prosecutor's office. His dissatisfaction with the Senate was reflected in the establishment in 1715 (November 27) of the post of Auditor General, or overseer of decrees. Vasily Zotov, appointed to this position, turned out to be too weak to influence the senators and prevent their voluntary and involuntary violations of decrees. In 1718, he was assigned to the tax audit, and his position was abolished by itself.

Constant infighting between senators again forced Peter to entrust someone with monitoring the progress of Senate meetings. The person he chose (February 13, 1720), Anisim Shchukin, turned out to be unsuitable for these duties; being at the same time Chief Secretary of the Senate, Shchukin himself was subordinate to him. A few days after the death of Shchukin (January 28, 1721), Peter entrusted supervision of the deanery of the Senate meetings to guard headquarters officers who changed monthly. On January 12, 1722, they were replaced by the prosecutor's office in the form of a complex and harmonious system of supervision not only over the Senate, but also over all central and local administrative and judicial institutions. The prosecutor general was at the head of the prosecutor's office as the head of the Senate chancellery and as a supervisory body over the Senate presence from the point of view of not only the deanery during meetings, but also the compliance of Senate decisions with the Code and decrees. The assistant prosecutor general in the Senate was the chief prosecutor. Being in direct relations with the sovereign, the prosecutor general brought the Senate closer to the supreme power; at the same time, his supervision significantly streamlined the proceedings both in the presence of the Senate and in its office, and greatly increased its business importance. On the other hand, however, the Attorney General deprived the presence of the Senate of its former independence; being in many cases equal in law to the entire Senate, the attorney general actually often prevailed over it.

In the last years of Peter's reign, when, after the end of the Northern War, he began to pay more attention to matters of internal government, the emergency powers with which the Senate was vested lost their meaning. The decrease in the power of the Senate affects mainly in the field of legislation. In the first decade of its existence, the Senate, in the field of civil law, restrained by the authority of the Council Code of 1649, in the field of administrative law, enjoyed very broad legislative power. November 19, 1721 Peter instructs the Senate not to make any determination of the general without his signature. In April 1714, it was prohibited to bring complaints to the sovereign about unfair decisions of the Senate, which introduced a completely new principle for Russia; Until that time, the sovereign could complain about every institution. This prohibition was repeated in a decree on December 22, 1718, and the death penalty was established for filing a complaint against the Senate.

From 1711 to 1714, the seat of the Senate was Moscow, but sometimes for a while, as a whole or in the person of several senators, it moved to St. Petersburg, which from 1714 became its permanent residence; From then on, the Senate moved to Moscow only temporarily, in the case of Peter’s trips there for a long time. A part of the Senate office remained in Moscow called the “Office of the Senate Board”. On January 19, 1722, offices from each collegium were established in Moscow, and above them was placed a senate office of one senator, who changed annually, and two assessors. The purpose of these offices was to facilitate relations between the Senate and collegiums with Moscow and provincial institutions and to carry out minor current affairs.

The Senate in the era of the Supreme Privy Council and Cabinet (1726-1741).

The Supreme Privy Council, established on February 8, 1726, both under Catherine I and especially under Peter II, actually exercised all the rights of supreme power, as a result of which the position of the Senate, especially compared to the first decade of its existence, completely changed. Although the degree of power granted to the Senate, especially during the first period of the council’s reign (decree of March 7, 1726), formally did not undergo any significant changes, and the range of subjects of its department sometimes even expanded, the overall significance of the Senate in the system of state institutions changed very quickly due to one thing is that the Supreme Privy Council became superior to the Senate. A significant blow to the importance of the Senate was also dealt by the fact that the most influential senators moved to the supreme council. Among these senators were the presidents of the first three collegiums (military - Menshikov, naval - Count Apraksin and foreign - Count Golovkin), who become to some extent equal to the Senate. Even more important was the disorganization that was introduced by the Supreme Privy Council into all institutions of the empire. Prosecutor General Yaguzhinsky, an enemy of the party that formed the Supreme Privy Council, was appointed resident in Poland, and the post of Prosecutor General was actually abolished; its execution was entrusted to Chief Prosecutor Voeikov, who had no influence in the Senate; in March 1727 the position of racketeer was abolished. At the same time, the positions of fiscal officers are gradually disappearing.

After the radical change that Peter’s local institutions underwent (1727-1728), the provincial government fell into complete disarray. In this state of affairs, the central institutions, including the Senate at their head, lost all effective power. Almost deprived of the means of supervision and local executive bodies, the Senate, weakened in its personnel, continued, however, to bear on its shoulders the hard work of petty routine government work. Even under Catherine, the title “Governing” was recognized as “indecent” for the Senate and was replaced by the title “High”. The Supreme Council demanded reports from the Senate, prohibited it from making expenses without permission, reprimanded the Senate, and threatened fines.

When the plans of the leaders failed and Empress Anna again “assumed” autocracy, by decree of March 4, 1730, the Supreme Privy Council was abolished and the Governing Senate was restored to its former strength and dignity. The number of senators was increased to 21, and the Senate included the most prominent dignitaries and statesmen. A few days later the position of racketeer master was restored; The Senate again concentrated all government in its hands. To facilitate the Senate and free it from the influence of the chancellery, it was divided (June 1, 1730) into 5 departments; Their task was the preliminary preparation of all matters that were still to be decided by the general meeting of the Senate. In fact, the division of the Senate into departments did not materialize. To supervise the Senate, Anna Ioannovna at first thought to limit herself to the weekly presentation of two statements to her, one about resolved matters, the other about matters that the Senate could not decide without reporting to the Empress. On October 20, 1730, it was recognized, however, that it was necessary to restore the position of prosecutor general.

In 1731 (November 6), a new institution officially appeared - the cabinet, which had already existed for about a year in the form of the private secretariat of the empress. Through the office, reports from all institutions, including the Senate, ascended to the empress; the highest resolutions were announced from it. Gradually, the empress's participation in the adoption of resolutions decreases; On June 9, 1735, decrees signed by three cabinet ministers received the force of personal ones.

Although the competence of the Senate was not formally changed, in fact, subordination to the cabinet ministers had a very difficult impact on the Senate even in the first period of the cabinet’s existence (until 1735), when it was primarily concerned with matters of foreign policy. Later, when the cabinet began to extend its influence to matters of internal administration, constant direct relations between the cabinet and the collegiums and even with the Senate office in addition to the Senate, prodding for slowness, demands for reports and registers of resolved and unresolved cases, and finally, an extreme reduction in the number of senators (at one time There were only two people in the Senate, Novosiltsev and Sukin, individuals with the most unflattering reputations) brought the Senate to an unprecedented decline.

After the decree of June 9, 1735, the actual dominance of the cabinet ministers over the Senate acquired a legal basis, and resolutions were put on the reports of the Senate in the name of the cabinet. After the death of Anna Ioannovna (October 17, 1740), Biron, Minikh and Osterman were alternately the absolute masters of the office. The cabinet, absorbed in the struggle of parties, had no time for the Senate, the importance of which therefore increased somewhat at this time, which is expressed, among other things, in the appearance of “general discussions” or “general meetings” between the cabinet and the Senate.

On November 12, 1740, the position of court racketeer was established, first to consider the most important complaints against colleges and lower places, and from November 27 of the same year - against the Senate. In March 1741, this position was abolished, but the permission to bring all-subject complaints to the Senate remained in force.

Senate under Elizabeth Petrovna and Peter III.

On December 12, 1741, shortly after ascending the throne, Empress Elizabeth issued a decree abolishing the cabinet and restoring the Governing Senate (before then again called the High Senate) in its former position. The Senate not only became the supreme body of the empire, not subordinate to any other institution, not only was it the focus of the court and all internal administration, again subordinating the military and naval collegiums, but often completely uncontrollably exercised the functions of the supreme power, taking legislative measures, resolving administrative affairs that previously went to the approval of monarchs, and even arrogated to themselves the right of self-replenishment. The Foreign Collegium remained, however, not subordinate to the Senate. The position of Prosecutor General, which under Elizabeth was occupied almost all the time by the incomparable Prince Trubetskoy, did not at all suppress the Senate, although it had already acquired great importance in the general structure of internal administration, since most of the reports to the Empress went through the Prosecutor General (even on St. . Synod). The establishment of a conference at the highest court (October 5, 1756) at first did little to shake the importance of the Senate, since the conference dealt primarily with matters of foreign policy; but in 1757-1758. The conference begins to constantly interfere in the affairs of internal governance. The Senate, despite its protests, finds itself forced to respond to the requests of the conference and fulfill its demands. By eliminating the Senate, the conference begins to directly communicate with the places subordinate to it.

Peter III, having ascended the throne on December 25, 1761, abolished the conference, but on May 18, 1762 he established a council, in relation to which the Senate was placed in a subordinate position. Further derogation of the importance of the Senate was expressed in the fact that the military and naval collegiums were again removed from its jurisdiction. The Senate's freedom of action in the field of internal governance was severely constrained by the prohibition “to issue decrees that serve as some kind of law or confirmation of previous ones” (1762).

Senate under Catherine II and Paul I.

Upon the accession of Empress Catherine II to the throne, the Senate again became the highest institution in the empire, for the council ceased its activities. However, the role of the Senate in the general system of public administration is changing significantly: Catherine greatly reduced it due to the distrust with which she treated the then Senate, imbued with the traditions of Elizabethan times. In 1763, the Senate was divided into 6 departments: 4 in St. Petersburg and 2 in Moscow. Department I was in charge of state internal and political affairs, II - judicial, III - affairs in provinces that were in a special position (Little Russia, Livonia, Estland, Vyborg Governorate, Narva), IV - military and naval affairs. Of the Moscow departments, V was in charge of administrative affairs, VI - judicial. All departments were recognized as equal in strength and dignity. As a general rule, all matters were decided in departments (unanimously) and only in case of disagreement were they transferred to the general meeting. This measure had a very serious impact on the political significance of the Senate: its decrees began to come not from a meeting of all the most dignified people in the state, but only from 3 - 4 persons, with whom it was much easier to take into account. The Prosecutor General and Chief Prosecutors received much greater influence on the resolution of cases in the Senate (each department, except the First, had its own Chief Prosecutor since 1763; in the First Department, this position was established in 1771, and until then her duties were performed by the Prosecutor General). In business terms, the division of the Senate into departments brought enormous benefits, largely eliminating the incredible slowness that characterized Senate office work. An even more sensitive and tangible damage to the significance of the Senate was caused by the fact that, little by little, matters of real national importance were taken away from it, and only the court and ordinary administrative activities were left to its share. The removal of the Senate from legislation was most dramatic. Previously, the Senate was a normal legislative body; in the vast majority of cases, he also took the initiative for the legislative measures taken. Under Catherine, all the largest of them (the establishment of provinces, charters granted to the nobility and cities, etc.) were developed in addition to the Senate; their initiative belongs to the empress herself, and not to the Senate. The Senate was completely excluded from even participating in the work of the 1767 commission; he was only given, like collegiums and chancelleries, to elect one deputy to the commission. Under Catherine, the Senate was left to fill in minor gaps in laws that had no political significance, and for the most part the Senate submitted its proposals for approval by the supreme power. Catherine, apparently, had very little trust in the talents of those who sat in the then Senate; she perfectly understood the complete dependence of the Senate on its office and its inability, given the clumsy forms of its office work, to energetically, actively work. Upon her accession to the throne, Catherine found that the Senate had brought many parts of government into impossible disorder; it was necessary to take the most energetic measures to eliminate it, and the Senate turned out to be completely unsuitable for this. Therefore, those cases to which the Empress attached the greatest importance, she entrusted to individuals who enjoyed her trust - mainly to the Prosecutor General, Prince Vyazemsky, thanks to which the importance of the Prosecutor General increased to unprecedented proportions. In fact, he was like the Minister of Finance, Justice, Internal Affairs and State Comptroller. In the second half of Catherine's reign, she began to transfer affairs to other persons, many of whom competed with the prince. Vyazemsky by degree of business influence. Entire departments appeared, the heads of which reported directly to the Empress, bypassing the Senate, as a result of which these departments became completely independent of the Senate. Sometimes they were in the nature of personal assignments, determined by Catherine’s attitude towards this or that person and the degree of trust placed in him; eg after the death of Baur, who was, as it were, the Minister of Railways, his affairs were distributed between Admiral Greig, Field Marshal Chernyshev and Prince. Vyazemsky. Postal administration was entrusted either to Vyazemsky, then to Shuvalov, or to Bezborodko. A huge blow for the Senate was the new withdrawal of the military and naval collegium from its jurisdiction, and the military collegium is completely isolated in the field of court and financial management. Having undermined the overall importance of the Senate, this measure had a particularly hard impact on its departments III and IV. The importance of the Senate and the extent of its power was further dealt a heavy blow by the establishment of provinces (1775 and 1780). Quite a lot of cases moved from the collegiums to provincial places, and the collegiums, with which the Senate had already developed a well-known modus vivendi, were little by little closed. The Senate had to enter into direct relations with new provincial regulations, which were neither formally nor in spirit coordinated with the establishment of the Senate. Catherine was well aware of this and repeatedly drew up projects for reform of the Senate (the projects of 1775, 1788 and 1794 have been preserved. ), but they were not implemented. The inconsistency between the institutions of the Senate and the provinces led, firstly, to the fact that matters of the greatest importance could always be reported to the Empress by the viceroy or governor-general directly, in addition to the Senate, and secondly, to the fact that the Senate was suppressed by minor administrative matters received to him from 42 provincial boards and 42 state chambers. The heraldry, from an institution in charge of all nobility and appointment to all positions, turned to the place of maintaining lists of officials appointed by governors. The Senate suffered the least relative damage in the area of ​​the court; Compared to previous reigns, when the governmental activities of the Senate took precedence over the judicial ones, it even seemed that the Senate had become primarily a judicial place. Formally, the Senate was considered the highest judicial authority; and here, however, its significance was diminished, firstly, by the hitherto unprecedented influence that the chief prosecutors and the prosecutor general had on the resolution of cases, and secondly, by the wide acceptance of the most common complaints not only against departments, but also at general meetings Senate (these complaints were submitted to the racketeer master and he was reported to the empress). Although the law threatened punishment for an unjust petition to the Senate, according to Speransky, during all this time there was only one case when a certain Berezin was brought to justice by the Senate itself, which, imitating the mercy of the Empress, asked for his forgiveness. During the reign of Pavel Petrovich, despite all his lack of sympathy for Catherine’s system, the position of the Senate among state institutions remained almost exactly the same as it was under Catherine. New departments were formed, the affairs of which were not within the purview of the Senate. The restoration of some of the boards, abolished under Catherine, did not entail the restoration of the previous relations between them and the Senate: they were entrusted to the main directors, who had a personal report from the emperor. The Prosecutor General (Prince Kurakin, then Obolyaninov), concentrating in his office an unprecedented number of cases until then, exercised almost autocratic power in these matters. His pressure on the Senate increased even more. The Senate remained primarily a judicial seat, but even here it was subject to new restrictions: in cases of state property it ceased to be the highest authority (1799); these cases could only be resolved by personal decrees. All restrictions on the right to appeal decisions of departments and the general meeting of the Senate were abolished (1797), as a result of which complaints begin to be filed in almost every case. This caused, despite the most decisive measures to speed up Senate proceedings, a terrible burden on the Senate with judicial cases, which at that time were being considered by all its departments.

Senate from the reign of Alexander I to the end of the 19th century.

The basic character of the Senate, like other central institutions, was finally outlined during the reign of Alexander Pavlovich. Almost immediately after ascending the throne, Emperor Alexander began to reform the Senate, realizing the need to put an end to the humiliating position to which the supreme institution of the empire had been reduced. On June 5, 1801, a personal decree was issued by which the Senate. were invited to draw up a report on their rights and responsibilities. This decree, which clearly expressed the emperor's intention to raise the importance of the Senate, made a strong impression not only on the Senators but also on the educated public in general. In response to the decree, several drafts of the most submissive report were presented, written with extraordinary animation (by Counts Zavadovsky, Derzhavin, Vorontsov) and expressing the desire of the Senate to return to the importance that it enjoyed under Peter I and Elizabeth. The Senate adopted the project gr. Zavadovsky. Upon his presentation to the sovereign, a detailed discussion of Senate reforms began both in the “Unofficial Committee” and in the recently established (March 30, 1801) State Council. The result of all these meetings was a personal decree on September 8. 1802 on the rights and duties of the Senate. This decree is the last legislative act that systematically defines both the very organization of the Senate and its relationship to other higher institutions. Despite the fact that the decree of September 8, 1802 was the result of a serious desire of the emperor and those close to him to raise the importance of the Senate, he did not introduce almost anything new into its organization and into its relations with other institutions: it only restored in memory forgotten and in fact the rights of the Catherine Senate destroyed by Paul. That is, the Senate has already been diminished in its original dignity. The only innovations were the following rules: in the event of a protest by the Prosecutor General against the determination of the Senate, the case was reported to the sovereign not by the Prosecutor General alone, but by deputation from the Senate; The Senate was allowed, if it saw important inconveniences in existing laws, to report this to the sovereign. Simultaneously with the decree on the Senate, a manifesto was issued on the establishment of ministries, and it was decided that the annual reports of ministers should be submitted to the Senate for reporting to the sovereign. Due to a number of conditions, these newly granted rights by the Senate could not in any way increase its importance. In terms of its composition, the Senate remained a meeting of far from the first dignitaries of the empire. Direct relations between the Senate and the supreme power were not created, and this predetermined the nature of the relationship between the Senate and the State Council, ministers and the Committee of Ministers.

Participation of the Senate in legislation.

Already the decree of 1802 does not look at the Senate as a legislative institution: legislative affairs were concentrated in the State Council, established in 1810. When the importance of this council fell, legislation passed to the sovereign’s associates and ministers, and from 1810 to the newly organized State advice. Having been removed from legislation as a legislative advisory body, the Senate, however, retained a certain attitude towards legislation. First of all, the Senate is given the right of initial drafting of laws: general meetings of the Senate can develop a draft law and submit it for the highest approval through the Minister of Justice and the State Council, and the minister must seek the highest permission to submit the draft to the council. In fact, the Senate does not use this right, because in the course of affairs and with the monetary and personal resources placed at its disposal, it is deprived of the opportunity to carry out all the work that is necessary for the preparation and development of any complex bill. The rule, by virtue of which the Senate does not proceed to resolve such cases for which there is no exact law, but in every such incidental case draws up a draft decision and presents it to the sovereign, in the 18th century and in the first half of the 19th it was of enormous importance for legislation: in this way Many gaps in the law were filled. The right of the Senate to report to the sovereign about inconveniences in existing laws, granted by the Senate by decree of September 8. 1802, was subject to significant restrictions at the first attempt by the Senate to use it. When the Senate presented Emperor Alexander I with the decree of December 5. 1802 on the terms of service of non-commissioned officers from the nobility contradicts the decree on the freedom of the nobility and the grant of letters to the nobility, the sovereign, accepting this remark very unmercifully, explained by decree on March 21, 1808 that the Senate’s objections are unfounded and that the Senate’s right to present objections applies solely to existing laws, without touching newly issued or confirmed ones. The right of representation with the above reservation was included in the current institution of the Senate, but in the state life of Russia at that time it had no practical significance. The Senate must receive resolutions from the general presence of provincial institutions, which have the right, upon receipt of a new law, to report its ambiguity or inconvenience in implementation; but the hostility with which the Senate treated such ideas led to the fact that provincial places have not enjoyed this right since the beginning of the 19th century. and it exists only on paper.

Participation of the Senate in governance matters.

Since 1802, the most complex change has occurred in the field of administrative affairs in the Senate. In 1802, when ministers were established, they were placed above the collegiums. Although the manifesto of 1802 on the establishment of ministries left in most cases the question of the relationship of the Senate to the ministries open, but since the relationship of the Senate to the collegiums had already been more or less determined, initially the mutual relations of the ministers and the Senate apparently did not cause difficulties. When it was discovered that the coexistence of collegiums and ministers leads to serious inconveniences, and when, as a result, since 1803, the gradual closure of collegiums and their transformation into departments of ministries began, the relationship of the Senate to the ministries became completely unclear, and from this ambiguity the ministers derived all the benefit . The submission of annual reports by ministers to the Senate is effectively stopped; those cases that previously went to the Senate are considered by a committee of ministers. In the field of administrative affairs, the competence of the committee almost merged with the competence of the Senate, so that around 1810 a number of projects arose, either on the abolition of the administrative department of the Senate with the transfer of its affairs to a committee (Speransky’s project of 1809), or on the abolition of the committee with the transfer of its affairs to the Senate ( Speransky in 1810 and 1811, later Troshchinsky). This last thought lies at the basis of the current establishment of the ministries of June 25, 1811: it does not contain any mention of a committee of ministers, and those functions that had hitherto been performed by the committee and later remained intact with it were transferred to the Senate. this transfer did not take place. The Committee of Ministers not only was not abolished, but received new emergency powers on the occasion of the sovereign’s departure for war and did not concede anything from the previous ones. When the emergency powers of the Committee of Ministers ceased, its overall importance nevertheless continued to grow; in the era of Arakcheev's absolute power, the committee becomes the focus of all government administration. The role of the Senate in administrative matters is declining. Ministers become the heads of the executive bodies of the state. The law, however, still recognizes the Senate as supreme in the courts and administration of the seat of the empire, having no other power over itself than the power of the imperial majesty, sending decrees to ministers, receiving reports from them. Provincial seats are actually completely dependent on the ministries, but are considered subordinate to the Senate. Therefore, the Senate was always formally in its right if it addressed the ministries or provincial seats with any demand. It was most convenient for the Senate to act by pointing out irregularities or deviations from the laws, restoring the force of the law, demanding the correction of illegal orders. The Senate was unsuitable for direct participation in active administration, both due to its composition, the slowness of office work, and because it was removed from disposing of the executive bodies, even from direct contact with them. Thus, by the force of things, the Senate gradually turned from a body of actual government to a body of oversight of legality, as it was in the projects of 1788 and 1793. Ekaterina wanted to do it. Between the Senate and the Committee of Ministers, a well-known demarcation occurred: the Senate adheres in its activities to the principles of legality in governance (Legalit ä tsprincip), the committee - to the principles of expediency (Opportunit ä tsprincip). Cases of an administrative nature coming before the government Senate can be divided into the following two categories:

Executive matters. There are very few cases of a purely executive nature left in the Senate, and in most cases they do little to elevate the importance of the Senate. Of such cases, the relatively more significant are: 1) publication of laws. What is practically important is not who is entrusted with the promulgation of laws, but that the laws are promulgated at all and that their publication is concentrated in one place. Our legislation, however, not only allows for the existence of secret laws that are not subject to promulgation, but does not fully ensure that laws intended for public information are promulgated through the Senate. In the second half of the 19th century. laws were often communicated to subject places and persons other than the Senate, in circulars of the Minister of the Interior to governors, etc. In the 60s, with the advent of the Senate publication “Collection of Legislation and Government Orders,” the Senate was charged with ensuring that no private or official publications did not publish laws before the Senate. But this achieves little of the goal, especially with regard to the military department: laws are enforced here by departmental orders and are reported to the Senate for publication only later, sometimes after several decades. On the question of what is considered the moment when a law is promulgated, see Promulgation of Laws. About the significance of the publication of administrative orders by the Senate. 2) Accounts of the treasury and for the treasury: addition of arrears, return of money incorrectly received into the treasury, resolution of disagreements between state control and those institutions or officials on whom the account was made. 3) State administration affairs: approval of tenders, disputes between ministries about state property. 4) Confirmation of magistrates and district qadi in office. The cases listed in these 4 points are carried out in the first department. 5) Certification of state (class) rights: transitions from one state to another; certificates of belonging to one or another state; maintenance of armorials, promotion to ranks for length of service. These affairs are carried out partly by the first department, partly by the department of heraldry. The work carried out in the second department on the land management of peasants is of serious practical importance.

Cases to supervise the legality of management. Here the Senate acts, firstly, as a body that, on its own initiative or on the proposals of the subject institutions, resolves by force of law difficulties and misunderstandings that may arise in the execution of its implementation, has supervision over the actions of different places of government and takes measures of punishment, coercion, confirmation and encouragement. The Senate resolves disputes about power that arise between administrative places and transfers cases from one government place to another. The Senate considers cases of bringing to trial for crimes of office officials of the IV and V classes appointed by the highest authority. Secondly, the Senate is the authority that receives complaints from individuals and self-government bodies about incorrect orders of ministers and provincial governments. Although this aspect of his activity is the least developed in the law (complaints against ministers, for example, are not provided for by law at all), but the cases related to this, constantly developing quantitatively, acquire enormous national importance. Despite all the imperfections of the Senate's paperwork on administrative cases, slow and secret, despite the weakness of the political and social significance of the Senate, the Senate, accepting such complaints for its consideration and strictly adhering to the law in resolving the case, created a type of administrative justice not free from shortcomings, but, in any case, contributing to the establishment of legality in management. Of all the guarantees of legality existing in the Russian state system, Senate supervision is undoubtedly the most effective.

Participation of the Senate in judicial matters.

The participation of the Senate in judicial matters takes different forms, depending on whether the case came from the judicial place of the old or new (according to the judicial charters of Alexander II) device. Cases from old judicial places came to the Senate on appeals, audits, protests from provincial prosecutors and governors’ disagreement with court decisions. These cases are being considered in court. The Senate, which resolves them essentially, in the pre-reform, only partially changed order. Cases from judicial rulings formed according to the judicial statutes of Alexander II are submitted to cassation. In criminal cases, requests may concern either the cancellation (cassation) of a sentence, or the resumption of a criminal case; in civil cases, requests may be for cassation of a decision, for its review, and requests from third parties not involved in the case. On the substance of cassation proceedings, see Court of Cassation and Resumption of court cases. The criminal cassation department considers the merits of cases involving crimes committed by ranks above class V. From the cassation departments, sometimes with the participation of the first and second, the following general presences are formed: a general meeting of the cassation departments (some cases of judicial administration, disputes about jurisdiction between the courts of the civil, military and religious departments, appeals against court sentences of the criminal cassation department, cassation complaints against decisions of special presence for cases of state crimes); general meeting of the cassation departments with the participation of the first (disputes about jurisdiction between government and judicial institutions, complaints about decisions of the combined presence of the first and civil cassation departments in cases of recovery of damages from officials; discussion of issues resolved differently in different judicial places); general meeting of the cassation departments with the participation of the first and second departments (cases of the same kind, but concerning the subjects of the department of the second department). On issues of disagreement between prosecutors and provincial boards regarding bringing officials to trial, a joint presence of the first and criminal cassation departments or the first, second and criminal cassation departments is formed. For cases of supervision of judicial places and officials of the judicial department, a joint presence of the first and cassation departments was established, for the review of judicial decisions of provincial presences - a joint presence of the first and civil (or criminal, as appropriate) departments. Finally, a special presence for cases of state crimes and a higher disciplinary presence are allocated from the cassation departments.

Composition and division of the Senate.

The Senate is composed of persons of the first three classes; Senators are determined by the direct election of the Imperial Majesty, both from civil and military ranks, and senators, without losing their rank, can hold other positions. The exception is the senators of the cassation departments, who can be appointed only from persons who have served for at least three years in the positions of chief prosecutor, his comrade or chairman, member or prosecutor of the judicial chamber, and appointment to these latter positions is also subject to a certain service and educational qualification. Senators of the cassation departments cannot hold any other position in the state or public service. Of the senators, some are appointed to be present in departments, some are present only at general meetings, some are completely exempt from any activities in the Senate. The latter usually include the highest dignitaries, members of the state. councils, ministers, etc. The main work is carried out by the senators present in the departments. Since the state and political position of an institution is determined by the social position of its members, the position of the Senate depends precisely on these senators present in the departments. These are almost always persons who held positions of III, sometimes IV class, and their appointment to the Senate is the crown of their career. This disadvantageous position of the Senate among the other highest institutions of the empire greatly paralyzes the power granted to the Senate as the supreme seat of the empire.

The Senate operates in the form of departments, general assemblies and joint presences. Although in some cases the general meetings are, as it were, an authority over the departments, but as a general rule each department has the power to act on behalf of the entire Senate; his decrees “are executed by all places and persons subordinate to him, as the own of the Imperial Majesty, and one Sovereign or his personal decree can stop the Senate command.” The number of departments reached (according to the Code of Laws of 1857) up to 12. Heraldry (department since 1848) were located in the Senate-Petersburg, VI-VIII in Moscow, IX and X in Warsaw. In 1871 and 1876, the Moscow and Warsaw departments of the Senate were abolished. With the spread of the judicial reform of Emperor Alexander II, the judicial departments of the old system (II-V and boundary) were gradually reduced and were merged into one. Now the Senate consists of the following departments: the first, in charge of all administrative affairs, when they can be brought to an end only through the Governing Senate and do not, by law, belong to the departmental subjects of other departments; the second, established in 1882 (June 23) and in charge of peasant administrative affairs: judicial, established in 1898 (June 2) and in charge of the affairs of the old judicial departments and land surveying; heraldry, in charge of matters of membership in the nobility and honorary citizenship, of princely, count and baronial titles, changes of surnames, compilation of armorials; two cassation departments established according to the Judicial Statutes of Emperor Alexander II (civil and criminal). All departments, except cassation departments, act on the basis of the Constitution. Etc. The Senate is usually called the "old Senate". There are two general meetings of the old Senate: the first, consisting of senators of the first and second departments and the department of heraldry, the second - of senators of the judicial department and one of the cassation, criminal or civil departments. The subjects of the department of these general meetings are: cases transferred from the old departments of the Senate by the highest commands as a result of the most common complaints; cases transferred from departments due to disagreement; cases requiring clarification or addition of laws. From the cassation dpt., sometimes with the participation of the first or second, a number of general meetings and joint presences are compiled (see above). In addition to general assemblies and joint presences consisting of senators of only a few departments, in certain cases the general presence of the entire Senate gathers, this happens, for example. , at the accession of the emperor to the throne and when the Senate takes the oath to him and on some other solemn occasions. According to Art. 182 Institution Etc. of the Senate, on every present day before the start of meetings in the departments, all senators must enter the general meeting to listen to all the highest commands presented to the Senate; in practice this is not observed. Each department is composed of senators appointed at the highest discretion. By law, their number cannot be less than three; in reality, the number of senators ranges from 6 - 7 (dpt. heraldry) to 18 (civil cass. dpt.). In each department, except the first, a first-person is appointed (since 1832) for one year (in the cassation departments, the appointment of first-present is not subject to annual renewal). The non-appointment of the first person present to the first department in the highest order of 1832 was motivated by the fact that this department was entrusted with administrative affairs. This highest command did not abolish that principle, which is not manifested in anything in practice, that a single person is imperial. Majesty presides over the Senate To supervise the proceedings and (in the old departments) the correctness of decisions in each department, in the general meeting of the cassation. departments, in the combined presence of the first and cassation and the highest disciplinary presence of the government. The Senate consists of chief prosecutors and their comrades. In the department of heraldry, the chief prosecutor is called the herald master. In the general meetings of the old Senate, prosecutorial duties as the Prosecutor General are borne by the Minister of Justice. In each department, in the general meeting of the cassation departments, in the combined presence of the first and civil cassation departments, in the combined presence of the first and criminal cassation departments and in the joint. presence of the first and cassation. Departments have an office consisting, under the control of the chief prosecutor, of chief secretaries and their assistants.

The procedure for processing cases in the Senate The procedure for processing cases in the old departments of the Senate (administrative and judicial) and in their general meetings is, with only minor deviations, the order that existed in the pre-reform courts. Both the cassation departments themselves, and those general meetings and joint presences into which these departments are included, act on the basis of the judicial statutes of Emperor Alexander II. In the old Senate, cases are received, as a general rule, through the office; Only relations between the SENATE and the supreme power, the State Council and the Committee of Ministers are carried out through the Minister of Justice. Cases are prepared for report by the office), which collects all the necessary certificates, information and documents (in civil cases - only if the parties request it) and draws up a note that briefly outlines the circumstances of the case and provides all the laws related to it. The report of the case is also carried out by the office and consists of an oral presentation of the case and the reading of those documents and information that, according to their significance, should be reported in their literal content. As an addition to the report, since 1865, in criminal and civil cases (as well as land surveys), parties have been allowed to submit explanations. After reading the report, voting takes place; the adopted resolution is drawn up by the office and entered into the journal. The chancellery also prepares the text of the final determination. The Senate. Decisions of departments are decided, as a general rule, unanimously (since 1802); but since 1869, cases carried out in private, as well as cases on complaints against administrative institutions and on the representations of these institutions, are decided by a majority of 2/3 votes of the senators present. Cases on crimes of office of administrative officials and on remuneration for harm and losses caused by these crimes, as well as cases on the termination of investigations into state crimes are decided by a simple majority. If the department does not have the required majority, then the chief prosecutor should try to bring the senators to an agreement; if he fails, then within eight days he gives a written “conciliation proposal”, the report of which asks for the opinions of only the senators who participated in the hearing of the case itself. Senators can either completely accept the chief prosecutor's opinion or reject it. In the latter case, the matter is transferred to the general meeting. In general meetings a simple majority is required, except for cases coming from the first and second departments, for which a 2/3 majority is required. The right to make conciliatory proposals to general meetings belongs to the Minister of Justice. These conciliatory proposals are subject to preliminary discussion by a “consultation with the Ministry of Justice” (October 21, 1802), consisting of a fellow minister, department directors, all chief prosecutors and specially appointed members. If the general meeting does not accept the minister’s conciliation proposal, the matter is transferred to the State Council. Incomparably more significant than the influence exerted by the prosecutor's office on the old Senate through conciliatory proposals is the influence that the prosecutor's office receives by virtue of the right to pass Senate determinations: each determination of the Senate, when compiled by the office, is presented primarily to departments - chief prosecutors, to general meetings - to the Minister of Justice, who, if they agree with the definition, make the inscription “read” on it. If the Chief Prosecutor disagrees with the determination of the department, and the Minister of Justice with the determination of the general meeting, they can propose to the Senate. If the Senate does not abandon its original view, then the departmental decision can be transferred to the general meeting with the permission of the Minister of Justice; If the Minister of Justice disagrees with it, the decision of the general meeting is transferred to the respect of the Council of State. In many cases, the chief prosecutor is in any case obliged to submit it for the approval of the minister before passing a decision. If the determination is passed by the Chief Prosecutor, then it is submitted for signature to the senators, but after signing by them, it can no earlier be applied for execution, as upon presentation to the Chief Prosecutor (at the general meeting - the Minister of Justice) and by his resolution to “execute”. From departmental affairs, those cases of the first department that are decided by a simple majority of votes are not subject to omission from prosecutorial supervision, and from cases of general meetings - all cases of the second general meeting, except those for which the Senate recognizes the need to enact a new law or repeal an existing one. These restrictions on the influence of prosecutorial supervision were established in the early eighties and have not been extended since then. Of even greater practical importance than the supervision of chief prosecutors are the rights that are granted to all ministers in relation to the Senate. In a number of cases, the Senate can make a determination only with the participation of the relevant minister. This participation is expressed either in the fact that the department’s determination is forwarded to the minister before the senators sign the determination, or in the fact that the matter itself is reported only in the presence of the minister or his comrade. In some cases, the Senate also requires preliminary opinions from ministers before hearing the case on the merits. If the department does not agree with the minister’s opinion, then the matter is transferred to the general meeting, where the minister’s vote is counted in the total votes of the senators. The production of cases in the cassation departments is concentrated not in the office, but in the presence of the Senate. The case is prepared for a report and reported by one of the senators, and the role of the office is limited only to collecting certificates, etc. preparatory work. Most cases are reported not in the department itself (which requires 7 senators for its legal composition), but in the branch, where the presence of three senators is sufficient. A decision made by a department has the force of a departmental one; but in cases that are complex or raise any fundamental issue that has not yet been considered by the department, the case is transferred from department to department. Definitions are drafted by the reporting senators, not by the office. The responsibilities and rights of the chief prosecutors in the cassation departments of the Senate are completely different from those in the old departments: the chief prosecutors of the cassation departments do not have the right to supervise Senate decisions and protest in case of disagreement with them; their role is limited to presenting (personally or through fellow chief prosecutors) an opinion on the degree of validity of the cassation appeal or cassation protest. The right of supervision over the office and cassation departments is granted to the prosecutor's office.

Complaints about the Senate.

According to the general rule established in 1802, there could be no appeal to the Senate; but, according to Art. 25th decree of September 8, 1802, “how can there be extremes in which to forbid any refuge to His Imperial Majesty would deprive the sufferer of deliverance,” then complaints were allowed with the fact that “when the complaint turns out to be unfair, the complainant for filing it is betrayed there will be judgment."

The decree of 1802 did not make a distinction between the decisions of departments and general meetings. This difference appeared in 1810, when formed under the State Court. In the council, the commission of petitions left without respect all complaints regarding legal cases decided in the general senate meeting.

According to the Code of Laws of the 1832 edition, complaints could be accepted at the general meeting in cases of those seeking freedom from the landowner's estate and in cases for which a special highest order would be issued.

According to the Code published in 1842 and 1857, these cases were supplemented by cases of finding the rights of the nobility and protecting the rights of minors or the insane. The definitions of general meetings were transferred based on complaints to the State Council.

Subsequently, complaints about general meetings of the Senate were not accepted.

US Senate.

One of the two houses of the US Congress, the so-called upper house.

The Senate consists of 100 members, two from each state, elected for a term of 6 years. Originally, senators were elected by members of state legislatures, but since 1913, with the passage of the 17th Amendment to the Constitution, the election of senators has become direct. They are held simultaneously with elections to the House of Representatives, with 1/3 of the Senate being re-elected every two years. The constituency for the Senate elections is the entire state.

The Senate Chamber in the Washington Capitol.

Only the Senate has the exclusive power to try all cases of impeachment. When meeting for this purpose, senators take an oath or make a solemn promise. When the President of the United States is being tried, the Chief Justice of the United States presides over the hearing; no person can be convicted without the consent of two-thirds of the senators present.

Congress shall meet at least once a year, and its sessions shall begin at noon on the third day of January, unless by law the Congress shall appoint another day.

Consideration of the impeachment case of Andrew Johnson in 1867: as of September 24, 2009 in the US Senate - 100 senators from 50 states; 58 people represent the Democratic Party; 40 people - Republican Party; 2 senators were elected as independents from the country's two leading parties.

French Senate.

The Senate is also the upper house of the modern French parliament and is one of the branches of the French legislative branch. Unlike the lower house of parliament, the National Assembly is distinguished by the absence of heated debates and close media attention. The Senate was also the name of the upper house of parliament during the French Revolution in 1799-1804.

Until September 2004, the Senate consisted of 321 senators who were elected for 9-year terms. The term has now been reduced to 6 years and the membership is gradually increasing so that by 2010 the number of senators should reach 346, reflecting demographic changes. One third of the Senate is re-elected every three years.

Unlike deputies of the National Assembly, senators are elected through an indirect election process by approximately 150 thousand electors, including mayors, local deputies and deputies of the National Assembly. The system is designed in such a way that it gives an advantage to agricultural areas. This leads to the fact that since the formation of the Senate at the founding of the Fifth Republic, it has remained conservative.

According to tradition dating back to the French Revolution, right-wing parties occupy the right seats in the meeting room, and left-wing parties occupy the left seats.

Two laws adopted on the initiative of the Senate, one of which is organic, the other is ordinary, dated July 30, 2003, modernized and amended the status and procedure for the election of senators, in particular with the aim of ensuring the best representation of the interests of all sectors of the French population of all administrative-territorial formations.

Given the increase in the French population and changes in its geographical division, in subsequent elections the number of senators is planned to gradually increase, initially to 321 up to 348: 331 in 2004, 343 in 2008 and 348 in 2011; by that time, 326 of them will be elected at the level of departments of the metropolis and overseas territories, 10 - at the level of administrative-territorial entities of overseas territories. 12 senators represent the interests of French citizens living outside France.

The length of the senators' mandate was reduced from nine to six years; Based on transitional regulations, from 2011 a new principle of renewal of the Senate is planned - half every three years, while all senators are divided into two categories by department, approximately equal in number, instead of the previously existing three.

Finally, the minimum age to run for the office of Senator was lowered to thirty years instead of the previously established age of thirty-five years.

Who elects senators?

Senators are elected by indirect universal election by an electoral college located in each department and consisting of:

deputies, members of general and regional councils;

delegates from municipal councils, who make up 95% of the board.

Thus, senators are elected mainly by municipal councilors. The number of delegates varies in proportion to the population of the commune:

From 1 to 15 delegates from communes where the population does not exceed 9,000 inhabitants;

other municipal councils (from 29 to 69 delegates) in communes with a population of over 9,000 people.

Additional delegates in communes whose population exceeds 30,000 inhabitants at the rate of one delegate for every 1,000 inhabitants over 30,000.

Under a system of proportional representation in the thirty-nine metropolitan and overseas departments, where four or more senators are elected.

The 12 senators representing French citizens living outside France are elected by a system of proportional representation by the 150 members of the Assembly of the French Abroad.

A total of 180 seats (about 52% of all seats) are distributed through the proportional representation system, while the remaining 168 seats are distributed through majority voting.

In November 2006, there were 58 female senators in the Senate, or 17.5%.

Italian Senate.

The Senate is the upper house of the Italian parliament, comprising 315 deputies, 232 of whom are directly elected and 83 by proportional representation. A special feature is that the country's former presidents are members of the Senate for life. The age limit is 40 years. In addition, the President can appoint 5 people to the Senate for life from among honorary citizens who glorified their homeland with achievements in the field of science, literature, and art. The competence of the Senate includes declaring a state of war and vesting the Government with the necessary powers, ratifying international treaties.

Australian Senate.

The Australian Senate is the upper house of the Australian Parliament.

In the Senate, each of the 6 states of the state is represented by 12 senators, and each territory by two. Elections to the Senate are held according to party lists. Senators are elected for 6 years. Half the Senate is re-elected every three years. Territorial senators are elected for half the normal term, that is, three years.

Senators have a fixed term of office - from July 1 to June 30. At the same time, elections for the Senate are held simultaneously with elections for the House of Representatives, and since newly elected senators can take their seats only on July 1, for some time the new House of Representatives has to work with the old senators who lost the elections.

The Constitution allows the number of senators to be changed, but each of the original states must maintain equal representation and have at least 6 senators. This provision does not apply to newly admitted states and territories. By Act of Parliament 1973, the Australian Capital Territory and the Northern Territory each elect two senators.

Moreover, until 1949, each state elected 6 senators; from 1949, to ten; from 1984 to twelve.

The Australian Senate was created in accordance with the Constitutional Act of the Commonwealth of Australia of 1900 as one of the most important elements of the system of government of Australia as a federal state. The unique characteristic of the Australian Senate, which distinguishes it from the upper houses of parliaments of other states that were part of the Westminster system, is that it is not a vestigial body with limited functions in the structure of the legislative branch, but a body that plays an active role in the legislative process. Its functions partially correspond to those of the US Senate. This structure was proposed to increase the role of sparsely populated agricultural states in the federal parliament.

The Prime Minister of Australia, according to the Constitution, is a member of the lower house of Parliament - the House of Representatives - but his cabinet ministers can be members of both the lower and upper houses, with both houses having almost equal legislative powers. In particular, this is driven by the desire of sparsely populated rural states to be able to assert their interests in the same way that members of the House of Representatives can do.

The Australian Senate, like many other upper houses of parliament, is designed to ensure equal representation of regions as a whole - and, because of this, for example, Tasmania, with a population of 450 thousand, is represented by the same number of senators as New South Wales, where 6 million people live. At the same time, within each region, elections of senators are carried out according to a proportional system, as a result of which the Senate usually, from a political point of view, represents the political spectrum of voters' preferences much more widely than the House of Representatives, which is practically a bipartisan body. Senators are more representative of the population in terms of location, age and interests - and therefore this body is less politicized in its approach to the legislative process.

Senate of Poland.

The Senate began with a royal council, which sat together with the kings of the Piast dynasty. Council members played a major role in the general congresses called by the king, primarily to impose taxes. Every nobleman could come to these congresses, which became the beginnings of the Sejm. The Sejm, meeting in 1493 and considered the first

The Sejm of the formed Polish parliamentarism consisted of three classes: the king, the Senate and the Ambassadorial Hut (Chamber of Deputies). The Chamber of Deputies and the Senate, as a rule, met separately. During the work of the Sejm, they met in the senatorial hall to agree on resolutions called constitutions. The Senate also performed the function of a royal council. They met between sessions of the Diet, usually in small numbers, to give advice to the king on issues related to war, foreign policy and marriage plans. Deputies of the Ambassadorial Chamber were elected by the gentry at zemstvo sejmiks, and members of the Senate were secular and Catholic dignitaries appointed for life by the king. In different historical periods, the right of veto and the right of legislative initiative were guaranteed to varying degrees. During the partitions, the Senate existed until the suppression of the November uprising in 1831, but its importance and powers were small, as was the Seimas. After the restoration of independence, the March 1921 constitution established a parliament of two chambers - the Sejm and the Senate. After the end of the Second World War, the bicameral parliament was not revived - the Senate was abolished as a result of a fraudulent referendum in 1946.

The 1989 Senate elections were the first free elections since the war. As a result of the Round Table agreements, the second chamber was restored. Since then, citizens have elected senators seven times, most recently in 2007. The Senate consists of 100 senators elected for 4-year terms.

Over its more than 500-year history, the Senate has changed its location many times. Initially, the Sejm, which included the Senate, met in various cities of Poland, in particular in Krakow, Piotrkow and Lublin. After the conclusion of the union with Lithuania in the 16th century. meetings were supposed to take place in Warsaw Castle, and every third one in Grodno, but in practice this was rarely observed. The meeting room in the royal castle was rebuilt and changed many times. The diets at which the king was elected met in the fields near Warsaw Wola - senators in a specially constructed room, and deputies in the open air.

After the November uprising, in retaliation for the adoption of the law to overthrow the Tsar from the throne, the Tsarist authorities ordered the complete reconstruction of the Senatorial Hall in the Warsaw Royal Castle and set up military barracks there.

In 1918, after the restoration of independence, the parliament was located in the specially converted buildings of the Institute of Noble Maidens on Veiska Street. During the Second World War the buildings were completely destroyed. In 1949-1952. a complex of buildings intended for a unicameral parliament was added to the surviving meeting hall and the Deputy House. Chambers for the Senate were not provided, since the parliament was unicameral.

After the revival of the Senate in 1989, it was allocated one wing of the Diet building complex. This building did not have a large hall in which the Senate could meet. Two years later, in 1991, the second floor was rebuilt so that the Senate could meet in its own chamber. The current meeting room was created by combining three conference rooms. A room of 220 square meters was obtained. m. In such a small area it was not easy to accommodate the presidium table, the podium, and 100 seats for senators located in an amphitheater, and almost 40 seats for other participants in the meetings, invited as guests or in connection with the functions performed. A special place is reserved for the President of the Republic of Poland, above which hang the state flag and coat of arms with an eagle embroidered with silver threads modeled on the pre-war banner of the President of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. Each senator has his own permanent seat, indicated by a brass plaque engraved with his first and last name. The console has a microphone through which the senator can ask a short question or speak from the floor.

In the rooms around the hall there are: the office of the chairman of the Senate, his secretariat, the room of the director of the chairman's office, a large reception hall, a foyer with comfortable armchairs. Here, during breaks between meetings, senators can relax, drink coffee, discuss business, and meet with journalists. Portraits of Senate chairmen dating back to 1922 hang on the walls of the foyer.

Over the past two hundred years, the Polish parliament has worked intermittently, which has not helped to preserve the traditional parliamentary customs so carefully developed in some other countries. However, one very old one has survived: a material symbol of power, authority, dignity - the chairman's baton. Currently, the chairmen of the Sejm and Senate use it only in two cases: by striking the floor with the baton three times, they open or close meetings. The chairman's baton did not always have only symbolic meaning. In earlier times, it was also used for practical purposes: the chairman, hitting the floor, tried to restore order in the meeting room. Two types of wands were often used - a simple one, intended for practical purposes, i.e., to maintain order in the meeting room, and a ceremonial one, which the chairman used on special occasions. The ceremonial staffs were richly decorated with silver or gold frames, precious stones, as well as coats of arms, emblems or initials of the monarchs. The most famous presidential baton, located in the collection of the Czartoryski Museum in Krakow, is the baton of the Chairman of the Four-Year Sejm, Stanisław Malachowski. Unlike similar regalia that were symbolically held in the hands, that is, scepters, maces, bishops' staffs, this 165 cm high staff is made of oak and is devoid of decorations. Rod photo

The Chairman of the Senate, revived in 1989, first used the post-war baton of the Chairman of the Legislative Sejm, Władysław Kowalski. The mahogany shaft bore the date: 1947. The carved wooden head was shaped like stylized leaves.

On April 12, 1991, representatives of the artistic crafts workshop solemnly presented the chairman Andrzej Stelmachowski with a baton and the Coat of Arms of the Republic of Poland, designed by architects Andrzej and Barbara Kaliszewski and Bohdan Napieralki, the authors of the project for the new plenary meeting hall of the Senate. The mahogany shaft is decorated with oblong silver-plated metal rods. Dates are inscribed on the shaft - the last one commemorates the first democratic elections to the Senate after the war. The staff is decorated with a stylized gilded crown of the Piast dynasty, decorated with four light ambers. According to centuries-old law, parliament has its own guard, the so-called presidential guard, which monitors security and order in the territory of the Sejm and Senate. The guards wear identical dark blue uniforms.

The Senate, together with the Sejm, exercises legislative power in Poland. The most important task of the Senate is to participate in the process of making laws. The Senate usually gives an opinion on bills adopted by the Sejm within 30 days. The Senate can pass the law without changes, reject the law entirely, or amend its text. The Senate amendment is considered adopted if the Seimas does not reject it by an absolute majority of votes. The Senate has the right of legislative initiative, that is, it can submit its own bills to the Seimas.

The Senate also has other rights, for example, it appoints certain responsible officials, in particular the chairman of the Supreme Chamber of Control, appoints two senators to the National Council of Justice, and examines the reports of certain government institutions, such as the National Council of Radio and Television. Together with the Sejm it forms the National Assembly.

The Senate agrees to hold a national referendum announced by the president.

The Chairman of the Senate of the Republic of Poland of the seventh convocation is Bohdan Borusevich, b. in 1949 in Lidzbark Warminski. In 1975 he graduated from the Catholic University of Lublin, Faculty of Humanities, majoring in history. Since the 70s, he acted in the democratic opposition, was a member of the Workers' Defense Committee, one of the organizers of the Free Trade Unions of the Coast, and editor of the opposition magazines "Robotnik" and "Robotnik Wybrzeza". In 1980, he was one of the organizers of the August strike at the Gdańsk Shipyard and co-author of the proposals of the striking workers. After the introduction of martial law, he acted in the underground structures of Solidarity. In 1984-1986 - Member of the Temporary Coordination Commission, then the Temporary Council of the trade union association "Solidarity". He was arrested and imprisoned. In May and August 1988 he took part in strikes at the Gdańsk Shipyard. Since 1989 - member of the presidium, and in 1990-1991. - Vice Chairman of the All-Polish Solidarity Commission. In 1991-2001 - Member of the Sejm. In the Senate of the sixth convocation, he headed the Parliamentary Group on Cooperation with Non-Governmental Organizations. In 1997-2000 Vice Minister at the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Administration. In 2001-2005 Vice-Chairman and Member of the Pomeranian Voivodeship Office. Non-partisan. The Senate of the seventh convocation, elected on October 21, 2007, has 100 senators. The seventh Senate consists of 92 men and 8 women. The average age of senators is 51 years. 91 senators have higher education, 9 have secondary education. 29 senators have scientific degrees and titles. The Civic Platform of the Republic of Poland has 48 members, the Law and Justice Party has 24 senators, and the Polish Peasant Party Piast has 2 senators. One senator is a member of the Union of Left Democrats and one is a member of the Movement for the Revival of Poland. There are 24 non-partisan senators in the Senate of this convocation.

Senate of the Oliy Majlis of the Republic of Uzbekistan.

The Senate (upper house) of the Oliy Majlis of the Republic of Uzbekistan is the chamber of territorial representation. Members of the Senate (senators) are elected in equal numbers - six people each - from the Republic of Karakalpakstan, regions and the city of Tashkent by secret ballot at the relevant joint meetings of deputies of the Jokargy Kenes of the Republic of Karakalpakstan, representative bodies of state power of regions, districts and cities from among these deputies. Sixteen members of the Senate are appointed by the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan from among the most respected citizens with extensive practical experience and special merits in the field of science, art, literature, production and other areas of state and public activity.

The work of the Senate is based on the activities of senators convened for plenary sessions and meetings of its committees. In the Senate, the formation of groups on a territorial basis and on a political or other basis is excluded.

The procedure for forming the Senate is determined by the Law of the Republic of Uzbekistan “On

elections to the Oliy Majlis of the Republic of Uzbekistan" and other acts of legislation.

The term of office of the Senate is five years.

After the expiration of its term of office, the Senate continues its activities

until the start of the work of the Senate of the new convocation.

A citizen of the Republic of Uzbekistan who has reached twenty-five years of age by election day and has been permanently residing in the territory of the Republic of Uzbekistan for at least five years can be a member of the Senate. The same person cannot be simultaneously a member of the Senate and a deputy of the Legislative Chamber. A member of the Senate enjoys the right of immunity. He cannot be prosecuted, detained, taken into custody or subjected to administrative penalties imposed by a court, without the consent of the Senate, and during the period between sessions of the Senate - without the consent of the Senate Kengash. A member of the Senate is reimbursed in accordance with the established procedure for expenses related to

senatorial activities.

The powers of a member of the Senate may be terminated early in cases and in the manner prescribed by law. Members of the Senate may serve in the Senate on a permanent basis. The number of senators working in the Senate on a permanent basis is determined by up to one-fourth of the total number of senators. During the period of their powers, they cannot engage in other types of paid activities, except for scientific and

pedagogical. The status of a member of the Senate is determined by law.

The Senate adopts resolutions on issues within its jurisdiction, as well as on issues of organizing the internal activities of the chamber. On general political, socio-economic and other issues, the Senate may make statements and appeals, which are formalized by resolution of the chamber. Resolutions of the Senate, with the exception of cases provided for by this Law, are adopted by a majority vote of the total number of members of the Senate.

The powers of the Senate related to joint jurisdiction with the Legislative

chamber are:

Adoption of the Constitution of the Republic of Uzbekistan, introduction of amendments and additions to it;

Adoption of constitutional laws, laws of the Republic of Uzbekistan, introducing amendments and additions to them;

Making a decision on holding a referendum of the Republic of Uzbekistan and setting a date for its holding;

Determination of the main directions of domestic and foreign policy of the Republic of Uzbekistan and adoption of strategic state programs;

Determination of the system and powers of the legislative, executive and judicial branches of power of the Republic of Uzbekistan in accordance with the Constitution of the Republic of Uzbekistan;

Adoption of new state entities into the Republic of Uzbekistan and approval of decisions on their withdrawal from the Republic of Uzbekistan;

Legislative regulation of customs, currency and credit affairs;

Establishment of taxes and other obligatory payments;

Legislative regulation of issues of administrative-territorial structure, changing the borders of the Republic of Uzbekistan;

Formation, abolition, renaming of districts, cities, regions and changes in their boundaries;

Adoption of the State Budget of the Republic of Uzbekistan on the proposal of the Cabinet of Ministers of the Republic of Uzbekistan;

Establishment of state awards and titles;

Approval of decrees of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan on the formation and abolition of ministries, state committees and other government bodies;

Formation of the Central Election Commission of the Republic of Uzbekistan;

Consideration and approval, upon the proposal of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan, of the candidacy of the Prime Minister of the Republic of Uzbekistan;

Members of the Cabinet of Ministers of the Republic of Uzbekistan are approved by the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan on the proposal of the Prime Minister of the Republic of Uzbekistan;

Election of the Commissioner of the Oliy Majlis of the Republic of Uzbekistan for Human Rights and his deputy;

Consideration of the report of the Accounts Chamber of the Republic of Uzbekistan;

Approval of the decree of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan on declaring a state of war in the event of an attack on the Republic of Uzbekistan or if it is necessary to fulfill treaty obligations for mutual defense against aggression;

Approval of decrees of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan on the announcement of general or partial mobilization, on the introduction, extension and termination of a state of emergency;

Making decisions on ratification and denunciation of international treaties of the Republic of Uzbekistan;

Exercise of other powers provided for by the Constitution of the Republic of Uzbekistan.

Issues related to the joint jurisdiction of the chambers are considered, as a rule, first in the Legislative Chamber and then in the Senate.

The procedure for the election, appointment and dismissal of officials by the Senate on the proposal of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan is determined by the Rules of the Senate.

The organizational form of activity of the Senate is its meeting. Meetings of the Senate are held as necessary, but at least three times a year. The first meeting of the Senate is convened by the Central Election Commission of the Republic of Uzbekistan no later than a month after its formation. The first meeting of the Senate is opened by the Chairman of the Central Election Commission of the Republic of Uzbekistan and presides over it until the Chairman of the Senate is elected. An extraordinary meeting of the Senate may be convened at the proposal of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan, the Chairman of the Senate, or at the proposal of at least one third of the total number of members of the Senate.

Exclusively at meetings of the Senate, laws of the Republic of Uzbekistan are approved and acts of the Senate are adopted. The President of the Republic of Uzbekistan, the Speaker of the Legislative Chamber, the Prime Minister, members of the Cabinet of Ministers, chairmen of the Constitutional Court, the Supreme Court, the Supreme Economic Court, and the Prosecutor General of the Republic of Uzbekistan can participate in meetings of the Senate and its bodies. Representatives of government bodies and non-governmental non-profit organizations, scientific institutions, specialists and scientists, representatives of the press, television, radio and other media may be invited to the Senate meeting. Senate meetings are held openly and transparently. If necessary, the Senate may decide to hold a closed meeting. The procedure for organizing and holding meetings of the Senate is determined by the Rules of Procedure of the Senate.

Joint meetings of the Senate and the Legislative Chamber are held during the taking of the oath by the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan, during speeches by the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan on the most important issues of socio-economic life, domestic and foreign policy of the country, and speeches by leaders of foreign states. By agreement of the chambers, joint meetings of the chambers may be held on other issues.

A joint meeting of the chambers is held openly and transparently. A joint meeting of the chambers is valid if at least two-thirds of the total number of members of the Senate and deputies of the Legislative Chamber are present at it, respectively. Joint sessions of the chambers are presided alternately by the Speaker of the Legislative Chamber and the Chairman of the Senate, unless otherwise established at the joint meeting. Based on the results of the discussion of issues heard at a joint meeting of the chambers, a joint resolution of the chambers may be adopted. In this case, voting is carried out, as a rule, separately.

The Chairman of the Senate is elected on the proposal of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan at the first meeting after the formation of the Senate from among its members by a majority vote of the total number of senators by secret ballot for the term of office of the Senate. The procedure for nominating and electing the Chairman of the Senate is determined by the Rules of Procedure of the Senate.

The Chairman of the Senate shall suspend his membership in a political party and movement during the period of his duties. The President of the Senate cannot be elected to serve on Senate committees. The President of the Senate can be recalled early by a decision of the Senate adopted by more than two-thirds of the senators by secret ballot. The Chairman of the Senate on issues within his competence issues

orders.

In order to effectively organize the activities of the Senate, coordinate the work of chamber committees, prepare proposals for the agenda, and organize the preliminary consideration of laws, the Senate Kengash is formed. The Senate Kengash meets between sessions of the chamber as necessary. The Senate Kengash consists of the Chairman of the Senate, his deputies and committee chairmen. The Kengash of the Senate on issues within its competence adopts resolutions by a majority vote of the total number of its members

Meetings of Senate committees are held as needed between Senate meetings. Meetings of Senate committees are valid if at least half of the committee is present. Meetings of Senate committees are held openly. If necessary, Senate committees may decide to hold a closed meeting. Representatives of government officials may be invited to committee meetings.

bodies and non-governmental non-profit organizations, scientific institutions, specialists and scientists, representatives of press, television, radio and other media. Senate committees make decisions on the issues under consideration by a majority vote of the total number of committee members. Decisions of Senate committees sent to state bodies are subject to mandatory consideration by them with notification of the results or measures taken no later than within a month, unless otherwise established in the decision. Article 22. Senate commissions The Senate may create commissions to perform specific tasks. Commissions are created from among senators at a meeting of the Senate. At the same time, the purpose of creating the commission and its powers are determined. The commissions cease their activities after completing the tasks assigned to them or ahead of schedule by decision of the Senate. The procedure for organizing and operating commissions is determined by the Rules of Procedure of the Senate.

Senate of the Parliament of Kazakhstan.

The Parliament of the Republic of Kazakhstan is the highest representative body of the Republic, exercising legislative functions. The powers of the Parliament begin from the opening of its first session and end with the start of the first session of the Parliament of the new convocation. Parliament consists of two chambers: the Senate and the Mazhilis, which operate on a permanent basis.

The Senate is formed by deputies elected by two people from each region, city of republican significance and the capital of the Republic of Kazakhstan at a joint meeting of deputies of all representative bodies, respectively the region, city of republican significance and the capital of the Republic. Half of the Senate deputies are re-elected every three years. The seven deputies of the Senate are appointed by the President of the Republic. The term of office of the Parliament of the first convocation is four years. The term of office of Senate deputies since October 1998 is six years.

At the elections in December 1995, 40 deputies of the Senate of the Parliament of the Republic of Kazakhstan were elected - two people each from 19 regions and the capital of the Republic of Kazakhstan.

Seven deputies of the Senate are appointed by the President of the Republic.

In accordance with the Constitution of the Republic of Kazakhstan and the Constitutional Law of the Republic of Kazakhstan “On Elections in the Republic of Kazakhstan” and in connection with the expiration of the constitutional term of office of deputies of the Senate of the Parliament of the Republic of Kazakhstan, elected for 2 years, elections of deputies of the Senate of the Parliament of the Republic of Kazakhstan for 4 years were held on October 8, 1997 of the year.

As a result of optimization of the regions of the republic, elections were scheduled for 14 regions of the republic and the city of Almaty. 13 Senate deputies took part in the elections.

In connection with the announcement of the city of Akmola as the capital of the Republic of Kazakhstan, on February 11, 1998, elections of deputies of the Senate of the Parliament of the Republic of Kazakhstan for the city of Akmola were held. Two deputies were elected.

In accordance with the Constitution of the Republic of Kazakhstan and the Constitutional Law of the Republic of Kazakhstan “On Elections in the Republic of Kazakhstan” and in connection with the expiration of the constitutional term of office of the deputies of the Senate of the Parliament of the Republic of Kazakhstan, elected in December 1995 for 4 years, elections of half of the deputies of the Senate were held on September 17, 1999 Parliament of the Republic of Kazakhstan for 6 years.

The powers of half of the Senate deputies elected in October 1997, in accordance with constitutional norms, continued in the second convocation until December 2002.

In accordance with the Constitution of the Republic of Kazakhstan and the Constitutional Law of the Republic of Kazakhstan “On Elections in the Republic of Kazakhstan” and in connection with the expiration of the constitutional term of office of the deputies of the Senate of the Parliament of the Republic of Kazakhstan, elected on September 17, 1999 in 2005, elections of half of the deputies of the Senate were held on August 19, 2005 Parliament of the Republic of Kazakhstan.

The powers of half of the Senate deputies elected in 2002, in accordance with constitutional norms, continue in the third convocation until December 2008.

In accordance with the amendments made to the Constitution of the Republic of Kazakhstan and the constitutional laws of the Republic of Kazakhstan “On elections in the Republic of Kazakhstan”, “On the Parliament of the Republic of Kazakhstan and the status of its deputies”, elections of deputies of the Mazhilis of the fourth convocation were held on August 18, 2007, on August 29, 2007 by Presidential Decree 8 more deputies of the Senate were appointed to the Republic of Kazakhstan: Abdykarimov Oralbay, Akhmetov Adil Kurmanzhanovich, Yesim Garifolla, Zhylkyshiev Bolat Abzhaparuly, Kasymov Gani Yesengeldinovich, Mukhamedzhanov Tolegen Mukhamedzhanovich, Sudin Alexander Sergeevich, Tskhai Yuri Andreevich.

The number of the Senate of the Parliament of the Republic of Kazakhstan of the fourth convocation increased from 39 to 47 deputies.

On September 2, 2007, the President of the country opened the first session of the Parliament of the Republic of Kazakhstan of the fourth convocation.

Senate of Canada.

The Senate of Canada is one of the three components of the Parliament of Canada, along with the Monarch (represented by the Governor General) and the House of Commons. The Senate and House of Commons meet in two separate chambers on Parliament Hill in Ottawa, Ontario.

The Senate consists of one hundred and five members, elected by the Prime Minister and appointed by the Governor General. Seats are divided on a regional basis, with each regional division receiving twenty-four seats. There are four regional divisions: Ontario, Quebec, the Maritime Provinces and the Western Provinces. The number of seats for Newfoundland and Labrador, Northwest Territories, Yukon and Nunavut is determined outside of these regional divisions. Senators may sit until they reach the age of seventy-five.

The Senate is the "upper house" of Parliament, and the House of Commons is its "lower house". However, this does not mean that the Senate has more power than the House of Commons. Instead, traditionally the House of Commons predominates, and although legislation requires the consent of both houses to pass legislation, the Senate only very rarely rejects bills passed by the democratically elected chamber. In addition, the government of Canada depends solely on the House of Commons: the prime minister and his government hold office only if they have the confidence of the lower house, which can dissolve the government without giving it confidence. The Senate does not have any powers of this kind. Although a bill can begin debate in either of the two houses, most government bills are first introduced in the House of Commons. Finance bills are constitutionally required to always come from the lower house.

The chamber in which the Senate meets is sometimes called the "red chamber" due to its luxurious decoration and red fabric decorating the chamber, which is in direct contrast to the more modest style and green color of the House of Commons. This arrangement is inherited from the halls of the British Parliament, where the House of Lords sits in a luxurious hall with red benches, and the House of Commons in a sparsely decorated hall with green benches.

The Senate was founded on March 29, 1867, when the Parliament of the United Kingdom voted in favor of the British North America Act. This act united the Province of Canada (the two halves of which - Eastern and Western Canada - were divided into two separate provinces corresponding to today's Quebec and Ontario, respectively), Nova Scotia and New Brunswick into a single federation called the Dominion of Canada.

The Parliament of Canada was formed in accordance with the Westminster system (modeled on the Parliament of the United Kingdom). The Senate was initially intended to emulate the British House of Lords and represent the social and economic elite. Canada's first Prime Minister, Sir John A. Macdonald, said it was a chamber that would contain the "democratic excess" of the elected House of Commons and make possible equality of regional representation.

In the foreground is the chair of the Chairman of the Senate. The other two at the back are the thrones of Her Majesty the Queen and her consort, or the Governor-General and her husband.

Although a bill can be introduced in either of the two houses, most bills first pass through the House of Commons. However, due to the greater flexibility of the debate schedule in the Senate, the government sometimes introduces particularly complex bills there.

To pass a law, the consent of both houses of Parliament is necessary, and theoretically their powers are equal with two exceptions:

According to the British model, the upper house cannot introduce bills to increase taxes and fees or to issue government interest-bearing securities. As in the United States, but unlike the United Kingdom, this limitation on the powers of the Senate does not depend on tacit agreement: it is clearly stated in the Constitution Act 1867.

The House of Commons may override the Senate's refusal to accept an amendment to the Canadian Constitution; however, she must wait at least 180 days before exercising this right.

But in reality the House of Commons prevails, and the Senate only very rarely uses its powers to oppose the will of the elected chamber.

However, in some periods, especially under minority governments, the Senate is more active in examining, amending and even rejecting bills.

Unlike the House of Commons, the Senate plays only a very limited role in scrutinizing the government. Only the House of Commons can force the Prime Minister to resign or ask for the dissolution of Parliament and new elections by issuing a "by-election order" when passing a motion of no confidence or when a majority votes against the government's budget.

Most members of the Council of Ministers are members of the House of Commons, not senators. In particular, all prime ministers have been members of the House of Commons since 1896. A typical council of ministers includes one senator - the leader of the government in the Senate. From time to time, when the party in power does not have a single deputy from any region, a senator is appointed to the ministry to ensure regional balance in the government.

The Governor General of Canada has the power to appoint senators; however, by agreement he makes these appointments only on the advice of the Prime Minister. The latter usually selects members of his own party for appointment to the Senate, but there are also appointments of independent members or members of the opposition party. In fact, a very large number of members of the Senate are former members of the Council of Ministers or former provincial prime ministers.

The Constitution provides for a certain number of senators for each province and each territory. It divides the provinces into four main parts and gives each of these parts an equal number of senators.

Newfoundland and Labrador, which only received provincial status in 1949, is not included in any of these parts and is represented by 6 senators.

Three territories (Northwest Territories, Yukon and Nunavut) each have 1 seat.

All senators must reside in the province or territory they represent, but only senators from Quebec are appointed to a specific area of ​​their province. This measure was initially passed to ensure accurate representation of Anglophones and Francophones in the Senate.

This distribution, as in other upper houses around the world, does not take into account population criteria in determining the number of senators and leads to representational inequalities: Ontario, British Columbia and Alberta - the Canadian provinces with the fastest growing populations - are severely underrepresented, then how the coastal provinces are overrepresented. For example, British Columbia, with a population of 4 million, is entitled to 6 senators, and Nova Scotia, with a population of less than a million, is entitled to 10. Only Quebec is represented by a number of senators proportional to its demographic weight.

Since 1989, Alberta has held elections for "non-incumbent senators" (who are appointed as provincial senators by voters. But these elections are not provided for in any legal or federal constitutional provision, and therefore the Prime Minister is in no way obligated to appoint these candidates to Senate To date, only one elected senator has been appointed to the Senate: in 1990, Stan Waters was appointed on the advice of Prime Minister Brian Mulroney, but died in 1991.

There is a constitutional provision - subsection 26 of the Constitution Act 1867 - under which the Prime Minister can propose the appointment of four or eight additional senators; these senators must equally represent the four parts of Canada. This provision has been invoked twice in history, but has only been used once.

In 1990, Prime Minister Brian Mulroney invoked it to secure passage of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) Bill. The appointment of eight additional senators created a weak majority for the Progressive Conservative Party.

In 1874, Prime Minister Alexander Mackenzie had already asked to use this provision, but it was denied by Queen Victoria on the advice of the British government.

Until 1965, senators retained their positions for life. However, by virtue of the British North America Act 1965, members of the Senate can no longer sit after they reach the age of seventy-five. Senators appointed before this change was introduced were able to continue to sit after this age limit was exceeded.

A senator's seat automatically becomes vacant if he neglects to attend Senate meetings for two consecutive parliamentary sessions. In addition, a senator found guilty of treason, felony, or any other "disgraceful crime" who is declared incompetent also loses his seat. This also applies to a senator who no longer meets the qualification criteria (see Qualifications below).

As of 2006, a senator's salary is $122,700 per year. Senators may receive additional pay if they perform additional duties (such as presiding over the Senate). Senators are ranked twenty-fourth in the order of seniority, immediately before members of the House of Commons and after federal and provincial judges.

The qualifications required for senators are established by the Constitution Act of 1867.

In order to be appointed as a senator, you must:

Be a Canadian citizen.

Be fully thirty years old.

Live in the province he represents in the Senate.

Possess land with a minimum value of $4,000 in the province he represents, as well as movable and immovable property with a minimum value of $4,000 in addition to all debts and obligations. These property qualifications were originally introduced to ensure representation in the Senate for Canada's economic and social elite, but today the amount required due to inflation is quite small. However, the land qualification was never repealed or changed and caused some problems with the appointment to the Senate in 1997 of Peggy Butts, a Catholic nun with a vow of poverty. (The situation was settled when her order formally transferred a small piece of land into her name).

The original Canadian constitution did not explicitly prohibit women from sitting in the Senate, but in fact only men were appointed to the upper house until the late 1920s. In 1927, five Canadian women (the "Famous Five") asked the Supreme Court of Canada to determine whether women were eligible for appointment to the Senate by clearly answering the question: "Are women people?" In fact, the British North America Act of 1867 stated that “the Governor-General shall call to the Senate such persons as are qualified; and every person thus called is and shall be a member of the Senate and a senator.” In this case, known as the People's Case, the Supreme Court unanimously ruled that women could not become senators. The court based its decision on the argument that the framers of the constitution could not have foreseen the possibility of women sitting in the Senate, since women did not then participate in politics; In addition, they appreciated the fact that the Constitution uses the pronoun “he” to refer to senators. However, the Judicial Committee of the British Privy Council (then the highest court in Canada) overturned this decision and ruled that women were indeed “human beings” in the constitutional sense. Four months later, in February 1930, the government of Prime Minister William Lyon Mackenzie King appointed the first woman to the Senate, Caryn Wilson of Ontario.

The President of the Senate is appointed by the Governor General after selecting the Prime Minister. The Chairman is assisted by an Acting Chairman, elected by the Senate at the beginning of each parliamentary session. If the chairman is unable to attend a meeting, the acting chairman will preside in his place. In addition, the Parliament of Canada Act, passed in 1985, allows the chairman to appoint another senator to serve temporarily. During the correction of office, the chairman must be impartial, even if he remains a member of a political party.

The President presides over the meetings of the Senate and directs the debate by giving members the floor. He is also required to issue a ruling when any senator believes that due process has been violated and makes a "call to the statute." However, the decisions of the chairman can be followed by the entire Senate. Unlike the President of the House of Commons, the President of the Senate does not only vote in cases of a tie: he has the right to vote like any other senator.

The current chairman is Noel Kinsella.

The leader of the government in the Senate is the member of the government responsible for running bills in the Senate. The leader is a senator chosen by the prime minister and a member of the council of ministers. The leader manages the Senate's schedule and tries to secure opposition support for the government's legislative program.

His counterpart in the Opposition is the Leader of the Opposition in the Senate, usually chosen by the Leader of the Opposition in the House of Commons. However, if the official opposition in the House of Commons is a party different from the official opposition in the Senate (as was the case, for example, from 1993 to 2003), then the official opposition party in the Senate elects its own leader.

The non-member officers are the secretary, assistant secretary, legal secretary and a number of other secretaries. These officers are consulted by the chairman and members regarding the rules and conduct of the meetings of the Senate.

Another official is the Black Rod Assistant, whose duties are to maintain order and security within the Senate chamber. His name comes from the black ceremonial staff he carries. This position is more or less equivalent to the Serjeant-at-Arms in the House of Commons, but the role of an assistant is more ceremonial. Responsibility for security and for ground facilities lies with the Chief Services Officer of Parliament City.

Like the House of Commons, the Senate meets on Parliament Hill in Ottawa.

The Senate Chamber is luxuriously decorated in shades of red, in contrast to the more modest decoration and green color of the House of Commons. The senators' chairs are located on both sides of the main aisle, and the chairman's chair is located at one end of the hall. Opposite this place is the secretary's office, where the secretaries sit, ready to advise the chairman on procedure when necessary. Members of the government sit on soft seats to the right of the chairman, and members of the opposition occupy seats to his left.

The Senate Chamber is where the Opening of Parliament takes place, an annual protocol ceremony at the start of each parliamentary session. Then, seated on the throne of the Senate chamber, the Governor-General, in the presence of both Houses and the judges of the Supreme Court, makes a speech outlining the direction the government will take in the coming parliamentary session. If the Monarch is in Canada, he himself can give the Speech from the Throne instead of the Governor General.

According to the charter of the Senate, the latter sits from Tuesday to Thursday. The proceedings of the Senate are open to spectators and are printed in full in Debat du Seine. Unlike the House of Commons, the Senate does not regularly televise its proceedings, although debates on certain issues are occasionally televised.

The Constitutional Act of 1867 established a quorum for the Senate of fifteen members, including the presiding member. Any senator may ask the chairman to ensure a quorum; if it happens that there is no quorum, the chairman orders the bells to be rung so that other senators can return to the hall. If a quorum is still not reached, the chairman must adjourn the meeting to the next business day.

Progress of the debate

During the debate, the first senator to stand has the right to make the next speech. When many senators rise at the same time, the chairman decides who was first to rise, but his decision can be changed by the Senate.

To begin discussion, proposals must be introduced by one senator and supported by a second; however, some (non-negotiable) proposals cannot be discussed.

Speeches may be given in Canada's two official languages ​​- English and French. Senators should address all senators using the expression “honorable senators,” rather than addressing any individual senator. Individual senators must be referred to in the third person and never in the second. This order is similar, but not similar to the order in the House of Commons, where all speeches and all interpretations are addressed to the chairman.

No senator may take the floor more than once on any one issue; however, a senator who has made an important motion, proposed an investigation, or vouched for a bill has the right of last reply, which allows him to take the floor again at the end of the debate. In the case of a bill, this right of response can only be used during the discussion in the second reading.

The Senate Rules set time limits for speeches. These limits vary depending on the nature of the proposal, but are typically fifteen minutes. However, these restrictions do not apply to government and opposition leaders. The discussion can also be shortened by adopting a "time allocation" motion. The Senate can also quickly end debate by passing the motion "as a preliminary question." If such a motion is accepted, discussion immediately ends and the Senate proceeds to a vote. The debate may also end if no senator has additional comments.

When the discussion ends, the current proposal is put to a vote. The Senate votes loudly: the chairman asks a question, the members answer "yes" or "no", and at the end of the vote the chairman verbally announces the result. However, two or more senators can challenge the count and force a roll call vote. Senators in favor of the proposal stand up to have their names and votes recorded by the secretaries. The same procedure is repeated twice for anti-proposal members and abstaining members. In any case, the chairman has the right to vote, but this right is usually not used, and he votes only upon roll call. A tie vote results in the proposal being restarted. If the number of members voting, including the chairman, is less than fifteen, there is no quorum and the vote is invalid.

It is the responsibility of the chairman to monitor compliance with the Senate's bylaws during debate, and failure to comply with his instructions is considered a gross violation of the bylaws.

Commissions can be created for various purposes. Among other things, they review bills in detail and can make changes to them. Some commissions are also formed to control various ministries and government bodies.

The largest committee in the Senate is the plenary committee, which includes all senators. The Plenary Commission meets in the Senate chamber, but the rules of discussion are slightly modified compared to the Senate meeting. For example, there is no limit on the number of times a member can take the floor on the same sentence. The Senate may meet in plenary committee for various reasons, including to consider a bill or to hear personal testimony. For example, prior to their appointment, candidates for parliamentary office must appear before a plenary committee to answer questions related to their qualifications.

The Senate also has a number of standing committees responsible for specific aspects of government (for example, finance or transport). These commissions review bills and conduct special studies on issues referred to them by the Senate. They may conduct surveys, collect data, and report their work to the Senate. Each standing commission consists of nine to fifteen members and elects its own chairman.

On certain issues, the Senate appoints special commissions when deemed necessary. Some of these committees examine legislation, such as the 2001 Senate Select Committee on Bill C-36 (the Counter-Terrorism Act), while others examine cases of special significance, such as the Senate Select Committee on Drug Trafficking. The number of members of each select committee may vary, but the partisan composition roughly reflects the importance of the parties in the Senate.

There are also mixed commissions consisting of both senators and deputies. There are currently two mixed commissions: the Standing Mixed Commission for Supervising the Establishment of Rules, which reviews regulations on laws, and the Standing Mixed Commission of the Library of Parliament, with which both chairmen consult on the management of the library. Parliament may also establish special mixed commissions to deal with topical or particularly important matters.

Intentions to transform the Senate mainly concern the process of appointing senators. Until the 1980s, proposed plans for an elected Senate did not receive widespread support, but this changed in 1980 when Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau, in response to the energy crisis of the 1970s, despite widespread opposition in the Canadian West, secured the passage of the National Energy Program . Despite the opposition, Trudeau actually had little difficulty in securing the support of the Senate, since most of the senators were appointed by former Liberal Party prime ministers and himself. Many Western Canadians then began to demand a "Three E's Senate" - "elective, efficient and equivalent" - also arguing that equivalent provincial representation could protect the interests of small provinces and end the dominance of Ontario and Quebec. Many suggestions were as follows:

In 1987, the Meech Lake Agreement - a series of constitutional amendments proposed by Prime Minister Brian Mulroney - would have forced the federal government to select senators from each province from a list provided by the provincial government, but the agreement did not receive the necessary unanimous support from the provincial assemblies.

The second proposal, the Charlottetown Agreement, included a provision that proposed that the Senate be composed of an equivalent number of senators from each province, elected either by the provincial legislatures or directly by the people. This agreement was not adopted in a referendum held in 1992 for various reasons.

Other proposals to reshape the Senate have been even less successful, largely due to opposition from Ontario and Quebec, the two provinces with the most to lose from equivalent representation.

Today, the New Democratic Party and the Bloc Québécois are jointly demanding the dissolution of the Senate. Ontarian Prime Minister Dalton McGuinty also expressed his positive views on the dissolution. Although the Liberal Party has not set out any official position on the Senate overhaul, former Prime Minister Paul Martin has said he is "supportive" of the Senate overhaul as long as the provinces are involved in the process and that the proposed overhaul "does not create more inequality." The Conservative Party has promised to appoint only elected senators, although Prime Minister Stephen Harper appointed one unelected person to the Senate after forming his first council of ministers.

In response to criticism that the overwhelming Liberal majority in the Senate had compromised its ability to do the right thing, Prime Minister Paul Martin (December 2003–February 2006) took the same approach as Pierre Trudeau: he agreed to appoint senators from opposition parties. Just over a third (5 of 14) of Martin's appointments, which promised to solve this "democratic deficit", were from opposition parties: two Progressive Conservatives, two Conservatives and one New Democrat. Before him, Trudeau (April 1968-June 1979 and March 1980-June 1984) called eight members of the eighty-one appointments he made during his terms from opposition parties, and the very first Prime Minister John A. Macdonald (July 1867-November 1873 and October 1878-June 1891) - ten of ninety-one appointments. Besides these twenty-three senators, only nine other senators in the history of the country have been appointed to opposition caucus in the Senate. This did not take into account senators without political affiliation.

Minister of State for Democratic Change Stephen Fletcher has promised that in 2009 he will introduce legislation to establish an electoral process in the Senate and no more than an eight-year mandate for senators. The Minister of State also issued a warning that if the government could not act consistently, he would not rule out the possibility of dissolving the upper house completely.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper (February 2006–present) promised to hold elections during his term to fill all open Senate seats. Unlike most proposals to reshape the Senate, Harper intends to fulfill this promise without changing the constitution by simply advising the governor general to appoint selectmen to sit in the Senate. However, on the day he was sworn in as Prime Minister, it was discovered that Quebecois Michael Fortier would be a member of the Council of Ministers and that he would be appointed to the Senate, and at the time of the dissolution of Parliament would resign from his position in order to become a candidate. to the House of Commons at the next general election. Formally, M. Fortier was appointed to the Senate on February 27, 2006.

Harper also promised other changes, including limited terms for senators. Ultimately, on May 30, 2006, the government introduced Senate Bill S-4, which would amend the Constitution Act 1867 to limit the length of a newly elected senator's mandate to eight years; The bill contains a provision allowing modern senators to continue to sit until age 75. However, no indication was given as to the time or manner of introducing senatorial elections. Appearing before a Senate committee, Harper announced that his government would introduce legislation in the fall of 2006 to allow Canadians to elect their own senators.

Due to disagreements between the Conservative, Liberal and provincial parties, the bill failed to succeed.

On June 22, 2006, Ontarian Senator Lowell Murray (Progressive Conservative) and British Columbian Senator Jack Austin (Liberal) introduced a draft amendment to the Canadian Constitution to change representation in the Senate. This amendment increases the total number of senators to 117 members, giving more to the provinces of the Canadian West: British Columbia gets 12, Alberta 10, Saskatchewan and Manitoba each have 7. These four provinces currently have 6 senators each. The amendment also increases the number of divisions separating British Columbia, and increases from four or eight to five or ten the number of additional senators whom the Queen may appoint. The amendment has not yet been debated, but in a letter to British-Columbia Prime Minister Gordon Campbell, Austin states that he has the support of a majority of senators.

17.2. In the foreground is the chair of the President of the Senate of Canada. The other two at the back are the thrones of Her Majesty the Queen and her consort, or the Governor-General and her husband.

Spanish Senate.

According to the Spanish Constitution of 1978, the legislative body in the country is a bicameral parliament - the Cortes Generales - which consists of the Congress of Deputies and the Senate. The Senate is the chamber for the second reading of bills approved by the Congress of Deputies. The Senate can make its own additions and amendments to bills, which, in order to be adopted, require subsequent approval by the Congress of Deputies. The Senate has the right to veto a bill, but with an absolute majority of votes, the Congress of Deputies, when reconsidering a draft law, can override the Senate's veto.

In terms of exercising control over the activities of the government and state administration, senators can make requests to various ministries and departments, and hear reports from ministers at meetings of sectoral commissions.

The Senate elects four of the twelve members of the Constitutional Court and ten of the twenty members of the Supreme Council of the Legal Power of Spain, together with the Congress of Deputies, elects the Public Defender, who periodically reports to the Senate on his activities to protect the rights and freedoms of Spanish subjects.

In some cases not related to legislative activity, the Senate and the Congress of Deputies hold joint plenary sessions. For example, this concerns issues of royal succession in Spain. There is a practice of forming mixed commissions, which include senators and deputies: mixed commissions for the affairs of the European Communities, for relations with the Court of Accounts of Spain, etc.

Berlin Senate.

The Berlin Senate is the government of the state of Berlin, headed by the ruling burgomaster.

The ruling burgomaster is the head of the executive power in Berlin, combining two functions: burgomaster of the city of Berlin and prime minister of the state of Berlin. The ruling burgomaster heads the government of Berlin - the Senate of Berlin. The head of the executive branch of Berlin before World War II was called the mayor. The name “ruling burgomaster” appeared in 1948, after the Soviet occupation authorities refused to recognize Ernst Reuther as the mayor of Berlin. Reuter, with the rank of ruling burgomaster, headed the government of the three Western occupation sectors, united to form West Berlin.

Until 1945, the government of Berlin was called a magistrate, led by the mayor of Berlin. The name Senate of Berlin, borrowed from the Hanseatic cities, appeared after the elections to the Berlin City Assembly in 1946, but after the division of the city into West and East Berlin, it was retained only by the West Berlin government. The government of East Berlin until 1977 was called the Magistrate of Greater Berlin, which was headed by the Mayor of Greater Berlin, creating the illusion of governing all of Berlin. Then, to raise the role of East Berlin as the capital of the GDR, the city government began to be called the Magistrate of Berlin, the capital of the GDR. After the reunification of Germany on October 3, 1990 and until the elections on December 2, 1990, a “dual” government functioned in Berlin - the Senate of West Berlin, led by Walter Momper, and the Magistrate of East Berlin, led by Tino Schwirtzin, popularly nicknamed the “Magi Senate.”

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