The Chief Prosecutor’s Office of the Holy Synod at the End of the Reign of Empress Catherine II

Abstract

This article analyzes the activities of the last three Chief Prosecutors under the rule of Empress Catherine II: S. V. Akchurin (1774–1786), A. I. Naumov (1786–1791), and A. I. Musin-Pushkin (1791–1797). The author identifies the reasons why the strengthening of the Chief Prosecutor’s Office did not lead to conflicts between the Synodal Presence and the Chief Prosecutors during this period. To substantiate his conclusions, the author uses a set of archival documents from various archive repositories. Examined are the efforts of the Chief Prosecutor’s Office to restore order in the chancellery. Special attention is given to S. V. Akchurin’s set of measures, ordered to address to the Chief Secretary and defined the program of action for the Chief Prose­cutor’s Office for the remainder of the period under study. Chief Prosecutors ma­naged to minimize delays in preparing reports and drafting protocols by developing a system of oversight for officials and lower-level employees. Chief Prosecutors also took measures to maintain clerical secrecy. The article traces the continuity between Chief Prosecutors in improving the Synodal office management system. Members of the Synod fully approved of the Chief Prosecutors’ work in the area of the office management and almost completely delegated oversight of the clerks to them. The article also examines the dispute between A. I. Musin-Pushkin, who, unlike S. V. Akchurin and A. I. Naumov, enjoyed the Empress’ trust, and the Senate’s Prosecutor General. A. I. Musin-Pushkin defended the prerogatives of his office and the independence of Synod from the state system of governance, acting in full agreement with the Synodal presence and was willing to cede his prerogatives in the Synod for the sake of the Synodal administration’s independence from the Prosecutor General. The author concludes that by the end of the 18th century, a balance had developed between the clergy and the Chief Prosecutor’s Office within the Synodal system, which facilitated the effective functioning of the highest church governing body.