Chamberlain's key (sign of the court title of chamberlain), Russia. Chamberlains: “room gentlemen” The meaning of the word chamberlain

In 1711-1809 - court rank; in 1809-1917 - honorary title (from German Kammerherr - room).

The first actual Chamberlain was appointed on March 8, 1711, the grandbrother of Tsarina Natalya Kirillovna S.G. Naryshkin. He performed the duties of the former room attendant or sleeping bag.

In accordance with the decree of August 15, 1762, Chamberlains were to be present at all court ceremonies: at coronations, baptisms and funerals of the highest persons, at public visits of ambassadors, at ceremonial exits of the Imperial family, at ceremonial tables, etc. By decree of July 7, 1762 years The chamberlains were required to be on constant duty under the e.i.v. During coronations and other ceremonies, the Chamberlains (by appointment) carried the train of the Imperial Robe.

The chief chamberlain, chamberlains, and chamber cadets, according to the highest decree of August 15, 1762, carried out all the duties of court gentlemen, which were specially described for each ceremony by the chief chamberlain.

Chamberlain Prince G.D. Shervashidze. Photo by Keith Weiss from the early 20th century.

Under Peter I, all courtiers (including the Chamberlains) were attached to the empress.

According to the "Table of Ranks", approved on January 24, 1722, the actual Chamberlain corresponded to VI class. (form of address “Your Honor”).

The 1st court staff, approved on December 14, 1727, provided for 8 Chamberlains; in addition, according to the staff of the court of Grand Duchess Natalya Alekseevna, there was 1 Chamberlain.

In 1730, the entire court staff, incl. all Chamberlains, was subordinate to the Chief and Chief Marshal; The chamberlain was equated to the rank.

According to the staff of 1737, the Chamberlains were transferred from the VI class. in IV (form of address “Your Excellency”).

According to the highest approved staff of March 20, 1742, 5 more Chamberlains were appointed under the heir to the throne, Duke of Schleswig-Holstein (the rank of Chamberlain under the heir to the Imperial throne was equal to the rank of the court). Chamberlains of Catherine II were equal to the rank. Since June 28, 1775, 12 full-time and 12 supernumerary Chamberlains appeared.

For the entire XVIII century. there were 289 Chamberlains (with - 103).

Under Paul I, according to the “Court Monthly Book,” there were 26 Chamberlains, and the Chamberlains were promoted to the Chamberlain cadets. In June 1800, the possibility was provided for valid Chamberlains (IV class) to receive the rank of Privy Councilor (III class); the title of Chamberlain in this case was retained as an honorary title, but its holders were exempt from constant duty at court.

According to the new staff on December 18, 1801, 12 Chamberlains with a salary and 12 without a salary were approved; in addition, 2 Chamberlains under Grand Duchess Maria Pavlovna and 2 Chamberlains under Grand Duchess Ekaterina Pavlovna. Alexander I restored 30 Catherine’s nobles to the rank of Chamberlain; during his reign the Chamberlains often switched to military service, while maintaining his court rank. In fact, by 1809, since the beginning of the century, there had been 76 Chamberlains at court.

By the highest decree on April 3, 1809, the rank of Chamberlain was transformed into an honorary title. From that moment on, the honorary title of Chamberlain was awarded at the discretion of the Emperor. According to the highest approved decree of June 23, 1836, it was forbidden to give the title of Chamberlain to persons with a rank lower than state councilor; according to a personal decree of July 11, 1850, this qualification was raised to the rank of no lower than actual state councilor. Chamberlains, upon reaching the rank of privy councilor in the service, were excluded from the court lists.

The honorary title of Chamberlain could be given outside civil service, for example, the provincial leader of the nobility, elected for 3 three-year terms, could become Chamberlain.

From 1809 until the middle of the 19th century. two types of Chamberlains were distinguished: complete (i.e., 12 Chamberlains included in the court staff) and with the formula “rank of chamberlains.”

Since 1840, the 1st had civil ranks of III - IV classes, the 2nd - IV.

After 1809, the responsibilities of the Chamberlains, as before, included: daily (in the order of rotation) duty under the Empresses; presentation of males and other members of the Imperial family who came to the reception; special duties at court ceremonies, balls, and in the theater. Date of article writing: (date) Articles used in writing this article: PSZ I. ​​T. 6. No. 3890, 3969; T. 16. No. 11611, 11645; T. 24. No. 17700; T. 30. No. 23559, 26510; PSZ II. T. 1. No. 233; T. 11. No. 9336; T. 25. No. 24325; Miloradovich T.A. List of persons in the retinue of their majesties from the reign of the emperor. Paul I to 1886. Kyiv, 1886; Volkov NOT. Russian yard Emperors past and present. St. Petersburg, 1900; Shepelev L.E. Canceled by history: Ranks, ranks and titles in Russia. empires. L., 1977. Image source: GE

Chamberlain's key from the reign of Nicholas II. Bronze, gilding partially preserved. The eagle has been repaired, the pin is missing; an ear is soldered instead. The Imperial Crown is also missing.
Rare.

Ancient chamberlain keys are unique antiques that were an important attribute of the court rank. Their name comes from the German word "Kammerherr". Such a key meant that the chamberlain had the right to enter all the personal apartments of his monarch. At a time when St. Petersburg was the capital Russian Empire, the chamberlains received special symbolic keys at their disposal during a special ceremony at court. Of course, the chamberlain’s keys did not fit into any door in the imperial residence.
Although, initially, the history of the chamberlain position still began with real chamberlain keys, intended not for opening chambers, but for storeroom doors. In the sixteenth century, at the Spanish courts, there was the position of camarero, the holder of which was in charge of the king’s treasury and carried the key to it. At the courts of European emperors and kings, “cameriers” or “camerarius” served, later renamed “chamberlains” and becoming “room nobles”. At this time, the chamberlains inherited keys from previous times, which had already become symbolic.
Having lost their functionality, the chamberlain's keys became more elegant and were particularly beautiful. Ancient keys began to be made using gilding, and their heads were decorated with monograms and coats of arms of monarchs. The rank of chamberlain in Russia appeared in 1711 after the official marriage of Peter the Great with Marta Skavronskaya, who almost immediately began reforming the existing court staff in accordance with European standards. So, chamberlains began to replace ordinary lawyers with keys, room sleeping bags and stewards. Since uniforms for court servants did not yet exist in those days, the main symbol of the position was the chamberlain’s key.
In 1762, Catherine II came to the throne and immediately began to redevelop the farm. She determined the list of duties of the chamberlains and granted them the rank of conditional major general, obliged to stand at the throne and carry the train behind the empress. The chamberlains received not only a general's uniform, but also a golden key, which served as a sign of correcting the title of the position.
The chamberlains' keys could be different. Servants who managed to achieve the rank of chief chamberlain received golden keys encrusted with diamonds from the empress. They were worn on a special gold chain with two massive tassels. Both during the reign of Katerina and under Alexander I, chamberlain keys were made by craftsmen from gold, and their cost in 1805 was five hundred rubles.
Historians and antiquarians have found that until 1833 there was no single example of a chamberlain key. Under Alexander I, such keys were most often made arbitrarily or based on tradition. This caused dissatisfaction among the employees, so it was decided to work on the production of a single sample of the chamberlain's key, which was eventually approved in October 1833.
From that time until the beginning of 1917, the ancient chamberlain key differed only in the shape of the state coat of arms and the outline of the golden eagle that served as the handle of the key. The initials of the ruling emperor were also changed. According to the statute of the 18th - early 19th centuries, antique chamberlain keys were made exclusively of gold. Over time, the position of chamberlain lost its importance, and with it, chamberlain keys were no longer made.
Based on materials from the site transantique.ru

Chamberlain's key from the reign of Nicholas II. Bronze, gilding partially preserved. The eagle has been repaired, the pin is missing; an ear is soldered instead. The Imperial Crown is also missing.
Rare.

Ancient chamberlain keys are unique antiques that were an important attribute of the court rank. Their name comes from the German word "Kammerherr". Such a key meant that the chamberlain had the right to enter all the personal apartments of his monarch. At a time when St. Petersburg was the capital of the Russian Empire, chamberlains received special symbolic keys during a special ceremony at court. Of course, the chamberlain’s keys did not fit into any door in the imperial residence.
Although, initially, the history of the chamberlain position still began with real chamberlain keys, intended not for opening chambers, but for storeroom doors. In the sixteenth century, at the Spanish courts, there was the position of camarero, the holder of which was in charge of the king’s treasury and carried the key to it. At the courts of European emperors and kings, “cameriers” or “camerarius” served, later renamed “chamberlains” and becoming “room nobles”. At this time, the chamberlains inherited keys from previous times, which had already become symbolic.
Having lost their functionality, the chamberlain's keys became more elegant and were particularly beautiful. Ancient keys began to be made using gilding, and their heads were decorated with monograms and coats of arms of monarchs. The rank of chamberlain in Russia appeared in 1711 after the official marriage of Peter the Great with Marta Skavronskaya, who almost immediately began reforming the existing court staff in accordance with European standards. So, chamberlains began to replace ordinary lawyers with keys, room sleeping bags and stewards. Since uniforms for court servants did not yet exist in those days, the main symbol of the position was the chamberlain’s key.
In 1762, Catherine II came to the throne and immediately began to redevelop the farm. She determined the list of duties of the chamberlains and granted them the rank of conditional major general, obliged to stand at the throne and carry the train behind the empress. The chamberlains received not only a general's uniform, but also a golden key, which served as a sign of correcting the title of the position.
The chamberlains' keys could be different. Servants who managed to achieve the rank of chief chamberlain received golden keys encrusted with diamonds from the empress. They were worn on a special gold chain with two massive tassels. Both during the reign of Katerina and under Alexander I, chamberlain keys were made by craftsmen from gold, and their cost in 1805 was five hundred rubles.
Historians and antiquarians have found that until 1833 there was no single example of a chamberlain key. Under Alexander I, such keys were most often made arbitrarily or based on tradition. This caused dissatisfaction among the employees, so it was decided to work on the production of a single sample of the chamberlain's key, which was eventually approved in October 1833.
From that time until the beginning of 1917, the ancient chamberlain key differed only in the shape of the state coat of arms and the outline of the golden eagle that served as the handle of the key. The initials of the ruling emperor were also changed. According to the statute of the 18th - early 19th centuries, antique chamberlain keys were made exclusively of gold. Over time, the position of chamberlain lost its importance, and with it, chamberlain keys were no longer made.
Based on materials from the site transantique.ru

The key is an attribute of a high court rank, the name of which comes from the German Kammerherr. This is a symbol that the chamberlain has the right to enter the personal apartments of the monarch at any time. In St. Petersburg, when it was the capital of the Russian Empire, chamberlains carried symbolic keys during court ceremonies. The chamberlain's keys, of course, did not fit into any of the locks in the imperial residences. Although the history of the chamberlain position began with real keys. But not from the chambers at all, but from the storerooms. At the Spanish court in the 16th century, there was the position of camarero, or camarlengo, its owner was in charge of the king’s personal treasury, the key to which he constantly carried with him. In Russia in 1646, a “solicitor with a key” was mentioned for the first time, serving as an assistant to the bed guard. At European courts, the “cameriers”, or “camerarii”, turned into “chamberlains”, that is, from guardians of the treasury they became “room nobles”. As a legacy from former times, the chamberlains kept the keys, which have already become symbolic. But, having lost functionality, the chamberlain's keys gained a lot in beauty. They became entirely gilded, and the heads were decorated with the coats of arms and monograms of the monarchs. In Russia, the rank of chamberlain was first granted in 1711, when Peter the Great, after his official marriage to Ekaterina Alekseevna - Marta Skavronskaya, began reforming the court staff in accordance with the new image of Russia as a European power. The chamberlains replaced the old Testament lawyers with keys, room stewards and sleeping bags at the Russian throne. The final official “registration” for the rank of chamberlain was given by the famous document of Peter the Great - “Table of ranks of all military, civil and court ranks” - published on January 24, 1722. Initially, the rank corresponded to the position held, and the number of its holders in the first staff of the imperial court in 1727 did not exceed eight people. The chamberlains were attached to the person of the empress and were predominantly civilians - a retinue of military officials was provided for the emperor. However, in the 18th century it happened that the military also complained to the chamberlains. The unburdensome chamberlain service consisted of rotating duty with the highest person. In 1731, the position of chief chamberlain appeared, in charge of all court cavaliers - chamberlains and chamber cadets. In addition, the Chief Chamberlain played a significant role in a number of court ceremonies, such as the highest audiences and receptions, during which he introduced the empress to those awarded this honor. Like colleagues from Western Europe, Russian chamberlains wore a key as a badge of office.

The original keys and their images on portraits of Russian nobles have been known since the time of Empress Anna Ioannovna. Already in the 18th century, the head of the chamberlain's key was made in the form of a double-headed eagle with raised wings, on the chest of which the imperial monogram was placed. The design of the eagle, imperial monograms, the shape of the beard and other design details changed from time to time, but the basic principle of decorating Russian chamberlain keys remained unchanged. The Chief Chamberlain's key was distinguished by the fact that on it the figure of an eagle and the crown above its heads were decorated with diamonds. The first known official drawing of a sample for a chamberlain key is dated 1834. The chamberlains wore their keys on a bow made of a blue ribbon of the Order of St. Andrew the First-Called behind the left pocket flap of their caftan or uniform, and the chief chamberlains wore them on a gold cord with tassels at the right pocket flap. Emperor Paul the First first introduced special uniforms of dark green cloth with a red collar and cuffs for the court gentlemen. The ceremonial uniforms were decorated with luxurious gold embroidery, a sample of which Pavel Petrovich took from an ancient caftan that once belonged to E. Biron. The uniforms for everyday wear were distinguished by simple sewn buttonholes, the design and arrangement of which were borrowed from the so-called Windsor uniforms of the British court. With some changes in cut, court uniforms existed in approximately the same form until the collapse of the Russian Empire in February 1917. The luxurious design of the chamberlain's keys was combined perfectly with gold embroidery and buttonholes.