Active Privy Councillor, 1st class

Active Privy Councillor, 1st class[1] (Russian: действительный тайный советник первого класса, deystvitelnyi taynyi sovetnik pervogo klassa) was the civil position (class) in the Russian Empire, according to the Table of Ranks introduced by Peter the Great in 1722.

[2][3][4] The rank holder should be addressed as Your High Excellency (Russian: Ваше Высокопревосходительство, Vashe Vysokoprevoskhoditelstvo).

[5] The rank was granted to those persons who, by virtue of their official positions, could not be called Chancellors.

During the existence of the Russian Empire, only 13 people received that rank; two of whom later became Chancellors.

[6][7] Almost all of them were representatives of Russian noble families: the Panins, Golitsyns, Lopukhins, Stroganoffs, Kurakins, Razumovskys.