In the absence of the emperor, the ministers one by one, starting with the oldest in the rank, each acted as head of government for four sessions.

Traditionally, the chairmanship of the committee was last in the public service honorary position appointed by the dignitaries that have become too old to execution of the duties of the minister.

Pyotr Stolypin (in office: 1906–1911) gained a reputation as one of the strongest prime ministers - during his premiership he made several major (though controversial) reforms.

Although Sergei Witte and Pyotr Stolypin (at the beginning of his Premiership) each tried to form a coalition government of the largest political organizations, they did not succeed.

[5] The position of Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the Russian Empire lasted 12 years; during this time seven people took this post (one twice).

The position lasted about six months, and after the October Revolution, was replaced by Chairman of the Council of People's Commissars of the Russian SFSR.

During the reign of Vladimir Lenin, the Chairman of the Council of People's Commissars was the de facto leader of the RSFSR (from 1922 to 1991).

In fact, Yeltsin was the first Head of Government of Russia after the dissolution of the Soviet Union; however, he was not the prime minister.

[6] In general, the prime minister serves more of an administrative role, nominating members of the Cabinet and taking the lead in fully implementing domestic and foreign policy as formulated by the president.

In Soviet times, the prime minister of the Russian SFSR was appointed by the Supreme Council after each election.

[8][9] Currently the prime minister is appointed by the president of Russia, subject to the consent of the State Duma (before 1993 the Supreme Soviet).

Unlike most other "prime ministers", who are also elected members of the legislative body or parliament, the Chairman of the Government of Russia can be any Russian citizen, as long as they do not also hold citizenship of another country.

The procedure of granting consent by the parliament is usually preceded by several days of comprehensive consultations and interviews of the candidate by the parliamentary factions.

[18] Under certain circumstances, the president may also theoretically be forced to dismiss the chairman and the whole government under the pressure of the State Duma.

The Chairman Council of Ministers of the Russian SFSR served in the position until he was dismissed by the General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union.

The prime minister as acting president may not dissolve the State Duma, announce a referendum or propose amendments to the Constitution.

The Russian Constitution does not explicitly specify who should become acting president if the prime minister is not appointed or is unable to perform his or her duties.

Some believe that in the case of incapacity of the president and prime minister, the chairman of the Federation Council should become acting head of state.

The chairman of government was a member of the Supreme Privy Council, which was created on 8 (19) February 1726 by Empress Catherine, and from 8 (20) September 1802 ministerial duties were allocated by the Committee of Ministers, which was established on in accordance with the proclamation of Emperor Alexander II.

Beginning with Count Aleksandr Romanovich Vorontsov, the eldest of the officers was de facto chairman of the committee.

Eight years after the inauguration of the manifest, the first de jure office holder was Count Nikolay Rumyantsev.

The Council of Ministers was unofficially formed in October 1857, as a result of Emperor Alexander II's reforms; its first session began on 19 (31) December 1857.

By the order of Emperor Nicholas II, the second session of the Council of Ministers began on 19 October (1 November) 1905, following the formation of the State Duma.