State Councillor (Russian: статский советник, statskiy sovetnik) was the civil position (class) in the Russian Empire, according to the Table of Ranks introduced by Peter the Great in 1722.
Until 1856, the rank gave the right of hereditary nobility; later, that threshold was raised to the 4th class.
[1][2][3] The rank holder should be addressed as Your High Born (Russian: Ваше Высокородие, Vashe Vysokorodie).
In the middle of the 19th century, the rank was the lowest in the top group of state officials.
This group (from 1st to 5th grade) represented the highest state establishment defining the government policy.