The Cathedral Code is a code of laws of Russia, which was approved by the Zemsky Sobor during 1648-1649. It was adopted during the reign of Alexei Mikhailovich. The compilation of this document was carried out by a commission headed by Prince N. I. Odoevsky. As a basis for the creation of the code, the Code of Law of 1550, the books of Robbery, Zemsky, Local orders, collective petitions of townspeople, provincial and Moscow nobles, as well as the Pilot Book, the Lithuanian Statute were used. In general, the Council Code includes 25 chapters and 967 articles that are devoted to the issues of state criminal and property proceedings and law.
Several chapters deal with public law issues. The first chapters define the term "state crime", which meant an act that is directed against the power of the monarch and the person of the king. Participation in a criminal act and conspiracy against the king, governor, boyars and clerks was punishable by death without any mercy.
The Cathedral Code in the first chapter describes the protection of the interests of the church from the rebels, the protection of the nobles even when they kill thempeasants and serfs.
The difference in fines for insult speaks about social inequality and Russia's protection of the interests of the ruling class: two rubles were supposed to be paid for insulting a peasant, a ruble for a drinking person, and up to 80-100 rubles for those belonging to the privileged class.
The chapter "Court on the Peasants" includes articles that formalized serfdom, establishing the eternal hereditary dependence of the peasants, in this chapter there was abolition of contingent years for searching for runaway peasants, a large pen alty was established for harboring a runaway. The Cathedral Code took away from the peasants of the landowner the right of legal representation in relation to property disputes.
In accordance with the chapter "On townspeople" private settlements in cities were liquidated, people who had previously been exempted from paying taxes were returned to taxable estates. The judicial code provided for the search for fugitive townspeople, the population of the township was subject to taxes and taxes. Bonded serfs are described in the chapters "On patrimonies" and "On local lands", which are devoted to issues of land ownership by nobles.
The Cathedral Code contains an extensive chapter "On the Court", which considers judicial issues. It regulated in detail the procedure for conducting an investigation and conducting legal proceedings, determined the amount of court fees, fines, covered issues of intentional and intentional crime,regulated disputes regarding property.
The structure of the armed forces of the state is discussed in the chapters "On the service of the soldiers of the Muscovite state", "On archers", "On the redemption of prisoners of war". The Council Code, briefly described in this article, became an important stage in the development of serfdom and autocracy. It was the basic law in the Russian state until the middle of the 19th century.
