The enthronement of Dmitry Medvedev

The inauguration of Russia’s President Elect Dmitry Medvedev takes place in Moscow today. Medvedev said that the new duties will become a very serious burden for him despite his experience in big politics. Medvedev stressed out that the new power must not undermine the course of life in the country.

	The enthronement of Dmitry Medvedev
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Over 2,000 people have been invited for the ceremony, including 140 foreign guests, mainly ambassadors.

If you ask somebody, what inauguration is, you are not likely to get a precise answer to the question. So what does this term actually mean?

The term derives from Latin ‘inauguro’, which means ‘dedicate’.

Inauguration is a ceremony of formal investiture. The term is usually used in reference to a politician who takes the office of either the head of state or the government chairman

This word – inauguration - has become another loan word in the Russian language. Russians should say ‘coronation’ instead of ‘inauguration’. The coronation is a Russian traditional ceremony marking the investment of a monarch with regal power and placing a crown upon his or her head. This tradition fell into oblivion, but it is worth remembering.

The enthronement of Orthodox monarchs dates back to the ancient times. At that time it was emphasized that a monarch is chosen by God. In the fourth century it was written: “Imperial clothes and crowns are not made or invented by people or by human art, but in the sacred books of ancient history say that when God made Constantine the Great the first Christian tsar, He sent him these clothes and crowns through His angel.”

Byzantine Emperors were succeeded by Russian Grand Princes and later by tsars. Saint Vladimir was the first to obtain the insignia.

The insignia are material signs of power. In Ancient Rome they were a golden crown and an ivory throne. In Russia since Ivan the Terrible they were the Monomakh's Cap and the scapular (a length of cloth suspended on both front and back from the shoulders of the wearer, embroidered with religious images and jewels). Nowadays the insignia are the Constitution, the standard (flag) and the Order of Merit for Country of the I Degree. The Ukrainian President has three symbols: the Collar, the State Seal and the Mace.

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