The Sacred Congregation of Ceremonies was a branch of the Roman Curia

Roman Curia

The Roman Curia is the administrative apparatus of the Holy See and the central governing body of the entire Catholic Church, together with the Pope...

 that is charged with the direction of all the papal ceremonies, as well as of the ceremonial of cardinals, whether in the pontifical court

History and Functions

It is not certain who created this congregation. Many attribute its establishment to Pope Sixtus V

Pope Sixtus V

Pope Sixtus V , born Felice Peretti di Montalto, was Pope from 1585 to 1590.-Early life:The chronicler Andrija Zmajević states that Felice's family originated from modern-day Montenegro...

, however others to his immediate predecessor, Pope Gregory XIII

Pope Gregory XIII

Pope Gregory XIII , born Ugo Boncompagni, was Pope from 1572 to 1585. He is best known for commissioning and being the namesake for the Gregorian calendar, which remains the internationally-accepted civil calendar to this date.-Youth:He was born the son of Cristoforo Boncompagni and wife Angela...

. Some historians speculate that the latter opinion is proved to be correct by the records of the congregation itself. If this is the case, the error of certain authors is apparent, when they consider this congregation to be little more than a branch of the Congregation of Rites or to have derived its existence from the latter.

It is, on the contrary, more ancient than the last-named congregation, and deals directly with the highest division of the Liturgy, considering the personages whom it concerns. For this congregation is charged with the direction of all the papal ceremonies, as well as of the ceremonial of cardinals, whether in the Pontifical Court (aula) or chapel. It is reasonable that a special congregation should have under its care ceremonies so august and solemn, since it is of the highest importance that when the supreme head of the Church participates in ecclesiastical functions attended by the most illustrious dignitaries of the Church. All should be in keeping with that decorum which befits their character and that nature of the office they hold. As in all courts there is a grand master of ceremonies

Master of Ceremonies

A Master of Ceremonies , or compere, is the host of a staged event or similar performance.An MC usually presents performers, speaks to the audience, and generally keeps the event moving....

, charged with the direction of the sovereign's acts on occasions of State, so it was necessary that at the pontifical Court there should be an authority to preside over such functions. This requirement is supplied by the Congregation of Ceremonies, which, besides the direction of liturgical functions, is charged with the direction of the pontifical court ceremonial for the reception of sovereigns or of ambassador

Ambassador

An ambassador is the highest ranking diplomat who represents a nation and is usually accredited to a foreign sovereign or government, or to an international organization....

s.

It also communicated instructions to the legate

Papal legate

A papal legate – from the Latin, authentic Roman title Legatus – is a personal representative of the pope to foreign nations, or to some part of the Catholic Church. He is empowered on matters of Catholic Faith and for the settlement of ecclesiastical matters....

s of the Holy See

Holy See

The Holy See is the episcopal jurisdiction of the Catholic Church in Rome, in which its Bishop is commonly known as the Pope. It is the preeminent episcopal see of the Catholic Church, forming the central government of the Church. As such, diplomatically, and in other spheres the Holy See acts and...

 for the maintenance of due decorum in transacting the affairs of their missions. This congregation also instructed the members of the Noble Guard and the ablegate who were sent to convey to new cardinals, living in Catholic states outside of Rome

Rome

Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...

, the news of their promotion, together with the cardinal's hat and the red biretta

Biretta

The biretta is a square cap with three or four peaks or horns, sometimes surmounted by a tuft. Traditionally the three peaked biretta is worn by Roman Catholic clergy and some Anglican and Lutheran clergy. The four peaked biretta is worn as academic dress by those holding a doctoral degree from a...

. It instructs newly-promoted cardinals, too, on the etiquette

Etiquette

Etiquette is a code of behavior that delineates expectations for social behavior according to contemporary conventional norms within a society, social class, or group...

 to be followed conformably with their new dignity. Finally, it solves the questions of precedence

Precedence

Precedence may refer to:* Message precedence of military communications traffic* Order of precedence, the ceremonial hierarchy within a nation or state* Order of operations, in mathematics and computer programming...

 which arise among cardinals or among ambassadors to the Holy See.

It was dissolved in 1967 in the Curial reforms by Pope Paul VI

Pope Paul VI

Paul VI , born Giovanni Battista Enrico Antonio Maria Montini , reigned as Pope of the Catholic Church from 21 June 1963 until his death on 6 August 1978. Succeeding Pope John XXIII, who had convened the Second Vatican Council, he decided to continue it...

.

Prefects since 1884

• Carlo Sacconi
  Carlo Sacconi
  Carlo Sacconi J.U.D. was a Cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church and Dean of the College of Cardinals.Carlo Sacconi was born in Montalto...
  
   (28 Mar 1884 – 25 Feb 1889)
• Raffaele Monaco La Valletta  (1 Mar 1889 – 14 Jul 1896)
• Serafino Vannutelli (14 Mar 1889 – 19 Aug 1915)
• Luigi Oreglia di Santo Stefano
  Luigi Oreglia di Santo Stefano
  Luigi Oreglia di Santo Stefano was a cardinal of the Catholic Church in the late nineteenth century. He was Bishop of Ostia and Dean of the Sacred College of Cardinals from 1896 until his death.He was educated in Turin and became a priest in 1851...
  
   ( 1897 – 7 Dec 1913)
• Vincenzo Vannutelli (15 Dec 1914 – 9 Jul 1930)
• Gennaro Granito Pignatelli di Belmonte (14 Jul 1930 – 16 Feb 1948)
• Francesco Marchetti-Selvaggiani (5 Feb 1948 – 13 Jan 1951 )
• Eugène-Gabriel-Gervais-Laurent Tisserant
  Eugène-Gabriel-Gervais-Laurent Tisserant
  Eugène Tisserant was a French Cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church. Elevated to the cardinalate in 1936, Tisserant was a prominent and long-time member of the Roman Curia. He was also, for a time, Grand Master of the Order of the Holy Sepulchre...
  
  (10 Mar 1951 – 1967)