Among Zaporozhian Cossacks, starshyna was a collective noun for admitistrative categories of military officers and state officials. In common parlance the term referred to the privileged social stratum of the Cossack society.[1]
Starshyna was subdivided into:
- General Starshyna (Генеральна старшина), headed by Hetman (or Quartermaster General as acting Hetman)
- Quartermaster General (Генеральний обозний)
- Judge General (Генеральний суддя)
- Secretary General (Генеральний писар)
- Adjutant General (Генеральний осавул)
- Treasurer General (Генеральний підскарбій)
- Ensign General (Генеральний хорунжий)
- Bunchuk General (Генеральний бунчужний)
- Regimental (Polkova) Starshyna, headed by Polkovnyk (Colonel)
- Regimental Obozni (Quartermaster) (Ukrainian: Полковий обозний) – first Deputy Colonel. He was in charge of artillery and fortress fortifications. In the absence of a colonel he replaced him, but he was not authorized to issue universal orders (as opposed to the commanding colonel).
- Regimental Judge (Ukrainian: Полковий суддя) – was in charge of a civil court in the ratusha
- Regimental Osavul (Ukrainian: Полковий осавул) – assistant Colonel in Military Affairs
- Regimental Khorunzhyi (Ukrainian: Полковий хорунжий) – commander of the "Khorunzhy Cossacks", guarding the colonel and the starshyna. He was in charge of regimental music and was responsible for keeping the khorugv (regiment flag).
- Regimental scribe [uk] (Ukrainian: Полковий писар, romanized: Polkovyi pysar) – secretaries at the ratusha. One was in charge of military affairs, and the other of civilian affairs.
- Some members of the regimental starshyna, 18th century
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Later, sometime after the Khmelnytsky's Uprising, it was also associated with the Ukrainian nobility which derived out of the officership and the Hetman.
![Scribe [uk]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:05._Pysar.jpg)
