History of the administrative division of Russia
Encyclopedia
The modern administrative-territorial structure of Russia' is a system of territorial organization which is a product of a centuries-long evolution and reforms.
as it formed in the 10th century remained a more or less unified realm under the rule of Yaroslav the Wise (d. 1054), but in the later part of the 11th century, it disintegrated into a number of de facto independent and rivaling principalities, the most important of which were Galicia–Volhynia, Novgorod
, and Vladimir-Suzdal
. These principalities were gradually integrated into the Grand Duchy of Moscow
during the 14th and 15th centuries, at the time a vassal state of the Turco-Mongol Ulus of Jochi
. After 1480, Ivan III
began to style himself Tsar
. Ivan the Terrible was the first ruler to be crowned as the Tsar of All Russia in 1547.
From the 13th century, the Russian principalities used an administrative subdivision into uyezd
s, with each such uyezd being subdivided into several volost
s. Voyevodas were the officials appointed to administer and defend the uyezds.
On , 1708, in order to improve the manageability of the vast territory of the Russian Empire
, Tsar
Peter the Great issued an ukase
(edict) dividing Russia into eight administrative divisions, called governorate
s (guberniya
s), which replaced the 166 uyezds which existed before the reform. The governorates were Arkhangelgorod
, Azov, Ingermanland
, Kazan
, Kiev
, Moscow
, Siberia
, and Smolensk
.
The reform of 1708 neither set the borders of the governorates nor established their internal divisions. The governorates were defined as the sets of cities and the lands adjacent to those cities. Some older subdivision types also continued to be used. Between 1710 and 1713, all governorates were subdivided into lots . Every governorate was administered by an appointed governor. In 1719, Peter enacted another administrative reform to fix the deficiencies of the original system, as the governorates were too big and unmanageable. This reform abolished the system of lots, dividing most of the governorates into province
s , which were further divided into districts .
During this time, territories were frequently reshuffled between the governorates, and new governorates were added to accommodate population growth and territorial expansion.
enacted another reform, which rolled back many of the previous reform's developments. The system of districts was abolished, and the old system of uyezds was restored. A total of 166 uyezds was re-established; together with the newly created uyezds, the Russian Empire had approximately 250.
The reform also reshuffled some territories. Narva Province was transferred from Saint Petersburg Governorate
to Revel Governorate
; Solikamsk and Vyatka Provinces were transferred from Siberia Governorate
to Kazan Governorate
; and Uglich and Yaroslavl Provinces were transferred from Saint Petersburg Governorate to Moscow Governorate
. In addition, Belgorod, Oryol, and Sevsk Provinces of Kiev Governorate
were reconstituted as Belgorod Governorate; and Belozersk, Novgorod
, Pskov, Tver, and Velikiye Luki Provinces of Saint Petersburg Governorate were reconstituted as Novgorod Governorate
.
The following years saw few changes. In 1728, Ufa Province was transferred from Kazan Governorate to Siberia Governorate, and in 1737, Simbirsk Province was created within Kazan Governorate.
After the abolition of Russian serfdom in 1861, volosts became a unit of peasant
's local self-rule. A number of mirs
were united into a typical volost, which had an assembly consisting of elected delegates from the mirs. The self-government of the mirs and volosts was tempered by the authority of the police commissaries (stanovoy) and by the power of general oversight given to the nominated "district committees for the affairs of the peasants".
s, six krai
s, and 40 oblast
s.
Uyezds and volosts were abolished by the Soviet
administrative reform of 1923–1929. Raion
s may be roughly called a modern equivalent of the uyezds, and selsoviet
s may be considered a modern equivalent of the volosts.
was created in May 2000 by Vladimir Putin
as a part of a wider program designed to reassert federal authority. The original division was into seven federal districts, but in 2010 the North Caucasian Federal District
was split off the Southern Federal District
.
Early history
The Kievan Rus'Kievan Rus'
Kievan Rus was a medieval polity in Eastern Europe, from the late 9th to the mid 13th century, when it disintegrated under the pressure of the Mongol invasion of 1237–1240....
as it formed in the 10th century remained a more or less unified realm under the rule of Yaroslav the Wise (d. 1054), but in the later part of the 11th century, it disintegrated into a number of de facto independent and rivaling principalities, the most important of which were Galicia–Volhynia, Novgorod
Novgorod Republic
The Novgorod Republic was a large medieval Russian state which stretched from the Baltic Sea to the Ural Mountains between the 12th and 15th centuries, centred on the city of Novgorod...
, and Vladimir-Suzdal
Vladimir-Suzdal
The Vladimir-Suzdal Principality or Vladimir-Suzdal Rus’ was one of the major principalities which succeeded Kievan Rus' in the late 12th century and lasted until the late 14th century. For a long time the Principality was a vassal of the Mongolian Golden Horde...
. These principalities were gradually integrated into the Grand Duchy of Moscow
Grand Duchy of Moscow
The Grand Duchy of Moscow or Grand Principality of Moscow, also known in English simply as Muscovy , was a late medieval Rus' principality centered on Moscow, and the predecessor state of the early modern Tsardom of Russia....
during the 14th and 15th centuries, at the time a vassal state of the Turco-Mongol Ulus of Jochi
Golden Horde
The Golden Horde was a Mongol and later Turkicized khanate that formed the north-western sector of the Mongol Empire...
. After 1480, Ivan III
Ivan III of Russia
Ivan III Vasilyevich , also known as Ivan the Great, was a Grand Prince of Moscow and "Grand Prince of all Rus"...
began to style himself Tsar
Tsar
Tsar is a title used to designate certain European Slavic monarchs or supreme rulers. As a system of government in the Tsardom of Russia and Russian Empire, it is known as Tsarist autocracy, or Tsarism...
. Ivan the Terrible was the first ruler to be crowned as the Tsar of All Russia in 1547.
From the 13th century, the Russian principalities used an administrative subdivision into uyezd
Uyezd
Uyezd or uezd was an administrative subdivision of Rus', Muscovy, Russian Empire, and the early Russian SFSR which was in use from the 13th century. Uyezds for most of the history in Russia were a secondary-level of administrative division...
s, with each such uyezd being subdivided into several volost
Volost
Volost was a traditional administrative subdivision in Eastern Europe.In earlier East Slavic history, volost was a name for the territory ruled by the knyaz, a principality; either as an absolute ruler or with varying degree of autonomy from the Velikiy Knyaz...
s. Voyevodas were the officials appointed to administer and defend the uyezds.
Administrative reforms by Peter the Great
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...
, Tsar
Tsar
Tsar is a title used to designate certain European Slavic monarchs or supreme rulers. As a system of government in the Tsardom of Russia and Russian Empire, it is known as Tsarist autocracy, or Tsarism...
Peter the Great issued an ukase
Ukase
A ukase , in Imperial Russia, was a proclamation of the tsar, government, or a religious leader that had the force of law...
(edict) dividing Russia into eight administrative divisions, called governorate
Governorate
A governorate is an administrative division of a country. It is headed by a governor. As English-speaking nations tend to call regions administered by governors either states, provinces, or colonies, the term governorate is often used in translation from non-English-speaking administrations.The...
s (guberniya
Guberniya
A guberniya was a major administrative subdivision of the Russian Empire usually translated as government, governorate, or province. Such administrative division was preserved for sometime upon the collapse of the empire in 1917. A guberniya was ruled by a governor , a word borrowed from Latin ,...
s), which replaced the 166 uyezds which existed before the reform. The governorates were Arkhangelgorod
Archangelgorod Governorate
Archangelgorod Governorate , or the Government of Archangelgorod, was an administrative division of the Russian Empire, which existed from 1708 until 1780. Its seat was in Archangel...
, Azov, Ingermanland
Saint Petersburg Governorate
Saint Petersburg Governorate , or Government of Saint Petersburg, was an administrative division of the Russian Empire, which existed in 1708–1927....
, Kazan
Kazan Governorate
The Kazan Governorate or Government of Kazan was a governorate of Imperial Russia from 1708–1920, with the city of Kazan as its capital.-History:...
, Kiev
Kiev Governorate
Kiev Governorate , or Government of Kiev, was an administrative division of the Russian Empire.The governorate was established in 1708 along with seven other governorates and was transformed into a viceroyalty in 1781...
, Moscow
Moscow Governorate
Moscow Governorate , or Government of Moscow, was an administrative division of the Russian Empire, which existed in 1708–1929....
, Siberia
Siberia Governorate
Siberia Governorate was an administrative division of the Russian Empire, which existed from 1708 until 1782. Its seat was in Tobolsk . The governorate was located in the east of Russian Empire and bordered China in the south, Kazan Governorate in the south-west, and Archangelgorod Governorate in...
, and Smolensk
Smolensk Governorate
Smolensk Governorate , or Government of Smolensk, was an administrative division of the Russian Empire, which existed, with interruptions, between 1708 and 1929....
.
The reform of 1708 neither set the borders of the governorates nor established their internal divisions. The governorates were defined as the sets of cities and the lands adjacent to those cities. Some older subdivision types also continued to be used. Between 1710 and 1713, all governorates were subdivided into lots . Every governorate was administered by an appointed governor. In 1719, Peter enacted another administrative reform to fix the deficiencies of the original system, as the governorates were too big and unmanageable. This reform abolished the system of lots, dividing most of the governorates into province
Province
A province is a territorial unit, almost always an administrative division, within a country or state.-Etymology:The English word "province" is attested since about 1330 and derives from the 13th-century Old French "province," which itself comes from the Latin word "provincia," which referred to...
s , which were further divided into districts .
During this time, territories were frequently reshuffled between the governorates, and new governorates were added to accommodate population growth and territorial expansion.
Empire
In 1727, soon after Peter the Great's death, Catherine ICatherine I of Russia
Catherine I , the second wife of Peter the Great, reigned as Empress of Russia from 1725 until her death.-Life as a peasant woman:The life of Catherine I was said by Voltaire to be nearly as extraordinary as that of Peter the Great himself. There are no documents that confirm her origins. Born on...
enacted another reform, which rolled back many of the previous reform's developments. The system of districts was abolished, and the old system of uyezds was restored. A total of 166 uyezds was re-established; together with the newly created uyezds, the Russian Empire had approximately 250.
The reform also reshuffled some territories. Narva Province was transferred from Saint Petersburg Governorate
Saint Petersburg Governorate
Saint Petersburg Governorate , or Government of Saint Petersburg, was an administrative division of the Russian Empire, which existed in 1708–1927....
to Revel Governorate
Governorate of Estonia
The Governorate of Estonia or Estland, also known as the Government of Estonia or Province of Estonia, was a governorate of the Russian Empire in what is now northern Estonia.-Historical overview:...
; Solikamsk and Vyatka Provinces were transferred from Siberia Governorate
Siberia Governorate
Siberia Governorate was an administrative division of the Russian Empire, which existed from 1708 until 1782. Its seat was in Tobolsk . The governorate was located in the east of Russian Empire and bordered China in the south, Kazan Governorate in the south-west, and Archangelgorod Governorate in...
to Kazan Governorate
Kazan Governorate
The Kazan Governorate or Government of Kazan was a governorate of Imperial Russia from 1708–1920, with the city of Kazan as its capital.-History:...
; and Uglich and Yaroslavl Provinces were transferred from Saint Petersburg Governorate to Moscow Governorate
Moscow Governorate
Moscow Governorate , or Government of Moscow, was an administrative division of the Russian Empire, which existed in 1708–1929....
. In addition, Belgorod, Oryol, and Sevsk Provinces of Kiev Governorate
Kiev Governorate
Kiev Governorate , or Government of Kiev, was an administrative division of the Russian Empire.The governorate was established in 1708 along with seven other governorates and was transformed into a viceroyalty in 1781...
were reconstituted as Belgorod Governorate; and Belozersk, Novgorod
Novgorod Province
Novgorod Province may refer to:*Novgorod Oblast, a federal subject of Russia*Novgorod Governorate, an administrative division of the Russian Empire...
, Pskov, Tver, and Velikiye Luki Provinces of Saint Petersburg Governorate were reconstituted as Novgorod Governorate
Novgorod Governorate
Novgorod Governorate , or Government of Novgorod, was a governorate of the Russian Empire.The governorate was established in 1727 from Belozersk, Novgorod, Pskov, Tver, and Velikiye Luki Provinces of the St. Petersburg Governorate and existed until 1927, when its territory was included into...
.
The following years saw few changes. In 1728, Ufa Province was transferred from Kazan Governorate to Siberia Governorate, and in 1737, Simbirsk Province was created within Kazan Governorate.
After the abolition of Russian serfdom in 1861, volosts became a unit of peasant
Peasant
A peasant is an agricultural worker who generally tend to be poor and homeless-Etymology:The word is derived from 15th century French païsant meaning one from the pays, or countryside, ultimately from the Latin pagus, or outlying administrative district.- Position in society :Peasants typically...
's local self-rule. A number of mirs
Obshchina
Obshchina or Mir ) or Selskoye obshestvo were peasant communities, as opposed to individual farmsteads, or khutors, in Imperial Russia. The term derives from the word о́бщий, obshchiy ....
were united into a typical volost, which had an assembly consisting of elected delegates from the mirs. The self-government of the mirs and volosts was tempered by the authority of the police commissaries (stanovoy) and by the power of general oversight given to the nominated "district committees for the affairs of the peasants".
Soviet Republic
The Russian SFSR comprised 16 autonomous republics, five autonomous oblasts, 10 autonomous okrugOkrug
Okrug is an administrative division of some Slavic states. The word "okrug" is a loanword in English, but it is nevertheless often translated as "area", "district", or "region"....
s, six krai
Krai
Krai or kray was a type of an administrative division in the Russian Empire and the Russian SFSR, and is one of the types of the federal subjects of modern Russia ....
s, and 40 oblast
Oblast
Oblast is a type of administrative division in Slavic countries, including some countries of the former Soviet Union. The word "oblast" is a loanword in English, but it is nevertheless often translated as "area", "zone", "province", or "region"...
s.
Uyezds and volosts were abolished by the Soviet
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
administrative reform of 1923–1929. Raion
Raion
A raion is a type of administrative unit of several post-Soviet countries. The term, which is from French rayon 'honeycomb, department,' describes both a type of a subnational entity and a division of a city, and is commonly translated in English as "district"...
s may be roughly called a modern equivalent of the uyezds, and selsoviet
Selsoviet
Selsoviet is a shortened name for a rural council. The full names for the term are, in , , . Selsoviets were the lowest level of administrative division in rural areas in the Soviet Union...
s may be considered a modern equivalent of the volosts.
Russian Federation
The subdivision type of Federal DistrictFederal districts of Russia
The federal districts are a level of administration for the convenience of the federal government of the Russian Federation. They are not the constituent units of Russia . Each district includes several federal subjects and each federal district has a presidential envoy...
was created in May 2000 by Vladimir Putin
Vladimir Putin
Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin served as the second President of the Russian Federation and is the current Prime Minister of Russia, as well as chairman of United Russia and Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the Union of Russia and Belarus. He became acting President on 31 December 1999, when...
as a part of a wider program designed to reassert federal authority. The original division was into seven federal districts, but in 2010 the North Caucasian Federal District
North Caucasian Federal District
North Caucasian Federal District is one of the eight federal districts of Russia. It is located in the extreme southwest of Russia, in the geographical area of the North Caucasus...
was split off the Southern Federal District
Southern Federal District
Southern Federal District is one of the eight federal districts of Russia. Its territory lies mostly on the Pontic-Caspian steppe. Its population was 13,856,700 according to the 2010 Census, living on an area of...
.
Sources
- Сергей Тархов. "Изменение административно-территориального деления России в XIII-XX вв.". "Логос", 2005, №1. (Sergey Tarkhov. Changes of the Administrative-Territorial Structure of Russia in the 13th–20th centuries).