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Theadministrative division reform of 1708 was carried out byRussianTsarPeter the Great in an attempt to improve the manageability of the vast territory of Russia. Prior to the reform, the country was subdivided intouyezds andvolosts, and in the 17th century the number of the uyezds was 166.[1]
On December 29 [O.S. December 18], 1708, Peter issued an edict dividing Russia into eight governorates (guberniyas).[2] The edict established neither the borders of the governorates nor their internal divisions; instead, their territories were defined as the sets of cities and the lands adjacent to those cities.[1] Some older subdivision types also continued to be used.[1]
| Governorate | Name in Russian | Area | No. of homesteads | Modern divisions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Archangelgorod Governorate | Архангелогородская губерния | 1,317,800 km2 (508,800 sq mi) | 59,662 | Arkhangelsk,Murmansk, andVologda Oblasts; part ofKostroma Oblast, theRepublic of Karelia, and theKomi Republic |
| Azov Governorate | Азовская губерния | 393,700 km2 (152,000 sq mi) | 35,820 | Rostov,Tambov, andVoronezh Oblasts; eastern parts ofBelgorod,Kursk,Oryol,Ryazan, andTula Oblasts; parts ofPenza Oblast andDonetsk,Kharkiv, andLuhansk Oblasts ofUkraine |
| Ingermanland Governorate | Ингерманландская губерния | 482,500 km2 (186,300 sq mi) | 105,977 | Leningrad,Novgorod,Pskov, andTver Oblasts; southern part ofArkhangelsk Oblast; western parts ofVologda andYaroslavl Oblasts; part of theRepublic of Karelia |
| Kazan Governorate | Казанская губерния | 1,398,600 km2 (540,000 sq mi) | 119,056 | Volga Region and theRepublic of Bashkortostan; parts ofPerm Krai andIvanovo,Kostroma,Penza, andTambov Oblasts; northern parts of theRepublics of Dagestan andKalmykia |
| Kiev Governorate | Киевская губерния | 231,000 km2 (89,000 sq mi) | 31,230 | Ukraine; parts ofBelgorod,Bryansk,Kaluga,Kursk,Oryol, andTula Oblasts |
| Moscow Governorate | Московская губерния | 128,600 km2 (49,700 sq mi) | 190,770 | Moscow Oblast, parts ofIvanovo,Kaluga,Kostroma,Ryazan,Tula, andVladimir Oblasts |
| Siberia Governorate | Сибирская губерния | 10,978,300 km2 (4,238,700 sq mi) | 59,360 | Siberia, most of theUrals; parts ofArkhangelsk Oblast,Kirov Oblast and theKomi Republic |
| Smolensk Governorate | Смоленская губерния | 85,400 km2 (33,000 sq mi) | 35,130 | Smolensk Oblast; parts ofBryansk,Kaluga,Tula, andTver Oblasts |
| Source:[1] | ||||
Theadministrative reform of 1727 was carried out soon afterPeter the Great's death, when it became apparent thatprevious reform was not working as planned. The fast pace of the reforms came into contradiction with the traditional ways of doing things. Newly created bureaucracy required significant financial investments, which the government was lacking. NeitherCatherine I, Peter I's second wife and successor, nor her government were willing to go on with the reforms in their original form. As a result, the 1727 reform became a step back, abolishing the system ofdistricts (Russian:ди́стрикты) and restoring the old system ofuezds (уе́зды) instead. A total of 166uyezds were re-established, and with the newly createduyezds theRussian Empire had approximately 250uyezds.