Smolensk Governorate
Смоленская губерния
Governorate of Russian Empire
1796–1929
Coat of arms of Smolensk
Coat of arms

Location within the Russian Empire
CapitalSmolensk
Population 
 1897
1,525,279
History 
 Established
1796
 Disestablished
January 14, 1929
Succeeded by
Western Oblast

Smolensk Governorate (Russian: Смоленская губерния, romanized: Smolenskaja gubernija), or the Government of Smolensk, was an administrative division (a guberniya) of the Tsardom of Russia, the Russian Empire, and the Russian SFSR. It existed, with interruptions, between 1708 and 1929.

Smolensk Governorate, together with seven other governorates, was established on December 29 [O.S. December 18], 1708, by an edict from Tsar Peter the Great.[1] As with the rest of the governorates, neither the borders nor internal subdivisions of Smolensk Governorate were defined; instead, the territory was defined as a set of cities, and section of lands adjacent to those cities.[2]

History

On July 28 [O.S. July 17], 1713, Smolensk Governorate was abolished and its territory was divided between Moscow and Riga Governorates. Smolensk Province was created as a result. The governorate was re-established in 1726, and Smolensk Province was re-incorporated into the Governorate. In 1775, it was included, along with parts of Moscow and Belgorod Governorates, into Smolensk Viceroyalty. The governorate was again restored in 1796.

After the October Revolution, Smolensk Governorate was base of independent Western Oblast/Western Commune, Soviet Socialist Republic of Belarus, Lithuanian–Belorussian Soviet Socialist Republic (Litbel), and finally incorporated into the Russian SFSR.

Eventually, on January 14, 1929, Smolensk Governorate was abolished and its territory was incorporated into Western Oblast.

Subdivisions

Smolensk Governorate, together with seven other governorates, was established on December 29 [O.S. December 18], 1708, by Tsar Peter the Great's edict.[1] As with the rest of the governorates, neither the borders nor internal subdivisions of Smolensk Governorate were defined; instead, the territory was defined as a set of cities and the lands adjacent to those cities.[2]

At the time of establishment, the following thirty cities were included into Smolensk Governorate,[1]

Cities included into Smolensk Governorate at the time of its establishment
#City#City#City
1. Smolensk 7. Meshchevsk 13. Serpeysk
2. Belyaya 8. Mosalsk 14. Staritsa
3. Borisovo Gorodishche 9. Odoyev 15. Vorotynsk
4. Dorogobuzh 10. Peremyshl 16. Vyazma
5. Kozelsk 11. Pogoreloye Gorodishche 17. Zubtsov
6. Likhvin 12. Roslavl

In 1713, when Smolensk Governorate was abolished and merged into Riga Governorate, the following five uyezds were established in the area formally occupied by the governorate (the administrative centers are given in parentheses),[3]

After Smolensk Governorate was re-established in 1726, it was subdivided into these five uyezds.

In 1775, Smolensk Viceroyalty was subdivided into 12 uyezds, which remained when it was transformed back to a governorate in 1802 (the administrative centers, which all had the town status, are in parentheses),[3]

Demography

Language

  • Population by mother tongue according to the Imperial census of 1897.
Language Number percentage (%) males females
Russian 1,397,875 91.6 655,460 742,415
Belarusian 100,757 6.6 48,663 52,094
Jewish 10,903 0.7 6,049 4,854
Polish 7,314 0.5 4,855 2,459
Latvian 3,485 0.2 1,770 1,715
German 1,727 0.1 879 848
Ukrainian 1,374 0.0 1,247 127
Gypsy 661 0.0 338 323
Estonian 301 0.0 158 143
Tatar 291 0.0 281 10
Lithuanian 255 0.0 226 29
Other 336 0.0 190 146
Total 1,525,279 100.0 720,116 805,163

Religion

  • According to the Imperial census of 1897.[4]
Religion Number percentage (%) males females
Pravoslavs[5] 1,480,110 97.0 696,506 783,604
Old Believers and others split from Pravoslavs 20,728 1.4 9,164 11,564
Judaism 11,144 0.7 6,186 4,958
Roman Catholic 8,487 0.6 5,631 2,856
Lutherans 4,303 0.3 2,218 2,085
Islam 294 0.0 283 11
Reformed 83 0.0 50 33
Karaites 41 0.0 25 16
Armenian Gregorians 11 0.0 7 4
Anglicans 9 0.0 3 6
Armenian Catholic Church 3 0.0 1 2
Mennonites 2 0.0 1 1
Other: Christian denominations 50 0.0 30 20
Other: non-Christians 6 0.0 6 0
Total 1,525,279 100.0 720,116 805,163

References

  1. 1 2 3 Указ об учреждении губерний и о росписании к ним городов (in Russian)
  2. 1 2 С. А. Тархов (2001). "Изменение административно-территориального деления России за последние 300 лет". Электронная версия журнала "География".
  3. 1 2 Список населенных мест 1904 года (in Russian). «Край Смоленский». Retrieved 25 May 2018.
  4. Religion Statistics of 1897 (in Russian)
  5. Eastern Orthodox, including Russian Orthodox, Greek Orthodox, and Georgian Orthodox

Further reading

54°46′58″N 32°02′43″E / 54.7828°N 32.0453°E / 54.7828; 32.0453

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