Government Reform of Peter The Great - Administrative Reform

Administrative Reform

Prior to Peter's rule, Russia's administrative system was relatively antiquated compared to that in many Western European nations. The state was divided into uyezds, which mostly consisted of cities and their immediate surrounding areas; this system divided the population unevenly and was extremely clumsy to manage. In 1708, Peter abolished these old national subdivisions and established in their place twelve governorates (guberniyas): Moscow, Ingermanland, Kiev, Smolensk, Archangelgorod, Kazan, Azov, and Siberian. Another decree in 1713 established Landrats (from the German word for "national council") in each of the governorates, staffed by between eight and twelve professional civil servants, who assisted a royally-appointed governor.

In 1719, after the establishment of the Collegia, Peter remade Russia's administrative divisions once more. The new Russian provinces were modeled on the Swedish system of provinces, in which larger, more politically important areas received more political autonomy, while smaller, more rural areas were controlled more directly by the state.