Novgorod Governorate - Administrative Division

Administrative Division

In 1727, the description of Novgorod Governorate's borders was not given. Instead, the territory was defined as a set of cities and the lands adjacent to those cities. The cities were

• Novgorod Province: Olonets, Porkhov, Novaya Ladoga, Staraya Ladoga, Staraya Russa, and Tikhvin;
• Pskov Province: Pskov, Velye, Izborsk, Gdov, Ostrov, Vybor, Volodimer, Dubkov, Opochka, Krasny, Voronech, Rzheva Pustaya, and Kobylye Gorodishche;
• Velikiye Luki Province: Velikiye Luki, Kholm, and Toropets;
• Tver Province: Tver, Torzhok, Zubtsov, and Staritsa;
• Beloozero Province: Beloozero, Ustyuzhna-Zhelezopolskaya, Charonda, and Kargopol.

In 1764, Jacob Sievers was appointed governor of Novgorod. He discovered that most of the towns in the governorate were located along the western border and were in fact former fortresses, whereas large spaces like for instance between Novgorod and Ustyuzhna, had no towns at all. The general policy of Catherine the Great at the time was to diminish the number of towns and to create large uyezds, and in 1764, most of the uyezds were abolished, however, Sievers argued that this policy was not appropriate for Novgorod Governorate, since it was large, sparsely populated, and difficult to administer. He suggested that Vyshny Volochyok, Valday, Borovichi, and Ostashkov would be chartered instead. In 1770, these towns were indeed chartered.

Novgorod Governorate bordered Poland in the west until 1772. In 1772, as a result of the First Partition of Poland, parts of Livonia and eastern Belarus were transferred to Russia. In order to accommodate these areas, Pskov Governorate was created, and Velikiye Luki and Pskov Provinces (with the exception of future Gdovsky Uyezd) were transferred to this governorate. In 1773, Olonetsky Uyezd was incorporated as Olonets Province but still remained in Novgorod Governorate. The province consisted of three uyezds with the centers in Olonets, Vytegra, and Padansky Pogost. In the same year, Porkhovsky, Gdovsky, Ladozhsky, Starorussky, and Tikhvinsky Uyezds were established.

By 1775, Novgorod Governorate was subdivided as follows,

• Novgorod Province, consisting of Novgorodsky, Starorussky, Porkhovsky, Ladozhsky, Tikhvinsky, Valdaysky, Borovitsky Uyezd, Vyshnevolotsky, and Gdovsky Uyezds;
• Tver Province, consisting of Tverskoy, Novotorzhsky, Staritsky, Rzhevsky, Zubtsovsky, and Ostashkovsky Uyezds;
• Beloozero Province, consisting of Belozersky, Kargopolsky, and Ustyuzhno-Zheleznopolsky Uyezd;
• Olonets Province, consisting of Olonetsky, Vytegorsky, and Padansky Uyezds.

In 1796, after the governorate was restored, it consisted of After 1781, the viceroyalty consisted of eleven uyezds,

• Novgorodsky Uyezd (with the administrative center located in Novgorod);
• Belozersky Uyezd (Belozersk);
• Borovitsky Uyezd (Borovichi);
• Kargopolsky Uyezd (Kargopol);
• Olonetsky Uyezd (Olonets);
• Petrozavodsky Uyezd (Petrozavodsk);
• Starorussky Uyezd (Staraya Russa);
• Tikhvinsky Uyezd (Tikhvin);
• Ustyuzhno-Zheleznopolsky Uyezd (Ustyuzhna);
• Valdaysky Uyezd (Valday);
• Vytegorsky Uyezd (Vytegra).

In 1802, Olonets Governorate was restored in pre-1796 borders. It included Petrozavodsky, Olonetsky, Kargopolsky, Vytegorsky, and Lodeynopolsky Uyezds. Simultaneously, Krestetsky Uyezd (with the administrative center located in Kresttsy), Kirillovsky Uyezd (Kirillov), and Cherepovetsky Uyezd (Cherepovets) were re-established.

In 1816, Novgorod Governorate became the area where military settlements were deployed, in accordance with the project designed by Aleksey Arakcheyev, an influential statesman. It was inconvenient to have both civial and military administration in Staraya Russa, and therefore Starorussky Uyezd was abolished in 1824. The town of Staraya Russa and some adjacent territories were directly subordinated to the Defense Ministry. Simultaneously, Demyansk was chartered, and Demyansky Uyezd was established. Military settlements were established in Novgorodsky, Demyansky, and Krestetsky Uyezds. The military settlements were proven inefficient, in particular, in 1831, the area participated in the Cholera Riots. They were abolished in 1856. In 1857, Starorussky Uyezd was re-established.

In 1917, two towns of the governorate were chartered but did not become uyezd centers: Bologoye (Valdaysky Uyezd) and Lyuban (Novgorodsky Uyezd). In 1920, Malovishersky Uyezd was established, however, Malaya Vishera ( formerly in Krestetsky Uyezd) was not chartered until 1921. In 1922, Krestetsky District was abolished.

In June 1918, five uyezds of the Novgorod Governorate (Beloozersky, Kirillovsky, Tikhvinsky, Ustyuzhensky, and Cherepovetsky) were split off to create Cherepovets Governorate, with the administrative center located in Cherepovets.

Thus, by 1927 the governorate consisted of the following six uyezds,

• Novgorodsky Uyezd (with the administrative center located in Novgorod);
• Borovichsky Uyezd (Borovichi);
• Demyansky Uyezd (Demyansk);
• Malovishersky Uyezd (Malaya Vishera);
• Starorussky Uyezd (Staraya Russa);
• Valdaysky Uyezd (Valday).