Archangelgorod Governorate

Archangelgorod Governorate (Russian: Архангелогородская губерния, Arkhangelogorodskaya guberniya), or the Government of Archangelgorod, was an administrative division (a guberniya) of the Russian Empire, which existed from 1708 until 1780. Its seat was in Archangel (modern Arkhangelsk). The governorate was located in the north of Russian Empire and bordered Siberia Governorate in the east, Kazan Governorate in the south-east, Moscow and Ingermanland Governorates in the south-west, and Sweden in the west. In the north, the governorate was limited by the White and Barents Seas.

The Governorate was established on December 29, 1708 together with seven other governorates, by Tsar Peter the Great's edict.

As with the rest of the governorates, the description of Archangelgorod Governorate's borders was not given. Instead, the territory was defined as a set of cities and the lands adjacent to those cities.

In terms of the modern political division of Russia, Archangelgorod Governorate comprised the areas of what is currently Murmansk Oblast, Nenets Autonomous Okrug and the Komi Republic, the greater parts of Arkhangelsk and Vologda Oblasts, as well as parts of the Republic of Karelia, Kostroma, Kirov, and Nizhny Novgorod Oblasts.

On June 9, 1719, the governorate was divided into provinces: Archangelgorod, Vologda, Galich, and Ustyug. Simultaneously, Yarensky Uyezd with the administrative center of Yarensk was moved from Siberia Governorate to Archangelgorod Governorate. The uyezds were transformed into districts, however, in 1727 the districts were transformed back into uyezds.

The governorate existed until February 5 1780, when it was transformed into Vologda Viceroyalty.