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The Baltic governorates (russian: Прибалтийские губернии), originally the Ostsee governorates (german: Ostseegouvernements, russian: Остзейские губернии), was a collective name for the administrative units of the
Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended the Great Northern War. ...
set up in the territories of Swedish Estonia, Swedish Livonia (1721) and, afterwards, of the
Duchy of Courland and Semigallia The Duchy of Courland and Semigallia ( la, Ducatus Curlandiæ et Semigalliæ; german: Herzogtum Kurland und Semgallen; lv, Kurzemes un Zemgales hercogiste; lt, Kuršo ir Žiemgalos kunigaikštystė; pl, Księstwo Kurlandii i Semigalii) was ...
(1795).


History

The Treaty of Vilnius of 1561 included the ''
Privilegium Sigismundi Augusti was established on 28 November 1561 in the Treaty of Vilnius (1561), Treaty of Vilnius between the Polish King and Lithuanian Grand Duke Sigismund II Augustus and the last Landmeister in Livonia Gotthard Kettler, contractually negotiated and gr ...
'' by which the Polish King
Sigismund II Augustus Sigismund II Augustus ( pl, Zygmunt II August, lt, Žygimantas Augustas; 1 August 1520 – 7 July 1572) was King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania, the son of Sigismund I the Old, whom Sigismund II succeeded in 1548. He was the first ruler ...
guaranteed the Livonian estates several privileges, including religious freedom with respect to the
Augsburg Confession The Augsburg Confession, also known as the Augustan Confession or the Augustana from its Latin name, ''Confessio Augustana'', is the primary confession of faith of the Lutheran Church and one of the most important documents of the Protestant Re ...
, the '' Indigenat'' ( pl, Indygenat), and continuation of the traditional German jurisdiction and administration. The terms regarding religious freedom forbade any regulation of the traditional Protestant order by religious or secular authorities, and ruled that cases of disagreements be judged only by Protestant scholars. When in 1710 Estonia and Livonia capitulated to Russia during the
Great Northern War The Great Northern War (1700–1721) was a conflict in which a coalition led by the Tsardom of Russia successfully contested the supremacy of the Swedish Empire in Northern, Central and Eastern Europe. The initial leaders of the anti-Swedi ...
, the capitulations explicitly referred to the ''Privilegium Sigismundi Augusti'', with the respective references being confirmed in the
Treaty of Nystad The Treaty of Nystad (russian: Ништадтский мир; fi, Uudenkaupungin rauha; sv, Freden i Nystad; et, Uusikaupunki rahu) was the last peace treaty of the Great Northern War of 1700–1721. It was concluded between the Tsardom of ...
(1721). The
dominions The term ''Dominion'' is used to refer to one of several self-governing nations of the British Empire. "Dominion status" was first accorded to Canada, Australia, Dominion of New Zealand, New Zealand, Dominion of Newfoundland, Newfoundland, Un ...
of Swedish Estonia (in what is now northern Estonia) and Swedish Livonia (in what is now southern Estonia and northern Latvia) became the governorates of
Reval Tallinn () is the most populous and capital city of Estonia. Situated on a bay in north Estonia, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland of the Baltic Sea, Tallinn has a population of 437,811 (as of 2022) and administratively lies in the Harju ''m ...
and
Riga Riga (; lv, Rīga , liv, Rīgõ) is the capital and largest city of Latvia and is home to 605,802 inhabitants which is a third of Latvia's population. The city lies on the Gulf of Riga at the mouth of the Daugava river where it meets the Ba ...
, when they were conquered by Russia during the
Great Northern War The Great Northern War (1700–1721) was a conflict in which a coalition led by the Tsardom of Russia successfully contested the supremacy of the Swedish Empire in Northern, Central and Eastern Europe. The initial leaders of the anti-Swedi ...
, and then ceded by
Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...
in the
Treaty of Nystad The Treaty of Nystad (russian: Ништадтский мир; fi, Uudenkaupungin rauha; sv, Freden i Nystad; et, Uusikaupunki rahu) was the last peace treaty of the Great Northern War of 1700–1721. It was concluded between the Tsardom of ...
in 1721. Notably, both Reval Governorate and Riga Governorate were each at the time subdivided into one province only: the province of Estonia and the province of Livonia, respectively. In the period of the so-called Regency, 1783–1796, the Regent's (later Governor-General's) Office in Riga was created. It consisted of two subdivisions dealing with local matters and Russian affairs. After an administrative reform in 1796, the Reval Governorate was renamed Governorate of Estland (Эстляндская губерния), and Riga Governorate renamed Governorate of Livland (Лифляндская губерния). The third Baltic province of Courland was annexed into Russian Empire after the
third partition of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth The Third Partition of Poland (1795) was the last in a series of the Partitions of Poland–Lithuania and the land of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth among Prussia, the Habsburg monarchy, and the Russian Empire which effectively ended Polis ...
in 1795. The Baltic Governor-General (Прибалтийский генерал-губернатор) was the representative of the
Russian Emperor The emperor or empress of all the Russias or All Russia, ''Imperator Vserossiyskiy'', ''Imperatritsa Vserossiyskaya'' (often titled Tsar or Tsarina/Tsaritsa) was the monarch of the Russian Empire. The title originated in connection with Russia' ...
in the provinces of Livland, Estland and Courland. He was appointed by the Emperor and was subject to the latter as well as to the Senate. His duties were regulated by laws and instructions from central authorities. From the beginning of the 19th century he acted as an intermediate between the ministries in
Saint Petersburg Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...
and administration of the Baltic governorates on spot. The Governor-General, the highest local executive official and military authority, was in charge of the internal order in the provinces and had to take care of their overall security. He was in charge of recruiting troops and had to keep an eye on the garrisons and fortifications. His civil duties included supervising the provincial administration and prisons, maintaining land roads and bridges, issuing passports, and overseeing collection of state taxes and customs duties. He appointed and dismissed higher officials. The Office of the Baltic Governor-General was abolished at the beginning of the
russification Russification (russian: русификация, rusifikatsiya), or Russianization, is a form of cultural assimilation in which non-Russians, whether involuntarily or voluntarily, give up their culture and language in favor of the Russian cultur ...
in the Baltic Provinces in 1876. Similarly to guberniyas of the autonomous
Grand Duchy of Finland The Grand Duchy of Finland ( fi, Suomen suuriruhtinaskunta; sv, Storfurstendömet Finland; russian: Великое княжество Финляндское, , all of which literally translate as Grand Principality of Finland) was the predecessor ...
, the Baltic Governorates until the end of 19th century were not a subject to the common civil and administrative laws of the
Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended the Great Northern War. ...
, but did not have monetary, fiscal and passport system of their own. Like guberniyas of the
Kingdom of Poland The Kingdom of Poland ( pl, Królestwo Polskie; Latin: ''Regnum Poloniae'') was a state in Central Europe. It may refer to: Historical political entities *Kingdom of Poland, a kingdom existing from 1025 to 1031 *Kingdom of Poland, a kingdom exist ...
they were treated as an integral entity and the Russian law provided them the preservation of local authorities. In Baltics these were
Landtag A Landtag (State Diet) is generally the legislative assembly or parliament of a federated state or other subnational self-governing entity in German-speaking nations. It is usually a unicameral assembly exercising legislative competence in non- ...
s. The special legislation which set rules for municipal administration and entrepreneurship according to local traditions, as well as the privileges to the local nobility in the Baltics was known under the collective name of ''Ostsee Right'' (russian: Остзейское право). From the end of the 18th century through 1917 names and territories of the
Governorate of Courland The Courland Governorate, also known as the Province of Courland, Governorate of Kurland (german: Kurländisches Gouvernement; russian: Курля́ндская губерния, translit=Kurljándskaja gubernija; lv, Kurzemes guberņa; lt, K ...
(german: Kurländisches Gouvernement, russian: Курляндская губерния), the
Governorate of Livland The Governorate of Livonia, also known as the Livonia Governorate, was a Baltic governorate of the Russian Empire, now divided between Latvia and Estonia. Geography The shape of the province is a fairly rectangular in shape, with a maximum ...
(german: Livländisches Gouvernement, russian: Лифляндская губерния) and the Governorate of Estland (german: Estländisches Gouvernement, russian: Эстляндская губерния) remained unchanged; the
February Revolution The February Revolution ( rus, Февра́льская револю́ция, r=Fevral'skaya revolyutsiya, p=fʲɪvˈralʲskəjə rʲɪvɐˈlʲutsɨjə), known in Soviet historiography as the February Bourgeois Democratic Revolution and somet ...
of 1917 was followed by an internal redistribution of Latvian and Estonian lands between the latter two. The
October Revolution The October Revolution,. officially known as the Great October Socialist Revolution. in the Soviet Union, also known as the Bolshevik Revolution, was a revolution in Russia led by the Bolshevik Party of Vladimir Lenin that was a key moment ...
of 1917 and the
Treaty of Brest-Litovsk The Treaty of Brest-Litovsk (also known as the Treaty of Brest in Russia) was a separate peace, separate peace treaty signed on 3 March 1918 between Russian SFSR, Russia and the Central Powers (German Empire, Germany, Austria-Hungary, Kingdom of ...
of 1918 created the prerequisites for declaration of independence of these governorships from Russia as the independent states of
Estonia Estonia, formally the Republic of Estonia, is a country by the Baltic Sea in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, a ...
and
Latvia Latvia ( or ; lv, Latvija ; ltg, Latveja; liv, Leţmō), officially the Republic of Latvia ( lv, Latvijas Republika, links=no, ltg, Latvejas Republika, links=no, liv, Leţmō Vabāmō, links=no), is a country in the Baltic region of ...
.


List of governors-general

*
Aleksandr Danilovich Menshikov Prince Aleksander Danilovich Menshikov (russian: Алекса́ндр Дани́лович Ме́ншиков, tr. ; – ) was a Russian statesman, whose official titles included Generalissimo, Prince of the Russian Empire and Duke of Izhora ...
(1710–1719) as governor-general of
Ingria Ingria is a historical region in what is now northwestern European Russia. It lies along the southeastern shore of the Gulf of Finland, bordered by Lake Ladoga on the Karelian Isthmus in the north and by the River Narva on the border with Est ...
*
Fyodor Apraksin Count Fyodor Matveyevich Apraksin (also ''Apraxin''; russian: Фёдор Матве́евич Апра́ксин; 27 October 1661 10 November 1728, Moscow) was one of the first Russian admirals, governed Estonia and Karelia from 1712 to 1723, was ...
(1719–1728) * Friedrich Baron von Löwen ( et) (1728–1736) * Platon Ivanovich Musin-Pushkin ( ru) (1736) *
Gustaf Otto Douglas Count Gustaf (also Gustav) Otto Douglas (23 February 1687 – 2 February 1771) was a Swedish mercenary of Scottish descent, grandson of Robert Douglas, Count of Skenninge. He was captured by the Russian army in the Battle of Poltava during the ro ...
(1736–1740) * Ulrich Friedrich Woldemar von Löwendal (1740–1743) *
Peter August, Duke of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Beck '' , house = Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Beck , spouse = Princess Sophie of Hesse-PhilippsthalNatália Nikolaievna, Countess Golovine , issue = Karl Anton AugustCatherine , father = Frederick Louis, Duke of Schleswig-Ho ...
(1743–1753, 1758–1775) *
Vladimir Petrovich Dolgorukov Prince Vladimir Petrovich Dolgorukov (Russian: Князь Владимир Петрович Долгоруков; 19 April 1773 – 24 November 1817) was a Russian army officer who rose to the rank of major general. He was the eldest of the three ...
( et) (1753–1758) * George Browne (1775–1792) *
Nicholas Repnin Prince Nikolai Vasilyevich Repnin (russian: Никола́й Васи́льевич Репни́н; – ) was an Imperial Russian statesman and general from the Repnin princely family who played a key role in the dissolution of the Polish–Lit ...
(1792–1798) *
Ludwig von Nagel Ludwig may refer to: People and fictional characters * Ludwig (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters * Ludwig (surname), including a list of people * Ludwig Ahgren, or simply Ludwig, American YouTube live streamer and co ...
( ru) (1798–1800) *
Peter Ludwig von der Pahlen Peter Ludwig Graf von der Pahlen (russian: Пётр Алексе́евич Па́лен, translit= Pyotr Alekseyevich Palen; , Palms Manor, Palms (now ) – , Mitau (now )), a Baltic-German courtier and general, played a pivotal role in the as ...
(1800–1801) *
Sergei Fyodorovich Golitsyn Sergius is a male given name of Ancient Rome, Ancient Roman origin after the name of the Latins, Latin ''gens'' Gens Sergia, Sergia or Sergii of Roman Kingdom, regal and Roman Republic, republican ages. It is a common Christian name, in honor of S ...
( ru) (1801–1803) *
Friedrich Wilhelm von Buxhoeveden Friedrich Wilhelm Graf von Buxhoevden (russian: Фёдор Фёдорович Буксгевден, ''Fyodor Fyodorovich Buksgevden''; other spellings: ''Feodor Buxhoeveden'', ''Buxhœwden'', ''Buxhöwden'') (September 14, 1750 Võlla, Govern ...
(1803–1808) *
Duke George of Oldenburg Duke Peter Frederick George of Oldenburg (german: link=no, Herzog Peter Friedrich Georg von Oldenburg; 9 May 1784 – 27 December 1812) was a younger son of Peter I, Grand Duke of Oldenburg and his wife Duchess Frederica of Württemberg. He was a ...
(1808–1809) * Berend Johann von Uexküll ( et) (1809–1811, 1816–1818) * Augustus, Grand Duke of Oldenburg (1811–1816) *
Philip Osipovich Paulucci Filippo Paulucci delle Roncole (11 September 1779 – 25 January 1849), also known as Filipp Osipovich Pauluchchi (russian: Филипп Осипович Паулуччи), was an Italian marquis and army officer, later a general at the service ...
(1818–1829) * Carl Magnus von der Pahlen ( de) (1829–1845) *
Yevgeny Golovin Yevgeny Aleksandrovich Golovin (russian: Евге́ний Алекса́ндрович Голови́н; 1 May 1782 – 27 June 1858) was a general in the Imperial Russian Army. In 1811 was appointed commander of Fanagoriyskaya Regiment and ste ...
(1845–1847) *
Alexander Arkadyevich Suvorov Alexander Arkadyevich Suvorov, Prince Italsky, Count Rymniksky (russian: Алекса́ндр Арка́дьевич Суво́ров; 13 June 1804, Saint Petersburg – 12 February 1882, Saint Petersburg), was a Russian general, diplomat and pol ...
(1848–1861) *
Wilhelm Heinrich von Lieven Wilhelm may refer to: People and fictional characters * William Charles John Pitcher, costume designer known professionally as "Wilhelm" * Wilhelm (name), a list of people and fictional characters with the given name or surname Other uses * Mount ...
( et) (1861–1864) *
Pyotr Andreyevich Shuvalov Count Pyotr Andreyevich Shuvalov (russian: Граф Пётр Андре́евич Шува́лов) (27 July 1827, Saint Petersburg – 22 March 1889, Saint Petersburg) was an influential Russian statesman and a counselor to Tsar Alexander II. B ...
(1864–1866) * Eduard Baranov ( ru) (1866) *
Peter Albedinskiy Pyotr Pavlovich Albedinsky (1826–1883) was a Russian military officer and politician. Personal life Descended from the nobility of Smolensk province, Pyotr Pavlovich Albedinsky was born in Moscow on 4 September 1826 and died in Warsaw on Ma ...
( ru) (1866–1870) * Peter Bagrationi (1870–1876)


Listing


See also

*
Administrative division of Congress Poland Congress Poland was subdivided several times from its creation in 1815 until its dissolution in 1918. Congress Poland ("Russian Poland") was divided into departments, a relic from the times of the French-dominated Duchy of Warsaw. In 1816 th ...
* Lithuania Governorate


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Baltic Governorates Governorates-General of the Russian Empire 1721 establishments in Russia