The Kiev Voivodeship (; ; ) was a unit of administrative division and local government in the

Grand Duchy of Lithuania The Grand Duchy of Lithuania was a sovereign state in northeastern Europe that existed from the 13th century, succeeding the Kingdom of Lithuania, to the late 18th century, when the territory was suppressed during the 1795 Partitions of Poland, ...

from 1471 until 1569 and of the

Crown of the Kingdom of Poland The Crown of the Kingdom of Poland (; ) was a political and legal concept formed in the 14th century in the Kingdom of Poland, assuming unity, indivisibility and continuity of the state. Under this idea, the state was no longer seen as the Pat ...

from 1569 until 1793, as part of

Lesser Poland Province of the Polish Crown Lesser Poland Province (, ) was an administrative division of the Crown of the Kingdom of Poland from 1569 until 1795. It was the largest province of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, with Kraków as its capital. The province's name derives fro ...

. On some maps Kiev Voivodeship was also named as the Lower Volhynia. The

voivodeship A voivodeship ( ) or voivodate is the area administered by a voivode (governor) in several countries of central and eastern Europe. Voivodeships have existed since medieval times and the area of extent of voivodeship resembles that of a duchy in ...

was established in 1471 upon the death of the last prince of Kiev Simeon Olelkovich and transformation of the Duchy of Kiev (

appanage An appanage, or apanage (; ), is the grant of an estate, title, office or other thing of value to a younger child of a monarch, who would otherwise have no inheritance under the system of primogeniture (where only the eldest inherits). It was ...

duchy of the

) into the Voivodeship of Kiev.

Description

The voivodeship was established in 1471 under the order of King

Casimir IV Jagiellon Casimir IV (Casimir Andrew Jagiellon; ; Lithuanian: ; 30 November 1427 – 7 June 1492) was Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1440 and King of Poland from 1447 until his death in 1492. He was one of the most active Polish-Lithuanian rulers; under ...

soon after the death of

Semen Olelkovich The House of Olelkovich was a princely family from the Grand Duchy of Lithuania in the 15th and 16th centuries. Their main possession was the Duchy of Slutsk– Kapyl. They are sometimes known as Slutskys. They were descended from the Lithuanian ...

. It had replaced the former

Principality of Kiev The inner Principality of Kiev was a medieval principality centered on the city of Kiev. The principality was formed during the process of political fragmentation of the Kievan Rus' in the early 12th century. As a result of that process, the e ...

, ruled by Lithuanian-Ruthenian

Olelkovich The House of Olelkovich was a princely family from the Grand Duchy of Lithuania in the 15th and 16th centuries. Their main possession was the Duchy of Slutsk– Kapyl. They are sometimes known as Slutskys. They were descended from the Lithuanian ...

princes (related to House of Algirdas and Olshansky family). Its first administrative center was

Kiev Kyiv, also Kiev, is the capital and most populous List of cities in Ukraine, city of Ukraine. Located in the north-central part of the country, it straddles both sides of the Dnieper, Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2022, its population was 2, ...

, but when the city was given to

Tsardom of Russia The Tsardom of Russia, also known as the Tsardom of Moscow, was the centralized Russian state from the assumption of the title of tsar by Ivan the Terrible, Ivan IV in 1547 until the foundation of the Russian Empire by Peter the Great in 1721. ...

in 1667 by

Treaty of Andrusovo The Truce of Andrusovo (, , also sometimes known as Treaty of Andrusovo) established a thirteen-and-a-half year truce, signed on between the Tsardom of Russia and the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, which had fought the Russo-Polish War sin ...

, the capital moved to

Zhytomyr Zhytomyr ( ; see #Names, below for other names) is a city in the north of the western half of Ukraine. It is the Capital city, administrative center of Zhytomyr Oblast (Oblast, province), as well as the administrative center of the surrounding ...

(), where it remained until 1793. It was the biggest voivodeship of the

Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, also referred to as Poland–Lithuania or the First Polish Republic (), was a federation, federative real union between the Crown of the Kingdom of Poland, Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania ...

by land area, covering, among others, the land of

Zaporizhian Cossacks The Zaporozhian Cossacks (in Latin ''Cossacorum Zaporoviensis''), also known as the Zaporozhian Cossack Army or the Zaporozhian Host (), were Cossacks who lived beyond (that is, downstream from) the Dnieper Rapids. Along with Registered Cossac ...

Municipal government

The governor of the voivodeship was

voivode Voivode ( ), also spelled voivod, voievod or voevod and also known as vaivode ( ), voivoda, vojvoda, vaivada or wojewoda, is a title denoting a military leader or warlord in Central, Southeastern and Eastern Europe in use since the Early Mid ...

( List of voivodes of Kiev). In the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth the other two major administrative positions were

castellan A castellan, or constable, was the governor of a castle in medieval Europe. Its surrounding territory was referred to as the castellany. The word stems from . A castellan was almost always male, but could occasionally be female, as when, in 1 ...

and bishop (biskup kijowski). * List of voivodes of Kiev * Castellan of Kijow (city governor) * Vogt of Kijow

Flag and coat of arms

The flag on one side had Lithuanian Pogon on red field and on other side black bear on white field with his front left paw raised up.Województwo Kijowskie

Regional council (sejmik)

Regional council () for all Ruthenian lands

Sudova Vyshnia Sudova Vyshnia (, ; ) is a small city in the Yavoriv Raion of the Lviv Oblast (region) of Ukraine. It hosts the administration of Sudova Vyshnia urban hromada, one of the hromadas of Ukraine. Its population is The town has a number of Catholi ...

Regional council () seats

* Kive *

Ovruch Ovruch (, ) is a city in Korosten Raion, Zhytomyr Oblast, northern Ukraine, first mentioned as Vruchiy in 977. It was the capital city of the Drevlians in the 900s, later conquered by the Mongols in the 13th century, then later part of the Grand D ...

Administrative division

Counties

* Kijow County, Kijow (Biała Cerkiew,

Bila Tserkva Bila Tserkva ( ; , ) is a city in central Ukraine. It is situated on the Ros (river), Ros River in the historical region of right-bank Ukraine. It is the largest city in Kyiv Oblast (which does not include the city of Kyiv) and serves as the ...

, since 1659) * Owrucz County, Owrucz * Żytomierz County, Żytomierz

Other former counties

* Putywl County, Putywl (lost after the second Muscovite–Lithuanian War) * Mozyrz County,

Mozyr Mazyr or Mozyr (, ; , ; ; ) is a city in Gomel Region, Belarus. It serves as the administrative center of Mazyr District. It is situated on the Pripyat River about east of Pinsk and northwest of Chernobyl in Ukraine. As of 2025, it has a po ...

z (transferred to

Minsk Voivodeship Minsk Voivodeship (; ; ; ) was a unit of administrative division and local government in Grand Duchy of Lithuania since 1566Stanisław Kutrzeba: Historia ustroju Polski w zarysie, Tom drugi: Litwa. Lwów i Warszawa: 1921, s. 88. and later in Pol ...

under the

Union of Lublin The Union of Lublin (; ) was signed on 1 July 1569 in Lublin, Poland, and created a single state, the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, one of the largest countries in Europe at the time. It replaced the personal union of the Crown of the Kingd ...

) * Czerkasy County, Czerkasy (liquidated in 1566) * Czarnobyl County, Czarnobyl (liquidated in 1566)

Former counties lost under the Treaty of Andrusovo

* Lubecz County, Lubecz * Oster County,

Oster Oster (, ; ) is a city in Chernihiv Raion, Chernihiv Oblast, Ukraine. It is located where the Oster River flows into the Desna. Oster hosts the administration of Oster urban hromada, one of the hromadas of Ukraine. Its population is Today O ...

* City of Kijow

Elderships (Starostwo)

Instead of some liquidated counties in 1566 there were established elderships: Biała Cerkiew, Kaniów, Korsun, Romanówka, Czerkasy, Czigrin.

Free royal cities

Berezań Berezan (, ; ; ; ) is a city in Brovary Raion, Kyiv Oblast (oblast, region) of Ukraine. It hosts the administration of Berezan urban hromada, one of the hromadas of Ukraine. Population: There is an important railway junction in the city. By ra ...

* Biała Cerkiew * Bohusław *

Czehryń Chyhyryn ( ; ) is a city in Cherkasy Raion, Cherkasy Oblast, central Ukraine. It is located on Tiasmyn river not far where it enters Dnieper. From 1648 to 1669, the city served as the residence of the hetman of the Zaporizhian Host. After a for ...

* Czerkasy *

Jagodzin Jagodzin () is a village in the administrative district of Gmina Węgliniec, within Zgorzelec County, Lower Silesian Voivodeship, in south-western Poland. It lies approximately north-west of Węgliniec, north-east of Zgorzelec, and west of th ...

* Kaniów * Kijów * Korsuń *

Myrhorod Myrhorod (, ) is a city in Poltava Oblast, central Ukraine. It serves as the Capital city, administrative center of Myrhorod Raion. Myrhorod also hosts the administration of Myrhorod urban hromada, one of the hromadas of Ukraine. It is locate ...

Owrucz Ovruch (, ) is a city in Korosten Raion, Zhytomyr Oblast, northern Ukraine, first mentioned as Vruchiy in 977. It was the capital city of the Drevlians in the 900s, later conquered by the Mongols in the 13th century, then later part of the Grand ...

* Stebliw *

Trechtymirów Trakhtemyriv (, ) is a very small village in Cherkasy Raion, Cherkasy Oblast. It belongs to Bobrytsia rural hromada, one of the hromadas of Ukraine. In the past it was a city and quartered the Registered Cossacks of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonw ...

* Żytomierz

Neighbouring Voivodeships and regions

Bratslav Voivodeship Bratslav (, ; ) is a rural settlement in Ukraine, located in Tulchyn Raion of Vinnytsia Oblast, by the Southern Bug river. It is a medieval European city and a regional center of the Eastern Podolia region (see Bracław Voivodeship) founded ...

Podolian Voivodeship The Podolian Voivodeship or Palatinate of Podolia was a unit of administrative division and local government in the Kingdom of Poland, from 1434 until 1793, except for the period of Ottoman occupation (1672–1699), when the region was organized ...

Brest Litovsk Voivodeship Brest Litovsk Voivodeship (; ) was a unit of administrative territorial division and a seat of local government (voivode) in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania (Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth) from 1566 until the May Constitution in 1791, and from ...

Chernihiv Voivodeship Czernihów (Chernihiv) Voivodeship () was a unit of administrative division and local government in the Kingdom of Poland (part of Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth) from 1635 until Khmelnytsky Uprising in 1648 (technically it existed up until 165 ...

Grand Duchy of Moscow The Grand Principality of Moscow, or Muscovy, known as the Principality of Moscow until 1389, was a late medieval Russian monarchy. Its capital was the city of Moscow. Originally established as a minor principality in the 13th century, the gra ...

Crimean Khanate The Crimean Khanate, self-defined as the Throne of Crimea and Desht-i Kipchak, and in old European historiography and geography known as Little Tartary, was a Crimean Tatars, Crimean Tatar state existing from 1441 to 1783, the longest-lived of th ...

Yedisan Yedisan (also ''Jedisan'' or ''Edisan''; , , , , , Dobrujan Tatar: ''Ğedísan'') was a conditional name for Özi aşaSancağı (Ochakiv Sanjak) of Silistra Eyalet, a territory located in today's Southern Ukraine between the Dniester and the S ...

References

Sources

Kijow Voivodeship, description by Zygmunt Gloger

External links

Kyiv voivodeship
in the

Encyclopedia of Ukraine The ''Encyclopedia of Ukraine'' (), published from 1984 to 2001, is a fundamental work of Ukrainian Studies. Development The work was created under the auspices of the Shevchenko Scientific Society in Europe (Sarcelles, near Paris). As the ...

Cossack era on Ukrainian Government portalThe Zaphorozian Cossacks
* Województwo kijowskie Geographical Dictionary of the Kingdom of Poland and other slavic lands
* Palatinatus Kioviensis Pars. Boristhenem ''alias'' Dzikie Pola
Wild Fields">Dzikie Pola

by Joannis Janssonii.

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , ; ; ) is the capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, largest city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It has a population of 933,680 in June 2024 within the city proper, 1,457,018 in the City Re ...

. 1663.
Der königlichen Republik Polen Woiwodschaft Kiow
das ist die obere Polnische Ukraine oder Klein Polens oestlicher Theil. Nor. 46

Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

. Franz Johann Josef von Reilly 1791
Kyiv Voivodeship
in the Encyclopedia of History of Ukraine {{coord, 50.450000, 30.523333, format=dms, display=title, type:landmark Voivodeships of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth Early modern history of Ukraine Voivodeships of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania Historical geography of Ukraine 1471 establishments in Europe 15th-century establishments in Lithuania 1793 disestablishments in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth History of Kyiv History of Kyiv Oblast