Saint Petersburg Governorate was a province ('' guberniya'') of the

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire that spanned most of northern Eurasia from its establishment in November 1721 until the proclamation of the Russian Republic in September 1917. At its height in the late 19th century, it covered about , roughl ...

, with its capital in

Saint Petersburg Saint Petersburg, formerly known as Petrograd and later Leningrad, is the List of cities and towns in Russia by population, second-largest city in Russia after Moscow. It is situated on the Neva, River Neva, at the head of the Gulf of Finland ...

. The governorate was composed of of area and 2,112,033 inhabitants. It was bordered by

Estonian Estonian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Estonia, a country in the Baltic region in northern Europe * Estonians, people from Estonia, or of Estonian descent * Estonian language * Estonian cuisine * Estonian culture See also

...

and Livonian Governorates to the west,

Pskov Governorate Pskov Governorate () was an administrative-territorial unit (''guberniya'') of the Russian Empire and the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic, Russian SFSR, which existed in 1772–1777 and 1796–1927. Its seat was located in Opochka b ...

to the south,

Novgorod Governorate Novgorod Governorate was an administrative-territorial unit (''guberniya'') of the Russian Empire and the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic, Russian SFSR, which existed from 1727 to 1776 and from 1796 to 1927. Its administrative cent ...

to the east,

Olonets Governorate Olonets Governorate was an administrative-territorial unit ('' guberniya'') of the Russian Empire, extending from Lake Ladoga almost to the White Sea, bounded west by Finland, north and east by Arkhangelsk and Vologda, and south by Novgorod and ...

to the northeast, and

Vyborg Governorate Vyborg Governorate was an administrative-territorial unit (''guberniya'') of the Russian Empire. It was established in 1744 in newly ceded territories from Swedish Empire, Sweden following the Treaty of Åbo and parts of Saint Petersburg Govern ...

of the

Grand Duchy of Finland The Grand Duchy of Finland was the predecessor state of modern Finland. It existed from 1809 to 1917 as an Autonomous region, autonomous state within the Russian Empire. Originating in the 16th century as a titular grand duchy held by the Monarc ...

to the north. The governorate covered most of the areas of modern

Leningrad Oblast Leningrad Oblast (, ; ; ) is a federal subjects of Russia, federal subject of Russia (an oblast). The oblast has an area of and a population of 2,000,997 (2021 Russian census, 2021 Census); up from 1,716,868 recorded in the 2010 Russian census ...

and

Ida-Viru Ida-Viru County ( or ; ) is one of the 15 counties of Estonia. It is the most northeastern part of the country. The county contains large deposits of oil shale the main mineral mined in Estonia. Oil shale is used in the production of shale oil ...

Jõgeva Jõgeva is a small town in Estonia with a population of around 5000 people. It is the capital of Jõgeva Parish and Jõgeva County. History Jõgeva was first mentioned in 1599 as ''Jagiwa'' manor, being established only recently on the lands ...

Tartu Tartu is the second largest city in Estonia after Tallinn. Tartu has a population of 97,759 (as of 2024). It is southeast of Tallinn and 245 kilometres (152 miles) northeast of Riga, Latvia. Tartu lies on the Emajõgi river, which connects the ...

Põlva Põlva (; ) is a town in southeastern Estonia, the county seat of Põlva County, and the centre of Põlva Parish. Põlva is home for the Intsikurmu Music Festival Grounds, which regularly hosts concerts and summer activities, situated in a sm ...

, and Võru counties of Estonia.

Establishment

Ingermanland Governorate (, ''Ingermanlandskaya guberniya'') was created from the territories reconquered from the

Swedish Empire The Swedish Empire or the Great Power era () was the period in Swedish history spanning much of the 17th and early 18th centuries during which Sweden became a European great power that exercised territorial control over much of the Baltic regi ...

in the

Great Northern War In the Great Northern War (1700–1721) a coalition led by the Tsardom of Russia successfully contested the supremacy of the Swedish Empire in Northern Europe, Northern, Central Europe, Central and Eastern Europe. The initial leaders of the ant ...

. In 1704 prince Alexander Menshikov was appointed as its first governor, and in 1706 it was first Russian region designated as a ''Governorate''. According to the

Tsar Tsar (; also spelled ''czar'', ''tzar'', or ''csar''; ; ; sr-Cyrl-Latn, цар, car) is a title historically used by Slavic monarchs. The term is derived from the Latin word '' caesar'', which was intended to mean ''emperor'' in the Euro ...

Peter the Great Peter I (, ; – ), better known as Peter the Great, was the Sovereign, Tsar and Grand Prince of all Russia, Tsar of all Russia from 1682 and the first Emperor of Russia, Emperor of all Russia from 1721 until his death in 1725. He reigned j ...

edict An edict is a decree or announcement of a law, often associated with monarchies, but it can be under any official authority. Synonyms include "dictum" and "pronouncement". ''Edict'' derives from the Latin edictum. Notable edicts * Telepinu ...

as on , 1708,Указ об учреждении губерний и о росписании к ним городов
the whole Russia was split into eight Governorates. In the same year Ingermanland Governorate was further expanded to encompass the regions of Pskov, Novgorod and other towns of Western Russia.Архивы Санкт-Петербурга. Краткая справка о границах С.-Петербургской (Петроградской) губернии с XVIII в. до 1918 года
/ref>''Славнитский Н. Р.'' Утверждение России в Ингерманландии в царствование Петра Великого, стр. 27
/ref> As with the rest of the governorates, neither the borders nor internal subdivisions of Ingermanland Governorate were defined; instead, the territory was defined as a set of cities and the lands adjacent to those cities. By another edict on June 3, 1710, the governorate was renamed St. Petersburg Governorate after the newly founded city of

, and in 1721 the former

Swedish Swedish or ' may refer to: Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically: * Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland ** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...

Duchy of Ingria Swedish Ingria (, ‘land of Ingrians’) was a dominion of the Swedish Empire from 1583 to 1595 and then again from 1617 to 1721 in what is now the territory of Russia. At the latter date, it was ceded to the Russian Empire in the Treaty of Ny ...

, and parts of the

County of Kexholm Kexholm County (, ) was a county of the Swedish Empire from 1634 to 1721, when the southern part was ceded to the Russian Empire in the Treaty of Nystad. The capital of the county was Kexholm (), which today is Priozersk. History The count ...

and the

County of Viborg and Nyslott Viborg and Nyslott County (, ) was a Counties of Sweden, county of the Swedish Empire from 1634 to 1721. The county was named after the castle towns of Viborg () and Nyslott (, literally ''New Castle''), today located in the towns of Vyborg ...

were formally ceded to Russia by the

Treaty of Nystad The Treaty of Nystad, or the Treaty of Uusikaupunki, was the last peace treaty of the Great Northern War of 1700–1721. It was concluded between the Tsardom of Russia and the Swedish Empire on in the then Swedish town of Nystad (, in th ...

. After the

Treaty of Åbo The Treaty of Åbo, or the Treaty of Turku, was a peace treaty signed between the Russian Empire and Sweden in Åbo (Turku) on in the end of the Russo-Swedish War of 1741–1743. History By the end of the war, the Imperial Russian Army had ...

in 1743, the parts of Kexholm and Viborg were joined with new territorial gains from

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic count ...

into the

Governorate of Vyborg Vyborg Governorate was an administrative-territorial unit ('' guberniya'') of the Russian Empire. It was established in 1744 in newly ceded territories from Sweden following the Treaty of Åbo and parts of Saint Petersburg Governorate which wer ...

(). From August 18, 1914 to January 26, 1924 it was named

Petrograd Saint Petersburg, formerly known as Petrograd and later Leningrad, is the second-largest city in Russia after Moscow. It is situated on the River Neva, at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea. The city had a population of 5,601, ...

Governorate, and during 1924–1927 —

Leningrad Saint Petersburg, formerly known as Petrograd and later Leningrad, is the List of cities and towns in Russia by population, second-largest city in Russia after Moscow. It is situated on the Neva, River Neva, at the head of the Gulf of Finland ...

Governorate. It was abolished on August 1, 1927 when modern

was created.

Administrative divisions

The governorate was composed of eight counties (''uezds'') as of January 1, 1914. Follows the table:

Supernumerary town

Former city

Governorate administration

General Governors

*Prince

Aleksandr Menshikov Prince Alexander Danilovich Menshikov (; – ) was a Russian statesman, whose official titles included Generalissimo, Prince of the Russian Empire and Duke of Izhora ( Duke of Ingria), Prince of the Holy Roman Empire, Duke of Cosel. A highly ...

12 October 1702 – May 1724 * Pyotr Apraksin May 1724 – January 1725 *Prince

January 1725 – 8 September 1727 * Jan Sapieha 1727 – 1728 *

Burkhard Christoph von Münnich Burkhard Christoph Graf von Münnich (; – ) was a German-born army officer who became a field marshal and political figure in the Russian Empire. He carried out major reforms in the Russian Army and founded several elite military forma ...

January 1728 – 1734 War Governor *

Nikolai Golovin Nikolai Nikolayevich Golovin (; 4 December 1875 – 10 January 1944) was an Imperial Russian Army general and military historian. Biography Since 1908 Golovin was professor of tactics at the General Staff Academy. At the beginning of World Wa ...

1742 *

Peter Lacy Peter Graf von Lacy (; ; ; 26 September 1678 – 30 April 1751) was an Irish-born soldier who later served in the Imperial Russian army. Considered one of the most successful Russian Imperial commanders before Rumyantsev and Suvorov, in a ...

1743 * Vasily Repnin 1744 * Stepan Ignatiev 1744 * Boris Yusupov 1749 *Prince Mikhail Golitsin 1752 – 1754 * Peter August of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Beck 1762 * Ivan Neplyuyev 1762 – 1764 * Ivan Glebov 1767 *Prince Aleksander Golitsin October 1769 – 8 October 1783 * Jacob Bruce 1784 – 6 October 1791 * Aleksander Romanov 6 October 1791 – 1797 War Governor ** Nikolai Arkharov 6 October 1791 – November 1796, until 15 June 1797 acting General Governor * Fyodor Buksgevden June 1797 – August 1798 * Pyotr von der Pahlen 8 August 1798 – 30 June 1801, until 25 August 1800 acting, from 24 March 1801 War Governor *

Mikhail Kutuzov Prince Mikhail Illarionovich Golenishchev-Kutuzov-Smolensky (; – ) was a Field Marshal of the Russian Empire. He served as a military officer and a diplomat under the reign of three Romanov monarchs: Empress Catherine II, and Emperors Paul ...

30 July 1801 – 9 September 1802 War Governor * Mikhail Kamenskiy 27 August 1802 – 16 November 1802 War Governor * Pyotr Tolstoy 28 November 1802 – 25 January 1803 War Governor * Andrey Budberg 25 January 1803 – 17 February 1803 War Governor *Pyotr Tolstoy 28 November 1802 – 10 September 1805 War Governor ** Nikolai Svechin 1803 – 1806 *

Sergey Vyazmitinov Count Sergey Kuzmich Vyazmitinov (; 7 October 1744 – 15 October 1819) was a Russian general and statesman. He descended from the ancient noble landowner's family of Ruthenian origin, known from the end of the 15th century. On 22 June 1759 ...

10 September 1805 – 12 January 1808 War Governor *Prince Dmitry Lobanov-Rostovskiy 12 January 1808 – 2 February 1809 *

Alexander Balashov Alexander Dmitriyevich Balashov () (13 July 1770 in Moscow – 8 May 1837) was a Russian general and statesman. Balashov came from a noble family. When the boy turned 6 years, his father, a Privy Counsellor and Senator, had him enrolled in the P ...

14 February 1809 – 9 April 1810 *Sergey Vyazmitinov 10 November 1816 – 31 August 1818 War General Governor *

Mikhail Miloradovich Count Mikhail Andreyevich Miloradovich (, , ; – ), spelled Miloradovitch in contemporary English sources, was a Russian general prominent during the Napoleonic Wars. On his father’s side, Miloradovich descended from the Serb noble family ...

31 August 1818 – 15 December 1825 War General Governor * Pavel Golenishchev-Kutuzov 27 December 1825 – 19 February 1830 War General Governor * Pyotr Essen 17 February 1830 – 14 February 1842 War General Governor * Aleksander Kavelin 14 February 1842 – 19 April 1846 War General Governor * Matvey Khrapovitskiy 7 April 1846 – 31 March 1847 War General Governor * Dmitry Shulgin 3 May 1847 – 1 January 1855 War General Governor ** Aleksander Stroganov 1854 War Governor *

Pavel Ignatiev Count Pavel Nikolayevich Ignatiev (, sometimes rendered in English as Paul Ignatieff; June 30/July 12, 1870 – August 12, 1945) was an Imperial Russian politician who served as Education Minister for Tsar Nicholas II. He was the son of Count ...

28 December 1854 – 16 November 1861 War General Governor * Aleksandr Suvorov-Rymnikskiy 16 November 1861 – 16 May 1866 War General Governor *

Iosif Gurko Count Iosif Vladimirovich Romeyko-Gurko (; – ), also known as Joseph or Ossip Gourko, was a prominent Russian field marshal during the Russo-Turkish War (1877–1878). Biography Career Of Belarusian extraction, Gurko was educated ...

April 1879 – February 1880 * Pyotr Gresser February 1880 – 1892 *

Viktor von Wahl Viktor Karl Konrad Wilhelm von Wahl (; 1840–1915) was a Baltic German general, mayor of St. Petersburg, and governor of Vilna Governorate. He came from Baltic nobility, Baltic German noble Wahl (Noble family), Wahl family, which was a branch o ...

1892 – 1895 * Nikolai Kleigels 1895 – 1904 *

Ivan Fullon Ivan Alexandrovich Fullon (July 23 (Aug. 4), 1844 – 1920) was an Imperial Russian division and corps commander. He participated in the suppression of the rebellion in Poland and the war against the Ottoman Empire. Before the Russian Revolution o ...

1904 – 1905 * Dmitry Trepov 12 January 1905 – 14 April 1905 acting General Governor * Vladimir Dedyulin 1905 – 1906 * Vladimir von der Launits 1906 – 1907 * Daniil Drachevsky 1907 – 1914 * Aleksandr Obolensky 1914 – 1916 * Aleksandr Balk 1916 – March 1917 * Vadim Yurevich March – May 1917 * Grigory Shreider July – November 1917

Governors

Marshals of the nobility

Served as chair of the

Assembly of Nobility Assembly of the Nobility () was a self-governing body of the sosloviye (estate) of the Russian nobility in Imperial Russia from 1766 to 1917. Their official status was defined by the Charter to the Gentry in 1785. The Nobility Assemblies were a ...

Notes

References

External links

List of rulers
{{coord, 59.9500, N, 30.3167, E, source:wikidata, display=title Governorates of the Russian Empire 1708 establishments in Russia 1927 disestablishments in Russia History of Saint Petersburg History of Leningrad Oblast 18th century in Saint Petersburg States and territories disestablished in 1927 States and territories disestablished in the 1700s