Smolensk Governorate

Smolensk Governorate (), or Government of Smolensk, was an administrative division (a guberniya) of the Russian Empire, which existed, with interruptions, between 1708 and 1929.

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

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



On , Smolensk Governorate was abolished and its territory was divided between Moscow and Riga Governorate. The governorate was re-established in 1726. In 1775, it was included, along with parts of Moscow and Belgorod Governorates, into Smolensk Vice-Royalty. The governorate was again restored in 1796.

After the October Revolution, Smolensk Governorate was base of independent Western Oblast/Western Commune, Soviet Socialist Republic of Belarus, Lithuanian–Belorussian Soviet Socialist Republic (Litbel), and finally incorporated into the Russian SFSR.

Eventually, on January 14, 1929, Smolensk Governorate was abolished and its territory was included into Western Oblast.

References

Further reading

• Голубовский П. В. (1895) (History of the Smolensk land prior to the beginning of the 15th century)

Смаленская губэрня
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