Riga Governorate
Encyclopedia
The Governorate of Livonia or Livland Governorate, also known as the Government of Livonia or Province of Livonia, was one of the Baltic governorates of the Russian Empire, now divided between the Republic of Latvia and the Republic of Estonia.
It was originally called the Riga Governorate after the city of Riga
, the capital of Livonia
. It was created out of Swedish Livonia, territories conquered from Sweden
in the Great Northern War
. Livonia had capitulated in 1710
and was formally ceded to Russia in the Treaty of Nystad
in 1721. During subsequent administrative reordering, the governorate was renamed in 1796 into the Governorate of Livonia.
Until the late 19th century the governorate was not ruled by Russia but was administered independently by the local Baltic German
nobility through a feudal Regional Council . After the Russian February Revolution
in 1917, the northern part of the Governorate of Livonia was combined with the Governorate of Estonia
to form a new Autonomous Governorate of Estonia
.
The Autonomous Governorate of Estonia issued the Estonian Declaration of Independence
on February 24, 1918, one day before it was occupied by German troops
during World War I
. With the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk
on March 3, 1918, Bolshevist Russia
accepted the loss of the Livland Governorate and by agreements concluded in Berlin on August 27, 1918, the Autonomous Governorate of Estonia and the Governorate of Livonia were severed from Russia.
{|cellspacing="0" border="1" bgcolor="white"
|+
! |Language
! |Number
! |percentage (%)
! |males
! |females
|-----
|Latvian
|563 929
|43.4
|271 215
|292 714
|-----
|Estonian
|518 594
|39.91
|247 348
|271 246
|-----
|German
|98 573
|7.58
|44 770
|53 803
|-----
|Russian
|68 124
|5.24
|38 844
|29 280
|-----
|Yiddish
|23 728
|1.82
|12 189
|11 539
|-----
|Polish
|15 132
|1.16
|8 321
|6 811
|-----
|Lithuanian
|6 594
|0.5
|4 131
|2 463
|-----
|Persons
that did not name
their native language
|154
|>0.1
|71
|83
|-----
|Other
|4 537
|0.34
|3 109
|1 428
|-----
|Total
|1 299 365
|100
|629 992
|669 373
|+
|}
It was originally called the Riga Governorate after the city of Riga
Riga
Riga is the capital and largest city of Latvia. With 702,891 inhabitants Riga is the largest city of the Baltic states, one of the largest cities in Northern Europe and home to more than one third of Latvia's population. The city is an important seaport and a major industrial, commercial,...
, the capital of Livonia
Livonia
Livonia is a historic region along the eastern shores of the Baltic Sea. It was once the land of the Finnic Livonians inhabiting the principal ancient Livonian County Metsepole with its center at Turaida...
. It was created out of Swedish Livonia, territories conquered from Sweden
Swedish Empire
The Swedish Empire refers to the Kingdom of Sweden between 1561 and 1721 . During this time, Sweden was one of the great European powers. In Swedish, the period is called Stormaktstiden, literally meaning "the Great Power Era"...
in the Great Northern War
Great Northern War
The Great Northern War was a conflict in which a coalition led by the Tsardom of Russia successfully contested the supremacy of the Swedish Empire in northern Central Europe and Eastern Europe. The initial leaders of the anti-Swedish alliance were Peter I the Great of Russia, Frederick IV of...
. Livonia had capitulated in 1710
Capitulation of Estonia and Livonia
With the Capitulation of Estonia and Livonia in 1710 the Swedish dominions Estonia and Livonia were integrated into the Russian Empire following their conquest during the Great Northern War...
and was formally ceded to Russia in the Treaty of Nystad
Treaty of Nystad
The Treaty of Nystad was the last peace treaty of the Great Northern War. It was concluded between the Tsardom of Russia and Swedish Empire on 30 August / 10 September 1721 in the then Swedish town of Nystad , after Sweden had settled with the other parties in Stockholm and Frederiksborg.During...
in 1721. During subsequent administrative reordering, the governorate was renamed in 1796 into the Governorate of Livonia.
Until the late 19th century the governorate was not ruled by Russia but was administered independently by the local Baltic German
Baltic German
The Baltic Germans were mostly ethnically German inhabitants of the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea, which today form the countries of Estonia and Latvia. The Baltic German population never made up more than 10% of the total. They formed the social, commercial, political and cultural élite in...
nobility through a feudal Regional Council . After the Russian February Revolution
February Revolution
The February Revolution of 1917 was the first of two revolutions in Russia in 1917. Centered around the then capital Petrograd in March . Its immediate result was the abdication of Tsar Nicholas II, the end of the Romanov dynasty, and the end of the Russian Empire...
in 1917, the northern part of the Governorate of Livonia was combined with the Governorate of Estonia
Governorate of Estonia
The Governorate of Estonia or Estland, also known as the Government of Estonia or Province of Estonia, was a governorate of the Russian Empire in what is now northern Estonia.-Historical overview:...
to form a new Autonomous Governorate of Estonia
Autonomous Governorate of Estonia
The local autonomy in Estonia was established as a result of the Russian Revolution of 1917. For the duration of control by Imperial Russia, Estonia was divided between two governorates . The Governorate of Estonia in the north corresponded roughly to the area of Danish Estonia and the northern...
.
The Autonomous Governorate of Estonia issued the Estonian Declaration of Independence
Estonian Declaration of Independence
The Estonian Declaration of Independence, also known as the Manifesto to the Peoples of Estonia , is the founding act of the Republic of Estonia from 1918. It is celebrated on 24 February, the National Day or Estonian Independence Day....
on February 24, 1918, one day before it was occupied by German troops
German Army (German Empire)
The German Army was the name given the combined land forces of the German Empire, also known as the National Army , Imperial Army or Imperial German Army. The term "Deutsches Heer" is also used for the modern German Army, the land component of the German Bundeswehr...
during World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
. With the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk
Treaty of Brest-Litovsk
The Treaty of Brest-Litovsk was a peace treaty signed on March 3, 1918, mediated by South African Andrik Fuller, at Brest-Litovsk between Russia and the Central Powers, headed by Germany, marking Russia's exit from World War I.While the treaty was practically obsolete before the end of the year,...
on March 3, 1918, Bolshevist Russia
Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic
The Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic , commonly referred to as Soviet Russia, Bolshevik Russia, or simply Russia, was the largest, most populous and economically developed republic in the former Soviet Union....
accepted the loss of the Livland Governorate and by agreements concluded in Berlin on August 27, 1918, the Autonomous Governorate of Estonia and the Governorate of Livonia were severed from Russia.
List of governors
- 1712–1719 Aleksandr Danilovich MenshikovAleksandr Danilovich MenshikovAleksandr Danilovich Menshikov was a Russian statesman, whose official titles included Generalissimus, Prince of the Russian Empire and Duke of Izhora , Prince of the Holy Roman Empire, Duke of Cosel. A highly appreciated associate and friend of Tsar Peter the Great, he was the de facto ruler of...
- 1719–1726 Anikita RepninAnikita RepninPrince Anikita Ivanovich Repnin was a prominent Russian general during the Great Northern War who superintended the taking of Riga in 1710 and served as the Governor of Livland from 1719 until his death....
- 1727–1751 Peter LacyPeter LacyCount Peter von Lacy, or Pyotr Petrovich Lacy , as he was known in Russia , was one of the most successful Russian imperial commanders before Rumyantsev and Suvorov...
- 1734-1736 Karl von Hochmuth (lieutenant governor)
- 1751–1753 Vladimir Petrovich Dolgorukiy
- 1753–1758 Pyotr Vojeikov (vice governor)
- 1758–1761 Vladimir Petrovich Dolgorukiy
- 1762–1791 George von BrowneGeorge Browne (soldier)George Browne, Count von Browne in the nobility of the Holy Roman empire was an Irish soldier of fortune who became field-marshal in the Russian service....
- 1792–1798 Nicholas RepninNicholas RepninPrince Nikolai Vasilyevich Repnin was an Imperial Russian statesman and general from the Repnin princely family who played a key role in the dissolution of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth.- Rule of Poland :...
- 1798–1800 Ludwig von Nagell
- 1800–1801 Peter Ludwig von der Pahlen
- 1801–1803 Sergei Fyodorovich Golitsyn
- 1803–1807 Friedrich Wilhelm von Buxhoevden
- 1807–1810 Ivan Repjev
- 1810–1812 Dmitry Ivanovich Lobanov-RostovskyDmitry Ivanovich Lobanov-RostovskyPrince Dmitry Ivanovich Lobanov-Rostovsky , Russian Prince, statesman and military leader.Rostovsky was as a descendent of prince Rurik and one of the most major Russian noblemen in the court of Catherine II of Russia.After Russia's defeat at on 14 June 1807, Russia asked for an armistice, which...
- 1812–1812 Johann Magnus von EssenIvan EssenIvan Nikolaevich Essen was a Russian lieutenant general and military governor of Riga at the start of the Patriotic War of 1812.-Pre-1812:...
- 1812–1829 Filippo PaulucciPhilip Osipovich PaulucciPhilip Osipovich Paulucci was a marquis and a Russian adjutant general.-Life:He first served in the French army in 1807 before moving to the Russian service with the rank of colonel...
- 1829–1845 Carl Magnus von der Pahlen
- 1845–1848 Yevgeny Golovin
- 1848–1861 Alexander Arkadyevich SuvorovAlexander Arkadyevich SuvorovAlexander Arkadyevich Suvorov, Prince of Italy, Count Rymniksky was a Russian general, diplomat and politician.-Education:...
- 1861–1864 Wilhelm Heinrich von Lieven
- 1864–1866 Pyotr Andreyevich ShuvalovPyotr Andreyevich ShuvalovCount Pyotr Andreyevich Shuvalov was an influential Russian statesman and a counselor to Tsar Alexander II...
- 1866–1866 Eduard Baranov
- 1866–1876 Peter BagrationiPeter BagrationiPeter Bagrationi or Pyotr Romanovich Bagration, the son of a Russian-Georgian general, was a Russian-Georgian statesman, general and scientist who invented the first dry galvanic cell.- Biography :...
- 1876–1883 Alexander von Üxküll-Güldenband
- 1883–1885 Ivan Shevich
- 1885–1895 Mikhail Zinovjev
- 1895–1900 Vladimir Surovcev
- 1901–1905 Mikhail Pashkov
- 1905–1906 Vasily Sollogub
- 1906–1909 Alexander Möller-Zakomelskiy
- 1909–1914 Nikolay Zvegincev
- 1914–1916 Arkadiy Kelepovskiy
- 1916–1917 Nikolay Lavrinovskiy
- 1917 Sergei Shidlovskiy
- 1917 Andrejs Krastkalns (CommissionerCommissionerCommissioner is in principle the title given to a member of a commission or to an individual who has been given a commission ....
of the Russian Provisional GovernmentRussian Provisional GovernmentThe Russian Provisional Government was the short-lived administrative body which sought to govern Russia immediately following the abdication of Tsar Nicholas II . On September 14, the State Duma of the Russian Empire was officially dissolved by the newly created Directorate, and the country was...
from March 18 till April 3)
Language
- By the Imperial census of 1897. In bold are languages spoken by more people than the state language.
{|cellspacing="0" border="1" bgcolor="white"
|+
! |Language
! |Number
! |percentage (%)
! |males
! |females
|-----
|Latvian
Latvian language
Latvian is the official state language of Latvia. It is also sometimes referred to as Lettish. There are about 1.4 million native Latvian speakers in Latvia and about 150,000 abroad. The Latvian language has a relatively large number of non-native speakers, atypical for a small language...
|563 929
|43.4
|271 215
|292 714
|-----
|Estonian
Estonian language
Estonian is the official language of Estonia, spoken by about 1.1 million people in Estonia and tens of thousands in various émigré communities...
|518 594
|39.91
|247 348
|271 246
|-----
|German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
|98 573
|7.58
|44 770
|53 803
|-----
|Russian
Russian language
Russian is a Slavic language used primarily in Russia, Belarus, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. It is an unofficial but widely spoken language in Ukraine, Moldova, Latvia, Turkmenistan and Estonia and, to a lesser extent, the other countries that were once constituent republics...
|68 124
|5.24
|38 844
|29 280
|-----
|Yiddish
Yiddish language
Yiddish is a High German language of Ashkenazi Jewish origin, spoken throughout the world. It developed as a fusion of German dialects with Hebrew, Aramaic, Slavic languages and traces of Romance languages...
|23 728
|1.82
|12 189
|11 539
|-----
|Polish
Polish language
Polish is a language of the Lechitic subgroup of West Slavic languages, used throughout Poland and by Polish minorities in other countries...
|15 132
|1.16
|8 321
|6 811
|-----
|Lithuanian
Lithuanian language
Lithuanian is the official state language of Lithuania and is recognized as one of the official languages of the European Union. There are about 2.96 million native Lithuanian speakers in Lithuania and about 170,000 abroad. Lithuanian is a Baltic language, closely related to Latvian, although they...
|6 594
|0.5
|4 131
|2 463
|-----
|Persons
that did not name
their native language
|154
|>0.1
|71
|83
|-----
|Other
|4 537
|0.34
|3 109
|1 428
|-----
|Total
|1 299 365
|100
|629 992
|669 373
|+
|}
See also
- Baltic governorates
- Courland GovernorateCourland GovernorateCourland Governorate, also known as the Province of Courland, Governorate of Kurland , and Government of Courland , was one of the Baltic governorates of the Russian Empire, that is now part of the Republic of Latvia....
- Estonia Governorate
- Saint Petersburg GovernorateSaint Petersburg GovernorateSaint Petersburg Governorate , or Government of Saint Petersburg, was an administrative division of the Russian Empire, which existed in 1708–1927....
- Administrative divisions of Russia in 1713-1714Administrative divisions of Russia in 1713-1714-Major events:*May 19 , 1713 — the capital of Russia was moved from Moscow to St. Petersburg.*July 28 , 1713 — Riga Governorate was formed on the recently acquired lands in the north-west of Russia.*July 28 , 1713 — Smolensk Governorate was abolished; its territory was divided...
- Livonian ConfederationLivonian ConfederationTerra Mariana was the official name for Medieval Livonia or Old Livonia which was formed in the aftermath of the Livonian Crusade in the territories comprising present day Estonia and Latvia...