Orenburg Governorate

Coat of arms of Orenburg Governorate

Orenburg Governorate (Russian: Оренбургская губерния) was an administrative division (a guberniya) of the Russian Empire with the center in the city of Orenburg.

The governorate was created in 1744 from the lands annexed from Siberian and Astrakhan Governorates. In 1782, the governorate, along with Chelyabinsky Uyezd of Perm Viceroyalty were transformed into Ufa Viceroyalty, which was divided into Ufa and Orenburg Oblasts. In 1796, Ufa Viceroyalty was renamed Orenburg Governorate, and in 1865 it was split in two—a smaller Orenburg Governorate, and Ufa Governorate. In 1919, Chelyabinsk Governorate was split off from Orenburg Governorate, and in 1928 the governorate was merged into a newly created Middle Volga Oblast.