Tiflis Governorate

Tiflis Governorate (Old Russian: Тифлисская губернія; Georgian: ტფილისის გუბერნია) was one of the guberniyas of the Russian Empire with its centre in Tiflis (present-day Tbilisi, capital of Georgia). In 1897 it constituted 44,607 sq. kilometres in area and had a population of 1,051,032 inhabitants. The governorate used to border Elisabethpol Governorate, Erivan Governorate, Kutaisi Governorate, Zakatali okrug, Dagestan Oblast, Terek Oblast, and Kars Oblast. It covered present southeastern Georgia, northern Armenia and northwestern Azerbaijan.

Tiflis Governorate was established in 1846 along with the Kutaisi Governorate, after the dissolution of the Georgia-Imeretia Governorate. It was initially formed from uyezds of Tiflis, Gori, Telavi, Signakh, Yelizavetpol, Erivan, Nakhichevan and Alexandropol and okrugs of Zakataly, Ossetian and Tushino-pshaw-Khevsurian. In 1849, uyezds of Erivan, Nakhichevan and Alexandropol were attached to Erivan Governorate. In 1859 Ossetian okrug became part of Gori district and Tushino-pshaw-Khevsurian okrug was renamed to Tionets. In 1867, the northern part of Tiflis uyezd was separated as Dusheti one, while Akhaltsikhe uyezd which was created after ceding from Ottoman Empire to Russian Empire in 1829, was detached from Kutaisi Governorate and part of Tiflis one. In 1868 Yelizavetpol uyezd (in the same decree, Kazakh uyezd was formed from northwestern part of Yelizavetpol one and was attached to Elisabethpol Governorate) was part of Elisabethpol Governorate. In 1874, the southern part of Akhaltsikhe uyezd was to become Akhalkalaki one and Tionets okrug was elevated as uyezd. Finally southern part of Tiflis Uyezd was to become Borchali Uyezd. The governorate lasted in these boundaries for 50 years, until the Democratic Republic of Georgia was founded.

Administrative divisions

Tiflis Governorate consisted of the following uyezds:

• Tiflis
• Akhalkalaki
• Akhaltsikhe
• Borchali
• Elisabethpol (attached to Elisabethpol Governorate in 1868)
• Gori
• Dusheti
• Signakhi
• Telavi
• Tianeti

Demographics

As of 1897, 1,051,032 lived in the governorate, with around 20% of them being urban. Ethnic Georgians constituted 44.3% of the population, followed by Armenians (18.7%), Azeris (10.2%), Russians (including Ukrainians and Old Believers, 9.7%), Ossetians (6.4%), Avars (3.2%), Greeks (2.6%), Turks (2.4%), etc. More than half of the population adhered to Eastern Orthodox Christianity with significant Muslim, Catholic and Jewish minorities.

Ethnic groups in 1897

Uyezd	Georgians	Armenians	Azerbaijanis	Russians	Ossetians	Avars	Greeks	Turks	Ukrainians	Poles	Germans	Jews	Kurds	Chechens	Dargins	Lezgins
TOTAL	44.3%	18.7%	10.2%	7.5%	6.4%	3.2%	2.6%	2.4%	...	...	...	...	...	...	...	...
Akhalkalaki	8.9%	72.3%	9.0%	7.1%	...	...	...	...	...	...	...	...	1.1%	...	...	...
Akhaltsikhe	17.7%	22.0%	18.0%	2.5%	...	...	...	35.1%	...	...	...	...	2.0%	...	...	...
Borchali	6.1%	36.9%	29.4%	6.3%	...	...	16.6%	...	...	...	1.9%	...	...	...	...	...
Gori	65.0%	4.0%	...	2.8%	26.2%	...	...	...	...	...	...	...	...	...	...	...
Dusheti	73.4%	2.5%	...	1.4%	21.4%	...	...	...	...	...	...	...	...	...	...	...
Zakatala	14.7%	2.5%	34.4%	...	...	37.6%	...	...	...	...	...	...	...	...	8.8%	1.2%
Signakhi	82.9%	6.2%	5.2%	4.3%	...	...	...	...	...	...	...	...	...	...	...	...
Telavi	85.9%	7.1%	2.8%	1.0%	...	2.6%	...	...	...	...	...	...	...	...	...	...
Tianeti	88.7%	1.6%	...	1.9%	...	...	...	...	...	...	...	...	...	6.2%	...	...
Tiflis	34.2%	24.7%	5.9%	22.1%	...	...	1.9%	...	1.5%	2.1%	2.3%	1.4%	...	...	...	...

Governors

The administration tasks in the governorate were executed by a governor. Sometimes, a military governor was appointed as well. The governors of Tiflis Governorate were

• 1847–1849 Sergei Nikolayevich Yermolov, governor;
• 1849–1855 Ivan Malkhazovich Andronnikov (Andronikashvili), military governor;
• 1855–1857 Nikolay Yevgenyevich Lukash, military governor;
• 1858–1860 Alexander Khristianovich Kapger, military governor;
• 1860–1876 Konstantin Ivanovich Orlovsky, governor;
• 1876–1878 Maxim Alexandrovich Osten-Saken, governor;
• 1878–1883 Konstantin Dmitriyevich Gagarin, governor;
• 1883–1887 Alexander Ignatyevich Grossman, governor;
• 1887–1889 Karl Lvovich Zisserman, governor;
• 1889–1897 Georgy Dmitriyevich Shervashidze (Giorgi Shervashidze), governor;
• 1897–1899 Fyodor Alexandrovich Bykov, governor;
• 1899–1905 Ivan Nikolayevich Svechin, governor;
• 1905–1907 Pavel Alexandrovich Riush fon Traubenberg (Paulus Rausch von Traubenberg), governor;
• 1907–1911 Mikhail Alexandrovich Lyubich-Yarmolovich-Lozina-Lozinsky, governor;
• 1911–1914 Andrei Gavrilovich Chernyavsky, governor;
• 1914–1916 Ivan Mikhaylovich Strakhovsky, governor;
• 1916–1917 Alexander Nikolayevich Mandrika, acting governor.

Further reading

• William Henry Beable (1919), "Governments or Provinces of the Former Russian Empire: Tiflis", Russian Gazetteer and Guide, London: Russian Outlook – via Open Library {{citation}}: External link in |chapterurl= (help); Unknown parameter |chapterurl= ignored (|chapter-url= suggested) (help)