Shemakha Governorate

Shemakha Governorate^{[lower-alpha 1]} was an administrative-territorial unit (guberniya) of the Caucasus Viceroyalty of the Russian Empire, with its administrative center in Shemakha (Shamakhi). Following the earthquake of 1859, the capital was transferred and the province became known as the Baku Governorate.

Shemakha Governorate Шемахинская губерния
Governorate
Coat of arms
Map of the Shemakha Governorate (1846–1859)
Country	Russian Empire
Viceroyalty	Caucasus
Established	1846
Abolished	1859
Capital	Shemakha (present-day Shamakhi)
Area
• Total	57,444 km2 (22,179 sq mi)
Highest elevation (Mount Bazardüzü)	4,466 m (14,652 ft)
Population  (1851)
• Total	603,006
• Density	10/km2 (27/sq mi)
Preceded by	Caspian Oblast
Succeeded by	Baku Governorate

History

The governorate was formed by the imperial decree of Tsar Nicholas I on 26 December [O.S. 14 December] 1846, whereby the Caucasus Viceroyalty was divided into four governorates: Shemakha, Tiflis, Kutaisi and Derbent.^[1]

Following the catastrophic 1859 Shamakhi earthquake, the capital of the governorate was transferred from Shemakha to the fast-growing city of Baku, for-which the governorate's name was changed accordingly.^[1][2]

Administrative divisions

Shemakha Governorate consisted of five counties (uezds). According to the IX Census of Russia in 1851, the population of the governorate consisted of 319,923 men and 283,083 women, in total 603,006 people.^[3] Data on the total population were provided by the Transcaucasian Office of the Imperial Ministry of Finance. It was not possible to determine the exact number of women in each uezd:^{[citation needed]}

District	Russian name	Male population
Baku	Бакинскій уѣздъ	22,380
Shemakha	Шемахинскій уѣздъ	82,989
Lenkoran	Ленкоранскій уѣздъ	43,198
Nukha	Нухинскій уѣздъ	65,952
Shusha	Шушинскій уѣздъ	105,404

Governor-generals

• Baron Alexander Yevstasyevich von Wrangel (1846–1850)
• Sergei Gavrilovich Chilyaev (1850–1857)
• Konstantin Davidovich Tarkhan-Mouravov (1857–1859)

Notes

1. • Russian: Шемахинская губерния, pre-reform orthography: Шемахинская губернія, romanized: Shemakhinskaya guberniya [ʂɨməxʲɪnskəjə ɡʊbʲɪrnʲɪjə]
   • Azerbaijani: شماخی غوبیرنیاسی, romanized: Şamāxı ğūbernīyāsı

References

1. "Азербайджанские земли в составе Российской империи" (in Russian). Retrieved 27 June 2022.
2. Мильман, Арон Шмульевич (1966). Политический строй Азербайджана в XIX-начале XX веков: административный аппарат и суд, формы и методы колониального управления (in Russian). Азербайджанское гос. изд-во. p. 156.
3. Keppen, Peter (1857). "Шемахинская губернiя" [Shemakha Governorate]. Изслѣдованiе о числѣ жителей въ Россiи въ 1851 году [Study on the number of inhabitants in Russia in 1851] (in Russian). Vol. 62. Saint Petersburg: Imperial Academy of Sciences. p. 154.

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