Baku Governorate

Infobox Russian governorate
EnglishName=Baku Governorate
RussianName=Бакинская губерния
RussianOldName=Бакiнская губернiя
Locator

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CoatOfArmsLink=Coat of arms of Baku Governorate
AdmCtrName=Baku
FoundationDate=1846 as Shemakha Governorate; renamed to Baku Governorate in 1859
AbolishmentDate=1917
PoliticalStatus=Governorate
PoliticalStatusLink=Guberniya
Region=Caucasus
Area= 34400
Population=789659
UrbanPopulation=19.80%
RuralPopulation=80.20%
CensusYear=1897
GovAsOf=1917
HeadTitle=Governor
HeadName=Governor of Tiflis|

Baku Governorate (Old Russian: "Бакiнская губернiя") was one of the "guberniyas" of the Russian Empire, with its centre in Baku. Area (1897): 34,4000 sq. verstas, population (1897): 789,659 [http://www.cultinfo.ru/fulltext/1/001/007/007/7661.htm Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopædia] : Baku Governorate] . The only foreign border of the governorate was Persia, in the south.

The Governorate (Province) was established in 1846 as Shemakha Governorate, in place of several military precincts. After the devastating 1859 Shamakhy earthquake it was decided to transfter the capital of the Province to Baku. On July 12, 1859 the governorate's name was changed accordingly. The coat of arms of the governorate was instituted on July 5, 1878 ^{[http://heraldry.hobby.ru/gub1/bkgub.html]} . Initially Baku Governorate included Karabakh and Zangezur, which were separated in 1868 to create Elisabethpol Governorate.

The governorate was preserved until the establishment of the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic, when it was split into Baku Governorate and Lankaran General-Governorate.

Administrative division

Baku Governorate had six "uyezds" (in 1868 Nukha and Shusha uyezds were attached to Elisabethpol Governorate):
*Baku
*Kuba (attached in 1860)
*Shemakha
*Geokchai
*Dzhevat
*Lenkoran

Demographics

As of 1897, 789,659 people populated the governorate, of them 55% were male. Azeris (mostly Shiite) constituted the majority of the population. Significant minorities consisted of Russians, Armenians, Lezgins, Tats, Talysh and Jews.

Known governors

*Konstantin Tarkhanov-Mouravov, 1859–1863
*Mikhail Kolyubakin, 1863–1872
*Dmitry Staroselsky, 1872–1875
*Valeriy Pozen, 1875–1882
*Justin von Huebsch Grostal, 1882–1888
*Vladimir Rogge, 1888–1899
*Dmitry Odintsov, 1899–1904
*Mikhail Nakashidze, 1904–1905
*Andrei Fadeyev, 1905
*Vladimir Alyshevsky, 1905–1915
*Leo Potulov, 1916–1917 [ [http://whp057.narod.ru/bakin.htm Baku Lands] ]

References

* [http://slovari.yandex.ru/art.xml?art=brokminor/4/4144.html&encpage=brokminor&mrkp=http%3A//hghltd.yandex.com/yandbtm%3Furl%3Dhttp%253A//encycl.yandex.ru/texts/brokminor/4/4144.html%26text%3Denc_abc%26reqtext%3D%2528enc%253A%253A1402442%2B%2526/%25281%2B1%2529%2Babc%253A%253A146659%2529//6%26%26isu%3D2 Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary]
* [http://heraldry.hobby.ru/gub1/bkgub.html Герб Бакинской губернии]