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The Short-Lived Kaluga Viceroyalty of Catherine The Great (1776-1795)
Extremely rare map of the Zhizdrinsky Uezd, a district within the Kaluga Viceroyalty., which appeared in the Источник: Источник: Источник: Атлас Калужского наместничества, состоящего из двенадцати городов и уездов (Atlas of the Kaluga Viceroyalty), published in St. Petersburg in 1782.
This atlas consisted of maps detailing the administrative divisions and cities of the Kaluga Viceroyalty, which was an important region during the late 18th century in Russia. Created by Catherine the Great by combining the Kaluga and Tula Governorates, the Viceroyalty was established in 1776, and the atlas is almost certainly the first systematic survey of the newly formed region.
The key or legend provides a description of adjacent districts or uyezds (administrative divisions) in the Kaluga Viceroyalty. The map notes the ОПИСАНИЕ СМѢЖНЫХЪ УѢЗДОВЪ (Description of Adjacent Districts) This section describes the neighboring districts in relation to the mapped area.
- от F до G Козельской (From point F to point G - Kozelsk district): This indicates that the territory between points F and G on the map is part of the Kozelsk district, which is part of the Kaluga Viceroyalty.
- Орловскаго Намѣстничества (Orel Viceroyalty)
- от G до H Бѣховской (From point G to point H - Bekhovskoy district): The map shows that between points G and H lies the Bekhovskoy district, part of the Orel Viceroyalty.
- Калужскаго Намѣстничества (Kaluga Viceroyalty)
- от H до I Жиздринскаго пятая часть (From point H to point I - Zhizdrinsky fifth part): This section of the map belongs to the fifth part of the Zhizdra district in the Kaluga Viceroyalty.
- от I до K Жиздринскаго уѢзда четвертая часть (From point I to point K - Fourth part of Zhizdrinsky Uyezd): The territory between I and K represents the fourth part of Zhizdrinsky Uyezd.
- от К до F того же уѢзда третья часть (From point K to point F - Third part of the same district): This refers to the third part of the same Zhizdrinsky Uyezd from K to F.
The viceroyalty system was introduced by Catherine the Great in the 1770s as part of her administrative reforms to better manage the empire's vast territories. The Kaluga Viceroyalty (Калужское наместничество) was an administrative division in the Russian Empire, established as part of Catherine the Great's broader administrative reforms. Created in 1776, the viceroyalty was formed to better govern the expanding territories of the empire by dividing larger provinces into more manageable units. Kaluga Viceroyalty was carved out of the Moscow Governorate and included twelve cities and districts, including Kaluga, Kozelsk, Zhizdra, Medyn, and others. Kaluga itself, the administrative center, was an important town on the trade route between Moscow and southern Russia.
Catherine the Great’s reform of the provincial system aimed to increase efficiency, improve governance, and bolster the state's ability to collect taxes and maintain order. This led to the creation of multiple viceroyalties throughout the empire, each headed by a governor-general. The viceroyalties were designed to implement state control over local administrative matters, improve legal frameworks, and enhance military oversight.
The Kaluga Viceroyalty was significant not only for its administrative role but also because of its geographical and economic importance. Located to the southwest of Moscow, the region played a key role in connecting the Russian heartland with its expanding southern territories. It was a prosperous agricultural area, and Kaluga itself grew as a center for trade and industry.
In 1796, after the death of Catherine the Great, her son Emperor Paul I abolished the viceroyalties, transforming them into governorates (gubernias). The Kaluga Viceroyalty was reorganized into the Kaluga Governorate, a more streamlined administrative entity. The viceroyalty’s existence, while brief, represents a significant phase in the imperial restructuring of Russia’s administrative divisions during the late 18th century, reflecting Catherine’s efforts to modernize governance throughout the empire.
