| Native Name: | Воронежская губерния |
| Conventional Long Name: | Voronezh Governorate |
| Common Name: | Voronezh |
| Subdivision: | Governorate |
| Nation: | the Russian Empire |
| Year Start: | 1725 |
| Year End: | 1928 |
| P1: | Azov Governorate |
| Flag P1: | Coat of Arms of Voronezh gubernia (Russian empire).png |
| S1: | Central Black Earth Oblast |
| Flag S1: | Flag_of_the_Soviet_Union.svg |
| Image Map Caption: | Location within the Russian Empire |
| Capital: | Voronezh |
| Stat Pop1: | 2,531,253 |
| Stat Year1: | (1897) |
| Today: | Russia Ukraine |
Voronezh Governorate was an administrative-territorial unit (guberniya) of the Tsardom of Russia, the Russian Empire, and the Russian SFSR, which existed from 1708 (as Azov Governorate) to 1779 and again from 1796 to 1928. Its capital was located in Voronezh since 1725.
The governorate was located in the south of the European part of the Russian Empire.[1] In 1928, the governorate was abolished, and its area was included into newly established Central Black Earth Oblast.[2]
Azov Governorate, together with seven other governorates, was established on, 1708, by Tsar Peter the Great's edict.[3] As with the rest of the governorates, neither the borders nor internal subdivisions of Azov Governorate were defined; instead, the territory was defined as a set of cities and the lands adjacent to those cities.[4] The governorate bordered Kiev Governorate in the west, Moscow Governorate in the north, and Kazan Governorate in the east. The areas south of the governorate were controlled by the Ottoman Empire, and the southern border was not defined.
Formally, Azov was the seat of the governorate, but in practice, the seat of the governor was located in Tambov until 1715 and in Voronezh after 1715. In 1725, the governorate was renamed Voronezh Governorate.
At the time of establishment, the following seventy-eight towns were included in Azov Governorate,[5]
In 1711, the town of Azov was ceded to Turkey, but the governorate was not renamed.
In terms of the modern political division, Azov Governorate comprised the areas of what is currently Rostov Oblast, Voronezh Oblast, Lipetsk Oblast, Tambov Oblast, and parts of Kursk Oblast, Belgorod Oblast, Tula Oblast, Oryol Oblast, Ryazan Oblast, Penza Oblast, Saratov Oblast, and the Republic of Mordovia, as well as eastern areas of Ukraine, including parts of Kharkiv, Donetsk Oblast, and Luhansk Oblast.
On, 1719, the governorate was divided into provinces: Bakhmut (with the center in Bakhmut), Shatsk, Tambov, Voronezh, and Yelets.[6] The uyezds were transformed into districts.
In 1725, Azov Governorate was renamed into Voronezh Governorate.
The administration of the governorate was performed by a governor. The governors of First Azov Governorate were[7]
By that time, the governorate was divided into five provinces, defined as sets of the towns. The following towns were a part of Voronezh Governorate,[1]
Three towns were subordinate to Lipetsk Iron Works, Belokolodsk, Romanov, and Sokolsk. In 1727, these towns were transferred into Bakhmut Province.
During the 18th century, some of these towns were abolished, and a number of others were mentioned as towns in later sources. In 1765, Bakhmut Province was transferred into Novorossiysk Governorate. In 1775, the provinces were abolished, and the governorate was subdivided into uyezds. At that time, the governorate consisted of Dankovsky, Demshinsky, Insarsky, Kadomsky, Kasimovsky, Kerensky, Korotoyaksky, Kozlovsky, Lebedyansky, Livensky, Narovchatsky, Nizhnelomovsky, Ryazhsky, Shatsky, Tambovsky, Temnikovsky, Userdsky, Usmansky, Verkhnelomovsky, Voronezhsky, Yefremovsky, and Yeletsky Uyezds.[1]
In the following years, the administrative reforms continued, and governorates were gradually abolished in favor of vice-royalties. In 1778, some areas of Voronezh Governorate were transferred to Ryazan and Oryol Viceroyalties, and in 1779 Valuysky Uyezd was transferred to Voronezh Governorate. In 1779, the governorate was abolished, and Tambov and Voronezh Viceroyalty, followed in 1780 by Penza Viceroyalty, were established.
In 1796, by Decree of Tsar Pavel I, Voronezh Viceroyalty was abolished, and Voronezh Governorate was established. It consisted of nine uyezds, Biryuchensky, Bobrovsky, Korotoyaksky, Nizhnedevitsky, Pavlovsky, Valuysky, Voronezhsky, Zadonsky, and Zemlyansky.[1]
In 1802, Bogucharsky, Ostrogozhsky, and Starobelsky Uyezds of Slobodsko-Ukrainian Governorate and Novokhopyorsky Uyezd of Saratov Governorate were transferred to Voronezh Governorate. In 1824, Starobelsky Uyezd was returned to Slobodsko-Ukrainian Governorate.[1]
In 1923, after a series of reforms, Voronezh Governorate consisted of twelve uyezds: Bobrovsky, Bogucharsky, Kalacheyevsky, Nizhnedevitsky, Novokhopyorsky, Ostrogozhsky, Pavlovsky, Rossoshansky, Usmansky, Valuysky, Voronezhsky, and Zadonsky. In 1924, Zadonsky, Kalacheyevsky, and Pavlovsky Uyezds were abolished.[1]
On 14 May 1928 Voronezh Governorate was abolished, and its area was included into newly established Central Black Earth Oblast.
The administration of the governorate was performed by a governor. The governors of Voronezh Governorate were[8] [9]
| Number ! | percentage (%) ! | males ! | females | ----- | 1,602,948 | 63.3 | 787,932 | 815,016 | ----- | 915,883 | 36.1 | 456,389 | 459,494 | ----- | 3,544 | 0.14 | 1,846 | 1,698 | ----- | 2,277 | 0.09 | 1,230 | 1,047 | ----- | 1,982 | 0.07 | 980 | 1,002 | ----- | 1,778 | 0.07 | 1,195 | 583 | ----- | 1,644 | 0.06 | 831 | 813 | ----- | Other | 1,197 | 0.04 | 942 | 255 | ----- | Total | 2,531,253 | 100.0 | 1,251,345 | 1,279,908 | + |