Administrative divisions of the Novgorod Republic
The administrative division of Novgorod Republic is not definitely known; the country was divided into several tysyachas and volosts. The city of Novgorod with its vicinity, as well as a few other towns, were not part of any of those. Pskov achieved an autonomy from Novgorod in the 13th century; its independence was confirmed by the Treaty of Bolotovo in 1348.
After the fall of the republic, Novgorod Land, as part of Muscovy, consisted of 5 pyatinas that were further divided into uyezds and pogosts. This division was replaced only in the beginning of 18th century when Peter I introduced guberniyas.
Novgorod Republic
City of Novgorod
Novgorod with its vicinity belonged to a separate territorial unit. The city of Novgorod itself was divided into five kontsy or boroughs: Nerevsky, Zagorodsky, Lyudin, Slavensky and Plotnitsky. The city was also divided into two sides: the left-bank of the Volkhov was called the Sophia Side and the right-bank the Commercial or Trade Side.Core
– the lands near Ilmen Lake, Volkhov River, Ladoga Lake and Gulf of Finland, often referred to as Novgorod volost in chronicles, formed the core of the state. The assumptions of the internal structure of independent Novgorod are mostly based on the list of the builders of the Great Bridge over Volkhov and the 1471 treaty between Novgorod and Casimir IV of Poland. The former lists ten parts of Novgorod itself and nine other entities. According to Burov, these were tysyachas that, together with the capital made t'ma, mentioned in the 1471 treaty. Below is the list of tysyachas and their approximate locations:- Rzhev'skaa, to the southwest of Novgorod, near modern Novorzhev
- Bezhichkaa, to the east of Novgorod, with the town of Bezhetsk
- Voch'skaa, in Ingria
- Oboniskaya, the southwestern shore of Ladoga Lake and near Onega Lake
- Luskaa, to the west of Novgorod, west of Luga River
- Lop'skaya, the southern shore of Ladoga Lake and possibly territories to the north and west of the lake
- Povolkhovskaya, in the lower reaches of Volkhov River, around the town of Staraya Ladoga
- Yazholvich'skaa, to the southeast of Novgorod
- Knyazha, to the south of Novgorod, with the centre in Staraya Russa, the second most important town in the country.
Several towns were also not part of any tysyacha as they were owned jointly by Novgorod and one of the neighbouring states. Velikiye Luki were owned jointly by Novgorod and Smolensk Principality and later by Novgorod and Lithuania. Volokolamsk and Torzhok were owned by Novgorod and Vladimir-Suzdal Principality that became part of Muscovy.
Volosts
Vast lands to the east that were being colonised by Novgorod or just paid tribute to it were divided into volosts. Some of those volosts were:- Zavolochye, in the basins of Northern Dvina and Onega. Its name means "beyond the portages", meaning the portages between the river systems of Volga and those rivers. It was inhabited mainly by various Balto-Finnic peoples, though many Slavs migrated there in 13th century escaping Mongol invasions.
- Perm, in the basins of Vychegda and upper Kama.
- Pechora, in the basin of the eponymous river, west of the Ural Mountains.
- Yugra, to the east of Ural Mountains.
- Tre, on the Kola Peninsula.
- Kolo, on the Kola Peninsula.
- Varzuzhskaya, on the Kola Peninsula.
- Umbskaya, on the Kola Peninsula.
Pskov
Pyatinas
After the conquest of Novgorod Land by Muscovy it was divided into 5 pyatinas :- The Pyatina of Shelon, from Shelon River, was located between Lovat and Luga rivers to the west and southwest of Novgorod.
- The Pyatina of the Wods, named after the Votic people that inhabited the area, was located between Luga and Volkhov rivers, to the north of Novgorod and on the shores of Ladoga Lake.
- The Pyatina of Obonezay, from the Onega Lake, was the biggest pyatina of all. It was located to the northeast of Novgorod on the shores of White Sea, Ladoga and Onega lakes.
- The Pyatina of the Berezayka, to the east of the capital.
- The Pyatina of Derev, between Msta and Lovat rivers, to the southeast of Novgorod.