Administrative division of Lithuania

Russian Empire

Lithuania 1867-1914

After the third division of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth and the annexation of the West Belarusian and Lithuanian lands to the Russian Empire ( 1795 ), most of the modern territory of Lithuania entered the Vilna province . Initially, it was divided into counties Braslavsky (later Novoaleksandrovsky), Vilensky, Vilkomirsky, Zavileysky, Kovensky, Oshmyansky, Russian, Telshevsky, Troksky, Upitsky (Ponevezhsky), Shavelsky. In 1797 , during the administrative-territorial reforms of Paul I, it was merged with the Slonim province into one Lithuanian province with the provincial government in Vilna .

Under Alexander I, the Lithuanian province in 1801 was divided into the Vilnius province (until 1840 it was called the Lithuanian-Vilnius province) and the Grodno province (the former Slonim province).

In 1843, part of the territory became part of the newly formed Coven province . Vilensky, Oshmyansky, Sventsyansky (Zavileysky) and Troksky districts remained as a part of the Vilnius province, as well as the Lidsky districts transferred from the Grodno province and the Vileysky and Disnensky districts from the Minsk province .

Republic of Lithuania (1918-1940)

After World War I, in the independent Republic of Lithuania, the main units of the administrative division carried out in 1919 - 1921 were counties and parishes ( lit. valsčius ). In each parish, approx. 5,000 inhabitants; The volosts, in turn, were divided into the village head ( lit. seniūnija ) with a population of approx. 100 people.

The territory was divided into 21 counties ( lit. apskritis ), in which there were 249 volosts; 31 cities enjoyed the rights of self-government, of which 10 were first-rate (did not participate in the self-government of counties), the rest were cities of the second category (participated in the self-government of counties). Volosts were divided into the elders. Volosts were established and liquidated by a decision of the Council of Ministers. Self-government rights were granted to cities by the cabinet.

The four largest cities ( Kaunas , Panevezys , Siauliai , Ukmerge ) were granted the rights of counties. At the same time, most of Seinen County with a temporary center in Lazdijai and Trakai County with a temporary center in Kaisiadorys were actually located on Polish territory. Klaipeda Region with Klaipeda and three districts formed a separate administrative unit.

In military-administrative terms, the country was divided into three military districts (Kaunas, Marijampolsky, Panevezys), each of which comprised three mobilization districts.

Lithuanian SSR

On July 20, 1950, in the Lithuanian SSR, the previous administrative division into counties, volosts and apilinki ( lit. apylinkė , that is, "outskirts", an administrative-territorial unit smaller than a district with its own self-government, an analogue of the village council) was replaced by the Soviet into oblasts, districts and apilinkas. Initially, there were four regions (Vilnius, Kaunas, Klaipeda and Siauliai) and 87 districts. May 29, 1953 areas were liquidated; apilinkas enlarged (in 1954-1224, in 1963653). In 1957 , an attempt was made to redistribute the territory, guided by the production and territorial principle ( economic councils ).

In 1963, the territory of the Lithuanian SSR was divided into 41 districts, 89 cities, 25 urban-type settlements.

In the last years of the existence of the Lithuanian SSR, the territory was divided into 44 rural areas and 11 cities of republican subordination (in the 1960s, there were 9, without Alytus and Kapsukas ). The largest cities of Vilnius and Kaunas , in addition, were divided into urban areas (7 in total). Rural areas were divided into apilinki and included 22 urban-type villages and 81 cities of regional subordination.

Cities of Republican Subordination

• Alytus
• Birstonas
• Vilnius
• Druskininkai
• Kapsukas (renamed Marijampole in 1989)
• Kaunas
• Klaipeda
• Neringa
• Palanga
• Panevezys
• Šiauliai

Areas

• 10 counties

• Counties form the territory of 60 municipalities:

• • 7 urban (cities: Alytus , Vilnius , Kaunas , Klaipeda , Palanga , Panevezys and Siauliai )
  • 43 district
  • 10 newly formed municipalities (Birštonas, Visaginsky, Druskininkai, Kazlu-Rudsky, Kalvariysky, Marijampolsky, Neringa, Pagegyaysky, Retavsky and Elektrensky)

• Local governments are divided into 546 elders

• Starostva are subdivided (since 2009) into the emerging, at present, Syanjunaitii

Municipalities of large cities ( Alytus , Vilnius , Kaunas , Klaipeda , Panevezys , Šiauliai ) cover the territory of one city (in some cases with the suburbs).

The self-governments of the resorts ( Palanga and Neringa ) include the settlements located next to them.

Thus, the county includes various administrative units. For example, Vilnius County covers the self-government of the city of Vilnius, the self-government of Vilnius region, the Electren self-government, as well as the governments of the Trakai, Ukmergsky, Shalchininsky, Shvenchenyonsky and Shirvintsky districts; in turn, for example, the Vilnius region includes the city of Nemenchine, the towns of Byazdonis , Maishyagalu, Mitskunai, Shumskas, villages and is divided into 23 elders.

Each county is headed by a county governor appointed by the Government of the Republic of Lithuania. Its main task is to guarantee compliance with the Constitution of the Republic of Lithuania and laws on the territory of the county.