Caucasus Committee

The Caucasus Committee was a special inter-departmental body established by the Tsarist government in 1845 in connection with the introduction of the general Russian administrative system in the Caucasus. Prior to its establishment, several temporary committees existed between 1833 and 1845, which were tasked with developing and implementing civil governance in the Caucasus.

The Caucasus Committee became a permanent organ that directed the civil activities of the Tsarist administration in the Caucasus. The chairman of the committee was initially the Minister of War, Count A. I. Chernyshev, and subsequently Adjutant General Count A. F. Orlov. Its membership included the Ministers of War, Finance, State Property, Justice, and Internal Affairs, as well as the Heir to the Throne, the Chief of Gendarmes, and other high-ranking officials. As a result of these administrative changes, the influence of the Tsarist government expanded throughout the South Caucasus. The Caucasus Committee was abolished in 1882 in connection with the dissolution of the office of the Viceroy of the Caucasus and the introduction of a new administrative system.

Literature: საქართველოს ისტორიის ნარკვევები, ტ. 5, თბ., 1970; ჩხეტია შ., რუსული მმართველობის სისტემა საქართველოში (1840–1864), «ს. ჯანაშიას სახ. საქართველოს სახელმწიფო მუზეუმის მოამბე», 1944, ტ. 12B.