Governorates-General usually comprised a set of guberniyas and oblasts.

The term was occasionally used to refer to krais or military guberniyas.

Moscow and Saint-Petersburg Governorates were placed into a separate governorate-general.

Governorates-General were governed by governors-general, military leaders of a territory.

Governors-General supervised governors, but did not directly participate in the administration of their subordinated guberniyas, except for Moscow and Saint-Petersburg.