It roughly corresponded to most of the Crimean Peninsula and parts of the Southern Ukraine regions.

[1] It was created out of territories of the Crimean Khanate, which Russia annexed from the Ottoman Empire] in 1783.

[3] The oblast was created under the Imperial ukase of February 1784 signed by Catherine the Great.

In 1791 an administrative seat of Melitopol county was moved to Great Tokmak.

On 12 December 1796 the oblast was abolished, its territory was redivided into two counties (Aqmescit (former Simferopol) and Perekop) and passed to the Novorossiya Governorate.