Kingdom of Kartli-Kakheti
Most of the South Caucasus had been absorbed by the Russian Empire in the first half of the nineteenth century. A Caucasian Viceroyalty had originally been established in 1801 to allow for direct Russian rule, and over the next several decades local autonomy was reduced and Russian control was further consolidated, with the Viceroyalty given greater power in 1845. Tiflis (now Tbilisi), which had been the capital of the Georgian Kingdom of Kartli-Kakheti, became the seat of the viceroy and the "de facto" capital of the region. The South Caucasus was overwhelmingly rural: aside from Tiflis the only other city of significance was Baku, which grew in the late nineteenth century as the region began exporting oil and became a major economic hub. Ethnically the region was highly diverse; however there were three major local groups: Armenians, Azerbaijanis, Georgians, while Russians had also established themselves after the Russian Empire absorbed the area.