This article presents the heads of the military departments of the Russian Empire.

The Russian College of War (or War Collegium) was created in the course of Government reform of Peter the Great 11 December 1717.

• Prince Alexander Menshikov 1717–24
• Prince Anikita Repnin 1724–26
• Prince Mikhail Golitsyn 1728–30
• Prince Vasiliy Dolgorukov 1730–31
• Count Burkhard Christoph von Münnich 1732–41
• Prince Nikita Trubetskoy 1760–63
• Count Zakhar Chernyshev 1763–74
• Prince Grigory Potemkin 1774–91
• Count Nikolai Saltykov 1791–1802

Collegiums were replaced by Ministries as part of the Government reform of Alexander I.

• Count Sergey Vyazmitinov 8 September 1802 – 13 January 1808
• Count Aleksey Arakcheyev 13 January 1808 – 1 January 1810
• Prince Michael Andreas Barclay de Tolly 20 January 1810 – 24 August 1812
• Prince Aleksey Gorchakov 24 August 1812 – 12 December 1815 acting

On 17 December 1815 the Ministry of Land Forces was renamed to the Ministry of War.

• Count Pyotr Konovnitsyn 12 December 1815 – 6 May 1819
• Baron Pyotr Meller-Zakomelskiy 6 May 1819 – 14 March 1823
• Count Aleksander Tatischev 14 March 1823 – 26 August 1827
• Prince Alexander Chernyshyov 26 August 1827 – 26 August 1852
• Prince Vasily Dolgorukov 26 August 1852 – 17 April 1856
• Nikolai Sukhozanet 17 April 1856 – 16 May 1861
• Count Dmitry Milyutin 16 May 1861 – 21 May 1881
• Pyotr Vannovsky 22 May 1881 – 1 January 1898
• Aleksey Kuropatkin 1 January 1898 – 7 February 1904
• Viktor Sakharov 11 March 1904 – 21 June 1905
• Aleksandr Roediger 21 June 1905 – 11 March 1909
• Vladimir Sukhomlinov 11 March 1909 – 13 June 1915
• Alexei Polivanov 13 June 1915 – 15 March 1916
• Dmitry Shuvayev 15 March 1916 – 3 January 1917
• Mikhail Belyaev 3 January 1917 – 28 February 1917
• Alexander Guchkov 1 March 1917 – 30 April 1917

• Count Nikolay Mordvinov 8 September 1802 – 28 December 1802
• Pavel Chichagov 31 December 1802 – 28 November 1811
• Ivan de Traverse 28 November 1811 – 17 December 1815

On 17 December 1815 the Ministry of Sea Forces was renamed, becoming the Ministry of the Navy.

• Ivan de Traverse 17 December 1815 – 24 March 1828
• Anton Moller 24 March 1828 – 5 February 1836
• Prince Alexander Menshikov 5 February 1836 – 23 February 1855
• Baron Ferdinand von Wrangel 18 May 1855 – 27 July 1857
• Nikolay Metlin 27 July 1857 – 18 September 1860
• Nikolay Karlovich Krabbe 19 September 1860 – 3 January 1876
• Stepan Lesovskiy 12 January 1876 – 23 June 1880
• Aleksey Peschurov 23 June 1880 – 11 January 1882
• Ivan Shestakov 11 January 1882 – 21 November 1888
• Nikolay Chikhachyov 28 November 1888 – 13 July 1896
• Pyotr Tyrtov 13 July 1896 – 4 March 1903
• Theodor Avellan 10 March 1903 – 29 June 1905
• Aleksei Birilev 29 June 1905 – 11 January 1907
• Ivan Dikov 11 January 1907 – 8 January 1909
• Stepan Voevodskiy 8 January 1909 – 18 March 1911
• Ivan Grigorovich 19 March 1911 – 28 February 1917
• Alexander Guchkov 1 March 1917 – 30 April 1917

• List of heads of the military of post-imperial Russia
• Military history of the Russian Empire
• Council of Ministers of Russia
• Russian Provisional Government

• (in Russian) Ministers of Imperial Russia

This list is incomplete; you can help by adding missing items. (August 2008)