Cossacks on the eve of the revolution. The number and placement of the Cossacks of the Russian Empire in the XVIII - early XX century How many Cossack troops existed
Definition of the Cossacks
The Cossacks are an ethnic, social and historical group of united Russians, Ukrainians, Kalmyks, Buryats, Bashkirs, Tatars, Evenks, Ossetians, etc.
Cossacks - (from Turkic: Cossack, Cossack - daring, free man) - a military class in Russia.
Cossacks (Cossacks) are a sub-ethnic group of the Russian people living in the southern steppes of Eastern Europe, in particular, Russia and Kazakhstan, and earlier in Ukraine.
In a broad sense, the word "Cossack" meant a person belonging to the Cossack class and state, which included the population of several localities in Russia, who had special rights and obligations. In a narrower sense, the Cossacks are part of the armed forces of the Russian Empire, mainly cavalry and horse artillery, and the word "Cossack" itself means the lower rank of the Cossack troops.
External general characteristics of the Cossacks
Comparing the features developed separately, we can note the following features characteristic of the Don Cossacks. Straight or slightly wavy hair, thick beard, straight nose with a horizontal base, wide slit eyes, large mouth, blond or dark hair, gray, blue or mixed (with green) eyes, relatively tall stature, weak subbrachycephaly, or mesocephaly, relatively wide face. Using the latter signs, we can compare the Don Cossacks with other Russian peoples, and they, apparently, are more or less common to the Cossack population of the Don and other Great Russian groups, allowing, on a wider scale of comparison, to attribute the Don Cossacks to one predominant on the Russian plain, an anthropological type, characterized in general by the same differences.
The nature of the Cossacks
A Cossack cannot consider himself a Cossack if he does not know and observe the traditions and customs of the Cossacks. During the years of hard times and the destruction of the Cossacks, these concepts were fairly weathered and distorted under alien influence. Even our old people, who were born already in Soviet times, do not always correctly interpret the unwritten Cossack laws.
Merciless to enemies, the Cossacks in their midst were always complacent, generous and hospitable. There was some kind of duality at the heart of the Cossack's character: either he was cheerful, playful, funny, or extraordinarily sad, silent, inaccessible. On the one hand, this is due to the fact that the Cossacks, constantly looking into the eyes of death, tried not to miss the joy that fell to their lot. On the other hand - they are philosophers and poets at heart - they often reflected on the eternal, on the vanity of existence and on the inevitable outcome of this life. Therefore, the basis in the formation of the moral foundations of the Cossack societies was the 10 commandments of Christ. Teaching children to observe the commandments of the Lord, parents, according to their popular perception, taught: do not kill, do not steal, do not fornicate, work according to conscience, do not envy another and forgive offenders, take care of your children and parents, value girlish chastity and female honor, help the poor , do not offend orphans and widows, protect the Fatherland from enemies. But first of all, strengthen the Orthodox faith: go to Church, observe fasts, cleanse your soul - through repentance from sins, pray to the one God Jesus Christ and added: if something is possible for someone, then we are not allowed - we are Cossacks.
Origin of the Cossacks
There are many theories of the origin of the Cossacks:
1. Eastern hypothesis.
According to V. Shambarov, L. Gumilyov and other historians, the Cossacks arose through the merger of Kasogs and Brodniks after the Mongol-Tatar invasion.
Kasogs (kasakhs, kasaks) are an ancient Circassian people who inhabited the territory of the lower Kuban in the 10th-14th centuries.
Brodniki is a people of Turkic-Slavic origin, formed in the lower reaches of the Don in the 12th century (then a border region of Kievan Rus.
There is still no single point of view among historians about the time of the emergence of the Don Cossacks. So N. S. Korshikov and V. N. Korolev believe that “in addition to the widespread point of view about the origin of the Cossacks from Russian fugitive people and industrialists, there are other points of view as hypotheses. According to R. G. Skrynnikov, for example, the original Cossack communities consisted of Tatars, which were then joined by Russian elements. L. N. Gumilyov proposed to lead the Don Cossacks from the Khazars, who, having mixed with the Slavs, made up the wanderers, who were not only the predecessors of the Cossacks, but also their direct ancestors. More and more experts are inclined to believe that the origins of the Don Cossacks should be seen in the ancient Slavic population, which, according to archaeological discoveries of recent decades, existed on the Don in the 8th-15th centuries.
The Mongols were loyal to the preservation of their religions by their subjects, including the people who were part of their military units. There was also the Saraysko-Podonsky bishopric, which allowed the Cossacks to keep their identity.
After the split of the Golden Horde, the Cossacks who remained on its territory retained their military organization, but at the same time they found themselves in complete independence from the fragments of the former empire - the Nogai Horde and the Crimean Khanate; and from the Moscow state that appeared in Russia.
In Polish chronicles, the first mention of the Cossacks dates back to 1493, when the Cherkasy governor Bogdan Fedorovich Glinsky, nicknamed "Mamai", having formed border Cossack detachments in Cherkassy, captured the Turkish fortress of Ochakov.
The French ethnographer Arnold van Gennep, in his book Traite des nationalites (1923), suggested that the Cossacks should be considered a separate nation from the Ukrainians, since the Cossacks are probably not Slavs at all, but Byzantinized and Christianized Turks.
2. Slavic hypothesis
According to other points of view, the Cossacks were originally from the Slavs. So the Ukrainian politician and historian V. M. Lytvyn in his three-volume "History of Ukraine" expressed the opinion that the first Ukrainian Cossacks were Slavs.
According to his research, sources speak of the existence of Cossacks in the Crimea at the end of the 13th century. In the first mentions, the Turkic word "Cossack" meant "guard" or vice versa - "robber". Also - "free man", "exile", "adventurer", "tramp", "protector of the sky". This word often denoted free, "no one's" people who traded with weapons. In particular, according to the old Russian epics dating back to the reign of Vladimir the Great, the hero Ilya Muromets is called "the old Cossack." It was in this meaning that it was assigned to the Cossacks.
The first memories of such Cossacks date back to 1489. During the campaign of the Polish king Jan-Albrecht against the Tatars, Christian Cossacks showed the way to his army in Podolia. In the same year, detachments of chieftains Vasily Zhyla, Bogdan and Golubets attacked the Tavan crossing in the lower reaches of the Dnieper and, dispersing the Tatar guards, robbed the merchants. Subsequently, the Khan's complaints about Cossack attacks become regular. According to Litvin, considering how habitually this designation is used in the documents of that time, we can assume that the Cossacks-Rusichi have been known for decades, at least since the middle of the 15th century. Considering that the evidence of the phenomenon of the Ukrainian Cossacks was localized on the territory of the so-called "Wild Field", it is possible that the Ukrainian Cossacks borrowed their neighbors from the Turkic-speaking (mainly Tatar) environment not only the name, but also many other words, they will take on appearance, organization and tactics, mentality . Litvin V. believes that the Tatar element occupies a certain place in the ethnic composition of the Cossacks.
Cossacks in history
Representatives of various nationalities participated in the formation of the Cossacks, but the Slavs prevailed. From an ethnographic point of view, the first Cossacks were divided according to the place of origin into Ukrainian and Russian. Among both those and others, free and service Cossacks can be distinguished. Russian service Cossacks (city, regimental and sentry) were used to protect the security lines and cities, receiving salaries and lands for life for this. Although they were equated "to the service people on the instrument" (archers, gunners), but unlike them, they had a stanitsa organization and an elective system of military administration. In this form, they existed until the beginning of the 18th century. The first community of Russian free Cossacks arose on the Don, and then on the rivers Yaik, Terek and Volga. In contrast to the service Cossacks, the coasts of large rivers (Dnieper, Don, Yaik, Terek) and the steppe expanses became the centers of the emergence of the Free Cossacks, which left a noticeable imprint on the Cossacks and determined their way of life.
Each large territorial community as a form of military-political association of independent Cossack settlements was called the Army. The main economic activities of the free Cossacks were hunting, fishing, and animal husbandry. For example, in the Don Army until the beginning of the 18th century, arable farming was prohibited under pain of death. As the Cossacks themselves believed, they lived "from grass and water."
The war was of great importance in the life of the Cossack communities: they were in constant military confrontation with hostile and warlike nomadic neighbors, so one of the most important sources of livelihood for them was military booty (as a result of campaigns “for zipuns and yasyr” in the Crimea, Turkey, Persia , to the Caucasus). River and sea trips were made on plows, as well as horse raids. Often several Cossack units united and carried out joint land and sea operations, everything captured became common property - duvan.
The main feature of social Cossack life was a military organization with an elective system of government and democratic order. The main decisions (issues of war and peace, election of officials, trial of the guilty) were made at general Cossack meetings, stanitsa and military circles, or Rada, which were the highest governing bodies. The main executive power belonged to the annually replaced military (koshevo in Zaporozhye) ataman. For the duration of hostilities, a marching ataman was elected, whose obedience was unquestioning.
Diplomatic relations with the Russian state were maintained by sending winter and light villages (embassies) to Moscow with an appointed ataman. From the moment the Cossacks entered the historical arena, their relationship with Russia was ambivalent. Initially, they were built on the principle of independent states that had one enemy. Moscow and the Cossack Troops were allies. The Russian state acted as the main partner and played a leading role as the strongest side. In addition, the Cossack Troops were interested in receiving monetary and military assistance from the Russian Tsar. The Cossack territories played an important role as a buffer on the southern and eastern borders of the Russian state, covering it from the raids of the steppe hordes. The Cossacks also took part in many wars on the side of Russia against neighboring states. To successfully perform these important functions, the practice of the Moscow tsars included annual sending of gifts, cash salaries, weapons and ammunition, as well as bread to individual Troops, since the Cossacks did not produce it. All relations between the Cossacks and the tsar were conducted through the Ambassadorial Order, that is, as with a foreign state. It was often advantageous for the Russian authorities to represent the free Cossack communities as absolutely independent from Moscow. On the other hand, the Muscovite state was dissatisfied with the Cossack communities, who constantly attacked Turkish possessions, which often ran counter to Russian foreign policy interests.
Quite often, periods of cooling set in between the allies, and Russia stopped all assistance to the Cossacks. Moscow was also dissatisfied with the constant departure of subjects to the Cossack regions. Democratic orders (everyone is equal, no authorities, no taxes) became a magnet that attracted more and more enterprising and courageous people from the Russian lands.
Russia's fears turned out to be by no means groundless - throughout the 17-18 centuries, the Cossacks were at the forefront of powerful anti-government uprisings, the leaders of the Cossack-peasant uprisings - Stepan Razin, Kondraty Bulavin, Emelyan Pugachev - came out of its ranks. The role of the Cossacks during the events of the Time of Troubles at the beginning of the 17th century was great. Having supported False Dmitry I, they made up an essential part of his military detachments. Later, free Russian and Ukrainian Cossacks, as well as Russian service Cossacks, took an active part in the camp of various forces: in 1611 they participated in the first militia, the nobles already prevailed in the second militia, but at the council of 1613 it was the word of the Cossack chieftains that turned out to be decisive in the election of Tsar Michael Fedorovich Romanov.
In the 16th century, under King Stephen Batory, the Cossacks were formed into regiments of the Commonwealth to serve as border guards and as auxiliary troops in the wars with Turkey and Sweden. These Cossack detachments were called Registered Cossacks. As light cavalry, they were widely used in the wars waged by the Commonwealth. Among the registered Cossacks, armored Cossacks also stand out, occupying the niche of medium cavalry - lighter than the Winged Hussars, but heavier than ordinary registered Cossack troops.
Cossack communities (“troops”, “hordes”) began to form on the territory of the Muscovite kingdom in the 16th and 17th centuries. from the sentry and stanitsa services that guarded the border territories from the devastating raids of the hordes of the Crimean Tatars and Nogays. However, according to the official version, the oldest of all Cossack formations is the Zaporozhian Sich, founded in the second half of the 16th century on the territory of present-day Ukraine, which was then part of the Polish state. After a long period of nominal dependence on the Commonwealth, it became part of the Russian Empire in the middle of the 17th century, and was destroyed by Catherine II in the 18th century. Part of the Cossacks went beyond the Danube, to the territory then belonging to Turkey, and founded the Transdanubian Sich, part retained the Cossack status, but was resettled to the Kuban, as a result of which the Kuban Cossack army arose.
In the Muscovite state of the 16th and 17th centuries, the Cossacks were part of the guard and stanitsa services, guarding the border territories from the devastating raids of the Crimean Tatars and Nogays. The central administration of the city Cossacks was first the Streltsy order, and then the Discharge order. The Siberian Cossacks were in charge of the Siberian Order, the Zaporozhye and Little Russian Cossacks - the Little Russian Order.
The Don Cossacks swore allegiance to Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich in 1671, and since 1721 the army was subordinate to the St. Petersburg Military Collegium. By the end of the reign of Peter the Great, following the Don and Yaik Cossacks, the rest of the Cossack communities also passed into the department of the military college. Their internal structure was transformed, a hierarchy of government authorities was introduced. Having subjugated the Cossacks in the number of 85 thousand people, the government used them to colonize the newly conquered lands and protect state borders, mainly southern and eastern.
In the first half of the XVIII century, new Cossack troops were created: Orenburg, Astrakhan, Volga. At the end of the 18th century, the Yekaterinoslav and Black Sea Cossack troops were created.
Over time, the Cossack population moved forward to the uninhabited lands, expanding the state boundaries. Cossack troops took an active part in the development of the North Caucasus, Siberia (Yermak's expedition), the Far East and America. In 1645, the Siberian Cossack Vasily Poyarkov sailed along the Amur, entered the Sea of Okhotsk, discovered Northern Sakhalin and returned to Yakutsk.
The ambiguous role played by the Cossacks in the Time of Troubles forced the government in the 17th century to pursue a policy of sharp reduction in the detachments of service Cossacks in the main territory of the state. But in general, the Russian throne, taking into account the most important functions of the Cossacks as a military force in the border areas, showed patience and sought to subordinate it to its power. To consolidate loyalty to the Russian throne, the tsars, using all leverage, managed to achieve by the end of the 17th century the adoption of the oath by all the Armies (the last Don Army - in 1671). From voluntary allies, the Cossacks turned into Russian subjects.
With the inclusion of the southeastern territories into Russia, the Cossacks remained only a special part of the Russian population, gradually losing many of their democratic rights and gains. Since the 18th century, the state has constantly regulated the life of the Cossack regions, modernized the traditional Cossack management structures in the right direction for itself, turning them into an integral part of the administrative system of the Russian empire.
Since 1721, the Cossack units were under the jurisdiction of the Cossack expedition of the Military Collegium. In the same year, Peter I abolished the election of military chieftains and introduced the institution of chief chieftains appointed by the supreme power. The Cossacks lost their last vestiges of independence after the defeat of the Pugachev rebellion in 1775, when Catherine II liquidated the Zaporozhian Sich. In 1798, by decree of Paul I, all Cossack officer ranks were equated with general army ranks, and their holders received the rights to the nobility. In 1802, the first Regulations for the Cossack troops were developed. Since 1827, the heir to the throne began to be appointed as the august ataman of all Cossack troops. In 1838, the first combat charter for the Cossack units was approved, and in 1857 the Cossacks came under the jurisdiction of the Directorate (from 1867 the Main Directorate) of the irregular (from 1879 - Cossack) troops of the Military Ministry, from 1910 - under the authority of the General Staff.
From the 19th century until the October Revolution, the Cossacks mainly played the role of defenders of the Russian statehood and the support of tsarist power.
At the beginning of the 20th century, the Russian guard included three Cossack regiments. The Cossack Life Guards Regiment was formed in 1798. The regiment distinguished itself in the battles of Austerlitz and Borodino, in the campaign against Paris in 1813-1814 and across the Danube in 1828. The Life Guards Ataman Regiment was formed as part of the Don Cossacks in 1775; in 1859 he became a guard; was considered exemplary among the Cossack regiments. The Consolidated Cossack Life Guards Regiment was formed in 1906, it included one hundred from the Ural and Orenburg Cossack troops, fifty from the Siberian and Transbaikal and a platoon from the Astrakhan, Semirechensk, Amur and Ussuri Cossack troops. In addition, His Imperial Majesty's Own Convoy was formed from the Cossacks.
During the civil war, most of the Cossacks opposed the Soviet regime. The Cossack regions became the backbone of the White movement. The largest anti-Bolshevik armed formations of the Cossacks were the Don Army in the south of Russia, the Orenburg and Ural armies in the east. At the same time, part of the Cossacks served in the Red Army. After the revolution, the Cossack troops were disbanded.
During the years of the civil war, the Cossack population was subjected to mass repressions in the process, according to the wording of the directive of the Central Committee of January 24, 1919, merciless mass terror against the tops of the Cossacks "by their total extermination", and the Cossacks, "took any direct or indirect participation in fight against Soviet power”, initiated by the Orgburo of the Central Committee in the person of its Chairman Ya. M. Sverdlov.
In 1936, restrictions on the service of the Cossacks in the Red Army detachments were lifted. This decision received great support in Cossack circles, in particular, the Don Cossacks sent the following letter to the Soviet government, published in the Krasnaya Zvezda newspaper dated April 24, 1936:
“Let only our Marshals Voroshilov and Budyonny call the cry, we will flock like falcons to defend our Motherland ... Cossack horses in a good body, sharp blades, Don collective farm Cossacks are ready to fight with their breasts for the Soviet Motherland ...”
In accordance with the order of the People's Commissar of Defense K. E. Voroshilov No. 67 of April 23, 1936, some cavalry divisions received the status of Cossacks. On May 15, 1936, the 10th Territorial Cavalry North Caucasian Division was renamed the 10th Terek-Stavropol Territorial Cossack Division, the 12th Territorial Cavalry Division stationed in the Kuban was renamed the 12th Kuban Territorial Cossack Division, the 4th Leningrad Cavalry the division named after Comrade Voroshilov was renamed the 4th Don Cossack Red Banner Division named after K.E. S. M. Budyonny, the 13th Don Territorial Cossack Division was also formed on the Don. The Kuban Cossacks served in the 72nd Cavalry Division, the 9th Plastun Rifle Division, the 17th Cossack Cavalry Corps (later renamed the 4th Guards Kuban Cavalry Corps), the Orenburg Cossacks served in the 11th (89th) , then the 8th Guards Rivne Order of Lenin, the Order of Suvorov Cossack Cavalry Division and the Cossack Militia Division in Chelyabinsk.
The detachments sometimes included Cossacks who had previously served in the White Army (as, for example, K. I. Nedorubov). By a special act, the wearing of the previously prohibited Cossack uniform was restored. The Cossack units were commanded by N. Ya. Kirichenko, A. G. Selivanov, I. A. Pliev, S. I. Gorshkov, M. F. Maleev, V. S. Golovskoy, F. V. Kamkov, I. V. Tutarinov , Ya. S. Sharaburko, I. P. Kalyuzhny, P. Ya. Strepukhov, M. I. Surzhikov and others. Marshal K.K. Rokossovsky, who commanded the Kuban brigade in the battles on the CER back in 1934, can also be attributed to such commanders. In 1936, the dress uniform for the Cossack units was approved. The Cossacks marched in this uniform at the Victory Parade on June 24, 1945. The first parade in the Red Army with the participation of Cossack units was to take place on May 1, 1936. However, for various reasons, participation in the military parade of the Cossacks was canceled. Only on May 1, 1937, the Cossack units as part of the Red Army marched in a military parade along Red Square.
With the beginning of the Great Patriotic War, the Cossack units, both regular, as part of the Red Army, and volunteers, took an active part in the hostilities against the Nazi invaders. On August 2, 1942, near the village of Kushchevskaya, the 17th Cavalry Corps of General N. Ya. Kirichenko, consisting of the 12th and 13th Kuban, 15th and 116th Don Cossack divisions, stopped the offensive of large Wehrmacht forces advancing from Rostov to Krasnodar . In the Kushchevskaya attack, the Cossacks destroyed up to 1800 soldiers and officers, captured 300 people, captured 18 guns and 25 mortars.
On the Don, a Cossack hundred from the village of Berezovskaya under the command of a 52-year-old Cossack, senior lieutenant K. I. Nedorubov, in a battle near Kushchevskaya on August 2, 1942, in hand-to-hand combat destroyed over 200 Wehrmacht soldiers, of which 70 were destroyed by K. I. Nedorubov, who received title of Hero of the Soviet Union.
In most cases, the newly formed Cossack units, volunteer Cossack hundreds were poorly armed, as a rule, Cossacks with cold weapons and collective farm horses came to the detachments. Artillery, tanks, anti-tank and anti-aircraft weapons, communications units and sappers, as a rule, were absent in the detachments, in connection with which the detachments suffered huge losses. For example, as mentioned in the leaflets of the Kuban Cossacks, “they jumped from their saddles onto the armor of tanks, covered the viewing slots with cloaks and overcoats, set fire to cars with Molotov cocktails.” Also, a large number of Cossacks volunteered for the national parts of the North Caucasus. Such units were created in the autumn of 1941 following the example of the experience of the First World War. These cavalry units were also popularly called the "Wild Divisions". For example, in the fall of 1941, the 255th separate Chechen-Ingush cavalry regiment was formed in Grozny. It consisted of several hundred Cossack volunteers from among the natives of the Sunzha and Terek villages. The regiment fought near Stalingrad in August 1942, where in two days of fighting, on August 4-5, at the station (passage) Chilekovo (from Kotelnikovo to Stalingrad) lost 302 soldiers led by regimental commissar, Art. Political Commissar M. D. Madaev. Russian-Cossacks among the dead and missing of this regiment in these two days - 57 people. Also, volunteer Cossacks fought in all national cavalry units from the rest of the republics of the North Caucasus.
Since 1943, the Cossack cavalry divisions and tank units were united, in connection with which cavalry-mechanized groups were formed. Horses were used to a greater extent for organizing fast movement; in battle, the Cossacks were involved as infantry. Plastun divisions were also formed from the Kuban and Terek Cossacks. From among the Cossacks, 262 cavalrymen received the title of Hero of the Soviet Union, 7 cavalry corps and 17 cavalry divisions received guards ranks.
In addition to the Cossack units recreated under Stalin, there were many Cossacks among famous people during the Second World War who fought not in the "branded" Cossack cavalry or plastun units, but in the entire Soviet army or distinguished themselves in military production. For example: tank ace No. 1, Hero of the Soviet Union D. F. Lavrinenko - Kuban Cossack, a native of the village of Fearless; Lieutenant General of the Engineering Troops, Hero of the Soviet Union D. M. Karbyshev - a generic Ural Cossack-Kryashen, a native of Omsk; commander of the Northern Fleet, Admiral A. A. Golovko - Terek Cossack, a native of the village of Prokhladnaya; weapons designer F. V. Tokarev - Don Cossack, a native of the village of the Yegorlyk Region of the Don Cossacks; commander of the Bryansk and 2nd Baltic fronts, general of the army, Hero of the Soviet Union M. M. Popov - a Don Cossack, a native of the village of the Ust-Medveditskaya Region of the Don Army, etc.
The Cossacks took an active part in the suppression of the Warsaw Uprising in August 1944.
Cossack troops
By the beginning of the First World War, there were eleven Cossack troops:
1. Don Cossack army, seniority - 1570 (Rostov, Volgograd, Kalmykia, Luhansk, Donetsk);
2. Orenburg Cossack army, 1574 (Orenburg, Chelyabinsk, Kurgan in Russia, Kustanai in Kazakhstan);
3. Terek Cossack army, 1577 (Stavropol, Kabardino-Balkaria, S. Ossetia, Chechnya, Dagestan);
4. Siberian Cossack army, 1582 (Omsk, Kurgan, Altai Territory, North Kazakhstan, Akmola, Kokchetav, Pavlodar, Semipalatinsk, East Kazakhstan);
5. Ural Cossack army, 1591 (until 1775 - Yaitskoye) (Ural, former Guryevskaya in Kazakhstan, Orenburg (Ileksky, Tashlinsky, Pervomaisky districts) in Russia;
6. Transbaikal Cossack army, 1655 (Chita, Buryatia);
7. Kuban Cossack army, 1696 (Krasnodar, Adygea, Stavropol, Karachay-Cherkessia);
8. Astrakhan Cossack army, 1750 (Astrakhan, Volgograd, Saratov);
9. Semirechensk Cossack army, 1852 (Almaty, Chimkent);
10. Amur Cossack army, 1855 (Amur, Khabarovsk);
11. Ussuri Cossack army, 1865 (Primorsky, Khabarovsk);
During the collapse of the Russian Empire and the civil war, several Cossack state entities were proclaimed:
· Kuban People's Republic;
· Don Cossack Republic;
· Terek Cossack Republic;
Ural Cossack Republic
· Siberian-Semirechensk Cossack Republic;
· Trans-Baikal Cossack Republic;
In addition to differences in uniform between the various Cossack troops, there were also differences in the color of uniforms, bloomers and stripes with cap bands:
1. Amur Cossacks - dark green uniforms, yellow stripes, green shoulder straps, dark green cap with a yellow band;
2. Astrakhan Cossacks - blue uniforms, yellow stripes, yellow shoulder strap, blue cap with a yellow band;
3. Volga Cossacks - blue uniforms, red stripes, red shoulder strap with red edging, blue cap with a red band;
4. Don Cossacks - blue uniforms, red stripes, blue epaulets with red edging, blue cap with a red band;
5. Yenisei Cossacks - a khaki uniform, red stripes, a red shoulder strap, a khaki cap with a red band;
6. Trans-Baikal Cossacks - dark green uniforms, yellow stripes, yellow epaulets, dark green cap with a yellow band;
7. Kuban Cossacks - a black or so-called lilac Circassian coat with gazyrs, black trousers with a raspberry half-lamp, a hat or Kubanka (for scouts) with a raspberry top, raspberry shoulder straps and a cap. The Terek Cossacks have the same, only the colors are light blue;
8. Orenburg Cossacks - dark green uniforms (chekmen), gray-blue bloomers, light blue stripes, light blue shoulder straps, dark green cap crowns with light blue edging and a band;
9. Siberian Cossacks - a khaki uniform, scarlet stripes, scarlet shoulder straps, a khaki cap with a scarlet band;
10. Terek Cossacks - black uniform, light blue piping, light blue shoulder strap, black cap with a light blue band;
11. Ural Cossacks - blue uniforms, crimson stripes, crimson shoulder strap, blue cap with a crimson band;
12. Ussuri Cossacks - dark green uniforms, yellow stripes, yellow epaulets with a green edging, dark green cap with a yellow band;
In the development of any nation, there were moments when a certain ethnic group separated and thereby created a separate cultural layer. In some cases, such cultural elements coexisted peacefully with their nation and the world as a whole, in others they fought for an equal place under the sun. An example of such a warlike ethnic group can be considered such a stratum of society as the Cossacks. Representatives of this cultural group have always been distinguished by a special worldview and very acute religiosity. To date, scientists cannot figure out whether this ethnic stratum of the Slavic people is a separate nation. The history of the Cossacks dates back to the distant XV century, when the states of Europe were mired in internecine wars and dynastic upheavals.
Etymology of the word "Cossack"
Many modern people have a general idea that a Cossack is a warrior or a type of warrior who lived in a certain historical period and fought for their freedom. However, such an interpretation is rather dry and far from the truth, if we also take into account the etymology of the term "Cossack". There are several main theories about the origin of the word, for example:
Turkic (“Cossack” is a free man);
The word comes from kosogs;
Turkish (“kaz”, “cossack” means “goose”);
The word comes from the term "goats";
Mongolian theory;
Turkestan theory - that this is the name of nomadic tribes;
In the Tatar language, "Cossack" is a vanguard warrior in the army.
There are other theories, each of which explains this word in completely different ways, but it is possible to single out the most rational grain from all definitions. The most common theory says that the Cossack was a free man, but armed, ready to attack and fight.
Historical origin
The history of the Cossacks begins in the 15th century, namely from 1489 - the moment the term "Cossack" was first mentioned. The historical homeland of the Cossacks is Eastern Europe, or rather, the territory of the so-called Wild Field (modern Ukraine). It should be noted that in the 15th century the named territory was neutral and did not belong to both the Russian Tsardom and Poland.
Basically, the territory of the "Wild Field" was subjected to constant raids. The gradual settlement of immigrants from both Poland and the Russian Kingdom on these lands influenced the development of a new estate - the Cossacks. In fact, the history of the Cossacks begins from the moment when ordinary people, peasants, begin to settle in the lands of the Wild Field, while creating their own self-governing military formations in order to fight off the raids of the Tatars and other nationalities. By the beginning of the 16th century, the Cossack regiments had become a powerful military force, which created great difficulties for neighboring states.
Creation of the Zaporozhian Sich
According to the historical data that are known today, the first attempt at self-organization by the Cossacks was made in 1552 by the prince of Volyn Vyshnevetsky, better known as Bayda.
At his own expense, he created a military base, the Zaporizhzhya Sich, which was located on it. The whole life of the Cossacks flowed on it. The location was strategically convenient, since the Sich blocked the passage of the Tatars from the Crimea, and was also in close proximity to the border of Poland. Moreover, the territorial location on the island created great difficulties for the assault on the Sich. The Khortitskaya Sich did not last long, because in 1557 it was destroyed, but until 1775, such fortifications were built according to the same type - on river islands.
Attempts to subdue the Cossacks
In 1569, a new Lithuanian-Polish state was formed - the Commonwealth. Naturally, this long-awaited union was very important for both Poland and Lithuania, and free Cossacks on the borders of the new state acted against the interests of the Commonwealth. Of course, such fortifications served as an excellent shield against Tatar raids, but they were completely out of control and did not take into account the authority of the crown. Thus, in 1572, the king of the Commonwealth issued a universal, which regulated the employment of 300 Cossacks in the service of the crown. They were recorded in the list, the register, which led to their name - registered Cossacks. Such units were always in full combat readiness in order to repel Tatar raids on the borders of the Commonwealth as quickly as possible, as well as to suppress periodically arising peasant uprisings.
Cossack uprisings for religious-national independence
From 1583 to 1657, some Cossack leaders raised uprisings in order to free themselves from the influence of the Commonwealth and other states that tried to subjugate the lands of the still unformed Ukraine.
The strongest desire for independence began to manifest itself among the Cossack class after 1620, when Hetman Sahaidachny, together with the entire Zaporozhian army, joined the Kiev Brotherhood. Such an action marked the cohesion of the Cossack traditions with the Orthodox faith.
From that moment on, the battles of the Cossacks carried not only a liberation, but also a religious character. The growing tension between the Cossacks and Poland led to the famous national liberation war of 1648-1654, headed by Bohdan Khmelnitsky. In addition, no less significant uprisings should be singled out, namely: the uprising of Nalivaiko, Kosinsky, Sulima, Pavlyuk and others.
Decossackization during the Russian Empire
After the unsuccessful national liberation war in the 17th century, as well as the unrest that began, the military power of the Cossacks was significantly undermined. In addition, the Cossacks lost support from the Russian Empire after switching to the side of Sweden in the battle of Poltava, in which the Cossack army was led by
As a result of this series of historical events, a dynamic process of decossackization begins in the 18th century, which reached its peak during the time of Empress Catherine II. In 1775, the Zaporozhian Sich was liquidated. However, the Cossacks were given a choice: to go their own way (to live an ordinary peasant life) or join the hussars, which many took advantage of. Nevertheless, a significant part of the Cossack army (about 12,000 people) remained, which did not accept the offer of the Russian Empire. In order to ensure the former safety of the borders, as well as in some way to legitimize the "Cossack remnants", on the initiative of Alexander Suvorov, the Black Sea Cossack Host was created in 1790.
Kuban Cossacks
The Kuban Cossacks, or Russian Cossacks, appeared in 1860. It was formed from several military Cossack formations that existed at that time. After several periods of decossackization, these military formations became a professional part of the armed forces of the Russian Empire.
The Cossacks of the Kuban were based in the region of the North Caucasus (the territory of the modern Krasnodar Territory). The basis of the Kuban Cossacks was the Black Sea Cossack army and the Caucasian Cossack army, which was abolished as a result of the end of the Caucasian war. This military formation was created as a border force to control the situation in the Caucasus.
The war in this territory was over, but stability was constantly under threat. Russian Cossacks became an excellent buffer between the Caucasus and the Russian Empire. In addition, representatives of this army were involved during the Great Patriotic War. To date, the life of the Cossacks of the Kuban, their traditions and culture have been preserved thanks to the formed Kuban military Cossack society.
Don Cossacks
The Don Cossacks is the most ancient Cossack culture, which arose in parallel with the Zaporozhye Cossacks in the middle of the 15th century. Don Cossacks were located on the territory of the Rostov, Volgograd, Lugansk and Donetsk regions. The name of the army is historically associated with the Don River. The main difference between the Don Cossacks and other Cossack formations is that it developed not just as a military unit, but as an ethnic group with its own cultural characteristics.
The Don Cossacks actively collaborated with the Zaporizhian Cossacks in many battles. During the October Revolution, the Don army founded its own state, but the centralization of the White Movement on its territory led to the defeat and subsequent repressions. It follows that the Don Cossack is a person who belongs to a special social formation based on the ethnic factor. The culture of the Don Cossacks has been preserved in our time. About 140 thousand people live on the territory of the modern Russian Federation, who write down their nationality as "Cossack".
The role of the Cossacks in world culture
Today, the history, life of the Cossacks, their military traditions and culture are actively studied by scientists around the world. Undoubtedly, the Cossacks are not just military formations, but a separate ethnic group that has built its own special culture for several centuries in a row. Modern historians are working on recreating the smallest fragments of the history of the Cossacks in order to perpetuate the memory of this great source of a special Eastern European culture.
The attitude towards modern Cossacks in Russia is no less controversial than the role of the Cossacks themselves in the development of the state and society. Some call these people, claiming the status of a separate class, mummers and pseudo-patriots, others see in the Cossacks the beginnings of the revival of the foundations of morality and culture of that Russia that we once lost. However, modern Cossacks are a whole phenomenon, which, like any other phenomenon, is difficult to give an unambiguous assessment, and even all external attempts an unambiguous assessment will be obviously one-sided and therefore meaningless. Therefore, we will try to look at the representatives of the modern Cossacks from different angles. There is only one goal: to try to clarify the situation with what the people who call themselves Cossacks are in reality.
We will not touch on the historical aspect of the appearance of the Cossacks in Russia, because this topic has already been voiced on the Military Review. We will focus on the modern stage of the existence of the Russian Cossack.
First you need to make an attempt to separate the flies from the cutlets. The fact is that the Cossacks (at least from the position that is indicated today) are by no means presented as an ethnic layer, but rather as a public organization designed to solve certain problems. What problems? Whose problems? And here is the main question. Someone uses the term “Cossack” itself as a kind of synonym for honor and devotion, patriotism and the depth of moral traditions, while someone is ready to make a certain set of preferences from this word for themselves, allowing them to satisfy their unbridled pride. Some are quite ready to serve the Fatherland on a voluntary basis, while others are trying to hastily make a banal PR campaign from the very statements about hypothetical service to the Motherland, which, in the opinion of such people, can add certain social, and even political, bonuses to them.
Here are a few examples of how the Cossacks of the new generation have managed to prove themselves recently. In order for the situation to be presented as fully as possible, and everyone to be able to appreciate the role of the Cossacks in public life, we will present several stories, both positive and negative.
Since the end of last year, the situation with the so-called Cossack patrols in large cities of Russia has somewhat calmed down. The activities of the Cossacks, who, in agreement with local law enforcement agencies, took to the streets of Moscow, St. Petersburg, Voronezh to carry out law enforcement activities, received diametrically opposite assessments. Some, seeing people in a uniform that was not assigned to any of the military or police units, openly expressed their negativity and clearly did not intend to obey the requirements of the Cossack patrol. Others reacted quite calmly and believed that the protection of public order with the use of Cossack squads was an event that manifested itself quite positively.
The Cossack of the VKO "Reserve Cossack Army" "The Great Don Army" A. Popov tells:
I, as an ordinary Cossack, was involved in the protection of public order during the celebration of the day of the city. The task before me and a group of other Cossacks was the following: we had to prevent people who were pretty tipsy from crowded places, and if they wanted to go to the festivities, report the incident to their immediate head. He had already contacted the police, who tied up the bully. We did not have the authority to take measures against violators ourselves.
Another case.
Moscow. End of last year. Belorussky railway station. A group of Cossacks, which was later presented as a Cossack patrol, carried out law enforcement already in the presence of broader powers, which caused a discussion in society. We are talking about the fact that the Cossack patrol carried out a raid and identified places of illegal trade. It was discussed that the Cossacks, when identifying places of illegal trade, proceeded to seize the goods and load them into a prepared bus. As the Cossacks themselves claimed, the bus belonged to the OBEP, and all their actions with the OBEP were coordinated. However, after such a zealous performance of duties by the Cossacks, information began to slip in the press that the Cossacks had become a tool for dividing the market in a very lively place for trade in the capital.
Cossack patrol in Moscow at work
After that sensational raid, the first deputy chieftain of the Central Cossack Army, General Kolesnikov, himself said that the first attempt could not be called the most successful. Obviously, new attempts were also discussed to take part in the raids of the Cossacks in Moscow, but these raids clearly did not become systematic. Apparently, the whole point is that the authorities themselves (not only regional, but also federal) have not yet decided what to do with such “happiness” (or without quotes?) as the modern Cossacks. If you give authority, - the authorities think, - they can sit on the neck; if you don't give them powers, the electorate will be lost, and the votes are so needed... In general, a whole dilemma.
One of the governors who decided to regulate the activities of the Cossacks in his region, today is the head of the Voronezh region, Alexei Gordeev. Not so long ago, he discussed with the leaders of the local Cossacks the problems of interaction between the Cossacks and local authorities. At the meeting, the ataman of the Central Cossack Army V. Nalimov came up with a proposal for the Ministry of Education to create an educational institution in the region, which would be called a single Cossack cadet corps. Vyacheslav Nalimov connects the very possibility of creating such an educational institution in the region with the fact that Cossack traditions are strong in the region and there are all opportunities for implementing this kind of idea. In addition, Ataman Nalimov proposed to Governor Gordeev to create a military training and methodological center for the Cossack army, which could become a place for high-quality training of young Voronezh residents for military service. It is planned that such a center could be located north of the capital of the Chernozem region. Aleksey Gordeev promised that he was ready to personally contribute to the implementation of the plans, because they are primarily aimed at caring for the younger generation and at implementing plans for comprehensive pre-conscription training.
Raising the national flag in the Matvey Platov Cadet Cossack Corps (Voronezh Region)
Winter training camp of cadets of Matvey Platov of the cadet Cossack corps (Voronezh region)
Against this seemingly favorable background of interaction between the Cossacks and the official authorities, the same Voronezh region is turning into a place of active confrontation between the Cossack squads and those who are trying to promote a business project to develop nickel deposits in the Khopersky Reserve. The company, which is going to start developing nickel in the so-called Elanskoye deposit in the near future, is meeting with public resistance unprecedented in modern Russia, which the Cossacks have also supported. For several months, in the place where the developer is going to mine the metal (and this is literally the very heart of the fertile black soil of Russia), the Cossacks of the Second Khoper District set up posts. The Cossacks have already promised that if they see heavy equipment and people preparing to develop the Voronezh subsoil on the territory of the reserve, they are ready to give a real fight to the representatives of the mining company.
Cossack post at the site of preparation for the development of a nickel deposit (Voronezh region) (conversation with the police)
These words of the Cossack chieftains evoked approval from the local population and the situation began to look very tense also because in one of his interviews, Governor Gordeev stated that he would not allow the Voronezh black soil to be destroyed exactly until the moment he occupies the governor's chair. However, despite this, the business lobby promotes the idea of development security. True, at the same time, representatives of this very lobby do not mention that the nickel deposit near Voronezh was known back in the Soviet years. But at that time, a number of scientists published materials, according to which nickel mining in the Chernozem region could lead to severe environmental consequences. Moreover, the content of nickel in the ore in the region is relatively low, and therefore it is not a fact that mining will be profitable. The prospect of getting a practically dehydrated and pitted desert instead of fertile soils, which may eventually be declared “not a very successful outcome of the nickel mining project,” obviously does not impress Voronezh residents.
The confrontation between the public, which is indirectly supported by the governor Gordeev and not even indirectly - representatives of the 2nd Khoper district of the Cossack VVD, and lobbyists-miners is beginning to show real sharpness. Literally the other day, sentries of that same Cossack post at the deposit stopped a group of prospectors who were preparing to start the next portion of research work. Having found out whose interests the geologists represent, as well as their determination to start their work, the Voronezh Cossacks, together with other local residents, decided to show the “guests” all their “cordiality”. As a result, the meeting ended with the fact that geologists thoroughly received Cossack whips, after which they turned to the police. A criminal case was initiated against the Cossacks and a number of environmentalists.
The police are increasingly visiting the Cossack post
After this "first nickel fight", the public was once again divided. Some called the Cossacks "disguised PR people", others, on the contrary, stood up for them, stating that this, apparently, is the only force that can still oppose the barbaric attitude towards Russian wealth.
Appeal of the Cossacks to President Vladimir Putin
And here is a bright representative of the "mummer hundreds"
Recall that in September last year, Vladimir Putin approved the strategy of the Russian Cossacks. Here are a few paragraphs from the document:
a) the involvement of the Russian Cossacks in the performance of tasks to ensure the security and defense of the Russian Federation, the passage by members of the Cossack societies of military service in the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, other troops, military formations and bodies, the inclusion of members of the Cossack societies in the mobilization manpower reserve to ensure guaranteed understaffing in the established terms of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, as well as the creation of an effective system of military registration of members of the Cossack societies;
b) involvement of the Russian Cossacks in the protection of public order and ensuring environmental and fire safety, in the implementation of measures for the prevention and elimination of emergency situations and the elimination of the consequences of natural disasters, civil defense, environmental protection activities;
c) involvement of the Russian Cossacks in the protection of the state border of the Russian Federation;
d) maximum use of the potential of Cossack societies in places of traditional and compact residence of Cossacks to involve members of these societies in the protection of forests, wildlife, cultural heritage sites;
e) involvement of the Russian Cossacks in public and other service in other areas of activity in accordance with the legislation of the Russian Federation.
The Strategy spells out, among other things, both the historical Cossack heraldry and the system for the development of new heraldic signs, uniforms, awards and insignia.
The main thing is that both the Cossacks and the state should not forget that their main goal is still the protection of the rights and freedoms of all citizens of Russia without exception, and not just those who are included in the galaxy of the elite, worthy of special attention. I would like to believe that in this regard, the state and modern Cossacks are unanimous.
From the beginning of the 15th century, trading navigation began between Ustyug and Kholmogory. Germans, Poles, Greeks, Italians, Lithuanians, Persians came to the fair. Industrialists reached the Irtysh from Kholmogor. Precious metals in ingots, products and coins. Siberia. The work of Tychinskaya Anastasia. The treasury also traded in wax, bread, and rhubarb. Salt was sold to Sweden and Lithuania. Potash was bought by Holland and Flemish. In the 16th century Kitay-gorod became the center of trade in Moscow.
"Cossack World" - In alliance with Lithuania. Legend of the Zaporizhzhya army. Emelyan Pugachev. Checker. The art of horse riding. Cossacks. A story that has become a legend. Allied with Russia. Bulavin Kondraty Afanasyevich. Thank God that we are Cossacks. Don. Under the rule of the Horde. Gumilev. Chief officer. People. Insects. Cossacks in the war. Law of the Cossacks. Stepan Timofeevich Razin. Lovely letters. The main enemy of the Don Cossacks. Theft. Serfs. Cossack general.
"Zaporozhye Sich" - Conditions for the rapprochement of Zaporozhye with the Crimea. Signing of a peace treaty. The root of evil. Significant character. Bessarabia. The existence of Zaporozhye. Household activities. Zaporozhye. Zaporizhzhya Sich. Zaporozhye and Peter I. Independent position. Military office. The internal structure of the Zaporozhian Sich. Relations between the Sich and Nekrasovites. Relations with Russia. Gordienko. Contract. Peasants. Economic growth.
"Joining Siberia" - In September 1557, the messengers returned, bringing 1000 sables. 540 people Volga Cossacks. Ivan IV was only interested in one thing - to receive as much tribute as possible. In 1572, he finally broke off relations of vassalage with Moscow. In July 1581 an attack was made. Ambassadors of the Siberian Khan Ediger came to Moscow. In what year was Ediger killed. The game. An ambassador and tribute collector was sent to Siberia from Moscow.
"History of the Zaporozhian Sich" - Background of the liberation war. The first information about the Ukrainian Cossacks. Dmitry Ivanovich Vishnevetsky. Military and territorial division. Sich. Bohdan Khmelnytsky. Cossack weapons. Liquidation of the Cossack self-government. Coat of arms of the Zaporozhye Army. General foreman. Military belongings. State organization. Driving forces. Zaporizhzhya Sich. The number of Cossacks. Ukrainian lands. Senior council.
"Cossack associations" - Principles of the Cossack democratic structure. Cossack self-government. Station self-management. Cossack Circle. historical memory. Cossack horizontal. Characteristics of pre-revolutionary societies. Colonel. The phenomenon of Cossack self-government. Combination of horizontal and vertical control. classifying features. Factors. collective memory. People. Baron Taube. Ataman rule. Contradictions of Cossack democracy.
Let us turn today to one very interesting and indicative page of our history. By 1914, there were 11 Cossack troops in Russia. However, this does not mean that there were always just so many of them. Today we remember the glorious Troops abolished by the Russian supreme power and undeservedly forgotten. And it may be right today that the Cossacks living on the banks of the Volga and reviving the Volga Army, but now not as a free community, but as a state structure, as a way of serving Russia.
Since the time of the Great Moscow and Kyiv princes, the Russian state has seen in the Cossacks not a community, but a kind of military force to protect the borders of their possessions. These are the famous Brodniki and Black Hoods during the period of Kievan Rus and the Donskoy Grassroots Army during the period of Muscovite Rus. Seeing how successfully any Cossack community takes root in a new place (“There is no translation for the Cossack family”), the state authorities in each newly acquired region sought to organize a “service army”, an army in the likeness of the Don. After all, the experience of the development of Siberia showed how profitable it is to attract the Cossacks to the sovereign's service. But as soon as the region was mastered, and the need for serving the Army disappeared, the army was either disbanded or moved. And, in the end, by the beginning of the twentieth century, a more or less harmonious structure of 11 Cossack troops and regions had developed. But first things first.
Chuguev Cossacks.
In 1639, the city of Chuguev was founded in the Muscovite state. For a long time, the city had no relation to the regular Cossacks, but the Cossacks lived in it. And on February 28, 1700, at the behest of Peter the Great, a special Cossack team was formed from the city Chuguev Cossacks, as well as the Don and Yaitsky Cossacks, who served in Orel, Kursk and Oboyan. The reformer tsar began the Northern War, and the formation of Cossack units and teams freed from the need to deploy regular regiments in these places - the army was still being formed, and there were not enough soldiers to protect the borders and internal provinces of the empire. And the experience of the Don army showed that the Cossack community and the service of the sovereign can rule and ensure order and feed itself. So the Great Converter of Russia was in no hurry to reform the Cossacks, but used the useful experience in every possible way. Moreover, to strengthen the Chuguev team (three companies, three hundred Cossacks), it also included two Kalmyk hundreds. The life of the Chuguev Cossacks went on as usual during the Northern War, and only in 1721, together with other Cossack Troops and formations of the Russian State, the Chuguev Cossack 500th team came under the jurisdiction of the Military Collegium.
The main destiny of the Cossacks is service to the Fatherland, and the turbulent eighteenth century was rich in military conflicts. Therefore, first in 1749, on the basis of the Chuguev Cossack team, the Chuguev Cossack cavalry regiment was formed. But all the Cossacks of the team did not enter the regiment, and then in 1769 part of the Chuguev Cossacks entered a separate light-horse team (400 Cossacks), and part - into the Petersburg Legion (half of the legion).
A new stage in the history of Russia began - the conquest of Novorossia. And here the Chuguevs came in handy. The Chuguev Cossack Cavalry Regiment (as the Yekaterinoslav Cavalry Regiment) and the Chuguev Light Horse Team became part of the forward guard corps of the Yekaterinoslav Regular Cossacks, formed by order of Prince Potemkin in February 1788. However, a year later the corps was disbanded, and the units were reorganized into the Chuguev Cossack cavalry regiment and Prince Potemkin's escort Cossack cavalry regiment. In the spring of 1893, the Little Russian Cossack Regiment was attached to these two regiments (in 1890 it was formed in his army from recruits by the all-powerful Prince Potemkin, who had a certain weakness for the Cossacks). All three regiments received new names - the 1st, 2nd and 3rd Chuguev Cossack cavalry regiments. The Chuguev court team, meanwhile, in the fall of 1896, became part of the Life Hussar and Life Cossack regiments - the brainchild of the new Russian emperor.
In the winter of the same year, the 3rd Chuguev Cossack Cavalry Regiment was disbanded, and in the spring of 1800 the two remaining regiments were consolidated into one. Three years later, the Chuguev Cossacks were transferred to the taxable estate. And on August 18, 1808, on the basis of the Chuguev Cossack Cavalry Regiment, the Chuguev Lancers Regiment was formed, which entered the military settlements. The Chuguev Lancers as the 11th Lancer Regiment existed until the collapse of the Great Empire.
Bakhmut Cossacks.
Bakhmut Cossacks of history have been known for a long time. But their regular service began in 1701, when the government needed to protect the Bakhmut salt springs selected for the treasury. For this purpose, the Bakhmut Cossack Company was formed from the Bakhmut, Torsk and Mayatsky Cossacks. This decision turned out to be quite controversial and allowed the ataman of Bakhmut Kondraty Bulavin in 1707 to raise the entire Don to fight for the ancient liberties and traditions of the Cossacks. The rebellion was resolutely suppressed by government troops - the tsar-reformer never favored rebels, the sovereign will broke the recalcitrant at any cost. Then the authorities forgot about Bakhmut for a long time and only in the spring of 1721 Mayatsky, Torsky and Bakhmutsky Cossacks were directly subordinated to the Military Collegium. In the autumn of 1748, urgent military needs demanded the creation of the Bakhmut Cossack Cavalry Regiment. However, in the summer of 1764, the regiment moved into the category of regular units of the Russian army. At first it was known as the Lugansk Pike Regiment, and then it was renamed the 4th Hussar Regiment. The regiment in the Imperial Army lasted until the death of the empire.
Bug Cossack Army.
The Turks repeatedly fought with the Russians and knew perfectly well the true value of the Shield of Russia. That is why they tried to attract to their side all the Cossacks dissatisfied with the policy of Russia. After the transition to the service of the Sultan of the Cossacks - Nekrasovites and part of the Cossacks, the Port began to seriously consider the possibility of forming Cossack units. However, the Orthodox roots of the Russian warrior at that time did not allow him to raise his sword against a fellow believer. And the Cossacks considered changing the faith a deed unworthy of a warrior. It is from the Cossacks who left the Sultan's service that the Bug army originates. In 1769, the Turks formed a Cossack regiment from Transdanubian Christians, which during the war, at the first opportunity, went over to the side of the Russian army. The Cossacks of this regiment in 1774 were settled along the Bug to ensure the protection of the new region. The following year, a recruited Cossack regiment of foreigners of Slavic blood was placed nearby under the general command of Major Kasperov. However, these forces were not enough. And the government began to buy part of the peasants from the Bug landowners. This measure made it possible in the winter of 1785 to form the Bug cavalry Cossack regiment, numbering 1.5 thousand people, from settlers and purchased peasants. Protecting their land, the Bug Cossacks in the period 1787 - 17996. were part of the so-called Yekaterinoslav Cossack Army. Then, in the spring of 1803, on the basis of the Bug Cossack cavalry regiment, with the involvement of Slavic settlers (Bulgarians, Serbs and others), the Bug Cossack Army was formed as part of three regiments. In 1814, the Little Russian Cossacks, who had long been living near the Bug, were also enrolled in the Army.
The Bug Cossacks faithfully served their Fatherland more than once. So for the Patriotic War and the Foreign Campaign, the 1st Bug Cossack Regiment received the St. George standard. However, the war died down, the border moved to the west and the need for the existence of the Cossack communities disappeared. On October 8, 1817, the Ukrainian Lancers and Bug Cossacks were included in the so-called. military settlements and made up four uhlan Bug regiments. These regiments existed in the Russian army until the revolution (7th - 10th Uhlan regiments).
Yekaterinoslav Cossack Host
The conquest of new lands in the Crimea and the Black Sea region required the formation in this territory of any sustainable forms of life and human activity. Therefore, in the summer of 1787, all the odnodvortsy of the Yekaterinoslav province settled along the former Ukrainian line were converted by the Russian government into the Cossack estate. Of these Cossacks, a special Cossack corps was formed in the likeness of the Don Cossacks. From the autumn of 1787, in official documents, the corps began to be called either the Yekaterinoslav Cossack Corps, or the Yekaterinoslav Cossack Host (Novodon Cossack Army).
To strengthen the Army, the Bug Cossacks were assigned to it in the fall of 1787, and in January 1788, the Old Believers of the Yekaterinoslav province, as well as the townspeople and guild provinces of Yekaterinoslav, Voznesenskaya and Kharkov, became part of the Army. However, at about the same time, the Chuguev Cossacks left the Army.
On February 11, 1788, on the basis of the Yekaterinoslav Cossack Army, a corps of forward guards of Yekaterinoslav regular Cossacks was formed, consisting of 4 brigades. The brigade included 5 Cossack and 2 Kalmyk cavalry hundreds. However, already on June 23, 1789, the corps was disbanded. And on June 5, 1796, the Yekaterinoslav Army itself ceased to exist, dividing into the Bug and Voznesensky Cossack troops. A new stage of imperial policy began - the conquest of the Caucasus and Kuban. And already on October 23, 1801, the Supreme Command was promulgated on the resettlement of the Cossacks of the Bug and Voznesensky troops to the Caucasus. The successors of the glorious Yekaterinoslav Cossacks are the Kuban regiments of the Kuban Cossack Host.
Danube Cossack army.
Wherever the fate of the Cossacks took them. And they ended up beyond the Danube. Because the Russian Empress abolished the Zaporozhian Sich, and the Russian troops simply destroyed the free Cossack settlements with a bayonet and grapeshot. And the Cossacks went to the Danube. However, the long and heavy hand of the Russian rulers reached out there too. And after some time, the empire needed to put up a reliable barrier on these borders. And at the end of February 1807, General Mikhelson announced the creation on the Danube of the fugitive Cossacks of the Ust-Danube Cossack army. However, the government's plans soon changed. In December of the same year, the army was disbanded, and the Cossack troops were divided into the Danube and Budzhaksky settled Cossacks. Apparently for the royal power it was much calmer.
In 1816, immigrants from the southern Slavs were resettled to the Budzhaksky settled Cossacks. These Slavs formed special volunteer foot and horse regiments at the settlements. However, after some time, the authorities got tired of playing at democracy. In 1827, the Budzhak and Danube Cossacks were settled in Bessarabia and subordinated to the civil authorities of the region. And everything would be forgotten over time, "grass weeds and wormwood overgrown." Yes, in 1828 another war with the Turks happened. And again the settlers on the Danube passed into the category of serving Cossacks, again making up the Danube Cossack Army, consisting of two (horse and foot) regiments. The regiments were disbanded a year later. But the Danube army as an administrative unit in the region has been preserved. Little of. There was a catastrophic shortage of people, and the tsarist government applied its usual vicious practice. In the summer of 1836, the surrounding settled gypsies were assigned to the Danube army! And in the fall of 1838, "retired lower ranks of good behavior" were assigned to the Army.
In the winter of 1844, the Danube Cossack Army was again formed from the Ust-Danube and Budzhak Cossacks, South Slavic settlers and "other people of various ranks and origins" as a military force consisting of two cavalry regiments. And on the occasion of the outbreak of hostilities in 1854, the third cavalry regiment was formed. And the Danube Cossacks served faithfully. For the war, this regiment of troops received banners from the king - a high and honorable award.
The guns died down and the Cossack service was no longer needed. First, in 1856, the Danube army was renamed Novorossiysk. And on December 3, 1868, by the Highest order, the Novorossiysk Cossack army was abolished. The banners of the army were handed over to the church of the village of Volonterovka, and the population of the army was finally converted to civil status. Well, in the inner provinces of the tsarist government, the Cossacks were not needed. And if the tsar did not dare to abolish the Don army, then one can not stand on ceremony with the Troops established by his authority. Once, and there is no Army, as if it never existed.
Ukrainian Cossack army.
In Ukraine, the Cossacks are rooted in the Wild Field. During the time of the Polish-Lithuanian rule in Ukraine, a system of administrative management was formed - division not by regions, but by regiments - Vinnitsa, Chigirinsky, Cherkasy, Kanevsky and others. However, with the advent of Ukraine under the arm of the White Tsar, the situation began to change. First, separate liberties, and then the very institution of hetman power, went into the past.
In the troubled times of the Napoleonic invasion, the tsar was ready to seize every opportunity to ensure victory. The total mobilization of the Cossack troops helped. But that wasn't enough. And on June 5, 1812, it was announced the creation of the Ukrainian Cossack army from the villagers of Kyiv and part of the Kamenetz-Podolsk provinces capable of Cossack service, consisting of four 8-squadron regiments. And already in August 1814, silver trumpets were granted to these regiments "as a reward for the excellent deeds performed in the past company." However, the history of all the above Troops repeated itself and on October 26, 1816, the Ukrainian Cossack division was renamed the Ukrainian Lancers Cavalry Division. Ukrainian Cossacks made up the uhlan regiments (numbered from 7th to 10th) of the Russian army. These regiments existed in the ranks of our regular cavalry until the Troubles of 1917.
Azov Cossack army.
Azov is a Cossack city. In the 17th century, the Don Cossacks proved this not only by taking a strong Turkish stronghold, but also withstanding the siege, the “Azov Seat”. They just couldn't keep up. Then, with the help of regular troops, archers and Cossacks, Peter the Great took Azov by storm. And again he could not keep it - he returned it to the Turks. But our power was growing stronger and once again taking the city, Russia approved it for itself.
In 1828, part of the Transdanubian Cossacks who left the empire at one time returned to the Russian service. At their head was Ataman Gladkiy. The flotilla of the Cossacks helped the Russian army a lot. And by the Highest order on April 4, 1829, the Danube Cossack regiment was formed from the Cossacks of Ataman Gladky. Later, in 1831, a banner was awarded to the regiment for their exploits while crossing the Danube. And in the spring of next year, all the Cossacks who switched to Russian service from the Turks made up a special Azov Cossack army, stationed in the Novorossiysk Territory. According to the special Regulations on the army, it was obliged to put into service the following units: a naval battalion, a semi-battalion on foot and cruising teams to protect the Black Sea coast. By the highest order of June 1, 1844, the Army was granted the first relic - the Army banner. The Cossacks of the Troops distinguished themselves in the Crimean company in such a way that on August 26, 1856, the St. George banner was granted to the Cossacks of the AKV.
However, peace gradually reigned in Novorossia, and Cossack strength and valor were needed elsewhere. The empire waged a long and stubborn struggle in the Caucasus. Therefore, soon after the Crimean War, the Cossacks of the Azov army began to be resettled in the Caucasus. The first 800 settlers went to the Caucasus in the summer of 1862 by order of the Ministry of War No. 143 of May 10, 1862. And this was the beginning of the end of the glorious Army. The Azov people became part of the Kuban Army and on October 11, 1864, the Azov Cossack army was abolished, and its banners were transferred to storage in the Kuban army. And now the descendants of the Transdanubian Cossacks are natural Kuban Cossacks.
Stavropol Kalmyk Army.
Kalmyks, a free steppe people, a fragment of the Batu Empire. They quite often acted either against Russia or, on the contrary, on its side. Christianity gradually began to spread among the Kalmyks. And it was decided to give all the baptized Kalmyks under the hand of Prince Peter Taishin, building a fortress in the steppe. And indeed, the Privy Councilor Tatishchev near the Volga in the tract of Kunya Voloshka built a fortress, which in 1739 was named Stavropol. This fortress became the residence of the head of the baptized Kalmyks. But Prince Taishin was no longer able to lead his people, he died back in 1736. Therefore, the case was continued by his wife, Princess Taishina. All Kalmyks living in the vicinity of Stavropol thus constituted a special army. However, the rules for managing the Army were finally established in the winter of 1745, when all Kalmyks were divided into five companies. And in the spring of 1756, as a sign of royal favor, the Kalmyks were granted the Stavropol Army banner and 5 centesimal badges.
In 1760, the Tszungar baptized Kalmyks, who had come out of the Kirghiz-Kaisak captivity, were attached to the army, who made up three more military companies. Then for several decades the service of the Kalmyk Army went on as usual. Only in the autumn of 1803 did the Russian Government become concerned about the state of affairs in the Stavropol region and approved the Regulations on the formation of the Stavropol Kalmyk Army as part of one thousandth Stavropol regiment. In this state of affairs, the Army existed as a separate community until May 24, 1842, when the Kalmyks of the Army were attached to a larger structure - the Orenburg Cossack Army.
Today, as part of the Union of Cossacks of Russia, there is such a structure as the Cossack Army of Kalmykia. The Republic of Kalmykia within Russia is a small state. But the President of Kalmykia K. N. Ilyumzhinov, a delegate of the Constituent Circle of the Union of Cossacks of Russia and a Cossack colonel, helps this structure to the best of his ability and ability. And even in the absence of the Federal Law on the Cossacks, the Cossack Army of Kalmykia serves Russia.
Bashkir-Meshcheryak Army.
In 1574, the fortified city of Ufa was founded, and all the inhabitants of the Orenburg region were brought into obedience to Russia. However, for a long time the Russian government did not take any measures to attract the Bashkirs to the state service. Only in 1714 the Bashkirs were sent for the first time to serve in Siberia. Siberia was being built and the construction sites had to be protected. However, already in 1724 it was "ordered not to include the Bashkirs in the layout on the shelves." The 18th century was stormy, and already in January 1736, on the occasion of the war with Turkey, the Bashkir settlements received orders for 3,000 horsemen. The same 3,000 riders also participated in the Seven Years' War as part of the Russian army.
For a very long time, the Pugachev rebellion blazed among the Bashkirs and Meshcheryaks. And this rebellion was drowned in blood. Having ascended the throne, Emperor Paul attended to the solution of many problems that faced the country. And in the spring of 1798, for the first time, the correct military division of the Bashkir army was carried out. 12 Bashkir and 5 Meshcheryak cantons were formed. The era of the Napoleonic wars demanded the exertion of all the forces of the Russian state. In the spring of 1811, 2 Meshcheryak regiments were formed from the Army, and in August 1812, at the very height of the invasion, 20 Bashkir regiments. And the Bashkir-Meshcheryak Army fought valiantly against the common enemy for the entire Empire. Cannons and pipes died down and the service of the Bashkir regiments was no longer needed. In 1846, only the 4th, 5th and 9th cantons remained on the rights of the Army, in a state of war. Others were transferred back to civilian status. Therefore, with the beginning of the Crimean War, the Army formed only 4 Bashkir regiments. Already during the war, the Army was reorganized. Now it amounted to 13 Bashkir and 4 Meshcheryak cantons. According to the peacetime schedule, the Bashkirs and Meshcheryaks from the entire army formed one cavalry regiment.
In 1863, on May 15, the Regulations on the Bashkir Army were approved by the Highest. However, already in the summer of 1865, the Army came under the control of the Ministry of the Interior. And the military reform led to the fact that in 1874 only one squadron was formed from the entire composition of the Troops. The following year, the Bashkir squadron was reorganized into a division. Only on April 1, 1878, the division was deployed to the Bashkir cavalry regiment. However, the new army formation system allowed the government to abandon some irregular military units. And on July 24, 1882, the Bashkir Cavalry Regiment was disbanded. Only in wartime it was decided to form mounted police units from the Bashkirs. Thus ended the story of another Army.
Crimean Tatar Army.
Tatars, proud descendants of the hordes of Genghis Khan. Nomadic warriors knew how not only to rob their neighbors, but also to serve faithfully. Tatar units were in both Russian and Polish service. Yes, the steppe predators were not distinguished by meekness of temper, but dashing service required just such qualities.
In Crimea, for a long time, there was the last fragment of the Mongol empire - the Crimean Khanate, which recognized its dependence on the Ottoman Empire. Then, with one stroke of the pen, relying on the bayonets and cannons of her generals, Catherine the Great annexed the Crimea (Tauride Peninsula) to Russian territories. However, there were not enough regular troops to protect the region, and in the spring of 1784 the government decided to form several Tauride national divisions from local residents, which existed in the Crimea until 1796. The era of the Napoleonic wars brought to life the decision to form large formations from the inhabitants of the peninsula. And in the period from 1808 to 1817. Simferopol, Perekop, Yevpatoriya and Feodosia cavalry regiments acted as part of the Russian regular army. And during the war of 1812, these regiments distinguished themselves a lot. For these distinctions, in the summer of 1827, the Life Guards Crimean Tatar squadron was formed, reorganized in the spring of 1863 into the team of the Life Guards of the Crimean Tatars of His Majesty's Own Convoy, and existed in a new capacity until May 1890.
As for the regular units of the Russian army, it was only in the spring of 1874 that a separate squadron was formed from the Crimean Tatars, then reorganized into a division. On February 24, 1906, the division was deployed to the Crimean Dragoon Regiment. In December 1907, the regiment was renamed the Crimean Cavalry, and on October 10, 1909, the Crimean Cavalry Regiment of Her Majesty Empress Alexandra Feodorovna. According to the order of the military department No. 166 of April 5, 1911, the regiment was assigned seniority from March 1, 1874.
This regiment was in the ranks of the Russian army throughout the First World War. Then he saw the revival and fall of the Crimean national government. The officers of the regiment (primarily Colonel Bako) revived the regiment in the ranks of the Volunteer Army of the South of Russia. Together with the remnants of the Russian army, the regiment was evacuated from the Crimea in November 1920. Far from their homeland, in Paris, the Crimean Regiment Association was formed.
Greek (Albanian) Army.
The last great project of Catherine the Great. She dreamed of uniting the Balkans under the rule of her grandson Constantine. Therefore, in 1774, when the Russian fleet fought in the Archipelago, the Albanian Army was formed from the Greeks and Albanians who were in the Russian service. After the end of the war with the Turks, the Greeks and Albanians were settled by the Russian government in the Crimea near the Kerch fortress. In the summer of 1779, the Albanian Army was reorganized into a Greek regiment. In the autumn of 1887, free divisions were formed in the army of Prince Potemkin from Greeks and Albanians in the Russian service.
In the spring of 1796, the Greek regiment, the Greeks of the free divisions and the Albanians, brought together into a separate Albanian division, were resettled by the Russian government in the Odessa region. In December of the same year, the Greek regiment came under the command of the Military Collegium and was consolidated into the Greek Infantry Battalion. The following year, the battalion was relocated to Balaklava, and the Albanian division was completely disbanded. In the autumn of 1803, the Greek battalion was again formed in Odessa, and the battalion in Balaklava was renamed Balaklava. In the autumn of 1810, the Greeks in Odessa and Balaklava were transferred to the category of military settlers, and already in the autumn of 1819 the Odessa battalion was transferred to Balaklava and attached to the Balaklava infantry battalion. During the Crimean War in Sevastopol, in addition to units of the regular army, the Legion of Nicholas I was formed from the southern Slavs. However, the war soon ended, the Legion was disbanded, and soon, on October 21, 1859, the Balaklava Greek infantry battalion was also disbanded. The dream of autonomy for the Greek settlers did not come true. Although the independence of Greece by the middle of the 19th century, Turkey recognized. But that's a completely different story.
Thus, we see that the Russian empire was looking for various options for protecting the newly acquired regions - Little Russia, Novorossia, Tavria, the Caucasus and Bashkiria. And she found the most optimal and low-cost way - the formation of Cossack communities or foreign communities in the likeness of the Cossacks. Then the need for service disappeared or was significantly weakened and the Army was disbanded. Who knows, if the Russian Empire had existed a little longer, the number of traditional troops of the Russian Cossacks would have changed quite significantly. Today in modern Russia, in the absence of a firm state policy towards the Cossacks, we see confrontation and mutual misunderstanding between registered societies and public structures.
