Russo-Circassian War

See also: Circassian genocide

Russo-Circassian War
Part of the Caucasian War
Circassian and Russian forces in combat
Date 1763 – 21 May 1864 (Circassian resistance continued in the mountainous regions until the 1870s, but the war was officially over by 1864) Location Circassia, Northwest Caucasus Result Russian victory Russian annexation of Circassia Circassian genocide and mass expulsion Territorial changes Circassia annexed into Russian Empire
Belligerents
Russian Empire Russian vassals: Cossacks Kalmyk Khanate Principality of Mingrelia Principality of Guria Shamkhalate of Tarki Principality of Svaneti Karachay-Balkars (after 1828) Cherkesogai (after 1838) Diplomatic support: France (after 1829)	Circassian Confederation Circassian tribal regions: Abdzakh (until November 1859) Ademey (until 1780s) Besleney (until 1864) Bzhedug (until May 1859) Chebsin (until 1780s) Hakuchey (until 1870) Hatuqway (until 1861) Kabardia (until 1822) Khatuq (until 1780s) Khegayk (until 1830s) Makhosh (until 1864) Mamkhegh (until 1823) Natukhaj (until 1860) Shapsug (until 1864) Chemguy (until 1861) Ubykh (until 1864) Yegeruqway (until 1849) Zhaney (until 1780s) …and others Diplomatic and equipment support: Ottoman Empire (until 1829) United Kingdom (until 1856)
Commanders and leaders
Catherine II Nicholas I Alexander I Alexander II Michael Nikolaevich Grigory Zass  (WIA) Ivan Paskevich Aleksey Yermolov Georgi Emmanuel Maxim Grigorievich Vlasov David Dadiani Pyotr Bagration Dmitry Milyutin Aleksandr Baryatinsky Pavel Tsitsianov Pavel Grabbe Nikolay Yevdokimov Aytech Qanoqo (D) Fyodor Bursak …and others	Qerandiqo Berzeg  (WIA) Seferbiy Zanuqo  (DOW) Ismail Berzeg Kizbech Tughuzhuqo  † Muhammad-Amin Asiyalav   Jembulat Boletoqo  † Qerzech Shirikhuqo Psheqo Akhedjaqo Ale Khirtsizhiqo  † Aytech Qanoqo (D)  Mansur Ucherman  (POW) (DOW) …and others Foreign helpers: Teofil Lapinski (1857–1859) Ferah Ali Pasha (1779–1785) James Stanislaus Bell (1836–1839)
Units involved
Russian Imperial Army Russian artillery units Russian cavalry units Russian infantry units Cossack raiders	Before 1860: Circassian irregulars Regional armies The Abreks Hakuchis After 1860: Circassian Confederational Army Foreign volunteers Abkhazian volunteers Chechen volunteers Polish volunteers
Strength
150,000–300,000 regulars	20,000–60,000 regulars
Casualties and losses
	Military dead: 500,000 (Estimate) Civilian dead: 1,000,000+ Total dead: 1,500,000+
During the Circassian Genocide, about 1,500,000 indigenous highland Caucasians were expelled mainly to the Ottoman Empire, and a much smaller number to Persia. An unknown number of those expelled died during deportation.

The Russo-Circassian War (Template:Lang-ady; Template:Lang-ru; 1763–1864; also known as the Russian Invasion of Circassia) was the military conflict between Circassia and Russia, starting in 1763 with the Russian Empire's attempts to quickly annex Circassia, followed by the Circassian rejection of annexation; ending 101 years later with the last army of Circassia defeated on May 21, 1864, making it exhausting and casualty heavy for both sides as well as being the longest war Russia ever waged in history. The end of the war saw the Circassian genocide take place in which Imperial Russia aimed to systematically destroy the Circassian people where several atrocities were committed by the Russian forces and up to 1,500,000 Circassians (95-97% of the total population) were either killed or expelled to the Ottoman Empire (especially in modern-day Turkey; see Circassians in Turkey), creating the Circassian diaspora.

Тhe Russo-Circassian War was the western half of the Caucasus War, which in turn was the mountain phase of the Russian conquest of the Caucasus region. After gaining control of the land south of the Caucasus in the years 1800 to 1806 the Russians faced the difficult task of gaining control of the intervening mountains.

The war has widely been a topic of Historical revisionism and has been a matter of controversy due to later Russian sources mostly ignoring or belittling the conflict and Russian state media and officials going as far as claiming that "such conflict never happened and Circassia voluntarily joined Russia in the 16th century".

Summary

General info

Early relations between Russians and Circassians

The earliest recorded hostilities between Russia and the Circassians began in 985 when Kievan Rus forces under Prince Sviatoslav raided the region, killed the local Circassians and laid the foundation of the Tmutarakan town. Following the invasion under Prince Sviatoslav, hostilities again broke out in 1022, when Prince Mstislav of Tamatarkha occupied the region. The Circassian army, lead by Prince Rededey, had faced him, but lost, and 20,000 Circassians were killed.

In the 1557, Prince Temroqwa of Eastern Circassia allied the Russian Tsar Ivan the Terrible and built a defense against possible enemies. Circassians were Christians during this period and Islam had not begun to spread. In 1561, Ivan the Terrible married Goshenay, daughter of Temroqwa, and named her Mariya. This alliance was perceived by Circassian nationalists as a destructive relationship to the Circassian nation, as the alliance was used by the Russian government as "evidence" of the “voluntary joining” of Circassia to the Russian Tsardom, which is historically not accurate, as Circassia was forcefully annexed after the Russo-Circassian War. The Circassian-Russian alliance was damaged and eventually broken when the Circassians converted to Islam and adopted a more pro-Ottoman policy.

Because of his alliance with Russia, in several narratives, Temroqwa was described as a tyrant who only cared about his rule.

Political reasons of the war

Circassia was a key strategic location amidst the power struggle between the emerging Russian Empire, established England and France, and the failing Ottoman Empire. Russia set her sights on expansion along the Black Sea, and England sought to reduce Russia's ability to take advantage of the declining Ottoman Empire, known as the Eastern Question.

To facilitate the fall of Persia, Russia would require shipyards on the Black Sea, which made Circassia, with its coastline, a target. Having taken that coastline, as well as Bosphorus and the Dardanelles, Russia hoped to cripple the Ottoman empire as well as the trading interests of Great Britain.

Starting date of the war

The date of the outbreak of the Russian-Circassian War has been a matter of debate by historians. Most scholars agree that organised warfare happened after 1763 when Russia established forts in Circassian territory, but small-scale conflicts have been going on since 1711. Another view held by a smaller amount of scholars is that proper warfare began in 1817 with the arrival of Aleksey Yermolov, and prior to that it was merely clashes.

Failed attempts for a diplomatic solution

In 1764 Circassian knights Keysin Keytiqo and Kundeyt Shebez-Giray met with Catherine II in St. Petersburg. They informed her that "the military build-up in Mezdeug was unacceptable, the region has been a land of Circassians, the situation would create hostility and conflict". She refused diplomacy and the envoys were sent back. After this, the council convened and decided that war was inevitable, and refused Russian annexation.

In 1787, Circassian envoys, led by Tatarkhan Kurighoqo and Sidak Jankat, requested a meeting with the Russians to secure a peaceful solution, but they were denied. The Russians sent the envoys back, saying that the war would not stop and the Circassians were no longer free.

In 1811, petitions were sent to St. Petersburg in Russia, appealing for the basic rights of Circassians in the occupied areas. They were ignored.

In 1837, some Circassian leaders offered the Russians a white peace, arguing that no more blood should be shed. In response to this offer, the Russian army under the command of General Yermolov burnt 36 Circassian villages and sent word, "We need the Circassian lands, not the Circassian people".

In 1841, Circassian leader Ismail Berzeg participated in negotiations with the Russian military leaders in Sochi, but the negotiations ended in vain. The Russian leaders stated that the Circassians were "poor villagers waiting for help from the English". A Russian officer, Lorer, who witnessed Ismail Berzeg's meeting with the Russians, later wrote in his memoirs that Berzeg answered:

I must say, General, your statements truly astound me. If your master, the Tsar, is so wealthy, and we are so poor and barbaric, why does your master envy us and forbid us from living in our humble mountains? Your lord appears to be greedy and lustful. I'm afraid, sir, we won't be surrendering the Englishmen and Turkish pashas in our lands; we can not abandon them because they are our friends and visitors. No amount of gold or silver, I swear to God, will be able to deviate us from the path of honor.

— Ismail Berzeg

In 1861, the Circassian Majlis held an emergency meeting, decided that continuing the war in vain would only result in more deaths and negotiated with the Russian Tsar Alexander II to establish peace, expressing their readiness to surrender completely, and accept Russian citizenship. However, the annexation of Circassia was not enough for Russia, the Tsarist government sought to evict the Circassians from the ethnic territory. The Tsar consistently continued the policy of his father, Nicholas I, and rejected the Circassian compromise proposals. The Russian Tsar declared that Circassia will not only be annexed to Russia unconditionally, but the Circassians will be exiled, and if the Circassian people do not accept forcefully migrating, the Russian generals saw no problem in killing all Circassians. He gave the Circassian representatives a month to decide. The Majlis did not accept leaving their lands and sent delegations to the Ottoman Empire and the United Kingdom to gain support from both countries, arguing that they are being massacred and they would be forced into exile soon.

The conflict

Start of the war

In May 13, 1711, Tsar Peter I, ordered Araksin, Governor of Astrakhan, to pillage Circassia. Araksin moved with 30,000 strong Russian armed forces and, on August 26, 1711, broke into the lands of the Circassians, and captured Kopyl town (now Slavianski). From there, heading towards the Black Sea, he seized ports on the Kuban and looted and pillaged them. Then, he marched up along the Kuban River, pillaging villages. During this single invasion in Circassia, the Russians killed 43, 247 Circassian men and women, and drove away 39,200 horses, 190,000 cattle, and 227,000 sheep from Circassia. Russia kept waging this type of warfare against Circassia during the period from 1711 to 1763, but this type of operations were not in order to annex Circassia, but rather raid it.

In 1772 a serious collision between the troops of Peter the Great and Circassian Prince Aslan Kaytouko took place. In the fort Kizlar of the Russian army there were 10,000 soldiers. The battle occurred on Daghestan territory. Both sides suffered serious losses as finally the Russians emerged victorious.

Although Peter I was unable to annex Circassia in his lifetime, he laid the political and ideological foundation for the occupation to take place. During the reign of Catherine II the Russian army was deployed and Russia started building forts in an attempt to quickly annex Circassia. As a result of this, small-scale battles were fought in 1763. While some Circassian nobles wanted to fight the Russians, arguing they could convince the Ottomans and Crimea to help them, other nobles wanted to avoid fighting with Russia and try to make peace. In August 21, 1765, the citizens of Circassia were instructed by Russian General De-Medem to accept Russian control or face the Russian army.

Early battles

In 1763-1777 near the fort of Mozdok the military actions began and then engulfed all the territory along Terek. In 1769, the Russian army fought a battle against the Kabardian Circassians with the support of the Kalmyk Khan's 20,000 cavalrymen, and were victorious as they destroyed the whole Kabardian army. A great battle took place in the Nartsane area in June 1769, and Circassian forces under the leadership of Atajuq Bomet Misost retreated as both sides suffered losses.

In 1769, as a diversion, the Russians sent Gottlieb Heinrich Totleben with a small expeditionary force south into Georgia. As a result of the Russo-Turkish War (1768–1774), the Ottomans had forces in Circassia. They were seen as fellow Muslim allies by the Circassians. The Russians defeated an Ottoman army at Aspindza in 1770. The Cossack village of Naur was defended against 8000 men strong Circassian-Turkish mixed army.

From 1777 the Russians built a line of forts from Mozdok northwest to Azov. The presence of Cossacks in former grazing lands slowly converted traditional raiding from a kind of ritualized sport into a serious military struggle. In 1776 the Russian army built several forts in Terek to encircle Circassians from the north. The Circassians managed to gather a 14,000 strong army and won back several forts.

The Circassian region of Kabardia, near the Balka River, was attacked on September 29, 1779, and was occupied with the loss of the Kabardian defenders as well as 2,000 horses, 5,000 cattle, and 5,000 sheep. About 50 tribal leaders died in this conflict, refusing to surrender. The Russian army then raided the Abaza, Besleney, Chemguy and Hatuqway regions in 1787, successfully defeated the regional Circassian armies and burned near a hundred villages.

Meanwhile, in neighboring Chechnya, a resistance against Russia was growing. In 1784, Sheikh Mansur, an imam in Chechnya declared holy war against Russia. Angered, the Russian troops plundered and burned his village to the ground. Soon, Chechen fighters won the Battle of the Sunja.

In 1786, Russian forces abandoned the new fort of Vladikavkaz, and did not occupy it again until 1803. From 1787 to 1791, during the Russian-Turkish War, Sheikh Mansur moved to Circassia, and joined Circassian resistance against Russia. He led the Circassians in assaults against Russian forces.

In June 1791, Sheikh Mansur was captured at the fortress of Anapa on the Black Sea when it came under siege. He was brought to Saint Petersburg and imprisoned for life in harsh conditions. In April 1794, he died due to poor treatment.

Early attempts to unite Circassia

The Ottoman Empire had sent Ferah Ali Pasha at Anapa who tried to unite some of the tribes under Ottoman control. In 1791 the Natukhaj commoners peacefully took power from the aristocrats, declaring a republic with the Circassian revolution. A similar attempt among the Shapsugs led to a civil war which the commons won in 1803. In 1770–1790 there was a class war among the Abadzeks that resulted in the extermination of the princes and the banishment of most of the nobility. Henceforth the three west-central "democratic" tribes, Natukhaj, Shapsugs and Abedzeks, who formed the majority of the Circassians, managed their affairs through assemblies with only informal powers. This made things difficult for the Russians since there were no chiefs who might lead their followers into submission. Sefer Bey Zanuqo, the three Naibs of Shamil and the British adventurers all tried to organize the Circassians with limited success.

Invasion of Eastern Circassia

Methods of terror

In 1799, Russian general Fyodor Bursak organized several raids against the Circassians, and personally ordered his men to burn all Circassian villages they see, even if they are villages that are loyal to the Russian Empire. In 1800, as part of the Russian conquest of the Caucasus, Russia annexed eastern Georgia and by 1806 held Transcaucasia from the Black Sea to the Caspian. Russia had to hold the Georgian Military Highway in the center so the war against the mountaineers was divided into eastern and western parts. With Georgia out of the question, more armies were directed to Circassia. Russian armies successfully crossed the Kuban River in March 1814. Circassia used this opportunity to promote the young prince Jembulat Bolotoqo and sent a delegation to the Ottoman Empire, who complained against the Russian actions.

In February 22, 1802, near the Karakuban island, Circassians captured a Russian ship in the Black Sea and burned it down. During the battle, 2 Russian admirals and 14 Cossacks soldiers were killed, the rest surrendered, were pardoned by the Circassians and left.

Deciding that Circassians would not surrender at all, General Aleksey Yermolov concluded that "terror" would be effective. Russia began to destroy Circassian fortreses, villages and towns and slaughter the people.

In 1804, the Kabardians and neighbouring Abazins, Ossetians and Chechens united in a military movement. They aimed to destroy the Kislovodsk Russian fort. Despite threats of bloodshed from General Tsitsianov, the forces began threatening the Kislovodsk fort.

Russian forces commanded by General Glazenap were pushed back to Georgievsk and then put under siege, however the attacking Kabardian forces were eventually pushed back, and 80 Kabardian villages were burnt as a reprisal.

In 1805, a major plague struck the north Caucasus and carried away a large part of the Kabardian population. Many argue that the plague was spread on purpose by Russia. Using this as an excuse, in 1810 about 200 villages were burned. In 1817 the frontier was pushed to the Sunzha River and in 1822 a line of forts was built from Vladikavkaz northwest through Nalchik to the Pyatigorsk area. After 1825 fighting subsided. Between 1805 and 1807, Bulgakov's army burned more than 280 villages. The population of Kabarda, which was 350,000 in 1763, was only 37,000 in 1817.

In May 1818, the village of Tram was surrounded, burnt, and its inhabitants killed by Russian forces under the command of General Delpotso, who took orders from Yermolov and who then wrote to the rebel forces: "This time, I am limiting myself on this. In the future, I will have no mercy for the guilty brigands; their villages will be destroyed, properties taken, wives and children will be slaughtered." The Russians also constructed several more fortifications during that year. During the whole period from 1779 to 1818, 315,000 of the 350,000 Kabardinians had reportedly been killed by the Russian armies.

These brutal methods annoyed the Circassians even more, and many Circassian princes, even princes who had been competing for centuries, joined hands to resist harder, many Russian armies were defeated, some completely destroyed. In Europe, especially in England, there was great sympathy for the Circassians who resisted the Russians.

In response to persistent Circassian resistance and the failure of their previous policy of building forts, the Russian military began using a strategy of disproportionate retribution for raids. With the goal of imposing stability and authority beyond their current line of control and over the whole Caucasus, Russian troops retaliated by destroying villages or any place that resistance fighters were thought to hide, as well as employing assassinations and executions of whole families.

Understanding that the resistance was reliant on being fed by sympathetic villages, the Russian military also systematically destroyed crops and livestock. These tactics further enraged natives and intensified resistance to Russian rule. The Russians began to counter this by modifying the terrain, in both the environment and the demographics. They cleared forests by roads, destroyed native villages, and often settled new farming communities of Russians or pro-Russian Orthodox peoples. In this increasingly bloody situation, the complete destruction of the villages for Russian interests with everyone and everything within them became.a standard action by the Russian army and Cossack units. Nevertheless, the Circassian resistance continued. Villages that had previously accepted Russian rule were found resisting again, much to the ire of Russian commanders.

In September 1820, Russian forces began to forcibly resettle inhabitants of Eastern Circassia. Throughout the conflict, Russia had employed a tactic of divide and rule, and following this, the Russians began to encourage the Karachay-Balkar and Ingush tribes, who had previously been subjugated by the Circassians, to rise up and join the Russian efforts. Military forces were sent into Kabardia, killing cattle and causing large numbers of inhabitants to flee into the mountains, with the land these inhabitants had once lived on being acquired for the Kuban Cossacks. The entirety of Kabardia (Eastern Circassia) was then declared property of the Russian government.

General Yermolov accelerated his efforts in Kabardia, with the month of March 1822 alone seeing fourteen villages being displaced as Yermolov led expeditions. The construction of new defensive lines in Kabardia led to renewed uprisings, which were eventually crushed and the rebellious lords had their much needed peasant work forces freed by the Russian forces in order to discourage further uprisings. The area was placed under Russian military rule in 1822, as Kabardia eventually fully fell.

Invasion of Western Circassia

While Eastern Circassia was being occupied, Russia was also engaged in a war with the Turks (Russo-Turkish War of 1806–1812) in order to "free" the Black Sea from Turkish influence, and sporadic wars had also flared up with other neighbours. In western Circassia, which Russia had previously been merely foraying into, a number of tribes were dominant; the Besleneys, Abadzekhs, Ubykhs, Shapsughs, Hatuqwai and Natukhaj, portrayed by Russian propaganda as savages in a possible attempt to curry favour from the international community. Russian and Circassian forces clashed repeatedly, particularly on the Kuban plains, where cavalry from both sides could manoeuvre freely.

Trade with Circassia could not be prevented, however, and both the Turkish and the English supplied Circassia with firearms and ammunition with which to fight the Russians. England also supplied several advisors, while Turkey attempted to persuade Circassia to start a Holy War (Jihad), which would draw support from other nations.

In only one year, 1830, arrived up to 200 Turkish and British ships delivering military aid to the shores of Circassia.

Rise of Jembulat Boletoqo

Main article: Jembulat Boletoqo

Meanwhile, Circassian commander, Jembulat Boletoqo, was leading his avalry force into Russian territory. Only one Cossack regiment decided to fight the rising Circassian army on 23 October at the village of Sabl on the Barsukly River. Jembulat's forces surrounded the Cossacks and killed all of them in a saber attack.

In April 1823, Boletoqo and his forces along with Circassian lord Skhum's army attacked the Russian camp. Lord Skhum was wounded in the cheek by a spear on each side and by a bullet around the spine. The Russians withdrew and left more than 20 prisoners to the Circassians.

In 1823, Under the leadership of Boletoqo, Circassian cavalry headed for Russian camps. Half of the detachment consisted of Kabardians who fled Kabardia to continue fighting. Multiple Cossack armies were defeated by this detachment. Later in 1823, 30 Circassian regional leaders gathered in the village of Boletoqo behind the Belaya River. A plan was made to re-take Kabardia from the Russians. In 1832, Boletoqo tried to implement this plan, but failed.

In the summer of 1825, Russian forces carried out several military operations. In August 18, a group of Russian officiers commanded by General Veliaminov burned the residency of Hajji Tlam, one of the elderly supporters of the Circassian resistance in Abadzekh, and killed his entire family. The village was alarmed and Circassian men and women took up arms and attacked the Russian soldiers who caused the killing. Before the Russians had time to retreat, they were completely destroyed by the attack from the Circassians.

In January 31, Jembulat burned down the fortress of Marevskoye as revenge. On 4 June 1828, Jembulat Boletoqo started his campaign into Russian lands with 2,000 cavalry under five flags of different Circassian principalities, as well as a Turkish flag as a symbol of their loyalty to Islam.

The Russians concluded that he intended to go to Kabarda in the middle of the Russian-Turkish war, and open a second front on the Terek and Sunja Rivers. Earl Paskevich ordered the 2nd Ulan division, returning from the Russia-Iran war, to move along the Georgian Military Road to cut off the route of the Circassians toward Kabarda. The 40th Eger battalion marched from Kabarda toward Jembulat. Yet, Jembulat suddenly changed his direction and headed toward the town of Georgievsk, the Russian administrative center in the Caucasus. The Circassian army stopped on a high hill at a distance from the Marinskaya fortress. Jembulat menaced the Volzhskiy regiment's left flank with all his forces, and won the battle.

Political analyst Khan-Giray observed that the situation changed for Great-Prince Jembulat “after the field marshal Paskevich left the region”. The new commander-in-chief, Baron Rosen, did not believe in human rights of the indigenous Circassians.

In 1827, Ismail Berzeg officially declared the military alliance of the Circassian tribes. By the end of 1839, he managed to unite a significant part of the population under his control.

Treaty of Adrianople

The Russians besieged Anapa in 1828. The Ottomans sought help from Circassians and the war lasted for two months and Anapa fell into the hands of the Russians. General Emanuel, a Russian general, then razed 6 Natukhay villages and many Shapsugh villages. He then passed the Kuban and burned 210 more villages. Treaty of Adrianople (1829) was signed on 14 September 1829. According to the document, the Ottoman Empire was giving Circassia to Russia. Circassia was not a part of the Ottoman Empire, so it is not clear how this happened, and so many, including German economist Karl Marx, criticised this event.

Circassians did not recognize the treaty. Circassian ambassadors were sent to England, France and Ottoman lands announcing that they deny this treaty under all conditions. In November 1830 the Natukhajs and Shapsugs sent a delegation to Turkey under Sefer Bey Zanuqo. The delegation returned with a few weapons and Sefer Bey remained in Istanbul.

Sefer Bey proposed a white peace to the Russians, in which Circassia would stay independent and Russia would leave the region. The Russians demanded that the Circassians surrender with no conditions, but the Circassian stance was clear:

If you decide to continue fighting this war against us, you should know that no power has ever been able to bring our mountains to their knees, and we have never submitted to anyone.

— Sefer Bey Zanuqo

In 1828, Aytech Qanoqo, a Circassian prince who lost his status in the Circassian Revolution, arrived at the Russian camp, where he took an oath of allegiance to the Russian Empire, changed his name to Aytek Konokov, converted to Christianity, took promise that his village would not be destroyed like the other Circassian villages, and accepted Russian citizenship. After seeing the failure of Russian forces to annex Circassia, he switched sides, re-converted to Islam and started fighting for Circassia.

Before 1830 Russia maintained a siege line along the Kuban River. There was constant raiding by both sides but no change in borders. In the late 1830s Russia gained increasing control of the coast. This slowed down after in 1834, the Circassian army under the command of Kizbech Tughuzhuqo defeated the Russian army of 12,000 men.

General Zass takes control

Main article: Grigory Zass

In 1833, Colonel Grigory Zass was appointed commander of a part of the Kuban Military Line with headquarters in the Batalpashinsk fortress. Colonel Zass received wide authority to act as he saw fit. He was a racist who considered Circassians to be an inferior race than Russians and other Europeans. He thought the "European Race" was superior, particularly the Germans and Russians. The only way to deal with the Circassians, in his opinion, was to scare them away "just like wild animals."

Colonel Grigory Zass was a key figure in the Circassian genocide through ethnic cleansing, which included methods such as burning entire Circassian villages, deliberately causing epidemics, and entering villages and towns with the white flag and killing everyone. He operated on all areas of Circassia, but East Circassia was effected the most. It is estimated 70% of the East Circassian population died in the process.

Grigory Zass

In August 1833, Zass led his first expedition into Circassian territory, destroying as many villages and towns as possible. This was followed by a series of other expeditions. He attacked the Besleney region between November and December, destroying most villages, including the village of the double agent Aytech Qanoqo. He continued to exterminate the Circassian population between 1834 and 1835, particularly in the Abdzakh, Besleney, Shapsug, and Kabardian regions.

Zass' main strategy was to intercept and retain the initiative, terrorize the Circassians, and destroy Circassian settlements. After a victory, he would usually burn several villages and seize cattle and horses to show off, acts which he proudly admitted. He paid close attention to the enemy's morale. In his reports, he frequently boasted about the destruction of villages and glorified the mass murder of civilians.

In the end of 1836, the Armenians of Circassia declared their allegiance for Russia and begged Zass to locate them a place to live. In 1839, Zass established an Armenian colony in the region that had previously belonged to the Circassians. To make room for the Armenians, Circassian villages and the people who lived in them were destroyed. This year is regarded the official year of Armavir's establishment.

In October 1836, General Zass sent Jembulat Boletoqo word that he would like to make peace. This was a strategy, if Boletoqo came to the Russian fortress for explanation, he would be assassinated; in case he did not come, the Russians would claim that he was a warmonger.

Prince Boletoqo came to Zass’ residency. The general was not there for his first visit, but Zass told him to come at an exact date when he would certainly be in his residency. On his way to the Prochnyi Okop fortress, Great Prince Jembulat was killed by a Russian sniper who was hiding in the forest on the Russian bank of the Kuban River at the intersection with the Urup River.

In 1838, Zass spread false rumors about his serious illness, then staged his own death, weakening the Circassians' vigilance. On the same night, when the Circassians were celebrating their oppressor's death, the suddenly "resurrected" Zass launched a raid that destroyed two villages. He left the Caucasus in 1842.

Mission of the Vixen

British adventurer James Stanislaus Bell arrived in Circassia by 1836, in order to provide military aid and medical relief to the Circassians. In November 1836 the Russian military brig Ajax detained his ship, in the port of Sujuk-Qale (now Novorossiysk). At the time of detention, 8 guns, 800 poods of gunpowder, and a significant number of weapons had already been unloaded from its side. Bell was allowed to leave as he falsely introuced himself as a diplomat, but the ship and the cargo were confiscated in favor of the Russian government and included in the Russian Black Sea fleet.

Left without a ship, Bell remained in Circassia. He did not lose time and helped the Circassians in military affairs. By 1840, with the support of Polish deserters and Circassians trained by Bell, there were several attacks on Russian forts on the Black Sea and Gelendzhik cordon lines. The Circassians employed military tactics taught to them by Bell, such as taking fortifications by storm, and using artillery.

Naval and shore battles

In October 1836, a naval battle was fought as Russian warship Nartsiss was attacked by 7 Circassian galleys. Russian captain Varnitskiy reported in his report that the Circassians fought in an organized manner, and that the Russians escaped at the last moment as a result of the fierce collision.

In 1835 and 1836, Circassian armies led by Ismail Berzeg engaged on several operations.

By this time, Aytech Qanoqo had reformed his army and organized a campaign, but failed. After this failure, he saw little hope left for Circassia and switched to the Russian side again.

Kizbech Tuguzhuqo

In 1837, Kizbech Tughuzhuqo attacked the right bank of the Kuban Russian fort. The Russians wanted to end the war already, and wanted to try another strategy. In April 13, 1838, Russian forces engaged the Circassian army in the estuary of River Sochi, and on May 12, 1838 the Russians landed at Tuapse with a naval invasion. The majority of engagements during this part of the conflict took place in the form of either amphibious landings on coastal towns in accordance with the directive laid out by the Tsar to secure possible ports, or by routing out Circassian forces entrenched in mountain strongholds. At Tuapse, the Russian landing had begun at 10:00 in the morning, and the Circassians were not beaten back from their positions until 5:00 in the afternoon, with the Russians suffering heavy casualties. On the following day, May 13, when arriving to request permission to remove their dead from the battlefield, a few Circassians leaders were killed.

In February 1838, there was a fierce collision between 4 Circassian galleys and a Russian ship. The Russians ship was destroyed.

In 1839, Russian forces landed at Subash and began construction of a fort, where they faced charges by Ubykh forces who were eventually driven back by shellfire from the Russian navy. Over 1000 soldiers then charged the Russian positions, however they were outflanked and overrun as they attempted to retreat. This pattern of attack by the Russian forces went on for several years. Qerzech Shirikhuqo played a big role in reforming and leading the Circassian armies at this time.

Later in 1839, the Circassians declared Bighuqal (Anapa) as their new capital and Hawduqo Mansur was declared the leader of the Circassian Confederation.

In February 7, 1840, Circassian forces commanded by Ismail Berzeg and Hawduqo Mansur surrounded the Russian fort of Lazarev, stormed it and defeated the defenders. This victory was inspirational to them, and they went on to capture two more forts with an army of 11,000 men. With the Mikhailovski fortress ablaze and under the control of the Circassians, a Russian soldier who was hiding ran with a blazing torch into the ammunition cellar, destroying the fort in a suicide operation, killing most people inside. Hawduqo Mansur was not present and survived, until he eventually died in 1846.

In October 1842, in Hamish, the Russian-Georgian cavalry of 18,000 men was attacked by the regional Circassian army consisting of 5,000 men. The Circassians applied guerilla warfare while chanting verses from the Quran in order to distract the enemy and increase morale. Russian cavalry, confused and unprepared, was caught off guard as 3,500 Russian soldiers were killed. The remaining Russian forces retreated into Russian ships on the shore, as well as the Scotcha fortress.

In 1844, Aytech Qanoqo again switched sides, and joined Circassia against the Russian forces. On the night of August 26, he tried to siege the fortress of Grigory Zass, ultimately seeking revenge for his destroyed village, but failed. In September 26, he was killed in a battle against the Russians. Some sources claim he was going to the Russian camp in order to change sides again but was attacked by the Russians. His body, contrary to tradition, was not removed by the Circassians from the battlefield for janazah and went to the Russians.

Clash between Zanuqo and Amin

See also: Seferbiy Zaneqo and Muhammad Amin (Caucasus)

Imam Shamil wanted to unite Circassia under Islam, and sent three Sufi naibs for this mission.

Sefer Bey Zanuqo

The first Naib was Haji-Mohammad (1842–1844) who reached Circassia in May 1842. By October he was accepted as leader by the Shapsugs and some of the Natukhajs. Next February he moved south to Ubykh country but failed because he started a civil war. In the spring of 1844 he was defeated by the Russians, withdrew into the mountains and died there in May.

Muhammad Amin

The second naib was Suleiman Effendi (1845) who arrived among the Abadzeks in February 1845. His main goal was to rise a Circassian force and to lead it back to Chechnya, but the Circassians did not want to lose their best fighters. After twice failing to lead his recruits through the Russian lines he surrendered and gave the Russians key information in exchange for money.

The third naib, Muhammad Amin (1849–1859), arrived in spring of 1849 and had much greater success. Calling himself "Naib Pasha", he assumed full control: destroyed forests to build himself a residence, married women of his choice and executed their husbands, and built the first jails. By 1953, many Circassians did not like him.

In 1853, Sefer Bey Zanuqo returned from Istanbul to Circassia. This raised tensions between Zanuqo and Amin, with the Natukhaj supporting Sefer Bey and the Abadzeks and Bzhedugs supporting Amin. They agreed that a neutral judge, Sultan of the Ottoman Empire, should appoint a single leader; Amin went to Istanbul, but Sefer Bey stayed. Amin was then arrested at the request of the Russian ambassador, was sent to Syria, escaped and returned to Circassia by the end of 1857. On 20 November 1859, following the defeat of Shamil, Amin surrendered to the Russians and received money to live comfortably in Istanbul. Sefer Bey died in December of that year due to wounds received in battle, and his son Qarabatir took over.

In 1854, Circassian forces under the command of Qerandiqo Berzeg set out to re-capture areas and forts invaded by the Russian army, which succeeded to some extent.

Paris treaty of 1856

In the Paris treaty of 1856, British representative Earl of Clarendon insisted that Circassia remain an independent state, but French and Russian representatives wanted to give Circassian lands to Russia, while the Ottoman representatives were reportedly silent. When Clarendon then tried to make the treaty state that Russia could not build forts in Circassia, he was again thwarted by the French representative. The final treaty also extended amnesty to nationals that had fought for enemy powers, but since Circassia had never previously been under Russian control, Circassians were exempt, and thus Circassians were now placed under de jure Russian sovereignty by the treaty, with Russia under no compulsion to grant Circassians the same rights as Russian citizens elsewhere.

End of the war

Main articles: Battle of Qbaada and Circassian Majlis

In February 1857, Polish volunteers under the command of Teofil Lapinski arrived in the Caucasus to fight for Circassia. At the same year in 1857, Dmitry Milyutin published the document in which he argued that the Circassian people should be exterminated. According to Milyutin, the issue was not to take over the Circassian lands, but to put an end to the Circassians. Rostislav Fadeyev supported the proposal, saying "It is not possible to tame the Circassians, if we destroy half of them completely, the other half will lay down their weapons". By 1860 the Russians had seventy thousand soldiers in Circassia.

According to Ivan Drozdov, for the most part, the Russian army preferred to indiscriminately destroy areas where Circassians resided. In September 1862, after attacking a Circassian village and seeing some of its inhabitants flee into the forest, General Yevdokimov bombarded that forest for six hours straight and ordered his men to kill every living thing, he then set the forest on fire to make sure no survivors are left. Drozdov reported to have overheard Circassian men taking vows to sacrifice themselves to the cannons to allow their family and rest of their villages to escape, and later more reports of groups of Circassians doing so were received.

With the operation launched from the autumn of 1863, the Circassian villages and their supplies were to be burned, and this process was repeated until General Yevdokimov was convinced that all inhabitants of the region had died.

In May 1859, elders from the Bjedugh negotiated a peace with Russia and submitted to the Tsar. Other tribes soon submitted to the Russians, including the Abadzekhs on November 20, 1859.

Qerandiqo Berzeg

The remaining Circassians established an assembly called Independence Majlis of Circassia (Template:Lang-ady) in the capital city of Ş̂açə (Sochi) on 25 June 1861. Qerandiqo Berzeg was appointed as the head of the assembly. This assembly asked for help from Europe, arguing that they would be forced into exile soon. However, before the result was achieved, Russian General Kolyobakin invaded Sochi and destroyed the parliament and no country opposed this.

A final battle took place in Qbaada in 1864. The battle took place between the Circassian army of 20,000 tribal horsemen and a Russian army of 100,000 men, consisting of Cossack and Russian horsemen, infantry and artillery. The Russian forces advanced from four sides. Circassian forces decided to not surrender to the Russian army, and tried to break the line, but many were hit by Russian artillery and infantry before they managed to reach the front. The remaining fighters continued to fight as militants, took down many units, and were soon defeated. All 20,000 Circassian horsemen died in the war. The Russian army began celebrating victory on the corpses of Circassian soldiers, and a military-religious parade was held, this was officially the end of the war. The place where this battle took place is known today as Krasnaya Polyana. "Krasnaya Polyana" meaning "red madow", takes its name from the Circassian blood flowing from the hill into the river. Circassian genocide was initiated after the Qbaada battle. 100 Circassian warriors were publicly mutilated in a public execution in order to establish authority.

The Russian army began raiding and burning Circassian villages, destroying fields to prevent return, cutting down trees, and driving the people to the Black Sea coast, the soldiers used many methods to entertain themselves. After 101 years of resistance, all of Circassia fell into Russian hands. The only exception, the Hak'uch, who lived in the mountainous regions, despite being surrounded and unequipped, continued their resistance until the 1870s. In the end, Circassia was subjected to genocide and ethnic cleansing throughout, almost entirely.

Expulsion and genocide

Main article: Circassian genocide

The Circassian genocide was the Russian Empire's systematic mass murder, ethnic cleansing, forced migration, and expulsion of 800,000–1,500,000 Circassians (at least 75% of the total population) from their homeland Circassia, which roughly encompassed the major part of the North Caucasus and the northeast shore of the Black Sea.

After the war, Russian General Yevdokimov was tasked with forcing the surviving Circassian inhabitants to relocate outside of the region, primarily in the Ottoman Empire. This policy was enforced by mobile columns of Russian riflemen and Cossack cavalry.

Ottoman archives show nearly 1 million migrants entering their land from the Caucasus by 1879, with nearly half of them dying on the shores as a result of diseases. If Ottoman archives are correct, it would make it the biggest exile of the 19th century, and indeed, in support of the Ottoman archives, the Russian census of 1897 records only 150,000 Circassians, one tenth of the original number, still remaining in the now conquered region.

90% of people with Circassian descent now live in other countries, primarily in Turkey, Jordan and other countries of the Middle East, with only 500,000–700,000 remaining in what is now Russia. The depopulated Circassian lands were resettled by numerous ethnic groups, including Russians, Ukrainians and Georgians.

See also

• Mission of the Vixen
• David Urquhart

More References

• Henze, Paul B. 1992. "Circassian resistance to Russia." In Marie Bennigsen Broxup, ed., The North Caucasus Barrier: The Russian Advance Towards The Muslim World. London: C Hurst & Co, 266 pp. (Also New York: St. Martin's Press, 252 pp.) Part of it can be found here. Retrieved 11 March 2007.
• Richmond, Walter (2008). The Northwest Caucasus: Past, Present, Future. Routledge. ISBN 978-0-415-77615-8. Archived from the original on 27 September 2007: Chapter 4 (excerpt){{cite book}}: CS1 maint: postscript (link)
• Tsutsiev, Arthur, Atlas of the Ethno-Political History of the Caucasus, 2014

Further reading

• Baddeley, John F. (1908). The Russian conquest of the Caucasus. London: Longmans, Green and Co. ISBN 0-7007-0634-8. OL 3428695M.
• Goble, Paul. 2005. Circassians demand Russian apology for 19th century genocide. Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty, 15 July 2005, 8(23).
• Karpat, Kemal H. 1985. Ottoman Population, 1830–1914: Demographic and Social Characteristics. Madison, Wis.: University of Wisconsin Press.
• Levene, Mark. 2005. Genocide in the Age of the Nation State. London; New York: I.B. Tauris.
• King, Charles. 2008. The Ghost of Freedom: A History of the Caucasus. Oxford Univ. Press.
• Mackie, J[ohn] Milton. 1856. Life of Schamyl: and narrative of the Circassian War of independence against Russia. ISBN 1-4255-2996-8
• McCarthy, Justin. 1995. Death and Exile: The Ethnic Cleansing of Ottoman Muslims, 1821–1922. Princeton, New Jersey: Darwin. Chapter 2: Eastern Anatolia and the Caucasus.
• Neumann, Karl Friedrich. 1840. Russland und die Tscherkessen. Stuttgart und Tübingen: J. G. Cotta. In PDF through Internet Archive
• Shenfield, Stephen D. 1999. The Circassians: a forgotten genocide?. In Levene, Mark and Penny Roberts, eds., The massacre in history. Oxford and New York: Berghahn Books. Series: War and Genocide; 1. 149–162.
• Unrepresented Nations and People Organisation (UNPO). 2004. The Circassian Genocide, 2004-12-14.
• Ibid. 2006. Circassia: Adygs Ask European Parliament to Recognize Genocide, 2006-10-16.
• Journal of a residence in Circassia during the years 1837, 1838, and 1839 – Bell, James Stanislaus (English)
• The Annual Register. 1836. United Kingdom
• Butkov, P.G. 1869. Materials for New History of the Caucasus 1722–1803.
• Jaimoukha, A., The Circassians: A Handbook, London: RoutledgeCurzon; New York; Routledge and Palgrave, 2001.
• Khodarkovsky, Michael. 2002. Russia's Steppe Frontier: The Making of a Colonial Empire, 1500–1800. Bloomington: Indiana University Press. Series: Indiana-Michigan series in Russian and East European studies.
• Leitzinger, Antero. 2000. The Circassian Genocide. In The Eurasian Politician, 2000 October 2000, Issue 2.
• Richmond, Walter. The Circassian Genocide, Rutgers University Press, 2013. ISBN 9780813560694
• Shapi Kaziev. Kaziev, Shapi. Imam Shamil. "Molodaya Gvardiya" publishers. Moscow, 2001, 2003, 2006, 2010

External links

• Abzakh, Edris. 1996. Circassian History.
• Adanır, Fikret. 2007. Course syllabus with useful reading list.
• Hatk, Isam. 1992. Russian–Circassian War, 1763 – 21 May 1864. Al-Waha-Oasis, 1992, 51:10–15. Amman.
• Köremezli İbrahim. 2004. The Place of the Ottoman Empire in the Russo-Circassian War (1830–1864). Unpublished M.A. Thesis, Bilkent University, Ankara, Turkey.
• A collection of cited reports on the conflict, collected by the Circassian World, translated by Nejan Huvaj, and found on this page. Retrieved 11 March 2007