Adyghe is the common self-name of the ancestors of modern Adyghe, Kabardians and Circassians. The surrounding peoples also called them Zikhs and Kasogs. The origin and meaning of all these names is a controversial issue. The ancient Circassians belonged to the Caucasian race.
The history of the Circassians is endless clashes with hordes of Scythians, Sarmatians, Huns, Bulgars, Alans, Khazars, Magyars, Pechenegs, Polovtsians, Mongol-Tatars, Kalmyks, Nogais, Turks.




In 1792, with the creation by Russian troops of a continuous cordon line along the Kuban River, the active development of the western Adyghe lands by Russia began.

At first, the Russians fought, in fact, not with the Circassians, but with the Turks, who at that time owned Adygea. Following the conclusion of the Treaty of Adriapolis in 1829, all Turkish possessions in the Caucasus passed to Russia. But the Circassians refused to transfer to Russian citizenship and continued to launch attacks on Russian settlements.




Only in 1864 did Russia take control of the last independent territories of the Circassians - the Kuban and Sochi lands. A small part of the Adyghe nobility by this time had transferred to the service of the Russian Empire. But most of the Circassians - over 200 thousand people - wished to move to Turkey.
The Turkish Sultan Abdul Hamid II settled refugees (Mohajirs) on the desert border of Syria and other border areas to combat Bedouin raids.

This tragic page in Russian-Adyghe relations has recently become the subject of historical and political speculation in order to put pressure on Russia. Part of the Adyghe-Circassian diaspora, with the support of certain Western forces, demands a boycott of the Olympics in Sochi if Russia does not recognize the resettlement of the Adygs as an act of genocide. After which, of course, lawsuits for compensation will follow.


Adygea

Today, the bulk of the Circassians live in Turkey (according to various sources, from 3 to 5 million people). In the Russian Federation, the number of Circassians as a whole does not exceed 1 million. There are also considerable diasporas in Syria, Jordan, Israel, the USA, France and other countries. They all retain the consciousness of their cultural unity.



Adygs in Jordan

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It just so happened that the Circassians and the Russians have long measured their strength. And it all began in ancient times, about which “The Tale of Bygone Years” tells. It is curious that both sides - Russian and mountain - talk about this event in almost the same words.

The chronicler puts it this way. In 1022, the son of St. Vladimir, the Tmutorokan prince Mstislav went on a campaign against the Kasogs - that’s how the Russians called the Circassians at that time. When the opponents lined up opposite each other, the Kasozh prince Rededya said to Mstislav: “Why are we destroying our squad? Go out to the duel: if you win, you will take my property, my wife, my children, and my land. If I win, I’ll take everything you have.” Mstislav replied: “So be it.”

The opponents laid down their weapons and began to fight. And Mstislav began to grow weak, for Rededya was great and strong. But the prayer to the Most Holy Theotokos helped the Russian prince overcome the enemy: he struck Rededya to the ground, and, taking out a knife, stabbed him. The Kasogs submitted to Mstislav.

According to Adyghe legends, Rededya was not a prince, but a mighty hero. One day, the Adyghe prince Idar, having gathered many warriors, went to Tamtarakai (Tmutorokan). The Tamtarakai prince Mstislau led his army to meet the Circassians. When the enemies got closer, Rededya came forward and said to the Russian prince: “In order not to shed blood in vain, defeat me and take everything I have.” The opponents took off their weapons and fought for several hours in a row, not yielding to each other. Finally Rededya fell, and the Tamtarakai prince struck him with a knife.

The death of Rededi is also mourned by the ancient Adyghe funeral song (sagish). True, in it Rededya is defeated not by force, but by deceit:

Grand Duke of the Uruses
When you threw it to the ground,
He longed for life
He took out the knife from his belt,
Under your shoulder blade insidiously
Stuck him in and
Oh woe, he took out your soul.

According to Russian legend, Rededi's two sons, taken to Tmutorokan, were baptized under the names of Yuri and Roman, and the latter allegedly married the daughter of Mstislav. Later, some boyar families elevated themselves to them, for example the Beleutovs, Sorokoumovs, Glebovs, Simskys and others.

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For a long time, Moscow, the capital of the expanding Russian state, has attracted the attention of the Circassians. Quite early, the Adyghe-Circassian nobility became part of the Russian ruling elite.

The basis of the Russian-Adyghe rapprochement was the joint struggle against the Crimean Khanate. In 1557, five Circassian princes, accompanied by a large number of soldiers, arrived in Moscow and entered the service of Ivan the Terrible. Thus, 1557 is the year of the beginning of the formation of the Adyghe diaspora in Moscow.

After the mysterious death of the formidable king’s first wife, Queen Anastasia, it turned out that Ivan was inclined to consolidate his alliance with the Circassians with a dynastic marriage. His chosen one was Princess Kuchenei, daughter of Temryuk, the eldest prince of Kabarda. At baptism she received the name Mary. In Moscow they said a lot of unflattering things about her and even attributed the idea of ​​the oprichnina to her.

Ring of Maria Temryukovna (Kucheney)

The Adygs are one of the most ancient peoples of the North Caucasus. The closest, related peoples to them are the Abkhazians, Abazins and Ubykhs. Adygs, Abkhazians, Abazins, Ubykhs in ancient times constituted a single group of tribes, and their ancient ancestors were the Hutts,

helmets, Sindo-Meotian tribes. About 6 thousand years ago, the ancient ancestors of the Circassians and Abkhazians occupied a vast territory from Asia Minor to modern Chechnya and Ingushetia. In that distant era, this vast space was inhabited by related tribes who were at different levels of their development.

Adygs (Adyghe) is the self-name of modern Kabardians (currently numbering more than 500 thousand people), Circassians (about 53 thousand people), Adyghe people, i.e. Abadzekhs, Bzhedugs, Temirgoyevites, Zhaneevites, etc.

(more than 125 thousand people). Adygs in our country live mainly in three republics: the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic, the Karachay-Cherkess Republic and the Republic of Adygea. In addition, a certain part of the Circassians are located in the Krasnodar and Stavropol territories. In total, there are more than 600 thousand Circassians in the Russian Federation.

In addition, about 5 million Circassians live in Turkey. There are many Circassians in Jordan, Syria, the USA, Germany, Israel and other countries. There are now more than 100 thousand Abkhazians, about 35 thousand Abazins, and the Ubykh language, unfortunately, has already disappeared, because there are no longer any speakers of it - the Ubykhs.

The Hutts and Kaskis are, according to many authoritative scientists (both domestic and foreign), one of the ancestors of the Abkhaz-Adygs, as evidenced by numerous monuments of material culture, linguistic similarities, way of life, traditions and customs, religious beliefs, toponymy and much more. etc.

In turn, the Hutts had close contacts with Mesopotamia, Syria, Greece, and Rome. Thus, the culture of Hatti has preserved a rich heritage drawn from the traditions of ancient ethnic groups.

The direct relationship of the Abkhaz-Adygs with the civilization of Asia Minor, i.e., the Khatts, is evidenced by the world-famous archaeological Maykop culture dating back to the 3rd millennium BC. e., which developed in the North Caucasus, in the habitat of the Circassians, thanks to active connections with their kindred tribes in Asia Minor. That is why we find amazing coincidences in the burial rites of the powerful leader in the Maikop mound and the kings in Aladzha-Hyuk of Asia Minor.

The next evidence of the connection of the Abkhaz-Adygs with ancient Eastern civilizations are monumental stone tombs - dolmens. Numerous studies by scientists prove that the carriers of the Maikop and dolmen cultures were the ancestors of the Abkhaz-Adygs. It is no coincidence that the Adyghe-Shapsugs called the dolmens “ispun” (spyuen – houses of the isps), the second part of the word is formed from the Adyghe word “une” (house), the Abkhazian word “adamra” (ancient grave houses). Although the dolmen culture is associated with the ancient Abkhaz-Adyghe ethnic group, it is believed that the tradition of building dolmens itself was brought to the Caucasus from the outside. For example, in the territories of modern Portugal and Spain, dolmens were built back in the 4th millennium BC. e. distant ancestors of today's Basques, whose language and culture are quite close to the Abkhaz-Adyghe (about dolmens

we talked above).

The next proof that the Hutts are one of the ancestors of the Abkhaz-Adygs is the linguistic similarity of these peoples. As a result of a long and painstaking study of the Hutt texts by such prominent specialists as I. M. Dunaevsky, I. M. Dyakonov, A. V. Ivanov, V. G. Ardzinba, E. Forrer and others, the meaning of many words was established and revealed some features of the grammatical structure of the Hutt language. All this made it possible to establish the relationship between Khatt and Abkhaz-Adyghe

Texts in the Hattic language, written in cuneiform on clay tablets, were discovered during archaeological excavations in the capital of the ancient Hatti Empire (the city of Hattusa), which was located near present-day Ankara; scientists believe that all modern North Caucasian languages

autochthonous peoples, as well as related Hattic and Hurrito-Urartian languages, descend from a single proto-language. This language existed 7 thousand years ago. First of all, the Abkhaz-Adyghe and Nakh-Dagestan branches belong to the Caucasian languages. As for the Kasks, or Kashki, in ancient Assyrian written sources the Kashki (Adygs) and Abshelos (Abkhazians) are mentioned as two different branches of the same tribe. However, this fact may also indicate that the Kashki and Abshelo at that distant time were already separate, albeit closely related, tribes.

In addition to linguistic kinship, the closeness of the Khatt and Abkhaz-Adyghe beliefs is noted. For example, this can be seen in the names of the gods: the Hutt Uashkh and the Adyghe Uashkhue. In addition, we observe the similarity of the Hatti myths with some plots of the heroic Nart epic of the Abkhaz-Adyghe. Experts point out that the ancient name of the people “Hatti” is still preserved in the name of one of the Adyghe tribes, the Khatukaevs (Khyetykuey). Numerous Adyghe surnames are also associated with the ancient self-name of the Hutts, such as Khete (Khata), Kheetkue (Khatko), Khetu (Khatu), Khetai (Khatai), Khetykuey (Khatuko), KheetIohushchokue (Atazhukin), etc. The name of the Hutts should also be correlated the name of the organizer, master of ceremonies of the Adyghe ritual dances and games “hytyyakIue” (khatiyako), whose duties are very reminiscent of the “man of the rod”, one of the main participants in rituals and holidays in the royal palace of the Hatti state.

One of the irrefutable proofs that the Hutts and Abkhaz-Adygs are related peoples are examples from toponymy. Thus, in Trebizond (modern Turkey) and further in the northwest along the Black Sea coast, a number of ancient and modern names of places, rivers, ravines, etc., left by the ancestors of the Abkhaz-Adygs, were noted, which was noted by many famous scientists, in in particular N. Ya. Marr. The names of the Abkhaz-Adyghe type in this territory include, for example, the names of rivers that include the Adyghe element “dogs” (water, river): Aripsa, Supsa, Akampsis, etc.; as well as names with the element “kue” (ravine, beam), etc. One of the major Caucasian experts of the twentieth century. Z.V. Anchabadze recognized as indisputable that it was the Kashki and Abshelo - the ancestors of the Abkhaz-Adygs - who lived in the 3rd–2nd millennium BC. e. in the northeastern sector of Asia Minor, and they were related by common origin to the Hutts. Another authoritative orientalist, G. A. Melikishvili, noted that in Abkhazia and further south, in Western Georgia, there are numerous river names based on the Adyghe word “dogs” (water). These are rivers such as Akhyps, Khyps, Lamyps, Dagaryti, etc. He believes that these names were given by the Adyghe tribes who lived in the distant past in the valleys of these rivers. Thus, the Hutts and Kaskas, who lived in Asia Minor several millennia BC. e.,

are one of the ancestors of the Abkhaz-Adygs, as evidenced by the above facts. And we must admit that it is impossible to understand the history of the Adyghe-Abkhazians without at least a quick acquaintance with the civilization of Ancient Khatia, which occupies a significant place in the history of world culture. Occupying a vast territory (from Asia Minor to modern Chechnya and Ingushetia), numerous related tribes - the most ancient ancestors of the Abkhaz-Adygs - could not be at the same level of development. Alone

moved forward in the economy, political arrangement and culture; others lagged behind the first, but these related tribes could not develop without the mutual influence of cultures, their way of life, etc.

Scientific research by specialists in the history and culture of the Hutts eloquently testifies to the role they played in the ethnocultural history of the Abkhaz-Adygs. It can be assumed that the contacts that took place over thousands of years between these tribes had a significant impact not only on the cultural and economic development of the ancient Abkhaz-Adyghe tribes, but also on the formation of their ethnic appearance.

It is well known that Asia Minor (Anatolia) was one of the links in the transmission of cultural achievements, and in ancient times (8th–6th millennium BC) cultural centers of the productive economy were formed here. It is with

During this period, the Hutts began to grow many cereals (barley, wheat) and raise various types of livestock. Scientific research in recent years irrefutably proves that it was the Hutts who first received iron, and it came from them to the rest of the peoples of the planet.

Back in the 3rd–2nd millennium BC. e. The Hutts began to develop trade significantly, which was a powerful catalyst for many socio-economic and cultural processes that took place in Asia Minor.

Local merchants played an active role in the activities of trading centers: the Hittites, Luwians and Hutts. Merchants imported fabrics and chitons to Anatolia. But the main item was metals: eastern merchants supplied tin, and western merchants supplied copper and silver. Ashurian (East Semites of Asia Minor - K.U.) traders showed particular interest in another metal that was in great demand: it cost 40 times more than silver and 5-8 times more than gold. This metal was iron. The inventors of the method of smelting it from ore were the Hutts. Hence this method of obtaining iron

spread to Western Asia, and then to Eurasia as a whole. The export of iron outside Anatolia was apparently prohibited. This circumstance may explain the repeated cases of its smuggling, described in a number of texts.

The tribes that lived over a vast area (up to the modern territory of settlement of the Abkhaz-Adygs) played a significant role in the socio-political, economic and spiritual development of those peoples who found themselves in their habitat. In particular, for a long time there was an active penetration of tribes speaking the Indo-European language into their territory. They are currently called the Hittites, but they themselves called themselves Nesites. By

The Nesiths were significantly inferior in cultural development to the Hutts. And from the latter they borrowed the name of the country, many religious rituals, and the names of the Hutt gods. Huts played a significant role in education in the 2nd millennium BC. e. powerful Hittite kingdom, in the formation of its

political system. For example, the government system of the Hittite kingdom is characterized by a number of specific features. The supreme ruler of the country bore the title of Hutt origin Tabarna (or Labarna). Along with the king, an important role, especially in the sphere of cult, was played by the queen, who bore the Hatti title Tavananna (cf. the Adyghe word “nana” - “grandmother, mother”) (the woman had the same enormous influence in everyday life and in the sphere of culture. - K . U.).

Many literary monuments, numerous myths, translated by the Hittites from Hattic, have reached us. In Asia Minor, the country of the Hutts, light chariots were first used in the army. One of the earliest evidence of the combat use of chariots in Anatolia is found in

the oldest Hittite text of Anitta. It says that for 1,400 infantrymen in the army there were 40 chariots (there were three people in one chariot - K.U.). And in one of the battles 20 thousand infantry and 2500 chariots took part.

It was in Asia Minor that many items for caring for horses and training them first appeared. The main purpose of these numerous trainings was to develop the endurance in horses necessary for military purposes.

The Hutts played a huge role in the establishment of the institution of diplomacy in the history of international relations, in the creation and use of a regular army. Many tactical techniques during military operations and training of soldiers were used for the first time by them.

The greatest traveler of our time, Thor Heyerdahl, believed that the first sailors of the planet were the Hutts. All these and other achievements of the Hutts - the ancestors of the Abkhaz-Adyghe - could not pass without a trace. Nearest

The neighbors of the Hutts in the northeast of Asia Minor were numerous warlike tribes - the Kaskis, or Kashki, known in Hittite, Assyrian, and Urartian historical sources during the 2nd and early 1st millennium BC. e. They lived along the southern coast of the Black Sea from the mouth of the river. Galis towards Western Transcaucasia, including Colchis. Helmets played an important role in the political history of Asia Minor. They made long trips, and in the 2nd millennium BC. e. they managed to create a powerful alliance consisting of 9–12 closely related tribes. The documents of the Hittite kingdom of this time are full of information about the constant raids of the Kaskas. They even managed to capture and develop at one time (at the beginning of the 16th century BC)

destroy Hatusa. Already by the beginning of the 2nd millennium BC. e. the casques had permanent settlements and fortresses, they were engaged in agriculture and transhumance. True, according to Hittite sources, until the middle of the 17th century. BC e. they did not yet have centralized royal power. But already at the end of the 17th century. BC e. There is information in the sources that the previously existing order among the Kaskas was changed by a certain leader Pikhuniyas, who “began to rule according to the custom of royal power.” Analysis of personal names, names of settlements in the territory occupied by the Kaskas shows, in the opinion

scientists (G. A. Menekeshvili, G. G. Giorgadze, N. M. Dyakova, Sh. D. Inal-Ipa, etc.) that they were related in language to the Khatts. On the other hand, the tribal names of the Kasques, known from Hittite and Assyrian texts,

many scientists associate it with the Abkhaz-Adyghe. Thus, the very name kaska (kashka) is compared with the ancient name of the Circassians - kasogi (kashagi, kashaki) - ancient Georgian chronicles, kashak - Arabic sources, kasog - ancient Russian chronicles. Another name for the Kaskovs, according to Assyrian sources, was Abegila or Apeshlayans, which coincides with the ancient name of the Abkhazians (Apsils - according to Greek sources, Abshils - ancient Georgian chronicles), as well as their self-name - Aps - ua - Api - ua. Hittite sources have preserved for us another name for the Hattian circle of Pakhhuwa tribes and the name of their king - Pikhuniyas. Scientists have also found a successful explanation for the name Pokhuva, which turned out to be related to the self-name of the Ubykhs - pekhi, pekhi. Scientists believe that in the 3rd millennium BC. e. As a result of the transition to a class society and the active penetration of Indo-Europeans - the Nesites - into Asia Minor, a relative overpopulation occurs, which created the preconditions for the movement of part of the population to other areas. Groups of Hutts and Kasques no later than the 3rd millennium BC. e. significantly expanded their territory in the northeast direction. They populated the entire southeastern coast of the Black Sea, including Western Georgia, Abkhazia and further, in the North, to the Kuban region, the modern territory of the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic to mountainous Chechnya and Igushetia. Traces of such settlement are also documented by geographical names of Abkhaz-Adyghe origin (Sansa, Achkva, Akampsis, Aripsa, Apsarea, Sinope, etc.), common in those distant times in the Primorsky part of Asia Minor and in Western Georgia.

One of the notable and heroic places in the history of the civilization of the ancestors of the Abkhaz-Adygs is occupied by the Sindo-Meotian era. The fact is that most of the Meotian tribes occupied vast territories in the Early Iron Age

Northwestern Caucasus, river basin area. Kuban. Ancient ancient authors knew them under the general collective name Meota. For example, the ancient Greek geographer Strabo pointed out that the Maeotians included the Sinds, Torets, Achaeans, Zikhs, etc. According to ancient inscriptions discovered on the territory of the former Bosporan kingdom, they also included the Fatei, Psessians, Dandarii, Doskhs, Kerkets, etc. All of them under the general name “Meots” are one of the ancestors of the Circassians. The ancient name of the Sea of ​​Azov is Meotida. Lake Meotia is directly related to the Meotians.

The ancient Sindian state was created in the North Caucasus by the ancestors of the Circassians. This country covered in the south the Taman Peninsula and part of the Black Sea coast to Gelendzhik, and from west to east - the space from the Black Sea to the Left Bank of the Kuban. Materials from archaeological excavations carried out in various periods in the territory of the North Caucasus indicate the proximity of the Sinds and Meotians and the fact that their territory and related tribes have been in the territory since the 3rd millennium BC. e. spread to Chechnya and Ingushetia. In addition, it has been proven that the physical type of the Sindo-Meotian tribes does not belong to the Scythian-Sauromatian type, but is adjacent to the original type of Caucasian tribes. Research by T. S. Conductorova at the Institute of Anthropology at Moscow State University showed that the Sinds belonged to the European race.

A comprehensive analysis of archaeological materials of the early Sindian tribes indicates that in the period of the 2nd millennium BC. e. achieved significant success in material and spiritual culture. Scientists' research proves that already in that distant period, animal husbandry was widely developed among the Sindo-Meotian tribes. Even during this period, hunting occupied a prominent place among the ancestors of the Circassians.

But the ancient Sindian tribes were engaged not only in cattle breeding and hunting; ancient authors note that those Sinds who lived near seas and rivers also developed fishing. Research by scientists proves that these ancient tribes had some kind of cult of fish; for example, the ancient writer Nikolai Domassky (1st century BC) reported that the Sinds had a custom of throwing as many fish on the grave of a deceased Sind as the number of enemies killed by the person being buried. Sinds from the 3rd millennium BC e. began to engage in pottery production, as evidenced by numerous materials from archaeological excavations in various regions of the North Caucasus, in the habitats of the Sindo-Meotian tribes. In addition, other skills have existed in Sindik since ancient times - bone carving and stone cutting.

The ancestors of the Circassians achieved the most significant successes in agriculture, cattle breeding and gardening. Many cereal crops: rye, barley, wheat, etc. were the main agricultural crops that were grown by them from time immemorial. The Adygs bred many varieties of apples and pears. The science of gardening has preserved more than 10 of their names.

The Sinds very early switched to iron, to its production and use. Iron made a real revolution in the life of every people, including the ancestors of the Circassians - the Sindo-Meotian tribes. Thanks to him, a significant leap occurred in the development of agriculture, crafts, and the entire way of life of the ancient peoples. Iron has been firmly established in the North Caucasus since the 8th century. BC e. Among the peoples of the North Caucasus who began to receive and use iron, the Sinds were among the first. About

One of the largest Caucasian scholars, who devoted many years to studying the ancient period of the history of the North Caucasus, E.I. Krupnov pointed out that “archaeologists managed to prove that the ancient bearers of the so-called Koban culture (they were the ancestors of the Circassians - K.U.), in mainly prevalent in the 1st millennium BC. e., all his high skill

could only be developed on the basis of the rich experience of their predecessors, on the previously created material and technical base. Such a basis in this case was the material culture of the tribes that lived in the central part of the North Caucasus back in the Bronze Age, in the 2nd millennium BC. e." And these tribes were the ancestors of the Circassians. Numerous monuments of material culture discovered in various regions inhabited by the Sindo-Meotian tribes eloquently indicate that they had extensive connections with many peoples, including the peoples of Georgia, Asia Minor, etc., and at a high level among them There was also trade. In particular, evidence of exchange with other countries is various jewelry: bracelets, necklaces, beads made of glass.

Scientists have proven that it was precisely during the period of the decomposition of the tribal system and the emergence of military democracy that many peoples began to have an objective need for writing to manage their economy and express their ideology. The history of culture shows that this is exactly what happened among the ancient Sumerians, in Ancient Egypt and among the Mayan tribes in America: it was during the period of decomposition of the tribal system that these and other peoples developed writing. Research by specialists has shown that the ancient Sinds also developed their own, albeit largely primitive, writing during the period of military democracy. Thus, in the places where most of the Sindo-Meotian tribes lived, more than 300 clay tiles were found. They were 14–16 cm long and 10–12 cm wide, about 2 cm thick; made from raw clay, well dried, but not fired. The signs on the slabs are mysterious and very diverse. Ancient Sindic expert Yu. S. Krushkol notes that it is difficult to abandon the assumption that the signs on the tiles are the embryo of writing. A certain similarity of these tiles with clay, also unfired tiles of Assyrian-Babylonian writing confirms that they are monuments of writing.

A significant number of these tiles were found under the mountains. Krasnodar, in one of the areas inhabited by the ancient Sinds. In addition to the Krasnodar tiles, scientists of the North Caucasus discovered another remarkable monument of ancient writing - the Maykop inscription. It dates back to the 2nd millennium BC. e. and is the oldest in the territory of the former Soviet Union. This inscription was studied by a major specialist in oriental writings, Professor G. F. Turchaninov. He proved that it is a monument to pseudo-hieroglyphic biblical writing. When comparing some signs of Sindian tiles and writing in the publication of G. F. Turchaninov, a certain similarity is revealed: for example, in table 6, sign No. 34 is a spiral, which is found both in the Maykop inscription and in the Phoenician letter. A similar spiral is found on the tiles discovered in the Krasnodar settlement. In the same table, sign No. 3 has an oblique cross, as in the Maykop inscription and in the Phoenician letter. The same oblique crosses are found on the slabs of the Krasnodar settlement. In the same table in the second section there is a similarity between the letters No. 37 of the Phoenician and Maikop writing and the signs of the tiles of the Krasnodar settlement. Thus, the similarity of the Krasnodar tiles with the Maikop inscription eloquently testifies to the origin of writing among the Sindo-Meotian tribes - the ancestors of the Abkhaz-Adygs back in the 2nd millennium BC. e. It should be noted that scientists have discovered some similarities between the Maykop inscription and the Krasnodar tiles and the Hittite hieroglyphic script.

In addition to the above monuments of the ancient Sinds, we find a lot of interesting things in their culture. These are original musical instruments made of bone; primitive but characteristic figurines, various dishes, utensils, weapons and much more. But the emergence of writing, which covers the time period from the 3rd millennium BC, should be considered a particularly great achievement of the culture of the Sindo-Meotian tribes in ancient times. e. to the 6th century BC e.

The Sindhi religion of this period has been little studied. Nevertheless, scientists believe that they worshiped nature even then. For example, materials from archaeological excavations allow us to conclude that the ancient Sinds deified the Sun. The Sinds had a custom during burial to sprinkle the deceased with red paint - ocher. This is evidence of Sun worship. In ancient times, human sacrifices were made to him, and red blood was considered a symbol of the Sun. By the way, the cult of the Sun is found among all peoples of the world during the period of decomposition of the tribal system and the formation of classes. The cult of the Sun is also attested in Adyghe mythology. Thus, the head of the pantheon, demiurge and first creator of the Circassians was Tha (this word comes from the Circassian word dyg'e, tyg'e - “sun”). This gives reason to assume that the Circassians initially assigned the role of prime creator to the Sun deity. Later, the functions of Tha passed to Thashho - “main god”. In addition, the ancient Sinds also had a cult of the Earth, as evidenced by various archaeological materials. The fact that the ancient Sinds believed in the immortality of the soul is confirmed by the skeletons of male and female slaves found in the graves of their masters. One of the significant periods of Ancient Syndica is the V century. BC e. It was in the middle of the 5th century. The Sind slave state is created, which left a significant mark on the development of Caucasian civilization. Since that time, animal husbandry and agriculture have become widespread in Sindik. Culture reaches a high level; Trade and economic ties with many peoples, including the Greeks, are expanding.

Second half of the 1st millennium BC. e. in the history and culture of Ancient Sindica is better covered in written sources of antiquity. One of the significant literary monuments on the history of the Sindo-Meotian tribes is the story of the Greek writer Polyenus, who lived in the 2nd century. n. e. during the reign of Marcus Aurelius. Polyenus described the fate of the wife of the Sindian king Hecataeus, a Meotian by birth, Tirgatao. The text tells not only about her fate; From its contents it is clear in what relationships the Bosporan kings were, in particular Sitir I, who reigned from 433 (432) to 389 (388) BC. e., with local tribes - Sindians and Meotians. During the period of the Sindhi slave state, the construction industry reached a high level of development. Solid houses, towers, city walls more than 2 m wide and much more were built. But, unfortunately, these cities have already been destroyed. Ancient Sindica in its development was influenced not only by Asia Minor, but also by Greece; it intensified after the Greek colonization of the Sind coast.

The earliest indications of Greek settlements in the North Caucasus date back to the second quarter of the 6th century. BC, when there was a regular route from Sinope and Trebizond to the Cimmerian Bosporus. It has now been established that almost all Greek colonies in Crimea did not arise out of nowhere, but where there were settlements of local tribes, i.e. Sinds and Maeots. There were Greek cities in the Black Sea region by the 5th century. BC e. more than thirty, from which the Bosporan kingdom was actually formed. Although Sindica is formally included in the Bosporan kingdom and is strongly influenced by Greek civilization, the autochthonous culture of the ancient Sinds, both material and spiritual, developed and continued to occupy a prominent place in the life of the population of this country.

Sindian cities became centers of political and cultural life. Architecture and sculpture were highly developed in them. The territory of Sindiki is rich in sculptural images, both Greek and local. Thus, numerous data obtained as a result of archaeological excavations on the territory of the Sinds and Meots - the ancestors of the Circassians, and some literary monuments indicate that these ancient tribes wrote many wonderful pages in the history of world civilization. The facts indicate that they created a unique, original material and spiritual culture. These are original jewelry and musical instruments, these are high-quality buildings and statues, this is our own technology for the production of tools and weapons, and much more.

However, with the onset of crisis in the Bosporan kingdom in the first centuries of our era, the time of decline of the culture of the Sinds and Maeots came. This was facilitated not only by internal reasons, but also by no less than external factors. From the 2nd century. n. e. There is a strong onslaught of Sarmatians in the areas inhabited by the Meotians. And from the end of the 2nd - beginning of the 3rd century. AD Gothic tribes appear north of the Danube and the borders of the Roman Empire. Soon Tanais, one of the northern cities of the Black Sea region, which was defeated in the 40s, was attacked by the Goths. III century AD After its fall, the Bosporus fell under the control of the Goths. They, in turn, defeated Asia Minor - the homeland of the Hutts, after which the ties of their descendants with the Sindians and Meotians - related tribes - were significantly reduced. From the 3rd century The Goths also attack the Sindo-Maeotian tribes, one of their main centers, Gorgippia, is destroyed, and then other cities.

True, after the invasion of the Goths in the North Caucasus, there has been some calm in this region and a revival of the economy and culture is taking place. But around 370, Europe, and primarily the Northern Black Sea region, was invaded by the Huns, Turkic, and Asian tribes. They moved from the depths of Asia in two waves, the second of which passed through the territory of the Sinds and Maeots. The nomads destroyed everything in their path, local tribes were scattered, and the culture of the ancestors of the Circassians fell into decay. After the Hunnic invasion of the North Caucasus, the Sindo-Meotian tribes were no longer mentioned. However, this in no way means

that they have left the historical arena. Those related tribes that suffered least from the invasion of nomads come to the fore and occupy a dominant position.

Questions and tasks

1. Why do we call the primitive communal system the Stone Age?

2. What stages is the Stone Age divided into?

3. Explain the essence of the Neolithic revolution.

4. Explain the features of the Bronze Age and Iron Age.

5. Who were the Hutts and Kaskis and where did they live?

6. Who is the creator and bearer of the Maykop and dolmen cultures?

7. List the names of the Sindo-Meotian tribes.

8. Show on the map the territory of settlement of the Sindomeotic tribes in the 3rd – 1st millennium BC. e.

9. When was the Sindh slave state created?

Circassians (Edyge, Adhe) live on the northern slopes of the Caucasus Mountains, and also inhabit the valleys from the Anapa fortress to the confluence of the Terek and Sunzha. The borders of their lands are: in the southwest - Abkhazia and the Black Sea; in the south - Minor Abkhazia and Ossetia; in the north, the Kuban, Malka and Terek rivers separate them from Russia; in the east, the Terek and Sunzha serve as the border between the Circassians and the Kists. The Black Sea washes the western borders of Circassia from the mouth of the Kuban to the Agripsh river.

The Circassians can be divided into two branches, namely the Kuban Circassians and the Kabardian Circassians, who are also called Kabardians; Kabardians inhabit the lands between Kuban, Malka, Terek and Sunzha.

Also from ancient times, Kabarda was inhabited by Bassians and Karachais; pursued by the Circassians, they were forced to seek refuge in the high, inaccessible, snow-covered mountains of the Caucasus, where they settled, still remaining tributaries of their eternal pursuers.

Brief historical sketch of the Circassians

The space between the Don and Kuban was inhabited from quite ancient times by a large number of tribes, which were known under the general name of Scythians and Sarmatians. Near the mouth of the Kuban, mixing with other peoples, lived the Sinds, who were apparently of Thracian (Thracian) or Cimmerian origin. The banks of these rivers were visited in ancient times by the Phoenicians, and later by the Greeks. Around 600 BC. e. the Ionians and Aeolians, coming from Asia Minor to the mouths of the Don and Kuban, founded cities and ports in different places, the main of which were Tanais, Phanagoria and Hermonassa; the first city is on the Don, where Azov is now located, and the others are on the islands formed by the branches of the Kuban.

The abundance of fisheries on these rivers, as well as on the coast of Maeotis (Sea of ​​Azov) and Pontus Euxine (Black Sea), as well as the presence of convenient routes of communication between different colonies, contributed to the development of profitable trade, which soon led them (i.e. cities) to the highest degree of prosperity.

In 480 BC. e. cities located in the Kuban, as well as the Crimean Panticapaeum (present-day Kerch), fell under the rule of the Archeanactids, who were originally from Lesvos, they settled in Hermonassa. After them, Spartacus ruled for 42 years, and then his successors - the Bosporan kings, who ruled until the time of the great Mithridates. His son, the parricide Pharnaces, recognized by the Romans as king of the Bosporans, raised a rebellion, subdued by famine the city of Phanagoria, which was established by Pompey as a republic, and with the help of the Aorsi and Siracians, went to Asia Minor, where he was finally defeated by Julius Caesar near the city of Zelia.

5 years before Alexander the Great, the Sarmatian land, most of whose inhabitants moved to Europe, was inhabited by the Yaksamats, a people famous for their power.

After them, several small tribes of different origins and speaking several languages, who were called Apans, converged here.

The most powerful tribe were the Aorsi, who lived on the Don and dispersed somewhat later; and the Siracs, who lived somewhat lower south of the Aorsi and occupied the space between the Sea of ​​Azov and the Volga. Around 19 AD. e. several Circassian clans gradually began to rule over the lands south of the Kuban, namely over Zikhia, the lands of the Sinds, Laz and Kerkets, as well as the Abazgians (present-day Abazians), Geniokhs, Sanigamis, etc.

The tribes defeated by the Circassians either went to Colchis or to the inaccessible highlands of the Caucasus. Circassians are the people whom the Greeks called “zikhs”; a mention of this name is found in the Pontic Journey, written at the end of the reign of Hadrian.

However, the ancients probably named only one of the tribes after the Zikhs, since Arian places them on the shores of the Black Sea and says that they were separated by the Achaeans in the north-west from the Sanigs, in whom Klaproth sees the Circassian tribe Zhane, who still lives almost at the same place. According to Arian, the ruler of the Zikhs was called Stachemsakh and he was elevated to this position by Hadrian. Stahemsakh is a purely Circassian name. The Sinds and Kerkets, who also lived on the shores of the Black Sea, were probably also Circassians.

Invasion of the Huns in 375 AD. e. became a significant era for the Caucasian peoples. Most of the Alans were pushed into Europe, others took refuge in the valleys located at the northern foot of the Caucasus, or in the Caucasus Mountains themselves. The Bosporus kingdom fell. 90 years after the invasion of the Huns, invasions of the Ongrs and Bulgars followed, who conquered the Crimea and the lands between the Don and the Dniester.

The Utigurs, or Uighurs, one of the Ongr hordes, returning to Asia, took with them many Crimean Goths, who settled on the Taman Peninsula, while they themselves occupied the steppe between the Don and Kuban. Procopius calls their land Eulysia.

Around the middle of the 6th century AD. e. they were conquered by the Vars (Avars). Later they came under the rule of Kuvrat, the ruler of the Bulgars and European Ongres, who freed them from the Hunnic yoke in 635. Kotrag, one of his sons, was the king of the Utigurs.

In 679, the Khazars conquered all the inhabitants of the space between the Sea of ​​​​Azov and the Don, their rule then spread from the Dnieper to the shores of the Caspian Sea. The kingdom they founded lasted 336 years. During this time, the Christian religion penetrated among the Zikhs and Abazs, especially during the reign of Justinian the Great. In 536 the Zikhi already had their own bishop in Nikopsis. In 840, this bishopric was renamed an archbishopric and moved to Taman at the end of the 11th century, and in the 14th century it was recognized as a metropolis.

The service there was conducted in Greek and according to Greek rites, but due to the ignorance of the priests, a lot of pagan customs penetrated into it. At the beginning of the Khazarian rule, Greek cities still existed in the Kuban, of which the most famous city was Taman, or Tome in Greek.

Among the lands subject to the Byzantine emperors was also Zichia; but the Khazars had real power there until 1016. The Russians, together with the Greeks from Byzantium, attacked the Khazars, with the help of the population of these lands, overthrew their rule and established a Russian principality on the island of Taman called the Tmutarakan kingdom, whose tributaries for some time were the Khazars and Zikhs (Yazs).

It can be assumed that in former times the great Kyiv princes had great influence there due to close contacts with the indigenous population, since in the Nestorov Chronicle we find information that Vladimir, during the division of Rus' between his sons in 989, gave the Tmutarakan kingdom to his son Mstislav, in which he actually ruled at the beginning of the 11th century.

Civil strife between Russian princes was the reason that at the end of the 11th century the Tmutarakan kingdom fell away from Rus'. The Cumans, or Cumans, attacked the lands located northeast of the Kuban, and from the south and west they attacked the Zikhs and other Circassian tribes, who, having settled in the North Caucasus, scattered further and further north, right up to the steppe between the mouths of the Don and Volga . Nevertheless, Azov, as well as Taman, most often mentioned under the name Matriga, was visited by Italian merchants until 1204.

The invasion of the Mongol-Tatars in 1221 is the most significant time in the history of these regions. The monstrous hordes of these barbarians destroyed the Cumans in 1237, but the Kuban Zikhs put up stubborn resistance to them and were defeated only in 1277 by Khan Mangu-Timur and the famous Nogai. The Mongols also became rulers of Azov and Taman, as well as many of the interior regions of the Caucasus, but the submission of the Circassians always remained doubtful: those who inhabited the forests and mountains of the Caucasus always remained independent, and the inhabitants of the plains recognized the supremacy of the Mongols only when forced by force. They retained the eastern shore of the Sea of ​​Azov, captured Kerch in the Crimea and made frequent raids either on this peninsula itself or in other European regions. It was from these Circassians that the bands of Cossacks that appeared at this time originated ( See: Klaproth, Travels through the Caucasus. T. 1.4. 4. P. 55.); It was they who also founded the famous dynasty of sultans in Egypt, called the dynasty of the Borgites, or Circassians, the ancestor of which was Sultan Barkok ( These Circassian Mamluks established a distinct dynasty in Egypt by 1382; it lasted until 1517; and in 1453, among these Mamluks we find a certain Inal, who, therefore, was older than the thirteenth leader of the Kabardian princes.).

Franciscan monks preached the Catholic religion among the Circassians, or Zikhs. Varzakht, one of the Zikh princes, accepted the Roman Catholic faith in 1333, and in 1439 the Zikhs already had their own Catholic archbishop in Taman (Matriga), and two bishops in Siba and Lukuk, but most of the Circassians professed the Greek system of faith.

In 1395 Tamerlane ( Sheref ad-din in the biography of Tamerlane places this fact ten years later, i.e., dates it back to 1405), having defeated his rival Tokhtamysh, the Kipchak khan, on the Terek, he attacked the Circassian lands, plundered their settlements, destroyed the city of Kuban (Taman) and all vast territories, but the Circassians did not submit and stubbornly defended their freedom.

In 1484, after the expulsion of the Genoese from the Crimea, which followed the capture of Caffa (1475), the Ottoman Turks, encountering almost no resistance, occupied the cities and fortresses of Taman, Temryuk, Achuk, located near the mouth of the Kuban; At this time they enslaved the remnants of the Crimean Goths, but they could not cope with the Circassians; although it can be assumed that, having conquered the shores of the Sea of ​​​​Azov, the Turks did not intend to seize the internal Circassian lands.

During the time of George Interiano, who wrote in 1502, the Circassians, or Zikhs, still occupied the coast of the Sea of ​​Azov, from the Don to the Cimmerian Bosphorus (the ancient Greek name for the Kerch Strait).

They were expelled from there by the Tatars or Russians. It is likely, as we said above, that modern Cossacks descended from a mixture of Russians and Circassians.

From everything preceding it clearly follows that the Circassians are a very ancient Caucasian people. Their language is very different from other Caucasian languages ​​in both vocabulary and syntax; meanwhile, there is a noticeable affinity with Finnish roots, and mainly with the roots of the Voguls and Siberian Ostiaks. This similarity allows us to conclude that the Circassians, like the Voguls and Ostiaks, have a common origin; this community in a very distant era was divided into several branches, one of which was probably the Huns ( Klaproth. Travel to the Caucasus T. 2. P. 380).

Let us return to the history of the Kuban Circassians, which, starting from the time of the conquest of Crimea by the Ottoman Turks, coincides with the history of one of their tribes - the Pyatigorsk Circassians, or Kabardians.

When the Ottoman Porta extended its power in these lands, the Crimean khans had no power in the Kuban. The khans, or kings of Astrakhan, arrogated to themselves the right to rule the Circassians, based on the pretext that among them there were nomadic Tatars, the Nogai tribe, who repeatedly settled (settled) there.

Magmet-Girey was the first Crimean khan who began to expand his possessions in this direction. His successors succeeded in this endeavor, pushing the Circassians back more and more, occupying their lands, which they abandoned, settling numerous tribes of Astrakhan Nogais there. Finally, increasing oppression from the Crimean khans forced some of the Circassian clans to turn to Tsar Ivan Vasilyevich the Terrible for support and in 1552 they submitted to his scepter.

As a result of such requests, we sent auxiliary (irregular) troops there at various times: in 1559 under the command of Prince Vishnevetsky, who arrived with the Zaporozhye Cossacks from Poland, and in 1565 with the governor Ivan Dashkov. The first of them won significant victories over the Crimean Tatars and captured the cities of Islam-Kerman, Temryuk and Taman. At this time, Tsar Ivan Vasilyevich married the Circassian princess Maria Temryukovna (1560), who was in an amanate in Moscow with her brother Mikhail Temryukovich, who later became the royal governor.

Whether this marriage was a consequence of love or a political calculation, it was very favorable for Russia - to get closer to the mountain peoples, especially with the Kabardians and the Terek and Trans-Kuban Circassians, who took an active part in the campaigns of Tsar Ivan Vasilyevich in Livonia, Poland and against the Crimean Tatars. Their recognized courage contributed greatly to the victories of this monarch. The Kabardian and Circassian princes continued to serve Russia in subsequent reigns, right up to Peter the Great; they came to service in small numbers, but with selected cavalry.

When the Turks captured Astrakhan in 1569, Prince Mikhail Vishnevetsky was called from the banks of the Dnieper with five thousand Zaporozhye Cossacks, who, uniting with the inhabitants of the Don, won a major victory over the Turks both on land and at sea, where they attacked the Turks in boats ( barges). Most of these Cossacks remained on the Don, where they built the city of Cherkassk - this was the beginning of the settlement of the Don Cossacks, but still many of them returned to Beshtau, or Pyatigorye, and this circumstance gives us the right to call these settlers Ukrainian residents who once fled from Russia, we find mention of this in our archives.

The Crimean Tatars felt strong hatred for Prince Temryuk, the father-in-law of Tsar Ivan Vasilyevich, who then lived on the Taman Peninsula. In 1570, they took advantage of the absence of Russian troops, attacked Temryuk and completely defeated him. Immediately after this event, the Crimean Khan Shah-Baz-Girey, coming with a large army, devastated the Circassian settlements and took the Pyatigorsk Circassians beyond the Kuban, forcing them to accept the Mohammedan religion, but around 1590 they again left the Kuban and returned to their former homeland , where later, for safety reasons, they moved to Baksan.

In 1602, the Pyatigorsk Circassians sent Prince Sunchaley to Moscow, who swore allegiance to Tsar Boris Fedorovich Godunov. Prince Cardan was sent for the same purpose in 1608 to Tsar Vasily Ivanovich Shuisky on behalf of Prince Solokh and other Circassian princes; and in 1615 against the princes Kambulat, Sunchaley Yanglychev and Shegunuk. Murza Bezlukov was entrusted with the mission of ambassadors to Tsar Mikhail Fedorovich Romanov, but due to the internal unrest that existed in Russia at that time, the Circassians and their mission were forgotten.

In 1705 or, according to others, in 1708, the Crimean Khan Kaplan-Girey with a huge army went to Kabarda with the aim of conquering it. The Kabardians, hiding in the mountains, allowed the enemy into the narrow gorges of the Urup River, then closed all the passages and attacked the Tatars, causing a terrible massacre: up to 30 thousand Tatars died on the battlefield, and the khan himself with the remnants of his army was barely able to escape. However, the idea of ​​conquering the Kabardians did not abandon the Crimean Tatars. In 1720, Khan Saadet-Girey undertook a campaign against the Kabardians, but by order of Emperor Peter the Great, the Astrakhan governor of Volyn forestalled the Tatars by coming to Kabarda with a detachment of Russians to help - the Tatars therefore returned without success. In 1729, Khan Bakhta-Girey also moved troops with the same intention, but was defeated and himself died in a battle with the Kabardians. Since that time, the Circassians got rid of the shameful tribute that boys and girls under twelve years of age were obliged to pay to the Crimean Khan every year.

Peter the Great sent Prince Bekovich-Cherkassky to Khiva in 1717 with a small detachment, which was joined by many Kabardians who died in this unsuccessful campaign, as well as their leader due to his imprudence.

In 1722, Kabardians, as well as Kalmyks, under the command of Kudryavtsev, accompanied Peter the Great to Derbent, and in 1724 they helped him in the conquest of Dagestan and the provinces of Shirvan, Gilan, Masandaran and Astrabat.

After the death of Peter the Great, the Baksan Kabardians remained adherents of Russia, and other Circassian tribes remained subjects of the Crimean Tatars, but in general most of these people predominantly joined Russia until the Belgrade agreement with the Turks in 1739, according to which the Kabardians were recognized as independent and formed a barrier between Russia and the Ottoman Porte. Having achieved their goals, the Kabardians turned their weapons against their neighbors - the mountaineers, subjugated the weakest and deprived them of the freedom for which they themselves had fought with such courage and for so long against the Crimean Tatars.

The Caucasian peoples joyfully watched the weakening of the Kabardians, whose passion for robbery and desire for dominance led to their gradual decline. In 1763, during the founding of the city of Mozdok on the left bank of the Terek - on their territory, there were strife among the Kabardians, nevertheless they remained loyal to Russia and proved this during the expedition of General Totleben to Georgia in 1770, as well as in 1771 year, when the Kalmyks left the steppes neighboring Kabarda to head to China. General Medem, who commanded at this time, was able to keep the Kabardians with his wise orders, and by virtue of the Kuchuk-Kainardzhi Treaty concluded in 1774 with the Ottoman Porte, they remained dependent on Russia: later, by the Act of 1783, the Kuban was recognized as the border between the two powers , and this Act was ratified in 1791 by the Treaty of Jassy.

In 1785, the false prophet Sheikh Mansur converted all Circassian tribes to Islam and incited them to war against Russia, which lasted until 1791, when the Kabardians again submitted to Russia. In 1803, redoubts built near a source of acidic waters near Kislovodsk closed the road to the mountains, which led to unrest, and in 1807 most of the Kabardians left beyond the Kuban, towards Chechnya, to continue their independent lifestyle there; they still live there and are known as fugitive Kabardians. By 1810-1812, the plague had reduced the number of inhabitants of Kabarda by two-thirds, so that today they are in a weakened state, which prevents them from rebelling against the Russian government.

Let us return to the Kuban Circassians, who even today represent an amazing example of a free people who still have preserved the primitive state of society, although this people is surrounded by more civilized peoples. They live scattered up to the tops of high mountains, they are divided by peoples (tribes) with peculiar names, they form as many small feudal republics as they have leaders from princes and nobility. Only the Turks, after the conquest of the Byzantine Empire, maintained trade relations with them and, without trying to subjugate them, were content with the fact that Anapa belonged to them: there they had a market where they received captive girls and boys from the Circassians in exchange for some goods brought annually from Constantinople and Anatolia.

Because of this trade, a plague came to them, destroying their children, which inevitably caused a noticeable decrease in population. A special love for independence and indomitable courage in war make them formidable to their neighbors. Accustomed from a very early age to strong physical exercises, horse riding and the use of weapons, they consider only victory over the enemy to be glory, and flight to be a shame.

Rushing from their borders, they fall on their neighbors, devastate their lands, steal their herds and take those who remain alive into slavery. Even the sea is not an obstacle to their robberies. Sitting in fragile boats, they often capture ships that approach their shores.

After the founding of the Kuban military line in 1794, the Russian viceroyalty used every possible means to pacify these tribes, but their penchant for robbery, the incitement of the Ottoman Porte, at least until 1829, and their hatred of the Russians prevented this from being carried out to this day. plan (that is, the plan of pacification).

To punish them for invading Russian territory, expeditions were repeatedly launched against them, which usually only resulted in arousing in them a desire for revenge, since, in accordance with their method of war, they hid when Russian troops approached in the forests and mountains, and they only they destroyed and burned their empty villages, their hay, grain and drowned their livestock, which they could have captured in these cases.

The terrain in which the fighting was fought and the difficulties experienced by the expeditions were the reason why a decisive victory was never achieved in them. It would be too long here to list all the individual expeditions that were organized over 30 years against the Kuban Circassians ( See about this: Debu. About the Caucasian line. pp. 159-230.); since their result was obviously the same, and here we will limit ourselves to the story of one large expedition against these tribes in 1830 under the command of the Prince of Warsaw - Count Paskevich-Erivansky.

According to the Treaty of Adrianople, the entire eastern coast of the Black Sea from the mouth of the Kuban to Fort St. Nicholas, as well as supremacy over the Circassian tribes, went to Russia; in 1830 a great war was launched against the mountain peoples. First, Lezgistan proper was conquered (in February 1830), and then the Ossetian and Kist tribes were subjugated and pacified (in June, July, August 1830).

The Chechen tribes were also partially subdued, but cholera prevented any final successes. In September, a detachment advanced for military operations against the Kuban Circassians approached the Kuban, while another part of the army headed straight from Kalash to a fort built beyond the Kuban in a place called Long Forest.

At this time, the Black Sea Cossack Army built two redoubts beyond the Kuban near the Afips and Shebsh rivers, which were occupied by two regiments of riflemen. On September 25, the headquarters arrived in Ust-Labinsk - a village and fort located opposite the mouth of the Laba, on the right bank of the Kuban. On October 1, Lieutenant General Pankratiev headed from Ust-Labinsk to the Long Forest to conduct military operations against the Abadzekhs, together with General Emmanuel, who was already there.

Long rains delayed the departure of the headquarters to Yekaterinodar until October 9, and on the 13th, Count Paskevich crossed the Kuban and arrived at the Shebshsky redoubt, where the corps of General Emmanuel was expected, who, having defeated and pacified the Abadzekhs, reunited with the main forces near the Shebshsky redoubt 17 October. On October 18, General Emmanuel's corps set out on a march in the morning to attack the Shapsugs in the high mountain valleys, while the corps under the personal command of Count Paskevich crossed the valleys parallel to Emmanuel's corps.

The Shapsugs left their villages and took their families and livestock into the mountains and forests, and when the Russians approached, they themselves set fire to their villages, haystacks and grain in order to deprive the enemy troops of fodder.

Russian troops, divided into several columns, which one after another rose through the valleys of Afips, Ubin, Asips, Zhu, Khaplya, Antkyr, Bogundur and advanced all the way to Abin, where they burned the large mosque of the Shapsugs, achieved only that they ravaged this territory, but , if I may say so, they did not see the enemy himself, but they themselves were subjected to constant shelling day and night from the Shapsugs, hiding in the dense forests through which the Russians had to pass.

On October 29, the Russian corps left Abin to return from the Kuban, and the headquarters again arrived in Yekaterinodar on November 3.

Thus ended the expedition, which, despite all the damage it caused to the Shapsugs, did not bring any decisive victory and gave only further evidence of the tenacity with which this people defends its independence.

The year 1831 was significant in that the Russians occupied the port of Gelendzhik and firmly established themselves in the area. The plan to undertake an expedition from Ekaterinodar through the lands of the Shapsugs to Gelendzhik in order to open a military road between these two points will be carried out in the near future, and the result will show whether Russia will finally succeed in pacifying this people in this way. The Prince of Warsaw was the first to suggest this idea, since by settling among their lands through forts and redoubts built along the military road, we will sooner or later achieve the fact that we will tame them.

Kuban Circassians

The Circassians, whom Russians call “Circassians”, and other Europeans incorrectly call “Tsirkasya”, call themselves Adyge or Adhe ( Some writers believed that this name comes from the Tatar-Turkish word "ada" - island, but this etymology is unknown to the Circassians, who do not have a word for island.

Procopius of Caesarea, Strabo, Pliny and Etienne of Byzantium indicate that the Circassians live near the Black Sea and call them “zikhs” (in Greek - “zyukha”), and the Genoese George Interiano, who wrote in 1502, begins his essay on morals and customs of the Zikhs in the words: “The Zikhs, so called in the common languages ​​(Italian), Greek and Latin, and called Circassians by the Tatars and Turks, call themselves “Adiga.” They live from the Tana River to Asia along the entire sea coast that leads to the Bosphorus Cimmerian "(Ramusio. Travels. T. 2. P. 196.)). This remarkable people is divided into two large tribes: the Kuban Circassians and the Kabardian Circassians, also called Kabardians. The first live along the banks of several rivers - the left tributaries of the Kuban, which flow into the eastern coast of the Black Sea; others live in Big and Small Kabarda.

It is believed that the name “Circassians” is of Tatar origin and consists of the words “cher” - road and “kesmek” - to cut; Thus, “Cirkessan” or “Circassian-Sij” is a synonym for the word “Yuolkes-Sij”, which is still used in Turkish and means “robber”. The Ossetians - neighbors of the Circassians - call them "kezekh" or "Kazakh", and since Kazakhia of Byzantine historical authors should be sought beyond the Kuban, where the Circassians now live, the Ossetians are probably right when they say that before the Kabardian princes came from Crimea, the Circassian people called themselves “Kazakhs” (The Arab geographer Masudi wrote in 947 AD: “It is to Trebizond, located on the shores of the Byzantine Sea, that Muslim traders from Rum, Armenia and the country of the Kasheks come every year.”) . The Mingrelians still call the Circassian princes “kashakh-mefe”, which means “king of the Kashakhs”.

Boundaries. Location. List of Circassian tribes

The territory inhabited by the Kuban Circassians extends along the left bank of the Kuban from its source to its confluence with the Black Sea and from its left bank to the slopes of the Main Caucasus Range. Its borders are: in the southwest - Abkhazia and the Black Sea, in the south - Minor Abkhazia and the lands of the Karachais, in the north and east - Kuban, which separates them from Russian territories and the lands of a number of Nogai, Abaza and Kabardian tribes. From the southwest and west, the Circassian lands are washed by the Black Sea - from the mouth of the Kuban to the borders with Abkhazia. The tribes living on the coast are the Natukhais, Gusins ​​and Ubykhs.

The area of ​​this region can be approximately determined to be 24 thousand square meters. verst.

Names of the tribes occupying the northern slopes of the Caucasus Range from the Anapa fortress to the sources of the Kuban:

1. Natukhaytsy (Natokhaytsy)

2. Shapsugi

3. Abadzehi (abedzehi)

4. Tubans

6. Sasha

7. Bzhedukhi: a) Khamysheevtsy; b) Cherchineevites

8. Khattukayans

9. Temirgoyevites

10. Egerkvaevites

11. Zhaneevtsy

13. Mokhoshevtsy

14. Hegaki

15. Besleneevtsy

The Natukhais, Shapsugs, Abedzekhs, Tubins, Ubykhs, Sashas, ​​Bzhedukhs, Khattukais, Temirgoys, Egerkvays and Zhaneevs have a democratic form of government, and the Edems, Mokhoshevs, Khegaks and Besleneevs are ruled by princes - Pshi and nobles - Works.

Natukhais settled from the Black Sea coast and the mouth of the Kuban River east to the small river Nebedzheya, which originates in the Markotkh Mountains, from its sources to the confluence on the right into Atakum and along its left bank to the Kuban. Their valleys are surrounded by cliffs and covered with sparse forest. Agriculture among the Natukhais is insignificantly developed, but thanks to their beautiful pastures they have the opportunity to actively engage in cattle breeding. The incessant wars they wage and their penchant for robbery leave them little time to take care of their household.

Shapsugi inhabit wooded mountain slopes. which stretch to the outskirts of Anapa and along the rivers Antkhir, Butundir, Abin, Afips, Shebsh and Bakan; their territories extend from the rivers Nebedzheya and Atakum to the mountain peaks of Tezogir and Psaf, and in the valleys - to the rivers Dogaya (originating on Mount Psaf), Pshish, Afips and the Kuban River. Two villages of Abat belong to a nobleman bearing the same name, they are located on the banks of Antkhir and Bugundir... Most Shapsugs live in families, they have few livestock, and they cultivate the land little; Their main source of livelihood is robbery. They have no princes. Their leader is either the head of the largest family, or the most notorious robber. The Shapsugs speak a “spoiled” dialect of the Circassian language. Their lands extend in the west to the mountains where Bakan originates, these mountains are called Shag-alesh by the Circassians (in Russian - Pcheboleza), which means in their language “white old woman”, since these mountains are formed from white stone; The mountains are crossed by a road leading to the Anapa fortress, which is 40 miles away from these places.

Abedzehi They border in the west with the possessions of the Shapsugs, in the east - with the lands of the Besleneevites, in the south their border is the main chain of the Caucasus ridge, in the north - the territories occupied by the Bzhedukhs, Temirgoyevites and Mokhoshevites. Previously, the Abedzekhs inhabited the snowy mountains of the Western Caucasus, as their numbers continually increased, over time they descended to the slate and black mountains and became stronger by capturing people whom they turned into their ploughmen. They were also joined by a large number of refugees from other tribes, as a result of which such a mixture of people occurred that now only their nobles are genuine abedzekhs. They claim that they received the name “Abazekhs” from the name of a Circassian beauty who once lived among them, since in Circassian “Abazekh-dakh” means “beauty.”

Their fields are small, and their settlements consist of only a few courtyards. Each has its own plot of land, a small forest and a pasture for livestock, located within the same fence. Each resident bears the name of his owner. Their lands are covered with forests and crossed by numerous rivers and streams. They also have excellent pastures on both banks of the Labe.

Strictly speaking, they don’t have any religion; they eat pork. Although many Abedzekh Uzdeni profess Islam, their faith cannot be called strong. They are very hospitable towards their friends and are ready to sacrifice everything for them. Many Russians live among the Abedzekhs - prisoners and deserter soldiers.

Tubans are one of the Abedzekh tribes and speak the same language. They are daring and occupy the most high-mountainous and inaccessible areas near the rivers Pchega and Sgagvasha, right up to the snowy peaks; the southern slopes of the snowy mountains and valleys on the Black Sea coast up to the river Gagripsha are inhabited by tribes Ubykhs and sashas, which are also called Dzhikets, Pshavas, Yaships, Inalkups, Svadzvas, Artaks and Maryavs. The Circassians call them “kush-ha-zir abazy”, which means “over-the-mountain abaza”, but in fact they are of Adyghe origin. They do not have a prince over them, but they willingly obey a good horseman, a good warrior, which in their understanding is evidence of outstanding abilities. Their land is fertile and does not require special cultivation. They all grow grapes, especially the Ubykhs, and make good wine from it in large quantities; they call this wine “sana”. They also have a lot of fruits, such as apples, cherries, pears, peaches (in Tatar “shaftalu”, which is usually pronounced “cheptala”). As in Mingrelia, they have a kind of pressed and solid honey, which they consume by stirring it in water as a drink. Their territory is covered with many bushes of unprecedented density. They live in houses, settlements around 3— 4 courtyards located in the forest.

Bzheduhi They are engaged in agriculture, they have a certain amount of livestock, but they are great lovers of making money at the expense of others and often carry out raids and robberies on the villages of the Black Sea Cossacks. Their pastures are located near their houses. The Bzhedukhs are divided into two branches: the Khamysheevites and the Cherchineevites. The Khamysheevites live between Afips, Psekups, Kuban and the high road. The Cherchineevites, or Kirkenei, live in the area between the Psekups and Pshish rivers on both sides of the big road, namely: on the right side of the road an hour's drive towards the mountains, and on the left - to the Kuban; it follows that the Khamysheevtsy and Kirkensi, that is, the Bzhedukhs, occupy the territory between the Pshish and Afips rivers from the Kuban to the possessions of the Abedzekhs.

Khattukayans previously lived to the west of Kara-Kuban along the rivers Ubin, Zil, Afips to the Kuban floodplains, bounded from the south by Yaman-su, between the Black Sea Cossacks and Shapsugs, but under pressure from the latter they left their former homes and now live between Pshish and Sgagvasha from Kuban to Abedzekhs' possessions. Now they have become “peaceful”. They have already been conquered and moved their villages closer to Kuban.

Temirgoyevites are divided into two tribes. The peaceful Temirgoyites, who are also called “Kelekyuyevtsy,” live between Sgagvasha and Laba from the Kuban to the high road, and the Egerkvayevtsy occupy the territory on the right side of the road to the possessions of the Abedzekhs, the boundaries of which are not defined by any natural boundaries. The Temirgoyites are warlike, daring, and act under the leadership of Dzhambolet. They are the richest and purest of all the tribes of the Kuban Circassians. Their settlements are mostly fortified; these fortifications consist of front gardens or a double row of large crossed stakes. The internal space between these two rows is filled with earth, and the upper part is studded with slingshots, which represent an insurmountable obstacle for their enemies - the Ubykhs and Tubins, who live nearby in the mountains and with whom the Temirgoyites often have to fight.

The Temirgoyevites keep their cattle in pens near the settlements in the winter, and in the summer they drive them out to pastures on both banks of the Laba.

Zhaneevtsy live in only 6 settlements. Previously, they lived on the right bank of the Kuban above Kopyl, but when the Russians approached in 1778, they took refuge on the left bank of the river along with the inhabitants of Taman, and currently settled near the Kuban on both banks of the Pshish River.

Ademy is a small Circassian tribe that settled on the Sgagvasha river near Kuban.

Mokhoshevtsy live at the foot of wooded mountains, from where many streams flow, which, having filled this fertile region with moisture, then flow into Yaman-su, or Fars. The main streams whose banks they inhabit are the lower Fars, lower Psi-sur and lower Chekhuraj. The Mokhoshevo people are rich in livestock, engage in farming and live in fortified settlements. In winter they keep their cattle in pens, in summer they drive them out to pastures on the left bank of the Laba, and in spring and autumn - near the Kuban. To get to them, you need to cross the Kuban and the mountain peaks between Kuban and Chalbashsm, which flows into the Laba on the right, along the road from Prochny Okop, and then cross the Shograg river.

Hegaki, or shegakhi, is a small Circassian tribe that lives on the Bugra and its tributaries, near and below the Anapa fortress. Their name is Circassian and means “people living by the sea.” Previously, they lived in the place where Anapa is now located. The number of Hegak decreased significantly as a result of the Natukhai raids and the devastation caused by the plague.

Besleneyevtsy occupy the territory from the sources of the Psisur River, flowing from Mount Hagvare to the east to the mouth of the Gegen River, which flows into Voarp, and in the south almost to the snowy mountains. In winter, Besleney residents keep livestock near their homes in wicker fences; in spring and summer they drive it out to pastures on the banks of Urup, Big Indzhik and the salt lake Kasma, the waters of which flow into the Kuban. They are rich in livestock, especially sheep. Their mountains are inaccessible; They live in constant hostility with other mountaineers...

Marriages, or barracks, live on the right bank of the Upper Gul. Their dwellings are in forests or on elevated places; the areas where they live in separate groups are called Kunak-tau or Dzhikhil-buluk. Previously, they did not have a common leader, each family was subordinate to the eldest in it, at the same time they were dependent on the Kabardians and then came under the rule of the Besleneevites. Although they have converted to Islam, some of them still eat pork. When disturbed, they retreat to the highlands where their homes cannot be detected. They have a lot of livestock and good pastures, but they themselves are very wild and rough.

Bashilbayevites, or Beselbeys, Previously they lived in the forested mountains of Ciscaucasia, irrigated by the Yafir and Bikh rivers, which, merging into the foothills, where the mountains descend in horizontal ledges, flow from the left into the Great Indzhik. They also settled on the banks of this river, in the mountains rich in black slate, at the sources of Urup or Voarp and partly near the Big and Small Teghen, which originate in the highlands, gradually descend to the plains and flow on the left side into Urup.

Now they left the Greater Indzhik and its tributaries and moved to Urup. They were forced to migrate by the devastating plague epidemics of 1806 and 1811. They speak a “corrupted” dialect of the Abaza language and have their own princes, but they are all under the rule of the Kabardians.

They are stubborn and rebellious, and despite the expeditions that the Russians have undertaken against them, they have not yet submitted. Living in the mountains and forests, they cultivate the land little; their fields are located only in the lowest places along the banks of the Urup. They are mainly engaged in sheep and goat breeding and beekeeping. In autumn and spring they drive their herds to the lowlands irrigated by the Big and Small Indzhik, very close to the Russian border, and in the summer they graze them in the mountains, and in the winter - near their homes. It is from them that wonderful honey is found, which is produced by wild bees collecting nectar from rhododendrons and Pontic azaleas.

The only road that leads to their lands is extremely bad, and in its main part it is necessary to walk along it; it begins in the village of Nevinnaya, crosses the ford of the Kuban, which the Tatars call Sulukis, and for 75 miles runs along the right bank of the Big Indzhik in such a way that, having climbed a stone bridge, you cross it; after this bridge the road goes along the right bank of the Inal valley - a small river about 16 miles long, which flows into Urup. From the mouth of the Inal, the road leads upstream along the Urup for about 10 versts, here the road becomes a swamp, often you have to walk either along the right or left bank of the river until you come to the first settlement, located in a valley 3 versts long and 200 fathoms wide . From this valley you can climb another two miles higher, where there are no longer any trees; further on the road becomes wider and leads to the glaciers. The tribes of Bikhs, Cheygeres, Barakais and Bashilbaevs belong, so it is believed, to the Besleney tribe.

Otashi from the Abaz tribe they belong to the Medazings, Medavs, or Madovs; they occupy the sources of the Big Laba in the most mountainous and inaccessible places of the Caucasus. However, their main habitats are on the southwestern slope. They have absolutely no Islam, they live freely and choose the bravest and strongest as their leaders.

Kazbegi, Kazilbeks or Kyzylbegs are Abazs, descended from the same Medazings and occupying the Upper Amturk and the most high-mountainous regions of the Caucasus. They border on the Besleneyites. The Kazbegs obey the elders and take their name from Prince Kazbek, who lived among them.

Medazings, called “Medoveevtsy” by Russians, occupy the southwestern slope of the Caucasus at the sources of the Laba and Amturk rivers. The seven tribes in question speak the “Azogat” dialect, which is why their neighbors, the Kabardians and the Besleneevs, call them all together - the Abaz. Between the upper reaches of the Kuban and Kuma there lives a people called “Pash-Khokh” by the Circassians, and “Abaza” by the Russians; we will talk about this people later.

Adali- these are former residents of the Taman Peninsula who fled from there during the occupation of Crimea by the Russians; These were partly Tatars from the Bul-Nadi tribe, and partly Circassians. They were called adals, which in the Tatar language means “inhabitants of the island”; They retired to the left bank of the Kuban and settled along its estuary, establishing settlements and retaining their old name - Adal. They grew rye, were engaged in gardening and fishing. After the capture of Anapa in 1791, a large number of them died, and from that time on they almost completely disappeared or were assimilated with neighboring tribes.

Fugitive Kabardians have appeared since the unrest in Kabarda in 1807, when a significant part of this tribe took refuge in the Caucasus Mountains. Those who sought refuge with the Kuban Circassians currently occupy the valleys of the Upper Urup and Upper Ulu-Indzhik. It is these fugitive Kabardians who always lead the bands of robbers who raid Russian territory; the connections they have maintained with their compatriots living in the valleys make these attacks easier.

Sultaneevtsy- these are some descendants of the Crimean sultans, who, completely independently of previous nationalities, took refuge in areas located beyond the Kuban. Their supporters are few. The Tatars and Circassians unite them under the common name “Sultaneevtsy”.

The Murad-Gerey-Khaz-Gerey family settled near Laba beyond Navruz-aul. Their subjects live in no more than 40 dwellings. The family of his brother Devlet-Gerey-Khaz-Gerey lives with the Abedzekhs in the Black Mountains on the Kurchips River. There are no more than 40 families left depending on them. The children of the late Sultan Aslan-Gerey and the brothers of Major General Mengli-Gerey live near Bolshoy Zelenchuk together with the Nogai-Man-Surovites, they live in poverty. The descendants of Sultan Kazil-beg scattered among different tribes.

All these sultans have no power, and when they go on a raid, they cannot force anyone to follow them, only volunteers accompany them.

Beyond the Kuban there are a number of small Circassian tribes, which we will not talk about. In general, these tribes most likely received their names after the names of the heads of the first families that once existed, and even now still exist, in this region: according to the Circassian tradition, even the name Shapsugs comes from a certain Shapsug and his descendants Kobbe, Skhanet, Goago , Sootoha, whose families still exist among this tribe. The Natukhais descend from the brothers Natkho, Netakho and Gusie. Bzhedukh - from Bzhedukh and his sons Hamal and Cherchany, by whose name the Bzhedukh are still divided into two branches: Khamysheevtsy and Cherchineevtsy. In our time, there are examples of small tribes, partly of Russian origin, such as the Ptsash tribe, which traces its origins to a Russian fisherman captured by the Shapsugs. He remained among them, married, and his descendants now number up to 30 families that bear the name Ptsash, which in Greek means “fisherman.” As for the tribes inhabiting the mountain valleys, most of them are named after the names of the places where they previously lived, such as the Ubykhs - after a place called Ubykh, etc.

The appearance of the inhabitants

Circassians as a whole are a beautiful nation; Their men have a good and slender figure, and they do everything to keep it flexible. They are of medium height, very mobile and rarely overweight. Their shoulders and chest are wide, and the lower part of the body is very narrow. They are brown-eyed, dark-haired, have an elongated head, a straight and thin nose. They have expressive and spiritual faces. Their princes, who trace their origins to the Arabs, differ from the common people in black hair, darker skin color and some features in their facial structure. Commoners have lighter hair, there are even blondes among them, and their complexion is whiter than that of their princes. Their women are the most beautiful in the entire Caucasus and have always enjoyed such a reputation ( The Arab author Masudi, who wrote in 947, spoke of the Kasheks (Circassians): “Among the peoples living between the Caucasus and Rum (Black Sea), there is not one where the men are distinguished by equally regular facial features, beautiful skin color and flexibility of the mill. They say that their women are amazingly beautiful and very seductive.”). They have black eyes and are brown-haired, they have a Greek nose and a small mouth. Kabardian women have white facial skin with a slight hint of carmine. If you add to this a slender and flexible figure and small legs, you can get an idea of ​​​​an example of Circassian beauty; however, not everyone meets this ideal, and we must make the remark that the generally accepted opinion that Circassian women inhabit mainly the harems of the Turks is unfounded, since the Circassians very rarely sell representatives of their nation to the Turks, unless they are stolen slaves. Most of the beautiful Circassian girls that appeared in Turkey were brought there from Imereti and Mingrelia ( Sultana Valida, mother of the unfortunate Sultan Selim III, was a Circassian. This shameful trade in Circassians, Mingrelians and other slaves was completely stopped since Russia took possession of the eastern coast of the Pontus Euxine.). The Circassians sell mainly male slaves.

Circassian girls tightened their breasts with such a tight corset made of leather that they could hardly be distinguished; in women, during the feeding period, it remains free, so that the breasts soon become saggy. For the rest, it must be said that among the Circassians women are not in such confinement as among others.

Note. Mr. Tebu de Marigny, who visited the Circassians in the areas adjacent to the Gelendzhik Bay in 1818, describes the fair sex of these regions in this way: “Circassian women from the Natukhai tribe have an oval face, its features are usually large; Their eyes are most often black and beautiful; they are fully aware of this and consider their eyes to be their most powerful weapon; Their eyebrows are beautifully patterned, and Circassian women pluck them to make them less thick. The waist, which, as I have already said, is deprived of its main decoration in girls, is extremely thin and flexible, but in many women the lower part of the body is very large, which is revered in the East for great beauty and which seemed ugly to me in some of them. Those women who are proportionally built cannot be denied noble posture and great attractiveness. In addition, their costume, especially that of married women, is very beautiful. But to admire them, one must see them in the interior of their home, since when they leave the house, their slow gait and lazy appearance, leaving an imprint on all their movements, unpleasantly strike the eye of a European, accustomed to the liveliness and elegance of our ladies. Even the long hair, which is so pleasant to see scattered over the chest and shoulders of a Circassian woman, and this veil with which they are draped with the art that is characteristic of the fair sex in all countries who want to please, and even, finally, their dress, which, at first squeezing them waist, then separates and reveals shalwars, which are also not without attractiveness - all this suddenly turns into funny and embarrassing attributes as soon as the Circassian woman leaves her sofa. In general they are not devoid of intelligence; they have a vivid imagination, they are capable of high feelings, they love glory, and they are proud of the glory of their husbands, gained in battles.”

Clothing and weapons

The men's clothing is quite similar to that of the Kumyk Tatars, but it is made of lighter, higher quality fabric and is usually more expensive. The uapa shirt is buttoned at the chest; it is sewn from cotton fabric or light red taffeta in the Georgian style. On top of the shirt is a silk vest, usually decorated with embroidery, and on top of it is a kind of frock coat, very short, which among the Circassians is called “tsshi”, and among the Tatars - “chekmen”; it barely reaches mid-thigh; they fasten it very tightly on the belt; There are small pockets on both sides of the chest with compartments for cartridges.

Men shave their heads or cut their hair very short, leaving a finger-length tuft of hair on the top. This tuft of hair is called "haidar". Previously, Circassians only wore mustaches, but now you can often find Circassians who also grow a beard. Both sexes do not leave hair on the genitals, either cutting them off, plucking them, or destroying them with the help of a caustic substance consisting of quicklime and orpiment.

On their heads they wear an embroidered cap made of cotton wool, the shape of which resembles half a melon, and it is trimmed with fur or simply lamb skin. Their trousers (shalwars) are wide at the top and narrow starting at the knee, and are usually gray or brown in color. On their feet they wear elegant red shoes with very high heels, making them appear much taller than they actually are; or instead of shoes they wear soft shoes without soles; Cossacks in Grebenskaya are also accustomed to them and call them “chiriki”.

A Circassian never goes out without a weapon, or at least without a saber, a dagger on his belt and without a soft felt cape on his shoulders, this cape is called “dzhako” in Circassian, “yamache” in Tatar, and “burka” in Russian " To complete the description of their weapons, it is necessary, in addition, to mention a rifle and a pistol, chain mail, a small helmet (kipha) or a large helmet (tash), plate gauntlets and elbow pads. When a Circassian goes out on horseback in full dress, for example, to make visits, he takes his bow and quiver of arrows; The Circassians are not familiar with the shield. The princes' arrows are decorated with white feathers taken from the tail feathers of an eagle; nobles and commoners do not have the right to decorate their arrows in this way under pain of severe punishment. One would think, seeing a warrior so overloaded with weapons, that his movements should be cramped and clumsy, but a Circassian on a horse with all these weapons is an example of the mobility, dexterity and excellent qualities of a rider.

During the war, the Circassians wear something like a cotton wool vest under their chain mail, the elasticity of which makes bullets bounce off the body even better. They buy the best chain mail in the village of Kubachi, in Dagestan; some, however, claim that chain mail of very good quality is also made in Abkhazia, on the Black Sea coast. However, the Black Sea Cossacks adapted to lifting the edge of their chain mail with the tip of a spear and piercing the Circassians with a pike at full gallop. The Circassians' weapons are usually excellent, but they are very expensive; a complete outfit, for example, for a prince costs at least two thousand silver rubles.

One of the main occupations of the Circassians is cleaning and putting weapons in combat order, so their weapons are always clean and sparkling. From early morning, the Circassian girds himself with a sword and a dagger and checks whether the rest of his weapons have been damaged by the night dampness. During hikes, they use a small saddle as a pillow, and they use a piece of felt under the saddle as a bed and cover it with a cloak. During bad weather they make a small tent of felt, which they stretch over tree branches; When traveling, they protect themselves from the rain by pulling a kind of hood called a “bashlyk” over their heads.

The Circassians receive the rest of their weapons from Turkey (at least they received them until 1830) and from Georgia; at the same time, they also have many ancient sabers and pistols of Venetian and Genoese work, which are at a great price. Since they have little flint for guns, most of it is supplied to them by the Russians. Like most other Caucasian peoples, the Circassians themselves produce “gin” gunpowder. In the mountains they mine saltpeter (“gin-khush” or “chin-khush”, that is, “powder salt”); they also make gunpowder by leaching the bedding of cattle pens.

The main value of the Circassians is their weapons; Although they are especially interested in the quality of the weapon itself, they are still partial to the rich decoration of the weapon. Their sabers (checkers), daggers, pistols, guns, harnesses, etc. are covered with ornaments made of silver and gold of excellent workmanship. The saddles and scabbards of the checkers are decorated with braid. They never sell their best weapons, and they are usually inherited from father to son. When they get European sabers, they harden them again and sharpen them in such a way that the width of the blade is reduced by one third and it loses all flexibility.

Women's clothing differs little from men's, except in color: women prefer white, while men never use either red for their caps or white in their clothing. Young women from princely and noble families wear a red cap under the veil, decorated on the front with a strip of black morocco with silver buttons, which suits them very well, and they braid their hair in many free-flowing braids. Their dresses are long, open in front, with fastenings on the chest to the waist, like the Turkish “anteri” (this dress, open in the front, is reminiscent of the hoods of our ladies). They wear wide shalwars and red morocco shoes without soles - “chiriki”, reminiscent of men's shoes of the same kind. Women from the common people wear hats of any color, with the exception of red, and instead of shoes they wear wooden sandals, and most often they just walk barefoot. When leaving the house, they put on a veil that hides their face.

Girls usually wear a long shirt, which is tied together with a ribbon or strip of leather instead of a belt; they have wide long trousers and red caps; They weave their hair into one braid, which lies freely on the back. Their festive attire consists of a half-caftan made of silk or cotton fabric, over which they wear long clothes made of cloth with open sleeves. The first type of clothing is lighter and more beautiful, since it outlines the slender and flexible figure and seductive forms that Circassian girls are so proud of. To maintain a girl’s figure, in princely and noble families, a girl at the age of ten is put on a corset on her bust, which remains on her until her wedding night, when her chosen one rips it open with a dagger. The corset is made of leather or morocco, it is equipped with two wooden planks on the chest, which, by putting pressure on the mammary glands, prevent it from developing; It is believed that this part of the body is an attribute of motherhood and it is shameful for a young girl to be allowed to see it. The corset also compresses very tightly the entire waist from the collarbones to the waist thanks to the rope that passes through the holes in the corset (sometimes silver hooks are used for this purpose); girls wear this corset even at night and take it off only when it is worn out, and then only to immediately replace it with a new one, just as tight. Thus, it turns out that a Circassian girl on her wedding day has the same bust as she had at the age of ten; Otherwise, the beautiful figure of Circassian women is preserved thanks to a modest life and frequent outdoor exercise, so that even peasant girls maintain a slender figure, although they do not wear leather corsets at all.

Girls are allowed to paint their nails with almost dark red paint, which the Circassians extract from a flower called “kina” (balsam) in Circassian.

In general, the Circassian idea of ​​beauty is to have broad shoulders, prominent chests and a thin figure. Men, although they put on several frock coats, one on top of the other, tighten their belts so as not to show a single flaw in their figure, and young people put on very tight chiriks to prevent their already small legs from growing.

Food

The food of the Circassians consists mainly of millet, milk, cheese and lamb. They rarely kill bulls for beef consumption. They eat millet in the form of porridge on water. They also make flour flatbreads from wheat or millet, called churek, which in Asia play the role of bread. In summer they eat game, in winter they eat mutton, either boiled or fried. From the millet they prepare a half-fermented drink called "fada" or "fada-khush", which means "white fada"; Tatars call this drink “braga”. Braga is a common drink. They consume cow's milk only in sour form; from it they also make good cheese and butter, always melted and unsalted. They also prepare a honey drink called “fada-plish”, or “red fada”, to which they add intoxicating honey. This drink leads to headaches and loss of consciousness for several hours, so it is drunk only on major holidays and in moderation. They drink little vodka. They do not prepare leavened bread; instead they use boiled unmilled millet, which after boiling is cut into thick pieces.

Khatlama is made in the same way, but from ground millet. If the millet is ground, which is rare, it is kneaded without yeast and cakes as thick as a finger are prepared - mejaga. The first of the three listed methods of preparing millet is the most common, because the Circassians have very few water mills; they grind the grain using pieces of oak wood, after the grain has already been lightly threshed using a flail. Finally, to make millet flour, the grain is ground using small hand mills with stone millstones, but not many homes have them.

Circassians season their dishes with long pepper, onion and garlic; they also love hard-boiled eggs, especially in a dish called “khinkali”, which is prepared from sour milk with the addition of a little butter, fresh cheese, noodles boiled in water (they resemble our pasta), hard-boiled eggs cut into 4 parts, onions and garlic. This delicacy is often prepared on the occasion of large feasts. “Shiraldash” - a flat cake - is made from wheat flour, eggs, butter and milk. “Haliva” are small pies made from the same dough, filled with fresh cheese and onions. All these dishes are quite tasty; people prefer to eat them with honey instead of sugar. Honey is often consumed with butter, this dish is called “tau-tgo”, it is used as a sauce for meat.

Commoners eat meat dipped in sour milk and consume little salt. "Taucus" is a drink made from water with honey.

When eating, Circassians usually sit on the ground with their legs tucked under them. Dishes are served on small tables on three legs, no more than a foot high and a foot and a half wide. Meat, cheese and bread cut into pieces are placed on them. They do not use plates, knives or forks.

A Circassian family never gathers at the table to eat together: the father and mother do it separately, as do the children, who are divided according to gender and age, and each goes to eat his portion in a separate corner. It is shameful for a Circassian to eat in front of a stranger, especially at the same table, so the owner of the house remains on his feet all the time.

When a Circassian goes on a raid, he takes with him provisions in a leather bag, which consists of millet flour and several pieces of smoked goat or lamb. He mixes a small amount of this flour with water, makes a flat cake and fries it by the fire, and then eats it with a small amount of smoked mutton or goat meat; This provisions is enough for a Circassian for two to three weeks; For comparison, let's say that this amount of provisions would hardly be enough for a Russian soldier for 2-3 days. But when the Circassians have a holiday or guests, they kill a bull, serve the table with whole roasted lamb, adding game or poultry to this, and gorge themselves to such a state that they are no longer able to eat anything else.

Dwellings

The dwellings of the Circassians are very simple and of lightweight construction; their houses - “sakli” - are built in the shape of a parallelogram, at the base of which there are thick pillars connected together by crossbars, and the space between them is covered with wicker walls, which are plastered on both sides; the roof is made of straw or reeds. The walls inside the room are whitewashed, in one corner there is a fireplace, and opposite there is a very low wooden sofa, covered with felt or carpet; weapons, chain mail and the like are hung above the sofa. On one side are stacked mattresses, bedding and other household essentials. This is the home of both the richest prince and the lowest peasant.

The habit of being almost constantly in the open air and in the rain taught the Circassian to be content with the most minimal shelter. Despite all this, the Circassians live much cleaner than other highlanders. Each Circassian, regardless of the degree of wealth, has a vast square yard in which three houses stand separately from each other: one is common, the other is for women, the third is for guests - “kunatskaya”. In auls, courtyards are spaced apart from each other; they are not stretched out in a line and do not form streets; on the contrary, they are randomly scattered. At both ends of the village there are two towers, wicker and coated with clay, climbing which the residents take turns performing guard duty. Circassian auls occupy a vast space, since houses, usually located in clusters located at a considerable distance from each other, stand far from one another. If there is too much garbage and manure in the village, residents move their houses to another place so as not to bother themselves with clearing their yards.

Agriculture

Since ancient times, Circassian princes and nobles have led the same way of life that feudal lords led in Europe before civilized times. Their only occupation is hunting and robbery, while their peasants cultivate the land, etc. Their economy can be divided into three main branches: agriculture, horse breeding and breeding of sheep and cattle, to which beekeeping can also be added.

The Circassians have many beehives, but since we have already talked in detail about beekeeping, we refer you to part one.

Agriculture

Farming among the Circassians is very primitive, since they do not fertilize the land. In the spring, the grass in the area to be sown is burned, and the ashes are the only type of fertilizer used; then the ground is plowed, seeds are sown and harrowed using tree branches with leaves on them. Their plow is similar to that used in Ukraine; Several pairs of oxen are harnessed to the plow. The same plot of land is cultivated for two or three years in a row, and when the land is depleted and harvests fall, they move to another plot. As soon as the land becomes scarce around the village with a radius of several miles, the residents with their belongings move to a new place, to hitherto unused plots of land.

The Circassians grow mainly millet, some spelled and “Turkish wheat”, or corn. They feed their horses with millet and eat it themselves instead of bread; millet is grown only in quantities necessary for own consumption; At the same time, they exchange millet for salt with the Russians; the Russians give them two measures of salt for one measure of grain. They mow wheat using ordinary sickles and thresh it using a board with a load placed on it, while harnessing bulls or horses to this “threshing machine,” as is done in Georgia and Shirvan. Straw mixed with bran or grain is fed to horses. As for wheat, it is placed in earthen pits coated with clay on the inside. They also grow turnips, beets, cabbage, onion, watermelons, pumpkins, in addition, each Circassian has a special plot where he grows tobacco.

During harvest and haymaking, princes and nobles, armed to the teeth, ride around their fields on horseback, both to supervise the work and to protect their peasants; for a month or two they remain in the fields, taking all possible military precautions.

Horse breeding

Since the Circassians are excellent horsemen, they pay a lot of attention to horse breeding. Each prince has his own small herd. The best breed is called “shalokh”, but the breed of horses of one old man from the Alty-Kesek tribe is in no way inferior to them; This breed is called "Tramkt". Circassian horses are of medium height, the color of most horses is bay or dapple gray; They don't have a black suit. This breed comes from purebred Arabian horses and Circassian mares; There are lovers who still buy purebred Turkish and Persian horses to maintain a herd. Circassians castrate stallions out of fear that they would give them away with their neighing during raids on enemy territory; That's why they ride only on geldings, which they teach to be calm. Circassian horses are known in Russia under the general name “mountain horses”; they are used to one degree or another in herds. Their main distinguishing qualities are lightness, fatigue resistance, and a very strong leg. Circassians never use horses under the age of five; until that time, they graze freely in the meadows and mountains, and saddle them only after reaching the required height and age. Horses of the Shalokh breed are distinguished by a special shape of the hoof, which does not have a notch at the back. Each herd has its own special mark, burned onto the horse’s skin and called “tavro” in Russian. Anyone who brands a horse with a false brand is subject to severe punishment. It should also be said that not all horses in Circassia are high-breed, as is usually imagined; Indeed, the best horses cost from 100 to 150 rubles, the rest - from 15 to 30 rubles; herd owners receive large incomes; they annually sell a large number of horses to Russia and Georgia.

Livestock

The Circassians keep large herds of cattle and sheep. The wealth of a family is estimated by the number of livestock. Cattle are small-sized, but strong and unpretentious. Bulls are harnessed to carts - “carts” and to a plow; they are also used for riding under saddle. Buffaloes are rare; for one buffalo they give from 12 to 18 rubles in silver; a buffalo replaces more than two bulls in work, and buffaloes provide more milk for butter production than ordinary cows.

Sheep make up almost the entire wealth of the Circassians and are the most important article in their economy; their meat is eaten without bread or salt. Circassian sheep are smaller than Kalmyk sheep, their skins are less beautiful, and their tails are less thick, rarely weighing more than two pounds.

Circassian sheep have lighter and more tasty meat than ours. Frequent consumption of lamb does not cause satiety. Sheep are milked and cheese is made from their milk; the milk is collected in bags, which are smoked, making the cheese denser and more compact and better preserved. In summer, sheep are driven to pasture in the mountains; in January and February they are kept in pens, “hooters,” where they are fed hay; during the rest of the year they are driven out to pastures in the valleys or foothills.

Goats are less numerous, they are usually brown in color, and are kept near villages. Residents of high mountain settlements, or, as the Circassians call them, “abadze” or “abaza” ( Circassians in the valleys despise their compatriots living in the highlands; if a lowland Circassian wants to insult his neighbor, he calls him “abaza.”), much poorer than the Circassians living in the valleys and foothills, and since they have no pastures, they keep only donkeys and goats, which feed on moss and leaves of bushes.

The Circassians keep chickens in their yard, the meat of which is very tender, as well as geese, ducks and turkeys of extraordinary size and beauty.

They also have cats and dogs in their homes. Circassians raise a wonderful breed of rabbits. Their religion does not allow them to keep pigs, and pigeons are nowhere to be seen.

Silkworm breeding

Recently, some Circassian tribes, including the Ubykhs, have begun breeding silkworms, especially since the mulberry tree is not uncommon in their area. The small amount of silk that they currently receive is used by the Circassian women for their own needs.

Viticulture

The lands occupied by the Ubykhs, Chepsons (one of the Shapsug tribes) and Gusies are blessed by nature because they give people a wide variety of fruits without requiring special labor from people. Among these gifts of nature there are also grapes, and in such extraordinary quantities that people usually do not bother to take care of picking them all down to the berry. Although the Circassians are Mohammedans, they do not strictly observe the laws requiring abstinence from alcohol, and, unlike their neighbors, the Abkhazians are very prone to alcohol. They make wine of mediocre taste and quality, as well as vodka, some varieties of which are close to French in their good qualities.

Hunting and fishing

Circassians devote a lot of time to hunting wild animals and birds, which are found in abundance in their forests and valleys. They eat their meat and sell their furs and skins to the Russians. In addition to deer, roe deer, wild boars and hares, in the forests of the Circassians there are bears, wolves, foxes, martens, and among the birds - partridge and pheasant, but the latter in small quantities. They pay little attention to fishing, especially since there are few rivers in their area where fish are found, so if they engage in fishing, it is only for their own consumption. The Circassians living at the mouth of the Kuban and on the sea coast are more involved in fishing.

Mining

Judging by the way of life of the Circassians, one would think that this people would have to engage in the development of mineral resources in the most serious way, since for them weapons are the only value and the main means of enrichment; however, since they have no idea about geological exploration and exploitation of mines, they use only such minerals with which metal can be obtained without much difficulty. On the territory of the Abedzekhs there is native iron in the form of coarse sand at the foot of Mount Nogokossogo; The Abedzekhs collect it and, without much difficulty, smelt it into ingots suitable for use for various purposes. In the depths of the Circassian soil there is also copper, lead and silver, but in small quantities. There is no doubt that these mountains contain rich deposits of metal ores, but until specialists have the opportunity to explore them in a calm environment, these riches will remain hidden in the depths of the mountains.

Language

The Circassian language is completely different from other known languages; the completely pure Circassian language is spoken in Greater and Lesser Kabarda and in the Besleneev tribe who live near Laba; other Circassian tribes, living beyond the Kuban and right up to the Black Sea coast, speak dialects that are more or less different from the indigenous language. Pronunciation in the Circassian language is one of the most difficult in the world, and it is impossible to fully express all the sounds in it using any of the alphabets known to me. Particularly difficult is that the language requires tongue clicking in many letters, which cannot be imitated, and has countless vowel and diphthong modifications. In a number of dialects, there are a large number of labial and palatal sounds that are pronounced with a whistle, and many consonants are pronounced in such a guttural voice that not a single European can make out and repeat “these sounds; all the more, it must be taken into account that inaccurate pronunciation or emphasis on a vowel can give the word a completely different meaning.

The Circassians have neither books nor manuscripts in their language; they have not the slightest idea of ​​writing; some pages of their history are covered in songs and in several ancient legends, mainly of a fairy-tale nature. In business, they resort only to the help of witnesses and an oath, which is given over some amulet or the Koran, which for Circassians who are not familiar with chicanery is quite enough for the scrupulous fulfillment of their obligations. Since they do not have developed and extensive connections, they rarely need any other way of conveying their thoughts other than spoken language, and if circumstances force them to do this, they resort to the help of a messenger or use written Arabic or Tatar languages; the latter is widespread throughout the Caucasus.

Religion

We have already said above that the Circassian tribes, like the Abkhazians, once professed the Christian religion (according to the Greek rite). The invasion of the Tatars and the influence of the Crimean khans on the peoples living in the Kuban region gradually led to the penetration of Islam. Despite the efforts of the Georgian kings in order to preserve the Christian religion among the Circassians and Ossetians, which coincided in time with the efforts of the Russian kings, who, starting from the time of Ivan Vasilyevich, often sent preachers to these regions, it was not possible to succeed in these plans due to the ignorance and bad behavior of some missionaries, as well as due to insurmountable obstacles erected by the Tatars. Nevertheless, the Circassians have always been inclined more in favor of the Christian religion, since they still have the ruins of ancient churches, which are still revered to this day as sacred and inviolable refuges. Not more than a century ago, the princes began to accept Mohammedanism, and the people began to follow their example, not having a sufficiently clear idea of ​​\u200b\u200bthis religion and its rituals due to the lack of preachers. In 1785, the false prophet Sheikh Mansur appeared among the Chechens. He was a dervish sent by the Ottoman Porte to the Caucasian mountaineers under the pretext of spreading Islam and with a secret mission to raise them to revolt against Russia. This fanatical dervish, who called himself a prophet, carried out his double mission with such zeal that after 6 years the Chechens and Circassians turned into zealous Mohammedans and were at that time in a state of open hostility with Russia. At this time they built mosques, and the number of their preachers increased significantly; these latter, called “qadi”, “mullah”, “imam”, acquired great influence both in the administration of justice and in resolving political issues. Circassians belong to the Sunni sect and, as a result, must decide all their affairs in accordance with the Koran, which for Muslims is both spiritual and secular law. At the same time, they have preserved their ancient customs, which constitute, so to speak, an unwritten civil code, which they strictly observe. The people as a whole are less committed to the Mohammedan religion than the princes and the Uzdeni, and there is no doubt that the people, if the opportunity arises, will willingly return to their former beliefs, which the princes and the Uzdeni do their best to prevent for fear that Russia might take over this region by establishing religious ties with their subjects.

Here are a few Circassian customs that indicate that they had a Christian religion.

When they are carrying loaded carts or transporting home harvested wheat, and when it happens that due to some circumstances they are forced by some circumstances to leave their carts or their stacks and they have no one left to guard them, they strengthen a wooden cross on the cart or on the stack in firm conviction, that no one will dare to touch them and that their property thus becomes inviolable.

The Circassians have many holidays in honor of the Blessed Virgin, which fall on the same days as the Russians, although they have absolutely no calendar and determine the day of the holiday in accordance with their customs. They call Thursday the Day of Lent, Friday the Day of Great Lent, and Sunday the Lord's Day; on these days they do not do any great work. It is known that some Circassians observe a long fast, similar to how the Russians do it, after which they have a holiday - the same as the Russians have Easter. On the occasion of this holiday, they give each other gifts, eat eggs - this is the only day of the year when women can pray to God together with men. Among other entertainments during this holiday is archery at a target, with the target being an egg, and the one who hits it receives a gift from the owner of the house. Circassians call this holiday the day of the appearance of God.

They also celebrate the first day of the new year, almost at the same time as we do. In every house where Islam has not yet completely triumphed, on one of the walls there is a tablet on which a towel is hung and a piece of wax is placed. On every holiday, Circassians make a candle, light it and pray in front of the tablet, kneeling with their heads uncovered. When the wax runs out, add more.

To ensure the loyalty of Christians or deserter soldiers who have gone over to the Circassians, they are forced to take an oath, which consists of the following: one of the elders of the settlement or a Christian brings the fugitive and, in the presence of many other residents of the settlement, draws a cross on the ground with his dagger, puts a pinch of earth on palm of the fugitive and obliges him to eat it.

Among the deities they worship and whose cult is mixed with the remnants of paganism, the main one is Merissa ( She is also called Mereim and is considered the mother of God. This is undoubtedly a corruption of the name Miriam, or Mary.), whose cult and whose name, quite possibly, have now turned out to be distorted.

She is mainly the patroness of bees. These people claim that at one time, when all the bees died, only one was saved, finding refuge in the sleeve of Merissa's dress. Merissa kept it, and then this one surviving bee gave birth to the existing (living) bees. Her holiday is celebrated in the summer.

The name of this Circassian deity undoubtedly came from the name of Melixa. It is not unusual that in a country where honey is one of the staple foods of the population, the insect that produces it is given a patroness. It may seem much more surprising that this Greek word took root among the Circassians.

Seozeres ( Seozeres, or Suzeres, was a great traveler, who controlled the winds and waters. This deity is the patron saint of sailors, and he is especially revered by those who live on the sea coast.) is personified in a young pear tree, which the Circassians cut down in the forest and which, after its branches are cut off in such a way that only branches remain, they bring it to their house and worship it as a deity. It is found in almost every home; towards the autumn, on the day of the Seozeres holiday, he is brought inside the house with great ceremonies to the noise of various instruments and the joyful cries of the inhabitants of the house, who greet him on the occasion of his happy arrival. It is decorated with small candles, and a wheel of cheese is placed on top; sitting around it, people drink buza, eat, sing, after which they say goodbye to it and move it into the courtyard, where it spends the rest of the year, leaning against the wall, without any signs of divine veneration. Seozeres is the patron of herds.

Tliebse - king, patron of blacksmiths. On the day of his holiday, libations are poured on a ploughshare and an ax.

Plers is the god of fire.

Mezitha is the god of forests.

Zekutha is the god of riders.

Shible - god of lightning.

Lightning is highly revered among the Circassians; they say that it is an angel who strikes the one whom he marks with his blessing for Eternity. If someone is killed by lightning, it is considered to be God's grace and the event is celebrated with great pomp; While mourning the deceased, his relatives at the same time congratulate each other on the honor that has befallen them. The dead are placed on a kind of platform and this event is celebrated for a whole week: those who surround the platform these days place the heads of bulls, rams and goats at its base, which are sacrificed to the god Shibla. Later, the skin of a black goat or goat is placed on the grave of the deceased. In addition, once a year a festival is held in honor of all those who have died killed by lightning; During the holiday, sacrifices are made to the god Shibla. Circassians come out in droves from their homes when they hear the thunder produced by the angel of lightning on his heavenly path, and if time passes and he still does not appear, they say loud prayers, asking him to appear.

Among the Circassians there are tribes that worship the sun, as well as the above-mentioned deities in sacred groves; These places are forbidden, and the murderer cannot seek refuge there from the revenge of the relatives of the murdered man.

From all that has been said above, it is clear that the Circassian tribes have: the Mohammedan religion, which is dominant; some rituals of the Christian religion, rituals of the cult of Zoroaster and, finally, pagan customs. Ancient pagan customs are increasingly forgotten and disappearing. Depending on the time and circumstances, it is to be expected that either Islam will take even deeper roots there, or the Christian religion will again be adopted by all these peoples.

Lifestyle

The occupations of prominent representatives of the peoples living in these regions are hunting and military exercises; they often go on trips for several days into the forests and mountains, where their only food is a small amount of millet, which they take with them. This way of life is so attractive to them that they do not want to change it, and they will willingly give up everything just to maintain this state of freedom and independence. There are many examples that princes who were brought up in Russia completely forget the habits they acquired as soon as they return to their homeland, and begin to lead exactly the same way of life as their compatriots, who consider military service shameful, and their free vagabond life the highest happiness. As a rule, Circassians do not like work, and their main occupations are war, hunting and robbery. He who excels in this is the most respected among them. When they are going on a predatory raid, they use a special language among themselves, determined between them. The two most common jargons among them are “shakobshe” and “farshipse”. The first of them seems to be original, since it has nothing in common with the Circassian language (at least, this is Klaproth’s opinion). Men always travel on horseback, and women in two-wheeled carts drawn by oxen.

Division into classes

The Circassian nation is divided, in essence, into five classes: the first consists of princes, called in Circassian “pshekh” or “pshi”, and in Tatar - “run” or “beat”, which were previously called in Russian acts only as "owners", that is, lords, but who received the title of prince.

The second class consists of the workki, or ancient nobles, whom the Tatars and Russians call “uzdeni”.

The third class is the freedmen of princes and uzdens, who thereby became uzdens, but who, with regard to military service, always remain subordinate to their former masters.

The fourth class includes the freedmen of these new nobles, and the fifth class includes the serfs, called thokotli in Circassian, and serfs in Russian; these latter are divided into ploughmen, shepherds and domestic servants of the upper classes.

Previously, the number of princes was much greater than at present, which is explained by the enormous devastation that the plague caused among this people. Each branch of the princely houses has in its dependence various families of uzdens, who consider their peasants as property, the right to inherit which was transferred to them by their ancestors, since these peasants do not have the right to move from one uzden to another. The prince, therefore, is the lord-suzerain of his nobles, and they, in turn, act as lords of their serfs. The peasants do not pay their bridle a fixed quitrent: in practice, they must supply him with everything he needs, but here we are talking about basic necessities, since if the bridle burdens his serf too much, he risks losing it forever.

The same is true in the relations between princes and nobles: the former demand what they need, but nothing more than what they absolutely need. If this order needs to be given any legal definition, this system can be called aristocratic-republican, although, in truth, there is no system there, since everyone does what he pleases. In former times, the power of the Circassian princes also extended to the Ossetians, Chechens, Abazas and Tatar tribes who lived in the highlands near the sources of Chegem, Baksan, Malka and Kuban, but now their influence has almost completely disappeared as a result of the gradual successes of Russia; nevertheless, the Circassian princes still considered themselves as masters of these peoples.

Among them, the elders are most respected; therefore, when the need arises to decide some important matter, the oldest of the princes, uzdens and even the richest peasants gather to express their judgment; These meetings usually take place with great noise and verbosity. They have no permanent court, no sentences, no written laws. The punishments that we will talk about further are established by ancient customs.

Custom requires that princes should make gifts to their nobles from time to time; both these gifts themselves, and the stories about the motives and circumstances under which these gifts were presented, are passed on from father to son - both in the family of the recipient and in the family of the giver. If the bridle refuses to obey its prince without sufficient reasons, he is obliged to return all gifts received by him and his ancestors. The Uzdeni are obliged to follow their prince to war whenever he requests it, and to supply him with as many of their subjects as auxiliary troops as they can. If the prince, due to excessive expenses or due to a combination of circumstances, incurs debts, his bridle is obliged to pay them. The prince, like the nobleman, has the right to control the life and death of his serfs and can even, at his own discretion, sell those employed in his household services. Serfs very often gain freedom, and then they are called “begauliya”. In this case, they are obliged to carry out the orders of their former master, directed against the nobles and serfs.

Serfs employed in agriculture cannot be sold separately; Serfs are required to pay debts and fines for thefts committed by their bonds. During the war, the prince commands troops and, surrounded by his bridles and servants, launches raids into Russian territory or against his neighbors.

Previously, before Islam spread among the Circassians, any prince or son of a prince had the right to take a sheep from each herd that was driven out to pasture in the spring, and a sheep from each herd when they returned from the mountain pastures in the fall. He also received a sheep whenever he spent the night near a flock during his travels. If he approached a herd of horses, he had the right to choose the horse he liked, saddle it and use it as much as he pleased. If he spent the night with a herd, he could demand a foal, which he ate along with his retinue, since these peoples still maintain the custom of eating horse meat, but they choose for this a horse that is killed, and abstain from the meat of a horse that has died from illness. The skin of a horse or sheep belongs to the one who cooks the food.

Such were the rights of princes from the most remote times, they were so. as expensive as their way of life; however, they were forced to renounce part of their rights with the adoption of the Mohammedan religion. Since that time, the customs of the people have changed in many respects. The Circassians, like all uncivilized nations, abused vodka and ate pork, especially wild boar meat: this animal is often found in their area and serves as the main target for hunting. At present they abstain from drinking vodka and pork; many of them, instead of the previously generally accepted mustaches, now also began to grow a beard...

Manners and customs

A firmly established order in the house plays the role of missing laws among the Circassians, as is usually the case among uncivilized peoples. Blind obedience to parents and deep respect for elders is observed in the most scrupulous manner among these peoples. A son has no right to sit in the presence of his father, nor can a younger brother allow himself to sit in the presence of an elder; they cannot talk to elders in the presence of a stranger. In the same way, young people who are in the company of older people do not dare to speak loudly or laugh; they are obliged to respectfully answer questions addressed to them. Custom requires that everyone rise when an older man or woman appears, even if they are of lower rank. You can sit down only when the person for whom everyone stood up gives permission with the word “tize”, i.e. “sit down”. Here they never neglect this rule and even in the family they remain zealous guardians of this inconvenient custom.

In their private life, the Circassians are not a bad people, not devoid of common sense; they are hospitable, helpful, generous, moderate and modest in food and drink, constant in friendship, brave and enterprising in war. However, these positive qualities are opposed by a considerable number of vices: they are generally distrustful and suspicious, if offended or insulted, they are subject to outbursts of terrible anger and can only think about revenge. When successful, they are filled with pride and are generally quite vain, especially princes who are proud of their origin and do not want to admit that anyone can be their equal. They show great interest and a penchant for robbery, which in the language of the mountaineers is called “to live skillfully and have dexterity.” The requirements for the prince are the following: respect for old age, impressive appearance and physiognomy with regular features, physical strength and especially fearlessness; one who does not possess these qualities cannot count on the respect of his fellow tribesmen and power.

It remains incomprehensible how these peoples, for whom freedom is the greatest of goods, can go so far as to sell their children. A father has this right in relation to his children, a brother - in relation to his sister, if they are left without parents; Likewise, a husband can sell his wife who is caught in infidelity. Often, being sold is the only desire of a young girl, confident that she will be able to take a place in a harem somewhere in Turkey. Some of them, after several years in the harem, received freedom and returned to their homeland with a small fortune. However, princes extremely rarely sell their children: this is usually done by the poor, or rather, they did, since this shameful trade was stopped after the signing of the Peace of Adrianople.

As for Circassian women, they, as a rule, are not devoid of intelligence, they have a vivid imagination, they are capable of great feelings, they are vain and proud of the glory of their husbands gained in battles. They have gentle morals, are charming in their manners, submissive, hardworking, love to dress up, but are very jealous of what is said about them, and love to chat when they get together.

Upbringing

In accordance with a custom that has been preserved from ancient times, princes do not have the right to raise their sons either in their own home or under their supervision, but must give them up to be raised in someone else’s house as early as possible, almost from birth. Each bridle does everything possible to ensure that preference is given to him, and the one who is chosen by the prince views this event as a sign of special trust. The teacher chosen in this way is called atalyk; he must train, clothe, feed his pupil until the day when he is to be returned to his father's house, which, as a rule, happens no earlier than he reaches maturity, and his education is considered completed.

Education consists of various kinds of physical exercises designed to develop strength and dexterity - this is horse riding, learning the art of theft, military campaigns, archery, rifle, pistol, and the like. The pupil is also taught eloquence and the ability to reason sensibly, which should help him gain due weight at public meetings. From a very young age, the atalyk accustoms his pupil to exercises that harden his body and develop his dexterity; for this purpose, he makes small forays with him for prey, teaches him to deftly steal first from his peasants a ram, a cow, a horse; and later sends him to his neighbors to steal their livestock and even people. Since throughout the Caucasus members of princely families are inviolable for the lower classes, not only on their own, but also on enemy territory, it is not surprising that young princes take advantage of this widely and do not encounter insurmountable obstacles in carrying out their mischief. If the young prince is pursued during his raid by people among whom there is not one of the princely families, they do not dare to attack him, but only ask him to show mercy and return what he seized from them; In this way they often manage to get back what they stole; but if a prince is among the pursuers, it ends in battle, and often in murder. It is known that Circassians often respond to complaints from their neighbors about banditry raids in this way: “Our young daredevils probably did this.”

All booty that the pupil manages to capture belongs to his teacher. Until the education is completed, the father can only occasionally see his son, and it would be a great shame for him to speak to him in the presence of a stranger. When the pupil has finally reached adolescence, or, as the Circassians say, he has mastered the art of the warrior, the teacher returns his ward to the parental home and hands him over to his father in the presence of all relatives; After this, a magnificent feast is arranged, and the teacher receives an honorable reward.

Until his death, Atalyk enjoyed great respect from the entire family of his pupil, and he was accepted as one of the family members. Previously, the Crimean sultans were always brought up by the Circassians, and due to the friendly ties they maintained with the Circassians, they found refuge in their region if they were dissatisfied with their khan. In the same way, the princes of Greater Kabarda willingly give their sons to be raised by the bridles of Little Kabarda in order to establish connections with them and thereby be able to weaken the power of the princes of Little Kabarda.

The sons of Uzdeni remain in the parental home until they are three or four years old; after this they are given a tutor, who does not necessarily have to be of the same rank; parents do not pay either the expenses of the teacher or the maintenance of their child, but as long as the pupil is with his mentor, the bridle gives him the best part of the booty that he can capture during robber raids or in war. Previously, Circassians and Kabardians married at the age of thirty or forty; now they marry at fifteen to twenty, and girls are given in marriage at the age of twelve to sixteen; a girl over eighteen years of age has little hope of getting married.

Children of common people are brought up in the home of parents or foster parents - people of the same status. They are accustomed to the work of a plowman rather than to the art of a warrior; this is done for political reasons - so that they do not become dangerous to their princes, who seek to keep them in the position of slaves.

Peasants are quite often taken on robbery raids or military campaigns, but this happens in extreme cases and is done in order to increase the number of warriors; since the peasants have neither good small arms nor the ability to use them; they are never born warriors, unlike their princes and nobles.

Among princes, representatives of the fair sex are also raised outside the parental home; The wives of the bridles are meticulously involved in their upbringing; They keep their pupils in blind obedience and teach them sewing with gold and silver and other handicrafts. They (i.e. girls) do not dare to speak to strangers, with the exception of their parents, but they are not subject to seclusion and are allowed, out of politeness, to answer a few words to a stranger if he addresses them, but at the same time they must stand half-turned and with lowered eyes .

Young people of both sexes, with the exception of the offspring of princely families, communicate freely with each other in public places in the presence of their parents; they spend time dancing, competitions and various games; In this way they get to know each other in the manner of the ancient Spartans.

Marriages

No nation has a more developed sense of noble pride than the Circassians, and therefore there are never cases of unequal marriage. The prince marries only the prince's daughter, and children born out of wedlock can never inherit the prerogatives of their fathers, unless at a minimum they marry legitimate princesses; in this case they become princes of the third rank.

Since the Abkhazians had previously been subordinate to the Circassians, their princes were considered as Uzdeni of the Circassians: they could only marry the daughters of Circassian Uzdeni, who, in turn, could marry Abkhazian princesses. A prince who marries a noblewoman covers himself with less disgrace than a prince who marries his daughter to a nobleman.

The dowry, in Tatar - kalym, or as they say here - bash, reaches 2000 silver rubles for the princes and is paid either in money or in captives, serfs, weapons or livestock. The bride's dowry depends on the father, who determines it at his own discretion and transfers it to the groom along with the bride; however, the main gift, which is considered part of the dowry, is made after the birth of the first child. Along with the gift, the young woman’s father gives her a headband and a veil, which form an integral part of a married woman’s outfit.

When a young man intends to marry, he informs his parents and friends about it; for this purpose he gathers them all together; they give him gifts of weapons, horses, bulls and other items. His friends, summoned by the young man, go to the house of the one he is seeking to inform the girl’s father and brothers about the young man’s intentions; they negotiate conditions with relatives, and the groom can thus get his chosen one immediately after paying the bash.

If the groom is not able to pay the entire bash at once, he can pay it gradually after marriage. It must be said that the groom can act without intermediaries and steal his bride, and the latter’s father and brothers do not have the right to take her away from him, but he still must pay the bash - either immediately or gradually. This last method of getting a wife is the most common and has nothing shameful in their eyes. A young man comes to steal his beloved, accompanied by a friend, who puts the bride on his horse and himself sits on the back of the rump. Thus, all three of them gallop to the home of one of their relatives. A friend introduces the bride there, who is immediately arranged in a room intended for newlyweds. Alone, she patiently awaits her future, keeping the fire burning as the only source of light. Only when everyone in the house is believed to have fallen asleep does the friend look for a young husband in the forest to bring to her. The groom, before surrendering to the joys prepared by the Lord for the union of the spouses, rips open the corset with a dagger, which his wife has been wearing since she was ten years old, and which was discussed above.

No other ceremony, except for some entertainment, serves to legitimize marriage. At dawn the next day, the husband leaves his wife, who must move to a separate house built for her by her husband at home, where from now on he will see her only at night and under the greatest secrecy, since appearing in public with his wife is considered a kind of dishonor. Only commoners live with their wives when they are old.

The custom of not seeing their wives at all is not at all caused by the Circassians’ contempt for the fair sex; rather, it may seem that, on the contrary, this custom was invented in order to prolong the reign of love between spouses, just as the difficulties experienced by lovers who dream of belonging to each other often contribute to the prolongation of their illusions...

The price for a bride is up to 30 bash for princes and nobles and about 18 bash for the common people. This is the price for princes and nobles:

1. Boy.

2. One chain mail.

4. Combat gloves and elbow pads.

5. One checker.

6. Eight bulls.

7. A horse equal in value to at least two bulls (but if there is a better one, the best one must be given).

8. Ordinary horse.

These first eight bash are mandatory and strictly required; as for the remaining twenty-two, they are usually paid in the form of twenty oxen, a gun and a pistol.

The main bashi for commoners are as follows:

1. The best horse.

2. A gun with a silver notch.

3. Two bulls.

4. Twenty rams and ten goats.

5. A copper cauldron worth at least two bulls.

6. Ordinary horse.

The remaining bashi may be replaced and paid in the form of cattle at least three years old; one head of cattle in this case is equal to one bash.

It is very rare for Circassians to have more than one wife, although their religion allows them to have several. Marriages are concluded between equals in status, as we said above; Having got married, a woman becomes completely subordinate to her husband, and from then on her working life begins - the lot of Circassian women, for which her parents prepare her in advance.

The young prince's tutor selects a bride for him and organizes her theft, at least if he has no other affection or she has not yet been given to another. If two rival candidates meet, they fight among themselves or their friends fight for them to decide who gets the girl.

It was already said above that a Circassian can see his wife only at night; if they happen to meet during the day, they immediately turn in opposite directions - a custom that is very favorable to amorous stories and makes women a target for seducers. The suitor caught in the act must pay an amount corresponding to the degree of insult inflicted on the husband. The husband does not dare to encroach on the life of his rival, since in this case he will have to pay for his death to his relatives. As for a woman who has committed adultery, her husband cuts off her hair and the sleeves of her dress and sends her in this form on a horse to her parents, who kill or sell her. There are also such barbaric husbands who cut off the nose or ears of an offending wife, but few of them decide on such extremes, which entail a payment to which the wife’s family may (have the right) claim and which can be very significant depending on the injuries caused . If a young husband notices that his wife is not a virgin, he immediately sends her to her parents and keeps the bride price, and her relatives sell or kill the girl.

There are two types of divorce: sometimes a husband separates from his wife b presence of witnesses and leaves the bride price to her parents - in this case she can remarry; but if he simply commands her to leave him, he still has the right to take her back after a year. If he does not take her back after two years, the father or in-laws go to the husband to get a valid divorce, after which the ex-wife can remarry someone else.

No matter how terrible the tyrannical power of a man over a woman in Asia may seem in Europe, it should be recognized as necessary for the preservation of the order that exists in the home of the Circassians. The husband is the master and judge of his wife, she is the first slave in the house: it is the wife who cooks food, makes felt, sews clothes for men, and often it is she who cares for her husband’s horse and saddles him. The husband has the right to life and death of his wife and is responsible for this only to her parents; whether because these customary laws have so influenced morals, or because the Circassians have many personal virtues, it is known that men almost never have to resort to their rights in this sense. At the same time, the fair sex, although doomed to a working life, is by no means condemned here to eternal imprisonment, as is the case among the Turks and Persians; they freely receive guests of both sexes, with the exception of young women, who in the first years of marriage have no right to leave their home. If the wife receives guests of one sex or another, the husband has no right to be present. Girls are allowed to attend all holidays, which they decorate with their presence. Inquiring about the health of your wife or daughters is considered indecent and can even be perceived as an insult. This is allowed only to close relatives of the wife, who should not ask such questions in the presence of strangers.

Women's influence

Not only do Circassian women have a reputation for being astonishingly beautiful and exemplarily faithful, they also enjoy an important privilege that flows from the moral code of this people: we want to speak of the respect and even veneration that the Circassians have for the right of protection and mediation that belongs to women. If a woman with flowing hair without a veil rushes into the thick of the fighting, the bloodshed stops, and all the sooner if this woman is of advanced age or from a famous family. It is enough for a man who is being pursued by enemies to take refuge in a women’s room or for him to touch a woman for him to become inviolable. In a word, no punishment, no revenge, much less murder, can be committed in the presence of women; they are postponed until another occasion. At the same time, between persons of the same position it is considered shameful to put oneself under the protection of the fair sex, therefore it is resorted to only in extreme cases and in order to avoid inevitable death.

Friendship

In the Caucasus Mountains, to define friendship there is a special word - “kunak”, or friend, and among the Circassians it means the same thing as a brother among the Bosniaks or a godbrother among the ancient Prussians, that is, a friend for whom they are ready to sacrifice all their fortune and even life itself. If one kunak is visiting another, he is treated in the best possible way, everything that the owner has is placed at his disposal, who supplies him with everything he needs, and if he is not able to satisfy the kunak’s needs, the owner invites him to robbery and gives him everything he can steal. This strange manner of providing help to one’s kunak at the expense of someone else has existed among all the peoples of the Caucasus since the most distant times and lies at the basis of their political relationships. Indeed, everyone tries to have a kunak in distant lands, to whose help he can resort if necessary; Thus, through these individual connections, all the most diverse peoples are brought together, or at least have the opportunity to do so. The best way for a traveler (a mountaineer, not a European) who intends to cross the interior regions of the Caucasus without being robbed is choose a good kunak, who can always be found for a reasonable fee and who will guide the traveler everywhere, being responsible for his life and property. Despite the fact that there is a big difference between the kunak, betrayed for money (in Circassian it is called “gache”), and the strong, deeply friendly ties that unite the mountaineers under the same name, custom nevertheless requires that the kunak, acquired at a price money, protected the one who trusted him, at the cost of his own life, if he did not want to lose his reputation, which serves as reliable protection for travelers from any attack from the mountaineers, who usually try to get prey without risking their own lives.

The Russians living in the areas bordering the Caucasus ridge, and especially the Cossacks on the Line, have kunaks among the Circassians, Chechens and other nationalities with whom they maintain friendly relations in times of peace.

Anyone who wants to travel in the interior of the country of the Circassians must first meet someone from this people, who, taking the traveler under his protection, will lead him through the territory of the tribe to which he himself belongs, providing him with shelter and food throughout the journey together with him: in this case, the patron and the protected receive the title of gacha. If the traveler wants to move on, his gache entrusts him to one of his friends of another tribe through whose territory the traveler intends to pass; he becomes the new gache of the traveler, etc. Thus, any mountaineer traveler, guarded by his gache, can safely cross the entire country inhabited by the Circassians, and even the entire Caucasus, without making any expenses, with the exception of gifts that he as a sign gratitude should be given to each of his gacha.

Hospitality

Just like all, in general, mountain peoples, hospitality is one of the first virtues of the Circassians. They welcome foreigners with a kind heart and cordially provide shelter to all travelers, not to mention their friends. The wandering life and chivalrous spirit characteristic of the Circassians apparently gave rise to this sacred law of hospitality. From the moment a stranger enters a Circassian house, he enjoys all the rights of a guest there, that is, he is under the special protection of the owner of the house, who is obliged to feed the guest, put him to bed, take care of his horse and lead him along a reliable road or, in in case of danger, take him to one of his friends in the nearest settlement.

The arrival of a guest or traveler is a pleasant event in the house for all its inhabitants; everyone tries to be useful to the guest and strives with all his heart to fulfill his duties. It often happens that acquaintance arising from the obligations of hospitality develops into friendship, and the owner of the house and the traveler become kunaks. But, on the other hand, if the same guest a little later meets by chance with someone who just recently treated him so kindly, he may be left without luggage, or even in captivity of his former hospitable host, and all this is done without undue scrupulousness .

Controversy. The price of blood

Circassians do not tolerate insults or crude epithets addressed to them. If this happens between two princes or nobles, they challenge each other to a duel, but a person of lower birth or a peasant may pay with his life. They usually observe great politeness in their speeches, especially towards high-ranking persons; Although they are people of strong passions, in dealing with each other they try (to hide them) to be self-controlled. At their social meetings, where there is often quite heated debate, they maintain decorum until they are threatened, and often these threats are translated into action. Among the insults there is also the word “thief”, but here it rather means the ineptitude of someone in this occupation, the one who allowed himself to be caught red-handed, or admitted to theft. Among the expressions they resort to, there is one that is worth quoting: “God grant that you don’t know what to do and don’t want to listen to anyone’s advice...”

Here neither the time nor the place of the duel is set - where two rivals meet for the first time after a quarrel, they dismount from their horses, take pistols from their belts, and the one who was insulted shoots first; his attacker shoots after him. If it happens that a meeting between two rivals takes place in the presence of persons of higher position, then, out of respect for them, the rivals shoot in the air, and the duel is thus postponed until the next meeting. If one of the two rivals is killed, his opponent must go into hiding and seek refuge from the blood feud. This law of revenge is the same as that existing among the Arabs, and is called in Circassian “thluasa,” that is, “the price of blood”; among the Tatars it is called “kanglekh” (from the word “kan” - blood). This law exists among all Caucasian peoples and is a common cause of wars occurring between them.

Their indomitable hatred of the Russians is partly explained by precisely these motives, since blood feud is passed on from father to son and extends to the family of the one who first drew upon himself the effect of this law by committing murder.

Entertainment

Horse racing and dancing are the main ways of spending time among the Circassians. For them, horse racing means a competition to be the first to reach the intended goal, or military exercises, which are shooting at a target with a rifle, pistol or bow in a full quarry, throwing a “jerida” - a light stick three feet long and other exercises. designed to demonstrate the dexterity and accuracy of the rider and the quality of his horse. There are reckless riders who train their horses to rush at full speed from a steep bank into the water or make fatal jumps from steep cliffs, and this is done without the slightest stop, while galloping. Such things, which every time endanger the life of the rider and his horse, very often help them out in extreme circumstances, saving them from imminent death or capture.

Circassian dances, performed to music on a kind of violin with three strings, in the Asian spirit, are rather sad and inexpressive: the steps consist of small jumps, but it must be said that the position of the legs, almost always turned inward, makes them very difficult. According to Pallas's observation, one of their dances is very reminiscent of the Scottish one. Two dancers face each other with their arms turned back and perform jumps and various movements with their legs with amazing dexterity and ease; at this time, the audience beats the rhythm with their palms and chants as follows: “A-ri-ra-ri-ra.”

Their other musical instruments are something like the harmonic and the Basque drum. Their songs are no more cheerful than their dances, although some of them are quite pleasant. Their songs do not rhyme and often serve to praise good deeds and condemn vices. Circassian women and girls often spend evenings together, busy with their needlework and singing songs.

Diseases

The main diseases among the Circassians, as well as among mountain peoples in general, are ophthalmia and cataracts, which lead to blindness. These diseases should be attributed to the refraction of the sun's rays in summer during the great heat in the mountains covered with snow, which leads to blindness and inflammation of the eyes of the population. From time to time, the territory inhabited by the Circassians is also subject to epidemics of fever and plague; The Turks constantly bring the plague to the Circassians. Smallpox also kills a large number of people, since Circassians do not vaccinate against it, although, for example, in Georgia this has been practiced for a long time. They are treated for headaches by tying a scarf tightly to the forehead and not removing the bandage until the headache goes away.

They do not know the diseases that come from an idle and disorderly life. Noise is made in the patient's room, while the healer, sitting with an important air at the patient's bedside, utters just one or two words from time to time. His place is sacred, and when he rises, no one takes it. Anyone who tries to commit sacrilege and take the place of a healer will have to pay him a significant sum. Patients are treated with the help of amulets and folk remedies. To cure certain types of fever, the patient is sent to sleep for several nights at the ruins of ancient monuments and ancient graves, as they believe in their healing power.

For the wounded, the ceremony is somewhat different. There should be no weapons in his room, and a bowl of water in which an egg is placed is placed on the threshold of his house. Before entering the house of a wounded person, you should knock on the plowshare three times. Boys and girls play at the entrance to the wounded man’s home and sing songs composed in his honor. This custom of making noise in a sick person’s room can also be observed among some other peoples, more or less civilized than the Circassians; they claim that this is necessary in order to expel evil spirits from the room. For the treatment of wounds, ulcers and similar diseases they have excellent means, the art of making which is passed down in the family from father to son. Their veterinarians are quite famous for their skill in treating horses. To the above, it should be added that Circassians very rarely live to a ripe old age.

Funeral

On the occasion of the death of a father or husband, the whole family expresses their grief: women let out heartbreaking screams, scratch their faces and chests until they bleed; men consider it shameful to cry, especially to shed tears for their wives, but sometimes the relatives of the deceased beat themselves on the head with a whip to show their grief, and the bruises symbolizing their grief remain visible for a long time. The dead are buried according to Mohammedan custom, with their faces facing Mecca; the deceased, completely wrapped in white cloth, is escorted on his last journey by the closest relatives of both sexes. Upon arrival at the cemetery, the deceased is lowered into the grave without a coffin; sometimes something like a vault is built from tree branches, which are then covered with earth; Large flat stones are placed on top of the grave. Previously, everything that belonged to him, as well as gifts he received from his relatives and friends, were put into the grave along with the deceased; Nowadays this is done extremely rarely. For a year the bed of the deceased and his weapons are preserved with the most zealous religious care in the same place where they were during his life. Relatives and friends visit the grave at certain times and express their pain and sorrow there by beating themselves on the chest. The widow should show signs of the greatest despondency. Circassians wear mourning (black clothing) for a whole year; Mourning is not observed for those killed in battles against the Russians, since they are believed to go straight to heaven. At the funeral, the mullah reads several passages from the Koran, for which he receives a rich reward. In addition, he usually also receives one of the best horses of the deceased. For the graves of people from wealthy families, an elevated place is chosen or a mound is poured over their grave, which is decorated with large long stone slabs of rectangular, pentagonal, hexagonal, etc. shapes. Small vaulted chapels covered with tiles or tiles are also built.

These graves were described in detail by Gyldenstedt, Pallas and Klaproth, to whom we refer the reader on this subject.

Science

The Circassians have absolutely no written language of their own. Since they adopted Islam, they have used the Arabic alphabet and write in the Tatar dialect, called “Türkü,” which is widespread among them; The Arabic alphabet is not suitable for writing words in their language due to the presence of a large number of diphthongs, guttural sounds, clicking of the tongue, and so on, as we have already discussed above.

Judging by what has been written about the upbringing and way of life of this people, it is impossible to imagine that they had a penchant for science; they have neither the desire nor the time to do this. Many of their princes can neither read nor write. All their scientific knowledge, limited to the ability to interpret the Koran, is concentrated in the hands of the clergy.

On the other hand, it would be very easy to educate this people, given their natural inclinations and intellectual abilities, if their prejudice against all kinds of science could be eradicated. The proof of this is that many Circassian and Kabardian princes learned to read and write in Russian, so to speak, without anyone’s participation or help, and speak this language so purely and with such correct pronunciation that they can be mistaken for real Russians.

Trades

The number of trades among this people is limited by their small needs. Within the home, everything that is necessary for its inhabitants is produced. The women there are mainly engaged in making cloth from light yarn, reminiscent of flannel, as well as burkas, felts, carpets, caps (hats), shoes (chiriki), gold and silver braid for decorating outerwear (chekmen) and headdresses, scabbards and cases for sabers, rifles and pistols.

Like the representatives of the noble families described by Homer, women in the Circassian princely house are not exempt from these works; on the contrary, for them it is an honor to become famous for their skill among other women. They spin long threads from the wool of wild goats, but do not make fabrics from this yarn, probably because woolen fabrics are not widespread.

The men do carpentry, assemble guns, cast bullets, make pretty good gunpowder, and the like. They also make furniture and other household items without using a single piece of metal. Their saddles and other leather goods are famous for their durability and lightness, so the Cossacks on the Line try to acquire frames from Circassian saddles (archegs). Like all mountaineers, the Circassians make belts by tearing raw ox or goat skin into long strips, which they attach at one end to a tree or some other object, and then stretch between two wooden blocks, which they squeeze tightly with their hands. After repeated repetition of this operation, the belt becomes as soft as if it were made of the best tanned leather, and so strong that it is almost impossible to break. Blacksmithing and precious metal work are the only branches which are in the hands of a small number of professional craftsmen; the first make axes, knives, nails, horse bits, arrowheads and beautiful daggers. Gold and silversmiths decorate weapons, powder flasks, belts, etc. with gold and silver. The perfection of this type of work, the beauty and harmony of the design, which they reproduce using acid niello on metal, is difficult to imagine.

Income

The income of the Circassian princes comes from the sale of captives, horses, cattle and in the form of taxes that they receive from their vassals and peasants. Uzdeni also have their own income, but they do not collect taxes; but they receive all the profits from agriculture, bearing in mind that they own most of the cattle, sheep and horses; The princes consider it shameful for themselves to engage in such work. The prince annually receives from each peasant family a ram and some provisions intended for his house, since the pride of any prince requires that he always have a table ready to receive guests. In addition to these proceeds, he also receives small amounts of money from the sale of captives and horses. The rich Circassian princes show absolutely no interest in their goods. Their property and wealth consist of a beautiful horse, good weapons and that imaginary happiness that depends on the successful outcome of the campaigns and robber raids they undertake.

Laws

The Circassians have no written laws, with the exception of the Koran, which, no matter what people it was compiled for, is still applicable here in many cases. But the qadi’s verdict is not final for the Circassian to the same extent as for the Turk. To resolve the matter fairly, warriors are gathered here and a battle is organized, otherwise this verdict will remain invalid for two powerful opponents. The laws that are much more respected by the Circassians are their ancient (customary laws) laws of customary law, which we will try to list below:

1. The prince has the right to subject one of his bridles to the death penalty for a very serious crime or to deprive him of the right of ownership of his peasants, herds and all his property.

2. The prince has the right to order the death of one of his peasants for treason, insubordination or insolent behavior, or instead to destroy his house and sell his entire family. This last measure of punishment, being more profitable, could lead to abuses on the part of the princes if revenge on the part of the peasant were not considered a disgrace for the prince.

3. The prince has no right to interfere in the affairs of his bridle, provided that the latter fulfills the duties of a vassal, pays taxes, and his peasants do not complain to the prince about him for oppression.

4. Uzden can leave his prince along with his entire family, but in this case he loses his property and fortune. Peasants have no right to leave their masters, but they sometimes do so, driven to despair by oppression. To resolve these domestic troubles and restore peace, an arbitration court is created from among the princes, uzdens and elders of the people, which makes its decision. If both parties come to some form of agreement, they take a solemn oath to forget the past; On this occasion, there are other local customs, such as sacrificing a ram, after which everyone must touch the bloody blade of the dagger with which the sacrifice was made with their tongue.

5. The prince has the right to grant freedom to his peasant and make him a bridle as a reward for his services.

6. If a bridle kills a peasant who does not belong to him, he pays a fine of nine slaves.

7. If someone decides to attack someone’s kunak, he must give the owner of the house in which the guest found shelter one slave; whoever kills someone's kunak must give nine slaves. This fine is compensation for the insult caused to the house where the guest was attacked. As for the murderer, he must settle his scores with the relatives of the murdered person himself.

8. Between people of low birth, murder, depending on the circumstances, is settled through money, property, livestock, etc.; but between princes and uzdens, murder is rarely settled with money; blood for blood is usually required. In this case, blood feud is passed on from father to son, from brother to brother, and lasts ad infinitum until a way is found to reconcile the two warring families. The best way to achieve this is for the abuser to steal a child from the victim’s family, take him into his home and raise him to adulthood. After the child is returned to the parental home, all old grievances are doomed to oblivion with the help of a two-way oath.

9. The right of hospitality also extends to criminals, but excludes those who have stolen an engaged bride or a married woman, as well as those who have committed adultery, killed a parent, or committed an unnatural sin. These crimes, it must be said, are rarely committed and are punishable by death; anyone who managed to escape punishment can no longer remain among the Circassians and must flee to Russia or Georgia. The murderer always remains under the protection of hospitality until his relatives settle the matter with the family of the murdered man. While waiting for this, the killer must hide away from the place where the murdered person's family lives; he returns to himself after the matter is settled and pays the sum at once or in installments. The price for killing a prince, a bridle and a peasant was established many centuries ago and remains in force to this day.

For the murder of a prince, 100 bash are awarded, including:

a) seven slaves, each of whom is considered one bash;

b) the best horse;

c) one helmet;

d) one chain mail;

d) one checker.

These bashi are paid strictly; the rest - part of the movable and immovable property of the murderer and his relatives. For the murder of a nobleman of the first rank they pay fifty bash; nobles of the second and third ranks - thirty bash; for a peasant - twenty-five bash. In addition, in order to finally reconcile the two families, it is necessary for the murderer’s family to raise a child from the murdered family. Among the Shapsugs, Abedzekhs, Natukhais, Ubykhs and Gusies, twenty-two bash are paid for the murder of a nobleman, and twenty bash for the murder of a commoner.

10. In all classes of society, with the exception of slaves, fathers and husbands are absolute masters of the lives of their children and wives.

11. If the father dies before expressing his last will, the sons divide the property equally among themselves and give each daughter one slave; if there are no slaves or there are not enough slaves, each daughter receives a horse and cattle in proportion to the wealth of the deceased. Side children have no rights to inherit property, but the family usually feeds them. As for the mother, if she survives her husband, then she also receives a certain share of the inheritance.

12. Theft committed from a prince is punishable by compensation of the value of the stolen property ninefold, and in addition to this, one slave is given; thus, for one stolen horse, nine horses and one slave are given. For theft from the bridle, the value of the stolen goods is reimbursed and, in addition, thirty bulls are given. Theft committed within one's own tribe is punished more severely than theft committed in another tribe. So, if a Shapsug steals a horse from a Natukhai and he is caught stealing, he must return this horse and give another one in addition as a measure of punishment; but if a Shapsug steals a horse from a Shapsug, he is obliged to return this horse and seven more horses in addition; the same proportions apply to any stolen item.

Theft, carried out skillfully, has nothing reprehensible in the eyes of the Circassians, since it is considered the same merit as in our country a successfully carried out military operation. This is one of the first qualities of this people, their main skill and the goal of all their enterprises. The greatest insult a girl can give a young man is to tell him that he has not yet managed to steal even a cow. If someone is caught stealing, he is obliged to return the stolen property to the owner personally, pay the due fine, and in addition must pay one or two slaves to his prince or bridle.

To explain such severity, which seems to contradict the natural inclination of the Circassians to this vice, it must be said that personally returning stolen property to its owner is considered the greatest disgrace among this people; Instead of personally returning the stolen property to its owner and thereby admitting what he had done publicly, the thief would prefer to pay triple the value of the stolen property so that his act would not receive wide publicity. So, this severity serves rather as a measure of punishment for the thief for his ineptitude; being exposed to general ridicule, the unlucky thief, by his example, teaches others to be more dexterous. Theft between princes is punishable by retaliatory reprisals, which in Circassian are called “baranta”; this means an attack on the territory of the offender, theft of his people and livestock, etc. However, there are also rules here - the booty that is captured during these retaliatory raids should not significantly exceed in value what was previously captured by the first attacker. Meanwhile, the right of property is respected among people who are connected by ties of kinship, friendship, hospitality or any other.

Organization of power

We have already talked above about the form of government among the Circassian peoples, among whom the Kabardians, Besleneevtsy, Natukhaytsy, Bzhedukhi and Zhaneevtsy are under the authority of princes - “pshi” or nobles, while others have a democratic form of government. We would like to provide some details on this matter.

In 1795 or 1796, the Natukhais, Shapsugs and Abedzekhs got rid of the oppression of their princes and uzdens and created democratic authorities. The princes of these three nationalities, with the support of the Kabardian princes from the Khamysheev tribe, attempted to strangle this unrest, but had no success and sent an embassy to Empress Catherine with a request to provide assistance against their rebellious subjects. These ambassadors were the Khamysheevsky prince Bacharey and the Shapsug princes Sultan-Ali and Devlet-Girey. The latter died in Moscow, and the other two returned home, having permission to take one cannon and a hundred Cossacks from the Black Sea region for joint action with their supporters against the rebels. The battle, which took place near the Afips river, in the town of Bziyuk, turned out to be a defeat for the rebels, but even having lost six hundred people, the Shapsugs did not resign themselves and remained free, as did the Natukhais and Abedzekhs, and thus the power of their princes was forever destroyed. Since then, the Shapsugs have had an irreconcilable hatred of the Shertluk family, to which ambassadors Devlet-Girey and Sultan-Ali belonged. This latter, having been expelled along with his supporters, again went to St. Petersburg during the reign of Emperor Paul I to ask for protection; he, as well as the children of Devlet-Girey, who died in Moscow, were allowed to settle in the Black Sea region.

These three tribes, having become free, created a kind of jury, called in Circassian “Turko-Khas”. Their territory was divided into districts, and in each district there is a court - “khas”, formed from among the elders: for these purposes, the most experienced people are elected, regardless of their position; the one who has achieved universal respect for his virtues and merits is elected as a member of the court for life. All public affairs, such as war, peace, etc., are discussed by these courts, and their decision acquires the force of law. Court hearings usually take place in the forest, where the speaker speaks in the center of a circle of attentive listeners, patiently waiting for their turn to speak. Neither age nor position influence this choice, which falls only on those who are distinguished among their fellow citizens by personal qualities and the gift of eloquence. Each member of the court must take an oath that he undertakes to judge in good conscience and impartially. Each village has one court member who, at their discretion, decides complaints and minor matters that may arise between the village residents. In addition, every resident has the right to make his complaint against the decision of a judge of another village or even another district, and no one will complain against him for this.

The relationships that exist in Circassian society are the following: 1) communication through the adoption of children for upbringing; 2) connection through adoption; 3) connection based on an oath in brotherhood; 4) connection through marriage; 5) trade relations.

Relationships through education

If someone from the tribe wishes to enter into close relations with the family of a prince or nobleman (which is always done in order to have support), he turns to a third person who already has a similar relationship with the desired prince or nobleman. This intermediary informs the eldest of the family about the desire of so-and-so to enter into close relations with this family by taking on the responsibility of raising one of the sons or daughters. Such a request is never refused. It often happens that a child, while still in the womb, already has many candidates for the role of educator. In this case, neither the mother nor the father interferes, and all problems related to parenting rights are resolved between the applicants themselves. The one on whom the choice falls sends a midwife to the house of the future mother in advance, and in the meantime the adoptive father begins to prepare a holiday that will last three days after the birth of his pupil, after which he takes him to his place and provides him with everything necessary for raise him and educate him. Sometimes, if his family is unable to provide decent care, he has to pay for a nanny who looks after the child at a very early age. Parents of children placed in foster care consider it shameful for themselves to inquire about their child from the teacher during the entire time the child is with him. In general, it seems that the Circassian tries to avoid everything that speaks of his affections or joys, seeing this as a manifestation of weakness; It is even considered indecent to talk to him about his children, especially when they are small. Only with age can one allow oneself to forget about this stoicism; an old man who showed courage in his youth may become sentimental among his family.

The adoptive father returns the child to his parents upon reaching adolescence; on this occasion, solemn celebrations are held; from this moment onwards, the family of adoptive parents is connected by the deepest (sincere) ties with the family of the pupil.

Adoption

Those who have claimed the right to raise a child have the opportunity to become his adoptive parents later, which can be done at any time, even when this adopted child turns 10, 20, 30, 40, or even more years old. On this occasion, the adoptive father organizes a festival where various customs are observed, such as: the adopted son must touch the nipple of the adoptive mother's breast with his lips for a while, and the adoptive mother must touch the threshold of the house of the adopted son's father. Through such ceremonies, the bonds between two families become unbreakable. It is not surprising that these adopted or fostered children remain more attached to their adoptive mother than to their natural mother, since mothers very rarely raise their own children. Such customs, as a result of which all Circassians are almost relatives and are related to each other, so to speak, like brothers, significantly reduce the tendency to commit robbery against each other, since each victim finds many defenders, which is a deterrent for their strong passions. In Circassian, the protector is called “shpur”, and the adoptive father, like the teacher, is called “atalyk”.

Brotherhood

Fraternal communication through an oath is a sacred custom among the Circassians, which increases the population in the mountains, since any fugitive or lawbreaker finds refuge among the Shapsugs, Natukhais and Abedzekhs - tribes that for the most part consist of such defectors. Such a defector, who wants to settle in the mountains and enjoy the same rights as other residents, must immediately upon arrival in the mountain village seek protection for himself, declaring his readiness to accept all the customs of the Circassians and live like them. In the event that they provide patronage, he must take an oath to observe all the customs of the region, applying the Koran to his forehead: in this way he becomes a brother in oath and is considered by everyone as a brother and compatriot.

Relationship through marriage

Marriage no less serves as a means of establishing close ties between different nationalities. A young man from among the Natukhais, Shapsugs, Abedzekhs or any other tribe can freely marry a girl from Kabardians and others, as long as they occupy the same social position. We have already talked about this in detail earlier.

Trade

Internal trade is usually carried out by Armenians, who travel around the lands of various tribes with their goods, paying a tax to the princes accordingly for the right to engage in trade. These Armenians are in close relations with many Circassians due to their trade relations; they often act as spies, being aware of everything that is happening on the Caucasian line; since they have shops both in various places along the borders and in the mountains, they are able to warn the Circassians about the intentions of the Russians and vice versa. They are engaged in ransoming Russian prisoners, paying for them with their own goods, and then for a certain fee handing them over to the Russian government, by the way, with great benefit for themselves, while assuring that they are acting out of considerations of pure humanity and paying the same for the prisoners the price that is demanded from the government. At one time, they resold the prisoners ransomed in this way to the Turks in Anapa.

The trade carried on between the Circassian tribes and the Russians is insignificant; it occurs along the entire Kuban and goes either through the Armenians or through the Cossacks on the Line and on the Black Sea coast. The following goods are sold to the Circassians: linen, cotton fabrics, Persian fabrics - “Burme”, Nanjing; cloth in pieces and pieces, Russian leather - yufta; red and black morocco, teak, large copper and cast iron cauldrons, forged chests, jugs, goblets, silk, needles, painted wooden dishes, glassware, etc.

In exchange, the Circassians give: wolf, bear, bull, sheep skins; fox, mustel, otter, hare furs; honey, wax, horses, cattle and sheep, wool, “chekmen” cloth and clothing of the same name; felt coat - burka; oil, fruits and other natural products. Turkish merchants used to bring them from Constantinople and Trebizond salt, leather, morocco, average quality cotton fabric, gunpowder, etc., which were exchanged for honey, wax, boxwood, and mainly for slaves of both sexes.

Trade between Circassians and Russians occurs primarily in the villages of Prochny Okop, Ust-Labinsk and in the city of Yekaterinodar; Trade can be barter and for money. In addition to those goods that we talked about above, salt is in greatest demand among the Circassians: they consume it in large quantities, since they also give it as feed to livestock - horses and especially sheep. The Russians extract this product from the salt lakes of Majar and in the Phanagoria region and sell it to the Circassians at a reasonable price. For this purpose, barter yards have been set up along the Kuban, where salt is sold for money or exchanged for goods. The mountaineers do not bring their goods in caravans, but in small quantities and at uncertain times; therefore, the Armenians transport their goods to the mountains under the protection of the kunak or gache. In order to gain the right to sell their goods everywhere, these Armenians are obliged to present gifts to the respective princes, as we said above, and, in addition, pay them a tax, the amount of which depends on the will of the prince. The average amount of sales and purchases per year does not exceed one hundred and fifty thousand rubles, which clearly indicates the insignificance of this trade.

In the introduction to this work, we set out the reasons for this phenomenon, which are the poverty and laziness of the inhabitants of the Caucasus, as well as their prejudice against trading activities in general, which are considered shameful here, when excess goods are sold only in cases of extreme need. They also exchange surplus products among themselves, which is a means of mutual communication between different nationalities.

However, Peysonel makes interesting remarks regarding the flourishing trade that took place in his time between the Crimea and the Kuban Circassians and Kabardians. He says that at that time (from 1753 to 1760) the Circassians exported through Taman to Caffa: up to 10 million pounds of wool, 100 thousand pieces of Circassian cloth. “***kmen”, 5-6 thousand pieces of clothing, 60 thousand pairs of cloth shalwars, 200 thousand burkas, 5-6 thousand bull skins, 500-600 thousand pounds of good honey, 50-60 thousand pounds Abkhazian intoxicating honey, 7-8 thousand “oka” (which is equal to three pounds) of wax, 50 thousand marten skins, 100 thousand fox skins, 3 thousand bear skins, 500 thousand sheep skins - and all this, not counting slaves of both sexes and horses. The volume of such trade should have reached 8 million rubles.

It seems that the political events that have since occurred in the Crimea, on the Taman Peninsula and among the Kuban Circassians have led to the decline of this significant trade; perhaps the reason for this was in some degree due to the change in the nature of the commercial relations which existed between wholly Muslim peoples, who were probably better adapted to the manners and intellectual faculties of these heterogeneous nations. Be that as it may, there is no doubt that only the development of trade will make it possible to civilize and pacify the peoples of the Trans-Kuban region.

Population

We have already said that it is very difficult to determine the population of the Caucasian peoples, bearing in mind that these peoples themselves do not know it exactly and, moreover, are trying to convince us and mislead us, exaggerating the actual number of inhabitants. Nevertheless, the information compiled from the information given by the old Circassians to Captain Novitsky during his stay in Anapa in 1830, as well as from more recent data received by the General Staff in Tiflis in 1833, allows us to form an approximately correct idea about him.

Note. It is to Captain Novitsky (now Lieutenant Colonel of the General Staff) that we owe topographical and statistical information about the Circassian peoples; this brilliant officer traveled around all these regions under the guise of a servant, risking every minute to be exposed and lose his life. He and Mr. Taung - a very worthy man, an attache of the College of Foreign Affairs, who lived for ten years among the Circassians (Tebout de Marigny speaks of him very respectfully in his “Travels in Circassia”) and knew their language and customs very well - rendered a great service in exploring these regions.

If we take into account that each Circassian family usually occupies a large yard with several buildings, the total number of Circassians can be taken as 600 thousand souls.

Warriors

Judging by the number of families, the total number of warriors that these peoples can field in case of need can be estimated at more than 60 thousand people. Here we proceed from the calculation: one warrior from one family; however, considering the way of life and customs of these peoples, which cover the deepest disgrace to the one who remains at home while his countrymen fight the enemy, it is safe to say that this number must be much higher. Fortunately, they can never gather these forces together for reasons of internal hostility and a complete lack of discipline and means to support such a mass of people for a certain time. Without these obstacles, they would pose a great threat to their neighbors, bearing in mind also their warlike character; they would be simply invincible in their areas.

Artillery

Before the appearance of Russian troops in 1828, which organized the siege of Anapa, the Circassians received from the Turks 8 cannons, which they still have; but, according to the assurances of some of our compatriots, they do not know how to use them, and this artillery is of no use to them, neither during their raids nor for the defense of their territories.

Method of warfare

Although at the beginning of this work we already spoke about the way of warfare of the mountaineers in general, we found it useful to add here some details that speak about the peculiarities of the military art of the Circassian tribes.

If they are preparing to invade distant lands or to defend their territory from an attacking enemy, they choose one of the princes to be the main leader. This choice is determined not by nobility of origin, but solely by recognition of personal courage and universal trust. Such a choice gives rise to enormous respect for this leader, which remains until the end of his days and gives him the greatest authority at popular meetings. During the entire expedition, he has the right to condemn anyone to death for a serious offense - without preliminary proceedings and without distinction of rank; nevertheless, they try not to resort to such measures in relation to members of princely families in order to avoid enmity and blood feud. The desire to act all together at the same time is generated more by circumstances and the degree of danger of the moment, rather than by a strong will and discipline, about which the mountaineers do not have the slightest idea. Their military organization and recruitment system is very simple. Each bridle is obliged to supply a certain number of soldiers, depending on the number of serf families belonging to it, as well as on the needs of the moment. As soon as all these small detachments have united, the eldest of the heads of the noble families leads them against the enemy, while maintaining command over his own detachment. Each detachment consists of warriors dressed in heavy chain mail, light cavalry and infantry. Princes and bridles in chain mail and helmets, together with their squires, form the core, the elite of the cavalry; the rest are light cavalry and infantry, in which only peasants serve; the infantry takes up positions and fires rifles. When they go on a raid, they are not embarrassed by any rivers, since their horses are trained to swim across them. To do this, the Circassians undress, put their weapons in a waterproof waterskin, fasten their clothes with a knot on the muzzle of a gun, take a waterskin inflated with air under their arms, and rush together with their horses into the river, swimming across it, even if it is wide and with a fast current. On the opposite bank they dress, so both their clothes and weapons never get wet. Attacks are carried out in dense or dispersed formation. It must be said that they are afraid of artillery; with swords in their hands, they rush at the infantry or cavalry, put them to flight, and pursue them. Sometimes, like the ancient Parthians, they try to lure the enemy into an ambush by conducting a false retreat; experience has shown that a Circassian put to flight is far from a defeated warrior; the cavalry of these nations is superior to any cavalry in the world. Princes show examples of courage, they are always in the most dangerous places of battle, and it would be a great dishonor for them if some bridle, much less a simple peasant, surpassed them in courage or dexterity and valor. Yet, with all their courage, they cannot do anything with the Russian infantry. They decide to attack the Russians on the plain only under the condition of surprise, but more often they try to lure them into forests and gorges, where the Russians can make a lot of mistakes if they do not know all their tricks and act imprudently.

We have already noted that the Circassians do not take a lot of provisions with them during their expeditions; they stock up on large quantities of provisions only if they come to the aid of a poor tribe; in all other cases they feed at the expense of the tribal inhabitants, who receive them as their guests and relatives. Thus, during the siege of Anapa in 1828, 8 thousand Circassians who took part in the battle were completely supported by the Natukhai tribe, on whose territory the battles took place. Since they recognize neither discipline nor subordination (with the sole exception if they are hired to serve for money or if they undertake to be under someone's command for a certain time), everyone is free to go to his home whenever he pleases, which they often and do so, especially if their troops are located not far from their homes. It follows from this that the Circassians can never concentrate all their forces in one place, but, on the other hand, they can never be defeated completely and completely, since they constantly appear and disappear. Destroying their villages does not bring much benefit, since they always have material on hand to build new ones, which takes no more than two days. During this time, their wives, children, property, and livestock take refuge in forests and mountains, where they remain until the enemy leaves their territory.

They no longer carry out mass invasions of foreign territories because the Russians do not give them the opportunity. Squeezed in the area of ​​the Kuban and its left bank, the Circassians raid Russian territory only in small groups, which are usually discovered at the moment of crossing the Kuban. All their raids pursue one goal - to suddenly capture a herd of cows, sheep or a herd of horses, burn a farmstead or take captive the people they meet. It can be expected that this robbery will soon be stopped altogether, bearing in mind the energetic measures of the Russian government in order to pacify and civilize these peoples who have lived by robbery for centuries.

Piracy

The Ubykhs, Chepsuis and Gusies, who occupied the mouths of the Poisva, Shiake and Zuazo rivers flowing into the Black Sea, learned from their Abkhaz neighbors how to engage in piracy. They sometimes attack merchant ships that are detained at these latitudes by calm seas. They go 20-30 miles from the coast on barges that take 40-100 people or even more on board. If a storm begins or if they are pursued, they take refuge in small bays or in the mouths of rivers, which abound on the eastern coast of the Black Sea and where it is practically impossible to capture them. It should be noted that they try to attack stationary ships only at night and suddenly, and board them under the condition that their forces significantly exceed the ship’s crew. If they can be kept at a distance with a few shots from a cannon, then the ship is saved, but if they go on board, they most often gain the upper hand.

The superiority of the Shapsugs over other Circassian tribes

The Shapsug tribe is the most powerful among all Circassian tribes; it is constantly strengthened by the influx of new refugees who here receive citizenship rights and assimilate, as we have already discussed above. The Shapsugs are proud that they overthrew the yoke of their princes and bridles; they are known for their implacable hatred of Russians and their stubborn refusal to submit to or live in peace with Russia. Thanks to these qualities, they enjoy the reputation of invincibility among their compatriots. Their political influence on other Circassian tribes is very great.

Many Circassians argue that if Russia manages to subjugate the Shapsugs either by force of arms, or in another way, all other Circassian tribes will follow the example of the Shapsugs. If the Shapsugs can be subjugated peacefully, then, thanks to their influence, they can persuade other tribes to submit to Russia; if they are subdued by force of arms, then all the other Circassians, having seen the fall of such a powerful tribe, will not offer any resistance and will become subordinate to the victors of the Shapsugs.

Powerful families

We have already said that the princely families of the mountaineers enjoy respect and veneration; here we want to give a list of the ruling princes - the owners of the Circassians.

1. Among the Bzhedugs - Prince Alkas Khadzhemokor Khamysh and his brother Magmet; Prince Ahegiakonor Pshikhue.

2. The Natukhais have princes Tlestan and Dzhangeri.

3. Among the Zhaneevites - Prince Pshikhue Tsyukhuk.

4. Among the Edenians - the nobleman Deguziok. (Adems belong to the Temirgoy tribe, but they have their own privileges and are, so to speak, independent.)

5. The Temirgoys have princes Aitekokor, Boletok Shumaf, Dzhangeri and Tatlostan.

6. The Mokhoshevites have princes Bogarsoko, Baizerok, Khaturuzuk.

7. The Besleneevites have princes Hanoko Murzebek Pesvie, Hanoko Khaje Tarkhin and Pshishaf (they are brothers).

As for the rest of the Circassian tribes, due to the democratic structure of power they have only elders. Although we have a complete list of the most respected families among them, we will not give it here in full in order to avoid unnecessary length and limit ourselves only to the first families of each tribe.

The Natukhais have the Supako family.

The Shapsugs have the families Abat, Sherstlug, Neshire, Tsukh, Garkoz.

The Abedzekhs have the Inoshok and Edige families. Antsoh, Beshon, Chanket.

The Abedzekhs also include a small tribe of Tubins.

A settlement, as is customary among the Circassians, is usually named after the family to which it belongs. Since the dwellings of the Circassians are scattered at a great distance from each other along the course of rivers and streams, it often turns out that one village occupies an entire valley and stretches for 15-20 miles, which makes it very difficult to accurately describe and enumerate them.

From the first half of the 1st millennium BC. Thanks to ancient Greek written sources, the names of the tribes that inhabited the steppes of the Northern Black Sea region and the Northern Caucasus become known.

These are steppe Iranian-speaking nomads - the Cimmerians, Scythians and their eastern neighbors the Sauromatians. The middle and lower reaches of the Kuban River, the Eastern Azov region, the Taman Peninsula and the Trans-Kuban region were occupied by settled agricultural tribes, united by the name “Meotians”.

The Meotians and Sindians were first mentioned by ancient Greek authors of the 6th-5th centuries BC. Hecatea of ​​Miletus, Hellanicus of Mytilene, Herodotus. The ancient Greek geographer and historian Strabo, who lived at the turn of the new era, reports about them in more detail in his work.

Along the Black Sea coast, ancient authors indicate the Kerkets, Torets, Zikhs and other tribes, some of which are classified as Meotians. The main body of Maeotian tribes are considered the indigenous population of the North-West Caucasus, belonging to the Caucasian language family. The Meots are considered one of the distant ancestors of the Circassians.

One of the main hypotheses about the ancient ancestors of the Circassians suggests that they were Meotians. Tribal names of the ancestors of the Meotians: Keshak, Kashka, Kason and Abkhazians - Abeshla, Absils. The Zikhs, who actively developed in the 5th-6th centuries in the Kuban, were also classified as Meotian tribes. Scientists suggest that the ancient tribes who lived in the Northwestern Caucasus spoke the Abkhaz-Circassian language. In the book by Sheudzhen A.Kh., Galkin G.A. Tkhakushinova A.K. and others. “Land of the Circassians.” Maikop, GURIPP “Adygea”, several versions of the appearance of the Circassians in the North Caucasus are given.

Among them: Arabian, Turkish, Egyptian, Crimean, Khazar, Ryazan, Greek, Genoese, as well as “Cossack Cossacks - descendants of the Pyatigorsk Circassians”, “Adyghe-Anty - Slavic tribes”, “Adyghe-Kabardians - descendants of the Amazons”, “ Kabardians are the descendants of Genghis Khan,” etc. But all of them do not have sufficient justification.

According to the Arabian version, the Circassians moved to Kuban from Arabia.

According to the information collected in 1784, Governor General P.S. Potemkin, the Kabardian princes “... trace their family back to one prince, called Kes, who left Arabia and became the owner of all the mountain peoples.” The legend existing among the Circassians says: “Circassians descend from two brothers: Cher and Kes, who came from Arabia from the Qureish tribe.”

According to the work of S. Bronevsky (1823) “According to the inhabitants’ own legends, Kabarda in ancient times was ruled by one prince named Inal, who descended from Keyes, and this one came out of Arabia and conquered the Circassians.”

Great secrets of Rus' [History. Ancestral homelands. Ancestors. Shrines] Asov Alexander Igorevich

Adygs and Circassians - heirs of the Atlanteans

Yes, among the peoples of the Caucasus we, apparently, find direct descendants of the ancient Atlanteans.

There is every reason to believe that one of the most ancient peoples of the North Caucasus, as well as the entire Black Sea region, are the Abkhaz-Adygs.

Linguists see the relationship of their language with the language of the Hutts (their self-name comes from the Hutts or “Atts”). This people by the 2nd millennium BC. e. inhabited almost the entire coast of the Black Sea, had a developed culture, writing, and temples.

In Asia Minor they date back to the 2nd millennium BC. e., they merged with the Hittites, who then became the Getae-Thracians. However, on the northern shore of the Black Sea, the Hutts retained their language and even their ancient name - Atty or Adyghe. However, their culture and legends are dominated by the Aryan (that is, originally Hittite) layer, and little remains of the Atlantean past - primarily the language.

The ancient Abkhaz-Adygs are alien people. Local legends, recorded in the 19th century by the great educator of the Adyghe people, Shora Bekmurzin Nogmov (see his book “History of the Adyghe People”, Nalchik, 1847), indicate their arrival from Egypt, which may also speak of the ancient Egyptian-Atlantean colonization of the Black Sea region.

According to the legend cited by Sh. B. Nogmov, the Circassian clan comes from the progenitor Larun, “a native of Babylon,” who “due to persecution left his country and settled in Egypt.”

A very important etiological legend! Of course, it was changed by time, like all such legends. In particular, Babylon, mentioned in this legend, may turn out to be another nickname for Atlantis itself.

Why do I think this? Yes, because in a number of Russian legends about Atlantis the same replacement took place. The fact is that one of the names of Atlantis, the golden island at the end of the world, is Avalon (“land of apples”). This is what the Celts called this land.

And in the lands where biblical literature subsequently spread, often, out of consonance, this land began to be called Babylon. “Babylons” are also known, labyrinths made of stones in our Far North, which are reminiscent of one of the most important mysteries of Avalon-Atlantis.

Legends about the migrations of the ancestors of the Circassians from this Avalon-Babylon to Egypt, and from Egypt to the Caucasus, in essence, are an echo of the history of the ancient colonization of the Black Sea region and the Caucasus by the Atlanteans.

And therefore we have the right to talk about American-Atlantean colonization, and to look for kinship of the Abkhaz-Adygs, for example, with the North American Aztecs, etc.

Perhaps, during that colonization (X-IV millennia BC), the ancestors of the Abkhaz-Adygs met in the Northern Black Sea region the ancestors of speakers of Kartvelian, as well as Semitic languages ​​and, apparently, the ancient Negroid population of the Caucasus.

I note that blacks continued to live in the Caucasus, ancient geographers wrote about this. For example, Herodotus (484–425 BC) left the following testimony: “The Colchians are apparently of Egyptian origin: I guessed this before I heard from others, but, wanting to make sure, I asked both peoples: the Colchians retained much more memories of the Egyptians than the Egyptians did of the Colchians. The Egyptians believe that these peoples are the descendants of part of the army of Sevostris. I also concluded this on the basis of signs: firstly, they are dark-skinned and curly-haired...”

I also note that the epic poet Pindar (522–448 BC), who lived before Herodotus, also calls the Colchians black. And from archaeological excavations it is known that blacks lived here at least from the 20th millennium BC. e. And in the Nart epic of the Abkhazians there are often “black-faced horsemen” who moved to Abkhazia from the distant southern lands.

Apparently, it was these indigenous blacks who survived here to this day, for enclaves of ancient cultures and peoples are always preserved in the mountains.

Thus, it is known that several families of indigenous Caucasian blacks survived in Abkhazia until the middle of the 20th century. These indigenous Abkhaz blacks, who lived in the villages of Adzyubzha, Pokveshe, Chlou, Tkhin, Merkule and Kynga, have been repeatedly written about in our popular scientific literature (see, for example, the article by V. Drobyshev “In the Land of the Golden Fleece,” in the collection “ Mysterious and enigmatic". Minsk, 1994).

And here’s what a certain E. Markov wrote about this in the newspaper “Caucasus” in 1913: “Driving through the Abkhaz community of Adzyubzha for the first time, I was struck by the purely tropical landscape: huts and wooden buildings covered with reeds loomed on the bright greenery of dense virgin thickets , curly-haired black children were swarming, a black woman walked importantly with a burden.

In the dazzling sun, black people in white clothes presented a characteristic spectacle of some African scene... These blacks are no different from the Abkhazians, among whom they have lived since ancient times, speak only Abkhazian, profess the same faith..."

The writer Fazil Iskander also left a funny essay about Abkhazian blacks.

Maxim Gorky admired the magic and art of transformation of a certain black woman, the old woman Abash, in 1927, when he visited the village of Adzyuzhba with playwright Samson Chanba.

Studying the connections between Africa and Abkhazia in connection with the presence of the indigenous black population, the scientist Dmitry Gulia in his book “History of Abkhazia” noted the presence of similar-sounding Abkhazian and Egyptian-Ethiopian toponyms, as well as names of people.

Let us note these coincidences (Abkhazian names on the right, Abyssinian ones on the left):

Localities, villages, cities

Gumma Gumma

Bagada Bagada

Samkharia Samhara

Nabesh Hebesh

Akapa Akapa

Goandara Gondara

Koldahvari Kotlahari

Chelow Chelov

And the very ancient name of Abkhazia is “Apsny” (that is, “Country of the Soul”), which is consonant with the name of Abyssinia.

And we, also noting this similarity, cannot help but think that this speaks not only about the migration of blacks from Africa to Abkhazia, but, first of all, about the fact that strong ties existed between these lands in ancient times.

The resettlement, obviously, was carried out not only by blacks, but also by the ancestors of the Abkhazians and Circassians themselves, that is, the Atlantean Hutts.

And this cultural and historical continuity is still clearly recognized in both Abkhazia and Adygea.

Thus, in 1992, when adopting the coat of arms and flag of the Republic of Adygea, the proposal of the Adygea Historical and Local Lore Museum and the Research Institute of Language, Literature, History and Economics was accepted.

When creating this flag, the most ancient Hatto-Hittite symbols were used. The well-known historical flag of Circassia (Adygea) of the early 19th century, which existed from time immemorial before its inclusion in Russia, was adopted as the flag.

This flag depicts 12 golden stars and three golden crossed arrows. Twelve gold stars, as historian R. Tahoe wrote back in 1830, traditionally mean “twelve main tribes and districts of United Circassia.” And the three arrows are the thunder arrows of Tlepsh, the blacksmith god.

In the symbolism of this flag, historians see kinship and continuity with the Hittite-Hattian standard (royal scepter) of the 4th–3rd millennium BC. e.

This standard is an oval. Along its perimeter we see nine star nodes and three suspended rosettes (eight-pointed crosshairs also give the number nine, and with rosettes twelve). This oval is located on the rook. Which perhaps reminds us of the migration by sea of ​​these twelve clans of the Hutts (proto-Hittites. This standard was used in the 4th–3rd millennia by both the Hutt kings in Asia Minor and the leaders of the Maikop tribes in the North Caucasus.

The crossed arrows also mean the lattice of the Hutt standard; moreover, the lattice inscribed in an oval, the oldest symbol of fertility, is known both among the Hutts and many other peoples, including the Slavs. Among the Slavs, this symbol means Dazhbog.

The same 12 stars were transferred to the modern coat of arms of the Republic of Adygea. This coat of arms also depicts the hero of the Nart epic Sausryko (aka Sosurko, Sasrykava) with a torch in his hands. The name of this hero means “Son of the Stone,” and legends about him are also common to the Slavs.

So among the Slavs Vyshen Dazhbog is the “Son of Stone”. Fire is brought to people by its incarnation by the god Roof-Kolyada, and it also turns into Stone, identified with Mount Alatyr (Elbrus).

The legends about this Nart (god) are already purely Aryan-Vedic, like, in essence, the entire Abkhaz-Adyghe epic, which is in many ways related to other epics of the peoples of Europe.

And here we should note an important circumstance. Not only the Abkhaz-Adygeis (Circassians, Kabardians, Karachais) are direct descendants of the Atlanteans.