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Authors: Oliver Bullough
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East.
One of the most remarkable elements of the English envoysâ accounts is how deeply entrenched in Turkish society the Circassians were. Longworth, who was a journalist, found a large population of Circassians in Istanbul, many of them engaged in illegal trade with their homeland.
When his ship reached Sinop, a Turkish port on the Black Sea coast, his plan to visit Circassia caused something of a sensation. Inquisitive Circassians thronged around him, all wearing the shaggy hats and tunics of their national dress. Some of these men had lived in Anapa, the Turkish fortress that had changed hands several times, and had fled for the last time when the Russians finally claimed it by war in 1828. Under the treaty that ended the conflict, Turkey had ceded to Russia its claim to the northern shore of the Black Sea and the Circassiansâ home.
Russia had had occasional contacts with the Circassians for centuries â Moscow still considers a 1561 dynastic marriage between Ivan the Terrible and a Circassian princeâs daughter as foundation to its claim to the region of Kabarda, for example â but Anapa was the key to their conquest.
If Circassia belonged to anyone before 1828, it belonged to Turkey, but the Turks had never tried to enforce their claim, which was tenuous at best. Most Circassians had never noticed that they were being ruled by the Turks at all, but could not help noticing the change of ownership. Russia launched a large-scale war to enforce the rights over Circassia that it gained in its 1829 treaty with the Ottoman Empire.
The Russian onslaught was one of the reasons that the Circassian community in Turkey was larger than normal when Longworth and Bell arrived, but its presence long predated it. The integration of Circassians into Mediterranean culture was strong, and for millennia they had been an integral part of southern civilization. Jason and the Argonauts came and sought the Golden Fleece on this coastline, perhaps in what is now Abkhazia. Other myths show how closely Greek culture was linked to the giant mountain range. Prometheus, who stole fire from the Gods to give to man, was said to be chained in perpetual torment on these mountains, an eagle pecking at his liver. According to the Bible, Noahâs Ark grounded on Mount Ararat, which is to the south of the main chain, and is said to have touched
on Mount Elbrus on its way. This mountain, the tallest of all the Caucasus, has a distinctive double peak created, or so the story goes, by the keel of Noahâs ark when it floated by.
It is easy to forget now how closely Circassia was linked to the ancient world. Before the Circassians were swallowed up by the Russians, however, the Greeks, Genoese and Turks had traded with them for centuries, above all taking female and male slaves to serve in the harems and the armies of the countries to the south. The fame of the Circassians in these two professions was broad. For much of western Europe, the Circassian lady was the very model of beauty and grace. The men, meanwhile, were choice mercenaries. Their warrior cast, the Mamelukes, ruled Egypt until driven out by Napoleon.
The ship Bell used to reach Circassia was piloted by an engaging rogue who lived in an easy democratic way with his crew, with all sharing in the profits of the trading expedition. The risks they were taking were high, for the coast was closely blockaded by Russian ships and every visitor had to run between them, hoping that his vessel was faster than those of his pursuers.
Bell knew the risks better than most, since he had been aboard the Vixen when she was seized and had spent some time in captivity before being returned to Turkey. His ship bravely flew the green and gold Circassian flag â which had been invented by Urquhart â as it struggled to reach the coast through adverse winds, but fell in with two Russian warships after a week at sea. The captain was loath to lighten the ship by throwing the trade
One of the most remarkable elements of the English envoysâ accounts is how deeply entrenched in Turkish society the Circassians were. Longworth, who was a journalist, found a large population of Circassians in Istanbul, many of them engaged in illegal trade with their homeland.
When his ship reached Sinop, a Turkish port on the Black Sea coast, his plan to visit Circassia caused something of a sensation. Inquisitive Circassians thronged around him, all wearing the shaggy hats and tunics of their national dress. Some of these men had lived in Anapa, the Turkish fortress that had changed hands several times, and had fled for the last time when the Russians finally claimed it by war in 1828. Under the treaty that ended the conflict, Turkey had ceded to Russia its claim to the northern shore of the Black Sea and the Circassiansâ home.
Russia had had occasional contacts with the Circassians for centuries â Moscow still considers a 1561 dynastic marriage between Ivan the Terrible and a Circassian princeâs daughter as foundation to its claim to the region of Kabarda, for example â but Anapa was the key to their conquest.
If Circassia belonged to anyone before 1828, it belonged to Turkey, but the Turks had never tried to enforce their claim, which was tenuous at best. Most Circassians had never noticed that they were being ruled by the Turks at all, but could not help noticing the change of ownership. Russia launched a large-scale war to enforce the rights over Circassia that it gained in its 1829 treaty with the Ottoman Empire.
The Russian onslaught was one of the reasons that the Circassian community in Turkey was larger than normal when Longworth and Bell arrived, but its presence long predated it. The integration of Circassians into Mediterranean culture was strong, and for millennia they had been an integral part of southern civilization. Jason and the Argonauts came and sought the Golden Fleece on this coastline, perhaps in what is now Abkhazia. Other myths show how closely Greek culture was linked to the giant mountain range. Prometheus, who stole fire from the Gods to give to man, was said to be chained in perpetual torment on these mountains, an eagle pecking at his liver. According to the Bible, Noahâs Ark grounded on Mount Ararat, which is to the south of the main chain, and is said to have touched
on Mount Elbrus on its way. This mountain, the tallest of all the Caucasus, has a distinctive double peak created, or so the story goes, by the keel of Noahâs ark when it floated by.
It is easy to forget now how closely Circassia was linked to the ancient world. Before the Circassians were swallowed up by the Russians, however, the Greeks, Genoese and Turks had traded with them for centuries, above all taking female and male slaves to serve in the harems and the armies of the countries to the south. The fame of the Circassians in these two professions was broad. For much of western Europe, the Circassian lady was the very model of beauty and grace. The men, meanwhile, were choice mercenaries. Their warrior cast, the Mamelukes, ruled Egypt until driven out by Napoleon.
The ship Bell used to reach Circassia was piloted by an engaging rogue who lived in an easy democratic way with his crew, with all sharing in the profits of the trading expedition. The risks they were taking were high, for the coast was closely blockaded by Russian ships and every visitor had to run between them, hoping that his vessel was faster than those of his pursuers.
Bell knew the risks better than most, since he had been aboard the Vixen when she was seized and had spent some time in captivity before being returned to Turkey. His ship bravely flew the green and gold Circassian flag â which had been invented by Urquhart â as it struggled to reach the coast through adverse winds, but fell in with two Russian warships after a week at sea. The captain was loath to lighten the ship by throwing the trade
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