The Russian conquest of the Caucasus mainly occurred between 1800 and 1864. The Russian Empire sought to control the region between the Black Sea and Caspian Sea. South of the mountains was the territory that is modern Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, and parts of Iran and Turkey. North of the mountains was the North Caucasus region of modern Russia. The difficult conquest of the intervening mountains is known as the Caucasian War. Multiple wars were fought against the local rulers of the regions, as well as the dominant powers, the Ottoman Empire and Qajar Iran, for control. By 1864, the last regions were brought under Russian control.
Early history
The Rus'
The Rus' first appeared in the Caucasus region in the 9th century, initially as traders along the Volga trade route. From the late 9th century until c. 1041 several raids were carried out around the Caspian Sea by the Rus'. During the 943 expedition, the Rus' rowed up the Kura deep into the Caucasus, defeated the forces of Marzuban bin Muhammad, and captured Bardha'a, the capital of Arran.
Before the 19th century
From the mid-16th century, there was an isolated group of Cossacks on the Terek River, and by around 1550, Cossacks were established on the Don River. Astrakhan was conquered in 1556, giving Russia a base at the north end of the Caspian Sea. They soon made an alliance with Kabardia and built a fort at the mouth of the Sunzha River. After about 1580 Russia disengaged from the Caucasus region for about 200 years, holding Astrakhan and slowly pushing settlement south toward the Black Sea.
During the Russo-Persian War of 1651-1653, several engagements saw Persian and Persia-allied troops fighting against Russian troops and warriors backed by or allied to the Russian Empire, including Cossacks. During the Russo-Persian War (1722–1723), Peter the Great conquered the west and south shore of the Caspian, but the land was later returned via the treaties of Resht and Ganja with the aim of cementing a Persian-Russian alliance against the Ottoman Empire. In 1775, after a Russian explorer had died in captivity, Catherine the Great sent a punitive expedition which briefly captured Derbent. During the Persian expedition of 1796, Russia again conquered the west coast of the Caspian, but the expedition was withdrawn after Catherine's death in November 1796 by her son and successor Paul I.
Underlying all of this was the slow and steady expansion of the Russian population southward from its original heartland in Muscovy. By around 1800, Russia was in a position to push soldiers and colonists into the Caucasus region.
South of the mountains
Russia annexed eastern Georgia in 1800. By 1806, Pavel Tsitsianov had expanded this bridgehead from the Black Sea to the Caspian and gained the Caspian coast. In 1813, Persia was forced to recognize the loss of its northern territory, comprising modern-day southern Dagestan, eastern Georgia, and most of what is now the Azerbaijan. In 1818-1826, Aleksey Petrovich Yermolov tightened the noose around the mountains, but much of this was soon lost. In 1828, Russia took what is modern-day Armenia, Nakhichevan, and Talysh from Persia. The two Turkish wars had few results.
Background
From the days of the Roman Empire, Transcaucasia was usually a borderland between two empires, often centered in Constantinople and Persia. Areas would shift from one empire to the other, their rulers would have varying degrees of independence and the common people suffered much from the wars. Local rulers were often vassals of one empire or the other, but this could vary from complete subjection to a few empty words. Much depended on the size and proximity of the suzerain's army. By around 1750, the area was divided between Turkish and Persian vassals. The western two-thirds was inhabited by Georgians, an ancient Christian people, and the eastern third mostly by Azeris, Turkic Muslims who emerged as a people at an uncertain date. Russia had long held Astrakhan at the north end of the Caspian and was pushing close to the Black Sea. There were also Cossacks along the Terek River who would soon grow into the North Caucasus Line.
Annexation of Eastern Georgia
In 1762, Heraclius II of Georgia joined the two eastern parts of Georgia into the Kingdom of Kartli-Kakheti. It was a Persian vassal, but Persia was very weak following the death of Nadir Shah. Due to that, Heraclius II was able to maintain a de facto independence through the entire Zand period. By this time Russia had a fair number of troops north of the mountains at such places as Mozdok. During the Russo-Turkish War (1768–74), fought mostly in the west, Catherine launched a diversion in the east and, for the first time, Russian soldiers crossed the Caucasus. In 1769, Gottlieb Heinrich Totleben with 400 men and 4 guns, crossed the Darial Pass to Tiflis. Next year, reinforced, he went to the Kingdom of Imereti, stormed Baghdati and took the capital of Kutaisi. After dispersing 12,000 Turks he laid siege to Poti on the coast. The business was mismanaged and Russian forces were withdrawn to the North Caucasus Line in the spring of 1772. In July 1783, the same year that Crimea was annexed, the king made himself a Russian rather than a Persian vassal (Treaty of Georgievsk). Pavel Potemkin sent 800 men to begin work on the Georgian Military Highway through the Darial Pass. By October 1783, he was able to drive to Tiflis in a carriage drawn by eight horses. On 3 November, two Russian battalions and 4 guns reached Tiflis on the new-made road. It was a gloomy day and the locals remarked that their new friends has brought their weather with them. The troops were soon withdrawn but their presence further provoked Persia. Agha Mohammad Khan Qajar was working to restore Persian power and saw the king of Georgia ("Gorjestan") as another disobedient wali. In 1795, he captured and sacked Tiflis (Battle of Krtsanisi). Viceroy Gudovich, who in January 1791 had arrived on the Line with 15 battalions of infantry, 54 cavalry squadrons, and 2 Cossack regiments, did nothing. Agha Mohammad was assassinated in 1797 while preparing a second invasion. The Russo-Persian War (1796) was, in part, a Russian response to the Persian sack and recapture of Tiflis.
In the summer of 1800, Fath-Ali Shah Qajar demanded that George XII of Georgia send his son to Teheran as a hostage. General Knorring, who commanded the Line, was told to prepare 9 infantry battalions. The Persians backed off but the Avar Khan Omar invaded anyway and was defeated by General Lazerev on the Alazani River. George XII, who was dying, offered the Russians increasing amounts of authority. Paul I of Russia responded by annexing the kingdom on 18 December 1800.
First years
Russian officials in Georgia were the envoy Peter Ivanovich Kovalensky and Generals Lazarev and Gotthard Johann von Knorring. In May 1801, the heir to the throne was removed and Lazarev became head of a provisional government with Knorring as commander in chief. In April 1802, the nobles took an oath to the Russian crown. Kovalensky wrote to the Shah demanding that Persia renounce all claims to Georgia. Fath Ali replied that eastern Georgia had always been Persian and announced his intention to send 60,000 soldiers north.
From sea to sea: Tsitsianov (1803–1806)
In September 1802, Pavel Tsitsianov was appointed commander-in-chief of Georgia and Inspector of the Line and Governor-General of Astrakhan. He was descended from Georgian nobles (Tsitsishvili) who had fled to Russia with Vakhtang VI in 1724. He could see himself both a servant of the Czar and Georgian patriot, holding that only Russian power could protect Georgia from Persians, Turks, mountain raiders, and internal disunity. He arrived in early 1803. His first concern was to remove the remaining members of the royal family. Prince Aleksandre of Georgia had already gone over to the Persians. When General Lazarev went to arrest the late king's widow she stabbed him to death. (She was confined in a convent for 8 years and died in 1850.)
Unification of Georgia: In December 1803, the western Principality of Mingrelia became a Russian vassal. The Kingdom of Imereti now had Russians on both sides. After some military pressure, in April 1804, it became a Russian protectorate. Much of Georgia was now reunited after 400 years. The coastal forts like Poti remained Turkish. In March 1805, an expedition captured the Turkish fort of Anaklia on the Abkhaz border. Under Ottoman threat, Tsitsianov withdrew, calling it the unauthorised action of a subordinate. In 1810, Russia put its client on the throne of the Principality of Abkhazia.
Push east and south: In the spring of 1803, he subdued the Djaro-Belokani area and the Elisu Sultanate. Later General Gulyakov was killed fighting the Djaro-Belikanis. In January 1804 the Ganja Khanate (southeast of Georgia) was bloodily conquered. In the summer of 1804, Tsitsianov led 10,000 men against the Yerevan Khanate (south of Georgia). He besieged Yerevan; the Persians (30,000 men under Abbas Mirza) got behind him and after some fighting, he made a difficult withdrawal. This was the start of the Russo-Persian War (1804-1813). In May 1805, the Karabakh Khanate(south of Ganja) submitted. Abbas Mirza and 20000 men arrived, the garrison held out for three weeks until the 100 survivors cut their way out. Fath-Ali Shah Qajar with 40,000 men approached, thought better of it and retired. In 1805, Tsitsianov took over the Shuragel Sultanate, Shaki Khanate (May) and Shirvan Khanate (December). The Caspian Flotilla under General Zavalivshin laid siege to Baku but was driven off by the Khan of Quba. Tsitsianov went east with 1,600 men and 10 guns. He crossed the Shirvan Khanate, which he annexed on the way, and arrived before Baku before 8 February 1806. The town elders delivered him the keys to the city. He returned the keys asking to receive them from the khan in person. The khan rode out with an escort, Tsitsianov advanced with two other men and was shot dead. The guns of Baku opened up on the Russian army and Zavalivshin again chose to withdraw.
The disaster of Tsitsianov's death and Zavalivshin's apparent cowardice was retrieved by General Glazenap, who commanded the Line. He crossed the Aktash country to Tarki where the Shamkhal joined him. Knowing that the khan of Derbent was unpopular, the Shamkhal sent agents to stir up trouble. When the Russians crossed the border the khan was expelled by his own subjects and Derbent was occupied for the fourth and last time (22 June 1806). The campaign was interrupted by the new commander-in-chief Gudovich, who was perhaps growing incompetent. Glazenap was placed under General Bulgakov and it was Bulgakov who received the surrender of Quba and Baku.
Russia now held the area between the Black and Caspian Seas and had provoked a war with Persia.
War with Persia and Turkey (1804–1813)
During this period Russia was at war with Persia (1804–1813) and Turkey (1806–1912). Most Russian forces were tied up dealing with Napoleon and the main Russo-Turkish conflict was on the other side of the Black Sea. The Turkish war left the frontier unchanged and the Persian war forced Persia to recognize the Russian conquest of the eastern Transcaucasus and Caspian coast. Viceroys of the Caucasus during the war years were 1802: Pavel Tsitsianov, 1806: Ivan Gudovich 1809: Alexander Tormasov 1811: Philip Osipovich Paulucci 1812: Nikolay Rtischev.
The war with Turkey is of no concern since it left the border unchanged, although Russia did retain the Black Sea port of Sukhum-Kale. Russia might have accomplished something, but its soldiers were busy holding down the new-won Caucasus, fighting the Persians, fighting the Turks on the opposite side of the Black Sea, and watching Napoleon. Apart from military heroics, its main importance was to tie down troops that could have been used against Persia.
The first two years of the Persian war involved the conquest of the Khanates. In 1804, Russia took Ganja but was defeated by the Persians when it tried to take Yerevan. Next year it took Shaki and Karabakh. Persia sent an army to rescue Karabakh and was defeated. By early 1806 Shirvan and the Caspian coast were taken. Russia now had all the Persian territory it would ever get, except Talysh, Yerevan, and Nakhichevan.