1864 Great Circassian Immigration

In the study; Circassians of indigenous nations of the Western Caucasus have been subjected to migrations of the Ottoman State in 1864. This elimination incident which the Circassians, who could reach the Ottoman territories with various troubles but also suffered misery here had a very difficult time in terms of the Ottoman State. The start of the spread of Caucasus territory after Russia's taking of Kazan and Astrakhan during the Ivan IV period can be called the first step leading to the migration of the Circassians. As a matter of fact, after these conquests, the testament of Petro I started to conquer the Caucasus lands to reach Istanbul and India. In this direction the conquest of the Caucasus, along with Katerina II, became a national policy for Russia, and Christian elements began to be placed in the seized places. On the other hand, in response to this progress of Russia, the patriotic nationalist Caucasian Muslims have started the Movement of Muridism with Imam Mansur being the commander. However, this resistance movement, which could reach the very last of the Circassian lands, ended with the surrender of Sheikh Shamil in 1859, and the Eastern Caucasus was completely controlled by Russia. The Circassians accepted defeat on May 21, 1864, although they continued their struggle for independence for about five years. Russia had said, "You either migrate to the Kuban sides or you go to the Ottoman territory or you are destroyed under our swords." preferred immigration to the Ottoman Empire. The Ottoman Empire, although caught unprepared for the Circassian migration, did all the assistance that could be done. However, the Circassians have also fought with deaths due to hunger and disease in transit and permanent settlements in the Ottoman territories, both on migration routes and ships. It is also seen that the Circassians, who had been enlisted with the help of both Bab-ı Ali and the Turkish and Christian Ottoman peoples, were involved in a number of events. Sometimes these events of the local Ottoman ahalis and sometimes the Circassians was tried to be overcome by the measures taken by the Ottoman State. Keywords: 1864, Circassian Migration, Caucasia, Sheikh Shamil, Settlement,Ottoman Empire, Russia, Republic of Turkey.