Case Study Circassian Migration FV - EUROCLIO

“the absence of all political cohesion
between the northern tribes...and those
inhabiting other parts of the Caucasus
and, indeed, the almost utter
impossibility of bringing about such a
consummation. Each and all cannot be
made to forget their blood feuds, still
less to unite in a common cause.”
Consul Dickson, Soukan-Kalé, 22 February 1864
To: Earl Russell, Foreign Secretary.
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There may be one other ‘push factor’
which contributed indirectly to the
mass migration of the Circassians.
They were divided amongst
themselves and this made it easier for
Russian forces to isolate different
tribes and communities and defeat
them.
This extract from a dispatch from a
British Consul to his Minister in
London reflects the his and his
colleagues’ experience during and
after the Crimean War when trying to
organise resistance to Russia across
the Caucasus.