COSSACKS (Russ. Kazak; plural, Kazaki, from the Turki quzzaq, " adventurer, free-hooter ")

This article appears in Volume V07, Page 218 of the Encyclopedia Britannica.

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COSSACKS (Russ. Kazak; plural, Kazaki, from the Turki quzzaq, " adventurer, free-hooter ") , the name given to consider-able portions of the population of the Russian empire, endowed with certain

special

SPECIAL

privileges, and bound in return to give military service, all at a certain age, under

special

SPECIAL

conditions. They constitute ten

separate

SEPARATE

voiskos, settled along the frontiers: Don, Kuban, Terek, Astrakhan, Ural, Orenburg, Siberian, Semiryechensk, Amur and Usuri. The primary unit of this organizatipn is the stanitsa, or

village

VILLAGE

, which holds its land as a commune, and may allow persons who are not Cossacks (excepting Jews) to settle on this land for payment of a certain rent. The assembly of all householders in villages of less than 30 households, and of 30 elected men in villages having from 30 to 300 households (one from each to households in the more populous ones), constitutes the

village

VILLAGE

assembly, similar to the mir, but having wider attributes, which assesses the taxes, divides the land, takes

measures

MEASURES

for the opening and support of schools, village grain-stores, communal cultivation, and so on, and elects its ataman (elder) and its judges, who settle all disputes up to 10 (or above that sum with the consent of both sides). Military service is obligatory for all men, for 20 years, beginning with the age of 18. The first 3 years are passed in the preliminary division, the next 12 in active service, and the last 5 years in the reserve. Every Cossack is bound to procure his own uniform, equipment and horse (if mounted)the government supplying only the arms. Those on active service are divided into three equal parts according to age, and the first third only is in real service, while the two others stay at

home

, but are bound to

march

out as soon as an order is given. The officers are supplied in the usual way by the military schools, in which all Cossack voiskos have their own vacancies, or are non-commissioned Cossack officers, with officers' grades. In return for this service the Cossacks have received from the state considerable grants of land for each voisko separately.
The total Cossack population in 1893 was 2,648,049 (1,331,470 women), and they owned nearly 146,500,000 acres of land, of which 105,000,000 acres were arable and 9,400,000 under forests. This land was divided between the stanitsa.s, at the rate of 81 acres per each soul, with special grants to officers (personal to some of them, in lieu of pensions), and leaving about one-third of the land as a reserve for the future. The income which the Cossack voiskos receive from the lands which they rent to different persons, also from various sources (trade patents, rents of shops, fisheries, permits of gold-digging, &c.), as also from the subsidiesthey receive from the government (about 712,500 in' 1893), is used to cover all the expenses of state and local administration. They have besides a special reserve

capital

CAPITAL (i.e. capital stock or fund)
CAPITAL (Lat. caput, head)

of about 2,600,000. The expenditure of the village administration is covered by village taxes. The general administration is kept separately for each voisko, and differs with the different voiskos. The central administration, at the Ministry of War, is composed of representatives of each voisko, who discuss the proposals of all new

laws

LAWS

affecting the Cossacks. In time of war the ten Cossack voiskos are bound to

supply

SUPPLY (through Fr. from Lat. supplere, to fill up)

890 mounted sotnias or squadrons (of 125 men each), zo8 infantry sotnias or companies (same number), and 236 guns, representing 4267 officers and 177,100 men, with 170,695 horses. In time of peace they keep 314 squadrons, 54 infantry sotnias, and 20 batteries containing 1o8 guns (2574 officers, 60,532 men, 50,054 horses). Altogether, the Cossacks have 328,705 men ready to take arms in case of need. As a

rule

RULE

, popular education amongst the Cossacks stands at a higher level than in the remainder of Russia. They have more schools and a greater proportion of their children go to school. In addition to agriculture, which (with the exception of the Usuri Cossacks) is sufficient to

supply

SUPPLY (through Fr. from Lat. supplere, to fill up)

their' needs and usually to leave a certain surplus, they"carry on extensive cattle and horse breeding, vine culture in Caucasia, fishing on the Don, the Ural, and the Caspian, hunting, bee-culture, &c. The extraction of coal, gold and other minerals which are found on their territories is mostly rented to strangers, who also own most factories.
A military organization similar to that of the Cossacks has been introduced into certain districts, which supply a number of mounted infantry sotnias. Their peace-footing is as follows:Daghestan, 6 regular squadrons and 3 of militia; Kuban Circassians, 1 sotnia; Terek, 8 sotnias; Kars, 3 sotnias; Batum, 2 infantry and 1 mounted sotnia; Turkomans, 3 sotnias; total, 25 squadrons and 2 companies.
For the origin and history of the Cossacks see POLAND: History, and the biographies of Razin, Chmielnicki and Mazepa. (P. A. K.)

End of Article: COSSACKS (Russ. Kazak; plural, Kazaki, from the Turki quzzaq, " adventurer, free-hooter ")

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