Translated by Nikiforova Svetlana Gennadievna +7(8482) 680-950
In June 1722 on his way to the Caucasus Peter I stayed at the ZhygulyovskMountains, near the Tsaryov mound that is in Samara. Here tsar issued a decree about the use of the local natural resources. A particular interest to the lands behind the Volga was connected with centralization and consolidation of the Russian state.
An important role in settling these lands was assigned to nomadic tribes of the Kalmyks, whose aria bordered on the southern frontiers of Russia. To make the Kalmyks faithful subjects and reliable military force to protect the frontiers of Russian Empire the government used religion. In 1724, Apostolic Synod sent to the Kalmyks a monk Nikodim Lankevich who spoke their language.
In the same year there began a power struggle among the Kalmyks that was caused by the death of the khan Ayuki. The grandson of the khan Tayshin decided to accept Christianity (344 yurtas in all). After he was baptized Peter, Tayshin asked the Russian government to give new lands to the Kalmyks-Christians and separate them from pagans.
After Peter Tayshin died, the government fulfilled his request, for it saw the good in isolation the Kalmyks-Christians from the pagans as the first soon became the settled. In 1737, the empress Ann Ioanovna conferred to the widow of Peter Tayshin baptized Ann the title of duchess and the right to be the ruler of all her compatriots who converted into Orthodoxy.
Government charged the head of the Orenburg Expedition I.K. Kirillov to choose a place for the Kalmyks’ migration. Kirillov liked a place on the river Tok (the territory of the modern Orenburg Region). However, his death prevented him from building the fort. Then the famous Russian historian, the prominent public official and fellow campaigner of Peter I Basil Nikitich Tatishchev was appointed a new head of the Orenburg Expedition. He looked out another place for the fort: on the Volga near the Kunia Volozhka.
On June 20, 1737, the empress Ann Ioanovna signed a granted deed to the Kalmyk duchess Ann Tayshina that allowed building the fort on the place of the Kunia Volozhka. In summer, 1737 were marked the lands for the Kalmyks’ settling; in winter, the people laid in materials for the building of the fort. The government allocated 10,090 rubles and 74 copecks. The building of the fort was completed in 1738. It was called Stavropol that stood for “city of the Cross”. Among other possible names was suggested the name of “Epiphany” that stood for “enlightenment”, but the choice was done in favor of “Stavropol”.
The first buildings erected in the fort were houses for the duchess, the archimandrite, the Kalmyk aristocracy and the commandant. The building of the Archives, Chancellery, storehouses, granaries and store of weapons were also in progress. The town was in the form of a hexagon, 313 sazhens (one sazhen is 7 feet) long, 198 sazhens wide and 876 sazhens round. To protect the town of the enemy’s raids there were set four batteries inside the town and built two field defence appliances. The fort had three gates: the Orenburg Gate, the Simbirsk Gate and the Water Gate.
The fort also performed the function of the administrative center of the government of the district. Andrew Zmeev was the first commandant of the fort.
2241 persons, that were about 700 yurtas, arrived to Stavropol as a new place of residence. To draw the Kalmyks to the new place the government of the town promised them remitting of punishment for murders they had committed, unpaid debts and dependence of their former owners. The ordinary Kalmyks were granted 2,5 rubles. They also got the lands situated between the rivers Volga, Cheremshan, Kondurcha and Sok as nomadic arias. From then on, the nomads were to take up a settled crop-growing. Besides allowances, the government granted the Kalmyks grain to sow the fields and settled Russian peasants who also got allowances among the Kalmyks to accustom the last to agriculture.
However, all measures of the government to make the Kalmyks lead a settled life had no success. Though they spent winter in settlements, in spring they left their place of living and went to roam. They let their arable lands to crop-growers.
The number of the Kalmyks constantly increased. In 1746, about 1000 Kalmyks came to the town. Only within 1746-1748 the total number of the Kalmyks was 8696 persons. They were settled out of town in small settlements that stretched from Tsarevshchina and Cheremshan to the Serjiev road.
After Stavropol had been built, it began to grow and develop. In 1740, three outskirts sprung up near the fort of Stavropol. Thanks to the efforts of Basil Nikitich Tatishchev (the prominent Russian historian and public official), in Stavropol was set up a school, appeared a doctor and was built the TrinityTemple. Tax privileges attracted merchants to the town where artisans also settled soon. In 1744 in Stavropol already lived 127 merchants, 173 artisans, 17 officials under the chancellery and 454 military men.
According to a census that was taken in 1754, the population of Stavropol was 5695 persons. In 1762, there were already 500 houses, a school, the Kalmyk court, a hospital and 3 churches in the town. Later there were started a sawmill, a printing-house and craft establishments. Nonetheless, industry of the town practically did not develop.
In 1744, the Stavropol fort became part of the Orenburg region. Within 40 years, in 1780, the town was passed into the hands of the government of the newly formed Simbirsk province. In the same year on December 22, Katharine II confirmed the emblem of Stavropol that had “a triangular fort with a black cross on a gold ground in the center” depicted on it. Black symbolizes patience and nobility, gold – justice, generosity and richness. However, the town was not actually rich at that time. The famous scientists-naturalists and travelers Peter Pallas and Ivan Lepehin who headed academic expeditions whose aim was to examine and describe the natural riches of the district, life and the manners and customs of the local inhabitants gave an excellent description of everyday life of the Stavropol Kalmyks.
In October 1768, scientists visited Stavropol. That is how Ivan Lepehin describes the town: “Besides the Kalmyk nobility, in Stavropol also live merchants, the Cossacks and military men. The merchants live apart from other inhabitants and mostly in outskirts. They are not rather well-to-do people, for fish is the only thing of their haggling. Besides, they make their living out of raising sheep and making suet. As for the town, there are no other goods but watermelons and some other food products. There are no other factories or plants there.”
Peter Pallas noted that the manners of the Kalmyks are rather simple. They possessed such good traits as “companionship, agreeableness and complaisance”. The Kalmyks is a hardworking nation. The Kalmyks are very courteous and affectionate, always share with their fellows and never keep food from others.”
As obligations, the Kalmyks were to pay a small tax to the government and serve. Due to a decree of January 1744, every summer they were to send 300 men to defend the Orenburg fortified line. Each soldier was to have two horses and complete kit. Not every Kalmyk could afford to have all these necessary things. The majority borrowed money from well-to-do fellows and became debtors. Their families lost the only breadwinner; as a result, they endured poverty and often became impoverished. Poverty was the reason for a high rate of death among the Kalmyks, especially among children. 72 of 100 died at the age from one to three. The average length of human life was 40 years.
A hard financial position made the Kalmyks escape from place of living. Such were displays of social protest. Number of the escaped increased year after year. Only in April 1767, for instance, about 63 Kalmyks escaped from different parts of the district. The government sent 28 persons to chase them. When the chased overtook the escaped, the Kalmyks did not let turn them back and after a strong fight, the first had to step back. After that event, the government set special posts on the rivers Samara and Kinel to catch the escaped.
The life of the surf peasants that stayed in the town – Mordvinians, Chuvashes – was much harder. In the district there lived 55 thousand persons; 23,5 thousand were in complete possession of landowners. Besides hard labor, the peasants were made to pay heaps of taxes to their owners and to the government – recruit, ship, underwater and a lot of special taxes on windows, pipes, bathes, scales, transportation, arcs, top-boots, hats, salt, tobacco and others. Landowners sold and bought peasants like a living inventory. Peasants had no rights to complain. In August 1767, Katharine II issued a decree running that a complaint of a landowner, even if it was true, was a hard state crime. Those who filed an application were admitted “villains and incendiaries of social disorder”, subjected to punishment with a knout and an exile to penal servitude.
Museum of regional studies of Togliatti: Sergeeva Viktoria Mihaylovna phone: +7(8482) 481-070 e-mail:serjiov@rambler.ru
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