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Imam Shamil

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Imam Shamil
Shamil in 1859
Imam of Chechnya and Dagestan
Reign1834–1859
PredecessorHamzat Bek
SuccessorOverthrown by theRussian Empire
Born26 June 1797
Gimry,Dagestan,Derbent Khanate
Died4 February 1871(1871-02-04)(aged 73)
Medina,Habesh Eyalet,Ottoman Empire
Burial
Jannatul Baqi,Medina
FatherDengau
ReligionSunniIslam
SignatureImam Shamil's signature

Imam Shamil(Arabic:الشيخ شامل,romanized:al-Šaykh Šāmil;Avar:Шейх Шамил,romanized:Sheykh Shamil;Chechen:имам Шемал,romanized:imam Shemal;[1]Kumyk:Шамил,romanized:Shamil;Russian:Имам Шамиль;26 June 1797 – 4 February 1871) was the political, military, and spiritual leader of North Caucasian resistance toImperial Russiain the 1800s,[2]the thirdImamof theCaucasian Imamate(1840–1859), and aSunni Muslimsheikhof theNaqshbandi Sufis.[3]

Family and early life

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Imam Shamil was born in 1797 into anAvarMuslim family.[4][5][6][7][8]He was born in the small village (aul) ofGimry(present-dayDagestan,Russia). Some sources state that he had a paternalKumyklineage.[9][10][11][12][13][14][15]He was originally named Ali, but following local tradition, his name was changed toShamuyil(Arabic:شمویل,equivalent toSamuel) when he became ill. This name is pronouncedShamilin the Caucasus, and contemporary sources called him by this name (eitherشاملShāmilorشمیلShamīlin Arabic), although in his writings he always used the formShamuyil.[16]His father, Dengau, was a landlord, and this position allowed Shamil and his close friendGhazi Muhammadto study many subjects, includingArabicandlogic.

Shamil grew up at a time when theRussian Empirewas expanding into the territories of theOttoman EmpireandQajar Iran(seeRusso-Persian War (1804–1813)andRusso-Turkish War (1806–1812)). Many Caucasian peoples united in resistance to Russian imperial aspirations in what became known as theCaucasian War(1817-1864). EarlierleadersofCaucasianresistance included Hadji-Dawud,Sheikh Mansurand Ghazi Mollah. Shamil, a childhood friend of the Mollah, would become his disciple and counsellor.[citation needed]

Shamil had multiple wives, including one ofArmenian ethnicityborn in Russia named Anna Ivanovna Ulukhanova (or Ulykhanova; 1828-1877).[17][18]Captured in a raid in 1840, she married Shamil six years later. She converted to Islam as a teenager and adopted the name Shuanet. Shuanet remained loyal to Shamil even after his capture and exile to Russia. After the death of Shamil (1871) she moved to theOttoman Empire,where the sultan assigned her a pension.[17]

War against Russia

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Main article:Murid War
Capture of Shamil,byTheodor Horschelt
Karte des Kaukasischen Isthmus.Entworfen und gezeichnet von J. Grassl, 1856.
Imam Shamil, Lithography byVasily Timm
"Shamil's family". Left to right:Ghazi Muhammad's confident, murid Hajio; Shamil's son Muhammad-Shafi; Shamil's sons-in-law: Abdurrahim andAbdurrahman"photo, Kaluga, 1860

In 1832, Ghazi Mollah died at the battle of Gimry, and Shamil was one of only twoMuridsto escape, but he sustained severe wounds. During this fight he was stabbed with a bayonet. After reportedly jumping from an elevated stoop "clean over the heads of the very line of soldiers about to fire on him... [he landed] behind them, whirling his sword in his left hand he cut down three of them, but was bayoneted by the fourth, the steel plunging deep in his chest. He seized the bayonet, pulled it out of his own flesh, cut down the man, and with another superhuman leap, cleared the wall and vanished in the darkness".[19]He went into hiding and both Russia and Murids assumed him dead. Once recovered, he emerged from hiding and rejoined the Murids, led by the secondImam,Hamzat Bek.He would wage unremitting warfare on the Russians for the next quarter century and become one of the legendary guerrilla commanders of the century. When Hamzat Bek was killed in 1834, Shamil took his place as the prime leader of the Caucasian resistance and the third Imam of theCaucasian Imamate.[20][21]

In June–August 1839, Shamil and his followers, numbering about 4000 men, women and children, found themselves under siege in their mountainstrongholdofAkhoulgo,nestled in the bend of theAndi Koysu,about ten miles east of Gimry. Under the command of GeneralPavel Grabbe,the Russian army trekked through lands devoid of supplies because of Shamil's scorched-earth strategy. The geography of the stronghold protected it from three sides, adding to the difficulty of conducting the siege. Eventually the two sides agreed to negotiate. Complying with Grabbe's demands, Shamil gave his son, Jamaldin, in a sign of good faith, as a hostage. Shamil rejected Grabbe's proposal that Shamil command his forces to surrender and for him to accept exile from the region. The Russian army attacked the stronghold,after 2 days of fighting,the Russian troops had secured it. Shamil escaped the siege during the first night of the attack. Shamil's forces had been broken and many Dagestani and Chechen chieftains proclaimed loyalty to the Tsar. Shamil fled Dagestan for Chechnya. There, he made quick work of extending his influence over the clans.[22]

Shamil was effective at uniting the many, quarrelsome Caucasian tribes to fight against the Russians, by the force of his charisma, piety and fairness in applying Sharia law. One Russian source commented on him as "a man of great tact and a subtle politician." He believed the Russian introduction of alcohol in the area corrupted traditional values. Against the large regular Russian military, Shamil made effective use of irregular and guerrilla tactics. In 1845, an 8000-10000 strong column under the command of Count Mikhail Vorontsov followed the Imamate's forces into the forests of Chechnya. The Imamate's forces surround the Russian column,destroyingit.[23]This destroyed Vorontsov's attempt to cut away Chechnya from the Imamate which was his plan.[24]

Shamil is showing great activity this year and he is forced to do this, since we... are taking measures that must sooner or later... destroy his influence and tear away the Chechens from him, without which he will be nothing.

— Count Mikhail Vorontsov

His fortunes as a military leader rose after he was joined by Hadji Murad, who defected from the Russians in 1841 and tripled by his fighting the area under Shamil's control within a short time. Hadji Murad, who was to become the subject ofa famous novellaby Leo Tolstoy (1904), turned against Shamil a decade later, apparently disappointed by his failure to be anointed Shamil's successor as imam. Shamil's elder son was given that nomination, and in a secret council, Shamil had his lieutenant accused of treason and sentenced to death, on which Hadji Murad, on learning of the judgement, redefected to the Russians.[20][21]

Although Shamil hoped that Britain, France, or the Ottoman Empire would come to his aid to drive Russia from the Caucasus, this never happened. After theCrimean War,Russia redoubled its efforts against the Imamate. Now successful, Russian forces severely reduced the Imamate's territory, and by September 1859, Shamil surrendered. Though the main theater closed, conflict in the eastern Caucasus would continue for several more years.[25]

Last years

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Shamil (front page).Illustrated London Newsof December 24, 1859.

After his capture, Shamil was sent toSaint Petersburgto meet theTsar Alexander II.Afterwards, he was exiled toKaluga,then a small town nearMoscow.After several years in Kaluga he complained to the authorities about the climate and in December 1868 Shamil received permission to move toKyiva commercial center of the Empire's southwest. In Kyiv he was afforded a mansion inAleksandrovskaya Street.The Imperial authorities ordered the Kyiv superintendent to keep Shamil under "strict but not overly burdensome surveillance" and allotted the city a significant sum for the needs of the exile. Shamil seemed to have liked his luxurious detainment, as well as the city; this is confirmed by the letters he sent from Kyiv.[26]

In 1859 Shamil wrote to one of his sons: "By the will of the Almighty, the Absolute Governor, I have fallen into the hands of unbelievers... the Great Emperor... has settled me here... in a tall spacious house with carpets and all the necessities".[27]

In 1869 he was given permission to perform theHajjto the holy city ofMecca.He traveled first from Kyiv toOdesaand then sailed toIstanbul,where he was greeted byOttomanSultan Abdulaziz.He became a guest at the ImperialTopkapı Palacefor a short while and left Istanbul on a ship reserved for him by the Sultan. In Mecca, during the pilgrimage, he met and conversed withAbdelkader El Djezairi.After completing his pilgrimage to Mecca, he died inMedinain 1871 while visiting the city, and was buried in theJannatul Baqi,a historical graveyard in Medina where many prominent personalities from Islamic history are interred. Two elder sons, (Cemaleddin[ru]and Muhammed Şefi), whom he had to leave in Russia in order to get permission to visit Mecca, became officers in the Russian army, while two younger sons, (Muhammed Gazi[ru]and Muhammed Kamil), served in theTurkisharmy whilst their daughter Peet'mat Shamil went on to marry Sheikh Mansur Fedorov, an Imam who later absconded from the Russian Empire out of fear for himself and his children's life. He fathered 11 children, one being John Fedorov who changed his name to John Federoff after migrating to Childers in Queensland, Australia[28]where he established a sugar cane farming empire.

Said Shamil, a grandson of Imam Shamil, became one of the founders of theMountainous Republic of the Northern Caucasus,which was founded in 1917 and survived until 1920, when it was conquered bySoviet Russia.Forced to leave the region, in 1924 he established the "Committee of Independence of the Caucasus" inGermany.

Legacy

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Russian historiography

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While Russia had managed to conquer Chechnya and Dagestan in a series of bloody conquest, Russians had developed a great respect for Shamil.[29]TsarAlexander II of Russiahad openly admired his resistance, thus in the later part of his life, Shamil was permitted for Hajj by the Russian authorities.[30]

Shamil's career and legacy continue to be studied by Russian authorities and academics despite his defiance to Russian power.[31]An entomologist with reformist ideas named a largeswift mothafter him.[32]

Musical composition

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At a gathering in 1958,[33]theLubavitcher Rebbetold a story about a great tribal leader named Shamil, who was rebelling against the persecuting Russian forces. Lured by a false peace treaty, he was captured and exiled. During his exile, he composed a heartfelt, wordless song emoting his rise, downfall and yearning for freedom. The song was seemingly heard by a passing Hasid, the melody remained obscure until the Rebbe taught it at the above-mentioned gathering. The song uncharacteristically was adopted by theChabadmovement (who usually compose their own melodies), as they take the deeper meaning of its stanzas as an analogy for the soul, which descends to a world of mortality and physicality, trapped in a body, knowing that it will one day return to its maker.[33](Another song uncharacteristically adapted by theChabadmovement is the tune of theLa Marseillaise,which was put to the tune of the prayer Ho'aderes V'hoemunah.[34]The French government altered the tune shortly later, in 1974.[35])

See also

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References

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  1. ^Гапуров Ш. А. Тяжёлые страницы истории Чечни //Таллам. – 2015. – №. 1. – С. 24-29.
  2. ^Nicholas V. Riasanovsky (1984). "Chapter 29: The Reign of Alexander II, 1855-81".A History of Russia(4th ed.). Oxford University Press. p.389.ISBN978-0-19-503361-8.
  3. ^The Great Shamil, Imam of Daghestan and Chechnya, Shaykh of Naqshbandi tariqah
  4. ^Budak, Mustafa."ŞEYH ŞÂMİL".Türkiye Diyanet Vakfı İslâm Ansiklopedisi.
  5. ^"Şeyh Şamil".Biyografya.Retrieved28 December2020.
  6. ^Doğan, Şahin."Avrasya İncelemeleri Dergisi (AVİD), IV/1 (2015), 121-145".Dergipark Çeviri.
  7. ^Tiryakioğlu, Okay (March 2019).Şeyh Şamil - Kafkas Kartalı.Timaş Yayınları.ISBN978-6050829860.
  8. ^Başman, Sevgi.Şeyh Şamil(in Turkish). Zafer Basin Yayin Ve Turizm Ve Bilg.ürünleri San.tic. Ltd. şti.ISBN978-975-261-372-0.
  9. ^Блиев М. М.Россия и горцы Большого Кавказа: на пути к цивилизации. —М.:Мысль, 2004;ISBN5-244-01004-2.
  10. ^Халилов А. М., Идрисов М. М.Шамиль в истории Северного Кавказа и народной памяти. — Махачкала, 1998. — 119 с.
  11. ^Халилов А. М.Национально-освободительное движение горцев Северного Кавказа под предводительством Шамиля. — Махачкала: Дагучпедгиз, 1991. — 181 с.
  12. ^Шамиль на Кавказе и в России, Биографический очерк / сост. М.Н. Чичагова — СПб.: Типография и литография С. Муллер и И. Богельман, 1889
  13. ^Şeyh Şamil Çarlara Baş Eğmeyen Dağlı, Samih Tansu, 1963, p. 14-15
  14. ^Дауев, Саламу Ахмедович. Чечня: коварные таинства истории / Саламу Дауев. - М.: Русь, 1999, стр. 133-136
  15. ^"НЕКОТОРЫЕ БИОГРАФИЧЕСКИЕ ПОДРОБНОСТИ О ШАМИЛЕ".vostlit.info.Retrieved16 April2021.
  16. ^Gammer, Moshe (1994).Muslim Resistance to the Tsar: Shamil and the Conquest of Chechnia and Daghestan.London: Frank Cass. pp. 69, 329.
  17. ^abThomas M. Barrett,At the Edge of Empire: The Terek Cossacks and the North Caucasus Frontier, 1700–1860(Westview Press, 1999), 193.
  18. ^Daniel R. Brower and Edward J. Lazzerinini, eds.,Russia's Orient: Imperial Borderlands and Peoples, 1700–1917(Indiana University Press, 1997), p. 92.
  19. ^Invisible armies: Blanch, sabres( "bare":70; "wild beast"; al-Qarakhi, shining (pulled out sword: 22);
  20. ^abGary Hamburg, Thomas Sanders, Ernest Tucker (eds,),Russian-Muslim Confrontation in the Caucasus: Alternative Visions of the conflict between Imam Shamil and the Russians, 1830-1859,RoutledgeCurzon 2004 pèassim
  21. ^abMalise Ruthven,Terror: The Hidden Source,New York Review of Books,24 October 2013, pp. 20-24.
  22. ^King, Charles (2008).The Ghost of Freedom.New York, NY: Oxford University Press. pp. 79–80.
  23. ^Gammer, Moshe (September 2013). "Empire and Mountains: The Case of Russia and the Caucasus".Social Evolution & History:124–125.
  24. ^CountMikhail Semyonovich Vorontsovdetailing the plan to cut away Chechnya from the Imamate:
    "Полтора века назад Чечню удалось победить «системой просек".April 2009.
  25. ^Gammer, Moshe (September 2013). "Empire and Mountains: The Case of Russia and the Caucasus".Social Evolution & History:126.
  26. ^Андрей Манчук,Шамиль на печерских холмахArchived2007-11-15 at theWayback Machine,"Газета по-киевски",06.09.2007
  27. ^Pismo Shamilia Mukhammadanu, November 24, 1859, in Omarov, ed. 100 pisem Shamilia.
  28. ^"Re: John Federoff born Russia - Genealogy".genealogy.Retrieved4 May2023.
  29. ^"Теперь Кавказ в Калуге»: как жил имам Шамиль в русском плену".14 November 2018.
  30. ^"Imam Shamil: A pioneer of the Caucuses's struggle for freedom".Daily Sabah.28 August 2015.
  31. ^"Русские в государстве Шамиля".История, Археология И Этнография Кавказа(28): 7–15. 2011.
  32. ^H. Christoph: Diagnosen zu einigen neuen Lepidoptera des palaearctischen Faunengebietes. Hor. Soc. Ent Ross. (Sankt Peterburg), vol 22. pp308 - 314 (1888). SeeZenophassus.
  33. ^ab"A Song - A story of bondage and freedom portrays the mystery of life".chabad.org.Retrieved1 January2018.
  34. ^"The Spiritual French Revolution: A Miracle in Our Times, 5752(1992)".chabad.org.Retrieved1 January2018.
  35. ^"La Marseillaise - background".marseillaise.org.Retrieved1 January2018.

Further reading

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