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Old 23rd December 2006, 03:48 AM   #22
ariel
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There were plenty of opportunities for the Circassians to move around and , thus, share their weapon culture with other nations. First, they were mercenary warriors with the Ottomans and Iranians: in fact, they, together with other Caucasians, constituted the backbone of Persian military. Persians were artisans and bureaucrats; the fighters in their armies were almost all foreighners: Caucasians, Afghanis, Turks etc. As a matter of fact, the very name for the Persian kindjal, Kama (or Qame) is a Circassian one, K'ameh (as per Nakov's PhD dissertation).
Egyptian mamelukes were significantly Caucasians, central Asians (Kazakhs) and Albanians.
Until 1739 Kabarda was a vassal of the Crimean Khanate that was in turn a de facto vassal of the Ottoman Empire. Following the russian-turkish war of 1829-1829, Russia became a de jure ( it was already de facto) owner of the North-Eastern Black Sea lands. Circassians rebelled and fought the Russians until at least the time of Crimean war
In 1858-1859 about 500,000 Circassians moved ( exiled, in fact) to Turkey and there were re-settled in the Balkans, North Africa, Syria/ Jordan (not yet in existence) and Arabia proper.
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