Uniforms of the longest war in Russian history. A grassroots initiative…

Hadji Murat Khunzakhsky. Naib of the mountain leader Shamil, he defected to the Russians in 1851 and died the following year while attempting to escape to the mountains. Manufacturer: St. George's Cross

He is wearing a chekmen, a simple beshmet,
A forehead under a shaggy hat;
Dagger sheath, pistol
They shine with a sparse notch;
And he will tie it with a belt,
And the saber rings faintly on him;
The gun, swinging over the shoulders,
Turns white in a woolen cover...

"Ismail Bey" by M.Yu. Lermontov

Military story Fatherland. Why are we devoting so much attention in this series to the uniforms of the troops stationed in the Caucasus and participating in military operations from 1817 to 1864? The point is that the experience of the Caucasus, to varying degrees, left its mark on all troops of the Russian Imperial Army. Initially, this influence was purely spontaneous and was not formalized by any regulations. Both soldiers and officers serving there and participating in battles simply made changes to their uniforms on their own initiative, even in violation of strict regulations. These uniforms were ill-suited for military operations in this particular theater of war. Many simply borrowed individual elements of clothing from the local population. And, of course, the officers took the greatest liberties in this regard.

Equestrian figurine of Imam Shamil. The same manufacturer.

"The Caucasian officers and soldiers," wrote D. Rakovich, historian of the Tenginsky Regiment, "were dressed in an extremely peculiar manner. Any newcomer encountering Caucasian troops for the first time was struck by this almost complete lack of military appearance, especially at a time when the higher echelons of power recognized form as essence and were ready to consider the slightest deviation from the norm a fall from honor."

"The Caucasian Horseman" by Konstantin Filippov (1830–1878). Photograph by Christie's

At the same time, the Caucasian command also didn't restrict the initiative of its troops, having learned from experience that the uniforms and equipment devised in the offices of St. Petersburg were simply unsuitable for the local conditions. And the most far-sighted and thoughtful commanders tried to alleviate the soldiers' lot in every way. Thus, in 1810, General F. O. Paulucci, commander of the Russian troops in the Caucasus, issued the order to wear "forage caps, and not to take shakos and helmets on campaign."

A Cossack in a burka. From a watercolor by G.G. Gagarin. Lermontov State Museum-Reserve in Pyatigorsk. Photo by the author.

The Commander-in-Chief of the Caucasian Troops, A.P. Ermolov, was equally lenient toward the "figurants," that is, the troops who fought in campaigns wearing "motley, varied clothing." As early as 1818, in a letter to the Chief of Staff of the 1st Army, Adjutant General Baron I.I. Dibich, he proposed changes to the soldiers' uniforms that would be appropriate to the region's climatic conditions.

Highlander. Producer: Silver Dream Studio

This is what he proposed:

"Shoks. In this sultry climate, shakos are completely uncomfortable; for the skin, heated by the sun's rays, retains such a degree of heat that it not only burdens the soldiers but also causes severe headaches. Here, it is incomparably more comfortable to have shakos similar to those of the Life Guards, made of simple black sheepskin with a peak and a flap that would protect the back of the head from the sun... but without the plumes, which are inappropriate here. The convenience of these shakos is proven by the use of sheepskin hats by all peoples living on this side of the Caucasus Mountains and further into Persia and Turkey, which I experienced during my stay in Persia.

"Dark green caftans... I think it would not be superfluous to make a caftan without skirts [tails]... Cloth trousers. Make them dark green, because... a soldier spends a significant portion of his pay on bleaching. Leather mittens should be discarded, which... in the winter, which is mostly rainy here, quickly get wet and dry slowly... At any other time they are either not used or are useless, and besides, the leather is poorly preserved in the local heat. Slings and sword belts. Make them black patent leather; because, as I said above, there is nothing to bleach here or it is excessively expensive for the soldiers... Knapsacks. Instead of knapsacks, have lined suitcases for the soldier's carriage, made of revenduk, similar to cavalry ones. Real knapsacks should be kept only according to the number of companies used in the movement..."

"Circassians dressed in chain mail and shooting from a bow." Engraving by I. Gros from a drawing by E. M. Korneev. Lermontov State Museum-Reserve in Pyatigorsk. Photo by the author.

And this is what the rationality of these proposals means: many of the proposals of this talented military leader and administrator will, one way or another, later be implemented.

According to contemporaries, "the Caucasian army at that time was destined to wear rags; there was nowhere to buy them, and their clothes, whether during work or during campaigns through the rocky wilderness and dense local forests, would definitely burn on people and not last." Emperor Nicholas I himself was convinced that the Russian army's uniform "didn't last long" during his visit to the Caucasus in 1837. He saw deviations from accepted forms and regulations at every turn, but he was wise enough to excuse them. Moreover, he even joked about the Caucasian troops' naive and futile efforts to do everything properly before the sovereign's eyes, even to dress in uniform.

Caucasian dagger is a traditional weapon Highlanders and an accessory to their national costume, made in the village of Kubachi, Dagestan. Circa 1818–1819. Materials: steel, silver, niello, wood. Length: 55,88 cm. Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York

On April 1, 1827, another order followed:

"Kiviers are to be left at regimental headquarters. On campaign, wear forage caps with visors attached and white canvas covers to protect against the sun's rays in hot weather. However, the covers are not to be sewn on; they are to be placed on the caps and removed when leaving for duty."

All combat troops in the Caucasus wore these caps for the four to five warm months of the year. However, infantry on summer expeditions (especially in the forests) had to remove these covers, as the white color stood out against the green background and was an excellent target for the mountaineers. Young officers were especially likely to fall victim to this, due to their excessive bravado.

Dagger with scabbard, Caucasian workmanship, 1860-1861. Materials: steel, gold, silver, ivory, leather. Length: 47.8 cm. Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York.

One of the "innovations" for the foot troops of the Separate Caucasian Corps was the replacement of shakos with black sheepskin caps with leather visors, to which the emblems of the branches of the armed forces, made of yellow copper, were affixed to the front, in accordance with the imperial decree of August 10, 1829. In place of the plumes, round pom-poms were introduced: silver for officers, wool for lower ranks; red for grenadiers and carabiniers, and white for the 1st Battalion, white and light blue for the 2nd Battalion, and green and light blue for the 3rd Battalion. True, these pom-pom colors later changed somewhat. However, even these proved to be rather uncomfortable, so the wearing of "forage caps" by the troops continued until 1848.

Caucasian shashka with scabbard, circa 1849-1850. Materials: steel, silver, niello, wood, textile. Length with scabbard: 95,9 cm. Weight with scabbard: 598,2 g. Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York.

Interestingly, the handle of these Caucasian sabers fit almost entirely into the sheath…

A close-up of a saber handle. Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York.

In the Caucasus, permission was finally granted to wear mountain papakhas, known as "Circassian papakhas." And Russian army officers in the Caucasus readily wore captured weapons, especially daggers, sabers, and pistols richly decorated with silver and gold, with any attire, often looking more Caucasian than the Caucasians themselves. This is precisely how retired Major Martynov was dressed on that fateful day when he caught Lermontov's eye at the Verzilins' house, and Lermontov began to tease him in front of the ladies, calling him "a highlander with a big dagger." Understandably, Martynov was offended by these words, and he challenged Lermontov to a duel.

Portrait of N. S. Martynov in the Caucasian costume of the Grebensky Cossack Regiment. From a watercolor by G. G. Gagarin, 1840s. Lermontov State Museum-Reserve in Pyatigorsk. Photo by the author.

As for the Nizhny Novgorod Dragoon Regiment—the only dragoon regiment assigned to the Separate Caucasian Corps—the Nizhny Novgorod men, like everyone else, wore caps, covered in covers during the summer. Interestingly, when a combined dragoon brigade consisting of the Novorossiysk and Tver Dragoon Regiments was sent to the Caucasus to reinforce the Caucasian troops during the Crimean War of 1853-1856, they did not change their uniform. As a result, "the dragoons in their copper helmets were numb and fell from their horses, and it was hard for their heads to bear it when the red-hot copper was untouchable," wrote one eyewitness.

A Caucasian, possibly Georgian or Circassian pistol from 1846–1847. The barrel bears inscriptions in Russian and Arabic, suggesting it was made in Tbilisi (Georgia or Circassia), which was under Russian control at the time. Kubachi, another major gunmaking center in the Caucasus, came under Russian control only in the 1860s. The flintlock is of the Mediterranean miquelet type. Materials: steel, gold, silver, niello, leather, ivory. Length: 44,45 cm. Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York.

As for the officer's uniform, the most common element of the officer's attire was the frock coat. Gradually, it began to be worn not only on campaign but also on festive occasions. In these cases, the frock coat replaced both the uniform and the greatcoat.

The frock coat cut was universal across the army, but there were variations. Thus, the commander-in-chief of the Separate Caucasian Corps, Prince M.S. Vorontsov, favored wearing a "long-skirted frock coat of thick cloth" and spread this fashion to the troops under his command. The commander of the Nizhny Novgorod Dragoon Regiment, Colonel F.A. Krukovsky, "wore a long-skirted frock coat, about three inches below the knees, with deep pockets in front," while Prince M.Z. Argutinsky often appeared "in his baggy, warm, long civilian frock coat." Moreover, it was noted that at the Battle of Kyuryuk-Dara in the summer of 1854, "many officers wore... fur frock coats." The frock coat was often worn unbuttoned from top to bottom, and Mikhail Lermontov himself was seen wearing one with the collar turned down. This is precisely how these "Caucasian oddities" were perceived by officers arriving from St. Petersburg, and they noted them in their diaries, memoirs, and letters to their families in the capital.

Festive attire of a Cossack of the Terek Cossack Host. Leo Tolstoy Cultural Center, Zheleznovodsk. Photo by the author.

Under the frock coat, in the Caucasian fashion, it was fashionable to wear colorful shirts or beshmets—knee-length shirts with hooks and a stand-up collar, a piece of national dress of the Caucasus highlanders. Thus, contemporaries remembered Lermontov's "red kanaus shirt" under his frock coat, the "blue beshmet" of Colonel Ya. I. Chavchavadze, commander of the Nizhny Novgorod Dragoons, and artillery Captain E.V. Brimmer (future commander of artillery in the Caucasus), and... a colored calico shirt of General I.M. Labyntsev.

Following established tradition, officers did not wear epaulettes or scarves with their field uniforms to camouflage themselves from the highlanders' well-aimed bullets. For this same reason, officers' frock coats were often faded, lint-free, and even greasy in places. The attempts of some generals and staff officers to dress according to regulations provoked genuine surprise and confusion among the Caucasian troops.

For example, the soldiers saw the commander of the Kabardinsky regiment, Prince A. I. Baryatinsky, “in a frock coat, buttoned up to the top, despite the month of July, with aiguillettes proving his aide-de-camp rank, and with an officer’s St. George’s Cross in his buttonhole,” and they were very surprised by this and even felt sorry for him, seeing how terribly he was suffering from the heat.

Interestingly, every regiment of the Russian army was required to send one lieutenant to the Caucasus Army every four years, so that he could serve there for a full year and gain real combat experience. Incidentally, this is how the idea gradually spread throughout the Russian army that all those aiguillettes, braid, and other frills of a military uniform were far from the most important thing…

Fur-trimmed Cossack hat. Leo Tolstoy Cultural Center, Zheleznovodsk. Photo by the author.

And how these visiting officers were amazed, looking at the officers and cadets who had served in the Caucasus for much more than a year. Thus, an ensign of the Shirvan Regiment was once met in a "uniform frock coat and yellow nankeen trousers," the cadets of the Kabardian Regiment wore "a thick uniform with braid, camel-haired trousers, chevyaks* and a saber over the shoulder." Moreover, it happened that non-observance of uniform saved their lives. Thus, in the summer of 1850, cadet Gaevsky of the Nizhny Novgorod Dragoon Regiment, dressed in "a dragoon jacket with gazyrs, yellow Lezgin trousers with a wide spectacles** and long tassels, with a straw hat on his head and red chevyaks on his feet; He had no weapons on him except an oak branch, which he used to brush away flies," and was captured by the Chechens. They, looking at his attire, mistook the cadet for a madman, which saved him.

The "Circassian costume" was extremely popular among officers in the Caucasus, as both M. Lermontov and L. Tolstoy wrote about in their works. First and foremost, this was the "cherkeska," the very name of which suggests that Russians first saw it worn by Circassians. It was an open-chested, collarless caftan with knee-length or mid-calf hemlines. Cartridge pouches were sewn diagonally onto both sides of the chest—special pockets for gazyrs, silver tubes used to hold pre-measured charges of gunpowder.

Lermontov, too, traveled the entire Caucasus Line and Georgia in 1837, "dressed in Circassian style, with a rifle slung over his shoulder." Many officers also sported Circassian coats, but wore their uniform caps to avoid being mistaken for highlanders from a distance. This fashion was encouraged, but only locally. While on leave in Russia, officers were required to follow the order: "Officers are to maintain dress code, as some of the Caucasian artillerymen, while on leave in Russia, presented themselves to their superiors not in uniform, but in Cossack coats and Circassian hats."

Thus, the "Circassian costume" was very popular among officers in the Caucasus, as both M. Lermontov and L. Tolstoy, who knew this firsthand, wrote about. First and foremost, it was the "cherkeska," the very name of which suggests that Russians first saw it on Circassians. It was an open-chested, collarless caftan with knee-length or mid-calf hemlines. Cartridge pouches were sewn diagonally onto both sides of the chest—special pockets for gazyrs, silver tubes used to store pre-measured charges of gunpowder.

Gazyrs on a Circassian coat of a Cossack of the Terek Cossack Host. Leo Tolstoy Cultural Center, Zheleznovodsk. Photo by the author.

Lermontov, too, traveled the entire Caucasus Line and Georgia in 1837, "dressed in Circassian style, with a rifle slung over his shoulder." Many officers sported Circassian coats but wore their uniform caps to avoid being mistaken for highlanders from a distance. This fashion was encouraged, but only locally. While on leave in Russia, officers were required to follow the order: "Officers are to maintain uniform, as some of the Caucasian artillerymen, while on leave in Russia, presented themselves to their superiors not in uniform, but in Cossack coats and Circassian hats."

The burka and papakha were very important parts of the Caucasian national costume. Leo Tolstoy Cultural Center, Zheleznovodsk. Photo by the author.

The burka was often worn not with a papakha, but with a cap and a cloth hood with long "ears." Lermontov State Museum-Reserve in Pyatigorsk. Photo by the author.

This is all the more understandable, since there is a description of how a certain Caucasian artillery officer looked in 1826, who “was wearing a frock coat, with a dagger on his belt in front, a saber over his shoulder, and a loaded pistol in his belt at the back... so as not to be a simple spectator, but to take part in the battle.”

In 1845, in the Vnezapnaya fortress, the officers of the Kabardian Jaeger Regiment “all lived on a marching footing. The entire uniform consisted of a frock coat with counter-epaulettes (stripes on the shoulders, not lengthwise, but crosswise — V.Sh.); the widest camel trousers, necessarily with a silk spectacled cap, completed the costume, and an Asian saber under silver, an inseparable companion of everyone; in winter — a lambskin coat of Asian cut. These are the costumes that the officers wore both at home and on duty, and when presented to their superiors. It was considered very chic to have a silk beshmet under the frock coat and a dagger on the belt — then the frock coat was already unbuttoned ... V.M. Kozlovsky (the regiment commander) had a green beshmet, a large dagger under silver on the belt; In a suit like this for a boss, and a big one at that, the top three buttons on the frock coat were buttoned.”

The handle of a Cossack's dagger from the Terek Cossack Host. Leo Tolstoy Cultural Center, Zheleznovodsk. Photo by the author.

Therefore, Lermontov's words about costumes that were "a mixture of Circassian and Nizhny Novgorod" accurately reflect the realities of life at the time, without any mockery on his part. This is precisely how it was! Incidentally, in the Caucasus, soldiers had to wear overcoats far more often than their uniforms, which were simply too awkward to fight in. But overcoats provided warmth, shelter, and protection from rain and snow. Consequently, the service life of uniforms and overcoats was changed: uniforms were assigned three years of wear, while overcoats were only two. Moreover, the soldiers themselves came up with the idea of ​​sewing colored cloth cartridge pouches onto their overcoats to hold five or six rounds, long before official permission was granted in 1851 to roll up the flaps of their overcoats on campaign. In the summer, soldiers wore their greatcoats rolled up over their shoulders, and during the Crimean War, they often wore captured light-gray Turkish infantry greatcoats over their own greatcoats for... extra warmth!

"An Episode from the Battle of Valerik, July 11, 1840" is a watercolor painting by the poet M. Yu. Lermontov and artist G. G. Gagarin depicting an episode from the Caucasian War—one of the scenes of hand-to-hand combat during the Battle of the Valerik River. Lermontov drew the composition, and Gagarin completed it with watercolors. Lermontov State Museum-Reserve in Pyatigorsk. Photo by the author.

*Chevyaki was the name given in the Caucasus to footwear made from rough cowhide, ankle-high or slightly higher, with or without a small heel.

**Ochkur is a wide belt, often with tassels, which was used to hold up Caucasian trousers.

P.S. The author and the site administration express their gratitude to the senior staff of the M. Yu. Lermontov State Museum-Reserve in Pyatigorsk and the L. N. Tolstoy Cultural Center in Zheleznovodsk for their assistance in preparing this material.

Comments

[Luminman]

No one allowed me to take photos at the Pyatigorsk Museum. Have the rules changed there?

[kalibr]

Quote: Luminman

Nobody allowed me to take photos in the Pyatigorsk Museum.

Unfortunately, no. But... You'll have to forgive me, they made an exception for me. They even let me walk under the red rope and let me take a photo of Lermontov's uniform (a frock coat and cap) from the Nizhny Novgorod Dragoon Regiment hanging on the closet. That's how respected our site is!

[cat Rusich]

Quote: kalibr

Unfortunately, no. But... You'll have to forgive me, they made an exception for me. They even let me walk under the red rope and let me take a photo of Lermontov's uniform (a frock coat and cap) from the Nizhny Novgorod Dragoon Regiment hanging on the closet. That's how respected our site is!

Here's an interesting fact about Caucasian daggers - the sheath of the dagger had a place for dagger knife and sometimes for awl, which could be used as a "fork".
Below is a photo of what it looks like.

[kalibr]

Quote: cat Rusich

Below is a photo of what it looks like.

The photo on the right is very beautiful. Where did you get it?

[cat Rusich]

Quote: kalibr

The photo on the right is very beautiful. Where did you get it?

On the Internet... upon request dagger knife.
I read about his existence in the book "Bullet from the Caucasus" about the detective Lykov. If you're interested, look for books about him, by Nikolai Svechin.

[kalibr]

Quote: cat Rusich

dagger knife available upon request.

Thank you!

[solar]

A dagger is a weapon. A dagger knife and awl (think of it as a single-pronged fork) are household items.

[cat Rusich]

Quote from solar

A dagger is a weapon. A dagger knife and awl (think of it as a single-pronged fork) are household items.

The Scots have the same dagger. Dirk - There is also space in the sheath for a knife and fork.
Below is a photo of Dirk with a knife and fork.

[solar]

This is logical - it is not very convenient to cut meat or bread with a combat dagger.
The Japanese had this too - in the tantu sheath there was room for a small household kogatan.
War is war, but lunch is on schedule :)).

[cat Rusich]

Quote from solar

The Japanese had this too - in the tantu sheath there was room for a small household kogatan.
War is war, but lunch is on schedule :)).

I heard a different version...
Kogatana It was needed to cut the knots that held all the samurai armor together, when, for example, they got wet and couldn't be removed by hand.
Also, the sheath of a katana or the same tanto could accommodate kogai - double metal "spokes" - as an option to use instead of real chopsticks (as a version, samurai scholars will tell the exact purpose)
Below are photos of typical kogatana, kogai.

[solar]

I won't argue, but the analogy is obvious: the scabbard of a combat weapon has space for cutlery and a utility knife—for cutting rope or spearing sushi. Thought flows parallel to each other in different parts of the world.

[old rats]

Well, the Scots are highlanders too...

[3x3zsave]

A kind word and a journalist's ID can achieve much more than just a kind word.

[kalibr]

Quote: 3x3zsave

A kind word and a journalist's ID can achieve much more than just a kind word.

That's right, Anton!

[Richard]

Greetings Anton, Vyacheslav and Nikolay!!!

Festive attire of a Cossack of the Terek Cossack Host. Leo Tolstoy Cultural Center, Zheleznovodsk. Photo by the author.

A strange display. There's no question about the color of the festive cherkeska. But the beige beshmet. The Terek people have always traditionally worn blue or light blue beshmets. And it's not a matter of fashion—it's a kind of "friend or foe" sign, when all the potential enemies around you are also wearing cherkeskas. It's strange that Kolya didn't notice. Unlike the regular canvas ones, festive Terek beshmets were made of satin or silk, but the color never changed.
As an example, I will cite the old Terek recruitment song of the Volga line of the TKV "Well, how will I forget you?", the lyrics of which were rewritten in Soviet times:

Here is someone walking towards the station.
My darling is probably coming.
He is wearing a blue shirt
She'll drive me crazy.
He has a rifle and a dagger.
And with cartridges on his chest
Why, why did I meet
On his life's path
.....
The Cossacks built the gangplank
Into the big Stolypin carriage
My dear led his horse along them
With a saddle decorated with Circassian fur
The horse from the carriage arched its back
Saying goodbye to my homeland, I burst out laughing.
My darling got into the car
The conductor closed the doors (c)

[Richard]

Another feature of the Terek Cossacks' Circassian coats were the "recognizable linear" patterns on the cuffs of the Circassian coats - the Sunzha Cossacks had "waves", the Greben Cossacks had "mountains", and the Volga Cossacks had "fishes". A modern photo shows Terek Cossacks of the Volga line with fishes on the cuffs of their Circassian coats.

[kalibr]

Quote: Richard

But here's a beige beshmet. The Terek people have always traditionally worn blue or light blue beshmets.

Well, they probably didn't know that.

[Rodez]

Circassians dressed in chain mail and shooting from a bow

unexpectedly, however... I didn't even know, although it's logical, weapons and protection are from the same "generation"

Close-up of the saber handle

and no protection for the hand... which means it's not intended for duels, but only for "chopping up" the enemy... this is also the first time I've seen a handle that's almost completely covered by a sheath, which is also intended for this purpose with a thickening at the end (beginning?)

[Andobor]

A shashka is an offensive cutting weapon that does not use defensive tactics or sophisticated techniques of professional saber fencing.

[Rodez]

Quote: Andobor

a saber is an offensive cutting weapon

Yes... probably the inertia of my thinking... usually the saber is associated with the Cossacks, not the Circassians, although it is just a type of weapon that can be used by anyone who wants to :)
P.S. Although, nevertheless, in the Caucasus the geography (mountains) is less conducive to the use of sabers than in open flat terrain, where it is easier to gather in a “crowd” and accelerate where there is

[Andobor]

The Circassian name for a long knife, the shashka, came to replace the heavier sabre with the spread of firearms and the degradation of armor. The Circassian shashka is lighter and shorter than the traditional Cossack shashka, which combines the properties of a sabre.

[Ivan Ivanovich Ivanov]

A shashka is an offensive cutting weapon that does not use defensive tactics or sophisticated techniques of professional saber fencing.

You can defend yourself with a saber, but it's about 15-20% of your defense capabilities and it's not easy to work with a "draining" technique - it's much easier to catch blows on the guard

[Richard]

Here, everything is simpler. The slashing saber and pike are universal weapons for cavalry against steppe infantry; for head-on mounted combat in the mountains and gullies, the saber is preferable. But saber flanking is a special martial art—unlike saber mastery, it can't be quickly learned during three years of compulsory Cossack preferential (modern-day conscription) service. Cossack children were taught it from childhood and honed it their entire lives. In the RIA TKV, only two Gorsko-Mozdok regiments, whose "specialization" was head-on mounted combat, were armed with curved Caucasian sabers; all the other Terek regiments were armed with Cossack sabers. In the memoirs of S.M. Budyonny, there is an episode from the Civil War when he, Kravchenko, and his soldiers pursued a Terek sergeant major with white "Mozdok" braid on the collar of his beshmet and the sleeves of his Circassian coat. Seeing the pursuers, he dropped his carbine and ducked close to his horse's rump. They decided to take him alive. When they caught up with him, he slipped his saber sheath with a subtle movement and, without turning around, slashed the nearest Red Army soldier. Then, turning his horse, he ducked under Budyonny's raised saber and slashed him across the chest, knocking him off his horse. Before the white hare could reach Kravchenko, Kravchenko managed to shoot him. The soldiers carried the bleeding army commander to the infirmary in a burka. Budyonny was saved from a fatal blow by... the binoculars hanging from his chest.

[Ivan Ivanovich Ivanov]

Circassians dressed in chain mail and shooting from a bow
unexpectedly, however... I didn't even know, although it's logical, weapons and protection are from the same "generation"

Well, you shouldn't trust the artists too much—they depict tight-fitting chainmail, and the bows and arrows are very fairytale-like. Artists are like that...

[Andobor]

M.Yu. Lermontov about the “daring Kabardian”:

He is in precious chain mail,
On steel elbow pads,
A sacred verse from the Quran
Written in gold on them.

[Sergey Aleksandrovich]

Many people complained about the lack of a guard on the Cossack saber.

[Andobor]

Kuban Cossacks, reconstruction of clothing and weapons from 1902.
For the 100th anniversary of the Kuban Cossack Army.

[bubalik]

The film "Bayazet" (2003) recreates in great detail and with great expertise the appearance of the Russian and Turkish armies during the Russo-Turkish War of 1877-1878.
The film accurately shows the differences in uniform between the branches of the armed forces involved in the defense of Bayazet:
Infantry (Kursk Regiment):
The soldiers and officers are depicted wearing white tunics and dark green trousers—the standard field uniform of the time. They wear caps with colored bands (depending on the regiment) or white linen caps, worn in the summer for protection from the sun.
Cossacks: The Yaik and Terek Cossacks, played by the main characters (Shtokvich, Klyucharev, and others), wear their traditional uniforms: Kubanka or papakhas, Circassian coats with gazyrs.
Artillerymen: Artillerymen can be identified by their black shoulder straps and scarlet piping.

A very important detail: the film clearly depicts shoulder straps, the main means of distinguishing rank and regimental affiliation. Officers wear epaulettes or shoulder straps with zigzag braid.

[Olgovich]

Cossack of the Terek Cossack Army

The sovlavast left the Terek Cossack Host only in museums: this year marks the 105th anniversary of the genocide of the Terek Cossacks, deported and massacred by order of the Bolsheviks by the highlanders allied with the Bolsheviks since 1918. The apotheosis of 1920.

G.K. Ordzhonikidze::

"The Politburo of the Central Committee approved the resolution of the Regional Bureau on the allocation of land to the highlanders, without stopping at the eviction of villages."

In the spring of 1920, the residents of three long-suffering villages were forcibly evicted: Aki-Yurt, Tarskaya and SunzhenskayaHow the "liberation" of the villages from the Cossacks took place has long been well known. On March 27, 1920, the population of these villages was driven to the Dalakovo railway siding. Those who offered the slightest resistance, were unable to walk, or attempted to flee were killed on the spot. The corpses were loaded onto carts, and the terrifying convoy moved on. The carts were "unloaded" into a huge pit, previously prepared near the siding. The bodies of those executed on the spot were also dumped there, as there were not enough for all the wagons. The courtyards of the devastated Cossack villages were immediately plundered by Ingush and Chechens, who committed massacres among themselves to divide up the captured goods.

[severok1979]

It has long been known that the Caucasian army of the 1830s-1840s was the Russian army of a healthy man.

[Admiral Bezobrazov]

In terms of more comfortable uniforms and equipment, and an emphasis on individual marksmanship and tactical training—yes, there were many positive innovations. However, fighting for a single village could lead to the loss of several generals, and even in a field battle against Anglo-French forces, it's not a given that anything more than a draw would have been achieved.

[Severok]

And now the wear periods for uniforms are at least strange: combat boots for several years, field suits for six months, winter uniforms for five years...

[Senior seaman]

Some paragraphs are repeated...

By the way, in the Caucasus, soldiers had to wear overcoats much more often than uniforms, which they simply found awkward to fight in.

This was the case throughout the army, thanks to the influence of Alexander the Blessed. It was he, back during the Foreign Campaign, who ordered soldiers to wear greatcoats in the summer, so as to preserve their uniforms for parades.

[faterdom]

Vchcheslav Olegovich, bravo! This material could fill a whole book, and with illustrations, too!
Thank you, you made me very happy, I enjoyed reading it, just like in childhood.

[Roman Efremov]

Take off your beshmet,
Friend Martin!
I think it was Lermontov. I wonder if it's about Martynov or someone else?