Circassian Exile

The Circassian Exile refers to the mass displacement of the Circassian people, the indigenous population of the North Caucasus, and the accompanying deaths that occurred as part of the Tsarist Russian Empire’s policy of seizing control over the North Caucasus during the 19th century. The event took place following the Caucasian War, which officially ended on 21 May 1864.

Circassian Exile and Genocide(TRT News)

Historical Background

Since 1556, the Tsarist Russian Empire had launched military campaigns aimed at gaining access to the Black Sea, targeting the North Caucasus region. This period witnessed conflicts lasting approximately 308 years. The Circassian people mounted intense resistance throughout this time. In 1864, the Russian army crushed the last resistance in the Caucasus and established full control over the region.

The Exile Process

Starting on 21 May 1864, the Circassian population was forcibly expelled from their homeland. Those who surrendered were compelled either to join the Tsarist army or to emigrate. According to unofficial sources, between 1.5 and 2 million Circassians were subjected to exile within a period as short as one month.

Conditions and Consequences of the Exile

The exile was primarily carried out from Black Sea ports including Anapa, Novorossiysk, Gelendzhik, Sochi, and Adler. Circassians were transported by primitive sea vessels to Ottoman territories, particularly to regions such as Samsun, Trabzon, Ordu, Tokat, Amasya, Sinop, Yozgat, Düzce, Adapazarı, and Kocaeli. During the sea journey, an estimated 500,000 people died due to epidemics, starvation, and inadequate shelter conditions.

Settlement Areas

The majority of Circassians were resettled within the borders of the Ottoman Empire, especially in Anatolia and the Middle East regions such as Syria and Palestine. Some groups who did not reach Ottoman territory were sent to Russian Cossack villages around the rivers of the Central Laba and Central Kuban.

International Legal Context

According to the United Nations Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, acts constituting genocide include the killing of members of a group, causing them serious physical or mental harm, deliberately inflicting conditions of life calculated to bring about their physical destruction in whole or in part, preventing births within the group, and forcibly transferring children of the group to another group.

Contemporary Repercussions

The Circassian Exile and Genocide are recognized as one of the first large-scale ethnic cleansings and forced population movements in modern European history. The Circassian diaspora in Türkiye and various regions of the world commemorates this event annually on 21 May, wearing traditional attire, lighting “Nart fires” along the seashore, and reciting the “Exile Oath.”