The history of Ossetia is rooted in antiquity. The modern territories of North and South Ossetia are inhabited by Ossetians, who are the descendants of the ancient peoples of the Alans, Scythians and Sarmatians, who came to these lands, driven by hordes of Mongols. The Republics of Ossetia have gone through a difficult and difficult path of formation and development, retaining their language, identity, and unique culture.
Koban culture
The history of Ossetia is closely connected with the history of the peoples of the Caucasus and Europe. In the II-I centuries BC. e. in the transitional period from the Bronze to the Iron Age, the Koban culture developed, after which numerous monuments remained. Bright representatives of the Eneolithic culture are burial grounds, originally washed away by a river flowing near the village of Koban.
They contained bronze ornaments, household items that had not previously been found in these places. Today they are in many famous museums around the world. The excavations have presented the world with a large number of bronzeproducts, tools, pottery, as well as figurines of domestic animals. In the Soviet period and at present, interesting books on the history of Ossetia have been written, where the Koban culture is studied in detail.
Based on the finds, archaeologists have established that in the foothills and mountains of the North Caucasus, there lived numerous tribes engaged in agriculture and cattle breeding. Craftsmen produced pottery, weaving, smelted bronze from copper and tin.
Alans during the Hun invasion
The ancient history of Ossetia is full of truly great events. In the 7th century BC e. the Scythians came to the steppe regions between the Don and the Volga, who ousted the Cimmerians. In the IV century BC. e. the Sarmatians penetrated here, the Alans tribe, who were the ancestors of modern Ossetians, stood out from among them. In the 1st century AD, representatives of this people were well known in European countries. The word "Alans", as a nationality, can be found in the works of ancient Greek writers and scientists.
In the I century there was an invasion of the Huns, who, having been defeated by the Chinese, moved west, sweeping away entire nations and countries on their way. At the beginning of the 2nd century, they approached the Volga, where the lands of the Alans began. Here they had to stay for almost two centuries, as the Alans turned out to be brave warriors. Being, like the Huns, nomads, they offered desperate resistance. Part of their cavalry was heavily armed. The horses had armor, which indicates that crafts were developed in their state.
After two centuries of confrontation, at the beginningIV century Alans were defeated. Some of them, who did not want to submit to the Huns, were driven out to the foothills of the North Caucasus, and the other part, driven by the conquerors, moved further west. Therefore, the descendants of the Alans can be found in many European countries.
The appearance of the Alans in the North Caucasus
The history of Ossetia suggests that the settlement of the territories of the North Caucasus by the Alans occurred after the invasion of the Huns. Initially, the foothill areas up to the Kuban River were inhabited. Under the onslaught of the Huns, the Alans advanced higher into the mountains. After that, an important period began in the development and formation of the Alan people - the transition from a nomadic lifestyle to a settled one. This is largely due to the peoples living next to the Alans.
In the VI-VII centuries, two protostates of the Alans emerged. Eastern - with a center located in the upper part of the Kuban River, western - with a center in Darial. At the beginning of the 10th century, there was a unification into a single state of Alania. It was an early feudal association. Alanya reached its heyday in the 11th century, during the reign of Durguley the Great. This ruler did a lot for the peoples of the Caucasus and the Middle East.
Mongol-Tatar invasion
The fateful role in the XIII century was played by the Mongol invasion, which caused irreparable damage to the state of Alania. This caused a large outflow of Alans to Byzantium and Hungary. A heavy blow was the campaign of the great-grandson of Genghis Khan Mengu-Timur, who was famous for his incredible cruelty. An irreparable loss was the flat lands, where there were agricultural lands, pastures, cities and villages in which handicrafts were developed. They have been turned into a desert.
The Mongol-Tatars failed to conquer the mountain Alans. Although the city of Dedyakov fell after a long siege, the location of which is not exactly known, but presumably this is the Upper Dzhulad settlement, located on the left bank of the Terek. For many years, the Alans, who had gone high into the mountains, lived in isolation. On the one hand, this influenced the development, but the preservation of the language, traditions, and customs of this people was a big plus. An important stage in the life of the Alans began, who became a mountain people.
History of Ossetia in the XV-XVII centuries
The loss of flat lands, which were developed by the Circassians-Kabardians, made the life of the Alans more severe. They had to adapt to unusual conditions for them. Mountain agriculture did not allow to collect sufficient crops, so the main emphasis was placed on cattle breeding, various crafts. Products and excess products were sold through visiting merchants. Of course, a small mountainous state did not play a significant role in international relations, but in regional relations with neighboring states, the Alans (Ossetians) acted on an equal footing.
Mountain Ossetia
Ossetia is located in the center of the Caucasus, on both sides of the Main Caucasian Range, retaining gorges and small mountain valleys. The Transcaucasian part of the country was located in the valley of the Kura River, carrying itswaters into the Caspian Sea, and the Rion, which flows into the Black Sea. The ridges of the mountains divide the territory of Ossetia into numerous gorges in which the villages were located.
The connection between them existed in the form of trails and small roads passing through the passes. They covered the whole of Ossetia and connected the villages. In addition, two major roads of international importance passed through the country - the Darial and Mamison. Control over strategic roads allowed Ossetia to become a more significant state, and the toll collected on them brought considerable revenues to the treasury.
Socio-political structure
The history of Ossetia, in a summary of the period of the XV-XVII centuries, is made up of fragmentary information, most of it is little studied. The specificity of the Ossetian residence was the natural mountainous relief, which left its mark on social relations. In the gorges, small mountain valleys, surrounded by low passes, lived communities of people, separated from each other by mountains and rivers.
Roads and trails through mountain passes served as a link between communities. There were 11 of them in total. The history of Ossetia and the culture of the country of that time are reflected in the architectural monuments that have survived to this day.
Some communities, having more favorable natural conditions and a sufficient amount of arable land, were at a higher level of development. They differed in economic and social life. But despite this, there was a traditional Ossetian unity between the societies, which gave the neighbors reason to perceive Ossetia as a single country. At that time Ossetiawas something resembling a confederation of communities (regions) that were self-governing.
Origin of the name Ossetia
The emergence of the name Ossetia is interesting. The history of its origin is largely connected with the place of residence and pronunciation of this word by local residents. The word "Ossetian" comes from the medieval name of the Alans, who called themselves "as", in Georgian sources - "os" or "ovs".
Where did the name “ovseti”, “osseti” come from, which can be translated as “country of oats / wasps”. In the Russian interpretation, "Ossetia" began to sound like "Ossetia". Nowadays, the Ossetians themselves call themselves "irons". When the Alans mixed with the local Turkic-speaking population, the Balkars and Karachays appeared.
Ossetia in the 18th century
This period is the most important in the life of the country. At this time, the formation of the prerequisites was completed, which made it possible to carry out the most important political and economic transformations. In the first half of the 18th century, the changes that took place made it possible to consolidate the society in which the political leader Zurab Magkaev came to the fore.
Monuments of history and culture of Ossetia of this period have survived to our time and allow us to state the economic and cultural upsurge. The revival of Ossetia was associated with certain difficulties regarding the integrity of the country. The southern regions of Ossetia were an object of constant expansion of the Georgian feudal lords. The lands of the northern part of the country were subjected to raids by the Kabardians, the northeast suffered from armed attacks by the Ingush.
At this time there was a rapprochement between Ossetia and Russia. This was facilitated by a number of political and economic reasons. For further development, the Ossetians needed flat lands obtained thanks to Russia, which was interested in strategic passes for further advancement to the Caucasus.
Russia and Ossetia during the 19th century
Until 1830, Ossetia was conditionally considered a territory of Russia, actually continuing to develop independently. In 1842, the Tiflis province was created, which included the Ossetian district. To control the Darial Pass and the road, the military fortress of Vladikavkaz was founded, which is located near the village of Dzudzhykhhuæu.
Ossetia became part of the Russian Empire. This period is associated with the rise of its economy, reaching the level of the advanced region of the Caucasus. It should be noted that the economic recovery led to a change in the social structure of society, the working class and the bourgeoisie appeared.
It was the bourgeois elite who initiated the struggle against Russia, wanting to rule Ossetia on their own. This was also influenced by the Russian democratic movement, in particular, the populists, with whom the poet and leader of the liberation movement Khetagurs was associated.
Many factors were present here, for example, the participation of Turkey, which could not come to terms with the baptism of Ossetians and their conversion to the Orthodox faith, and as a result, lost influence on this region. At this time, the cultural heyday of Ossetia falls.
As part of the USSR
Exactly inthis period of history North Ossetia was divided from South. The claims of the Georgian princes to the southern part of Ossetia, rejected in 1830 by the Russian Senate, were satisfied, oddly enough, almost a hundred years later in 1922, when the southern part of Ossetia was ceded to the Georgian Soviet Socialist Republic as an autonomous region. The northern part became part of the RSFSR as an autonomous region, and in 1936 was reorganized into an autonomous republic.
The history of North Ossetia at that moment was not much different from South Ossetia. Living in one country, Ossetians did not feel much national discomfort, but after the collapse of the USSR, the inhabitants of South Ossetia found themselves cut off from their brethren living in Russia.
Georgian-Ossetian conflict
The history of South Ossetia of this period is tragic. In connection with the secession of Georgia from the USSR, the South Ossetian Autonomous Region, which is part of this country, also decided to exercise its right to self-determination and become an independent country. But in Georgia, on the wave of nationalism, Ossetian autonomy was abolished, in connection with this, Ossetians are legally deprived of the right to secede. This marked the beginning of the Ossetian-Georgian conflict. The confrontation lasted three years.
As a result of the attack by Georgian troops on South Ossetia and the detachments of Russian peacekeepers stationed on its territory, in August 2008 a military clash took place, which ended in the defeat of Georgia. Today, the former autonomous region is the state of South Ossetia, whose independence was recognized by three countries: Russia, Nicaragua,Venezuela, as well as partially recognized Abkhazia, Transnistria and Nagorno-Karabakh, which are considered not recognized republics.
