Frontier communities of Southern Ukraine in the 18th – early 19th century: a response to empires
Authors: Kaiuk Svitlana 
Published: December 2022

The article proposes the analysis of new practices of the frontier population of the Southern Ukrainian region during the formation of the linear border and the attempts of the Russian and Ottoman Empires to control frontier communities and territories. It is shown that the boundary line did not actually divide, but rather united frontier corporations in developing a joint response to attempts at intervention by government institutions. From the beginning of the 18 century. The Zaporozhіan Sich and the Crimean Khanate united and worked out similar solutions to solve the problem of active military presence and interference in their own internal affairs by imperial structures. Joint resistance to the intentions of Russian and Ottoman officials from the Crimean Khan and the Kosh otaman of Zaporozhian Sich due to the establishment of delimitation signs in 1705 began a new tradition. Imperial governments had not only to reckon with the wishes of frontier communities, but also to depend on them. Diplomatic accords and international agreements were only formal, the realities of border life did not depend on them. Efforts of diplomats to establish a border line during the first half of the 18th century had no practical success. International treaties (Istanbul, Belgrade, Kyuchuk-Kainardzhii, etc.) testify to the existence of practices of changing religious affiliation from Orthodox to Muslim and vice versa. The relevant articles of the treaties emphasized the change of religion as the only condition for the possibility to stay in the respective country. However, it is unlikely that such practices were numerous. Over time, they were no longer under attention. The appearance of a more or less clearly defined border with the corresponding border institutions was traced only after the Russian-Turkish war of 1768-1774. The everyday practices of the frontier people did not change. The borders were rather imagined. Migrant border communities, as well as individual settlers, used border institutions only at their own will and to acquire official status. From the beginning of the 19 century a religious affiliation is no longer a criterion to pay attention to during the crossing of the border and permanent residence. Christian communities (Zaporozhian Cossacks, Nekrasivites) chose as a place of permanent residence the lands under the Muslim ruler. Religious rhetoric was used only by the military and civil leaders of the region, officials to increase influence on making a specific decision. At the beginning of the 19 century the state border and its institutions became denser, but still permeable. The border areas remained free for migratory flows. The strength of the region and its people became especially noticeable in the 19th century when the Russian Empire tried to unify the lands under its control. However, exactly here, in the South of Ukraine, that the empires had to adapt to the traditions of the free region and adjust their policies in accordance with the wishes of the frontier communities. During the 19 century the frontier specificity of the region remained decisive for the historical development of the region.