Italian colonies on the Black Sea coast of the Caucasus. lesson plan (grade 6) on the topic

In the 13th-15th centuries, Italian trading factories founded by Genoa, Venice and Pisa appeared in the Black Sea and the Sea of \u200b\u200bAzov. After the Crusaders captured Constantinople in 1204, Italian merchants settled in Byzantium, and from Constantinople they penetrate into the Crimea and on the coast of the Sea of \u200b\u200bAzov. One of the first trading posts - Porto Pisano (near modern Taganrog) was founded by Pisa in the first half of the 13th century. The process of intensive trade colonization of the Black Sea began in the 60s of the XIII century, after in 1261 Genoa entered into a Treaty of Nymphaeum with the Byzantine Emperor Michael VIII Paleolog, according to which she received the right to sail and duty free trade on the Black Sea. In 1265, the Venetians received this right. The process of colonization of the Black Sea and the Sea of \u200b\u200bAzov was accompanied by intense competition between both Genoa and Venice, and between the factories founded by them.

The Venetians and the Genoese also entered into agreements with the khans of the Golden Horde, according to which they took part of the territory in the Crimea and on the Azov coast to create trade colonies (with the recognition of the supreme authority of the khan). In the 60s of the 13th century, Genoa settles in Kaffa (modern Theodosius), which becomes the largest port and trade center in the Black Sea region. The Venetians created trading posts in Soldaye (now Sudak in the Crimea, around 1287) and Trebizond (in the 80s of the 13th century). In total, in the Crimea, the Sea of \u200b\u200bAzov and the Caucasus, there were about 40 Italian factories-colonies.

These colonies were governed by consuls-bylo, elected in the metropolis for 1-2 years. Together with the consuls, the factories were run by elected city councils of nobility merchants (citizens of the metropolis) and citizens of factories. Factories were mostly citizens of Italians (a minority of citizens), although the composition of the urban population was extremely diverse: Greeks, Armenians, Russians, Jews, Tatars, etc. Non-Italians had certain legal rights, freedom of religion, and could carry out military and civilian service (except elected posts), participate in joint trading companies. But the Genoese and Venetian colonies, as well as their metropolises, were constantly at odds with each other, although in the same colony (for example, Trebizond or Thane) there could be trading posts of two trading republics. Periodically, the colonies were ruined by the Tatars, but were destroyed only after the Turkish conquest. In 1453, after the fall of Constantinople, the trading posts were cut off from the metropolis and were gradually conquered by the Ottomans.

According to the agreement of 1332, concluded by Ambassador A. Zeno and Khan Uzbek, Venice received a plot of land on the left bank of the Don, near the town of Azak. Here the most remote Venetian trading post of Tana was founded. She was controlled, like other trading posts, by the Venetian consul. Almost simultaneously with the Venetians in Thane, the Genoese also create their trading post. Factories paid Khan Uzbek a three percent duty on goods passing through them. Living conditions in Thane were not easy, the Genoese and Venetians often quarreled with each other. In addition, the inhabitants of the trading posts were constantly threatened by nomads, who were both trading partners and enemies.

The competition between Venice and Genoa for the Tanu ended with the victory of Genoa. Under Khan Janibek in 1343, Tana was captured by the Tatars, and the Venetians were expelled for five years (the reason for this exile was the killing of a Tatar in Tana). Following the expulsion from Tana, Venice was defeated in the war with Genoa and in 1355, access to Tana was closed to her for another 3 years. In 1381, Venice was again defeated by Genoa, after which it lost access to Tana for another 2 years. Thus, in Thane, the Genoese began to dominate.

From Tana to Italy exported wheat, fish and caviar, furs, wax, spices and sandalwood (in transit from the East), leather, honey. Tana imported fabrics, copper and tin. One of the main sources of income was the slave trade. Representing the continuation of Azak, Tana was also surrounded by stone walls and turned into a fortress. From the Italian Tana there are many interesting monuments. Among them is a tombstone made of white marble on the grave of the envoy and consul of the Venetian Republic, Giacomo Cornaro, who died in Thane in 1362.

Like Azak, Tana suffered during Timur's campaign against the Horde in 1395. By about 1400, it was rebuilt again. The Tana was attacked several times by the Tatars: in 1410, 1418 and 1442. In the last period of the existence of Tana, the Genoese and Venetians were forced to show solidarity and mutual assistance against an external threat. However, it was not the external danger that led to the gradual decline of Tana, but the termination of transit trade with the countries of the East, as a result of the defeat by Timur of Khorezm, one of the main partners in the East. By the time the Ottomans captured Tanu in 1475, she was already in decline.

Italians penetrated into the Caucasus. The most important Genoese colonies were Matrenga, Kopa (on the right bank of the Kuban), Mapa (Anapa), Pesce (at the mouth of the Kuban) and others. Venice had only two significant factories here - in Thane and Trebizond.

The largest Italian colony in the Caucasus was Matrenga (formerly Tmutarakan on the Taman Peninsula). Until the beginning of the 15th century, Matrenga was ruled by the Circassian prince. In 1419, after the marriage of the Genoese Gizolfi with the daughter of the Circassian prince Bika-Khanum Matrenga became the possession of the Gizolfi family. The number of Italians - the inhabitants of Matrenga - was insignificant; mainly the Greek and Adyghe population. Matrenga was a trading outpost in the North Caucasus. The basis for trade with Genoa was the export of fish and caviar, furs, leathers, bread, wax and honey. One of the most important export items was slaves who were captured during military raids. Slaves were supplied to the Genoese by Tatars, Circassians, Alans and other peoples of the Caucasus. Often, the Genoese themselves organized expeditions for slaves. Italians brought to the North Caucasus a variety of fabrics, carpets, raw cotton, Venetian glass, soap, saber blades, spices and other goods.

From Matrenga and other colonies, the Italians advanced further into the mountains of the Northwest Caucasus. The ruins of castles, towers and churches in the mountains, stone gravestone crosses testify to this. From here the missionary activity of the Catholic Church took place. After the formation of the Crimean Khanate in 1433, the Genoese colonies were forced to pay tribute to him. The end of the Matrenghe and other colonies was laid in the 70s of the XV century by the Ottomans, who captured Kaffa and Tanu.

In the XI-XII centuries. in Italy there was a rise in crafts and commerce. By the end of the XII century. in most cities, production workshops appeared. Rapid economic recovery has led to trading activity, especially in the Mediterranean basin. The trade of Italian cities with the East brought fabulous profits. At the same time, competition began for eastern markets.

Open full size

The most stubborn struggle has developed between the city-republics of Venice and Genoa. Initially, success was accompanied by Venice, which replaced Genoa on the Aegean, but not for long. In 1261, according to the so-called Nymphaeum treatise, Genoa received strongholds on the Bosphorus, in Asia Minor and the Crimea for its assistance to Byzantium and ousted the Venetians for almost a century. In 1380, the Venetians defeated the Genoese fleet under Chioggia and re-established their hegemony in the Eastern Mediterranean and Pontus. We do not enter into the vicissitudes of the rivalry between Venice and Genoa on the Black Sea, but we note that next to the main characters of this historical action - warriors and merchants - there were always representatives of the Catholic Church, reinforcing the success of the sword with a cross and sermon.

Open full size

In the Black Sea region and from the very beginning, the Genoese dominated. Already in 1169, an agreement was concluded between the Genoese and Byzantium, where one of the paragraphs reads: “The ships of the Genoese merchants have the right to go to all lands except Russia and Matrega, unless the government (emperor. - V.K.) permission there ”(Russia here is the coast of the Sea of \u200b\u200bAzov, Matrega -). This is the beginning of the penetration of Italians. Soon after 1204, Venetians appeared in the Black Sea ports, Italian trade on Ponte is growing. In 1234, a Dominican monk Ricardo landed at the mouth of the Kuban, on behalf of Pope Gregory IX, made a trip to the Volga Bulgaria. His observations about Sychia, i.e. Zykhia and the city of Matrika, "where the prince and people are Christians and have Greek books and of them are sacred." There is no doubt that we are talking about Orthodox Christians. In 1238, Genoa and Venice entered into a ceasefire and began real trade expansion in the Crimea, and after the Treaty of Nymphaeum, which provided great benefits to the Genoese, the latter began to develop the territory: they acquired a quarter in Kaffa. In 1268, Pope Clement IV appointed the first bishop to Kaffa. In the 90s, Italians already had strong positions in Kopario (Kope in the lower Kuban), Matrega (Taman), Sevastopolis (Sukhum). According to N. Murzakevich, who referred to the Genoese author Girolamo Serra, the Genoese merchants from Kiffa in 1266 reached Dagestan and began trade with the peoples living around the Caspian, as well as visited Tiflis.

According to the same data, Kaffa “was in charge” of the Crimea, Tamany, Kopa, Kutaisi, Sevastopolis and Tana. Another author of the XIX century. De la Primode wrote that the peoples of the Kuban and the Caucasus went to the Genoese in Taman for trade, and the main article of trade was wax, which was in great demand from churches and monasteries. It is not known on the basis of what data the author claimed that the Genoese in the Caucasus Mountains developed silver mines and traces of their work are still visible. In the Kuban, the Genoese from the mouth of the river went upstream for 280 miles and among the "rich and fertile country" founded a colony, which was governed by the consul in 1427. According to M. N. Kamenev, back in the 60s of the XIX century. traces of the supposedly Genoese road, starting from Anapa and going through st. Imperial on Kiafar, Big Zelenchuk, Maruha, Teberda and from there through the pass to Tsebelda and Terek.

On the lands, the largest Genoese colonies were Matrega and Copa (lo-Copa, Copario) and the third - Mapa. Matrega was located on the site of Old Russian (the current village of Taman). As before, it was a large port through which goods went to Turkey, Western Europe, as well as to the Adyghe tribes to the North Caucasus. The matrega was well fortified. The population consisted mainly of Circassians, whose lands were adjacent to Matrega, Italians and Greeks. The Genoese climbed on their ships up the Kuban River and 280 Italian miles from its mouth, at the beginning of the 14th century, on the lands of the Circassians, in the area of \u200b\u200bthe current city of Slavyansk-on-Kuban, founded the colony of Lo-Copu. According to the colony’s charter, the Genoese paid tribute to the Adyghe princes in the form of “gifts to the sovereigns” with a bokassin (a fabric made of thin linen), certain pieces of which replaced the money. Adygs, Italians, Greeks, Armenians lived in Kope. The population was mainly engaged in fishing, plasticizing (salting) fish and making caviar, which was the main export item. Caviar was exported in barrels weighing five cantars (61.5 kg). Along with fish and caviar, slaves (slaves) were an important export item. These were mainly Circassians (Adygs), Tatars and Russians. The most expensive were Circassians and Circassians. In addition, bread, lamb skins, furs, wax, honey, fruits were exported.

According to the charter of the Genoese colonies, the consul in Lo Copa levied a duty on each ship for cargo and for anchoring. Persons involved in fish slicing and preparing caviar were required to pay 10 conservative income (silver coin) to the consul, and duties were imposed on each aspiring slave in the amount of 6 aspers. Enrichment of the Genoese was also facilitated by exchange trade with Circassians, in which the Genoese bought leather and other raw materials at low prices, which gave unheard of profits. The slave trade was particularly profitable. The Adigy through Kopa mainly imported the following goods: salt, soap, fabrics (Italian cloth, fine linen - bokassin, bukaran), carpets, blades for sabers with coats of arms, drawings and inscriptions. They were especially appreciated by the Adyghe nobility. Huge amounts of money were being made by Genoese merchants, mercilessly exploiting the local Adyghe population.

The position of the Genoese in Matrega was fragile - they were surrounded by Adyghe tribes, the ordinary population of which, as a rule, was hostile to them, in the colony itself there were political troubles on the basis of interference by the Genoese who lived in it in the internal affairs of other nations and, finally, local uprisings residents against the domination of the Genoese. The Genoese settled in Matrega at the beginning of the 14th century, having created their own colony here. In 1419, Matrega went to the representative of the famous Genoese family Simon de Gizolfi, thanks to the marriage of his son Vincenzo with his daughter and heiress to the Circassian prince Berozokh. Thus, Gizolfi was in double dependence: on the one hand, and mainly from the Kaf government, and on the other from Adyghe princes.

After Simon Gizolfi, in the Matrega, the rule of Zaccaria Gizolfi was apparently the son of the Adyghe princess, whom Vincenzo Gisolfi married. Zakkaria, as he himself believed, was a tributary and vassal of the then neighboring Adyghe prince Kadibeldi. In 1457, the latter, being overlord in relation to Zaccaria Gisolfi, rebelled against him and captured the castle. The construction of a fortress (castle) in Matrega was carried out shortly before this with the financial assistance of Kafa. The document says that “taking advantage of this (capture of Kadibeldi’s castle), the people of that area rebelled against Kafa and took possession of the aforementioned castle along with the princes of Zikhia”. Thus, this document testifies to the rebellion of the Adyghe people against the Genoese and their princes. The uprising was crushed by soldiers sent from Kafa, which obliged Zakkaria Gizolfi to keep hired soldiers from the Kafa garrison in the fortress. Weapons were sent to Matreg. Café at that time was at the head of all the Genoese colonies in the Northwest Caucasus.

On the Black Sea coast, Malaysia was the Genoese colonies, on the site of the present Anapa, Kaloslimen (Baktiar) in the Tsemess Bay (Novorossiysk). Here, the Genoese managed to establish a profitable exchange with local tribes (Black Sea Circassians). Other Genoese colonies were small trading factories and docking vessels.

Genoese colonies existed in the Northwest Caucasus until the end of the 15th century. After the Turks captured Constantinople (1453), Turkish military penetration into the Caucasus began. The Genoese colonies, with which the Adyghe tribes maintained rather close trade relations, were ravaged, in their place Turkish fortresses arose.

To some extent, this information about the advance of the Genoese from the Crimea and Cope inland is confirmed by indirect data of a legendary folk character and even archeology. So, the French consul in Crimea Xaverio Glavani in 1724 in Cherkessia saw crosses on graves with Latin inscriptions, and in Karachai at the beginning of the 19th century. there was the Getmishbash cemetery, where many graves and tombstones were preserved, considered by the Karachays as Catholic or "Frankish". F. Dubois de Monpere reports a legend recorded by General Engelhardt - Franks or Genoese lived in all the valleys of the North Caucasus, "the Franks lived mainly in the Kislovodsk valley, spread even beyond the Kuban River." With reference to P.S. Pallas, Dubois de Montpert indicates that the Mount of Rome near Kislovodsk served as a refuge for the Franks. The latter is entirely possible. Let us also pay attention to the fact that the Italians name popular in the Caucasus as “Franks” comes from the Byzantine name of French mercenaries. Consequently, the term "Franks", denoting Europeans, was borrowed by Caucasians from the Greek Byzantines.

Archaeological traces of the stay of the Genoese in the North Caucasus until the XV century. diverse, but not equally reliable. Among the latter, we include the Latin inscription on the crypt with a conical pyramidal roof, an entrance and a window in the upper reaches of the Majra river, which flows into the Kuban. The inscription read: “Fausta Fortuna” (“Fausta Fortuna”) and “I ... CANTI” (name? - V.K.). But the reality of this inscription was not confirmed by anyone later. Another, also untested, but really existed monument is a stone statue of a Catholic monk in a characteristic long robe and a shaved head with a toner. The right hand blesses. The monument was recorded two kilometers from the village of Pregradnaya in the eastern Trans-Kuban region in full accordance with the Genoese road, about which M. N. Kamenev wrote. It is possible that some imported items from the Belorechensky mounds of the 14th-15th centuries are most directly related to the functioning of the mentioned road and the movement of goods along it: silver plated dish of Venetian work, dishes of Venetian glass, a woman’s dressing gown from lilac Italian velvet velvet, etc. We are talking about already mentioned in the first chapter of the ownership of Kremuh on the river. White, led by the ruler of Biberdi. There is no doubt the trade exchange of the Circassian Adyghe with the Italian colonies of the Black Sea region. To the same group of archaeological realities of the XIV century. Western European - Catholic circle can be attributed bronze cross-vests depicting the Crucifixion from the finds of M. N. Lozhkin on the Illichivsk hillfort in the upper river. Urup and Khumara in the Kuban. Venetian glass, valued very highly on the international market, settled in the burial grounds of the XIV-XV centuries. West Ossetia - Digoria (for example, in Mahsche), and this indicates the penetration of Italian goods to North Ossetia.

It is very likely that not all Italian imports of the XIV-XV centuries. of North Caucasian archaeological materials, we can now correctly identify and attribute: for this it is necessary to know the original material culture, which is impossible in our conditions. This work remains for the future, similar to the work on Italian written sources related to the Caucasus in Italian repositories.

The pre-war article by E. S. Zevakin and N. A. Penchko “Essays on the history of Genoese colonies in the Western Caucasus in the XIII-XIV centuries”, although it is outdated and does not correspond to the current state of the sources, remains a significant work on the issue of interest to us. . Zevakin and Penchko cite some facts that clearly document the expansion of Venice and Genoa in the North Caucasus. Thus, the authors found that on the territory between Tana (Azov) and Sevastopolis (Sukhumi) there were 39 Italian colonies, settlements and camps, of which Tana, Sevastopolis, Kopa and Matrega were the most important, through which slaves, bread, were exported to Italy, Turkey, wax and other products. Very interesting information is confirmed by De la Primode that the Genoese walked up the Kuban and mined silver ore in the mountains of the Caucasus. There is a silver-lead deposit in the upper Kuban; its development in Karachai was carried out until the 20th century. Therefore, data on the mine workings of the Genoese in the specified area sound reliable. I do not rule out that, thanks to the presence of the Genoese, the Sentin Temple was named, the etymology of which can go back to the Latin “Santa” - “holy”, “holy”. Since the Sentin’s temple is dedicated to Our Lady and the Genoese probably knew this, in their mouth the temple and the very top with the temple could get the popular name “Santa Maria”.

At the same time, I do not insist on the proposed version, because there is a Karachay version of the etymology of Senta. The final word here should belong to linguists.

E. S. Zevakin and N. A. Penchko testify to the old trade route that went along the valleys of the Kuban and Teberda to the Klukhor pass and further to Sevastopolis; “Here ended the road through Rion to Imereti and Georgia, which was often visited by Genoese merchants.” It is clear that this route was important for relations with the North Caucasus, and it was no accident that a bishop was already in Sevastopolis around 1330, and from 1354 the Genoese consul. As for Georgia, its rapprochement with the Catholic sovereigns and the Church of the West began in connection with the struggle against. In the XIII-XIV centuries. part of the Georgian and Armenian population converted to Catholicism, and Pope Gregory IX sent eight missionaries in January 1240 with a letter to the Georgian Tsarina Rusudan and her son David V. As you can see, Catholic expansion was carried out on a wide front, covering the entire Caucasus. In the south of the Caucasus Range, the Genoese also organized mine workings. There is evidence that in Abkhazia, in the gorge of the river. Gumista was a Genoese colony engaged in the development of lead-silver ore, and the number of mines reached 15. There was not only the introduction of trade deep into the Caucasus, but also the development of natural resources. All this meant the simultaneous resettlement of Italians in the Caucasus.

How far the advancement of very active and dynamic Europeans to the east of the Caucasus went, witnessed Fanucci, referred to by E. S. Zevakin and N. A. Penchko: “At the direction of Fanucci, the Genoese built and populated the settlement of Kubachi in Dagestan.” We agree that this may seem like a fantasy - an Italian settlement in the wilds of the Dagestan mountains! This is true, if only because the Kubachi have been known since the 9th century. Arab chroniclers called Zirichgeran, i.e. “Chain mail”, metal masters, and this is long before the Italians appeared in the Caucasus. Fanucci’s instruction should be recognized as an exaggeration, the Genoese did not build Kubachi, but they could be in it more than once - the products of the famous Kubachi metal masters, especially gunsmiths, were to attract the attention of European merchants. This is becoming more likely against the background of other evidence of the Italians being in Dagestan.

It is important that the fact of the advance of the Genoese, and with them the Catholic missionaries, to the Caspian Sea and northern Dagestan (to Derbent) is not in doubt. Jeosaphat Barbaro reliably narrates about the state of the Christian religion in this region of the Caucasus, at that time called Kaitaki: "the brothers of St. Francis (Franciscan monks. - V.K.) and some of our priests - Latinists went there. The peoples who live in these places are called kaitaks, as mentioned above, they speak a language that is not like the others, many of them are Christians, some of whom believe in Greek, some in Armenian, and others in Catholic. ”

The cited source is the only one that testifies that Orthodoxy has reached the borders of Dagestan (“some believe in Greek”), because, as we see, there are no archaeological sites of Orthodoxy here yet.

The last evidence of the arrival in Dagestan of the Catholic missionary Dominican Vincenzo dates back to 1486. \u200b\u200bAfter that, Christianity in Dagestan quickly surrenders its position to Islam. Dagestan is finally becoming a Muslim country.

Researchers have already tried to find the answer to these questions. MK Starokadomskaya believed that the Italians farther east in the Crimea, the Italians in search of goods (and one of the main were slaves) did not go. The Genoese preferred to trade in goods that were delivered to Kaffa or Solhat by merchants of other nationalities. Apparently, Italian merchants personally participated in distant trade expeditions to eastern countries. What mattered was that at the beginning of the fourteenth century. a Genoese consulate functioned in Tabriz (Iran), and in the 20s of the XIV century. a Genoese settlement in Zayton already existed. It should also be noted here that in the relations of the Genoese cities of Crimea with the countries of the East, "the most significant role was played by Caucasian merchants." Consequently, the movement was mutual, and the Genoese constantly moved through the Ciscaucasia to the east.

Very important information on the issue of interest to us contains the appeal of Pope John XXII to Khan Uzbek in 1330. The pope recommends the khan of the Bishop of Semiskat, Thomas Mankazol, who made many proselytes among the Alans of the Caucasus, Hungarians and Malchites. The Semiskat was identified with the Shamakhi, which seems doubtful, in any case, unproven. The conclusion that the mysterious Semiskat is Samarkand seems even more doubtful. Based on this localization of the Semiskata, a map of the missionary actions of Thomas Mankazol was compiled, the Alans on it did not fall into the Mankazol zone of action, although they were located between the Lower Volga and the Don.

The Stavropol archaeologist T.M. Minaeva testified that among the ruins of the city were found metal crosses, stone tombstones with images of crosses, but they remained unpublished. Therefore, the Christian antiquities of the XIV-XV centuries. from Majar remain anonymous, although the fact of the presence of Christians in this large city is beyond doubt.

Let us return to the localization of the city or the station of Mihakh, which takes place in Bulliface IX Bull. The options for the location of this point were noted above, and the last of them, s. Mekegi in Dagestan. However, there is the opportunity to propose another option: Mihaha was in the Kum region, somewhat south of Majar. On the map of the Caucasus by George Traitel in 1774, “verwustete Stadt Chacha” is placed in this place - the ruined city of Haha, which phonetically and chronologically most closely matches the city of Mihakh. Archaeologically, this point has not yet been identified and not investigated. But the proposed option allows us to connect the famous Roman Curia Mihaha with the process of the Alans being introduced to Catholic Christianity in the 14th century. the missionaries of Thomas Mankazol. Due to this, probably, the second (after the Byzantine-Orthodox) conversion of the Alans to Christianity in 1404, the Archbishop of Sultania in Iran, the Dominican John de Galonifontibus among the Christian peoples of the "Great Tataria" calls Alans and Yasses, i.e. Ossetian aces.

At our disposal there are some archaeological data that allow us to see this problem from a different angle and to match the general historical background of the events of the second half of the 13th - beginning of the 15th centuries drawn above. with specific realities. In what will be stated below, not everything is an indisputable truth. But the reconstructions and interpretations we are proposing seem quite acceptable and deserving of attention, although ambiguous.

© site
created on the basis of open data on the Internet

Slide 2

Slide 3

Colonization by the Italians of the Black Sea coast of the Caucasus

As a result of the Crusades in the XI-XIII centuries. merchant republics such as Genoa and Venice flourished economically in Italy. Having ousted Arabs and Byzantines, Italian merchants seized mediation trade between Western Europe and the East. Soon they became such powerful trading powers that contemporaries rightly called Genoa "the god of the seas", and Venice - the port city on the Adriatic Sea - the "Queen of the Adriatic."

Slide 4

Cathedral of San Marco. Venice. XI century

Slide 5

Genoa in the XIII-XIV centuries

Slide 6

In the XIII century. the weakening Byzantium was forced to open its Bosphorus and Dardanelles straits for the passage of Italian ships from the Mediterranean to the Black Sea. This opened the way for them to the Crimea and the Black Sea coast of the Caucasus. Genoa and Venice vied for supremacy in the Black Sea, which was expressed not only in intense trade competition, but also in armed clashes between them. The Genoa Republic turned out to be more successful, which, in agreement with the Crimean khans, founded its first trade colony Kafu (now Feodosia) in Crimea. Having built a number of trading posts (settlements), the Genoese turned their eyes to the Azov Sea and the Black Sea coast of the Caucasus. In place of the Russian Tmutarakan and the Byzantine Tamatarha (or, as it was abbreviated as the Matarchs), the Genoese founded at the end of the 13th century. port city of Matregu. Matrega was a fortified city inhabited by representatives of various tribes and peoples. It was not only a link between East and West, but also was a center of trade with the surrounding mountain tribes.

Slide 7

Bosporus strait

Slide 8

The Dardanelles Strait connects the Sea of \u200b\u200bMarmara and the Aegean.

Slide 9

Buying wax, fish, furs and other goods from the highlanders, Italian merchants brought eastern and western goods to the Northwest Caucasus. Large Genoese colonies in the Kuban were Mapa (Anapa), Kopa (Slavyansk-on-Kuban), Balsamikha (Yeysk), Mavrolako (Gelendzhik) and others. In total, up to 39 settlements were built, different in size and importance, but mainly fulfilling trade and economic tasks.

Slide 10

Mapa (Anapa-modern look)

Slide 11

Kopa (Slavyansk-on-Kuban-modern look)

Slide 12

Balsamiche (Yeisk-modern look)

Slide 13

Mavrolako (Gelendzhik-modern view)

Slide 14

The Roman Catholic Church, which sent its missionaries here, did not ignore the Genoese colonies. These preachers tried to convert the Adyghe population, professing Greek Christianity, to Catholicism. A Catholic diocese was even created in Matrega, which led the process of converting the local population to Catholicism, but it did not succeed.

Slide 15

On the site of the ancient Gorgippia (Anapa) on the steep coast of the Black Sea, the Genoese built their fortress - the Mapu Factor. It was from her that the then-famous Genoese road to the upper river. Kuban, there it was divided into two: one road went to Abkhazia, the other - to the Caspian Sea. The road at that time was well equipped, had transshipment bases and, obviously, was well guarded. The latter was associated with the close relations of the Adyghe nobility and the administration of the Genoese colonies. The Genoese were vitally interested in the safety of their merchant caravans, which moved through the Caucasian territory. The Adygian nobility saw great benefits in trade cooperation with the Genoese.

Slide 16

The Adyghe elite was the main supplier of "live goods" - slaves who were exported to recognized centers of European trade: Genoa, Venice, Florence. Slaves were "mined" as a result of endless tribal wars, raids on neighboring peoples, capture of prisoners. Some ordinary people turned into slaves, unable to repay debts. Most in demand were beautiful girls and physically developed boys of 15-17 years old. Not only the Adyghe nobility and the Genoese merchants profit from the slave trade, but also the administration of Italian settlements. For example, the consul of the Cope for each sold slave received 6 silver coins, which were called aspers. We have heard about trade transactions that took shape when selling slaves. So, during the commission of one of them it was written: "The slave Circassian was sold for 12 years for 450."

Slide 17

Venice

Slide 18

The slave trade had a negative impact on the development of the Adyghe nationality, reducing the population at the expense of the youngest and most able-bodied people. The dominance of subsistence farming among the peoples of the North-West Caucasus led to the predominance of exchange trade over money circulation. The unit of exchange was usually a specific measure of fabric from which a men's shirt could be sewn. Great demand among the peoples of the Northwest Caucasus was brought by the Genoese fabrics, salt, soap, carpets, jewelry, sabers. But, taking advantage of their unconditional dominance in the markets of the Black Sea region, Genoese merchants set extremely high prices for goods, extracting huge profits from trade with the local population. Moreover, high prices, for example, for such an important product as salt, were set at the expense of its strictly normalized import. If more salt was imported (and this could lower prices for it), then its excess was dumped into the sea. In difficult conditions, the Genoese trade itself took place. Widespread maritime piracy caused great damage to the Genoese merchants. Sea robbers not only robbed merchant ships, but also attacked coastal settlements and ports. Therefore, the Genoese were forced to hire guards to escort merchant ships and strengthen their colony cities with stone walls and loopholes, and keep garrisons in them.

Slide 19

Venetians also remained irreconcilable rivals of the Genoese, who sought to gain a foothold in the Azov-Black Sea basin. At the mouth of the Don, like the Genoese, they founded their own trading post, the interests of which were often defended with weapons in their hands. At the turn of the XIV-XV centuries. the contradictions of the Italians and the mountain population intensified. Exorbitant taxes, fraud in commercial transactions, the imposition of Catholicism, the capture and sale of people - all this caused irritation. Adyghe princes also expressed dissatisfaction with the infringement of their property rights. So, in 1457, Prince Kadibeldi even stormed Matregu. To strengthen its position in the Black Sea colonies, the Genoese administration resorted to the well-known "divide and conquer" method, set some princes against others, provoked them to rob their own tribesmen, promising rich goods in exchange for cattle and slaves. Profitable deals also served to strengthen the Genoese influence in the colonies, including through marriage unions of representatives of the colonial administration and Adyghe nobility.

Slide 20

The mouth of the Don

Slide 21

But in the second half of the XV century. the colonial rule of the Genoese republic in the Black Sea and the Sea of \u200b\u200bAzov went to sunset. This was evidenced by the fact that the management of the city-colonies was transferred to a private bank. In 1453 under the blows of the Turks Constantinople fell - the capital of Byzantium, the turn was for the Italian colonies in the Crimea and the North-West Caucasus. In the last quarter of the XV century. the Turks managed to capture all the Italian colonies in the Black and Azov Seas. The two-century stay of the Genoese in the Kuban ended. It played both a positive and (to an even greater extent) negative role in the life of local peoples. On the one hand, the Genoese introduced them to the advanced techniques of economic relations and production of Eastern and Western European countries, broadened the circle of knowledge about the world. On the other hand, the unequal exchange of goods and products, tax oppression, the slave trade, and often simple robbery undermined the Circassian economy, restrained the growth of the population and productive forces.

Slide 22

From the charter for the Genoese colonies of 1449, the Consul in Cope had to follow: "... so that you don’t bring salt of the right amount for consumption to the place mentioned. Moreover, we decide and prescribe that all merchants and other persons who bring salt to Capario [ Kopu], they must have all the salt that they have left at the end of the work, that is, salted fish, brought to Kafa or thrown into the sea, under a fine of 100 to 200 aspers for each barrel ... Also, that every skipper of a ship or the vessel is obliged to pay the consul always a year from the cargo of the vessel on one aspect from the barrel, yes sv p of for what is at anchor, 15 Aspro with each ship ... Also, that the consul in Cope can receive for each slave, exported from there, six Aspro ... ".

View all slides

Send your good work in the knowledge base is simple. Use the form below

Students, graduate students, young scientists who use the knowledge base in their studies and work will be very grateful to you.

Posted on http://www.allbest.ru/

Italian colonies on the coastAzov and Black Seath

italian trading post colony

In the XIII-XV centuries. Italian trading posts founded by Genoa, Venice and Pisa appear in the Black Sea and Priazovye. After the crusaders captured Constantinople in 1204, Italian merchants settled in Byzantium, and from Constantinople they penetrate into the Crimea and on the coast of the Sea of \u200b\u200bAzov. One of the first trading posts - Porto Pisano (near the modern Taganrog) was founded by Pisa in the first half of the 13th century. The process of intensive trade colonization of the Black Sea began in the 60s. XIII century., After in 1261, Genoa entered into the Treaty of Nymphaeum with the Byzantine Emperor Michael VIII Palaeologist, according to which she received the right to sail and free trade on the Black Sea. In 1265, the Venetians received this right. The process of colonization of the Black Sea and the Sea of \u200b\u200bAzov was accompanied by intense competition between both Genoa and Venice, and between the factories founded by them.

The Venetians and the Genoese also entered into agreements with the khans of the Golden Horde, according to which they took part of the territory in the Crimea and on the Azov coast to create trade colonies (with the recognition of the supreme authority of the khan). In the 60s. XIII century Genoa settles in Kaffa (modern Theodosius), which becomes the largest port and trade center in the Black Sea region. The Venetians created trading posts in Soldayye (Sudak in Crimea, c. 1287) and Trebizond (in the 80s of the XII century). In total, in the Crimea, the Sea of \u200b\u200bAzov and the Caucasus, there were about 40 Italian factories-colonies.

These colonies were governed by consuls-bylo, elected in the metropolis for 1-2 years. Together with the consuls, the factories were run by elected city councils of nobility merchants (citizens of the metropolis) and citizens of factories. Factories were mostly citizens of Italians (a minority of citizens), although the urban population was extremely diverse: Greeks, Armenians, Russians, Jews, Tatars, and others. Non-Italians had certain legal rights, freedom of religion, and could carry out military and civil service (except for occupation elected posts), participate in joint trading companies. But the Genoese and Venetian colonies, as well as their metropolises, were constantly at odds with each other, although in the same colony (for example, Trebizond or Thane) there could be trading posts of two trading republics. Periodically, colonies were also ruined by the Tatars, however, they were destroyed only by the Turkish conquest. In 1453, after the fall of Constantinople, the trading posts were cut off from the metropolis and were gradually conquered by the Ottomans.

Like Azak, Tana suffered during Timur’s campaign on the Horde in 1395. By about 1400, it was rebuilt again. Tana was several times attacked by Tatars: in 1410, 1418, 1442. In the last period of Tana's existence, the Genoese and Venetians were forced to show solidarity and mutual assistance against an external threat. However, it was not external danger that led to the gradual decline of Tana, but the termination of transit trade with the countries of the East, due to the defeat of Timur Khorezm - one of the main partners in the East. By the time the Ottomans captured Tanu in 1475, it had already fallen into decay.

The largest Italian colony in the Caucasus was Matrenga (formerly Tmutarakan on the Taman Peninsula). Until the beginning of the XV century. Matrenga was ruled by the Circassian prince. In 1419, after the marriage of the Genoese Gizolfi with the daughter of the Circassian prince Bika-Khanum Matrenga became the possession of the Gizolfi family. The number of Italians - residents of Matrenga - was insignificant; mainly the Greek and Adyghe population. Matrenga was a trading outpost in the North Caucasus. The basis for trade with Genoa was the export of fish and caviar, furs, leathers, bread, wax and honey. One of the most important export items was slaves who were captured during military raids. Slaves were supplied to the Genoese by Tatars, Circassians, Alans and other peoples of the Caucasus. Often, the Genoese themselves organized expeditions for slaves. Italians brought to the North Caucasus a variety of fabrics, carpets, raw cotton, Venetian glass, soap, saber blades, spices, etc.

From Matrenga and other colonies, the Italians advanced further into the mountains of the Northwest Caucasus. The ruins of castles, towers and churches in the mountains, stone gravestone crosses testify to this. From here the missionary activity of the Catholic Church took place. After the formation of the Crimean Khanate in 1433, the Genoese colonies were forced to pay tribute to him. The end of Matrenghe and other colonies was laid in the 70s. XV century the Ottomans who captured Kaffa and Tanu.

Other cities of the peninsula did not legally belong to the Golden Horde, however, their actual dependence on the Mongols from both the political and economic points of view was very great. On the other hand, the Sarai khans were interested in the activities of the Italian trade colonies, which represented an important link in the relations between
East and Western Europe Without a description of these settlements, the picture of the urban life of the Crimean peninsula will be clearly incomplete.

Soon (Kerch). In the XIII century. this settlement was abandoned and did not play any noticeable role in the life of the peninsula. Visited him in the 30s of the XIV century. Ibn Batuta reports about it very briefly, mentioning only the church 77 that existed here. At about the same time, the Venetians 78 established themselves in Vosporo, who were later replaced by the Genoese. The role of this settlement in the economic life of the peninsula was extremely small.

Cafe. The modern city of Feodosia. Until the 60s of the XIII century. It was a small village. In 1266, the Mongols allowed the Genoese to establish a trading colony here80, which in the XIV century. turned into the administrative center of all Genoese possessions in the Northern Black Sea region. In the middle of the XIV century. the city is strengthened by powerful stone walls and towers, replaced by wooden ones. He was here in the 30s of the XIV century. Ibn Batuta reports that the city was large, emphasizing that there were “up to 200 military and cargo ships, small and large,” 81 in the harbor. Fur, leather, silk, expensive fabrics, oriental spices, and dyes were exported to Western Europe from here82. A special export item was slaves. According to Ibn Batuta, the main population of the city was Christians83 (Genoese, Greeks, Armenians), but besides them, Muslims lived here, who had not only mosques, but also their own judges84. The Genoese city lasted until 1475, when it was captured by the Ottomans: by this time there were only 300 Genoese, and the bulk of the population consisted of Greeks and Armenians. ” Along with trade in the Cafe, a wide variety of types of handicraft production * were widely developed.

Soldaya (Sudak). Until the heyday of Kafa, this city was one of the largest centers of the Black Sea trade. Rubruk, who was here in 1253, portrays it as a busy transit point linking the regions of Northern Europe and the Mediterranean 87. The Kafa competition and the defeat of Soldayya Nogai in 1299 dramatically changed the position of the city, as evidenced by the message of Ibn-Batuta about the destruction of its most frequent. The Genoese who took advantage of this captured the city in 1365 and strengthened themselves by erecting powerful fortifications 89. Having achieved the main goal — the elimination of the commercial rival of Kafa — they turned Soldaiya into their main military point of the Crimean southern coast.

Cembalo (Balaclava). Until the middle of the XIV century. this city with a very convenient harbor belonged to the principality of Theodoro. In the 50s of the XIV century. he was captured by the Genoese, who immediately began serfdom here * The inclusion of Chembalo in the domain of Kafa extended its control to the entire Crimean southern coast and significantly undermined the commercial competition from the rulers of Theodoro. The main role assigned to the new fortress was to limit the trading and political activities of the Princes Theodoro in the western part of the peninsula. This is confirmed by the attacks of the Genoese on another port of theodorites - Kalamita91.

Theodoro. The capital of the eponymous small principality in western Crimea; its remains are located on Mount Mangup 92. To preserve their power, the princedom owners had to maneuver between the Mongols and the Genoese, and the latter apparently represented a great danger. Despite this, the city and the principality lasted until 1475, when the Ottomans invaded the Crimea.

The described settlements of the southern coastal strip of the Crimean peninsula include only large cities. In addition to them, along the entire coastline there was a significant number of small and medium-sized villages, villages and castles, which in the XIV century. were also in the possession of the Genoese. A.M. Berthier-Delagard totaled 32 such points from Kafa to Cembalo93. All of them constituted the rural district of the colonial cities, whose population was engaged in agriculture. On the whole, the Crimean peninsula with its Genoese city-colonies played a very special role in the economic life of the Golden Horde during the 13th and 14th centuries. It was here that all land caravan trade routes ended and the sea route began to the countries of the Middle East, Egypt and Western Europe. The largest trading artery of the medieval world led to the Crimea from the Far East, from where numerous luxury goods were supplied: expensive dishes, silk and brocade fabrics, metal products and jewelry, precious stones and various spices. Goods from the northern regions - Russia and the Urals, flocked here too - the most valuable of which were furs, Bulgarian leathers, honey, wax, and linen fabrics that were especially made. Finally, the trade route from Lviv connected Crimea with the regions of Central Europe.

In addition to the numerous goods that arrived in Crimea from the deep and very remote regions of Northern Europe, East and Central Asia, India and Iran, there were specific articles of constant local trade, the source of which was the surrounding steppes. They were based on grain, horses, fish and slaves. All four export categories were in steady demand.

The port cities of the peninsula remained the most important points of transit international trade during the XIII-XIV centuries. As for the Golden Horde city of Crimea, its role in trade operations decreased slightly in the XIV century. in connection with the appearance of a more convenient transit center at the mouth of the Don - Azak, where the Italian trading post also settled. Its appearance significantly reduced the path to Kafa, which now passed not along the steppes, but through the Sea of \u200b\u200bAzov.

Don Pool. The Don Basin belonged to the central regions of the state and was divided into two zones by its natural conditions. The northern zone was forest-steppe in nature, where along with open spaces there were significant forest areas. The southern zone (lower and partially middle reaches of the Don) was steppe. In full accordance with the distribution of plant belts, archeological data suggest a greater prevalence of settled settlements in the northern part of the region under consideration. To the south of Perevoloki (the place of closest convergence of the Volga and the Don), archaeologists have so far identified only one Golden Horde city - Azak, which, however, can only testify to the insufficient knowledge of this area, since rare settlements are noted here on some medieval maps.

Azak. The remains of the ancient city of the XIII-XIV centuries. are located on the territory of modern Azov. The Golden Horde name of the city is well known from the written sources and coins minted here. Excavations carried out allow us to talk about the wide development of various craft industries in it. In the 30s of the XIV century. the importance of Azak as a large shopping center increased in connection with the emergence of the Genoese and Venetian colonies here, in Italian sources called Tana 102. According to the agreement with the Khan of Uzbek, both colonies were two urban neighborhoods adjacent to each other. Fortifications around Venetian Tana were erected only in the XV century.

With the advent of the Italian colony in Azak, it was here that all the goods delivered by caravans from the East began to arrive. Here they were loaded onto ships and transported to the Mediterranean countries. At the same time, the old way through the Black Sea steppes to the city of Crimea, and from there to Kafu, lost its significance, although it continued to function, judging by the message of Ibn-Batuta ”*. Thanks to the ebullient activities of the Italians in the 14th century. becomes the final destination of several large trade routes. One of them walked from the north along the Don; it was possible to get to the capital of the Golden Horde, Sarai al-Jedid, as well as to Russia and the Kama region. The second path led through the steppes to the east, to the city of Hadjitarhan, which was in the Volga delta, from where the road to Khorezm opened; she acted in the XV century. 105, although its value has plummeted. From the south, a road from the large North Caucasian city of Majar approached Azak; precisely on it in the 30s of the XIV century. Ibn-Batuta traveled, m. A convenient geographical position and direct access to the sea made Azak in the XIV a. one of the main export centers of the Golden Horde.

The largest expert in world trade of the XIV century. Francesco Balducci Pegolotti gives in his treatise on trade an extensive list of goods passing through Azac and its Italian colony 107. Asian spices were first exported from here: pepper, ginger, saffron, nutmeg and various oils used in medicine. Then came all kinds of fabrics: silk, brocade, cotton and linen. Barbaro reports that in the XIV century. “Six to seven large galleys were sent from Venice alone to Tanu to pick up these spices and silk” 108. An extensive export item was furs from Russia: skins of sable, beaver, marten, ermine, foxes, lynxes, squirrels. Honey, wax, and skin were brought from there. Some merchants specialized in the sale of such constant commodities as dried and salted fish, caviar, various types of grain and cereals (wheat, rye, buckwheat, millet), as well as in the sale of slaves.

Significant stocks of salted fish and caviar accumulated in Tan by the time navigation was opened are reported by Barbaro in their notes, m. Moreover, wheat and rye were loaded onto ships not only in Azax “°, but also in several small ports located on the coast of the Sea of \u200b\u200bAzov "". This can serve as reliable evidence in favor of the local origin of the exported grain. There are repeated evidence from the Eastern and European authors about the development of the slave trade in the Golden Horde. Not only prisoners were captured, slaves were captured Mongols in wars, but also the children of the poor of the Golden Horde population, sold by parents in critical situations "2. The local specific article of sale was also the sale of cattle, mainly horses, bulls and camels. Judging by Barbaro, cattle were sold to Western Europe, up to to Italy, as well as to the Near and Middle East, and herds and herds were driven by land roads sh.

The counter flow of goods came to Azak from the Mediterranean countries. These were various production of cloth and linen, iron, copper, tin, as well as wine.

In 1395, Azak, together with the Italian colony, was destroyed by the troops of Timur. After that, the Golden Horde city did not revive, but the Venetians in the XV century. they again set up a trading colony here, securing it with fortified walls, which lasted until the Ottoman appearance in the Northern Black Sea Region (1475)

Matrega. The city was located on the Taman Peninsula, on the site of modern Taman; founded long before the advent of the Mongols in Europe. The name of the city is well known according to Italian sources 288. Its significance increased significantly after its foundation here at the beginning of the 14th century. Genoese colony, which launched a lively trade with local tribes. The population of Matrega was mainly composed of Greeks and Circassians. In the XV century. the city fell completely under the control of the Genoese, who hastened to strengthen it due to the frequent conflicts with the surrounding Circassian population.

Cop. The city was at the mouth of the Kuban. Known since the end of the XIII century. as a Genoese colony specializing in trade in fish and caviar 289. Sources report an annual spring fair, which was attended by numerous fish dealers.

Along the east coast of the Azov and Black Seasin the fourteenth century there were 39 Italian colonies 200. The lack of archaeological research in this area does not allow for the exact localization of most of them, but they are known from medieval maps. The colonies themselves were small villages, but such a significant number of them testifies to the lively trade conducted by Italians with the local population. Among the goods exported from here, sources refer to various preparations of fish (dried and salted), caviar, leather, furs, cotton paper, bread, wax, wine, saffron, silver ore, fruits and slaves 291. In turn, Italians offered the local population cotton, cloth and various expensive types of fabrics, salt, raw cotton, carpets, spices, saber blades 292. In general, the North Caucasus and the Kuban region were one of the important economic regions of the Golden Horde, as evidenced by its scale of participation in international trade.

Posted on Allbest.ru

...

Presentation on the topic:

Slide number 1

Description of the slide:

Slide number 2

Description of the slide:

Slide number 3

Description of the slide:

Colonization by the Italians of the Black Sea coast of the Caucasus As a result of the Crusades in the XI-XIII centuries. merchant republics such as Genoa and Venice flourished economically in Italy. Having ousted Arabs and Byzantines, Italian merchants seized mediation trade between Western Europe and the East. Soon they became such powerful trading powers that contemporaries rightly called Genoa "the god of the seas", and Venice - the port city on the Adriatic Sea - the "Queen of the Adriatic."