Day of Remembrance and Sorrow of the Victims of the Caucasian War

Day of Remembrance and Sorrow of the Victims of the Caucasian War
On May 21, 1864, the Caucasian War ended (1817-1864), during which hundreds of thousands of Adygs and Abkhazians died, the survivors were subjected to mass deportation to the Ottoman Empire, after which less than 5% of the indigenous population remained in their historical homeland.
From 1858 to 1865, according to official statistics alone, up to half a million people were evicted from their lands. The highlanders left their homes, left property, livestock - all this went to the Cossacks who settled in their places. Representatives of the Adyghe-Abkhaz peoples were expelled to Turkey along the Black Sea - a route that became a cemetery for a huge number of people.
Every year on May 21 in Adygea, Kabardino-Balkaria and Karachay-Cherkessia, victims of the Caucasian War are remembered. This day is officially declared a memorable and non-working day in these three republics of the Russian Federation. Memorial Day is celebrated also abroad - in Turkey, Syria, Jordan, Abkhazia, Israel and the USA. Wherever the descendants of the Circassian Muhajirs live. The lessons of the Russian-Caucasian war are discussed at round tables, mourning rallies, processions and other commemorative events.