Cossacks. Origin. Military Traditions. Service of the State

The book by French historian Jean Savan is dedicated to the history of the military estate that stood guard over the borders of the Russian Empire and was at the origins of its statehood. The author traces the centuries-long path... of the Cossacks from free communities to service in the guard regiments of the Russian imperial army, describing the history of the formation of eleven Cossack troops that participated in military campaigns, the conquest of Siberia, and the development of the lands of the Far East.

Professor Savan, relying on ethnographic studies, tells about the unique external features characteristic of the Cossacks and Cossack women of the Don Cossack region, the Caucasus, the Urals, Transbaikalia, and other areas of settlement, about the traditions and customs of the free people who preserved not only the memory of military glory but also an original creative heritage.