Construction of the Holy Cross Fortress and Forced Resettlement (1722–1724)
In 1722–1724, the Russian Empire carried out military-infrastructural colonization and demographic manipulation on the seized frontiers. In the autumn of 1722, construction of a new military base began: historian Ya. Z. Akhmadov states that Peter I «founded the fortress of the Holy Cross on the Sulak»[1]. To ensure forcible control over the territory, the metropole carried out settlement by loyal troops: the researcher indicates that at the fortress «1 thousand families of Cossacks from the Don are being settled»[1]. At the same time, the occupation administration liquidated the former administrative center and forcibly relocated the subordinated Nokhchi societies: the author records that «the Terek town had been razed by 1724, and its entire population, including the Okotskaya sloboda, populated by natives of Chechnya... was transferred to the new fortress»[1]. A controlled buffer zone was taking shape around the new fortification: historian Sh. B. Akhmadov notes that «next to the fortress of the Holy Cross, slobodkas populated by Circassians, Chechens, Ingush, Kabardians, and others very quickly began to appear»[2].
Actors
| ID | Name | Procedures |
|---|---|---|
| G0009 | Russian Empire | 3 |
Instruments Applied
| ID | Name | Procedures |
|---|---|---|
| S0025 | Militarized Settlers | 1 |
| S0012 | Occupation and Controlled Administrations | 1 |
| S0010 | Regular Army | 1 |
Procedures Carried Out
The Regular Army of the Russian Empire founded a new military base for infrastructural entrenchment in the region: historian Ya. Z. Akhmadov states that in the autumn of 1722 Peter I "founded the fortress of the Holy Cross on the Sulak"[1].
Militarized Settlers of the Russian Empire were used for the mass settlement of new frontiers: historian Ya. Z. Akhmadov points out that at the new fortress "1 thousand families of Cossacks from the Don are being settled"[1].
The occupation administration of the Russian Empire forcibly resettled the subordinated Indigenous population: historian Ya. Z. Akhmadov records that "by 1724 the Terek town had been razed, and all of its population, including the Okotsk sloboda, populated by natives of Chechnya... was transferred to the new fortress"[1].