Attempted bribery of Shamil with a promise of power over Dagestan to secure his appearance before Nicholas I in Tiflis, and the summoning of the Chechen imam Tashu-Hadji (1837)
In September 1837, ahead of Nicholas I's visit to the Caucasus, the empire tried to buy the leader of the highlander resistance: Shamil (Shamil - imam, leader of the resistance of the highlanders of Dagestan and Chechnya to the Russian conquest) was offered "pardon", honors and power in exchange for appearing before the emperor in Tiflis. General Adlerberg conveyed Nicholas I's will to general Rozen in a letter of 10 August 1837: "that Shamil and his chief accomplices Tashav-Hadji, Kibit-Magomet and the Qarakh qadi Abdurrahman be given suggestions to take advantage of His Majesty's arrival in the Caucasus region and to beg the mercy of appearing before the face of the Monarch Himself"[1] - Tashu-Hadji (sheikh, in 1834-1836 the imam of Chechnya, spiritual and military leader of the Chechen resistance) is named first among the "accomplices". General Klugenau obtained a personal meeting with Shamil on 18 September 1837 at a spring near the aul of Karanay; Shamil's chronicler Muhammad Tahir al-Qarakhi recorded the essence of the offer: "Kluki von Klugenau began to speak, asking Shamil to come for a meeting with the Russian Nicholas. He asserted that the emperor would exalt him, Shamil, show him honor, and make him the administrator of the affairs of all Dagestani Muslims. From the emperor, he said, there would be no treachery"[2]. At the same time colonel Pullo demanded of Shamil by letter that he send "to the Groznaya fortress two deputies to be presented to the Sovereign" - and this competing demand, as the imperial historian Yurov admits, "greatly hindered the success" of the recruitment[1]. Shamil refused in a letter to Klugenau of 28 September 1837: "I have resolved not to go to Tiflis even if I am cut to pieces, because I have many times seen treachery from you"[1] - neither he nor Tashu-Hadji appeared before the emperor.
Actors
| ID | Name | Procedures |
|---|---|---|
| G0009 | Russian Empire | 1 |
Instruments Applied
| ID | Name | Procedures |
|---|---|---|
| S0010 | Regular Army | 1 |
Procedures Carried Out
In September 1837, preparing Nicholas I's visit to the Caucasus, the empire tried to recruit Shamil (Shamil - imam, leader of the resistance of the highlanders of Dagestan and Chechnya to the Russian conquest), offering him power and honors in exchange for subordination to the empire. General Adlerberg conveyed the emperor's will to general Rozen in a letter of 10 August 1837: to give "Shamil and his chief accomplices Tashav-Hadji, Kibit-Magomet and the Qarakh qadi Abdurrahman suggestions... to beg the mercy of appearing before the face of the Monarch Himself" in Tiflis[1]; Tashu-Hadji (sheikh, in 1834-1836 the imam of Chechnya, spiritual and military leader of the Chechen resistance) is named first on the list. Carrying this out, general Klugenau obtained a personal meeting with Shamil on 18 September 1837 at a spring near the aul of Karanay; as recorded by Shamil's chronicler Muhammad Tahir al-Qarakhi, the general "began to speak, asking Shamil to come for a meeting with the Russian Nicholas. He asserted that the emperor would exalt him, Shamil, show him honor, and make him the administrator of the affairs of all Dagestani Muslims. From the emperor, he said, there would be no treachery"[2]. In parallel, general Feze instructed Akhmed Khan of Mekhtuli "to persuade Shamil to arrive in Tiflis by the time of His Majesty's arrival there", as general Rozen reported to Chernyshev on 25 September 1837[3], and colonel Pullo demanded of Shamil by letter that he send "to the Groznaya fortress two deputies to be presented to the Sovereign"[1]. The bribe was delivered to its addressee and rejected: on 28 September 1837 Shamil replied to Klugenau by letter - "I have resolved not to go to Tiflis even if I am cut to pieces, because I have many times seen treachery from you"[1]; neither Shamil nor Tashu-Hadji went to Tiflis. The offer to Shamil of the post of "administrator of the affairs of all Dagestani Muslims" repeated the same policy line by which the empire, in those same years, was creating loyal religious institutions (campaign C1159).