Kobishchanov Taras

The christians of the Middle East and the role of their “conspiracy” in the Archipelago expedition of the Russian navy in 1769–1774

Abstract

The history of the fi rst military and political contacts between Russia and the Arab world has long been ignored by Russian orientalists. The reason was the unwillingness to introduce the “imperialistic” component to the untainted history of Soviet-Arabic relations. Due to the studies of the recent past, we have a relatively full picture of both the course of events of 1770‒1774 and changes in the political agenda that urged local rules to enter a union with Russia. However, the reasons that underlay the alliance of Near Eastern rulers with a Christan state cannot be reduced to just basic political and economical factors. A prominent role was also played by the religious and ideological component, which is described in the article.

Keywords

Archipelago Expedition, Christians of the Middle East, ‘Aly Bey Bulut Kapan, Dahir al-‘Umar, Yusuf Shihab

References

1. Barīk, Mikā’il Ad-Dimašqī (1982). Ta’rīḫ aš-Šām, 1720–1782. Damascus.
2. Crecelius D. (1981) The Roots of Modern Egypt. A Study of the Regimes of ‘Ali Bey al-Kabir and Muhammad Bey Abu al-Dhahab, 1760–1775. Minneapolis; Chicago.
3. Heyberger B. (2001) Hindiyya mistique et criminelle, 1720–1798. Paris.
4. Joudah A. H. (2013) Revolt in Palestine in the Eighteenth Century. The Era of Shaykh Zahir al-‘Umar. Piscataway.
5. Kobishchanov T. (2003) Vostochnye khristiane v arabo-osmanskom mire (XVI – pervaia tret’ XIX v.) [East Christians in the Arabo-Ottoman World (16th — First Third of the 19th Centuries)]. Moscow.
6. Kobishchanov T. (2009) “Krest nad Beirutom: rossiiskaia ekspeditsiia v Vostochnoe Sredizemnomor’e 1769–1774 gg. v vospriiatii siriiskikh sovremennikov” [“Cross over Beirut: Russian Expedition to the Eastern Mediterranean of 1769‒1774 in the Eyes of Syrian Contemporaries]. Vestnik Moskovskogo Universiteta. Seriia 13. Vostokovedenie. 2009, vol. 1, pp. 3‒22; vol. 2, pp. 3‒20 (in Russian).
7. Kobishchanov T. (2017) “Posle stoletii odinochestva: izmenenie sotsial’noi psikhologii siriiskikh khristian v novoe vremia” [After Centuries of Solitude. Changes in the Social Psychology of Syrian Christians in New Time”]. Istoricheskii věstnik. 2017, vol. 20, pp. 218‒256 (in Russian).
8. Livingston J.W. (1971) “‘Ali Bey Al-Kabir and the Jews”. Middle Eastern Studies. 1971, vol. 7.
9. Poslanie emira Iusufa ash-Shikhaba grafu A.G. Orlovu 1 ianvaria 1774 g. (2011), in E. Smilianskaia, I. Smilianskaia, M. Velizhev (eds.) Rossiia v Sredizemnomor’e. Arkhipelagskaia ekspeditsiia Ekateriny Velikoi. Moscow (in Russian).
10. aṣ-Ṣabbāġ, ‘Abbud. Ar-rawd aẓ-ẓāhir fi tarīḫ Ẓāhir. Gaza, 2002.
11. aš-Šihābī, al-Amīr Ḥaidar Aḥmad. Ta’rīḫ Aḥmad Bāšā al-Ǧazzār. Beirut, 1955.

Information about the author

Kobishchanov Taras

Academic Degree: Candidate of Sciences* in History;
Academic Rank: Associate Professor;
Place of work: Institute of Asian and African Studies, Moscow State University; 11 Mokhovaia Str., Moscow, 101999, Russian Federation;
ORCID: 0000-0001-8165-0897;
Email: kobischanov@mail.ru.

*According to the International Standard Classification of Education (ISCED) 2011, the degree of Candidate of Sciences (Cand.Sc.) belongs to ISCED level 8 — "doctoral or equivalent", together with PhD, DPhil, D.Lit, D.Sc, LL.D, Doctorate or similar.