Zelimkhan Explained

Zelimkhan Gushmazukayev
Харачойн Зеламха
Birth Date:January 1872
Birth Place:Kharachoy, Terek Oblast, Russian Empire
Death Date:26 September 1913
Death Place:Shali, Terek Oblast, Russian Empire
Nationality:Chechen
Nickname:"Chechen Robin Hood"
Occupation:Abrek
Years Active:1905—1913
Known For:Raids on banks

Zelimkhan "Kharachoevsky" Gushmazukayev[1] (Chechen: Харачойн Зеламха|Kharachoyn Zelamkha; January 1872 – 26 September 1913) and better known simply as Zelimkhan, was a Chechen outlaw (abrek) who gained fame in the late Russian Empire due to his spectacular bank and train robberies as part of a violent struggle with the Russian authorities. Since the Russian Revolution he has been mythologized as a version of a Chechen Robin Hood, first by the Bolsheviks (for fighting against the Tsarist regime) and later by Chechen nationalists.[2] Today the name Zelimkhan is given to Chechen and Ingush children.

Together with Zelimkhan was his colleague and comrade, the Ingush abrek Sulumbek of Sagopshi, who participated in the most high-profile events associated with Zelimkhan.[3]

During the early 20th century, after the events of 1905, Zelimkhan was a particular problem for the Russian governors of the restive region, and enjoyed the support of the local Chechen population.[4] He would ultimately become a symbol of triumph over the Russian administration, committing brazen feats such as the robbery of the Kizlyar treasury, carried out in broad daylight on March 27, 1910 and distributing the money to poor people;[5] he became varyingly seen as a fighter for "justice" or as one who continued the fight of the Muslim population for independence from Russia, being compared to Imam Shamil.[6] In September 1913, Zelimkhan was killed in a short battle with tsarist forces near the village of Shali.

There was a statue of Zelimkhan outside the site of the village of Serzhen Yurt, which was destroyed during the First Chechen War.[7]

Folk songs about Zelimkhan

There is a popular folk song about Zelimkhan.[8]

Excerpt from a Khevsurian folk song about Zelimkhan:[9]

Bibliography

Notes and References

  1. Urushadze, Amiran. The Caucasus in the Late 19th – Early 20th Centuries: Problems of Governance and Modernization on the Southern Outskirts of the Russian Empire. Quaestio Rossica.
  2. Jeronim Perovic, Imperial Projections and Caucasian Realities. Banditry and the Zelimkhan Phenomenon in Late Imperial Russia, in Jahrbücher für Geschichte Osteuropas 62(1):30-60.
  3. Book: Ибрагимов, Мовсур Муслиевич. История Чечни с древнейших времен до наших дней: История Чечни ХХ и начала ХХI веков. ГУП "Книжное издательство". 2008. ru. 61. 9785988961017 .
  4. Amiran Urushadze. The Caucasus in the Late 19th – Early 20th Centuries: Problems of Governance and Modernization on the Southern Outskirts of the Russian Empire. Quaestio Rossica. 2015. 2. 145. 10.15826/qr.2015.2.101. Лидер одной из таких групп, легендарный Зелимхан Гушмазукаев пользовался поддержкой среди местного населения и представлял большую угрозу для официальных властей. Использование против недовольных исклю.... 10995/31976. free.
  5. Абречество как одна из форм социального протеста. Lemka T. Agieva. Зелимхан со своими сподвижниками ограбил Кизлярский банк и деньги (золото) раздал бедным людям. Доказательством тому является «Прошение», которое абрек направил 15 января 1909 г. на имя председателя III Государственной Думы октябриста Н. А. Хомякова: «Хозяйства, как сосланных, так и заключенных, совершенно разорились, жены, и дети их живут подаянием добрых людей, да тем, что я иногда уделю им из своего добра после удачного набега» [7, с. 138].. 94. 2020. Nasledie Vekov. 1 . 21. 10.36343/SB.2020.21.1.008. free.
  6. Amiran Urushadze. The Caucasus in the Late 19th – Early 20th Centuries: Problems of Governance and Modernization on the Southern Outskirts of the Russian Empire. Quaestio Rossica. 2015. 2. 152. 10.15826/qr.2015.2.101. Символом бессилия российской администрации стали смелые действия отрядов, возглавляемых Зелимханом Гушмазукаевым. Самой отчаянной акцией абреков Зелимхана стало ограбление Кизлярского казначейства 27 марта 1910 г., совершенное открыто, при свете дня. Секрет неуловимости Зелимхана был в его народной популярности. Для многих жителей Терской области он был далеко не просто удачливым бандитом, но борцом за справедливость. Иногда его имя связывалось с идеей продолжения борьбы, к которой мусульман Кавказа призывал и которую долгие годы возглавлял имам Шамиль. Российская агентура даже имела сведения, согласно которым Зелимхан в 1909 г. на съезде старейшин селений Терской и Дагестанской областей был провозглашен святым и великим имамом.... 10995/31976. free.
  7. Book: Smith, Sebastian . 2001 . Allah's Mountains: The Battle for Chechnya . Bloomsbury Academic . 14 . 9781860646515.
  8. The lyrics and translation here come from http://www.waynakh.com/eng/2009/05/zelimkhan where one can also find an audio sample of the song.
  9. Book: Razpopov, T.P.. Notes of the Terek Society of Lovers of Cossack Antiquity. 1914. Vladikavkaz. 90.

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