Cossacks, << KOS aks >>, were a group of elite cavalry warriors in Ukraine and Russia. They became famous for their riding and their fierce independence.
In the 1400’s and 1500’s, most Cossacks were peasants who had fled into unsettled plains of what are now southern Ukraine and western Russia to escape serfdom or to gain more independence. There, they established self-governing communities. The rulers of Poland and Russia asked the Cossacks to defend their lands against raids by Asian invaders called Tatars.
The Ukrainian Cossacks began a rebellion against Poland in 1648. Tens of thousands of Jews were killed in the rebellion. The Jews had been associated with Polish rule because many held such positions as overseers or tax collectors for Polish landowners. As a result of the rebellion, Cossack rule spread over much of Ukraine. In 1654, the Ukrainian Cossacks formed an association with the czar (emperor) of Russia. They served in the Russian army until the late 1700’s.
The Russian Cossacks played a key role in expanding the Russian empire in the middle and late 1800’s, especially in Siberia. They supported the czars with fierce loyalty and served in Russia’s army. By 1916, Cossack communities had almost 41/2 million people.
Cossacks formed the basis of the forces that fought the Bolsheviks in the civil war that followed the Russian Revolution of 1917. After the Bolsheviks gained control of Russia and formed the Soviet Union in 1922, they broke up the Cossacks as a distinct group. After the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991, the Cossacks reemerged. They created their own political and social organizations and formed volunteer military units.
