A Cossack from Orenburg, with a shashka at his side

Shashka is a special kind of sabre and a very sharp type of single edged, single handed and guardless sword. In appearance the shashka was midway between a full sabre and a straight sword. It had a slightly curved blade with double edges and could be effective for both slashing and thrusting. The blade was either hollowed or fullered. There was no guard, but a large, curved pommel. The hilt was frequently highly decorated. It was carried in a wooden scabbard that enclosed part of the hilt. It was worn with the cutting edge to the rear, opposite to the sabre. For other uses, see Cossack (disambiguation). ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... A Cossack host or Cossack voisko (Казачье войско, kazachye voysko, sometimes incorrectly translated as Cossack Army) was an administrative subdivision of Cossacks in Imperial Russia. ... Don Cossacks refers to cossacks that settled along the Don River, Russia it its lower and middle parts. ... The Ural Cossack Host was a cossack host formed from the Ural Cossacks -- those cossacks settled by the Ural River. ... Terek Cossack Host (Russian: ) was a cossack host created in 1577 from free Cossacks resettled from Volga to Terek River. ... Russian Kuban Cossacks (Кубанские козаки, Kubanskie Kozaki) were cossacks that settled in the region around the Kuban River protected the southern borders of the Russian Empire. ... The Orenburg Cossack Host (Оренбургское казачье войско in Russian), a part of the Cossack population in pre-revolutionary Russia, located in the Orenburg province (todays Orenburg Oblast, part... Astrakhan Cossack Host (Астраханское казачье войско in Russian) was a Cossack host of Imperial Russia drawn from the Cossacks of the Lower Volga region, who had been patrolling... Siberian Cossacks were Cossacks who settled in the Siberian region of Russia. ... Baikal Cossacks were cossacks of the Transbaikal Cossack Host (Russian: Забайкальское казачье войско), a Cossack host formed in 1851 in the areas beyond Lake Baikal (hence, Transbaikal). ... The Amur Cossack Host (Амурское казачье войско in Russian), a Cossack host created in the Amur region and Primorye in the 1850s on the basis of the Cossacks relocated from the Transbaikal region and freed miners of Nerchinsk region. ... Semirechye Cossask Host (Russian: ) was a Cossack host in Imperial Russia, located in Semirechye Oblast (today comprising most of Kyrgyzstan as well as Almaty oblysy, Taldy-Korgan (Taldyqorghan) oblysy, and parts of the Taraz oblysy and Semey oblysy in Kazakhstan) with the center in Verny. ... Ussuri Cossack Host (Russian: Уссури́йское каза́чье во́йско) was a Cossack Host in Imperial Russia, located in Primorye south of Khabarovsk along the Ussuri River, the Sungari River, and around the Khanka Lake. ... Azov Cossack Host was a Cossack host created in 1828 of Trans-Danubian Sich Cossacks (Задунайская Сечь) returned under the Russian patronage during the Russo-Turkish War, 1828-1829 under the command of kosh ataman Osip Hladkiy (Осип Михайлов Гладкий). When the war ended, they were given land between Berdyansk and Mariupol. ... Caucasus Line Cossack Host (Черноморское казачье войско) was a Cossack host created in 1787 in Southern Ukraine from former Zaporozhians. ... The Bug Cossack Host (Russian: ) was a Cossack host, which used to be located along the Southern Buh River. ... Caucasus Line Cossack Host (Кавказское линейное казачье войско) was a Cossack host created in 1832 in the Northern Caucasus. ... The Danubian Sich (Danube Sich, Trans-Danube Sich, Zadunayska Sich) was a fortified settlement (sich) of Zaporozhian Cossacks who fled in the territory of the Ottoman Empire after their home Zaporizhian Sich was overwhelmed by the Russian army in 1775, see, see Zaporozhian Host: Russian rule. ... This article is about the Cossack republic of 1654 to 1775. ... Nekrasov Cossacks, Nekrasovite Cossacks, Nekrasovites, Nekrasovtsy (Russian: ) are descendants of Don Cossacks which, after the defeat of the Bulavin Rebellion fled to Kuban (in September 1708), headed by Ignat Nekrasov, hence the name. ... The Persian Cossack Brigade was the imperial gaurd of the royal family of Persia (Iran). ... Of the different branches of Cossacks, the only one that would allow Jews into their society were the Cossacks of Ukraine. ... The Reply of the Zaporozhian Cossacks to Sultan Mehmed IV of Turkey. ... The History of the Cossacks spans several centuries. ... This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ... Khmelnytsky Uprising (also Chmielnicki Uprising or Khmelnytsky/Chmielnicki Rebellion) refers to a rebellion in the lands of in present-day Ukraine which raged from 1648-1654. ... This is a 19th century design for a COA of a proposed Polish-Lithuanian-Ruthenian Commonwealth which never came into being. ... The Bulavin Rebellion, also called the Astrakhan Rebellion (Russian: Булавинское восстание), is the name given to a violent civil uprising in Imperial Russia between the years 1707 and 1709. ... It has been suggested that Yemelyan Pugachev be merged into this article or section. ... The 1st Cavalry Army (Russian: ) was the most famous Red Army сavalry formation also known as Budyonnys Cavalry Army or simply Konarmia. ... In 1919 the Soviet engaged in a policy to eliminate the Cossack threat to proletarian power by de-Cossackization: extirpating the Cossack elite; terrorizing all other Cossacks; and bringing about the formal liquidation of the Cossackry. ... Combatants Lienz Cossacks Allied Forces Strength >50,000 Casualties 45,000 - 50,000 repatriated The Betrayal of Cossacks refers to the forced transfer of Cossacks who fought against Allied forces in World War II to the Soviet Union after the war, including those who were never Soviet citizens (having left... The XVth Cossack Cavalry Corps was a German cavalry corps during World War II. By the end of the war the Corps was placed under the Waffen-SS administration. ... Russian Cossacks in Wehmacht uniform The 1st Cossack Division (German: ) is a Russian Cossack division within the German WW II Army. ... Andrei Shkuro Andrei Grigoriyevich Shkuro (Shkura) (Андрей Григорьевич Шкуро (Шкура) in Russian) (January 19, 1887 (O.S.: January 7) – January 17, 1947) was a Lieutenant General (1919) of the White Army. ... Bohdan Zynovii Mykhailovych Khmelnytskyi (Ukrainian: , commonly transliterated as Khmelnytsky; known in Polish as Bohdan Zenobi Chmielnicki; in Russian as Богда́н Хмельни́цкий, translit. ... Ivan Stepanovych Mazepa (Ukrainian: , Russian: , historically spelled as Mazeppa; circa 1640—August 28, 1709), Cossack Hetman (Ataman) of the Hetmanate in Left-bank Ukraine, in 1687–1708. ... Ataman Ivan Sirko Ukrainian hryvnia coin depicting Ivan Sirko Ivan Sirko (Ukrainian: Іван Сірко)(born near 1610 died in 1680), Cossack military leader, Koshovyi Otaman of the Zaporozhian Host and author of the famous Reply of the Zaporozhian Cossacks that inspired a major painting by the 19th-century artist Ilya Repin. ... Ataman Pyotr Krasnov Pyotr Nikolayevich Krasnov (Петр Николаевич Краснов in Russian) (September 22 (10 O.S.), 1869 — January 17, 1947), sometimes referred to in English as Peter Krasnov, was Lieutenant General of the Russian army when the revolution broke out in 1917, and one of the leaders of the counterrevolutionary White movement afterwards. ... Semyon Budyonny (also spelled Budennii, Budenny, Budyenny etc, Russian: Семён Михайлович Будённый) (April 25 [O.S. April 13] 1883 – October 26, 1973) was a Soviet military commander and an ally of Soviet leader Joseph Stalin. ... Stepan (Stenka) Timofeyevich Razin (Степан (Стенька) Тимофеевич Разин in Russian) (1630 - 6. ... Emelyan Pugachov Yemelyan Ivanovich Pugachev (Russian: ), born in 1740 or 1742 and executed in 1775, was a pretender to the Russian throne who led a great Cossack insurrection during the reign of Catherine II. Alexander Pushkin wrote a remarkable history of the rebellion; and he recounted some of the events... Ataman (variants: wataman, vataman, otaman, Cyrillic: атаман (Russian), ватаман (Russian, regional), отаман (Ukrainian)) was a title of Cossack and haidamak leaders of various kinds. ... Hetman`s coat of arms Hetman StanisÅ‚aw Koniecpolski of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth Hetman was the title of the second highest military commander (after the monarch) used in 15th to 18th century Poland and Grand Duchy of Lithuania, known from 1569 to 1795 as the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. ... Papakha (Russian: ) is a high fur hat, usually made of karakul sheep skin, worn by many peoples of the Caucasus, Don Cossacks and Russian army. ... Plastun or plastoon (Ukrainian, Russian: ) was originally a Cossack of dismounted scouting and sentry military units in Black Sea Cossack Host and later in Kuban Cossack Host in 19-20th ceturies. ... Stanitsa (Russian: , pronounces stah-nee-tsah) is a village inside a Cossack host or Cossack voisko (Казачье войско, kazachye voysko, sometimes incorrectly translated as Cossack Army). ... Download high resolution version (640x950, 98 KB)An Orenburg Cossack with his military equipment. ... Download high resolution version (640x950, 98 KB)An Orenburg Cossack with his military equipment. ... Orenburg (Russian: ) is a city on the Ural River and the administrative center of Orenburg Oblast in the Volga Federal District of Russia. ... French naval officers sabre of the 19th Century From left to right: two bayonets, a short curved infantry or artillery briquet, a straight infantry officers sabre, and a carbine. ... See also: Hilt (band) and Peter Hilt Hilt of Szczerbiec The hilt of a sword is its handle, consisting of a guard, grip and pommel. ... Swiss longsword, 15th or 16th century Look up Sword in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Prussian bayonet, with a prominent fuller A Fuller is a rounded or beveled groove on the flat side of a blade, such as a sword, knife, or bayonet (shown). ... A scabbard is a sheath for holding a sword or other large blade. ...

History

The shashka originated among the mountain peoples of the Caucasus and then used by most of the Russian and Ukrainian Cossacks. So there are two styles of shashka: Caucasian shashka and Cossack shashka. It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Caucasus Mountains. ... This article needs cleanup. ...

It was a typically Adyghean (Circassian) form of sabre, longer than the Cossack type. It gradually replaced the sabrein all cavalry units except hussars during the 19th century. Russian troops, having encountered it during their conquest of the Caucasus, preferred it to their issue sabres. It was adopted first by the Russian Caucasian Corps in the 1830s. In the 19th century it was imported from Germany. In 1882, when the cavalry was reorganized, the regular dragoons were armed with the shashka. Cossacks had received this type of sword earlier. Several forms of shashka were carried by Soviet cavalry into the Second World War. The Adyghe or Adygs are a people of the northwest Caucasus region, principally inhabiting Adygeya (23 %) (now a constituent republic of the Russian Federation) and Karachay-Cherkessia (11 %) (where they are named as Cherkes). Shapsug National District, an autonomous district founded for Shapsigh (or Shapsugh) tribe living on the Black... Circassian language is used in a number of ways: as a synonym for the Adyghe language; as a synonym for the Kabardian language; as a term for a distinct language that includes both Adyghe and Kabardian. ... A British Hussar from the Crimean War Hussar (original Hungarian spelling: huszár, plural huszárok, Polish: Husaria) refers to a number of types of cavalry used throughout Europe since the 15th century. ... Alternative meaning: Nineteenth Century (periodical) (18th century — 19th century — 20th century — more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 19th century was that century which lasted from 1801-1900 in the sense of the Gregorian calendar. ... Construction of the Georgian Military Road through disputed territories was a key factor in the eventual Russian success A Scene from the Caucasian War, by Franz Roubaud Russian Invasion of the Caucasus, better known in Russia as the Caucasian War of 1817-1864, was a series of military actions of... // Electromagnetic induction discovered by Michael Faraday Evolutionary theorist Charles Darwins expedition on the HMS Beagle. ... Year 1882 (MDCCCLXXXII) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Friday of the 12-day slower Julian calendar). ... French dragoon, 1745. ... “CCCP” redirects here. ... Combatants Allied powers: China France Great Britain Soviet Union United States and others Axis powers: Germany Italy Japan and others Commanders Chiang Kai-shek Charles de Gaulle Winston Churchill Joseph Stalin Franklin Roosevelt Adolf Hitler Benito Mussolini Hideki Tōjō Casualties Military dead: 17,000,000 Civilian dead: 33,000...

Construction

The construction of a shashka fits its primary combat technique: the strike is applied by the part of the blade close to the hilt, and then the shashka is pulled to increase the cutting action. This accounts for the following features.

• The absence of the guard: the closer the strike to the hilt, the more initial force is applied by the balance of the blade and the longer pulling is possible. Actually, the absence of the guard is inherited from the original Caucasian construction, in which the shashka is nearly completely hidden in the scabbard, together with the hilt.
• The hilt is slightly curved down, thus providing an additional leverage for pulling the shashka and for additional force by wrist action.

The handle of the sabre was crafted so as to have a built-in pommel and possibly a small guard, which usually extended unto only one side of the hilt. Like most medieval and then imperial Russian weaponry of the time, often the shashka and its scabbard were very orientally decorated, with gold and silver engravings, embedded gems and stones placed into, and figures carved out of or into, the hilts. The blade of the sabre was generally double or triple-fullered, and due to its greater width than that of the European sabre, and its unique styles of tempering, it was much stronger too, able to deal damage to light body armor. The Middle Ages formed the middle period in a traditional schematic division of European history into three ages: the classical civilization of Antiquity, the Middle Ages, and modern times. ... The subject of this article was previously also known as Russia. ...

The ahashka has the feel of a European (or Mongolian) sabre and was notable for its sharpness. It is said that a Circassian (so as a Cossack) would know when his shashka was sharp enough if it cut in half a light piece of thread gently falling down unto the edge of the blade. There has been film footage of Tsar Nicholas II (1868–1918) using a Circassian sabre in an overhead twirling motion to horizontally cut pieces from a wooden pole. Circassians is a term derived from the Turkic Cherkess (Çerkes), and is not the self-designation of any people. ... Tsar (Bulgarian, Serbian and Macedonian цар, Russian  , in scientific transliteration respectively car and car ), occasionally spelled Czar or Tzar and sometimes Csar or Zar in English, is a Slavonic term designating certain monarchs. ... Nicholas II can refer to: Pope Nicholas II Tsar Nicholas II of Russia This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ...