| The Protohistory (Ninth to Twelfth | | | | like a brilliant meteor over the dark horizon |
| Centuries): - | | | | of Europe. |
| | | | |
| Russia's position on the eastern flank of | | | | In the tenth century, when Russians were |
| Europe has often been compared to that of | | | | still mostly pagans, Islam had already |
| Spain on the western side. Both are seen as | | | | penetrated Eastern Transcaucasia and |
| bulwarks of Christendom facing the hostile | | | | Daghestan. It had conquered the whole of |
| world of Islam, of civilization facing | | | | Turkestan south of Syr Darya and the King of |
| 'barbary'. Russia exhausted herself in a | | | | Bulghar in the far north had adopted the |
| heroic struggle of several centuries, but | | | | religion of the Prophet, Except for the |
| this sacrifice was not to be in vain, for | | | | Bulghar Kingdom, all these territories had |
| Europe was saved and could go on to develop | | | | long been settled with highly developed urban |
| its brilliant civilization well protected by | | | | societies going back to the second millennium |
| the Russians. The price of this voluntary | | | | BC. Even the nomadic Turks of the Caspian |
| sacrifice was heavy, since in order to | | | | steppes - the Khazars - whose feudal nobility |
| survive and finally to overcome the 'Asia | | | | had adopted Judaism as their official |
| barbarians', Muscovy was obliged to adopt | | | | religion, had attained a higher level of |
| their ways, such as tyranny, despotism, | | | | political and cultural development than the |
| serfdom and lack of liberty. Such is the | | | | ancestors of the Russians, their vassals in |
| picture that is painted in nearly all Russian | | | | the eighth and early ninth centuries. |
| and Soviet historical works. Far-fetched as | | | | |
| it is, there are deep reasons for defending | | | | During the eleventh and twelfth centuries |
| this absurd concept. According to the | | | | political and cultural equilibrium was |
| Russians, 'they have suffered more than any | | | | established between the sedentary Kievian |
| other people' and have 'played the role of | | | | Rus, Christianized and civilized by Byzantium |
| protectors and saviours', a kind of St George | | | | and the nomadic Qypchaqs (Polovtsy) - heirs |
| killing the Asiatic dragon and rescuing the | | | | to the Khazars who ruled over the Steppe |
| European princess. This exclusive position | | | | territories between the Dniepr and the Aral |
| 'gives the Russians certain messianic | | | | Sea. |
| rights', in particular the right to assume | | | | |
| the leadership over their lesser European | | | | Contrary to the commonly accepted but totally |
| brothers and to 'civilize' the world | | | | misleading version put forward by Russian |
| Asiatics. | | | | historians, relations between sedentary |
| | | | Russians and nomadic Turks were not limited |
| The reality is of course far from this | | | | only to plundering expeditions and punitive |
| Manichaean approach to history. When the | | | | counter-expeditions, but included wide |
| ancestors of the Russians first came into | | | | cultural and diplomatic exchanges between |
| contact with Asia in the ninth century they | | | | partners who treated each other as equals. |
| were the 'Barbarians', not the highly | | | | Moreover, during this period Turkic |
| civilized Muslims. | | | | princesses often married Kievian princes. (It |
| | | | is a well known historical fact that the |
| In the early tenth century, the borderline | | | | vassal seeks the hand of his suzerain's |
| between 'Civilization' and 'Barbary' followed | | | | daughter.) This happy period ended with the |
| more or less exactly the frontier which today | | | | Mongol invasion, but not before a |
| separates the Slavic 'European' people of the | | | | considerable number of Turkic, Iranian and |
| USSR from the area populated largely by | | | | even Arabic words synonymous with advanced |
| Muslims: Middle and Lower Volga, North | | | | societies were borrowed and have become so |
| Caucasian mountains, Derbent, Syr Daria. | | | | thoroughly Russified as to make it nearly |
| However, 'Barbary' at this time was | | | | impossible to recognize their Asiatic |
| represented by the 'Europeans', ancestors of | | | | origins: chugun, bulat, topor, sablia, saray, |
| the Russians. (There are those who believe | | | | bumaga, khram, terem, yazyk, ochag, cherdak, |
| that the position has altered little over | | | | loshad', chemodan, bogatyr, magazin, |
| time.) | | | | karandash, karaul, etc. In contrast, Slavic |
| | | | vocabulary made no impression on Turkic |
| For the Muslims, the 'Rus' were wild and | | | | languages - at least until the nineteenth |
| primitive natives, purveyors of rare blond | | | | century. |
| slaves and such precious raw materials as fur | | | | |
| and ivory. But they were dangerous neighbors | | | | In the eleventh and twelfth centuries, the |
| and their plundering expeditions (912 and | | | | equilibrium which existed between the |
| 941-4 raids in the Caspian Sea, the | | | | sedentary Kievian civilization and the steppe |
| destruction of the Khazar Empire in 945 and | | | | nomads in the Black Sea-Caspian Sea area |
| 985 expedition against Bulghar) were | | | | could be likened to an outwardly similar |
| described in gruesome detail by early Muslim | | | | situation between the sedentary Irano-Turkic |
| chroniclers. | | | | and nomadic Turko-Mongol worlds along the |
| | | | line of Syr Daria. To draw any sort of |
| During 942-4 the 'Rus' devastated all Muslim | | | | parallel would, however, be wrong. In Central |
| Transcaucasia. Berdea, the most prosperous | | | | Asia, Bukhara of the Samanids and Empire of |
| city of Azerbaijan, was completely destroyed | | | | the Seljuqs were the great centers of world |
| and its inhabitants slaughtered. According to | | | | culture at that time and the defense line on |
| Ibn Hawkal, from the 1,200 5 remained. In | | | | Syr Daria marked the border between |
| 1850, a Russian historian, Grigor'ev, wrote" | | | | civilization and Barbary. There could be no |
| | | | borrowing of Mongol-Turkic or Manchu words |
| When anarchy, fanaticism and barbarity were | | | | from the Qara Khitay by the Persians or the |
| disputing the domination of Europe, the | | | | Seljuqs and a Samanid king or a Khwarezm shah |
| Khazar Empire was a center of law, order and | | | | would never dream of marrying the daughter of |
| religious tolerance, a refuge for all those | | | | a nomad chieftain roaming the Mongolian |
| who were persecuted for their belief. It was | | | | outback. |