In 1881, under the onslaught of Russian troops, the Geog-Tepe fortress fell - and Turkestan became part of the empire. But, seeing the futility of resistance, the Tekins, one of the largest tribes of Turkestan, already in 1875 sent a statement to the Russian command asking for citizenship of the Russian Empire and the protection of the "white tsar". They reported that they would serve faithfully, and at the first call they would field several thousand selected horsemen. The military services of the Tekins were once readily used by Genghis Khan, Nadir Shah, and it was the turn of the Russian emperor.
The Turkmens were high quality war material. They were born warriors, distinguished by their excellent knowledge of the desert area and the ability to adapt to the mountainous terrain (the arena of the Teke raids is the mountainous regions of Afghanistan and Persia).
And it is no coincidence that the volunteer Turkmen Cavalry Division (later the Turkmen (Tekinsky) Cavalry Regiment) became one of the most efficient and elite units of the Russian army. Under the leadership of Russian officers, the Tekins performed miracles of courage and distinguished themselves in many battles of the first war, in which the regiment had a chance to participate, which at the same time became the last war of the Russian Empire - the First World War.
In 1895, the initiative to establish the so-called native militia units in Turkestan came from the Main Directorate of the Cossack troops. The opinion of the commanders of the troops in the regions was requested. In Fergana, a commission was created to study this issue, which provided a very interesting conclusion. Without denying positive qualities of the native population as a fighting element (in particular, such facts as excellent riding, good horses were noted, and also that saddles, harness and all horse gear were in constant working order), the commission exclaimed: “Should the military instinct be stimulated? in the peaceful native population of Russian Turkestan? … The secret of our victories lies not so much in our tactical superiority over discordant hordes and in good weapons, but in unanimity … number of these instructors will not show up over time any capable organizer…. Then such unrest will arise in the depths of Asia, which will have a very unfavorable effect on the cultural life of mankind … "[V. Kuvshinov Experience of recruiting the indigenous population of Turkestan for military service // Military Thought and Revolution. 1923. Book 6. P. 99].
From the commanders of the troops of other regions, with the exception of Samarkand, about the same answers were received. Naturally, the voice from Samarkand about the desirability of forming native parts turned out to be a voice in the desert.
The view expressed by the Ferghana Commission continued to dominate in the following time. An exception was made only for the Turkmen tribes of Turkestan.
The experience of 1916 testifies to the fact that to some extent the government was right. the population of Turkestan at the age of 19 - 31 years.
The conscription order was followed on June 28, and on July 9, riots arose on this basis. Andijan and Kokand, on July 11 in Tashkent and on July 13 in the Samarkand region, where they turned into armed resistance.
On August 6, the Kirghiz of the Semirechensk region (Dzhetysu) revolted, where the uprising had the most organized and long-lasting character, and in mid-August the Yomud Turkmen revolted (in the western part of Turkmenistan).
The uprising was suppressed, and by February 1, 1917, 110,000 workers were sent to the fronts and over 10,000 people were left inside Turkestan to carry out defense work. By May 1917, it was planned to collect up to 80,000 more people.
The Turkestan Governor-General, General of Infantry A. N. Kuropatkin, reporting the reasons for the uprising, pointed out the following circumstances:
1) haste of conscription, without preliminary preparation of the population; 2) lack of registration of the population; 3) the call fell on the period of active harvesting work; 4) hostile agitation on political grounds; and 5) the unsatisfactory nature of the Regulations on the management of the Turkestan Territory.
In addition to general reasons, A. N. Kuropatkin also singled out the reasons for dissatisfaction with their economic and social position of certain groups of the indigenous population of Turkestan. He noted that: 1) The development of cotton growing caused an influx of huge sums of money into the region, as a result of which, simultaneously with the impoverishment of small landowners, a small group of very rich people from among the representatives of the local population appeared; 2) The rapidly developing machine capitalist production made the labor of small landowners unprofitable - accordingly, there were debts and the loss of land plots by the former owners. As a result, wealthy local Jews were buying up the land of the Dekhan, as a result of which the number of landless people increased; 3) For debts from local residents, all land property and work equipment were often sold without exception. 4) Judges (kazii) and volost elders in many cases sided with the rich and with obvious bias decided cases in their favor; 5) Among all the peoples inhabiting Turkestan, the Kyrgyz population (up to 2 million 615 thousand people) was the most deprived of rights regarding the use of land - because, according to the law, lands that provide for the existence of the Kyrgyz population in a nomadic way of life are recognized as state property, and their surplus goes to the disposal of the treasury. Moreover, a free interpretation of the question of the size of these surpluses led to the fact that the local Kyrgyz population was deprived of huge land areas, which were vital to them. They went to create Russian villages, state-owned forest dachas and cattle-breeding plots. But the local residents could not properly dispose of the land that remained with the Kyrgyz population - the local land guards, poorly controlled and poorly funded, were a scourge of the population. 6) The Turkmen population itself, to a greater extent than other peoples of the region, was satisfied with its land position, local administration and people's court. The greatest concern among the Turkmen population was caused by the water issue.
It was extremely characteristic that it was the Teke Turkmens (Teke people) who remained calm. They only said that working with a ketman and a pickaxe was not worthy of brave people who should be warriors. After it was announced to the Turkmens that the people they were exhibiting would be engaged only in the security and guard service, they unquestioningly displayed the required number of people. Only the relatives of the riders of the Tekin Cavalry Regiment had privileges - for one rider, 3 closest relatives in the male line were exempted from the outfit for rear work.
That. the experience of mass conscription (mobilization), and even for rear work, of the indigenous population of Turkestan was unsuccessful.
With one exception - Tekins.
Tekintsy (or Teke - literally translated as "mountain goats") were one of the largest Turkmen tribal communities. The historical settlement area is the center and south of Turkmenistan. Tekins came to modern Turkmenistan from Mangyshlak, settling in the foothills of the Kopetdag, in the oases of Akhal-Teke and Merv, where, according to legend, they were led by the leader Keimir-Ker. It is also indicative that some of the Tekins were engaged in nomadic cattle breeding, traditional for the Turkic tribes, while the other part practiced agriculture, which, most likely, was adopted by the indigenous Iranian-speaking population assimilated by them in the foothills and river valleys. Accordingly, since ancient times, the Tekins were divided into chavdars (chovdurs) - nomadic herders and chomurs - farmers. Being constantly surrounded by hostile tribes and peoples, the Tekins were extremely warlike. They were very caring and attentive to horses, and they cultivated a special local breed of horses - the Akhal-Teke, which they were very proud of and treasured. Unlike other nomadic Turkic peoples (Kyrgyz and Kazakhs), the Tekins did not eat horse meat in principle, preferring mutton.
Back in 1881, after the conquest of Akhal-Teke, infantry general M. D. Skobelev established a militia detachment, formed from the Turkmen, numbering 300 horsemen. The calculation of M. D. Skobelev was simple - by serving in the militia, he wanted to occupy the most restless element of the newly conquered tribe and thereby get rid of the danger of an uprising.
The Turkmen mounted militia was legalized in 1885 (seniority 24.02.1885), 07.11.1892 it was reorganized into the Turkmen equestrian irregular (from 30.01.1911 Equestrian) 2-hundredth division …
In accordance with the Regulations, the division was supposed to maintain internal order in the Trans-Caspian region, as well as send “other service needs”.
The division was recruited by hunters (i.e. volunteers) from among the Turkmens of the Trans-Caspian region and "Caucasian Asians" (the latter should not have been more than 5% of the composition - they had to know Russian and before that had experience of serving in regular or militia units, in division, they mainly performed the duties of translators).
The rider's age is 19 - 30 years old. Service life - at least 2 years. The rider received a salary of 300 rubles a year (25 rubles a month), while he was obliged to have a good horse of his own, a saddle and a horse apparatus, uniforms and edged weapons. From the treasury, the rider received a cavalry carbine.
And the document noted that the horsemen of the Turkmen division - in national lamb hats and dressing gowns with shoulder straps (with the letters "T" printed on them), with rifles over their shoulders and belted with belts to which crooked Turkmen checkers were attached - were dashing riders and grunts [Gundogdiev O., Annaorazov J. Glory and Tragedy. The fate of the Tekin Horse Regiment (1914-1918). Ashgabat, 1992. S. 15].
A rider could rise to the rank of a militia warrant officer - but not earlier than 6 years of service in a battalion.
1. Turkmen militiamen.
The division's responsibilities in peacetime were varied, including performing the duties of the postal, border, convoy, and intelligence services. So, in 1890, the riders of the division conducted reconnaissance of the Afghan border. The riders who served in the division, as a rule, staffed the law enforcement agencies of the region - they became police officers, translators, etc.
In 1897, the issue of deploying a division into a regiment was resolved, but the lack of funds, the beginning of the Russo-Japanese War and the revolution dragged out this issue. But with the outbreak of world war, on 29.07.1914, the division was deployed into a four-squadron Turkmen cavalry regiment.
The unit was stationed in the city of Kashi, located near Askhabad, and was assigned to the Trans-Caspian Cossack Brigade, which was part of the 2nd Turkestan Army Corps [Brief schedule of ground forces. SPb., 1914. S. 124]. The headquarters of the brigade was in the city of Askhabad.
When, in October 1914,the brigade moved to the Caucasian front, the Turkmen regiment was not with it - it left for the Austro-German front. The regiment was transferred to the border zone with East Prussia.
During the war, it has established itself as a highly combat-ready unit, acting as a troop (corps) cavalry, as well as entering into cavalry formations. So, at one time he was in the operational subordination of the Caucasian native cavalry division.
In August 1915, to make up for the losses of the regiment, a marching platoon of Tekinians was formed in Kashi and then departed to the front.
31.03.1916, since the Turkmen cavalry regiment mainly consisted of the Tekins of Akhal and Merv, it was renamed the Tekinsky cavalry regiment.
The regiment was an elite unit - volunteer in composition and largely formed at the expense of the Turkmen population (primarily Askhabad, Merv and Tejen districts). The riders were well equipped.
The orientalist D. N. Logofet noted that the Turkmen horsemen had excellent horses, and the horsemen themselves, by their national character and military traditions established over the centuries, were excellent material for manning the Russian cavalry, since the Tekins are essentially the Cossacks of the Trans-Caspian steppes.
The Soviet military historian A. I. Litvinov also noted the Tekinsky cavalry regiment as one of the best units of the 9th army - "the beauty and pride of the Merv oasis" [Litvinov A. I. Maisky breakthrough of the IX army in 1916. Pg., 1923. S. 64].
2. Tekinsky.
An eyewitness described the fighters of the Turkmen Equestrian Division as follows: “The division was special, and the service in it was special. All on beautiful, evil stallions - they could not be kept on a hitching post, so they fought among themselves - with natural equestrians, horsemen, with many knightly, delicate oriental customs and traditions - it was a dashing, beautiful, motley, equestrian unit, with no one not comparable and certainly not regular at all. They chopped like no one in the world knew how to chop. A watermelon was suspended from a rope and chopped into slices with a crooked tooth at a gallop. They chopped a live ram in half. … Cossack straight saber was not suitable, it seemed, for such a felling. Then there were fellows among the Siberians who chopped a watermelon and a lamb carcass in wool, despite the straightness of the blade "[Krasnov PN Memoirs of the Russian Imperial Army. M., 2006. S. 235].
The elite character of the regiment is also evidenced by the fact that during the war years, out of 627 horsemen, 67 people became cavaliers of St.
Thus, the experience of forming a Turkmen cavalry volunteer unit should be considered very successful. This experience was not wide in scope, but there were always much more volunteers wishing to serve in the Tekinsky regiment than was required.
