Alexandra Lapierre - Between Love and Honor

At the National History Museum in Moscow, a permanent exhibit is devoted to his legend. His portrait and those of his children are on display, and an entire roomful of images tells the story of his exploits.

In Dagestan and in Chechnya, the imam Shamil is still regarded as the incarnation of the union of the Caucasian Muslims and the armed struggle for the triumph of God, the honor of men, and the liberty of the people.

Two of his sons shared this religious, political, and moral inheritance.

One of them, Mohammed Ghazi, never accepted the yoke of Russia and continued to fight for independence. He moved to Constantinople and later fought with the Turks.

The second, Mohammed Sheffi, served in the army of the czar.

The third son, born in captivity at Kaluga, would try to reconcile these two loyalties to Russia and to Dagestan. He named his own son after the legendary brother he never knew, Jamal Eddin.

This second Jamal Eddin Shamil also became a lieutenant in the Russian army. In 1911, Jamal Eddin II, then posted south of Tiflis, also fell in love with a Georgian princess, whom he kidnapped and married. He brought his Christian wife and their little boy to his family’s native village, Ghimri, before disappearing into the maelstrom of the First World War.

But that, as they say, is another story…

adat: law of the elders that governs daily life in the Caucasus

amanat: hostage given as a guarantee of good faith during peace negotiations in the Caucasus

aul: mountain village in the Caucasus

atalik: a sort of tutor who assists the parents in overseeing the education of a male child in the Caucasus

Avar: Caucasian tribe to which Jamal Eddin belonged

Bek: noble title

burka: a black, waterproof cape made of goat hair

cherkeska: Caucasian man’s costume, typically buttoned and belted

Cherkess: Circassian. Also the main nation of the western Caucasus. Sometimes incorrectly used to describe a native of the Caucasus

cornet: lowest rank of officer in the Russian cavalry, equivalent of a second lieutenant

djighit: warrior horseman of the Caucasus

djighitovka: equestrian games of djighits

ghizir: cartridge belt worn across the chest of a cherkeska

giaour: pejorative term referring to infidels

Hakika: the truth

junker: Russian officer candidate, rank immediately inferior to a cornet

kanly: complex code of the law of blood and vengeance of the Caucasus

khan: aristocratic title in the Caucasus, a prince

kibitka: small Russian carriage that runs on wheels in the summer and sleigh blades in the winter

kinjal: long, straight-bladed dagger

kokoshnik: traditional Russian tiara, obligatory apparel of ladies at court at official balls, by order of Nicholas I during his reign

Lesghien: tribe of the Caucasus, close to the Avars and Chechens

madrassa: Islamic educational institution, place of study

Montagnard: general term applied to all the Muslims of the Caucasus by the Russians. The Montagnards included Circassians, Kabardians, Ossetians, Chechens, Inguche, Lesgheins, and Avars

murchide: spiritual guide of the Caucasus

murid: disciple of a Sufi sheik, warrior of Shamil

murtaghazet: combatant from an aul

naïb: war chief of Shamil, with powers over a specific region

Naqshbandi: Sufi fellowship to which Shamil belonged

padishah: title of the sultan of Constantinople, emperor

papakha: tall lambskin hat

qadi: Sharia-based religious authority with the power of a judiciary

ruble: unit of Russian currency worth about fifteen euros in 1850

saklia: house in a Montagnard village

seraglio: word used in the sense of a harem, part of a house reserved for women

Sharia: the law of God

shashka: a slightly curved saber, worn as a bandolier in the Caucasus

surat: chapter of the Koran

Tariqa: the path to God

ukase: edict pronounced by the czar

verst: distance corresponding to about seven-tenths of a mile

zikr: method of prayer leading to mystical ecstasy and direct union with God

Abdul Aziz: surgeon in the Dagestani village of Untsukul, maternal grandfather of Jamal Eddin.

Akbirdil: one of Shamil’s naïbs, who insulted General Klüge von Klugenau during the meeting at Chirquata in September 1837.

Akulgo: village of Dagestan that served as Shamil’s fortress-headquarters from 1837 to 1839. The Russians besieged the village in the summer of 1839. Czar Nicholas considered its capitulation as a triumph that marked the end of the wars of the Caucasus. On September 5, 1839, he had a medal struck to commemorate the victory and awarded it to all officers, noncommissioned officers, and soldiers who had fought at Akulgo.

Alexandra Feodorovna (czarina, wife of Nicholas I) (July 1798–October 1860): married in July 1817. Their first son, the future Alexander II, was born on April 17, 1818, followed by three girls and three boys.

Alexandra Nicolaïevna (Adini): third daughter of Czar Nicholas I and Czarina Alexandra Feodorovna, born in 1825, married in 1843, died in 1844.

Alexander I (Pavlovitch): czar from 1801 to 1825, elder brother of Nicholas I, conqueror of Napoleon.

Alexander II: first son of Nicholas I, born at the Kremlin April 17, 1818, assassinated in 1881. Married Maria of Hesse-Darmstadt (Maria Alexandrovna) April 28, 1841. Assumed the throne upon the death of his father in February 1855. Was crowned after the Crimean War ended in 1856.

Alexandrovsky Cadet Corps of Tsarskoye Sielo (Christmas 1839–August 1841): elementary school for children ages six to nine, sons of poor or deceased officers. Their schooling was conducted by women under a male director. Jamal Eddin was transferred there after spending September to December 1839 with the First Cadet Corps of Moscow.

Ali Bek al-Kunzahki: naïb who defended the tower of Surkhaï at Akulgo.

Andi Koysu: river at the foot of Akulgo, one of whose tributaries is named Ashilta, like the village.

Ashilta: native fief of Shamil, where he was consecrated imam in 1834. Destroyed by General Fézé May 13, 1837.

Bahou-Messadou: Jamal Eddin’s paternal grandmother.

Baratachvili, Nina (Princess Nina Baratov): Born in 1837, niece of Grigol and Elico Orbeliani. In 1854, at age seventeen, she was taken hostage with the entire household of Sinandali in a raid by Shamil’s men.

Bariatinsky (Prince Alexander Ivanovitch): Caucasian viceroy who accepted the surrender of Shamil at Gunib in 1859.

Barti Khan: Shamil’s maternal uncle, assisted Shamil at Akulgo.

Bashlik-Atslikar: battle near Oguzlu in Turkey, where Varenka’s husband, Elico Orbeliani, was killed in 1854.

Buxhöwden, Count Sergei Petrovich (1828–1899): close friend of Jamal Eddin. They met in the First Cadet Corps. On January 15, 1855, Buxhöwden was among those who accompanied him to the Caucasus.

Burnaya: “The Stormy,” a Russian fort.

Chavchavadze, David Alexandrovitch (Tiflis, August 26, 1817–November 15, 1884): only son of Georgian poet Prince Alexander Garsevanovitch Chavchavadze and Princess Salomé Ivanova Orbeliani. His famous sister Ekaterina married Prince Dadiani and became sovereign of Mingrelia. His sister Nino married Griboledov, his sister Sonia, Baron Nicholas. David inherited the domain of Sinandali, from which his wife, Anna, and his entire family were kidnapped by Shamil July 4, 1854. He and Jamal Eddin became close friends during the few weeks they spent together at the Russian camp while negotiations for the exchange took place.

Chernychev, Alexander: became Nicholas I’s minister of war, after Czar Alexander died in his arms. All administrative questions concerning Jamal Eddin were addressed to him.

Chechnya: Caucasian region bordering on Dagestan.

Chirquata: Dagestani village, dependent upon Shamil.

Chuanete: Shamil’s fourth spouse, his favorite after Fatima’s death. Born in 1825, she died in 1876.

Constantine Nicolaïevitch (1827–1892): grand duke, second son of Nicholas I and younger brother of Alexander II.

Constantine Pavlovitch: grand duke, one of Nicholas I’s two older brothers, viceroy of Poland, who died of cholera during the Polish uprising of 1831. He should have succeeded Alexander I but abdicated the throne in favor of Nicholas I, a power vacuum that led to the Decembrist revolt.