The area of the Russian city of Sochi was populated more than 100,000 years by ancient people of Asia Minor migrating through Colchis (olden Georgia). Ancient Greeks sailed to the region via the Black Sea in the 5th–6th centuries BC and encountered the Maeotae, Sindi, Cercetae, Zygii and other local tribes. They were the ancestors of the Abkhaz, Ubykh and Adyghe people who lived here until 1864; many toponyms in Sochi, including the city itself, originate from their languages. The first Russian outpost was set up in central Sochi in 1838 as a part of the Russian expansion along the Black Sea coast. The local resistance to this process became a part of the Russo-Circassian War which ended in a Russian victory and the genocide of the local population. The Russian settlement built in the area was named Sochi in 1896 and received the status of a city (town) in 1917. The first tea plantations were established there in 1901–1905 and resulted in the production of the most prominent brand of Russian tea. From the end of the 19th century, the city has been developed as a dedicated area for sanatoriums and hospitals. It served as a rehabilitation center during World War II and, despite a decline following the dissolution of the Soviet Union, remains the major resort town of Russia. An important recent event was selection of Sochi as the site of the 2014 Winter Olympics and 2014 Winter Paralympics.
Early history Geologically, the area of Sochi is composed of Mesozoic and Cenozoic rocks. They had experienced significant changes due to the volcanic and seismic activity, with the earthquakes measuring up to 9 on the Richter scale. It was populated during the Lower Paleolithic more than 100,000 years ago by early humans migrating from Asia Minor through Colchis. They first formed open-type settlements, but during the Middle Paleolithic (100,000–35,000 years ago) moved to caves due to the global cooling. One evidence of that is known as a 40,000–50,000 old site in the Akhshtyrskaya Cave, 15 km from Adlersky City District. The cave is protected by the UNESCO and contains human remains, early tools and bones of bears, deer and other animals indicating the hunting nature of the inhabitants.Главная, web site of the Adler District of Sochi (in Russian) In the Upper Paleolithic (35,000–10,000 years ago) they have developed techniques of producing elaborated stone tools.
The Ancient Greeks sailed to the Sochi area in the sixth–fifth centuries BC and kept visiting it till about first century BC. They encountered the Aehi, Zygii and other people who were apparently keen for the luxury goods brought by Greeks and exchanged them for slaves. Slaves were a major commodity of the time, and thus the Caucasian coast became a slave trade center. An ethnic group of a few thousand Greeks still live around Krasnaya Polyana. Between 2,000 and 1,800 BC, the coastal area around Sochi had one cultural entity. During this period, numerous stone monuments (dolmens) were built around Sochi, and at least fifty remain to the present day. It is still unclear how these tombs weighing tens of tons were built with such an accuracy (some stones match each other within millimetres), and what exactly their purpose was.Дольмены в Сочи (Dolmens in Sochi, in Russian). subtropic.ru Numerous bronze tools and trade objects, dated to 800–700 BC, were found near Sochi indicating active exchange with the nearby areas.Exposition of the Historical Museum of Sochi, partly reflected in Russian in История Сочи (History of Sochi) at the official site of the city In the Middle Ages, the region was mostly influenced by the Byzantine Empire and Christianity, as evidenced by the style of nine churches and eighteen fortresses dating from those times. The northern wall of an eleventh-century Byzantinesque basilica still stands in Loo Microdistrict.
Entrance to the Akhshtyrskaya CaveA dolmen near Solokhaul (Sochi)Plan of a dolmen at Krasnaya Polyana, bronze tips and axes found near Sochi
Middle Ages During the early 11th century Abkhazian King from Bagrationi dynasty Bagrat II managed to unify Georgian Kingdoms and Sochi remained under control of Bagrat II and his descendants. Sochi was part of Kingdom of Georgia from 10th to 14th century until dissolution of united Georgia under George VIII. Sochi and its inhabitants were later part of the region knows as Zichia after the dissolution of the Georgian kingdom. The native inhabitants of the region, who were the ubykhs, lived a free society ruled by princely clans until the end of the Caucasian war. A detailed description of the coastal area around Sochi originated from the naval expedition of the Frenchman Frédéric Dubois de Montpéreux in 1833. He also compiled former descriptions of the region. Montpéreux however could not land at the site of Sochi as his ship was met with a strong gun fire from the coast. He mentions that in the Middle Ages, a Genoan city of Mamai stood on river Psakhe (modern Mamaika in Sochi), and some 60 north from it a German fortress and a monastery. Frédéric Dubois de Montpéreux Voyage autour du Caucase, chez les Tcherkesses et les Abkhases, en Colchide, en Géorgie, en Arménie et en Crimée Vol. 1, Paris, (1839–1843) . Russian translation Путешествие вокруг Кавказа. Vol. 1. Sukhumi, 1937, pp. 93–165
Russo-Circassian War and the Circassian Genocide
Ottoman Turkey had much interest in the Black Sea coast as an outpost for its northern expansions, however, it had lost this area to Russia as a result of the Russo-Turkish War (1828–1829) and the Treaty of Adrianople. To further protect the coast from Turkey, a coastal line of defense was built in 1830–1839 consisting of 17 fortresses. Several of these fortresses were founded in the suburbs of the modern Sochi, such as the fortress of Holy Spirit in Adler (1837), Lazarevskoye (1839) and Golovinskoe (1839). On 23 April 1838, the first stone of the fortress was laid in central Sochi, at the mouth of the Sochi River. This day coincided with the name day of Empress Alexandra Feodorovna, the wife of Tsar Nicholas I, and the fortress was named Alexandria after her."Историческая справка о районе проведения экспедиции". Rostov Tourism Center. See one of 3 Word Files linked here On 18 May 1838 it was renamed into Navaginsky, honoring the bravery of Navaginsky Regimen in the Russian–Circassian War. The construction was completed in July 1838.D. I. Kochenovsky (1913) Sochi. Historical overview Saint Petersburg, Stroitel (in Russian) During the Crimean War of 1853–1856 it was abandoned and partly destroyed; it was rebuilt in 1864 under a new name Dakhovsky.Сочи in the Great Soviet Encyclopedia (in Russian)
The locals however did not recognize Russian rule and fiercely opposed what they perceived as genocide. Due to the ongoing Russo-Circassian War, the Russians could not establish full control over the land. This opposition attracted the interest of Britain, which was apparently selling weapons and ammunition to the Circassians. This caused a diplomatic conflict between the Russian Empire and Great Britain in 1836, centered on the Mission of the Vixen. The British ship Vixen loaded with weapons for the Circassians was captured and confiscated by the Russians at the port Sudzhuk-Kale (nowadays Novorossiysk). The British protested, but the position of Tsar Nicholas I was firm and a quick order was given to prepare the army for a war with Britain.Peter Hopkirk (2001) The great game: On Secret Service in High Asia, Chapter 12 "The Greatest Fortress in the World", pp. 158–159, Oxford University Press,
In 1864, the Battle of Qbaada took place in 1864 between the Circassian army of 20,000 a Russian army of 100,000 men, consisting of Cossack and Russian horsemen, infantry and artillery. It resulted in Russian victory, and the Russian army began celebrating victory on the corpses, and a military-religious parade was held, as 100 Circassians were publicly mutilated in a public execution in order to establish authority.Kafkasya Bülteni, 19 Mayıs 1864 The Russian army then continued raiding and burning Circassian villages, destroying fields to prevent return, cutting down trees, and driving the people to the Black Sea coast.
The end of the war was proclaimed on 2 June 1864 at Qbaada (modern Krasnaya Polyana) by the manifesto of Emperor Alexander II read aloud by the Grand Duke Michael Nikolaevich.
After the end of the war, the majority of Circassians were killed or exiled, though a minority resettled in swamps; others who accepted Russification remained. It has been reported that during the events, the Russian-Cossack forces used various methods, such as tearing the bellies of pregnant women. Only a small percentage who accepted conversion to Christianity, Russification and resettlement within the Russian Empire were completely spared. The remaining Circassian population were thus variously dispersed or killed in mass. Sir Pelgrave, a British diplomat who witnessed the events, reports that "their only crime was not being Russian."
A mass deportation was launched against the remaining population in 1864 and it was mostly completed by 1867.Kazemzadeh 1974 Sochi was one of the ports where deportation took place. Some died from epidemics or starvation among crowds of deportees and were reportedly eaten by dogs after their death. Others died when ships underway sank during storms.King, 2007 Calculations including those taking into account the Russian government's own archival figures have estimated a loss of 80–97%Shenfield, Stephen. "The Circassians: A Forgotten Genocide?", in The Massacre in History, p. 154. of the Circassian population in the process. The displaced people were settled primarily to the Ottoman Empire.
Further colonization On 10 May 1864, 12 Cossack stations were set up around the Sochi area for its protection. On 10 March 1866, a decree was proclaimed promoting relocation to the Sochi area of all peoples of Russia. A rural settlement quickly grew on the Black Sea coast. On 23 May 1896 it was named SochiSochi in the Encyclopædia Britannica on-line and shortly after included into the newly formed Black Sea Governorate with the administrative center in Novorossiysk. On 1 May 1898, the governing structure of Sochi was established, which consisted of a chair, vice-chair, and 12 deputies elected by people. On 31 July 1917, the settlement received the status of a town. On 10 February 1961, it was expanded by the inclusion of Adler and Lazarevskoye districts and with an area of 3505 km2 and length of 145 km became one of the world's longest cities. In comparison, its area and length in 1941 were 32 km2 and 30 km, respectively. From September 1937 until the present day, Sochi is a part of Krasnodar Krai.
Tea
The major occupation of the new settlers was in agriculture, and many of them attempted to grow tea, which was then an expensive, yet the most popular non-alcoholic beverage in Russia. Several attempts in the 1870s and 1880s failed because of the cold climate, and the first success was achieved in the early 1900s by the Ukrainian peasant Judas Antonovich Koshman (1838–1935). Koshman previously worked for a tea factory in Adjara, a place south to Sochi on the Black Sea coast. That tea was known in Russia but its taste was unpopular. In 1901, Koshman brought seeds of tea plants from Adjara to Sochi (Solokhaul settlement) and developed a brand which was not only resistant to cold but also had a rich taste. The first successful plantation is dated to 1905. This new tea later became the distinct brand of Krasnodarsky Tea, which is the most prominent Russia-grown tea and is one of the northernmost teas in the world. The house of Koshman still stands in Solokhaul along with the tea bushes planted by his hands.History section of the "Dagomys Tea Factory", SochiСамый северный чай в мире (The world's northernmost tea) Priroda.ru, 2 June 2009 (in Russian)
Religion, nationalities and their migration