კავკასიური ომის ისტორიები: პრინც ალბრეხტის და თეოდორ ჰორშელტის ჩანაწერები. CAUCASIAN WAR STORIES: RECORDS OF PRINCE ALBRECHT AND THEODOR HORSCHELT

Abstract
Foreign authors of the 19th century devoted a significant part of their work to the bloodiest and longest-running Caucasian war waged by the Russian Empire. Some of the authors of these books fought on the Russian side, while others sided with the Caucasian mountaineers. It is noteworthy that the foreigners in both positions fought selflessly on the side of their choice. The works clearly express their political views, subjective approach to issues of war or peaceful coexistence. Foreign authors are often biased in their assessment of events, analyzing issues in their preferred way of interpretation, although their works remain as important primary sources for the researching purposes of the Caucasian war. The article discusses the works of two Russian supporters who fought on their side, Prince Albrecht’s (1809-1872), brother of King Wilhelm I of Prussia, work “In Caucasus. 1862” and the notes of painter Theodor Horschelt about the Caucasus War, published in Munich in 1880 – “Theodor Horschelt. His life and his works. Spain, Algeria, Caucasus” (Horschelt 1880). Extensive information is contained in the works of Prince Albrecht of Prussia, where he devotes almost a hundred pages (Albrecht 1865: 339 – 457) to the stories of battles against the Caucasians. He personally participated in a seven day military expedition (November 4-10, 1862) against the Adyghei. After the successful completion of the battle by the Russians and the return of the detachment to the former camp, the highly contented prince expressed his praise to the Russian army orally and in a written form, concluding with the following words: “Long live Russia and God, please protect the king!” (Milyatin 1999: 416). The German prince in his work emphasizes the friendly attitude of the kings of Russia and Prussia, Alexander II and Wilhelm I. As the purpose of Prince Albrecht’s visit is clearly understandable, as vague as it stays the reason behind the selfless and relentless fight of the painter Theodor Horschelt against the Caucasian mountaineers in 1858-1862. The German artist described the ongoing hostilities and details of battles in the Northern Caucasus in a chronological order and very specifically (Kandelaki 2019: 68 – 88). It is noteworthy that from September 10, 1862 onwards, for 21 days, Theodore Horschelt traveled to Baku and Yerevan with Prince Albrecht of Prussia. Both German authors warmly mention each other in their works. The Russian emperor awarded numerous awards to both Germans for outstanding bravery in the Caucasus.
Description
Keywords
რუსეთი, კავკასიური ომი, XIX საუკუნე, პრინცი ალბრეხტი, თეოდორ ჰორშელტი, Russia, Caucasian War, XIX century, Prince Albrecht, Theodor Horschelt
Citation
ივანე ჯავახიშვილის სახელობის თბილისის სახელმწიფო უნივერსიტეტი ჰუმანიტარულ მეცნიერებათა ფაკულტეტი, აკადემიკოს მარიამ ლორთქიფანიძის დაბადებიდან 100 წლის იუბილესადმი მიძღვნილი XVI საფაკულტეტო სამეცნიერო კონფერენცია, თეზისები, თბილისი, 2022, გვ.: 163-168 / Ivane Javakhishvili Tbilisi State University Faculty of Humanities, 16th FACULTY SCIENTIFIC CONFERENCE IN HONOUR OF THE 100th ANNIVERSARY OF THE BIRTH OF MARIAM LORTKIPANIDZE, Abstracts, Tbilisi, 2022, pp.: 163-168