In the opinion of most people, the Chechen troops are regarded as a key card in Putin's hands, after all, the leaders of Chechnya can be described as loyal to Putin, Kadyrov has publicly stated: We are willing to be Putin's loyal fighters.
However, the truth is often far from reality, and there is a force that many people have to look up to, and it can also be said that Putin's last hole card, that is, the mysterious Cossack, even Chechnya is afraid of three points.
Today, let's talk about the story behind this.
Contradictions between Chechnya and Russia
The feud between Chechnya and Russia goes back nearly a century.
Chechnya, located between the Caspian Sea and the Black Sea, is a small area slightly larger than Beijing, and is not only a choke point for land transportation, but also rich in oil and gas resources.
Chechnya's population is just over a million people, but its inhabitants are known for their bravery and are in no way inferior to any race. In modern history, Chechnya has experienced hardships and has been invaded by the Ottoman Empire and the Tsarist Russian Empire, and the flame of their resistance has never been extinguished, and there have been no less than 10 uprisings.
During the dark days of World War II, Chechen independence factions chose to ally themselves with Nazi Germany in order to break free from Soviet control.
At the end of World War II, with the defeat of Germany, Stalin turned to severely punishing the Chechens, and as a result, about 400,000 Chechens were exiled to distant Kazakhstan, and as many as 100,000 Soviet soldiers were responsible for escorting them.
After the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, Chechnya seized the opportunity to declare independence and quickly wage war to successfully resist Russian forces and achieve political autonomy.
With the new Russia fragile, Chechen independence factions marched north into Dagestan in August 1999 in an attempt to free the region from Russian control, thus kicking off the Second Chechen War.
At that time, the Russian leader was none other than Yeltsin, and because of the previous unfavorable war in Chechnya, he was somewhat afraid of the unfavorable war in Chechnya, and it was precisely this fear that repeatedly gave in on the battlefield, and most of the Russian government held the same attitude and did not want to confront Chechnya again.
It was at this time that Putin stood up and insisted on action against Chechnya, and he took over command from Yeltsin to lead the second Chechen war. So, who should be asked to fight Chechnya? After all, the other side is so fierce.
It was then that Putin remembered the Cossack nation, a force that had been bravely defeated by Chechnya, and was even more brutal than the former.
The Cossacks had more enemies with less
On August 26, 1999, the second Chechen war was in full swing, and after the Russian army accurately attacked the key targets of the Chechen rebels, they penetrated deep into the heart of Chechnya.
On 28 September, the 6th Wing, consisting of 90 Cossack airborne troops, was given the urgent task of seizing the strategically important 776 heights, in order to eliminate the mortal threat posed to the Russian army by the rebels taking advantage of the favorable terrain.
According to the advance reconnaissance of Russian intelligence, there were only about a hundred Chechen rebels near the 776 heights, but when the Cossack airborne troops landed, they were shocked to find that the number of enemies on the opposite side was estimated at more than 2,500.
The sudden appearance of the Airborne Forces was quickly noticed by Chechnya, who initially estimated that the Russian army had seven or eight hundred men, but only realized that the other side had only 90 when they got closer.
Chechnya was overjoyed by this result, and the chieftain, while ordering his men to launch a fierce charge against the Cossacks on the 776 heights, reported the results to his superiors, and even triumphantly asked for vodka to be prepared to celebrate their victory.
The main reason for this situation is a major mistake by the Russian intelligence services, and upon learning of this news, Putin angrily denounced the incompetence of the intelligence services, and at the same time quickly ordered reinforcements to be sent to carry out emergency rescue.
90 Cossack airborne troops were surrounded by 2,500 rebels, and despite such a desperate situation, the Cossack airborne troops on the 776 heights did not flinch, laying anti-tank mines around them and busily reinforcing the fortifications, preparing for a life-and-death struggle with the approaching Chechen rebels.
Soon the Chechen tank and armored vehicle units rushed straight to the 776 heights, and the scene was covered with thick smoke, deafening engines, and the land shook violently and dust was raised. I thought it was a landslide victory, but I didn't think it was the opposite.
The Chechen commander watched his ironclad lion turn into scrap metal in an instant, and angrily ordered the artillery to bombard the Cossack defenders on the 776 heights.
After hours of heavy artillery fire, the heights of 776 were reduced to a flaming purgatory, and the ground on the position groaned in the embers of a small white smoke. The Chechen commander witnessed this scene, believing that there was no sign of life on the position, and in ecstasy, ordered his troops to rush forward.
However, just as the Chechen soldiers rushed to the 776 heights with a loud shout, suddenly the Cossack fighters who were holding the fortifications jumped out of their bunkers and opened heavy fire on the enemy with their weapons......
The fierce fighting lasted for three days and three nights, and the Chechen rebels were never able to capture the 776 heights, but the surrounding hillsides were already covered with corpses, and every inch of the land was stained red with blood.
At this time, the Cossacks had run out of ammunition and food, and the Chechen soldiers saw this, summoning the last of their courage and rushing to the 776 heights like a tide.
Even so, the remaining 26 Cossack warriors were still brave to the death, and fought fiercely with the Chechen troops in one of them, and although they eventually fell to the enemy's numerical superiority, their bravery and courage were vividly demonstrated.
Under Putin's leadership, the Russian army finally brought the Chechen forces to a complete subjugation, and the war also made the Cossack soldiers famous. At this time, one cannot help but ask, who were the Cossacks and why did they have such extraordinary combat capabilities?
Cossack origin and development
The origins of the Cossacks can be traced back to the 13th century, when the Mongol cavalry swept across Eurasia and some Slavs fled to southern Russia to escape the rule of the Mongol Kipchak Khanate.
In the 15th century, many urban poor and Ural peasants unwilling to submit to Russian rule joined them and chose to settle in the land.
These people were later called "Cossacks", whose name derives from the Turkic word meaning "free man" or "brave man".
The vast and inaccessible steppes of southern Russia, the relative weakness of the Tsar's rule, and the freedom and bravery of the Cossacks were the reason why they chose to leave Russian rule in search of a new homeland.
After migrating to the vast steppes, the Cossacks faced a lack of resources to survive, and in order to make a living in the land, they picked up shotguns, went to the forest to hunt wild beasts, and sometimes plundered passing caravans.
It was this way of life that shaped their brave, fearless, fierce and strong character, and the Cossack peoples adopted a model of self-government combining military and civilian in the endless steppes of southern Russia, lacking a natural barrier.
They were fierce warriors and skilled in fighting on horseback, and Don hippos, scimitars and spears were the signature equipment of the Cossack cavalry. As one of the best cavalrymen, the Cossacks were sought after by the countries of Eastern Europe, recruiting them as mercenaries.
Tsarist Russia was early aware that the Cossacks' semi-military autonomy could be both a threat to frontier security and a help, so successive tsars tended to adopt a policy of softness rather than force to suppress them, in exchange for preferential treatment for their loyalty.
By exempting them from servitude, paying taxes, and providing land, the tsar succeeded in coercing the Cossacks so that they willingly became sharp minions of Russia's territorial expansion.
The Cossacks were known for their bravery and skill, and were an indispensable force in the Tsarist army, and in the era of cold weapons, they were known for their swift speed, flexible mobility, powerful lethality, and brave fighting style, so that the power of the Cossack cavalry was felt throughout Europe.
It can be said that under the rule of the Tsar, the Cossacks were closely linked to Russia, and until the 20th century they were the core force of the defense of the Russian frontier.
After the outbreak of the October Revolution, relations between the Soviet government and the Cossacks became complicated, with some Cossacks being inspired by the new ideas to join the ranks of the Soviet Red Army, and many more Cossacks who were opposed to the Soviet regime and chose to support the anti-Soviet White Army.
After the consolidation of the Soviet regime, the central government began to implement a policy of "de-Cossackization", forcing the Cossacks to be displaced and even subjected to various persecutions, which is why the Cossacks defected to fascist Germany during World War II.
Faced with the desperate need for cavalry on the battlefield during World War II, the Soviets recalled the brave Cossack knights and called them into battle again.
Every adult Cossack was an excellent horseman, and the Cossack cavalry could be seen on both the battlefield against the German Nazis on the Western Front and the battle against the Japanese Kwantung Army on the Eastern Front.
After the end of World War II, perhaps due to the needs of the situation, the Soviet Union disbanded them again. With the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, there was a wave of Cossack revival in Russia.
In June 1990, with the covert support of the Soviet authorities, more than 30 Cossack groups and local groups from all over the Soviet Union joined forces to form a grand alliance, the "Cossack Circle", which marked the beginning of their journey to regain their name.
In July 1992, the newly formed Russia corrected the name of the Cossacks and restored the dignity of this people.
After Putin came to power, he paid more attention to the rights and interests of the Cossacks, and set up a special agency to support them, so the two sides formed an indissoluble bond.
In 2012, Putin published an article titled "Strong: Guarantees of Russia's National Security," in which he praised the Cossacks for their historic contribution to the country, emphasizing that it was the heroic defense of the homeland by the Cossacks from generation to generation that made Russia safe and the happiness of its people.
The support of Cossack soldiers for Putin is not only reflected in the second Chechen war, when the Russian-Ukrainian conflict broke out in 2022, they were still at the forefront of the fighting, according to reports from the Russian army, the Cossacks of the Kuban, Don and Tavrida were fighting on the front line.
It is not difficult to see that the Chechen troops may be Putin's trusted force, but the Cossack soldiers can be called Putin's last line of defense and the real hole card. What do you think differently about this?