"Great sleep," or Cossack life for a few hours (portal "Youth Smolensk", March 2015)

In childhood we all played "cops and robbers". Who are the Cossacks? And why are they robbers?
I was fortunate recently to attend a press conference with real Cossack —the first Deputy of the Smolensk divisional ataman Cossack society Antonov Alexander Alexandrovich, and he helped me to answer questions.



The word "Cossack" means — a free man. Runaway peasants went to the outskirts of Russia due to overwork on the manor estates. People fled from beatings, prison and injustice out of prisons and hosts. Many of them, indeed, became robbers. But most huddled in the community, chosen in the Assembly ("circles") of the chief — commander and his assistant — captain.

The first community of free Russian Cossacks originated on the don. Currently, there are many settlements of the Cossacks — Zaporozhye, Kuban, Terek. What did the Cossacks? Agriculture. But! In the 18th century the Moscow government turned the Cossacks into a closed military estate. The Cossacks were obliged to keep a military service to protect the borders of Russia. They were loyal to the Tsar and the Fatherland, they were given benefits and privileges. The Cossacks see themselves as special people, we can say that they are proud of their position. The Cossack people have developed their own traditions that are passed down from generation to generation. Typeset the son of a Cossack, too, will be the Cossack and his entire family in the future will belong to the named genus. The Cossacks lead the righteous life: revered parents and the elderly. They live in large families and are not welcome marriages with "out of town".



Cossacks are very religious people. The biggest value to them is Faith and Motherland — Russia. For Holy Russia went to the cross banner. The main task of the Cossack military: Guarding the frontiers of the Motherland.
Among the Smolensk Cossacks, the majority are "assigned" the Cossacks i.e. non-hereditary, but there are "natural". Ataman of the Cossacks Smolensk — Alexander Kultepin. Military service is the Cossack with his horse (though like joking Antonov A. A., horses are usually the ones that "under the hood of cars"), with full arms and uniforms "on the right". Cossacks are masters of sword, a saber, have a dagger and whip.

In the Cossack regiment of a place and the girl, but usually requires less girls than with boys. And also wives of the Cossacks be Cossacks.From the Cossack people shared leisure, competition riding, fancy riding.

"Great to spend the day!" — Cossacks greet each other and say, "Thank God!". Greeting changes depending on the time of day (spend the day/rest/viceral), and the answer remains always the same. A Cossack "Lyubo!" similar to our "Cheers!".

Many Russian and Soviet writers have devoted their works to the Cossacks. For example, Lev Nikolayevich Tolstoy is a remarkable novel "the Cossacks", where the count lives among the Cossacks Olenin, study their life and customs. A real anthem of the Russian Cossacks is the work of Michael Sholokhov "the Quiet don".



So just one meeting with a real Cossack you can learn: how to greet "in Kazakovsky" why the robbers and who are the Cossacks in our history.

AUTHOR: Valentin Terebenin
Source: http://www.molsm.ru/blog/culture/5673.html