The Battle of Kars During the Russo-Turkish War (1877- 1878) in V. P. Meshcherskiy's ‘Caucasian Travel Diary’

Year 2021, Issue: 73, 195 - 213, 15.02.2021

Aslı Gülseven

https://doi.org/10.26650/iutd.759817

Abstract

Travel notes and memoirs contain many contents that fill the gaps in official history, and are thus precious material for historians as primary sources. This study aims to explore the historical context of the Battle of Kars during the Russo-Turkish War of 1877-1878 by focusing on Vladimir Petrovich Meshcherskiy’s travel notes and memoirs on the trip from Moscow to Kars during the war in 1877. Although there is a vast literature on the course and consequences of the Russo-Turkish War of 1877-1878, we have little first-hand information from the field to fill the gaps in our knowledge of the developments during and aftermath of the Kars attack. Meshcherskiy's travel diary does not only provide us with a close-up view of the Eastern front of the Russo-Turkish War, but it also sheds light on the attitude of the local people under the Russian siege. Although this diary provides a rich source of information from the viewpoint of Meshcherskiy, a prominent Russian journalist and novelist, it has never been used in the academic literature on the Russo-Turkish War of 1877-1878.

Keywords

Meshcherskiy, The Russo-Turkish War, The Caucasian Front, Kars, Russia

V.P. Meshcherskiy'nin “Kafkas Seyahat Günlüğü”nde Rus-Türk Savaşı (1877-1878) sırasında Kars Muharebesi

Abstract

Seyahat notları, hatıratlar ve günlükler resmi tarih yazımındaki boşlukları dolduracak nitelikte birçok içeriğe sahiptir ve bundan dolayı tarihçiler için kıymetli kaynaklardır. Bu çalışmanın amacı, 93 Harbi’nde Kars Muharebesi’ndeki tarihsel bağlamı Vladimir Petrovich Meşçerski'nin 1877'de savaş sırasında Moskova'dan Kars'a yaptığı yolculuğunu konu alan "Kafkasya Seyahat Günlüğü"nden yola çıkarak irdelemektir. 93 Harbi’ne dair geniş bir literatür bulunmasına rağmen, Kars taarruzu esnasındaki ve sonrasındaki gelişmelere ilişkin bilgimizdeki eksiklikleri tamamlayacak cepheye dair ilk elden bilgiye pek sahip değiliz. Meşçerski'nin seyahat günlüğü 93 Harbi’nde doğu cephesine yakından bir bakış sağlamanın ötesinde Rus işgali altındaki yerel halkın tavırlarına ışık da tutmaktadır. Bu günlük gazeteci ve yazar Meşçerski'nin bakış açısından aktarılan önemli bir bilgi kaynağı sunmasına rağmen daha önce 93 Harbini konu alan akademik literatürde kullanılmamıştır.

Keywords

Meşçerski, 93 Harbi, Kars, Kafkas Cephesi, Rusya

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