The Song of the Kabardian Night Assault [«КЪЭБЭРДЕЙ ЖЭЩТЕУЭМ И УЭРЭД»]

From the history of the Kabardian-Russian War: "The Song of the Kabardian Night Assault" [«КЪЭБЭРДЕЙ ЖЭЩТЕУЭМ И УЭРЭД»]

Composed in 1779-80 by a band of Kabardian bards under the direction of the celebrated Circassian minstrel Lhepschiqwe Tawiqwe, this song has preserved memory of this tragic episode in Circassian history for eternity. The full song has 57 lines (as opposed to 24 in the present version).

Sung by Vladimir Bereghwn. Translated by Amjad Jaimoukha and produced by Sanjalay Jaimoukha.

Angered by the continued expansionist policy pursued by Russia against their country, despite persistent protestations, the Kabardians resolved in the spring of 1779 to rid Kabarda of Russian presence and undo the Russian fortresses that had been constructed in the northern parts of their territory. The Circassians mobilized their forces and began to fight back against Russian expansion. In response, Empress Catherine II instructed the Governor General of Astrakhan, Prince Potemkin, to pacify Kabarda by fair means or foul. General Jacoby was given his marching orders. He conducted an offensive in Kabarda, which lasted all summer. After the arrival of fresh enforcements from Russia, the expedition succeeded in penetrating deep into Kabardian lands. At the end of September 1779, a fierce battle was fought in which the Kabardian force, taken unawares, was massacred. About fifty princes and more than 350 noblemen were killed, a huge toll by the reckoning of those days. Dubbed "Qeberdey Zheschteiwe" ("Kabardian Night Assault"), the battle marked one of the bleakest days in Kabardian history. The war is referred to by the Kabardians as "Maziybl Zawe" («МАЗИБЛ ЗАУЭ»; "The Seven-Month War"), or "Qwrey Zawe" («КЪУРЕЙ ЗАУЭ»; "The Qwrey War"), the place where it all took place. By December, the Kabardian princes were defeated and the northern frontier of Kabarda retracted to the rivers Balhq (Malka) and Terch (Terek).

Some historians consider this date (1779) as the start of the Kabardian-Russian War, and 1818 as the date of the complete pacification of Kabarda by Tsarist Russia. The war in Kabarda was localized and badly organized. The Circassian princes failed to present a united front, the Russians taking advantage of principal rivalries. When General Yermolov, military commander of the southern Tsarist forces, arrived on the scene in 1816, Kabarda was on her knees. Four decades of open conflict had demoralized the people and left the land in ruins. The Kabardians suffered heavy losses. By 1818, their number had fallen from 350,000 before the war to a mere 50,000. The mighty Kabardians were reduced to vassalage. Two centuries later, Kabarda is still occupied by Russia and the Kabardians are still striving to rid their country of the heavy yoke.