En
Ru
Kuytchuk-Kainadzhirsky peace treaty between Russia and Turkey signed
The peace treaty signed on July 10 (21), 1774 in a Bulgarian village Kuytchuk-Kainardzhi consolidated the victories of the Russian army during theRussian-Turkish war of 1768 -1774.
Like in other wars with Osman Empire Russia had been struggling for access to the Black Sea and seeking to secure for itself the regions near the Black Sea and Caucasus. Turkey in its turn was trying to expand its possessions owing to these territories. It opposed the increasing Russian influence in Poland where in 1764 the protégé of Russia Stanislav August Ponyatovsky was put on the throne. The pretext to start the war was Russia’s decline of Turkish ultimatum on the withdrawal of Russian troops from Retch Pospolitaya where they battled for the interests of Polish king in his struggle against the Confederation of Lords.
On September 25 (October 6), 1768 Turkey supported by France and Austria declared war on Russia.
The war was taking place in Bessarabia, Moldavia and Caucasus. The defeat of the Turkish arms near Larg and Kagul, of the Turkish fleet inTchesmensky struggle, the occupation of Crimea forced Turkey to start peace negotiations that ended by a brief Zhurzhensky truce. But the attempts to conclude a peace treaty in Fokshany and then in Bukharest turned out to be futile. On November 1 (12), 1772 Russia signed a pact with the Crimea khan Sahib-Girey taking Crimea under its protection. The military actions that recommenced in summer of 1773 also turned out more successful for Russia (the victories of A.V. Suvorov near Kozludzhi, of I.P. Saltyukov near Turtukai, crossing of Balkans by A.I. Zaborovsky).
In such conditions the Turkish government was obliged to start the negotiations and to sign the peace treaty. On the Russian side the agreement was signed by General-Lieutenant Prince N. V. Repnin, on behalf of the Ottoman Empire - by Grand Vizier (keeper of the Sultan's monogram, a senior court officials) Ahmed Effendi and Foreign Minister, Ibrahim Myunib Effendi.
Kuytchuk-Kainardzhiysky peace treaty consisted of the introduction, 28 clauses and one secret annex. According to the contract, Crimea and adjacent Tatar areas were declared "free and completely independent of any outside power," Azov, Kerch, Yenikale Kinburn and the lands between the Dnieper and the Bug were annexed to Russia; Russian merchant vessels had the right to freely navigate in the Black Sea and the Straits, Russia was given preferential treatment in matters of trade, duties and consular service; Russian protectorate over Moldavia and Wallachia - the right to "speak in favor of these two kingdoms" was established; Russia won the right to build a church in Constantinople and make representations in favor of the church and its ministers, the Ottoman Porte also pledged to provide "a solid defense of the Christian churches and the law thereof"; Turkey was obliged to pay 7.5 million piastres (4 million rubles) of war indemnity to Russia (secret annex). Other articles included amnesty for offenses under military law, the mutual extradition of criminals and deserters, the cancellation of previous agreements, recognition of the title "padishah" applied to Russia's Empress, the establishment of the rank and seniority of Russian diplomatic representatives in the Ottoman Porte, etc.
Lit.: Дружинина Е. И. Кючук-Кайнарджийский мир 1774 года (его подготовка и заключение). М., 1955; Жигарёв О. Русская политика в восточном вопросе. (Её история в XVI-XIX веках, критическая оценка и будущие задачи). Историко-юридические очерки. Т. 1. М. 1896; Кучук-Кайнарджийский мир. Бумаги, относящиеся до заключения этого мира (с 17 янв. по 19 июня 1775 г.) // «Русский архив». 1879. 3 (10). С. 137-169; Кючук-Кайнарджийский мирный договор между Россией и Турцией // Под стягом России : сб. арх. док. М., 1992; То же [Электронный ресурс]. URL: www.hist.msu.ru/ER/Etext/FOREIGN/kuchuk.htm; Уляницкий В. А. Дарданеллы, Босфор и Чёрное море в XVIII веке. (Очерки дипломатической истории восточного вопроса). М. 1883; Юзефович Т. П. Договоры России с Востоком политические и торговые. СПб., 1869.
From the Presidential library materials: