The Danube Cossack Host () was a Ukrainian

Cossack Host A Cossack host (; , ''kazachye voysko''), sometimes translated as Cossack army, was an administrative subdivision of Cossacks in the Russian Empire. Earlier the term ''voysko'' ( host, in a sense as a doublet of ''guest'') referred to Cossack o ...

formed in 1828, before the

Russo-Turkish War (1828–1829) The Russo-Turkish War of 1828–1829 resulted from the Greek War of Independence of 1821–1829; war broke out after the Ottoman Sultan Mahmud II closed the Dardanelles to Russian Empire , Russian ships and in November 1827 revoked the 18 ...

. It was formed by descendants of the

Zaporozhian Cossacks The Zaporozhian Cossacks (in Latin ''Cossacorum Zaporoviensis''), also known as the Zaporozhian Cossack Army or the Zaporozhian Host (), were Cossacks who lived beyond (that is, downstream from) the Dnieper Rapids. Along with Registered Cossa ...

who lived in

Bessarabia Bessarabia () is a historical region in Eastern Europe, bounded by the Dniester river on the east and the Prut river on the west. About two thirds of Bessarabia lies within modern-day Moldova, with the Budjak region covering the southern coa ...

, especially in the

Budjak Budjak, also known as Budzhak, is a historical region that was part of Bessarabia from 1812 to 1940. Situated along the Black Sea, between the Danube and Dniester rivers, this #Ethnic groups and demographics, multi-ethnic region covers an area ...

region. A Ukrainian Cossack Host called the ''Lower Danube Budjak Host'' had been formed in the same area in 1807, but was disbanded shortly thereafter. The Danube Host included volunteers from various groups, such as the

Nekrasov Cossacks Nekrasov Cossacks, Nekrasovite Cossacks, Nekrasovites, Nekrasovtsy () descend from those Don Cossacks who, after the defeat of the Bulavin Rebellion of 1707–1708, fled to the Kuban in September 1708, headed by Ignat Nekrasov, hence their nam ...

, Romanians, Serbs, and Bulgarians. At first, the Cossacks controlled three selos in the

Akkerman Bilhorod-Dnistrovskyi (, ; ; ), historically known as Aq Kirmān () or by other names, is a port city in Odesa Oblast, southwestern Ukraine. It is situated on the right bank of the Dniester Estuary leading to the Black Sea, in the historical r ...

Poviat: Akmangit, Starokazachye, and Volonterovka.

Overview

After the Russo-Turkish war, the Host was assigned to guard the borders of the Bessarabian and

Kherson governorate Kherson Governorate, known until 1803 as Nikolayev Governorate, was an administrative-territorial unit ('' guberniya'') of the Russian Empire, with its capital in Kherson. It encompassed in area and had a population of 2,733,612 inhabitants. At t ...

s. It had outposts in

Odesa Odesa, also spelled Odessa, is the third most populous List of cities in Ukraine, city and List of hromadas of Ukraine, municipality in Ukraine and a major seaport and transport hub located in the south-west of the country, on the northwestern ...

Izmail Izmail (, ; ; , or ; ) is a List of cities in Ukraine, city and List of hromadas of Ukraine, municipality on the Danube river in Odesa Oblast in south-western Ukraine. It serves as the administrative center of Izmail Raion, one of seven distr ...

, and Akkerman, which also served as its central headquarters. When

Wallachia Wallachia or Walachia (; ; : , : ) is a historical and geographical region of modern-day Romania. It is situated north of the Lower Danube and south of the Southern Carpathians. Wallachia was traditionally divided into two sections, Munteni ...

was administered by

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

, the Tsar expected all remaining Nekrasov Cossacks in the

Danube Delta The Danube Delta (, ; , ) is the second largest river delta in Europe, after the Volga Delta, and is the best preserved on the continent. Occurring where the Danube, Danube River empties into the Black Sea, most of the Danube Delta lies in Romania ...

to join the Danube Host. However, most refused further military service. In 1839, Russia, concerned about the extent of local

Romani Romani may refer to: Ethnic groups * Romani people, or Roma, an ethnic group of Indo-Aryan origin ** Romani language, an Indo-Aryan macrolanguage of the Romani communities ** Romanichal, Romani subgroup in the United Kingdom * Romanians (Romanian ...

activity, proposed that Roma be drafted as Cossacks. Although most Roma declined the offer, those who accepted made up nearly a quarter of the Cossacks in the Host.Olena Bachynska, Danubian (NovoRossiyan) Cossack Host 1828-1868. Published in the ''Cossackdom of Southern Ukraine XVIII - ХІХ centuries'' p.177-229 Odesa 2000; Availabl
online
at Cossackdom.com During the

Crimean War The Crimean War was fought between the Russian Empire and an alliance of the Ottoman Empire, the Second French Empire, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, and the Kingdom of Sardinia (1720–1861), Kingdom of Sardinia-Piedmont fro ...

, the Danube Cossacks became famous for using

rocket artillery Rocket artillery is artillery that uses rockets as the projectile. The use of rocket artillery dates back to medieval China where devices such as fire arrows were used (albeit mostly as a psychological weapon). Fire arrows were also used in mult ...

in the capture of

Tulcea Tulcea (; also known by #Names, alternative names) is a city in Northern Dobruja, Romania. It is the administrative center of Tulcea County, and had a population of 65,624 . One village, Tudor Vladimirescu, is administered by the city. It is one ...

Isaccea Isaccea () is a small town in Tulcea County, in Northern Dobruja, Romania, on the right bank of the Danube, 35 km north-west of Tulcea. According to the 2021 census, it has a population of 4,408. The town has been inhabited for thousands o ...

and

Măcin Măcin () is a town in Tulcea County, in the Northern Dobruja region of Romania. Location Măcin is located in the north-western part of the Northern Dobruja region, in Tulcea County. The city is located at the intersection of the DN22 ( E87) an ...

. This artillery supported the main armies in covering their bridgeheads and preventing the Turkish army from crossing the

Danube The Danube ( ; see also #Names and etymology, other names) is the List of rivers of Europe#Longest rivers, second-longest river in Europe, after the Volga in Russia. It flows through Central and Southeastern Europe, from the Black Forest sou ...

. As a result of their success, both Danube Cossack regiments were awarded the Georgian Banners. After the Treaty of Paris in 1856, Russia ceded part of the

territory. As a result, the Host moved to

Stanitsa A stanitsa or stanitza ( ; ), also spelled stanycia ( ) or stanica ( ), was a historical administrative unit of a Cossack host, a type of Cossack polity that existed in the Russian Empire. Etymology The Russian word is the diminutive of the word ...

Nikolayevka-Novorossiyskaya (a modern selo within

Odesa Oblast Odesa Oblast (), also referred to as Odeshchyna (Одещина), is an administrative divisions of Ukraine, oblast (province) of southwestern Ukraine, located along the northern coast of the Black Sea. Its administrative centre is the city of Ode ...

Ukraine Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the List of European countries by area, second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which Russia–Ukraine border, borders it to the east and northeast. Ukraine also borders Belarus to the nor ...

). The Host lost access to the Danube River and was subsequently renamed the Novorossiyan Cossack Host () in 1856. By 1858, the new Host had 10 stanitsa and numbered twelve thousand men. Over the next decade, however, during a period of relative peace, most lost their combat skills and became involved in internal customs and police work. In 1868, as a result of the administrative reform of Emperor Alexander II, the Host was disbanded and most of the Cossacks continued their service in the customs and police work, but now under the civil administration.

References

External links

Uniforms of the Danube Host
{{in lang, ru Bessarabia Zaporozhian Host Cossack hosts