Cossacks in the Conditions of Frontier Modernization (on the example of the Far East inthelate 19th - early 20th centuries)

Historically, the contacts between the Cossacks and the Chinese population were established andtheir particular strengthening occurred during the construction of the Chinese-Eastern Railwaybetween 1897 and 1903. The imperial authorities devised a plan to establish the Sungurian Cossackarmy, which was to be augmented by the Cossacks dispatched to protect the 'KVZhD'. These troopswere to comprise the descendants of Albazin and the local population. In the context of the presentcircumstances, the Cossacks in the peripheral Ussuri Territory and Manchuria served as the frontiersof the system of relations with the local Chinese and Korean populations, as well as the modernizingtransformation of the region. As the most mobile and passionate segment of the population,theCossacks played a pivotal role in the socio-economic and cultural transformation of the region.Their extensive involvement in the agrarian economy and their diverse socio-class and ethno-confes-sional composition contributed to the diversification of the regional mosaic. During this historicalperiod, the Cossacks served as the driving force of the Russian exploration of the Far Eastern space.Moreover, they facilitated the militarization of the newly developed territories. The format ofthestudy permits presenting a set of relations risen along the Center-Far Eastern Cossacks axis.Theobjectives of this paper is to ascertain the nature of this relationship within the system andtostudy the dissemination of the experience of the Cossack self-government system to neighboringregions, including the process of Japanese colonization of the island of Hokkaido. The research find-ings indicate the efficacy of applying the Cossack administrative and economic management experi-ence to the Far East and Manchuria, as well as in adjacent regions, such as Hokkaido. The article isintended for Cossack specialists and sinologists.