Military-political Interaction of the Ukrainian Population of the Zaporozhian Cossacks’ Territory with other Ethnic Groups in the middle of the 17th and 18th centuries

This study focuses on ethnicity as a factor in military-political events that took place in the middle of the 17th and 18th centuries in the territory controlled by Zaporozhian Cossacks. Zaporozhiane Cossacks were formed on a Ukrainian ethnic basis, but the territory controlled by them was part of various state formations. Also, on the territory of the Zaporozhian Cossacks regular wars took place, and they regularly participated in military campaigns beyond their lands. All this led to active contacts in the military-political sphere with representatives of various ethnic groups – Poles, Tatars, Russians, etc. An important role in these contacts was played by the emergence of fortifications that central governments (Polish and Russian) viewed as an instrument for control over cossacks, as well as a possible means for the appearance on the Zaporozhye territories of enclaves that were not subordinate to the Sich authorities. The reaction of the Cossack community, as in the case of the Polish initiative with Kodak, and Russian with the Bohorodytska fortress, was unequivocal – it was a discontent that could have resulted in the military actions against the fortresses or was inside the Zaporozhye community, pushing it to search for allies capable of helping to get rid of fortifications. The reaction to the functioning of the fortifications in the time of the New Sich is somewhat different – despite the apparent preservation of the conflict in relations with the Russian garrisons and their commanders, the Sich no longer has the capacity for military solving of the problem. The Tatar factor is extremely interesting. The wars against the Tartars actualize the presence of Polish or Russian troops as allies, while at the same time confronting the central governments, the Cossacks regularly seek help from the Tatars, without indicating any ethnic bias. Similarly, this ethnic bias is absent in relation to the Poles or Russians, who, depending on the military-political situation, act as both allies and opponents. Thus, in my opinion one should speak about the secondary nature of the ethnic factor in military-political events. At the same time, we need to study of the interaction of the Ukrainian population of the region with other ethical groups on a daily basis, which will allow better understanding of non politically-determined, and personal attitudes towards representatives of other ethnic groups.