Sotnik of the Ural Cossack Host Kunakovskov in the Akhal-Teke Expedition of 1880–1881
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.22378/2410-0765.2026-16-1.30-53Keywords:
Sotnik Kunakovskov, Akhal-Teke Military Campaign, Capture of Geok Tepe, Ural Cossacks, Captain A.N. Maslov, Lieutenant Colonel A.L. Gulyaev, Colonel N. YomudskiyAbstract
An officer of the Ural Cossack Host, Sotnik Kunakovskov was a participant of the Akhal-Teke military campaign of 1880–1881, who heroically died during the storming of the main Teke stronghold – the fortress of Geok Tepe. Even before the storming of this fortress, Kunakovskov distinguished himself more than once during that campaign. The most striking such example is the measurement of the distance to the ditch at the enemy fortress and further – to its walls, carried out under the cover of night, in order to determine the length of the future underground gallery and install a powder charge. Unfortunately, due to the irrevocable loss of the Archive of the Ural Cossack Host, it is no longer possible to restore either the biographical data of this Ural Cossack officer or his service record. Since his surname is very rare and does not belong to the common Cossack surnames in the Ural Host, it was not possible to find his descendants, descendants of his relatives, or even namesakes in the lands of the former Ural Cossack Host. All that is known about him are small fragments from articles and books containing information about the Akhal-Teke campaign and written, as a rule, by officers from among its participants, of whom only one described, although very briefly, the Ural Sotnik – his appearance, character, and inclinations. The others mentioned only his activities related to the performance of combat missions. But even this information is quite diverse and contradictory; the details of the same measurements made by Kunakovskov are described differently by different authors. The article presents information from various authors about Kunakovskov, as well as an analysis of these data.
For citation: Dubovikov A.M. Sotnik of the Ural Cossack Host Kunakovskov in the Akhal-Teke Expedition of 1880–1881. From History and Culture of Peoples of the Middle Volga Region. 2026, vol. 16, no. 1, pp. 30–53. https://doi.org/10.22378/2410-0765.2026-16-1.30-53 (In Russian)
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