Russia Khakassia FDC

Russia FDC
Name: The 300th anniversary of the voluntary affiliation of Khakassia to Russian State
Issue date: 2007 July 12th

From the 6th century Khakassia was the core of the old Kirghiz state. In the thirteenth century, following defeat by the Mongols, the majority of the Kirghiz people migrated southwest to their current homeland in Central Asia (Kirghizstan). Modern Khakassians regard themselves as the descendants of those Kirghiz who remained in Siberia. Khakassia was incorporated into the Russian state in 1707. In 1727 this was confirmed in a treaty between Russia and China. Tsarist policy was to deport convicted criminals from European Russia to Siberia and prisons were quickly constructed in Khakassia (1707 and 1718). Many prisoners stayed in the area on their release. Many of the indigenous Khakassian people converted to the Russian Orthodox church and were gradually forced to abandon their nomadic way of life. By the time of the Russian Revolution Russians made up approximately half of the population. Under Soviet rule autonomy was granted on 10 October 1930. During the 1920's and 30's the Soviet authorities resettled an estimated quarter of a million Russians in the region. These were followed by 10,000 Volga Germans deported in World War Two. By the time of the 1959 census ethnic Khakassians represented little more than one in ten of the population. Khakassia was given full autonomous republic status in 1991.

Khakassia Information in Wikipedia.com