The Grounds of the Formation of the Administrative-Territorial Unit of Caucasus in the Political Geography of the Tsarist Russian Empire

The first step of the Russi’s expansionism in the Caucasus was trying to acquire knowledge about this land and its people, which manifested itself in the form of “Orientalism”. Communicating with the ethnicities and Khans of the region, the creation of the Caucasus defense line and its expansion to the south was an important and final step in the conquest of the Caucasus. In order for establishing their sovereignty in the Caucasus and exploiting its natural resources, the Russians set up a new administrative system in the form of the Caucasus administrative- territorial unit. This descriptive-analytical research seeks to answer the question of how the Caucasus administrative-territorial unit was formed in the political geography of Tsarist Russia. The findings show that the process of integrating the Caucasus into the territory of Tsarist Russia was a gradual process in the form of a long-term strategy. This was achieved by combining the scientific achievements of orientalists and the actions of Russian military forces. The establishment of military bases in strategic places and settlement of Christian tribes in these places was very effective in stabilizing and consolidating the defense line of the Caucasus.