I. East India Company

In the history of Europe, there are many enterprises called East India Company for short. They are:

Dutch East India Company

Danish East India Company

France East India Company

Swedish East India Company

Holy Roman Empire East India Company

Several enterprises merged to form the British East India Company.

Among them, the British East India Company and the Dutch East India Company are the strongest

1, British East India Company

British colonies are all over the world, so they are called "the empire that never sets", that is to say, in areas ruled by Britain,

You can see the sun 24 hours a day. The reasons for Britain's development and growth. It is inseparable from the cruel plunder of colonies around the world. The establishment and development of that "east India company" illustrate this problem well.

The East India Company was established on 1600. At first, the British mainly used the East India Company to do business. Slowly, the East India Company became a tool for British colonists to invade India. 16 13, Britain set up a trading post in Sutela, western India, and soon established a commercial pavilion in Madras, southeastern India. 1698, the East India Company bought Kolkata, the Ganges port in the Bay of Bengal, from the Mughal government of India. Because the East India Company became more and more powerful, it gradually occupied Madras, Calcutta and Mumbai, another city mentioned above. They established three districts here, each under the jurisdiction of a governor, and turned these places into bases for further occupation of other parts of India. 1757 in June, Robert Robert Clive led the army to win the battle of Plaset, thus taking control of Bengal. Later, the East India Company defeated the French East India Company in the Seven-Year War and drove the French out of the Indian Peninsula. 1767, the British parliament passed the "East India Company Management Act", which stipulated that the former governor of Calcutta was changed to the governor, who was directly appointed by the state. His task is to manage all Indian territories under British occupation on behalf of the British government. At this point, the British government began to rule India directly. After that, Britain continued to occupy other parts of India, including the Oder River in 1774 and the Oder River in 1799. After 23 years of war, Britain occupied Mysore, a powerful feudal country in southern India. 1849 occupied Punjab in northwest India. Since then, Britain has completely occupied India, and India (today's India, Pakistan and Bangladesh) has become a British colony. From the 1960s of 18, the East India Company began to decline. 1767, the company was unable to pay the 400,000 pounds stipulated by the British government and began to borrow from the government. The financial crisis has become more and more serious. 18 13, the East India Company's trade monopoly on India was cancelled; 1833, the British government cancelled its trade monopoly on China. In this way, the East India Company had to go bankrupt. 1858, the East India Company was officially cancelled by the government.

2. Dutch East India Company

The Dutch East India Company was founded in the17th century, the era of great European navigation. At that time, European countries began to explore at sea, explore world geography and develop business opportunities in the open sea. /kloc-In the 6th century, Portugal colonized and commercially exploited Southeast Asia. In the1560s, a group of Dutch businessmen sent Cornelis de houtman. -1599) went to Portugal to spy on business. After Hortmann returned to China, this group of businessmen set up a company and used this information to develop in East India. From April of 1595 to April of 1602, the Netherlands successively established 14 companies mainly trading in East India. In order to avoid excessive business competition, this group of businessmen set up 14 company. At that time, the Dutch National Assembly authorized the Dutch East India Company to have the trade monopoly right from the Cape of Good Hope in the east to strait of magellan at the southern tip of South America in the west.

The Dutch East India Company consists of six offices, which are located in Amsterdam, middelburg, Enkhizen, Delft, Horn and Rotterdam. Its board of directors consists of more than 70 people, but only 17 people have real power. They are called "Heron 17th", that is, Amsterdam.

The Dutch East India Company was the first company to organize its own mercenaries and issue currency, and was also the first joint-stock company, and was granted the right to conclude formal treaties with other countries and colonize the region.

The Dutch East India Company established its headquarters in Batavia, Java (present-day Jakarta) and other strongholds in east indies and Spice Islands.

By 1669, the Dutch East India Company was the richest private company in the world, with more than 150 merchant ships, 40 warships, 50,000 employees and 1 10,000 mercenaries, with a dividend of 40%. In the rush to subscribe for shares, the Dutch East India Company released a total of 6.5 million Dutch guilders for subscription. At that time, 65,438+00 guilders was about 65,438+0 pounds, while in the 1960s, a Dutch teacher earned about 280 guilders a year, and Amsterdam alone subscribed for half of the shares.

Trade relations with Taiwan Province Province

The Dutch East India Company was originally active near Penghu, but at that time, the Ming government of China considered Penghu as its territory, which led the Dutch to set up a stronghold in Formosa (now Taiwan Province Province) (now Tainan City) where there was no substantive government rule at that time in 1624, and occupied Taiwan Province Province from 1662. At that time, Ge Lan Castle, ordinary people's castle and other buildings still exist, but many of them have fallen down.

The purpose of occupying Taiwan Province Province is to monopolize the trade between Manila (a Spanish colony) and China, based on the Southeast Asian strongholds of China, Japan and South Korea. The main export trade includes sugar, deerskin, venison, antlers, rattan and rice, while the transshipment trade includes Dutch metals and medicinal materials, Batavia spices, pepper, amber, flax, cotton, opium, tin and lead, as well as China silk, pottery and gold.

Take deerskin as an example. In just four years from 1634 to 1638, the number of pieces exported from Taiwan Province province to Japan increased from 1 1 10,000 to150,000. By 1658, the output of sugar in Taiwan Province Province was enough to meet the demand of Japan and Persia, and Batavia was added as the export target.

The Dutch East India Company has about 35 strongholds in Asia, with Japanese strongholds ranking first with a profit of 38.8%, followed by Taiwan Province Province with a profit of 25.6%. However, the profits of the Dutch East India Company in these places are mainly distributed to Dutch shareholders, not used for giving back to the local people or for local construction.

At that time, in addition to the Netherlands, Taiwan Province Province also had Japanese trading countries. In view of the Japanese economic competition, the Netherlands levied a tax of 10% on Japanese businessmen, which caused dissatisfaction between both sides and even the Yasushi Hamada incident. The trade between the two sides was terminated in 1628 and resumed in 1632, but Japan soon entered the lock-up era. In addition, because the Dutch and Japanese governments have the right to exercise judicial power over all their territories, there have also been conflicts between the two sides.

historical chronology

Established on March 20th.

1603: Wei Malang, a crew member of the company, arrived in Macau from Batavia via the Straits of Malacca, and the war with Portugal failed.

1604: Arrived in Penghu on August 7th, and was driven away by the Ming imperial army on February 5th.

1607: The Dutch East India Company seized Ambon Island from Portugal and set up a business hall. Britain then set up a business hall here.

16 19: East India regional headquarters was established in West Davia, Java Island.

1622: The Dutch East India Company reoccupied Penghu.

1623: Dutch East India Company kills British Commercial Building on Ambon Island 10 librarian.

1624: After an eight-month war between the Ming imperial army and the Netherlands, the Dutch retreated to Taiwan Province province.

1638: Japan locked the country, the Portuguese were driven away by Japan, and the Dutch East India Company monopolized Japanese trade.

164 1 year: Dutch East India Company occupied Portuguese marijuana.

1648: The Treaty of Westphalia in Spain recognizes the independence of the Netherlands.

1652: Establish a colony in the Cape of Good Hope.

166 1: In April, Zheng Chenggong occupied Penghu and used it as a stronghold to attack the Dutch in Taiwan Province Province.

1662: In February, the Netherlands surrendered. Withdraw from Taiwan Province Province

1704: The First Java War (~ 08)

17 19: The Second Java War (~ 23 years)

1740: China Uprising in Batavia

1749: The Third Java War (~ 55 years)

1795: The French Revolutionary Army occupied the Netherlands.

1799: dissolved on February 3 1 day.

Second, the West India Company.

In the history of Europe, there are many enterprises called West India Company for short, such as Dutch West India Company, British West India Company and Swedish West India Company, among which Dutch West India Company has the longest history and the most prestigious reputation.

162 1 year, the Dutch government approved the establishment of the Dutch West India Company. The company's goal is to compete with Britain, France and other countries for the colonies that Spain and Portugal have not yet firmly occupied in America. After the intermittent war in 10, the West India Company controlled a large part of the Brazilian coast, but was driven away by the Portuguese in the middle of 17 century. 1622, the Netherlands acquired Manhattan Island at the mouth of the Hudson River, and established the New Amsterdam City in 1660. After the British occupation, it was renamed new york. 1674, according to the second Westminster Peace Treaty, the Netherlands officially handed over new york to Britain. . Since then, based on the Hudson River basin, it has expanded eastward to Hartford, Connecticut, and southward to the Delaware River, and established the New Holland. 1623 occupied Guyana in South America. From 1630 to 1640, Aruba, Cura? ao, Bonaire, Saba, Shays of St. yust and the French jointly occupied St. Martin. After the West India Company occupied these islands, it slaughtered the indigenous people and reduced the labor force, and later became the main slave traders in these areas.

/kloc-In the middle of the 7th century, the Dutch West India Company owned several fortresses and trading posts on the Gold Coast and Slave Coast, and once occupied Mauritius as a base for plundering slaves in Madagascar. It supplied the first slaves in British Virginia. By the beginning of18th century, the Dutch slave trade accounted for more than half of the world slave trade.

The most enduring colony of all Dutch colonies is Cape Colony, a small colony that was snatched from the Portuguese in 1652, located in the Cape of Good Hope in South Africa. This is a supply base, which provides fuel, water and fresh food for ships heading east. With the arrival of more Dutch, the colony eventually developed into two autonomous republics-Dellancy Val Republic &; Orange Republic (now located in the Federal Republic of South Africa)

After the establishment of the Dutch East-West India Company, the Dutch plundered the colonies extremely cruelly. In order to plunder the wealth of the colonies, they brutally slaughtered the local residents or turned them into slaves, and the profits were often as high as tens of percent. Marx said, "The colonial management history of Holland, a standard capitalist country in the17th century, showed a wonderful picture of treachery, bribery, killing and despicable behavior".

The second part is the Knights Order, a military religious organization in medieval Europe.

First, the establishment of the Knights and its heyday

The Knights appeared during the Crusades in the Middle Ages, and it was a religious feudal military organization established by feudal lords in western Europe to defend the territory they occupied in the East.

After the First Crusade (1096- 1099), the Crusaders successively occupied the richest areas and the most prosperous industrial and commercial cities in the Eastern Mediterranean, and established four Crusader countries in this area. The occupied area extends from south to north 1200 km. Because this area is located on the coast, flat terrain, lack of natural barriers, easy to attack and difficult to defend, and may be attacked at any time, the Crusader countries are in turmoil under the threat of Muslims eyeing.

In order to consolidate these countries, it is urgent to establish a standing army. Then, the Pope organized several monks' knights, namely, the Knights of Shantang (Knights of St. John) (65438+the beginning of the 2nd century), the Knights Templar (about118) and the Teutonic Knights (1/kloc-). Its task is to suppress the resistance of the people in the Crusader countries, fight against the neighboring Muslim countries, and defend and expand the Crusader territory. These three knights quickly developed into an elite professional army, capable of fighting the enemy anywhere. They are recruiting on a large scale in Europe and their strength is getting stronger and stronger.

On the surface, in terms of form and nature, the Knights Order is a kind of monk gang, and its religious constraints are similar to those of monks. Most of these monks and knights are outlaws of the ruined aristocrats in western Europe. They organized themselves in the form of monasteries and devoted their lives to "defending Christianity". Members of the cult are not allowed to get married and have children, to seek wealth, to go against the will of their superiors (the Catholic Church), and not to shake their will to "devote themselves to Christianity" because they are obsessed with secular life.

Strict centralization is practiced within the Order. The top leader of each regiment is the "general head", and the leaders of the branch regiments under its jurisdiction are called "branch heads". Further down, there are commanders, stables and so on. Officials below the branch leader form a general meeting and are subordinate to the general leader. The head of the regiment takes orders directly from the Pope and must obey his orders.

The Pope granted knights various privileges, the most important of which was that they were not under the jurisdiction of monks and secular rulers in the Crusader countries. Although the Archbishop of the Kingdom of Jerusalem is the Pope's ambassador, he has no right to command and dispatch the Knights.

In name, knights must abide by the three commandments of poverty, chastity and obedience. However, what knights miss and are busy with is to accumulate wealth. They simply can't do it. Moreover, the monks and feudal lords in the Crusader countries gave generous treatment to the knights in order to let the western Europeans occupy the eastern coast of the Mediterranean for a long time with their strength. Therefore, the lifestyle of knights is extremely secular.

Knights' way of collecting money

First, make "donations" and accept gifts.

Second, run a business.

Third, robbery.

The "secular cause" of the Knights was a great success. Decades later, the Order not only has territory in the East, but also has a large number of territories in France, Spain, Portugal, Italy, Hungary, Czech Republic, Britain and other places.

At the same time, the knights became more and more important in the Crusader countries, with many fortresses and castles. By the end of 12, the monastery had become a powerful political, economic and military force in the east and west. The number of league members has also greatly increased, because many ordinary knights see that they can live a rich life under the protection of the cross. /kloc-At the end of 0/2 century, the Knights Templar alone had 15000 members.

Later, with the decline and collapse of the Crusader countries, the Order could no longer stand in the East, but it was not dissolved. Instead, they returned to Europe in monk's clothes and helmets and continued to work for the Pope. The Teutonic Order even established an order state in Europe, which had a long-term impact on European political and military life.

1, Knights Templar: There are no double blessings.

The official name of the Knights Templar is "Poor Christ and Solomon Templar". It was founded around118, and its members were mainly crusaders from France. The founder of this order originally lived in a corner of Jerusalem Palace, adjacent to the Church of the Savior, and its original site was an Arab Islamic mosque. It is said that this place used to be the temple of King Solomon. The name "Knights Templar" comes from this and is sometimes translated into "Knights Templar". Another way of saying it: It is said that King Baldwin II of Jerusalem at that time allocated a part of the courtyard in the Jewish Temple to French knights as their residence, hence the name.

There are three levels in this independent order: knight, sergeant and priest. Their symbol is a red cross. Knights wear white coats and sergeants wear black coats. Then the regiment quickly developed into a powerful military force. Privileges granted by the Pope, donations from monarchs and princes, and their plunder made them quickly gather a lot of wealth. He owns a lot of real estate in East and West Europe, and also engages in usury and currency industry in Western Europe. The Knights Templar gradually became one of the most powerful and wealthy monks in the Catholic Church.

However, as the saying goes, it is wealth and power that bring destruction to the Templars. /kloc-At the end of 0/3, after all the colonies established in the east by feudal lords in western Europe were wiped out, the Knights Templar was forced to leave Palestine and move to France, Britain and Spain. Philip IV, who ruled France at that time, was in dire financial difficulties. For the purpose of coveting the property of the Templars, he secretly conspired with Pope Clemente V, who was sheltered by him, accusing the Templars of heresy, and issued a secret order on September 1307 to arrest all the Templars in France. As a result, almost all members of the Order, including Jacques de Mali, head of the Order, and Hugo de Perot, deputy, were put into the torture room of the Inquisition, and a large number of Templars were tortured to death during the trial, and the organization of the Order also collapsed. 13 12, Pope Clement V ordered the formal dissolution of the Knights Templar.

According to statistics, Philip IV plundered 654.38+0.42 million Livermore by banning the Templars. Surprisingly, however, the fabricators of the evil religious plans of the Templars also died one after another. 1365438+On April 20th, 2004, just one month after Mali was burned to death, Clement V died of lupus erythematosus. In the same year1October 29th 165438, Philip IV was killed while hunting. At that time, it was widely rumored that Moray had hooked them to hell to be judged by God. However, there is even more tragic retribution: in the French Revolution of 1789, the place where King Louis XVI of France was imprisoned happened to be the headquarters of the French Knights Templar-Tampell Temple, from which he was guillotined.

2. Teutonic Knight: From Glory to Death

The Teutonic Order is the latest of the three knights, but it is the most influential one. It was established in Palestine in 1 198. Mainly composed of German knights, wearing white coats and black crosses. The white cloak is painted with red swords and crosses. /kloc-At the beginning of the 3rd century, under the leadership of its leader von Salza, the organization moved its activity center from the Middle East to Eastern Europe. 1226, at the call of Conrad, Duke of Mazovia, Poland, the Teutonic Order went to Poland to attack the Prussians, Poland's old enemy. Conrad made a contract with the Teutonic Knights: the Knights were responsible for attacking Prussia, and Conrad signed an agreement to give the Knights a territory between Torun and Herono as a reward. Conrad's short-sighted policy of luring wolves into the room has done great harm to Poland in the future. 1237, after the Teutonic Order merged with the Fine Sword Order stationed on the eastern coast of the Baltic Sea, its power soared and it became a powerful political force in Eastern Europe. In the following 50 years, the Teutonic Order firmly controlled Prussia, thus forming a situation that contained Polish territory from both east and west and directly threatened Polish national security.

From the end of 14 to the beginning of 15, it was the heyday of the Teutonic Order. He was not satisfied with the infiltration of Poland, but also extended his hand of aggression to Lithuania, from the Baltic Sea to the Black Sea. 1346, Teutonic knights seized Estonia from the Danes. In addition, the Teutonic Order has its own territory in southern Italy, Greece, Spain and France, with the largest territory in Germany. The territory of Teutonic Order in Northeast Europe blocked the ports of Poland, Lithuania and Russia to the Baltic Sea. So the forces of all ethnic groups in Poland, Russia and Lithuania United against their common enemy, the Teutonic Knights.

14 10, Poland and Lithuania formed an alliance to March on the Teutonic Order occupying Polish territory. /kloc-in July of 0/5, the famous battle of Grinvald (called Battle of Tannengburg in German literature and translated into Battle of Tannengburg in Chinese) was held. One side of the battle is the Polish, Lithuanian and Russian Coalition forces led by Polish King Vladislav II Ajello, as well as the Czech and Hungarian volunteers, with a total of 32,000 people, mainly infantry; On the other hand, with the support of Germany and Hungary, the Teutonic Order invested a total of 27,000 people, mainly heavy cavalry in armor. As a result of the battle, most of the knight's troops were annihilated, and all the commanders below the head cloud were killed. The allied forces won the battle completely.

Since then, the Teutonic Knights began to decline. 1454, the war between Poland and Teutonic knights resumed. 1462, in the final battle of Parker, the Teutonic Order was defeated again and its head was captured. 1466, the Order was defeated by Poland for the third time and was forced to sign the Torun Peace Treaty with Poland. Although East Prussia is still under the rule of the Knights, it legally belongs to the Kingdom of Poland. The Teutonic Order became a vassal of the Kingdom of Poland, and half of its members were Poles. 1525, albrecht, head of the Order, changed East Prussia into a secular Prussian principality. The Order lost its original prominent position, but it remained until 1809 when it was dissolved. Later, it was restored in 1834, but the Teutonic order after that was completely different from the strong Teutonic order country in the original sense.

3. The glory and present situation in history.

The full name of the Knights of Shantang is "Knights of St. John's Hospital in Jerusalem". Its prototype appeared around 1070 before the First Crusade. Its task is to do some "charity" work, such as protecting western Christians who come to the "holy land" for pilgrimage, providing accommodation for pilgrims, treating sick Christians and so on, hence the name. Its members gathered around the "St. John's Temple" in Jerusalem, so it was also called the "Knights of John".

However, after the end of the First Crusade, the purpose of Shantang Knights began to change. Their leaders decided that some members would continue to do charity work for hungry and sick pilgrims, but their central task was to build a well-trained and disciplined knight army, which gradually became a purely feudal knight military group and existed in Palestine for nearly 200 years. Its clothing is a black coat with a white cross, and later it was changed into a red coat.

/kloc-at the beginning of the 0/4th century, the Order had to move to Rhode Island in the eastern Mediterranean in 13 10. 1522, Ottoman Sultan Su Liman I launched a large-scale attack on Rhode Island in order to relieve the worries of invading Europe. Although the Knights only have more than 500 knights and more than 6,000 soldiers, they are fearless in the face of 200,000 strong enemies and have fought bravely for more than half a year. Although finally forced to surrender, the Turkish army paid a heavy price of at least 50 thousand lives. Su Liman I admired the courage of the knights, so he chartered the enemy to leave the island safely on June 1 523+1October1.

1530, Emperor Charles V of the Holy Roman Empire agreed to hand over Malta Island and its nearby Gozo Island to the Knights of Shantang. As a result, the knights established their own country on the island of Malta, which was officially called the "Knight State of Malta".

Since then, the Knights of Shantang have entered its heyday, and warships marked with Maltese octagonal crosses on their sails are rampant in the Mediterranean. In the18th century, the territory of the Order reached as far as St. Croix Island in the American West Indies. 1794, shortly after the independence of the United States, this knight country recognized it and established diplomatic relations with it. Malta was much bigger than the United States at that time.

1798, the French army led by Napoleon drove the Knights out of Malta on the way to Egypt. It was not until 1834 that the Knights took root in Rome, Italy. Since then, they have turned to charity again, which has continued to this day, and changed its name to "Knights of Military Paramedics in Jerusalem, Rhode Island and St. John of Malta".

4. The origin and disintegration of the sword club.

Although the rapier order does not belong to the three knights, it has also exerted considerable influence in history and has also been incorporated into the Teutonic Order. Therefore, here is a brief introduction to its emergence and ending.

The Knights of the Sword Pole is a religious feudal military organization in Germany, which was founded in 1202 with the support of Pope Innocent III. It was named because its knight's white cloak was painted with a red sword and a cross. At the beginning of13rd century, it invaded Livonia on the east coast of the Baltic Sea in the name of spreading Christianity, so it was also called "Livonia Knights". 1240, the Knights, together with Danish and Swedish feudal lords, invaded Russia, occupied Pskov city, continued eastward, and advanced to Novgorod city. 1April 5, 242, the famous "ice war" broke out on the frozen Lake Chude. As a result, Novgorod's army won and the Knights were expelled from Russia. Since then, they have never dared to expand eastward. By the beginning of the16th century, the Knights gradually fell apart due to internal contradictions and split into several different territories.

Around the struggle for the legacy of the Knights, it has evolved into an international war for the sovereignty of the Baltic Sea-the Livonia War. 1558 65438+ 10, Russian Tsar Ivan IV launched the Livonia War on the pretext that the Order of Livonia and Lithuania joined forces against Russia. 1560 In August, the main force of the Knights was attacked by Russian troops, and the general commander Furstenberg was captured. 1561165438+1On October 28th, the new head of the Order, Gothard kotler, signed a contract with Polish King Zygmont II in Vilnius to hand over Livonia to Lithuania, and the Order returned to the secular world, establishing principalities in Kurland and Semigalia, which belonged to Poland and Lithuania. In March of the following year, the Order of Livonia, which existed for 360 years, officially disintegrated.

Second, the status of orders

Today, the headquarters of the Order owns the Malta Building, a commercial street in Rome, whose symbol is the initials S.M.O.M Like Montaigne, this land belongs to them. Although the Knights Order has only dozens of official citizens and only this building covering an area of 65,438+2,000 square meters, it has established diplomatic relations with 87 countries in the world.

At present, there are more than 12000 knights in the world, including Spanish King Juan Carlos, former Italian Prime Minister Francisco Corsica, former US Treasury Secretary william simon, new york Catholic Terrence Cook and other celebrities.

The third part of the city alliance

The competition between cities, especially against feudal lords and kings, appeared in the middle of the Middle Ages, that is, the city alliance. City alliance mainly appears in Germany. The most famous are Hanseatic League, Rhine League and Swaban League.

1. Hanseatic League is a commercial and political alliance mainly composed of cities in northern Germany. The word Hanse means "office" or "guild hall" in German. /kloc-was gradually formed in the middle of the 0/2nd century, and flourished in the 0/4th century, with at most 160 participating cities. 1367 A leading organization headed by Lubeck City was established, with the participation of wealthy businessmen and nobles from big cities such as Hamburg, Cologne and Bremen. Armed to the teeth 1370, defeated Denmark and concluded the Lacon Treaty. The alliance monopolized the trade in the Baltic region, and established commercial stations in the coastal areas from London in the west to Novgorod in the east, with strong strength. 15th century decline, 1669 disintegration.

2. The Rhine Union is a city alliance in the Rhine River basin in western Germany from 13 to 15. The alliance was formally established in A.D. 1254, with participants from more than 50 cities including Mainz and Keren. In order to protect the interests of city merchants and oppose the plunder of feudal lords, the Rhine League has its own armed forces. The alliance also has a unified organization to strengthen the ties between cities and develop foreign trade, with frequent trade exchanges with France, the Netherlands and other places. In A.D. 138 1, it merged with the Swaban Union, and its power increased. However, in A.D. 1388, the Swaban League was dissolved. The Rhine League was also hit by feudal princes. Finally, in 1450, the alliance collapsed.

3. Svalbard Alliance is a city alliance in Schwaben, southern Germany in the 4th century. In A.D. 133 1 year, some Swiss cities in augsburg, Nuremberg and Schwaben formed an alliance. Since then, the Swaban Alliance has been expanding, with more than 80 cities joining at most, and it has strong political and economic strength. 138 1 merged with the Rhine Union in, and its power grew stronger and it was interfered by the government. In a.d. 1388, it was forced to dissolve.

The fourth part others

I. Gosak

Special social stratum in Russian history. Cossack comes from Turkic, which means free man. Originally refers to people who fled from the Turkic countries in Central Asia to engage in nomadic activities in the northern Black Sea. Later, it was generally called 15 ~ 17 century farmers, domestic slaves and urban poor who escaped from serfdom. They live in sparsely populated remote areas and work for a living. Since the16th century, Cossacks have been exempted from the labor and taxes of guarding the frontier for the czar government, and obtained a certain salary and a considerable amount of land. They have an autonomous organization consisting of a freely elected commander, a hundred captains and a captain. With the development of feudal relations, cossacks became polarized between the rich and the poor. From 17 to 18, a large number of Cossacks took part in the peasant uprising against the feudal autocracy of the czar. Cossacks originally lived in the lower reaches of the Don and Dnieper rivers. With the expansion of Russian territory, Cossacks appeared in Urals, the lower reaches of Volga River, Central Asia, Caucasus, Siberia and other places. They are famous for their bravery and are an important source of Russian troops. They became a special military class in the18th century. When World War I broke out, Russia had 12 Cossack troops, including the Don Army, Kuban Army and Urals Army, with a population of nearly 300,000. The czar government used various methods to buy off the upper members of the Cossack, making it a tool to launch a war of aggression abroad and suppress the people's revolution at home. 1918 ~1921During the Soviet-Russian civil war, the Cossack rich class joined the White Guards. The Soviet government cracked down on Cossack landlords, rich peasants and upper-level officers, and at the same time attracted the vast number of Cossack poor peasants and ordinary soldiers to the Soviet regime. After the civil war, Cossacks no longer existed as a social class. Most people work on collective farms. Distributed in Don River, Terek River and Kuban River basins.

Second, Mamluk (Mamluk, Mamluk, also known as Mamluk, Mamluk, Mamluk) was a slave soldier who served the Arab caliphate in the Middle Ages, mainly serving the Ayub dynasty in Egypt. Later, with the decline of the caliph and the disintegration of the Ayub dynasty, they gradually became a powerful military ruling group and established their own bourgeois dynasty, ruling Egypt for 300 years (1250- 15 17).

..................................................................................................................................................................................