TOWARDS THE STUDY OF HISTORICAL GEOGRAPHY IN THE ISET’ AND PYSHMA AREAS IN XVII CENTURY

Abstract

The article concerns the administrative and tax division of the lands along the rivers Iset’ and PyshmainXVII century. The main purposes of the article are to study:1) how administrative borders were changed at the analyzed territories and (2) how yasakvolost territories and new-built Russian slobodas interacted. After joining of the Siberian Khanate lands to Muscovy, the Iset’ and Pyshma areas were included inthe Tyumen’ uyezd. Later, in 1598, the Verkhoturskyuyezd was formed and the lands upstream those rivers were moved to this uyezd. There were no Russian settlements at the lands until the1640s. The Turkic population, living there, paid the yasak(a natural tax, usually paid by skins of fur-producing animals). The lands along the rivers Pyshma and Iset’ were subdivided into some yasakvolosts. The yasakvolost was a name for the territory occupied by a group of people with blood relationships. The territory gave the opportunity to the tax-obligated population to get means of subsistence and the fur for the yasak tax. All yasakvolosts were included in the Tyumen’ uyezd, except for only one, at the upstream of the river Iset’ that was a part of the Verkhoturskyuyezd. In 1644,Dalmat established the Uspensky monastery on the Iset’ bank. It was the first Russian settlement at the territory. Thereafter,the Russian settlements along the rivers grew swiftly. At the beginning of the 1660s, there were five slobodas and ostrogs (small forts) and two monasteries. Some ostrogs and slobodas were established according to the orders from Verkhoturye, the most part of the settlements were built by the order of Tobol’sk and some were assigned by the order of the Tyumen’ administration. Since the late 1650s – early 1660s, Verkhoturye and Tobol’sk competed in the control of the lands in the middle-stream of the river Iset’ area. By the late 1660s, all Russian slobodas and ostrogs located in the river Iset’ area, except for the Kataiskyostrog, were subordinated to the Tobol’sk administration. In 1668 – 1669, theKataiskyostrog was moved from the Verkhoturskyuyezd to the Tobol’sk one. In 1671, the demarcation of borders between the Tobol’sk and Verkhoturskyuyezds was conducted, and all Russian slobodas and ostrogsbecame a part of the Tobol’skuyezd. The situation was much more complicated in the Pyshma area. By the end of XVIIII century, there were slobodas and ostrogs includedin theTobol’skuyezd as well as in theVerkhoturskyuyezd.The situation described above was very complicated and intricate. The Russian villages subordinated to Tuymen were also located in the inter-stream area of the rivers Iset’ and Pyshma after 1671, but the population of the Pyshma and Iset’ yasakvolosts paid the yasak to Tuymen as before. In other words, there was a real situation of mixed territories in the Pyshma-Iset’ territories. The situation has changed during the administrative and territorial reorganization in the Peter’s the Great times when the provinces and districts were created and administrative and tax affiliation of the people was properly established.