CAUCASUS, a vast chain of mountains extending across that isthmus of Western Asia which is bounded by the Black Sea on the west and by the Caspian on the east. Commencing near the mouth of the river Kouba, which falls into the Euxine, it proceeds in a south-easterly direction, gradually increasing its distance from that sea, and then turning towards the east traverses Mingrelia and Imertia. Approaching the source of the river Kouma, a ridge diverging to the south enters Georgia near the origin of the Kur, which rises in the mountains of Kars, while the main chain, advancing to the western shores of the Caspian, proceeds through the provinces of Daghestan and Shirvan, once belonging to Persia, but now nominally under the government of Russia. Here penetrating Ghilan, it is connected in a continued chain by the mountains of Mazanderan and the Paropamisan with the Hindu Koh or Indian Caucasus, a part of the great Himalaya range. Finally, taking a south-eastern direction, it terminates at the peninsula of Apsheron, which runs out into the Caspian Sea. It is also connected by means of a secondary range near the Black Sea with the mountains of Ararat; while the spurs which are thrown out from the main ridge towards the north are gradually lost in the immense steppes of southern Russia. The length of the whole chain from the mouth of the river Kouba to the peninsula where it terminates, is estimated at from 650 to 700 miles. The breadth from Mosdok to Tiflis is computed at 180 miles; but, with its various parallel chains and ramifications, the average cannot exceed 140 miles. The Caucasian chain consists of mountains rising to a great elevation, some covered with forests, others bare and arid; while the summits of many are covered with perpetual snow. Their geological structure is very various. A considerable portion of the elevated region consists of white limestone, behind which are higher ridges of black slate. The most lofty mountain peaks are composed of basalt, granite, schistus, porphyry, and the more ancient formations. The mountains to the east of Elburz reach a much greater altitude than those which are situated between it and the Black Sea, towards which they gradually decline, terminating in a series of hills of very moderate elevation. Many of those parts of the Caucasian chain which reach the greatest altitude are exceedingly craggy and precipitous, and cannot be traversed without great danger at any season of the year; the narrow path by which the traveller is compelled to proceed often leading immediately over precipices of immense height, guarded by rocky walls which hang threateningly overhead. In some directions, immense masses of mountain present the appearance of having been rent asunder by some dreadful convulsion of nature. Numerous cataracts rush with a thundering noise over the abrupt precipices into the abysses below, from which they descend to the more level portions of the country. In other parts, the mountains stretch out into level plains; and many of the intervening valleys overhung by these immense precipices are remarkable for their fertility and beauty.

The Beshtau (corrupted from Besh Dagh, i.e., the five mountains), or mountains of Pyatigorsk, situated to the S.W. of Georgiisk, form, as it were, the advanced post of the great Caucasian chain. They are connected with it by means of a ridge which proceeds in a south-easterly direction between the rivers Koura and Koubia, gradually increasing in elevation until it joins the Elburz, the loftiest mountain of the whole chain. The highest of the two conically shaped summits of the Elburz is said to reach an altitude of nearly 18,000 feet. Among the mountain tribes, whose superstitions faith represents its hollows and caverns as the entrance to the abode of the Peris, or fairies of eastern mythology, it is known by the name of Dabin Padishah, or king of spirits. North-west from the Elburz, the Pelav-Tepesh, the Oshten, the Idokopas, and the Shapsuch, are the highest mountains on the eastern coast of the Black Sea. In a south-eastern direction near the great Georgian military road, is the lofty Kasbek, which is considered to form the central point of the Caucasian range. At the foot of the snow-covered Krestovaya, or mountain of the cross, is the post station of Kobi, not far from which is the hamlet of Baidar, inhabited by the Ossetes, whose only duty is to assist such travellers as may have gone astray during the alarming snow-storms by which these elevated regions are so often visited. Between the Kasbek and the peninsula of Apsheron, one of the most remarkable mountains is the Besh Parmak Dagh, or mountain of the five fingers, so named from its peculiar form, which rises to a considerable height close to the Caspian Sea. The communication between Russia and its Transcaucasian provinces is maintained by means of two narrow passes or defiles. The most important is that of Dariel, known to the ancients under the name of the Caucasian Gates, through which the northern barbarians formerly made their way into the fairer regions of Asia Minor, and the great Georgian military road used by the Russians for the conveyance of troops, war-stores, and merchandise now proceeds. In some parts of this dangerous pass situated far above the line of snow, the narrow path leads immediately over the most fearful precipices and through rugged defiles such as the traveller meets with nowhere amid the most mountainous regions of Europe. All communication along this road is frequently stopped for weeks together by a sudden fall of snow, or the descent of an avalanche. The Caspian pass, formerly known as the Albianian Gates, is situated between the Caspian Sea and the precipitous rocks crowned by the Russian fortress of Derbend. The road which proceeds through this pass, leading from the town of Kislyar to that of Bakou, is connected by a third, which joins Yekaterinogradskaya and Kislyar with the great Georgian road. The communication between the forts on the coasts of the Black and Caspian Seas is maintained by means of steam ships and small war vessels named Barkasses, which are propelled either by sails or oars.

Although a great number of mountain streams have their origin in the Caucasus, most of them are only insignificant tributaries by which the principal rivers are fed. The Kur, anciently the Cyrus, which takes its rise in the mountains of Kars, and directs its course through the middle of Georgia to the Caspian Sea, is the largest of the Transcaucasian rivers. From the northern declivity of the Caucasian range, the Terek, rising at the foot of Mount Kasbek, and rushing through the pass of Dariel, proceeds to the same destination. The Koubia which has its origin in the marshes on the north-western declivity of the Elburz, after sending two branches to the Sea of Azof, falls into the Black Sea. Along the Koubia, the Malka, and the Terek, is that great line of forts and Cossack stations extending almost without interruption from the Caspian to the Black Sea. The climate of the Caucasian countries, although generally speaking salubrious, is very various. The mountain tops covered with snow may be seen from valleys, gardens, and orchards, in which the most beautiful flowers and the richest fruits are growing. Into some districts, such as Imeritia and the neighbourhood of Derbend, the stranger who is unaccustomed to the peculiar nature of the climate cannot enter without great risk. The natives of the districts bordering upon the Black and Caspian Seas frequently suffer from severe fevers caused by their exposure to the pestilential exhalations rising from their marshy banks, and the unhealthy sea winds and mists which often prevail. Georgia, Mingrelia, Abasia, and the north of Daghestan, are all said to possess an excellent climate. In many parts the inhabitants of the plains are compelled to take refuge in the mountains during the heat of summer, while the mountaineers during the severity of winter descend with their flocks to the valleys. The vegetation of these regions, which differs in no respect from that usually seen in the two temperate zones, is at once various and abundant. Immense forests of pine and fir, often reaching an elevation of nearly 8000 feet, crown the mountain heights. The declivities and valleys are distributed into orchards, vineyards, corn fields, and pastures in rich variety. Grapes, chestnuts, figs, peaches, as well as grain of every description, rice, cotton, hemp, &c., grow in great abundance all over the country. The fruit trees generally attain a height and thickness which astonish the traveller from the most fertile regions of Europe. Among the natural productions of the Caucasus may be mentioned nitrate of potass, mineral pitch, and the hot sulphur springs which are found in different parts of it. The Ghebers, or fire worshippers, still perform the ceremonies of their faith in presence of the "eternal fires," which burn on the peninsula of Apsheron. These fires are not produced, as described in the works of earlier travellers, by the naphtha with which the soil is impregnated, but, according to M. Eichwald of Wilna, "by hydrogen gas (probably carburetted hydrogen) which rises through cracks and openings of the calcareous rocks, and on the approach of a flame takes fire, and continues to burn. It never takes fire spontaneously, nor by the approach of red coal, if not burning with flame. The gas, as it escapes from the rock, is without smell—is not sensibly warm—and on being respired does not occasion any disagreeable feeling. It burns with a yellowish-white flame, and forms with atmospheric air an exploding gas." The Caucasian territory, which nominally forms one of the provinces of Russia, is bounded on the north by the rivers Kouban and Kouna, on the south by the Araxes, on the west by the Black Sea, and on the east by the Caspian Sea. It formerly consisted of the provinces of Georgia, Imeritia, Mingrelia, Circassia, Daghestan, Shirvan, and Caucasia. Its two principal divisions at present under the Russian government are the Caucasian province, of which Stavropol is the capital, and Transcaucasia, in which the principal city is Tiflis, the capital of Georgia. By an imperial ukase issued in the year 1846, Transcaucasia was further divided for the administration of its affairs into four governments of Derbend, Shemaka, Kutaisi, and Tiflis. The principal tribes inhabiting the Caucasus are the Georgians, Imeritians, and Mingrelians of the race of Kartvel, the Misidbeghi or Kists, the Lesghians, the Turks or Tatars, the Armenians, the Abasians, the Tscherkessi or Circassians, called by themselves Adighé, the Kabardians, and the Ossetes, besides a great number of Jewish and Cossack settlers. Several of the tribes, particularly the Circassians, Georgians, and Imeritians, are accounted the handsomest people in the world, the men being generally tall and powerful, the women slender and graceful, and both having regular features and expressive eyes. The Lesghians who inhabit a great portion of Daghestan or the mountain land, are one of the most warlike, chivalrous, and independent of the Caucasian races. The Svanians, who possess one of the loftiest inhabited valleys of the range, are remarkable for their physical strength and agility. The Mingrelians are said to be the descendants of the ancient Colchians. The Abasians and Ossetes are described as the rudest of the mountain tribes. With dark complexions and irregular features, the former have generally a very repulsive expression of countenance, emblematic of their moral and social inferiority. All the inhabitants of these countries are exceedingly fond of adorning their persons; and the traveller is often struck by the appearance of a splendidly equipped cavalier issuing from a cottage of the most miserable description. The Circassian and Georgian females are much sought after by the eastern princes, to whom they are sold even by their fathers and brothers. Most travellers assert that, with the exception of those parts of the country in which the principal races dwell, it is utterly impossible to determine the territorial boundaries of the Caucasian tribes. The state of religion amongst them is equally unsettled and perplexing. Many profess Christianity in a form which retains few or none of its distinctive principles, others are bigoted Mohammedans, and the remainder idolaters. The nobles sometimes profess one form of religion, and the great body of the people another. Many of the old Christian temples, which remain to this day in several districts, contain at the same time the emblems of Christianity in the images of the Virgin and the saints, of Mohammedanism in inscriptions from the Koran, and of idolatry in the idols to whom they bow.

The trade and commerce of the Caucasian provinces are mostly in the hands of the Armenians, who inhabit the various districts of the country, but particularly that of Derbend on the shores of the Caspian. The inhabitants of Daghestan, so celebrated for its warlike and independent tribes, are also very enterprising in their commercial undertakings. In addition to weapons of various kinds, in the manufacture of which they excel, they produce cloth, silk, and beautiful silver work. The Abasians dispose of considerable quantities of a peculiar kind of honey, which, from its intoxicating influence, the Mohammedans are said to use instead of wine. Saltpetre is produced in a very curious manner in Suanethi. A portion of land which has been protected against the influence of snow or rain is covered on the approach of frost with great quantities of it. The inhabitants of this district also dig from the lower regions of Mount Elburz considerable quantities of sulphur, from which they produce gunpowder for sale among the neighbouring tribes. In the valleys of the Kur, the Phasis, the Alasau, and the Yora, the vine is cultivated with much success. The wine of Kakhetic, which is said to resemble that of Burgundy, is particularly celebrated for its excellence. In some of the Russian provinces the mulberry tree and the cotton plant are cultivated with great profit. The sugar-cane has been successfully introduced into the khanate of Talisch. Madder, saffron, rice, millet, barley, Indian corn, wheat, and tobacco, are among the principal articles of export.

The nations of the Caucasus, whose history has been regarded with the deepest interest in modern times, are the Lesghians and Circassians. The Lesghians inhabit the greatest part of Daghestan, which is bounded on the east by a chain of mountains running parallel with the coast of the Caspian, and penetrated in every direction by lofty and rugged spurs from the main chain. The Circassians occupy the mountain territory extending between the river Kouban and the Black Sea. The attempted conquest of these provinces, to which the Russians can lay no claim except that of the stronger over the weaker, has already cost them an immense amount of blood and treasure. Especially during the year 1829, when by the treaty of Adrianople the Turks delivered up to the Muscovites a region over which they never possessed any sovereignty, the Circassians have been completely baffled in all their attempts to establish the authority of the czar. The Russians have had to encounter immense difficulties, to traverse dangerous passes, to burn down forests, and to sacrifice immense numbers of lives, in order to gain small portions of territory. The war was for a long time chiefly maintained by the Circassians under their native chiefs; and no sooner did their exertions relax in consequence of the exhaustion caused by a long-continued contest, than a new enemy to Russia arose on the shores of the Caspian. Schamyl, the most devoted follower of the heroic chief Melik, placed himself, on the death of that chief, at the head of the Lesghians. At once the prophet and the leader of his race, by his enthusiasm and prowess, he soon gained the confidence of the tribes, and prevailed upon them to follow a united and determined plan of action under his authority. His influence was daily increased, not only by the victories which he gained, but by the successful manner in which he frequently delivered himself and his followers from the most imminent dangers. His own escape from the rocky fortress of Achulko, where he was completely invested by the forces of General Grabbe, appeared both to his own countrymen and the enemy almost miraculous. In the year 1840 he even ventured to storm many of the Russian forts in the vicinity of the Black Sea; and although unable to retain them in his possession, secured an immense quantity of gunpowder and other munitions. The great exertions which were made by the Russians in the following year to reduce the tribes yet unsubdued, and those which had risen since that time, were completely defeated by his indefatigable activity and bravery. In the year 1842, when the mountain tribes were filled with the greatest alarm in consequence of the advance of General Grabbe, that formidable enemy was completely defeated by Schamyl in the woods of Itchkeri. The Circassians, after again renewing their attacks upon the Russians in the neighbourhood of the Black Sea, were ultimately driven back to their fastnesses; but Schamyl still continued to maintain his position on the Caspian, and inflicted severe losses upon the armies of the enemy. The Russians were evidently at a loss how to proceed against a chief who had baffled all their schemes, who had been a prisoner in their hands, whose rocky home had been frequently in their possession, who had incurred the most imminent dangers and been driven to the greatest emergencies, and who was still opposing them with unceasing resolution, watching the progress of their troops, cutting off their supplies, and harassing them by constant attacks. Various Russian generals were sent in succession to the Caucasus, new plans of action, defensive and offensive, were tried, but all without effecting any permanent conquest. In the year 1850 the Czarowitch made a progress to Tiflis, and was attacked on his journey by the soldiers of Schamyl in the immediate vicinity of some of the Russian forts. The armies of the czar may occasionally, with the sacrifice of a great number of lives, effect a march over the mountains, but no permanent conquest is achieved. With all the exertions of many years, their real authority is still confined to Georgia, the plains, and the immediate neighbourhood of the forts, which have been strongly erected all over the country. Georgia has now been subject to the civil and military government of Russia for more than half a century, and the result has not been at all favourable to that country. In most other parts of the Caucasian territory, the period during which the Russians have been connected with them has been one of almost ceaseless war, in which little progress can have been made in the civilization of the people. With that indomitable spirit of independence which most of the Caucasian tribes have displayed, it is scarcely to be expected that they will ever cultivate the arts of peace under the domination of the Russians, or while the Russian troops remain in possession of any portion of their country. Many of the inhabitants are inclined to commercial pursuits; and if they were not disturbed by the alarms of hostile invaders, commerce would do more to advance the general cultivation of the people than its conquest by a nation which is itself only half civilized.

It is very difficult, in the absence of all satisfactory statistical returns, to ascertain the exact amount of the population of the Caucasus. Those who have a lasting residence in the country have been enabled to form the most correct estimate, are of opinion that it cannot be less than one million or even millions and a half. This number includes only the male portion of the population, the statement of the amount of the female portion being given in the Russian returns. The various principal races may be calculated in the following proportions:

- Tribes of the race of Kartvel: 300,000 - Armenians: 135,000 - Turkish and Persian tribes: 350,000 - Lezghians: 350,000 - Abazians and Circassians: 150,000

Total: 1,235,000

Little doubt can be entertained but that the Kists, Ossetes, and other tribes, the number of whose inhabitants cannot be certainly determined, will raise the population of the Caucasus to the amount stated.