Abkhazia under the pen of Fjodor Tornau

For the first time, regarding the pages of Fjodor Tornau’s “Memories of a Caucasian Officer” dedicated to Abkhazia, scientific criticism of the text was undertaken, typos and mistakes made in the first edition and repeated in all subsequent ones were revealed. The writer’s artistic talent determined Fjodor Tornau’s contribution to the development of the Caucasian theme, one of the constant in Russian literature of the 19th century. The Abkhazian pages of “Memories...” vividly recreate the national life of the mountaineers, far from European civilisation, in all the fullness of their traditional life; many pages are devoted to the genuine nature of the Caucasus, whose paintings were so attractive to romantics. Meanwhile, the memoirist reveals himself to be a truly military man, a knowledgeable officer, whose view of the world around him is distinguished by sober and clear assessments. In a relaxed and fascinating narrative form, the author reveals to the reader the beauty of the Caucasian nature, and the exploits of his colleagues, and the customs of the highlanders, creating a unique synthesis in which, on the one hand, the mortal dangers of the military life of an officer of the Russian army are indissoluble, and on the other, the tremulous, grateful attitude to this God-given life.