Annexation of the Crimean Khanate by the Russian Empire
The territory of Crimea, previously controlled by the Crimean Khanate, was annexed by the Russian Empire on 19 April [O.S. 8 April] 1783. The period before the annexation was marked by Russian interference in Crimean affairs, a series of revolts by Crimean Tatars, and Ottoman ambivalence. The annexation began 134 years of rule by the Russian Empire, which was ended by the revolution of 1917. The annexation resulted in the end of the Crimean slave trade, which had been one of the major slave trades from Europe for centuries.
Painting by Ivan Aivazovsky: Arrival of Catherine II in Feodosia | |
| Date | 19 April [O.S. 8 April] 1783 |
|---|---|
| Location | Crimea |
| Outcome | Crimean Khanate annexed by Russian Empire |
After changing hands several times during the Russian Civil War, Bolshevik rule was established in Crimea in 1921, with the peninsula becoming part of the Russian SFSR and then USSR a year later. In 1954, it was transferred to the Ukrainian SSR, which became the independent Ukraine in 1991 after the collapse of the Soviet Union. The Russian Federation annexed Crimea in March 2014, though that annexation is not recognised internationally.