Grigory Zass

Originally from Westphalia's German nobility, he rose through the ranks of the Russian army, particularly during the Battle of Leipzig. He was transferred to the Novgorod division in 1820. During the Russo-Turkish War, he fought against the Turks. In a 1832 battle against the Chechens, he was severely wounded while attempting to burn a village and consequentially promoted to colonel.

Zass considered Circassians to be subhumans inferior to the "European Race", particularly Germans and Russians. Russians and other Europeans.[13][9][8][7][4][6] The only way to deal with the Circassians, in his opinion, was to scare them away "just like wild animals."

Zass advocated ruthless military methods predicated on this notion, including burning people alive, cutting off heads for enjoyment, burning populated villages to the ground, spreading epidemics on purpose, and mass rape of children.[3][14] He was alleged to have said that, "By all means necessary, our Russia aims to conquer the Caucasus. With these creatures, Circassians as our enemies, how else are we meant to defeat them if not by instilling dread and causing a thunderstorm? Good deeds aren't welcome here. In the highlands, our blessed names are still uttered, scaring tiny children."

In 1833, at the height of the Russo-Circassian War, he was appointed as chief commander and given full authority.[3] In August, he led the first expedition into Circassian territory, destroying as many villages and towns as possible. This was followed by a series of other expeditions. He attacked the Besleney region between November and December, destroying most villages, including the village of the double agent Aytech Qanoqo.

Zass spent a significant amount of money on espionage. During attacks on Circassian land, he never forgot about reconnaissance tasks: his men thoroughly investigated all wooden beams that could serve as enemy shelter, demolished farms, and killed farmers so the enemy wouldn't be able to get food. He made a list of all the Circassians he personally killed.

He continued to exterminate the Circassian population between 1834 and 1835, particularly in the Abdzakh, Besleney, Shapsug, and Kabardian regions. In 1835, he was promoted.

Zass' main strategy was to intercept and retain the initiative, terrorize the Circassians, and destroy Circassian settlements. After a victory, he would usually burn several villages and seize cattle and horses to show off, acts which he proudly admitted. He paid close attention to the enemy's morale. In his reports, he frequently boasted about the destruction of villages and glorified the mass murder of civilians.[15]

Zass loved spreading rumors about himself by exploiting Circassian tribal superstitions. Using various tricks and cutting-edge technology, he was able to convince and deceive the Circassians into thinking that he had various magical abilities, including being bulletproof and able to turn gunpowder into gold. He was known as a magical man who could do anything he wanted to do. As a result, when he attacked, the Circassians believed they had no chance and suffered a significant loss of morale; knowing Zass's cruel methods, they mostly attempted to save their lives rather than fighting for honor and going up against Adyghe Xabze.

On 18 August, the Russian army burned the residency of Hajji Tlam, a Circassian elder from the Abdzakh region, and killed his family. As revenge, Circassian commander Jembulat Boletoqo made plans for a new campaign. General Zass sent Circassian commander Jembulat Boletoqo word in October 1836 that he wanted to make peace. Boletoqo  knew that he would be slain if he went, but he also knew that if he did not go, the Russians would accuse him of being a warmonger. He chose, reportedly, honor over life and decided to go.[16]

Boletoqo visited Zass at his residence. For his initial visit, Zass was not present. Zass wrote him a letter and instructed him to come on a specific date when he would undoubtedly be in his residency. At the said date, Boletoqo was killed on non-warzone territory while on his way to the Prochnyi Okop fortress by a Russian sniper employed by Zass who was hiding in the forest on the Russian bank of the Kuban River at the intersection with the Urup River.[17] After this, in 1836, Zass was promoted again.

General Zass' main headquarters was in the Prochnyi Okop fortress. Ajgeri Kusikupsh, Shogen Shumaf and Khirtsizhiqo Ale of the Circassian army raided this base and kidnapped General Zass' daughter. They adopted the young girl as their own and taught her Circassian language and traditions. After three years, they sent Zass a letter in which they informed him that they were returning his daughter and agreed on the location and terms of delivery.[15][18][19]

Circassian negotiators arrived on time and took the girl off the horse, dressed in a Circassian dress, and handed her over to her father. General Zass immediately wanted to order his army to kill all Circassians after receiving his daughter; however, the girl talked her father down, and both parties returned to their bases.[15][18][19]

Repordetly, when Kusikupsh handed the girl over to her father, he said to General Zass, "The objective of this action was to make you understand the grief of fathers and mothers whose daughters were stolen or murdered by you through your own daughter. When the girl stayed with us, we would not fight you. But we'll be enemies again from now on".[15][18][19]

In 1838, Zass spread false rumors about his serious illness, then staged his own death, weakening the Circassians' vigilance. On the same night, when the Circassians were celebrating their oppressor's death, the suddenly "resurrected" Zass launched a raid that destroyed two villages.

Between 1840 and 1841, he burned his last villages and built Russian villages on top of them. He left the Caucasus in 1842.

Colonel Grigory Zass was a key figure in the Circassian genocide through ethnic cleansing, which included methods such as burning entire Circassian villages, deliberately causing epidemics, and entering villages and towns under a white flag and killing everyone.[7][1][8][20][9][13][5][6] It is estimated that 70% of the East Circassian population died in the process.[7][1]

In addition, it was recorded that Zass dismembered Circassian corpses, hid them as ornaments and sent them abroad to be used as test subjects.[7][4][13][5][6] Zass especially sent the severed Circassian heads to his fellow Germans in Berlin who were professors and used them to study anatomy.[21] He would pick random Circassian males from the towns he attacked and burn them alive as a form of entertainment. He didn't stop at burning women; he also cut the pregnant women's bellies with a bayonet.[15]

Zass with his thick mustache,

Is hanging the skulls of our men on sticks.

Our children in the wombs of mothers,

He stabs them out with a sword.

Children's bodies taken from the mother's womb,

They play with them on sticks.

The atrocities committed by the enemy,

Our new born generations should not forget.

— A Circassian elegy describing Zass

Zass is said to have washed and cooked Circassian heads' flesh before putting them under his bed in his tent. He also had Circassian heads impaled on lances on a hill near his tent. After the battle, Circassian corpses were beheaded and the heads were sent to Zass for collection.[22][23][24][25] Zass erected Circassian heads on poles outside of his tent and witnesses saw the wind blowing the beards of the heads.[26] In addition, Russian soldiers and Cossacks were paid for sending Circassian heads to General Zass.[27][28][29][30] He kept his personal collection of decapitated Circassian heads and body parts in a box under his bed.[15]

Besides cutting Circassian heads off and collecting them, Zass used a premeditated policy of annihilating Circassians in mass, burning entire Circassian towns with their inhabitants and inciting the abuse of Circassian women and children.[31][32] All Circassian elderly, women, and men were referred to as "bandits, "animals," "barbarians," "plunderers," or "thieves" by Zass' soldiers.[upper-roman 1]

Nikolai Yevdokimov and Grigory Zass allowed their officers and soldiers to rape 7 years and older Circassian girls.[upper-roman 2] Russians raped Circassian girls during the 1877 Russo-Turkish war from the Circassian refugees who were settled in the Ottoman Balkans.[33][34]

Zass worked with another German officer in the Russian army named Georg Andreas von Rosen during the genocide against the Circassians. Zass wrote letters to Rosen proudly admitting he ordered Cossacks to slaughter Circassian civilians.[35]

In the end of 1836, the Armenians of Circassia declared their allegiance for Russia and begged Zass to locate them a place to live. In 1839, Zass established an Armenian colony in the region that had previously belonged to the Circassians. To make room for the Armenians, Circassian villages and the people who lived in them were destroyed. This year is regarded the official year of Armavir's establishment.