[h=1]History of Crimea[/h] From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The
Crimean Peninsula, historically known as
Tauris or
Tauric Chersonese (Χερσόνησος Ταυρική "Tauric Peninsula"), enters the historical record in about the 5th century BC when several
Greek colonies were established along its coast. The peninsula since that time has endured a long history of conquests and invasions; by the early medieval period it had been settled by
Scythians (Scytho-
Cimmerians,
Tauri),
Greeks,
Romans,
Goths,
Huns,
Bulgars,
Kipchaks and
Khazars.
In the medieval period, it was acquired partly by
Kievan Rus' and partly by
Byzantium, but fell to the
Mongol invasions as part of the
Golden Horde. In the 13th century, it was partly controlled by the
Venetians and by the
Genovese. They were followed by the
Crimean Khanate and the
Ottoman Empire in the 15th to 18th centuries.
The modern history of Crimea begins with the annexation by the
Russian Empire in 1783. In 1921 the
Crimean Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic was created. This republic was dissolved in 1945, and the Crimea became
a province first of the
Russian SSR (1945-1954) and then the
Ukrainian SSR (1954-1991). Since 1991 it has had the status of an
Autonomous Republic within
Ukraine until its annexation by the
Russian Federation in the
2014 Crimean Crisis.