Highly skilled cavalrymen with a strong independent streak, Russia's Cossacks are an interesting people with a rich history. Initially swearing allegiance to no one, they nonetheless had a profound impact on Russian, Polish and Ukrainian history. For centuries, the Cossacks formed a military society and organized themselves into nations called "Hosts." Raiders and pirates, their pursuit of plunder either caused or contributed to several military conflicts between Poland, Russia and the Ottoman Empire. Yet, their independence and adherence to the "Cossack traditions" (kind of like the Pirates' Code for Cossacks) has made them the stuff of legend. Get a Russian visa, and you can tour part of the historic homeland of the Black Sea Cossack Host in South Russia. There are two main sites

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