Abstract:

In the beginning of the XIX century the Russian Empire started the colonization politics in the Caucasus, which is vividly described in the works of various European travelers. In the XIX century many of the European travelers visited Georgia and they left important references related to the local population, their social, political and cultural life of the country. One of the most significant European travelers is Moritz Wagner, who traveled in Black Sea Region in 1843-1846. The works of the European travelers is not included in the educational literature and curriculum, which from my point of view is a significant deficiency. Their works by the time included significant information about the colonial politics of Russian Empire of that time towards the sovereign country of Georgia. Russia still proceeds with politics of conquest started in the XIX century. Starting from 1990s up till now, Russia’s imperialistic and hindering politics has become clear towards the countries in the South Caucasus and their European aspirations.

The paper intends to fill the gap in the educational space of the 1st half of the XIX century according to findings in the works of the German traveler Moritz Wagner. As a result of the research, we analyzed and studied the topics that are still undefined, such as:
• Russo-Georgian relations and the colonial Politics of Russia in the Caucasus in particular, and in general the analysis of the essence of Russian Politics in the Region according to Moritz Wagner;
• The attitude of the Georgian Population towards the Russian occupation of the country;
• Russia’s hindering politics towards the countries of the South Caucasus in terms of the relations with the European countries;
• The idea of Russian Court to establish a capital of Transcaucasia in Gori, whereas its territorial closeness would enable them to better exercise the Russian politics in the South Caucasus;

From my point of view, the elaboration and incorporation of the findings of the research in the works of Moritz Wagner in the education literature and curriculum is rather necessary, especially, in the wake of reforms in the educational sector, where a revised educational literature and curriculum are introduced there, is a clear need of incorporation of these topics in the teaching/Learning materials, in particular:
• History courses that deal with the Russo-Georgian relations;
• Russia’s imperial politics in the Caucasus;
• The rethinking of the Russo-Georgian relations according to the works of the foreign traveler, which will enable the society to see that the current situation in Georgia and in the South Caucasus follows Russia’s aims;

Keywords:

Georgia, Russia, Caucasus, Education, Education reforms, Politics, Russo-Georgian Relations.