Imam Shamil
| Imam Shamil | |
|---|---|
Shamil in 1859 | |
| Imam of Dagestan | |
| Reign | September 24, 1834 — August 25, 1859 |
| Predecessor | Hamzat Bek |
| Successor | Overthrown by the Russian Empire |
| Imam of Chechnya | |
| Reign | March 8, 1840 — August 25, 1859 |
| Predecessor | Tashaw-Hadji |
| Successor | Overthrown by the Russian Empire |
| Imam of Circassia | |
| Reign | Late 1848 — August 25, 1859 |
| Predecessor | Sheikh Mansur |
| Successor | Office abolished |
| Born | 26 June 1797 Gimry, Dagestan, Avar Nutsaldom |
| Died | 4 February 1871 (aged 73) Medina, Habesh Eyalet, Ottoman Empire |
| Burial | Jannatul Baqi, Medina |
| Father | Dengau |
| Religion | Sunni Islam |
| Signature | |
Imam Shamil (26 June 1797 – 4 February 1871) was the third Imam of the Caucasian Imamate (1840–1859), and a Muslim sheikh of the Naqshbandi Sufi order. Nicknamed the "Caucasian Eagle", he was the political, military, and spiritual leader of North Caucasian resistance to Imperial Russia in the 1800s; his rule was recognized in Dagestan and Chechnya, and indirectly through his representative Muhammad Amin, in Circassia. He is considered a hero by peoples of the Northern Caucasus.