Railway Construction in the North Caucasus in the second half of the XIX Century: from Idea to Implementation

Railways are one of the most important components of the modernization process of the Russian Empire in the XIX century. The development of decisions on the construction of railways took place in an atmosphere of discussions.
Ultimately, the supporters of the line for the development of railways prevailed, and from the second quarter of the XIX century the first public railways appeared. The development of a project for the development of a railway network in the country came to the fore by the 1850s. One of its most important components was the idea of building a railway to the Caucasus. This fertile region had no stable communication with the center of the empire for a long time. Thanks to the
Governor of the Caucasus, Grand Duke Mikhail Nikolaevich, the issue was submitted to the emperor for consideration.
The construction of a new railway started after a difficult preparatory stage. In 1875, traffic was opened on the RostovVladikavkaz railway, which later became the "engine of development" of the North Caucasus. Thanks to it, the central provinces gained access to the natural resources of the North Caucasus, including the resorts of the Caucasian mineral waters. The inclusion of the region into the system of the Russian market and the implementation of projects for the socio-cultural development of the North Caucasus have also begun.