Datochnye Liudi

Datochnye Liudi 

(persons having a lifelong military obligation). rural and urban dwellers who from the end of the 15th century to the 17th in Russia could be called on in wartime to do military service. They were also referred to as the pososhnaia rat’ (troops of the sokha, the basic tax-territorial unit of Muscovy). The duty itself was referred to as posokha. The datochnye liudi sometimes made up a large part of the army. During the 1563 campaign against Polotsk. the datochnye liudi numbered 80,000; and the three recruitments of 1658–60 yielded 70,000–80,000. In the middle of the 17th century, the datochnye liudi began to be included in the regiments of the new formations—the dragoon and soldier regiments. With the introduction of recruit conscription in 1705, the practice of calling datochnye liudi to military service was abolished.