| Summary: | A number of Soviet and post-Soviet historians, following their predecessors since N.M. Karamzin and proceeding from the Stroganovsky Chronicle, developed in the 1630s, share the view that the participants of “Yermak’s Seizure” of Siberia involved several hundreds of foreigners, who served the Stroganovs. This version, seriously challenged by some scholars, for instance, by R.G. Skrynnikov, should be refuted as it contradicts the evidence from other sources, especially the early ones that date back to the late 16th century, alongside with some implicit facts. It appears to have originated from the desire of the famous Kama salt industry merchants to emphasize the role of their ancestors in the Russian accession of Siberia, though their involvement had never been reflected in the Russian official chronicles.
A number of scholars side with the opinion that Yermak became the ruler (bek) of the Siberian Khanate following the battle at the Chuvashev Mys and the seizure of the town of Siberia (Kashlyk) by the Cossacks that put Kuchum to flight. This assumption seems to be unfounded. According to the Cossack tradition, throughout the raid into Siberia, all the decisions were made collectively, never by the chief ataman alone. Kuchum’s forces in autumn of 1582 were not defeated once and for all, and when Yermak was killed in a skirmish with the Tatars at the Vagay mouth in summer of 1584, his authority was not firmly established within the Siberian territories. Yermak notified Ivan IV, seemingly via the Stroganovs, of the victory over the khan, thus accepting the rule of Muscovy, its support was vital for him to hold the newly acquired territories. To assist him, the czar sent a detachment headed by Prince S.D. Bolkhovsky, and when the latter died of starvation in winter of 1584–1585, the Cossacks subsequently abandoned Kashlyk to join the troops of voivode I.V. Glukhov.
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