Drawing of a 17th century Cossack.
Cossacks (Ukrainian: козаки́, kozaky, Russian: казаки́, tr. kazaki; IPA: [kəzɐˈkʲi]) are a group of predominantly East Slavic people who originally were members of democratic, semi-military communities in Ukraine and Southern Russia. They inhabited sparsely populated areas and islands in the lower Dnieper and Don basins, and played an important role in the historical development of both Ukraine and Russia.
The origins of the first Cossacks are disputed. Traditional historiography dates the emergence of Cossacks to the 14th to 15th centuries.
Cossacks in 1632[]
The Cossacks mostly live in Eastern Europe inhabiting the countries of Russia, Poland and the Crimean Khanate
Wallenstein is recruiting Cossacks to his cause of conquering the southern parts of Poland