Under Catherine, this entire region, along with Crimea, was called Taurida. It was conquered from the Turks and the Crimean horde (which at that time was still called that – the last echo of the great Golden Horde) by the most brilliant Prince Potemkin (for this service, he received the addition to his surname – Taurichesky) together with Suvorov. And not only did he conquer it, but he also developed it, created many cities (by the way, the southeast of Ukraine at that time was a desolate, sparsely populated steppe), and essentially laid the foundation for the modern southeast of Ukraine. In doing so, he eliminated the real military threat not only to the entire Russian Empire but also, in particular, to Ukraine, which was the first to be in danger from Turkish and Tatar raids. Study history, not the hysteria of modern fascists.
Conquered?
Sincerely,
Gur
Хай Гурий Слесарь