Katorga (ка́торга, from medieval Greek: katergon,κάτεργον galley) was a system of penal servitude of the prison farm type in Imperial Russia. Prisoners were sent to remote camps in vast uninhabited areas of Siberia—where voluntary labourers were never available in satisfactory numbers—and forced to perform hard labour. Katorga began in the 17th century, and was taken over b… (More on Katorga)