 The Border service numbers around 170,000 active members, which includes the Russian maritime border guard units (i.e., the coast guard).One can trace the origin of the Russian border service to 1571 and the work of Prince Mikhail Vorotynsky (died 1573) and his Great Abatis Border built along the southern boundaries of the Tsardom of Russia in the 16th century.In 1782 the Empress Catherine II of Russia established Border Customs Guard units, originally manned by Russian Cossacks as well as by low-ranking cavalry troops.