The Russian Conquest of Central Asia: A Study in Imperial Expansion, 1814-1914

摘要

This book tells the story of how 'Central Asia became Russian' (p. 1). Ten substantive chapters explore the long-term process of Russia's conquest of Central Asia, from the first decisive steps in the disastrous winter invasion of Khiva in 1839, through to reaching into the 'final frontiers' and the annexation of the Pamirs in 1905. The author, Alexander Morrison, a fellow and tutor in history at New College, University of Oxford, makes excellent use of being part of a wider Central Asian studies community, delving into a rich range of sources in Russian, English, French, Persian and Central Asian languages. This allows him both to reflect with nuance on the chains of causation and decision-making in these Russian campaigns and to reintroduce the agency of local actors. As he says, because of the variety and complexity of the campaigns, the conquest of the region deserves study 'in its own right, not as an incidental outcome of the great power politics of the nineteenth century, or a minor appendage to the history of the Russian Empire' (p. 5).