Abstract
This is a microhistory of the decision making leading to the conquest of Kuldja (Ghulja) by the Russian troops in 1871–1881. Svetlana Gorshenina deconstructs different understandings of the theory of a “natural border” that influenced the changing opinions of the Petersburg military and diplomatic elites, colonial administrators of Turkestan and Central Asia, and military commanders on the ground. The article presents a nuanced and multilayered picture of the discursive reality behind the conquest of Kuldja, thus explicating a complex mechanism of interaction of the metropole and peripheral actors, the role of local versus universal knowledge, and the influence of diplomatic considerations vis-à-vis Europe and China. The study is based on archival documents assembled in the course of 1901–1905 by the military engineer, lieutenant colonel Andrian Serebrennikov, for the Collection of Materials for a History of the Conquest of the Turkestan Region . The Kuldja-related documents of the collection remained unpublished and are now preserved in the Central State Archive of the Republic of Uzbekistan.
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
