New Bukhara: An 'Island' of Russia in Central Asia

Abstract

This paper is devoted to the characteristics of the city of New Bukhara, the “capital” of the Russian settlements in the Bukharan Emirate. It was originally established as a station on the Trans-Caspian railway but soon transformed into the Russian business and cultural center in the Emirate. It had specific status being a Russian enclave in the Bukharan Emirate which was de jure an independent state. However, the information on this city is contradictory. Some visitors stated in their notes and memoirs that it was a large city with well-developed infrastructure, others characterized it as a little settlement, “a poky hole” without any common features with towns of Russia and Europe. According to other materials New Bukhara was the real administrative center of Russian settlements in the Bukharan Emirate, while others state that it was only the residence of the Russian diplomatic representative in the Emirate. The author analyzes legal documents, other official information, notes from travelers and another contemporaries to establish a view on the real New Bukhara, to answer the question on status of New Bukhara in the Bukharan Emirate and in the Russian Empire.