Great Game Research Articles

Metamodern Enthusiasm and Neoromanticism in BBC's Sherlock

The Journal of Popular CultureEarly View Original Article Metamodern Enthusiasm and Neoromanticism in BBC's Sherlock Pouria Torkamaneh, Corresponding Author Pouria Torkamaneh [email protected] orcid.org/0000-0001-7195-9575 Search for more papers by this author Pouria Torkamaneh, Corresponding Author Pouria Torkamaneh [email protected] orcid.org/0000-0001-7195-9575 Search for more papers by this author First published: 19 June 2023 https://doi.org/10.1111/jpcu.13211Read the full textAboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Works Cited Abramson, Seth. “What is Metamodernism.” Huffpost, 9 Jan. 2017, https://www.huffpost.com/entry/what-ismetamodernism_b_586e7075e4b0a5e600a788cd/ Adams, Rachel. “The Ends of America, the Ends of Postmodernism.” Twentieth-Century Literature, vol. 53, no. 3, 2007, pp. 248– 72. Ader, Bas Jan. In Search of the Miraculous. Claire Copley Gallery, Los Angles, 1975. “ A Scandal in Belgravia.” Sherlock, written by Steven Moffat, directed by Paul McGuigan, BBC One, 2012. Basu, Balaka. “ Sherlock and the (Re)Invention of Modernity.” Sherlock and Transmedia Fandom, edited by Louisa Ellen Stein, and Kristina Busse, McFarland and Company, 2012, pp. 196– 209. Berlin, Isaiah. The Roots of Romanticism, edited by Henry Hardy, Princeton UP, 2001. Blue Velvet. Directed by David Lynch, De Laurentiis Entertainment Group, 1986. Broken Fall (Geometric). Directed by Bas Jan Ader, 1971, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=liMCML6hGbg Doyle, Arthur Conan. The Works of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle Complete and Unabridged. Longmeadow Press, 1984. Gatiss, Mark, Steven Moffat, and Stephen Thompson, creators. Sherlock. BBC, 2010–2017. “ The Great Game.” Sherlock, written by Mark Gatiss, directed by Paul McGuigan, BBC One, 2010. “ His Last Vow.” Sherlock, written by Steven Moffat, directed by Nick Hurran, BBC One, 2014. Hutcheon, Linda. The Politics of Postmodernism. Routledge, 2004. Jameson, Fredric. Postmodernism, or the Cultural Logic of Late Capitalism. Duke UP, 1991. Jencson, Linda. “ Chosen Families, TV and Tradition: Queering Relations in the BBC's Sherlock.” Who Is Sherlock? Essays on Identity in Modern Holmes Adaptations, edited by Lynnette Porter, McFarland and Company, 2016, pp. 140– 55. Kirby, Alan. Digimodernism: How New Technologies Dismantle the Postmodern and Reconfigure Our Culture. Continuum, 2009. “ The Lying Detective.” Sherlock, written by Steven Moffat, directed by Nick Hurran, BBC One, 2017. Mayshark, Jesse Fox. Post-Pop Cinema: The Search for Meaning in New American Film. Praeger, 2007. MacDowell, James. “ The Metamodern, the Quirky and Film Criticism.” Metamodernism: Historicity, Affect, and Depth after Postmodernism, edited by Robin Akker, Alison Gibbons, and Timotheus Vermeulen, Roman and Littlefield International, 2017, pp. 25– 40. McClellan, Ann. “ ‘All that Matters Is the Work’: Text and Adaptation in Sherlock.” Sherlock Holmes in Context, edited by Sam Naidu, Palgrave Macmillan, 2017, pp. 7– 38. McGowan, John. “From Pater to Wilde to Joyce: Modernist Epiphany and the Soulful Self.” Texas Studies in Literature and Language, vol. 32, no. 3, 1990, pp. 417– 45. Porter, Lynnette. “ Modernizing Victorian Sherlock Holmes for Mr. Holmes and the BBC's Sherlock Special.” Who Is Sherlock? Essays on Identity in Modern Holmes Adaptations, edited by Lynnette Porter, McFarland and Company, 2016, pp. 18– 32. “ The Reichenbach Fall.” Sherlock, written by Stephen Thompson, directed by Toby Haynes, BBC One, 2012. Rubsamen, Glenn. I've Decided To Say Nothing. 2006, Robert Miller Gallery, New York. Schlegel, Friedrich. Friedrich Schlegel's Lucinde and the Fragments. Translated by Peter Firchow, U of Minnesota P, 1971. Sidore, David. “ ‘Spectacularly Ignorant’: The Conflicted Representation of Genius.” Genius on Television: Essays on Small Screen Depictions of Big Minds, edited by Ashley Lynn Carlson, McFarland and Company, 2015, pp. 12– 31. “ The Six Thatchers.” Sherlock, written by Mark Gatiss, directed by Rachel Talalay, BBC One, 2017. Toth, Josh, and Neil Brooks. “ Introduction: A Wake and Renewed.” The Mourning After: Attending the Wake of Postmodernism, edited by Josh Toth, and Neil Brooks, Rodopi, 2007, pp. 1– 14. Van Gogh, Vincent. A Pair of Boots. The Baltimore Museum of Art, 1887. Vermeulen, Timotheus, and Robin van den Akker. “Notes on Metamodernism.” Journal of Aesthetics and Culture, vol. 2, no. 1, 2010, pp. 2– 14. Warhol, Andy. Diamond Dust Shoes. Museum Brandhorst, 1980. Early ViewOnline Version of Record before inclusion in an issue ReferencesRelatedInformation

Pakistan's Trade Opportunities and Challenges with CARs:

Pakistan, Turkmenistan, and Kazakhstan are struggling from lack of trade diversification and post COVID-19 economic woes. These issues can be addressed via regional cooperation and expansion into each other's markets. Pakistan’s new geo-economics ambition and efforts to reach out to Central Asian Republics (CARs) is gaining momentum, with Gwadar port being touted as the go to port for CARs. Pakistan has a lot to offer these countries in terms of being a reliable source of imports, as well as being the closest outlet for their ocean trade. Presently, issue of access via unstable Afghanistan remains a major challenge, which has been a regular point of academic discussion. However, there hasn't been much discourse on the challenges and opportunities that await Pakistan, once stability in Afghanistan is regained and physical access issues between CARs and Pakistan are resolved. This work employs limited quantitative analysis to examine trade potential and proposes practical solutions to barriers to trade that must be addressed if these countries wish to be more than pawns in the New Great Game.

Qajar Iran at the centre of British–Russian confrontation in the 1820s

Failure of negotiations between Qajar Iran and Russia on the delimitation of the border line, as well as the outbreak of hostilities on the borders of the two states, led to the second Russian–Iranian war in July 1826. The main object of Russian–Iranian dispute during this period was the South Caucasus. The article examines what led up to the second Russian–Iranian war (1826–1828) and the official position of the British Foreign Office on the eve of and during the war. The task of British diplomacy in Qajar Iran was to maintain the shaky barrier – the Qajar throne – between Russia and India. Unsuccessful wars with Russia had a major impact on the political situation in Qajar Iran. The ruling circles were forced to reckon with the fact of Iran’s transformation into a country that had become the object of rivalry between the colonial powers. From that moment on, Iran was involved in the ‘great game’ that soon unfolded between Russia and Britain in the Middle East. This article analyses foreign policy of Great Britain and Russian empire in this region by examining a considerable body of documents and sources.

Central Asia in Change amid the New Great Game

Central Asia in Change amid the New Great Game

Путешествие В. С. Голенищева в Египет осенью и зимой 1890–1891 гг. (новый архивный материал)

The publication presents a document preserved at the Archives of Vladimir Golenishchev in Paris (Centre Wladimir Golénischeff, École Pratique des Hautes Études). This is a report about the travel of the outstanding Russian Egyptologist Vladimir Golenishchev to Egypt that lasted from October 1890 to February 1891. It appears to be a preliminary version of a paper intended for submission to the Zapiski Vostochnogo otdeleniia Imperatorskogo Russkogo arkheologicheskogo obshchestva (Memoirs of the Oriental Department of the Imperial Russian Archaeological Society). The paper is kept in one file of red cardboard with pencil drafts, sketches and plans made by the Egyptologist during his travel. The report had not been published. It contains evidence about Golenishchev’s acquisitions for his collection (now at the Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts, Moscow; among the other things he purchased the papyri with the famous texts of Wenamun’s Voyage to Byblos and the Onomasticon of Amenemope), about the survey of archaeological monuments (most importantly, at the Kharga Oasis), about his new interpretations (the correct attribution of the so-called Hyksos sphinxes to Amenemhat III of Dynasty XII). Of special interest is the information about Golenishchev’s participation in the official reception in Egypt of the Russian heir apparent Nicholas Alexandrovich (future Emperor Nicholas II) and about some degree of tension between himself and the British officers in the Egyptian service, due to the contemporary confrontation of the Russian and the British Empire in the Great Game in the East.

The main directions of Turkey’s policy in Central Asia

Central Asia is strategically important for the security and stability of the EuroAtlantic region. The region’s energy resources are vital to global energy security and it is a major hub for oil and gas pipelines and trade corridors. This article provides an overview of Turkey’s bilateral and multilateral relations with the states of Central Asia since independence. The relevance of the article is due to the major political changes that are taking place in the states of Central Asia, and in the two largest of them, there is a change in political leadership. Despite the fact that the foreign policy of the Republic of Turkey in Central Asia over the past thirty years has had its ups and downs, it is considered indisputable that the country has managed to become one of the significant geopolitical players in the region through the strengthening of bilateral relations, as well as in the framework of multilateral cooperation. As the largest Turkic-speaking state, Turkey is considering the new “Turkic” states of the CAR from the point of view of creating a Turkic union under the auspices of Turkey – the “Great Turan” project. The idea of a Turkic union is one of the main priorities of the Turkish foreign policy strategy, which would allow it to strengthen its position in the international arena. Historical, cultural, linguistic, and religious identity with the countries of the Central Asian region, as well as in the context of R. Erdogan’s new foreign policy and a more active role in international relations, Turkey is becoming a new participant in the “Great Game”. In this sense, when analyzing the foreign policy of the Republic of Turkey in Central Asia in this article, this issue is studied both in bilateral and regional formats.

Features of the foreign policy of the Republic of Kazakhstan

The relevance of this study is related to the need to identify and assess the unique characteristics of the foreign policy of the Republic of Kazakhstan. In this regard, the purpose of this study was to provide a thorough analysis of the foreign policy activities of the Republic of Kazakhstan over the entire period of the country’s independence. The main approach to the study of this problem is the historical and systematic method of research, system analysis, comparison method, logical analysis, methods of synthesis and deduction, induction method, and classification method. The paper presents the findings of the conducted study: it describes the geographical prerequisites for the international relations formed by Kazakhstan with a view to creating the logistics links necessary for the national economy. The study proved the importance of the Central Asian region for global energy security and described the country’s role in the “New Great Game”, conducted a detailed analysis of the latest Concept of Foreign Policy of the Republic of Kazakhstan presented by K.-J. Tokayev. The study demonstrated Kazakhstan’s deep economic ties with China and Russia and identified the factors of Kazakhstan’s dependence on the two regional hegemons. The key events in the country’s foreign policy activities over the entire period of its independence were presented in a tabular form. The significance of this study is that it sheds light on the current state of Kazakhstan’s foreign policy as a leading state in the Central Asian region, which in the future allows predicting trends in the development of new alliances by Kazakhstan and its closest neighbours

Afghan Assessements of the Southern Turkmans Territories's State Affiliation during Russian-Afghan Demarcation 1884-1888

In the 1880s the northwestern part of the Russian-Afghan border was completely determined in defining which the parties faced significant contradictions. In St. Petersburg, an "ethnographic" principle of delimitation was developed. According to it in order to ensure the security of this frontier, it was important to unite the Turkmens under their rule, which meant the inclusion of the territory close to Herat into Russia. The strategic importance of this Afghan city in the context of the eventual campaign of Russian troops in India forced the British to counteract such a development of events in every possible way. As a result, they developed a "political" principle of demarcation, according to which London insisted that the Turkmen lands belong to Kabul. These disagreements are usually considered exclusively within the framework of the confrontation between Russia and Great Britain in this region (the Great Game). With such an approach, the role of the Afghans in this process has so far been ignored by researchers. The Dari-language source “Siraj at-Tawarikh” cites many documents showing that on the very start of the work on establishing the western part of the Russian-Afghan border in Kabul they considered the southern Turkmen lands an integral part of Afghanistan. Thus it can be concluded that the Afghans claimed rights to the disputed lands not under duress by the British but, on the contrary, the Afghan assessments of the state ownership of these territories formed the basis of the British negotiating position which allowed London to fight for moving the border as far north as possible from Herat.

Review. The end of the great game in Mongolia

Review. The end of the great game in Mongolia

Race, gender and religion: A postcolonial reading of Kipling's the light that failed and Kim

Rudyard Kipling cut across two culture, British and Indian and represented the face of the empire. This research paper aims at a study of Rudyard Kipling from Postcolonial perspective; how various tropes like race, class and gender have been treated in Kipling's novels will be discussed in the paper. The very theme of colonialism and nationalism has been focused upon and the researcher strives to show how Kipling has treated these issues, which are perhaps two faces of the same coin. This paper would also try to investigate how the theme of India has recurred frequently in various works of Rudyard Kipling and would like to make a study on the politics of Kiplingean representation of India. Another important theme in Kipling’s work is Victorian activism. The protagonists in several novels of Kipling represent this spirit. This paper would also focus on the dilemma that Kipling faced as an Anglo-Indian author, his penchant for India and his commitment towards the empire. The dilemma which has been faced by Kipling has been several times reflected in his characters. Kipling's misogyny is another issue which calls for a discussion. In Kim, we find Kipling created a masculine world in keeping with his obsession with the male machismo. The world of the Great Game was dominated by travel, trade and extraordinary adventures. Kipling's The Light that Failed also stinks of Kipling's misogyny. The researcher aims at investigating how the imperial mindset has influenced Kipling’s attitude towards women and how he has negotiated the gender issue in his works. The researcher has addressed the politics of race, gender and religion as delineated in Kipling’s two novels Kim and The Light that Failed.

지정학의 신사고와 그레이트 게임

Traditional geopolitics is a geopolitics of concentration based on nation states and military power. The competition for space has been a struggle in behalf of possession for good territory. Sovereign states have been a physical and legal violence historically. Geopolitics is an academic discipline of super powers only that have a dominant position in a global world. This means balance of power system among nations and it causes the murder of a human life and destruction of a human dignity in a real world. Globalization does need transformation of a traditional geopolitics because of its multi-level orders. This paper pursues to change from military power centered geopolitics with hard resources to human centered it with soft resources composed of economy, culture, thought, information, and intelligence technology. The era of new thinking on geopolitics is coming beyond geopolitics by violence and war. From perspective of upon geopolitics of intervention-diffusion and the more, the better space to human life can be formed via peaceful methods and devices. In this respect, the possibility of human centered global geopolitics is searched through reinterpretation process of great games as an ideal type.

Pakistan and Central Asian Relations in the Context of Global Politics

Central Asia and South-West Asia have become more important in world politics in recent years, especially when the Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan and after it left at the start of the US-Afghan war. In other words, the closing of the twentieth century and the beginning of the twenty-first century have developed multifaceted political environments in the region, which have involved Pakistan as well. Central Asia is the second largest energy reservoir of oil, gas, and hydrocarbons after the Persian Gulf and is the core region of the Asian continent, whereas Pakistan is located at the convergence of South Asia, Central Asia, and West Asia and provides the shortest access to warm water seas for all landlocked Central Asian states. Pakistan also acts as a junction of multiple corridors of economic cooperation between these three regions in the fields of energy, trade, transportation, and tourism. Pakistan will become an economic centre and spur interregional economic activity as a result of the communication and commercial links that connect South Asia, Central Asia, and West Asia. Most of the research available on Central Asia and Pakistan is focused either on the Great Game and internal instability of Central Asian states or on the historical linkage and cultural association of Pakistan with Central Asia, with a superficial discussion on regional trade between them. No research has been done on the geopolitical and economic position of Pakistan in Central Asia, and the instability in Afghanistan is also affecting the associations between Pakistan and Central Asian States. In this research paper, the emphasis has been laid on why geostrategic and economic relations between Pakistan and Central Asian states are significant. Certain other questions have also been answered, like: what is the geopolitical significance of Pakistan and the CARs in world politics? What are the divergent interests of local and international powers in Central Asia? And how has the conflict of interests among these actors hampered the economic development of Pakistan and the CARs? Descriptive and analytical research methodologies are used to probe into the phenomenon of global politics.

China’s emergence and development challenges that China faces in Central Asia

Development in Central Asia faces intensifying headwinds in various aspects. Terrorism and political instability have been the primary sources of concern for this chessboard of rivaling great powers. The US’s withdrawal from Afghanistan left a power vacuum, and the region’s future is further clouded by elevated uncertainty. The so-called ‘new Cold War’ discourse is becoming a self-fulfilling prophecy that contextualizes regional geopolitical maneuverings. These developments present a pressing need to evaluate development challenges in Central Asia in the context of China’s rising influence in the region through the Belt and Road Initiative and other regional frameworks, such as the Shanghai Cooperation Organization and China Pakistan Economic Corridor.This paper seeks to examine the shifting geopolitical and geoeconomic landscape in Central Asia in the context of global ideological confrontations and the regional Great Game between China and Russia. Drawing on think tank reports, English-language media reports, and scholarly works, it argues that China’s investment and development strategy in Central Asia can be improved by giving geopolitical and geoeconomic factors full consideration. The changing political dynamics in the region have significant implications for China’s engagement with Central Asian countries, its broader Belt and Road Initiative extending through Central Asia to Europe, and development challenges that transcend the dualistic categorization of development and security.

The Modern Gambit in the Eurasian Version of the “Great Game”

On the fields of the “Great Game” another party of confrontation between the two main world civilizations — maritime and continental, the successors and followers of the Anglo-Saxons (USA) against the Eurasian continental power (Russia) is unfolding. This is not the first batch and, alas, not the last. The confrontation originates from the struggle for control over the Mediterranean Sea in the distant 18th century between Russia and the British Empire, which started the “Great Game” with the Maltese party in September 1800. UK-British Empire-then USA vs. Russia-Russian Empire-Soviet Union-Russian Federation. In total more than 220 years. The game continues.Aim. The aim of the study is to solve the scientific problem of determining the national interests of Russia in the modern version of the “Great Game”.Tasks. To achieve the goal of the study, the following tasks are solved: to identify the geopolitical and economic components of Russia’s national interests within the regional space of the modern version of the confrontation and to determine the possibilities for realizing these interests.Methods. This paper uses the methodological tools of spatial economics and the theory of new economic geography, which makes it possible to combine geopolitical and economic (geo-economic) imperatives in a localized space when coordinating joint activities. The action takes place in the southwestern borderlands of Russia and covers the waters and lands of the Azov basin and the Northern Black Sea region, as a “prefield” to ensure Russia’s maritime access to world markets via the southern route.Conclusions. The conclusions of the study are that essentially two strategic tasks are being solved in this region — establishing control over communications and energy resources on the basis of coordinating Russia’s military and economic activities in the waters and on the coast of the Azov and Black Seas in order to ensure the “connectivity” of the country’s territory with southwest. Initially, the conflict was based on the struggle for control over energy resources and, first of all, natural gas and communications for the delivery of the latter to the West, which seems to be very problematic in modern conditions. However, this is the reason for the continuation of the “Great Game”.

Postpone the Great Game

The Great Game of the 19th century was the struggle between Russia and the British in Afghanistan to control India. The Ukraine war is a new version of the Great Game. In the 1930s to defeat the Japanese, an existential threat to China, Mao Zedong and Chiang Kai-shek postponed their civil war. Climate change is the world’s existential threat. Let’s postpone all wars to deal with climate change.

Russia’s permanent military presence in the Syrian Tartus port for the coming 49 years: Increasing maritime security challenges in the region

Relations between states are always the result of permanent interests because in international relation there can never be permanent friends. Today, the changing geopolitical dynamics have made all the states engage in a struggle to maintain dominance across the world. Consequently, Russia’s leasing the Tartus port from Syria for the coming 49 years is directional towards the same geopolitical interest of making Russia resurge. Nevertheless, this decision is going to have multiple implications for the maritime security of the region as Russia’s permanent military presence on the Tartus port close to Mediterranean and black sea will make it a geopolitical hotspot for the major power great game. Alongside, the region has become home to numerous non-traditional security threats in the maritime domain including drug trafficking, piracy, illicit trade, marine terrorism, etc. Therefore, this research paper is an attempt to highlight how Russia’s presence in the Tartus port located in Syria is going to shift the regional dynamics. It endeavors to analyze the amassed maritime security challenges in the region by particular reconnoitering the tug of war between the US and Russia and the non-traditional threats that have made it a point of contention between states across the region.

Woman Suffrage in Bengal (1921–1925): The ‘Great Game’ Between the Imperialists and the Theosophists

In 1921, the Bengal Legislative Council defeated the Woman Suffrage Bill. It created quite a stir because Bengal showed strong opposition to the Bill, in spite of its reputation for being receptive to progressive thought. The bafflement was complete when the same Bill was passed in the Bengal Legislative Council in 1925. Longstanding social taboos and attitudes do not change within 4 years. Therefore, the explanation for the curious voting pattern has to be sought in Bengal politics. Very little research has hitherto been devoted to this episode of Indian history. Feminist historians of 1970s were satisfied when the Indian male’s purported social orthodoxy were repeatedly cited as a blanket explanation for all regressive obstructions. In 1978, Brian Harrison suggested that British Imperial resistance to woman suffrage was essentially a crusade against communism. Although Harrison’s work gave rise to a vigorous reinvestigation of anti-suffragist movement in England, no similar enquiry about anti-suffragist movement in India was carried out. The article investigates why and how the British Raj opposed woman suffrage in India, when principal supporters of woman suffrage was the Theosophical Society, considered to be a shady Russian-funded mischief-making organisation by British Intelligence.

Analyzing the Role of Great Powers in Creating the Durand Line and Its impact on Afghanistan-Pakistan Relations

The existence of countries based on borders is the product of the second half of the nineteenth century, and Afghanistan is the first country to be established on this basis. Afghanistan's current political borders are imposed, largely influenced by the political struggles and rivalries of the British and Tsarist Russia in the 19th century and during the Great Game to prevent a direct confrontation between the two powers in Central Asia. They set up a barrier between themselves and established the country's political borders through several treaties. Meanwhile, the Durand Line and the issue of Pashtunistan are very important, because the developments in Afghanistan after the signing of the Durand Line entered a new phase, and with the passage of time and some major changes such as Britain's withdrawal from the subcontinent and India's independence, not only failed, but the advent of Pakistan and the conflict of interests between the two neighboring countries has led to the complexity of events which has been on the rise and continues to this day. The present study, using descriptive-analytical methods and citing reliable library sources, seeks to examine the role of major powers such as Britain and Russia in shaping Afghanistan's political borders, especially the Durand Line, and its negative consequences for Afghanistan and its role in creating differences between Afghanistan and Pakistan. The results show that regional and supra-regional powers, especially Britain, played a role in shaping Afghanistan's borders, and Durand's mystery is one of the leftovers of British-Indian colonialism, which has now become a source of discord between Afghanistan and Pakistan and its negative consequences to Afghanistan includes land closures and lack of access to open waters, support and rise of political instability in Afghanistan

Bipolar Disorder in Geopolitical Strategy Within Eurasia: When Will the “New Great Game” Adjust to Reality?

Bipolar Disorder in Geopolitical Strategy Within Eurasia: When Will the “New Great Game” Adjust to Reality?

The Russian Conquest of Central Asia: A Study in Imperial Expansion, 1814–1914 by Alexander Morrison

Reviewed by: The Russian Conquest of Central Asia: A Study in Imperial Expansion, 1814–1914 by Alexander Morrison Alex Marshall Morrison, Alexander. The Russian Conquest of Central Asia: A Study in Imperial Expansion, 1814–1914. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge and New York, 2021. xv + 613 pp. Maps. Illustrations. Tables. Glossary. Notes. Sources and bibliography. Index. £75.00. This book will become the essential reference work for all future studies of the expansion of the tsarist empire in Central Asia. Morrison has read a vast array of literature, including many previously untapped archival resources to write this work, and the effect is immediately apparent on every page. He has gone beyond the sources themselves however to also attempt something that has surprisingly rarely been attempted in the past; to not merely document the course of the Russian conquest of Central Asia in the nineteenth century, but to attempt to explain it. In seeking to advance his own explanation for the causes of Russian expansion in Central Asia, Morrison effectively skewers at least three explanations that have dominated past analysis. He dismisses the role of the 'Great Game' between Russia and Britain as an explanatory factor, correctly pointing out that British fears of a Russian invasion of India were always fatuous (although the fears themselves led to substantial military reform in the Indian army at the start of the twentieth century). He equally effectively dismisses the Russian conquest of Central Asia as being an example of 'empire by accident', brought about by adventurist frontier generals presenting St Petersburg with fait accompli after fait accompli. Logistics alone invalidates this explanation; the acquisition of the 10,000 camels needed to mount the failed winter campaign against Khiva in 1839–40 alone took eighteen months (p. 43). The vast majority of Russian expeditions could therefore only take place with the full knowledge and explicit consent of the War Ministry and the tsar himself; Central Asian campaigning in practice allowed for little spontaneity. Finally, Morrison dismisses the 'cotton canard' which some Soviet historians advanced as an economic explanation for the Russian conquest; cotton only began to become economically important in Central Asia during the 1890s, and the Turkestan governate itself was run at a consistent financial loss. In rejecting past attempts at a single overriding explanation for the Russian conquest of Central Asia, Morrison himself presents a 'microhistory' that favours examining interpersonal relationships and the role of personality itself instead. This brings a number of immediate benefits. In particular, it drives the traditional chronological narrative back to the 1820s, in the process highlighting some traditionally neglected figures, most notably War Minister Chernyshev and General Count V. A. Perovskii. By asserting the centrality of this earlier Napoleonic generation to starting the Russian advance in Central Asia, Morrison both situates the process in an era when Russian [End Page 768] administrators became acutely conscious of Russia's new-found great power status, and highlights the surprising psychological force of 'maintaining prestige' as a recurrent factor in Russian decision making. Whilst telling this story, Morrison also never forgets to give agency to Russia's Central Asian opponents, with results that are again refreshing. Sultan Kenesary Qasimov (1802–47) emerges here less as the national independence fighter that modern Kazakh historiography would like to portray him as, and more correctly as an insurgent motivated by his desire to restore Russian respect for his personal Chinggissid authority (pp. 78–79). The Amirs of Bukhara likewise benefit from a similar degree of refreshing reassessment. Morrison points out that by 1865, with the annexation of Tashkent, Russia's strategic objectives were in principle fully achieved; there existed the real possibility that Khoqand, Khiva and Bukhara would go on to exist as independent buffer states, like Afghanistan, between Russian and British territory (p. 255). What changed this was not inherent Russian aggressiveness, but the disruption to the existing balance of power between Khoqand and Bukhara created by the Russian presence, and the violent reaction of local elites within Bukhara itself to this, unleashing processes which the Amir himself could not fully control. Bukharan sources — Mirza 'Abd al-'Azim Sami's Ta'rikh-i Salatin-i Manghitiyya and Ahmad-i Donish's Risala ya...