"Wherever the Russian Settles in Asia, the Country Immediately becomes Russian." (Dostoevsky)

2024/09/18 by Antonia Schlotter, William Connor
Social Sciences · #19th century #Aleksandr M. #Alexander II. (Russisches Reich) #Alexander III. (Russisches Reich) #Central Asia #Central Asia Education and Culture #Central asian history #Christianization #Civilization Mission (colonial practice) #Colonialism #Colonialism research #Cotton growing #Dostoevskij #Elite #Emirate of Bukhara #Entangled history #Fëdor Michajlovič #Gorčakov #Gökdepe #History of eastern europe #History of ideas #Imperial Studies #Kazakhstan #Khanate of Khiva #Khanate of Kokand #Konstantin Petrovič #Kyrgyzstan #Nationalism #Othering (social psychology) #Russian Empire #Russification #Soviet and Russian History #Tajikistan #Torkestân #Turkmenistan #Uzbekistan #Vladimir Nabokov Literary Studies #fon Kaufman #pragmatische Flexibilität

paper · doi:10.25355/9c10-n205

openalex publication_date 2024/09/18 · openalex created_date 2025/12/05 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/01

Abstract

The Russian Empire's conquest of Central Asia began with the capture of the city of Tashkent in 1865. Numerous reasons have been put forward for the gradual but continual expansion that followed, but the term “civilizing mission” stands out in particular. What was the intention behind this conquest in the second half of the 19th century and how did it relate to colonization efforts?

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