5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Immensely interesting albeit Anglo centric, May 9, 2011
This review is from: The Great Game: On Secret Service in High Asia (Paperback)
Great Game was shadow war between two great powers of 19th century British Empire and Czarist Russia to establish political supremacy in Central Asia. The term was first used Arthur Conolly, an intelligence officer of British East India Company's Sixth Bengal Light Cavalry. It was introduced into the popular consciousness by British novelist Rudyard Kipling in his novel Kim. Russians called the struggle Bolshaya Ugra.
British went on to carve a huge empire in India. Security of India became an obsession for British strategists. London was particularly sensitive to what was happening beyond India's borders. This obsession finally became mania as London was determined to protect her colony at all costs. British feared Russian expansionism threatened to endanger their hold over India. Biggest nightmare for them was Cossack cavalry riding down the Khyber Pass and pouncing upon to snatch away `Jewel in the Crown of British empire: India. To forestall such a possibility the British strategists did extensive threat assessment study which was conducted Indian Army Captain John Mcdonald Kinneir. British came to India by sea and were unaware of strategic land routes leading toward India. Sea borne invasion appeared remote possibility and so attention focused on overland routes leading east ward from Turkey through Persia and south eastward from Central Asia. Over the years bevy of political agents mostly young India Army officers went to Central Asia disguised as travelers, explorers, surveyors. They made detailed study of landscape of the region mapping passes, deserts, tracing rivers to their source. There was a particular to stress to find out which route can support an invading force.
Author says reaching the borders of India was a tough proposition as nature posed a formidable obstacle: snow-covered mountain ranges, waterless deserts and steppes. Last major barrier for an invader had to surmount was the Indus River with swift-flowing currents and deep at most places hence not fordable. What I like here was the discussion among British strategists on how best to contain Russian threat. Hawks in the establishment advocated Forward Policy. This involved erecting a cordon sanitaire, a string of buffer states across probable avenues of approach of an invading army. Opponents of the policy argue invading force must work its way through wild, inhospitable, rugged terrain and by the time they reach India's border it would be so exhausted making it incapable of defeating well-trained, equipped, organized British forces.
Author claims over the centuries many Russian rulers entertained hopes of annexing India. It started Peter the Great who made a feeble attempt. Then Russian czars Paul and Alexander decided to combine their efforts with Napoleon Bonaparte in invading India. There are different strands to the geo political rivalry . But in my opinion four things stand out: Russian annexation of Central Asia: successive campaigns launched by Generals Cherniaev, Skobelev, Kaufman virtually subdued Central Asian Khanates bringing it fully under the control of St. Petersburg. Building of Transcaspian railroad across the deserts of Turkmenia made it feasible large-scale transportation of troops,war material to the borders of Afghanistan. After capturing Merv Russian forces reached Pandjeh which lay close to Afghan border. Russian incursion into Pandjeh almost brought both powers to the brink of war. Forward policy pursued by hawks in the British establishment led to Anglo Afghan wars. British wished to bring Kabul under their sphere of influence and thought the security of the Indian empire demanded it. London tried controlling the country through surrogates. But Afghans rebelled and the British army had to retreat. While working their way down the passes of Hindukush British army was ambushed and annihilated by wild Pathan tribes. British Empire's prestige took a terrible beating though subsequently they managed to redeem it.
Then came the flash point in the Pamirs. For there was a place where Hindukush, Pamirs,Himalayas and Karkoram mountain ranges converged. Russian scouts discovered there was 50-mile gap which was literally no man's land. Cossack patrols under Captain Gromchevsky launched a foray reaching Hunza territory lying north of Srinagar. British belatedly woke up to the threat and started pressing Chinese authorities in Kashgaria to plug the gap. Then came the forcible opening of Tibet to the outside world which author claims happened because of Russian machinations. St. Petersburg vehemently protested British incursion into Tibet saying Russian threat was highly exaggerated.
Intensity of Great Game diminished to a considerable extent after the defeat sustained Russian army was routed by the Japanese in Russo-Japan war[1904-1905]. Russian empire was beset with troubles. Bolsheviks started fomenting insurrection aimed at seizing power. Then on the other end Kaiser's Germany was becoming powerful and was aiming at supplanting British influence in the Middle East. London did not want Czar to be driven into the hands of Germans. Geo political expediency dictated London to water down concession which Francis Younghusband had painfully extracted from Tibet. So on August 31 1907 Anglo Russian convention was signed amid great secrecy in St Petersburg which finally brought the great imperial rivalry to an end.
Author has resurrected a subject which has faded away into the mists of time. However I am familiar with the broad contours of Great Game having been initiated into it while taking graduate -level classes in History. For the first time in my life I became familiar with words such as Russophobe, Anglophobe, and xenophobia. Drawback of this book it is highly Anglo centric. Author depicts Russians as aggressors. British is seen as defending her empire from Russian expansionism. However I feel British policies were no less aggressive than Russian. For instance, Forward policy actively pursued by hawks is an euphemism for British expansionism. The policy frequently led to Britain entangling in the quarrels of Central Asian states. For some time London actively toyed with the idea of reconciling the disputes of feuding Central Asian Khanates making them to serve as a bulwark against Russia. This raised fears in St Petersburg that Britain was meddling in her backyard. So for the sake of historical accuracy I would like a neutral observer to come up with book on Great Game. For only he could provide an even,objective, balanced perspective of events.
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4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Among the best books ever written on Central Asia history!, February 20, 2011
Cannot recommend this book more highly! A truly fascinating read. I read the dead tree version and downloaded the kindle version as soon as I learned it was available. I hope the rest of Hopkirk's books on the subject are available soon, including the connected "Trespassers on the Roof of the World", about Tibet.
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5.0 out of 5 stars
Required reading for the State Department staffers, January 26, 2012
This review is from: The Great Game: On Secret Service in High Asia (Paperback)
This book is so good and so important that I am going to write to the State Department and recommend "The Great Game" as required reading--especially the segments on Afghanistan.
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