"War of Shadows": How the Confrontation between Russia and England ended in the 19th - early 20th centuries

2024 Author: Richard Flannagan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-15 23:55

In 1857, a geopolitical confrontation began between Russia and England, during which countries exchanged moves and complex combinations. It was a struggle for influence in the regions of Central and South Asia, which will be called the "Great Game" or "War of Shadows". The cold war between the two empires at some moments could turn into a phase of a hot war, but the efforts of intelligence services and diplomats managed to avoid this.

What events triggered the start of the Great Game between Russia and Britain?

During the Great Game, the main motive for action on the part of the British Empire was fear for India, which, together with the territories of present-day Burma, Bangladesh and Pakistan, was a colony of England and was of colossal importance for its economy. Russia did not have a source of such a successful feed for its economic growth and well-being, therefore, it was looking for new trade routes to market its goods (flour, sugar, glassware, watches, etc.) and the possibility of access to goods of Turkestan (cotton, karakul, carpets handmade) and China. In order to avoid attacks on trade caravans, Russia built fortifications along the edge of the steppes, which later became cities and gradually moved deeper and deeper to the south. And in 1822 the Kazakh Khanate became part of the Russian Empire.

However, Russia also had its own concerns about the capabilities of England: Northern Afghanistan was considered a British sphere of influence, and it was located very close to the Turkestan oases. If England had a foothold there, it could separate Siberia from Russia (it was connected with it only by a thin line of the Siberian tract). These fears were reinforced by the actions of the British, who brought their troops into Afghanistan (the events of 1839-1842), so Russia definitely decided to move its borders further south (and as far as possible).

But the Crimean War, which began in 1853, halted Russian expansion into Central Asia. In 1855, in the midst of the Crimean War, Russia came to understand that India was a vulnerable spot in the British Empire (more precisely, fears for it), and that it was this factor that could be used to influence England. The results of the Crimean War were not comforting for any of the countries - England was annoyed that it was not possible to take the Crimea, the Caucasus and Transcaucasia, Lithuania, the Kingdom of Poland, Livonia, Estonia, Bessarabia from Russia, while Russia itself was left without access to the Black Sea. Therefore, the main opponents were dominated by the desire to take revenge.

Having coped with the problems in the Caucasus and Poland (the uprising of 1863), Russia resumed its expansion into Central Asia, while Britain in the meantime annexed the lands of South Africa, Nigeria, Burma, the West Indies, colonized Sikkim, the Gold Coast, Bazutoland and more than six hundred native principalities … In 1864 she fought with Afghanistan and Ethiopia, captured Cyprus and Fiji, and occupied Egypt. Both countries jealously watched each other's actions and were ready to take a preemptive step in the event of unfavorable developments for them.

How England reacted to the Great Russian campaign in Central Asia in 1864

The expansion of the Russian borders towards Central Asia was an urgent need. In his book Political Equilibrium and England, published in 1855, I. V. Vernadsky (professor at Moscow University): without a preemptive strike on Hindustan, "the British power will overcome China as well, just as it enslaved India." And this almost happened during the opium wars with China. In addition, there was a rapid development of the textile industry, and in connection with the civil war in the United States, the main exporter of cotton, Europe had problems with the supply of this raw material. Kokand and Bukhara are producers of raw cotton, so it was important for the Russian economy to get ahead of England in this direction.

As a result of the Turkestan campaigns, Russia conquered the Kokand and Khiva Khanates, the Bukhara Emirate. At the request of Russia, they had to recognize its protectorate, cede strategically important areas and stop the slave trade, but in the internal government these khanates were given complete independence (they later had to abandon moderation in approaches - the Asians began to confuse generosity with weakness). The explanation of Russia's actions to the world community was given by Chancellor Gorchakov: “The Russian government is forced to plant civilization where the barbaric way of government causes suffering of the people, and to protect its borders from anarchy and bloodshed. This is the fate of any country that finds itself in a similar situation."

At first, England reacted sluggishly and skeptically to Russian expansion into Central Asia: it expands its possessions, but it will not be able to hold them and will be open to a blow, which it will not be able to repel, you just need to wait for the right moment. But later, hysteria about this began in the press: in all publications they quoted the testament of Peter I, which did not exist in reality, in which, allegedly, the world domination of Russia was discussed, and it is impossible without the mastery of India and Constantinople. New editions of this will appeared - they already dealt with the Persian Gulf, China and even Japan. In this regard, any steps by Russia in Turkestan or the Caucasus were perceived by Britain as an intention to take away from her a precious "pearl" - India.

But in 1867 Russia formed the Turkestan General Government. And in 1869 - annexed the Trans-Caspian region (the territory between the eastern shores of the Caspian Sea and the outskirts of the Bukhara Emirate and the Khiva Khanate in the West, and, importantly, reaching the Ural region in the north, and to Persia and Afghanistan in the south) and laid a port on the Caspian Sea … These events forced London to turn to St. Petersburg with an offer of "cordial agreement", after which negotiations on spheres of influence began between the two empires (they lasted almost 49 years, and sometimes countries found themselves in the balance of the war).

How we managed to overcome the Afghan and Pamir crises

A prominent statesman of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Lord Curzon, gave an accurate explanation of the motivation of the British: “England exists as long as it owns India. There is not a single Englishman who will dispute that India should be protected not only from an actual attack, but even from the mere thought of it. India, like a little child, needs safety cushions, and Afghanistan is such a cushion from Russia. This country was considered the main gateway to India, and, therefore, it was she who had to be made a barrier on the path of possible Russian expansion. With the light hand of the British, Afghanistan, which has no minerals, through which no trade routes pass, torn apart by continuous internal strife, has become the axis of world politics. In order to fully establish itself in the region, England waged a war with Afghanistan (the first war - from 1831 to 1842, the second - from 1878 to 1880).

In 1885, the Afghan crisis broke out - the aggravation of relations between England and Russia, which almost led to the outbreak of an armed conflict. The reason for the complication of interstate relations was the seizure of the Merv oasis and the advance towards the Penjde of the Russian army under the command of General A. V. Komarov. In 1884, as a result of negotiations by the inhabitants of the Merv oasis, as a result of negotiations with representatives of the administration of the Trans-Caspian region, Russian citizenship was voluntarily accepted. The same decision was made by other Turkmen tribes living in the Pendinsky and Iolatan oases. But the southernmost oasis of Pendé on the Murghab River has been controlled by the Afghan emir since 1833.

England (under whose control Afghanistan was then) demanded that he stop the advance of the Russians to Penj - ancient Herat lay a hundred kilometers south of it, beyond which it was easy to get to India through the flat part of Afghanistan. Russia proposed to the Emir to recognize Pendzhe as Russian territory and to designate a clear border between the countries. The Afghans did not want to cede the disputed land peacefully, the issue was resolved in a clash between Russian and Afghan troops on the Kushka River: the emir's detachment lost the battle, and the inhabitants of Penje expressed a desire to become subjects of Russia. Britain did not like the way events were developing, but Russia nevertheless managed to retain the Pendinsky oasis through diplomatic negotiations. And in 1887 the Russian-Afghan border was officially approved.

In the period from 1890 to 1894, Russia and England competed in the issue of control over the Pamirs - a mountainous country rich in minerals (gold, rock crystal, gems, rubies, lapis lazuli, etc.), but had no clear boundaries. This caused alarm among rivals: Russia could penetrate into Kashmir, England and Afghanistan - into the Fergana Valley without any violations. Besides them, China was keenly interested in the Pamir. The British invaded the northern lands of modern Pakistan in 1891. The Russians responded with a counter expedition, so an agreement was concluded by both sides, according to which one part of the Pamir went to Russia, the other to Afghanistan, and another to the Bukhara Emirate controlled by Russia. In 1894, in order to reduce British activity in the region, the Russians set up a secret wheel road, which was intended to quickly transfer troops in case of an English invasion. It connected the Alva and Fergna valleys.

Which put an end to the Big Game. Results of the "War of Shadows"

In 1907, an agreement was signed between Great Britain and Russia, according to which Russia recognized Afghanistan as an English protectorate, England - a Russian protectorate over Central Asia. In Persia, zones of influence were determined (in the north - Russia, in the south - Britain). This agreement ends the era of the "Great Game", which resulted in the resolution of complex issues, overcoming the abyss of irreconcilable interests without direct military clashes between the two major players on the world stage - Russia and England. Central Asia found itself in an advantageous position - without Russia, the fate of Afghanistan awaited it.

Britain has led brutal colonial wars by annexing territories.