
The vast & expanding Russian empire of the eighteenth century was inhabited by a great number of peoples. This book, part anthology, part commentary, is the first of its kind to bring together British travellers` accounts of the peoples & places of the lesser known but key parts of Russia s frontiers: the Lower Volga, Azerbaijan, parts of Kazakhstan & `independent Tartary` or central Asia. In the course of their journeys the travellers variously encountered indigenous Finnic groups, diverse sedentary & nomadic Tatars & Mongol Oirats (Kalmyks). With the exception of central Asia, Russia made significant inroads into these regions from 1700 onwards, with a resulting cultural impact on their non-Slavic inhabitants that included forced Christianisation, the restriction of pastures & the settlement of foreign & Russian colonies. The majority of writers included here were working in Russia & travelled in the course of their duties, visiting parts little known to Western Europeans. Their observations include ethnographic, scientific, antiquarian & contemporary historical analysis. They reflect eighteenth-century enlightenment curiosity & the writers personal voices but were also coloured by experiences at the hands of the state & by Russia`s spectacular growth, which prompted feelings ranging from admiration to alarm. Commentaries contextualise the texts, & include references to contemporary observers working for the St. Petersburg academy of sciences (academicians) & other foreign travellers as well as to modern scholarship. This anthology, which spans nearly one hundred years, introduces the reader to the various areas regionally, thematically & chronologically, & while giving an overview of the history of the times, reveals geopolitical issues that still deeply affect many of these regions today.