On the Religious Frontier : Tsarist Russia and Islam in the Caucasus

Front Cover 1 Title page 4 Copyright page 5 Dedication 6 Table of Contents 8 Maps 10 Preface 14 Introduction: Russian Colonialism: The Case of the Muslim Caucasus 16 Part I: The Muslim Caucasus: Colony or Province? 20 1 The “Civilizing Mission” and Russian Conquest of the Caucasus,1804–1828 22 2 Imperial Dilemmas and Resistance to Colonization, 1828–1840 42 3 Tsarist Colonization Policy and Christianizing the Caucasus 52 Part II: The Viceroyalty 62 4 The Making of the Caucasian Administration, 1840–1881 64 5 The Muslim Caucasus and the Great Reforms 80 6 Tsarist Social Policy and the Muslim Elite 94 Part III: Russia and Islam in the Last Decades of Tsarism 106 7 Officialdom, Russification and Revolution, 1881–1917 108 8 Muslim Society and Its Response to Russification 128 9 The Azerbaijani Intelligentsia, Nationalism and Revolution 144 Conclusion 162 Appendix 164 Notes 170 Bibliography 190 Index 202 Modern Russia's turbulent relations with its Muslim frontiers date back centuries. Indeed the nineteenth century, when the Muslim Caucasus first came under Russian rule, witnessed many of the historical antecedents to today's violent confrontations. With this in mind, On The Religious Frontier examines the history of Muslim Azerbaijan under Christian Orthodox Russian imperial rule and the attempts of the Russian administrators of the Caucasus to integrate the region into the empire. Drawing on original archival research from across Azerbaijan and Russia, Firouzeh Mostashari considers the formation of a Russian colonial administration in the Muslim Caucasus; subsequent social, political and economic developments; and the local responses to conquest, military rule and Russification. From 1804 to the Bolshevik Revolution of 1917, On The Religious Frontier offers a fascinating and timely insight into both the period itself and the ways in which the seeds of recent conflict were sown in tsarist Russia. This is important reading for all scholars of the history and politics of the Caucasus, as well as those with an interest in imperial Russia and its relationship with minority groups. Russian colonialism : the case of the Muslim Caucasus The "civilizing mission" and Russian conquest of the Caucasus, 1804-1828 Imperial dilemmas and resistance to colonization, 1828-1840 Tsarist colonization policy and Christianizing the Caucasus The making of the Caucasian administration, 1840-1881 The Muslim Caucasus and the great reforms Tsarist social policy and the Muslim elite Officialdom, Russification, and revolution, 1881-1917 Muslim society and its response to Russification Azerbaijani intelligensia, nationalism, and revolution.