The Conquest of a Continent: Siberia and the Russians

By W. Bruce Lincoln

Book Overview

Stretching from the Urals to the Arctic Ocean to China, Siberia is so vast that the continental United States and Western Europe could be fitted into its borders, with land to spare. Yet, in only six decades, Russian trappers, Cossacks, and adventurers crossed this huge territory, beginning in the 1580s a process of conquest that continues to this day. As rich in resources as it was large in size, Siberia brought the Russians a sixth of the world's gold and silver, a fifth of its platinum, a third of its iron, and a quarter of its timber. The conquest of Siberia allowed Russia to build the modern world's largest empire, and Siberia's vast natural wealth continues to play a vital part in determining Russia's place in international affairs. Bleak yet romantic, Siberia's history comes to life in W. Bruce Lincoln's epic telling. The Conquest of a Continent, first published in 1993, stands as the most comprehensive and vivid account of the Russians in Siberia, from their first victories over the Mongol Khans to the environmental degradation of the twentieth century. Dynasties of incomparable wealth, such as the Stroganovs, figure into the story, as do explorers, natives, gold seekers, and the thousands of men and women sentenced to penal servitude or forced labor in Russia's great wilderness prisonhouse. Book jacket.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 067941214X
• ISBN13: 9780679412144
• Release Date: December 1993
• Publisher: Random House (NY)
• Length: 500 Pages
• Weight: 2.16 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.7" x 6.6" x 9.5"

Customer Reviews

Literate

A rather thorough history of the Russian annexation and subjugation of Siberia and its peoples. The number of people who died in this conquest is unbelievable partcularly considering the somewhat sparse population. The toll rivals the European conquest of the Americas. However, Lincoln spares the reader from considerable graphic detail. If the subject matter were not so grim, the book would be almost enjoyable due to Lincoln's easy style. Worth reading.