Author Description

In The Sixteenth And Seventeenth Centuries Muscovy Waged A Costly Struggle Against The Crimean Khanate, The Ottoman Empire, And The Polish-lithuanian Commonwealth For Control Of The Fertile Steppe Above The Black Sea. This Was A Region Of Great Strategic And Economic Importance - Arguably The Pivot Of Eurasia At The Time. Yet, This Crucial Period In Russia's History Has, Up Until Now, Been Neglected By Historians. Brian L. Davies's Study Provides An Essential Insight Into The Emergence Of Russia As A Great Power. The Long Campaign Took A Great Toll Upon Russia's Population, Economy, And Institutions, And Repeatedly Frustrated Or Redefined Russian Military And Diplomatic Projects In The West. The Struggle Was Every Bit As Important As Russia's Wars In Northern And Central Europe For Driving The Russian State-building Process, Forcing Military Reform And Shaping Russia's Visions Of Empire. Warfare, State And Society On The Black Sea Steppe, 1500-1700 Examines The Course Of This Struggle And Explains How Russia's Ultimate Prevalence Resulted From New Strategies Of Military Colonization In Addition To Improvements In Army Command-and-control, Logistics, And Tactics.--book Jacket. Colonization, War, And Slaveraiding On The Black Sea Steppe In The Sixteenth Century -- Muscovy's Southern Borderland Defense Strategy, 1500-1635 -- The Belgorod Line -- The Ukrainian Quagmire -- The Chyhyryn Campaigns And The Wars Of The Holy League -- The Balance Of Power At Century's End. Brian L. Davies. Includes Bibliographical References (p. 208-248) And Index.