Synopsis

The Caucasus mountains rise at the intersection of Europe, Russia, and the Middle East. A land of astonishing natural beauty and a dizzying array of ancient cultures, the Caucasus for most of the twentieth century lay inside the Soviet Union, before movements of national liberation created newly independent countries and sparked the devastating war in Chechnya.

Combining riveting storytelling with insightful analysis, The Ghost of Freedom is the first general history of the modern Caucasus, stretching from the beginning of Russian imperial expansion up to the rise of new countries after the Soviet Union's collapse. In evocative and accessible prose, Charles King reveals how tsars, highlanders, revolutionaries, and adventurers have contributed to the fascinating history of this borderland, providing an indispensable guide to the complicated histories, politics, and cultures of this intriguing frontier. Based on new research in multiple languages, the book shows how the struggle for freedom in the mountains, hills, and plains of the Caucasus has been a perennial theme over the last two hundred years--a struggle which has led to liberation as well as to new forms of captivity. The book sheds valuable light on the origins of modern disputes, including the ongoing war in Chechnya, conflicts in Georgia and Azerbaijan, and debates over oil from the Caspian Sea and its impact on world markets.
Ranging from the salons of Russian writers to the circus sideshows of America, from the offices of European diplomats to the villages of Muslim mountaineers, The Ghost of Freedom paints a rich portrait of one of the world's most turbulent and least understood regions.

Library Journal

The Caucasus region, which now consists of Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, and parts of Russia, has a complex history, not least owing to its interactions with the surrounding nations of Europe and the Middle East and its tremendously diverse ethnic populations. One can be familiar with the history of Russia without really understanding the long and complex history of the Caucasus. King (Romanian studies, international affairs and government, Georgetown Univ.; The Black Sea: A History ) unravels the region's history from the start of Russia's involvement in the region under Ivan the Terrible to the present. Recently, a few books have been published about the Caucasus (e.g., Nicholas Griffin's Caucasus: A Journey to the Land Between Christianity and Islam ), but King's is the most comprehensive, weaving in the history of all the events from the past two centuries that shaped czarist, Soviet, and Russian relations with the region. He briefly discusses the Armenian genocide, a label that Turkey has objected to, which has recently been discussed in the U.S. Congress. King mainly raises it so as to question whether it was indeed a genocide as we define that today. This book would be a wise pick for any scholarly institution.-Harry Willems, Park City P.L., KS

Biography

Charles King is Ion Ratiu Professor of Romanian Studies, Professor of International Affairs, and Professor of Government at Georgetown University. He is the author of The Black Sea: A History and The Moldovans, and his writing has appeared in The Times Literary Supplement and Foreign Affairs.