On Horseback through Asia Minor

by Frederick Burnaby, Peter Hopkirk (Introduction)

Overview

In the savage winter of 1876 Captain Frederick Burnaby rode 1,000 miles eastwards from Constantinople to see for himself what the Russians were up to in this remote corner of the Great Game battelfield. With wars between Turkey and Russia imminent, he wanted to discover, among other things, whether the Sultan's armies were capable of resisting a determined Tsarist thrust towards Constantinople.

Frederick Gustav Burnaby was no ordinary officer. For a start he was reputed to be the strongest man in the British Army. Nor was he all brawn, being fluent in seven languages and possessing a vigorous and colorful prose style—as readers of this Great Game classic will discover.

With his servant Radford, he spend five months riding across some of the cruellest winter landscape in the world before hastening home to write this best-seller.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780192825001
Publisher:	Oxford University Press
Publication date:	05/23/1996
Edition description:	Revised ed.
Pages:	380
Product dimensions:	7.69(w) x 5.06(h) x 0.75(d)

About the Author

Frederick Gustavus Burnaby was a soldier, traveller, writer, and pioneer balloonist. He was reputed to be the strongest man in the British Army, and spoke no fewer than seven languages. In 1875, on a one-man Great Game mission, he rode to Khiva in Central Asia, and the following year set out from Constantinople for eastern Turkey. In 1885 he was speared to death while campaigning in the Sudan, where he is buried somewhere in the desert.

Table of Contents

Introduction, Peter Hopkirk1. Smyrna;The PAsha's Seraglio2. Custom-house officials; Sultan Abdul Aziz; Constantinople; An Armenian Priest3. hadem Kui; The Defence of Constantinople;The Song about the Turcos4. Horse buying; Preparations for the journey; The boat for Scutari; Scutari5. The Hammall; The Khan at Moltape6. One of our Horses Stolen; Arrival at Ismid; Visit to the Pacha of Ismid7. A post-horse to Sabanja; Circassian Bashi Bazouks;8. Yakoob Khan; Town of Mudurlu; Nalihan9. Scenery near Nalihan; An uncultivated district10. Bei Bazar; An Armenian priest: Turkish pack-saddle11. Suleiman Effendi; The intrigues of Russia: The New Constitution12. A society of thieves; Suleiman Effendi's wife;13. Turkish melodies; The pack-horse is lame; Turkish hospitality; The Bey's present14. The cooking pot; How the inhabitants build their houses15. Crossing the river; The famine at Angora; Sekili; Daili Village16. Yuzgat; The Christians at Yuzgat;17. Armenian customs; Dissentions amongst Armenian Christians; The old woman dances18. Darvish Bey; The chase; The schoolboys of Yuzgat19. Outskirts of the town; An Armenian church;20. The gypsies; The road to Sivas; The fire-the harem21. The Caimacan; My tea and sugar; Pacha Williamsetc.