Kaufman, Konstantin Petrovich

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KAUFMAN, KONSTANTIN PETROVICH

(1818–1882), Russian general (of Austrian ancestry) who became governor–general (viceroy) of Turkestan following its conquest.

Konstantin Petrovich Kaufman's fame came as the ruler of Russia's new colony in Central Asia. His previous military experience had scarcely prepared him for his career as creator of colonial Turkestan. He trained as a military engineer and served for fifteen years in the Russian army fighting the mountain tribes in the Caucasus. His achievements during his service there called him to the attention of a fellow officer, General Dimitri Milyutin. When Milyutin became minister of war in the 1860s, he needed a trustworthy, experienced officer to govern Turkestan. Kaufman was his choice.

At the time Kaufman received his appointment in 1867, the conquest of Turkestan had only begun. He became commander of the Russian frontier forces there and had authority to decide on military action along the borders of his territory. When neighboring Turkish principalities began hostile military action against Russia, or when further conquests appeared feasible, Kaufman assumed command of his troops for war. By the end of his rule, Russia's borders enclosed much of Central Asia to the borders of the Chinese Empire. Only Khiva and Bukhara remained nominally independent khanates under Russian control. Turkestan's borders with Persia (Iran) and Afghanistan were for many years a subject of dispute with Great Britain, which claimed a sphere of domination there.

Kaufman had charge of a vast territory far removed from European Russia. Its peoples practiced the Muslim religion and spoke Turkic or Persian languages. It so closely resembled a colony, like those of the overseas possessions of European empires, that he took example from their colonial policies to launch a Russian civilizing mission in Turkestan. He ended slavery, introduced secular (nonreligious) education, promoted the scientific study of Turkestan's various peoples (even sending an artist, Vasily Vereshchagin, to paint their portraits), encouraged the cultivation of improved agricultural crops, and even attempted to emancipate women from Muslim patriarchal control. Kaufman's means to achieve these ambitious goals were meager, because of the lack of sufficient funds and the paucity of Russian colonial officials. Also, he feared that radical reforms would stir up discontent among his subjects. His fourteen-year period as governor-general brought few substantial changes to social and economic conditions in Turkestan. However, it ended the era of rule by Turkish khans and left Russia firmly in control of its new colony.

See also: turkestan