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250 Years Ago in Northeastern Asia

Peter the Great, tsar of Russia, founds the city of St. Petersburg in 1703. The new city becomes the joint capital with Moscow. Peter establishes Russia as the major power in eastern Europe after defeating Sweden in the Great Northern War, 1700-1721. The decisive battle was fought at Poltava in 1709.

Catherine the Great rules Russia as tsarina between 1762 to 1796. "Westernization" policies (adopting Western European technology and ideas), begun under Peter, continues during Catherine's reign. Russia becomes more active in European politics. At home, the position of the nobles was strengthened allowing more exploitation of the peasant serfs. This leads to the cossack rising of Pugachev in 1773-74, but the rebellion is put down.

Napoleon's attack on Russia in June 1812 sees the largest European army yet raised. It totals about 610,000 men, but only about half are French, the rest come from all over French-occupied Europe, including Germans, Dutch, Italians and Poles. Due to poor planning, supplies run short, and in the hot summer weather, disease breaks out. Tens of thousands die and by July, there are just 375,000 men. The French army meets the Russians, led by General Kutuzov, at the battle of Borodino on September 7. The French have 124,000 troops to the Russians, with 110,000, but the Russians have more cannon, 637 to 587. By the end of the day, Napoleon's army loses 28,000 men killed and wounded, including 49 generals, while the Russians lose 52,000--almost one out of two men. But neither side can claim a decisive victory.

These are horrific losses, the worst since the battle of Malplaquet in 1709, and the worst to be seen until the First World War a hundred years later.

Napoleon manages to reach Moscow, but his army down to about 90,000 men has been fatally weakened by the losses at Borodino. Moscow, either by accident or on purpose, is set on fire and the huge blaze burns most of the city. The Russians refuse to make peace, and Napoleon, with winter approaching and short of food, is forced to retreat back to France. By the time he reaches the border of Poland on December 10, he has only 5000 men with him, the rest lost to attacks by the reinforced Russian army and the cold winter weather. It is the first decisive defeat the French dictator receives. The war continues during 1813 and 1814, but Napoleon is defeated after raising a new army. Russian troops finally occupy Paris in 1814.

The first "fast food": The word "bistro" for a small restaurant comes from the time of the Russian occupation. Russian soldiers would call "bistro, bistro"--which means "fast, fast", in other words, hurry up--to the waiters of French taverns. The term finally stuck and became the name of a quick-service restaurant.

There had been two Turkish Uighur kingdoms in eastern Turkestan: the Karakhanid, which was Muslim, and the Karakhojas, which was Buddhist. In 1397, these kingdoms merged into one state and maintained their independence until 1759. This was the year the Manchus, who had set up a huge empire in China, invaded the Uighur Kingdom and conquered it. The Uighur princess Iparhan, who fought against the Chinese, is seen as a symbol of resistance. After the conquest, the Uighurs launched revolts 42 times against Manchu rule--all unsuccessful. The few remaining independent states in central Asia were under heavy pressure from the two dominant powers in the region, the empires of Manchu China and Romanov Russia.

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