Russia on the Danube

"Victor Taki's latest book focuses on Russian policy in the Danubian principalities (Moldavia and Wallachia) and the development of Romanian statehood from the late eighteenth century until 1859. Deeply researched and cogently argued, the book presents an innovative thesis about Russia's vision for a well-ordered police state that challenges national historiographies and traditional stereotypes about Russian imperialism. We learn that St. Petersburg aimed to develop the region into a buffer zone against the Ottomans, and ultimately, the interaction between creative Russian statesmen and the traditional elites of Moldavia and Wallachia established a framework for the unification of the principalities to take place. By analyzing the conjunction between cultural policy, warfare, and institutional reform, the book makes a major contribution to our understanding of Russia and the formation of modern Romania."

"This outstanding book fills several important gaps in Russian and Balkan history: not only does it reconceptualize Russia's policy to the Ottoman Empire, it also corrects many accepted but questionable views in Western and Romanian historiography by bringing previously untapped evidence from the Russian archives. The book will be the main guide to the confusing developments that marked the end of Ottoman domination of Southeastern Europe in the context of the Napoleonic Wars and their aftermath. It sheds light not only on the emergence of Romania but also on the littleknown aspects of the Greek War of Independence and its effects on the Danube."