Roads to Glory

Late Imperial Russia and the Turkish Straits

Ronald P. Bobroff

• Publisher: I.B. Tauris
• Year: 2006
• Print ISBN: 9781845111427
• eBook ISBN: 9780857716545
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Geschichte
• Subtopic: Europäische Geschichte

Until now, it has been accepted that the Turkish Straits - the Russian fleet's gateway to the Mediterranean - were a key factor in shaping Russian policy in the years leading to World War I. Control of the Straits had always been accepted as the major priority of Imperial Russia's foreign policy. In this powerfully argued revisionist history, Ronald Bobroff exposes the true Russian concern before the outbreak of war: the containment of German aggression. Based on extensive new research, Bobroff provides fascinating new insights into Russia's state development before the revolution, examining the policies and personal correspondence of its policy makers. And through his detailed examination of the rivalries and alliances of the Triple Entente, he sheds new light on European diplomacy at the beginning of the twentieth century.

Table of contents

• Cover
• Half title
• Title
• Copyrights
• Contents
• List of tables
• Note on usage
• Acknowledgments
• Dedication
• Introduction
• 1. Stolypin and a policy of avoiding confrontation, 1908 to March 1911
• 2. Policy drift and the Italo-Turkish War, March 1911 to October 1912
• 3. The Balkan Wars: Choosing between the Balkan States and the Straits, 1912-1913
• 4. Turkish naval expansion and the Liman von Sanders Crisis, March 1912 to July 1914
• 5. War deferred: Diplomacy dominant during Turkish neutrality, July 1914 to October 1914
• 6. War engaged: Allied and domestic disputes over the fate of Constantinople and the Straits, November 1914 to July 1916
• Conclusion: A Russian tragedy
• Notes
• Bibliography
• Index