Author(s): Oliver Bullough

Travel

Two centuries ago, the Russians pushed out of the cold north towards the Caucasus Mountains, the range that blocked their access to Georgia, Turkey, Persia and India. They were forging their colonial destiny, and the mountains were in their way. The Caucasus had to be conquered and, for the highlanders who lived there, life would never be the same again. If the Russians expected it to be an easy fight, however, they were mistaken. Their armies would go on to defeat Napoleon and Hitler, as well as lesser foes, but no one resisted them for as long as these supposed savages. To hear the stories of the conquest, I travelled far from the mountains. I wandered through the steppes of Central Asia and the cities of Turkey. I squatted outside internment camps in Poland, and drank tea beneath the gentle hills of Israel. The stories I heard amplified the outrages I saw in the mountains themselves. As I set out, in my mind was a Chechen woman I had met in a refugee camp. She lived in a ragged, khaki tent in a field of mud and stones, but she welcomed me with laughter and kindness. Like the mountains of her homeland, her spirit had soared upwards, gleaming and pure. Throughout my travels, I met the same generosity from all the Caucasus peoples. Their stories have not been told, and there fame is not great, but truly it deserves to be. Review: This wonderful, moving book flashes backwards and forwards over a terrain almost impossible to survey, and manages the feat Norman Stone Lively and impassioned ... a tragically neglected corner of our world Orlando Figes A book that effortlessly mixes on-the-spot reportage and a wide-ranging history ... Let its fame be great The Scotsman An impressive debut ... heartfelt and compelling ... With this impassioned volume he has struck a blow for the glory of the Caucasus and helped to give voice to the voiceless -- Justin Marozzi Financial Times [Bullough] brings us exciting news, presented as short, gripping stories that tell of the terrible things that happen to people caught up in constant warfare ... The history of their resistance and resilience has been largely unknown for two centuries. Now their stories are sung by a champion and will resound beyond their boundaries -- Ian Finlayson The Times Oliver Bullough's book is a painstaking, sensitively reported effort to knit together their [the people of the Caucasus] lost history -- Wendell Steavenson Sunday Times Bullough should be congratulated on his brave and tireless investigations into an under-reported region of the world -- George Walden New Statesman Let Our Fame Be Great is a treat ... Finely bound, with excellent maps, Bullough draws you irresistibly into his narrative, fusing reportage, history and travelogue in colourful, absorbing prose ... The book is a pleasure, and most importantly, it is critical to understanding modern Russia with its worrying collective amnesia -- Daniel Metcalfe Spectator Fascinating and ground-breaking ... Bullough has got plenty of dust, snow and mud on his boots from his travels recording the forgotten tragedies of the North Caucasus ... In the process he [has] unearthed many priceless nuggets of historic truth -- Thomas De Waal OpenDemocracy A courageous young journalist illuminates one of the world's most ethnically and culturally diverse regions. His travels and historical back-stories show that contemporary brutality in Chechnya is nothing new, and reminds us of the fate of whole nations such as the Circassians, scattered to the winds by Russian imperialism FT The majority of the stories are frankly heart breaking ... Bullough's book means that while the peoples of the Caucasus have had neither fame nor glory at least their stories may be told -- Will Gourlay Lonely Planet First published March 2010. Hardback 528pp h240mm x w162mm x s36mm 934g Illustrations, maps