The beginning of the Russian Empire's campaigns to conquer Central Asia
Seeking to push its borders eastward, the Russian Empire spent a long time gathering information on Central Asia: envoys and merchants were sent and forts were built on the Irtysh in 1718. In the 19th century the textile industry needed cotton, especially after the American Civil War (1861–1865) cut supplies. Another reason was rivalry with Britain, together with the wish to strengthen the empire’s position in Asia after its defeat in the Crimean War (1853–1856). Raids by robber bands on the frontier were used as a pretext for military campaigns. The khanates had been weakened by wars among themselves and internal conflicts, which made conquest easier. The conquest took place in four stages: 1847–1865 (north-western lands of Kokand and Tashkent), 1865–1868 (Kokand and Bukhara), 1873–1879 (Khiva and the rest of Kokand) and 1880–1885 (the Turkmens). The Raim fort was built first (1847), Ak-Mechet fell in 1853, and Aulie-Ata, Turkestan and Chimkent were taken in 1864.
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