Bloomsbury Academic Land, Community, and the State in the Caucasus: Kabardino-Balkaria from Tsarist Conquest to Post-Soviet Politics

In Land, Community, and the State in the Caucasus, Ian Lanzillotti traces the history of Kabardino-Balkaria from the extension of Russian rule in the late-18th century through to the ethno-nationalist mobilizations of the post-Soviet era. The Caucasus mountain region in southern Russia has witnessed some of the worst conflict in Europe since 1945; yet, amidst such turmoil, the semi-autonomous, multiethnic Kabardino-Balkar Republic has remained, by comparison, an oasis of peace. Through exploring themes of inter- and intra-communal relations, the expansion and evolution of imperial rule and governance, and the causes of peace and conflict, this book examines how and why Kabardino-Balkaria managed to maintain relative stability despite the tensions over religion, land, and identity in North Caucasus. Deeply researched and elegantly argued, Ian Lanzillotti deftly balances sources from Russias central archives with rare and often overlooked archival material from the Caucasus region to provide the first historical examination of Kabardino-Balkaria in the English language. As such, Land, Community, and the State in the Caucasus is a vital resource for both historians of the Caucasus region and modern Russia, and scholars of peace and conflict studies. Review "In Land, Community and the State in the Caucasus Lanzillotti takes us right to the heart of the Northern Caucasus. Skilfully reconstructing the multi-layered history of Kabardino-Balkaria from the age of waning empires to the imagined nations of the present, he offers to the reader a fascinating longue durée of a region located in the geopolitical shatter zone of local and imperial rule. Defying the binary construed by official historiography and bottom-up ethno-nationalism alike, Lanzillotti draws from rare archival materials to produce a rich and multi-layered account of the organic interplay among state power, local space and the multiple communities that make themselves at home in it. The book is a must-read for historians and scholars of conflict studies alike who are eager to comprehend the crucial role of access to land at the nexus of peaceful cohabitation and violent conflict." --Dr David Leupold, Leibniz-Zentrum Moderner Orient Berlin, Germany"Ian Lanzillotti has conducted ground-breaking research, built on participant observation, summary of vast existing literature, and numerous new archival materials. In the course of his fieldwork in the Caucasus, the author found a new approach to understanding this well-studied but still perplexing region. Through the issue of access to land as the focal point of the study, this book analyzes the most important social and political problems that have been troubling the region. The vital findings of this book give cause for optimism for resolving centuries long conflicts in one of the most ethnically and confessionally diverse parts of the world." --Sufian N. Zhemukhov, Associate Research Professor of International Affairs, George Washington University, USA"In this pathbreaking, fascinating, and richly researched book, Ian Lanzillotti explores questions of nationality policy, inter-ethnic relations, national identity formation, and the daily, lived experience of ethnicity and confession across a full swath of modern Eurasian history. It is essential reading for anyone interested in the complex causes of violence, social stability, and relative peacefulness in ethnically diverse lands." --Nicholas Breyfogle, Associate Professor of History, Ohio State University, USA About the Author Ian Lanzillotti is Assistant Professor of History at Bethany College, USA.