Uploaded October 2025 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
July 1840. The British occupation of Afghanistan. British officer Arthur Connolly wrote to his colleague Henry Rawlinson at Kandahar of his hopes for British imperialism in Central Asia. He referred to Rawlinson’s part in a “grand”, “noble”, and “great” game in the region. The game would secure British interests and balance local powers while helping “Russia cordially to all that she has a right to expect.” But the idea of the “great game” would not be remembered for being cordial or noble. At the same time, the perspective of the local rulers to the imperial rivalry is often arrogantly ignored, as if they were passive bystanders. Although Afghanistan, Iran and the Central Asian Khanates were unable to match the European’s economic and military might, they were still active participants who played in the Great Game. They defiantly resisted the two superpowers of their day. Cunning rulers like the Afghan Dost Mohamed Khan worked to play the British and the Russians against each other to gain leverage. The martial spirit of local peoples like the Turkmen Tepe tribe, was frequently showcased in displays of furious resistance. This is their story.
I want to thank Timur Khan for his invaluable help with the script. He is a PhD Candidate at Leiden University. His research focuses on Durrani rule in 18th and 19th century Peshawar. Check out his Academia page:
https://leidenuni.academia.edu/TimurKhan
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#russia #greatgame #britain
Images Used:
Music Used:
Doug Maxwell - Arabian Nightfall (Sting):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3bRzD...
If any of the images or songs are yours, please let me know I will amend them. Please don't report me straight away!
0:00 Intro & Context
3:38 Afghanistan's Uneasy Independence
8:43 Turkic Khanates Face The Russian Bear
11:49 Persia Caught In The Crosshair
16:24 Concluding Remarks
July 1840. The British occupation of Afghanistan. British officer Arthur Connolly wrote to his colleague Henry Rawlinson at Kandahar of his hopes for British imperialism in Central Asia. He referred to Rawlinson’s part in a “grand”, “noble”, and “great” game in the region. The game would secure British interests and balance local powers while helping “Russia cordially to all that she has a right to expect.” But the idea of the “great game” would not be remembered for being cordial or noble. At the same time, the perspective of the local rulers to the imperial rivalry is often arrogantly ignored, as if they were passive bystanders. Although Afghanistan, Iran and the Central Asian Khanates were unable to match the European’s economic and military might, they were still active participants who played in the Great Game. They defiantly resisted the two superpowers of their day. Cunning rulers like the Afghan Dost Mohamed Khan worked to play the British and the Russians against each other to gain leverage. The martial spirit of local peoples like the Turkmen Tepe tribe, was frequently showcased in displays of furious resistance. This is their story.
I want to thank Timur Khan for his invaluable help with the script. He is a PhD Candidate at Leiden University. His research focuses on Durrani rule in 18th and 19th century Peshawar. Check out his Academia page:
https://leidenuni.academia.edu/TimurKhan
FREE NEWSLETTER:
https://mailchi.mp/a69f93be6c66/hikma-history-newsletter
- Become a Patron for as little as a dollar a month to vote on upcoming and keep the movement going!
patreon.com/user?u=12397811
Massive thank you to our Patreons:
Elman
Walid
Preston P
Adam
Mohammad
Areeb
Awais
Omar
Farid
Ibrahim
Ari
Joshua
Haseeb
Amir
Mahmoud
Joel
CoreBard
- Join our social media community:
Twitter:
twitter.com/HikmaHistory
Instagram:
instagram.com/hikmahistory
Facebook:
facebook.com/HikmaHistory
Facebook group:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/hikma...
#russia #greatgame #britain
Images Used:
Music Used:
Doug Maxwell - Arabian Nightfall (Sting):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3bRzD...
If any of the images or songs are yours, please let me know I will amend them. Please don't report me straight away!
0:00 Intro & Context
3:38 Afghanistan's Uneasy Independence
8:43 Turkic Khanates Face The Russian Bear
11:49 Persia Caught In The Crosshair
16:24 Concluding Remarks
