The Greater Game: Qing China in Central Eurasia

This article surveys Qing China's expansion into Central Eurasia in the context of The Great Game, a geopolitical contest between the British and Russian empires in that region. It argues that Manchu activities, policies, and roles in Tibet and Xinjiang made Qing China a significant third player in the struggle for regional dominance, which can be regarded as The Greater Game. This article specifically refers to the geopolitical concerns of Britain, China, and Russia in Asia and Europe in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries to explain their effects on this Greater Game.