Fred W. Bergholz teaches at Kean College of New Jersey. He received his B.A. in History from Upsala College, N.J. (where he became a member of the Phi Alpha Theta Honor Society), his M.A. in Non-Western Civilization from Seton Hall University, and his Ph.D. in East Asian history from New York University.

This fascinating book covers the history of relations between China and Russia from 1619 to 1758 as their empires expanded into the ste ppes of Central Asia and the Amur river valley in Northeast Asia. It thoroughly researches their quarrels with each other and a third power in Central Asia, the Zunghar Khanate that also attempted to create its own empire. The Zunghar Mongols represented the last flowering of nomad power in Asia before the modern weapons, muskets and cannon, of China and especially Russia ended forever the influence of the nomads on World history. This book deals with the attempts of both Russia and China to establish their empires in Central Asia, and their conflicts with the Zunghar Mongols of the Ili river region from 1619 to 1758.