author
Sir Alexander Burnes
1805–1841
Drawn to danger and discovery, this Scottish explorer became one of the best-known British travelers in Central Asia before his life was cut short in Kabul in 1841. His journeys along the Indus and into Afghanistan helped make him a key figure in the era later called the Great Game.
3 Audiobooks
About the author
Born in Montrose, Scotland, on May 16, 1805, he joined the East India Company army as a teenager and quickly showed a gift for languages, learning Hindustani and Persian while serving in India. That skill opened the way to work as an interpreter and later as an explorer and political officer.
He became famous for ambitious journeys through the Indus region and across Central Asia, traveling in places that were little known to British readers at the time. His book Travels into Bokhara brought him wide attention, and his reports made him an important source of information on Afghanistan and neighboring regions.
Burnes later served as a diplomat in Kabul during the tense rivalry between Britain and Russia. He was killed there on November 2, 1841, during an uprising, ending a career that was adventurous, influential, and remarkably brief.