Skobelew Im Turkenkriege und vor Achal - Teke. Erinnerungen eines Augenzeugen ... Autorisierte deutsche Ausgabe von A. von Drygalski

Mikhail Dmitrievich Skobelev (1843 – 1882) was a Russian general famous for his conquest of Central Asia and heroism during the Russo-Turkish War of 1877–78. He was engaged in wars against the Turkomans and the Turks. In January 1878 he crossed the Balkans in a severe snowstorm defeating the Turks at Sheynovo, near Shipka. Skobelev returned to Turkistan and in 1880 took command of the Russian campaign against the Turkmens living between the Caspian and Aral seas and the Persian province of Khorāsān. On Jan. 24, 1881, Skobelev captured Göktepe (now Gökdepe), where he slaughtered the male population in the vicinity. He then forced the region into submission and was proceeding against Ashkhabad (now Ashgabat) when he was recalled and given command of the Minsk Army Corps.
In the last years of his life, Skobelev engaged actively in politics, supporting the ideas of Russian nationalism and militant Pan-Slavism. He has also been credited as one of the earliest promoters of the concept "Russia for Russians".