A History of the Peoples of Siberia is an ethno-history of Siberia. The text analyzes ethnographic and linguistic features of the native peoples and traces their history from the Russian conquest onwards. James Forsyth assesses the impact of Russian exploration and settlement, and looks at Siberian relations with Kazakstan, Mongolia and China. He shows how Russian occupation generated warfare, tribute-exaction and exploitation to such an extent that many doubted the capacity of the Siberian peoples to survive. After the 1917 revolution and the vicissitudes of civil war (not to mention the growth of Altai, Buryat and Yakut separatist movements), the Soviet regime brought autonomy, medical services and education. However, the policies of the Stalinist era - collectivization, denomadization, amalagamation of settlements, Russification and destructive environmental effects of Russian industrial development - further undermined the native communities, as did conscription during the Second World War.