Burnaby's adventurous spirit, pioneering achievements, and swashbuckling courage earned an affection in the minds of Victorian imperial idealists.

As well as travelling across Europe and Central Asia, he mastered ballooning, spoke a number of foreign languages fluently, stood for parliament twice, published several books, and was admired and feted by the women of London high society.

Gustavus Andrew Burnaby of Somerby Hall, Leicestershire, and canon of Middleham in Yorkshire (d. 15 July 1872), by Harriet, sister of Henry Villebois of Marham House, Norfolk (d. 1883).

[1] Returning to England in March 1875, he formulated his plans for a journey on horseback to the Khanate of Khiva through Russian Asia, which had just been closed to travellers.

Having received conflicted accounts of the dubious privilege of Russian hospitality it was a welcome release, he later told his book, to be cheered with vodka.

Lurid tales of wild tribesmen awaiting his desert travails ready to "gouge out his eyes" were intended to discourage.

A local mullah wrote an introduction note to the Khan, and clad in furs they traversed the freezing desert.

Burnaby's book outlined in some detail the events of the following days, the successful outcome of the meetings, and the decision he took to evade the Russian army.

On arrival back in England, March 1876, he was received by Commander-in-Chief, Prince George, Duke of Cambridge, whose praise marvelled at Burnaby's feats of derring-do and impressive physique.

Outraged by the pogroms the Prime Minister ordered immediate diplomatic efforts, while W. E. Gladstone demanded an aggressive clear out of the Sultanate from Europe.

He was warned the Russian garrison had issued an arrest warrant; turning back at the frontier he took ship on the Black Sea via the Bosphorus and the Mediterranean.

[3] The inexorable conclusion was drawn in Calcutta and London that Russia would not avoid, but wanted war; planning more attacks still.

Eager for Russian rule, Colonel N L Grodekov had built a road from Tashkent to Herat via Samarkand, anticipating a war of conquest.

[4] Burnaby's warnings that the bellicose Russians posed a serious threat to India were confirmed later by Lord Curzon, and an expedition much later under the Arabist Colonel Francis Younghusband, witnessed by the genesis of a Cossack invasion.

[5] See main article: Russo-Turkish War of 1877 Burnaby (who soon afterwards became lieutenant-colonel) acted as travelling agent to the Stafford House Red Cross Committee, but had to return to England before the campaign was over.

[10] It was, perhaps, because of an impromptu order by Burnaby (who, as a supernumerary, had no official capacity in the battle) that the Dervishes managed to get inside the square.

"[13] Burnaby appears as a balloonist in Julian Barnes's memoir Levels of Life (2014), where he is portrayed as having a (fictional) love affair with Sarah Bernhardt.

It has been suggested that Burnaby may have been (in part) an inspiration for the creation of George MacDonald Fraser's fictional anti-hero Harry Flashman.

[14] (both with an introduction by Peter Hopkirk) A tall Portland stone obelisk in the churchyard of St Philip's Cathedral, Birmingham commemorates his life.