The Role of Sultan Abulfeis in Kazakh-Kyrgyz Relations in the second half of the XVIII century: between the Russian and Qing Empires

Sultan Abulfeis headed the some clan subdivisions of the tribe of Naiman in Eastern Kazakhstan and was one of the most influential Kazakh rulers of the Middle Juz in the second half of the 18th century. However, his active military and diplomatic activity is not fully reflected in the scientific literature. Relations with the Kyrgyz, whose lands were territorially adjacent to Abulfeis' possessions, remain a poorly studied topic. In the historiography the issues of Kazakh-Kyrgyz interaction in the specified chronological framework are reflected fragmentarily, some facts of long confrontation are noted, connected, first of all, with the name of Sultan and Abylai Khan, Abulfeis is mentioned as one of his military allies. The purpose of the study is to show the participation and role of Abulfeis in Kazakh-Kyrgyz military and political contacts in the second half of the 18th century and to note their main causes and results. The source base of the study consists of published and unpublished documents revealing the policy of Sultan Abulfeis in relation to neighboring states and peoples. Information on this subject is provided by the correspondence of the military and civil authorities of the Russian Empire, reflecting the events in the Middle Zhuz, as well as documents on foreign policy activities of the Qing Empire, including the interaction directly with Sultan Abulfeis. In the study the principles of historicism and objectivism were implemented, methods of analysis, comparison and interpretation of historical data were used in the work with sources. The historical circumstances, participants, course and results of the Kazakh-Kyrgyz military clashes of 1750–1780 are shown in chronological sequence. The principled position of non-interference in the protracted conflict on the part of the Russian and Qing empires is noted. Military-diplomatic relations with the Kyrgyz were an important part of the ‘eastern’ direction of Abulfeis' policy. Its success largely depended on the coordination of plans and interaction between the Kazakh nobility of the Middle Juz. The main reasons for the conflicts were the struggle for nomads in the former Dzungar lands, material and political benefits from successful military campaigns (amanates, captives, cattle), and competition for control over trade caravans from Central Asia.