Избрание и утверждение казахских ханов в условиях укрепления позиций Российской империи во второй половине XVIII в.

Abstract

The article studies the problem of functioning of the khan’s power in the Kazakh society in the second half of the XVIII century. At this time, the Russian border administration attempted to strengthen its influence onKazakh society, which was manifested in a policy aimed at transforming the procedure of electing and legitimizing Kazakh khans. The purpose of the article is to study the problem of election of Kazakh khans in the conditions of attempts of the Imperial administration to influence the process and procedure of election and approval of Kazakh rulers in the Khan’s dignity in the second half of the XVIII century. An important task is to show how these attempts were implemented and what results they led to. Another task is to show the procedure of election and approval of Kazakh khans and the innovations that appeared under the influence of the Russian authorities based on archival materials. The article uses materials from the Archive of Foreign Policy of the Russian Empire, Russian State Military Historical Archive, Russian State Archive of Ancient Acts, as well as published documents and materials. Since the middle of the XVIII century, the Orenburg administration made attempts to influence the election of Nurali Khan of the Small Horde, who became the first Kazakh ruler to be confirmed in the dignity of Khan by the Russian monarch. In the Middle Horde, the introduction of this innovation was delayed, which was primarily due to the position and real capabilities of the Sultan, and then Ablai Khan. Having established a noticeable control over the Kazakh clans of the Middle Horde while still a Sultan, he continued to strengthen his influence among the Kazakhs, which drew the attention of the Russian administration to him. In the late 1750s, he offered the title of Khan, with the condition of approval in this title in St. Petersburg, but this attempt was unsuccessful. The next attempt was made in the 1770s, when Ablai, who had been already elected Khan by the Kazakhs, asked to approve St. Petersburg in this dignity. Despite the obvious influence of the Russian Empire on the process of approval of Kazakh rulers by the khans, throughout the XVIII and even later, the Kazakhs retained many elements related to the procedure of election and proclamation of khans.