THE SOVIET HISTORIOGRAPHY AND THE QUESTION OF KAZAKHSTAN’S HISTORY

THE QUESTION OF KAZAKHSTAN’S HISTORY 117
the society to Sultan Pravitels. According to “The Article about Orınbor
Kyrgyzs” enacted in 1844, the general governance was given to Orınbor
Borderline Commission. There were a Chairman, 4 Advisors, 4 Kazakh
Members, an Officer for Private duty, a doctor, and a veterinary office
in the Commission. According to the new act, the Court of Biys tried
small claims and other cases were dealt by the Russian Military Court.
While the political independence of Kazakh Turks was destroyed, the
most fruitful lands of Middle Jüz and Little Jüz were occupied conspiratorially
and Cossack people were settled on those lands.
According to the calculations of military topographer Kakulin, just in
1839 15000 km2 lands were given to Cossack people from Öskemen to
Ombı along the coastal line of the İrtiş River. According to an eye-witness,
“10 verst 197 lands along İrtiş coast were given to Cossack people
and nomad Kazakhs were not allowed to come closer to the river. They
could neither drink water nor fish” 198 . The heavy taxes, the occupation of
fertile lands, the corruption of local authorities who made cooperation
with Czarist Russian government made Kazakh nomads poorer. Therefore,
new classes like “ekinci, jatak, bayguş”, which were not present in
Kazakh community before, emerged. Because Kazakhs became poorer
by losing their animals as a result of lack of pasture, they started to
work cheaply for Cossacks and Russian villagers in borderland compounds.
While İ.Zavalişin states that rich Kazakh people started to get
used to European culture, they had a different kind of attitude towards
agriculture; he also says “Ekinci is the name for the lowest class of
their society so it is a humiliating word and only hopeless poverty
forces Kyrgyz people to work in agriculture” 199 . Except for losing their
lands, also the extreme increase in taxes was one of the factors that
made the society poor and forced to adopt a sedentary life. According
to Orınbor Border Commission data, in 1850 the number of “baygus”
was 21,000 in Little Jüz, 3000 Middle Jüz, and 2743 in Great Jüz. The
Czarist government allowed the “jatak” and “baygus” to work in the
salt and mineral business to provide a cheap workforce. Poor Kazakh
people even sold their children because of their bad living conditions.
vince in 1824. After 1868 it was started to be taken from Kazakhs of Akmola, Semey,
Yedisu, Oral and Torgay provinces, instead of “prohibition tax”. (M. A. Miropiyev., O
Polojenii Russkih İnorodtsev., S-Peterburg, 1901. p. 404-405.)
197 Versta is an old Russian length measuring unit, 1 versta= 1.06 km.
198 V.Kostyurin., Po Zapadnoy Sibiri, Omsk-Semipalatinsk, “Novoye Vremya”, 1839, no.2291;
E. Bekmakhanov., Kazahstan 20-40 gody XIX.veka, Almaty,1992 edition, p. 127.
199 İ. Zavalişin., Opisaniye Zapadnoy Sibiri , III.volume, Sibirsko-Kirgizskaya Step, Moscow,
1867, p. 53.