page_title: History of Kyrgyzstan
section_title: Russian Empire: 1876–1917
hierarchical_section_title: History of Kyrgyzstan / Russian Empire: 1876–1917
caption_attribution_description: English: Description: Kurmanjan Datka, Kyrgyz stateswoman, as featured on the Kyrgyz 50 som note. Source: Image taken by hux. Date: May 24, 2006. Permission: Not required - public domain (see below)
context_page_description: The history of the Kyrgyz people and the land now called Kyrgyzstan goes back more than 3,000 years. Although geographically isolated by its mountainous location, it had an important role as part of the historical Silk Road trade route. In between periods of self-government it was ruled by Göktürks, the Uyghur Empire, and the Khitan people, before being conquered by the Mongols in the 13th century; subsequently it regained independence but was invaded by Kalmyks, Manchus and Uzbeks. In 1876 it became part of the Russian Empire, remaining in the USSR as the Kirghiz Soviet Socialist Republic after the Russian Revolution. Following Mikhael Gorbachev's democratic reforms in the USSR, in 1990 pro-independence candidate Askar Akayev was elected president of the SSR. On 31 August 1991, Kyrgyzstan declared independence from Moscow, and a democratic government was subsequently established.
context_section_description: In 1775, Atake Tynay Biy Uulu, one of the leaders of Sarybagysh tribe, established first diplomatic ties with the Russian Empire by sending his envoys to Catherine the Great in Saint Petersburg. In the early 19th century, the territory of Kyrgyzstan came under the control of the Khanate of Kokand, but the territory was occupied and formally annexed by the Russian Empire in 1876. The Russian takeover instigated numerous revolts against tsarist authority, and many Kyrgyz opted to move into the Pamir Mountains or to Afghanistan. The ruthless suppression of the 1916 rebellion in Central Asia, triggered by the Russian imposition of the military draft on the Kyrgyz and other Central Asian peoples, caused many Kyrgyz to flee to China. For Russian expansion into central Asia see Russian conquest of Turkestan.
caption: A 50-Kyrgyzstani som banknote representing Kurmanjan Datka.
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