Far East Kingdoms

Kyrgyzstan
AD 1918 - 1924

The Turkic-speaking Kyrgyz people of Central Asia for the most part today occupy Kyrgyzstan. They were formerly nomadic pastoralists and a major part of the Mongol-led armies of the 'Great Khan', Chingiz Khan.

Small numbers of Kyrgyz also reside in Afghanistan, western China, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, and Turkey. Their language is classified as belonging to north-western group of Turkic languages, otherwise known as the Kipchak group, which is a sub-family of Altaic languages.

During the second half of the nineteenth century, Kirgiziya (the land of the Kyrgyz once they were under the control of the Russian empire), became a major area of Russian colonisation efforts. Much of the best land was given to Russian settlers.

1918 - 1921

A reorganisation of Central Asian Soviet-controlled states along ethnic lines means the end of the khanate of Khiva, the Turkestan Krai, and the emirate of Bukhara (with the latter's last emir being ousted by the Tashkent Soviet in 1920).

They are merged into the newly-formed 'Turkestan Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic' or Turkestan ASSR, which is formed as a self-governing entity of the early Soviet Union.

However, in the same year, the Islamic Council and the Council of Intelligentsia declare the rival 'Turkestan Autonomous Republic', and set about fighting against the Bolshevik forces who start closing down mosques and persecuting Muslim clergy as part of their secularisation campaign.

1921 - 1924

The anti-Bolshevik 'Turkestan Autonomous Republic' has gradually lost ground to the Bolsheviks. The Bolsheviks themselves have been divided into two groups over the region's future, but the idea of a pan-Turkic state is jettisoned in place of several smaller states.

In 1924 the Turkestan ASSR is divided into the Uzbek SSR, the Turkmen SSR, the Kara-Kirghiz Autonomous Oblast (Kyrgyzstan), and the Karakalpak Autonomous Oblast (modern Karakalpakstan, an autonomous republic of Uzbekistan). Initially, the Tajik ASSR is also adjoined to the Uzbek state.