Military Forces of the Kyrgyz in the 18th - Early 20th Century

Since the Kyrgyz did not have their own state formation during the period in question, there is no mention of the existence of national armed forces. However, the Kyrgyz served in the Kokand army, particularly as part of the cavalry (sipahi), which was considered the main strike force in the armed forces of the khanate. There are many examples in the history of the Kokand Khanate where Kyrgyz representatives served not only among the cavalry as sipahi and junior command staff but also in the middle and senior command ranks. For instance, in all the wars of the khanate against the Russian colonial army in the 1860s and 1870s, preference was given to the Kyrgyz militia, and the commanders of the army were mainly of Kyrgyz descent (Alimkul lyashker-bashi, Abdurakhman abtobachi, Iskak Asan uulu, Mamyr Mergen uulu, Momun Shamurzak uulu, Abdyldabek).

Under colonial rule, even the Kyrgyz militia lost its significance as an unnecessary element of life within the empire. According to Russian law, as is well known, "aliens," which included the Kyrgyz, were not allowed to serve in the armed forces of the empire. However, the tsar's decree of June 25, 1916, regarding the conscription of the peoples of Turkestan, including the Kyrgyz, for military-defense work — men aged 19 to 23 — provoked a wave of indignation among people who were already struggling to endure persecution on their native land, humiliation, and double oppression. Driven to despair by colonial oppression, the people were forced to rise with arms in hand for an open liberation struggle, which entered the history of Kyrgyzstan as the Kyrgyz uprising of 1916. The total losses of the rebels (losses in the struggle against the tsarist troops and the flight of some rebels to China) amounted to about half a million people.