The Qing Dynasty was an empire that encompassed a vast territory, condensing diverse cultures and maintaining a community of different ethnic groups. However, there are often dark currents in the long river of history. The motives and intentions behind the alien tribes that are considered to be "obedient" are often obscure and unpredictable. In the thirty-sixth year of Qianlong (1771), a wave of sand and dust swept in, shocking the entire Qing Dynasty. That is, the Mongolian nomadic tribe of Turghut, who was far away in Russia, suddenly returned to the east, claiming to return to their ancestral land to re-submit to the Qing Dynasty. For the submission of this notorious foreign tribe, why did Emperor Qianlong face the enemy? And how to dispose of it in the end?
1. The worries of the territory appeared before the Turkish special front
The Turghuts, a nomadic tribe of Oirat Mongolia, once settled in the oasis of Xinjiang and have lived and multiplied for hundreds of years. However, in the 17th century, unwilling to be ruled by the rising Dzungar tribes, they left their ancestral homeland behind and moved westward to the lower reaches of the Volga River in Russia in search of new world.
At that time, although Turghut was far away from his homeland, his ancestral teachings were still there, and the tradition of heroic fighting had not been extinguished. Driven by their belief in Tibetan Buddhism and their courageous and uninhibited nature, they gradually gained a foothold in foreign lands and created a pure land in the Volga River Valley, where they were proud of the forces of Orthodox Christianity and Islam.
However, fate is always changing. As time passed, Tsarist Russia grew stronger, and continued to extend its claws to the Turks, conscripting troops and food, and installing Orthodox missionaries to start a wave of assimilation. Under the double blow of oppression, exploitation and cultural shock, the top of the Turghut tribe and the lama spiritual leaders finally made up their minds to find a way to change the status quo.
At this critical moment, news from the motherland Xinjiang resounded in the sky -- the army under the command of Emperor Qianlong had completely defeated the Dzungar Khanate, which had been rampant for a hundred years. This is tantamount to cutting the biggest shackles that bind Turgot to the east. Therefore, under the unanimous consensus of the tribe, with the old and the young, 170,000 people under the command of Wubasi Khan were assembled, crossed many passes, and started a long journey home.
When this astonishing news penetrated the darkness and reached the imperial case of Emperor Qianlong in the Forbidden City, the entire Qing Dynasty was shocked! A nomadic alien race that has been away from their homeland for more than 100 years and has never been shameless in betrayal has suddenly gathered and returned to the east! For this unprecedented vision, Emperor Qianlong was full of doubts in his heart, and had to tell the government and the opposition and the frontier soldiers to be vigilant and stay vigilant.
2. Doubts were plentiful, and Emperor Qianlong was uneasy
After the Turks left Xinjiang and settled in the lower reaches of the Volga River, the Qing Dynasty sent envoys several times to persuade them to return to the imperial territory. Without exception, however, these appeals have fallen on deaf ears and have been neither responded to nor acted upon.
During the reign of the Kangxi Emperor, Qing envoys made a special trip to the Volga to promote the prestige of the Qing Dynasty and call on the diaspora nomadic people to regain their royal support. But the Turks turned a blind eye to it, and were so indifferent to grace that they did not pay any attention to it. At that time, they were making small achievements in a foreign land, barely maintaining a world, and the Dzungar tribe was still strong back then, and they were afraid that they would fall into an oppressed situation when they returned to their ancestral hometown, so they naturally had no way to consider it.
When Emperor Yongzheng succeeded to the throne, the threat of the Dzungar Khanate became increasingly rampant, and the Qing Dynasty had no choice but to go out to quell the rebellion. In order to provide additional help, the envoys once again traveled across the ocean to contact the Turkut tribes, which were opposed to Dzungaria, in an attempt to exert internal pressure with their strength. However, this effort was again disappointed, and although the Turks were not on good terms with the Dzungar Khanate, they did not have the ambition to cooperate with the Qing Dynasty, and ultimately failed to form a flanking attack.
Even when Qianlong personally conquered Dzungaria, the Turks still stayed out of the matter and avoided talking about the call to return to the motherland. These lessons made Emperor Qianlong suspicious of their true motives. Is there another conspiracy among a nomadic tribe that once had a negative attitude towards the Qing Dynasty and was cold to the royal kindness suddenly returned to the east? Have they allied themselves with other nations and plotted rebellion?
In addition to the concerns left over from history, the behavior of the Turks on the way back to the east deepened the vigilance of Emperor Qianlong. In order to hide people's eyes and ears, they quietly set off with their clans, never mentioning the marching plan, and concealing their own hidden secrets. Once on the way home, they quickly showed the brutal nature of the steppe nomads, wielding murder weapons against Russian outposts and farms along the way, wantonly looting and slaughtering, like bandits.
What is even more disturbing is that when the Turks passed through the territory of the Kazakh Khanate, they were also extremely vicious to the herdsmen there, and it was too arrogant to do so. The two ethnic groups were already feuding, and this trip to the east undoubtedly added fuel to the fire, intensified the contradictions and antagonism between the two sides, and added unwarranted disasters to the Kazakh Khanate.
Thirdly, the haze of suffering looms over the wrong path
However, just as Wobasi Khan led 170,000 Turkut tribesmen on the way home, a series of natural and man-made disasters suddenly appeared, enveloping the entire expedition.
First of all, just as they were passing through the territory of the Kazakh Khanate, a sudden snowstorm swept in, and the steppe was plunged into a scene of "white plague" in ice and snow. A large number of domestic animals had nowhere to shelter and froze to death in the bitter cold, leaving the tribe devastated.
Just as the damage caused by the drastic cooling had not stopped, a sudden plague swept in, and thousands of lives were reduced to rotting corpses in an instant. Innocent people who died unexpectedly were scattered all over the roadside, and the horrific scene left the entire team in a state of disintegration.
The most unbearable thing was that while traveling through the mountains, they were attacked by the local Kyrgyz people. With their familiarity with the terrain, the Kirghiz took advantage of the location to carry out an organized and premeditated attack on the large contingent of this army. The two armies blocked and fought each other on the mountain road that stretched for dozens of miles, and both sides suffered heavy casualties, and a large amount of grain and grass was looted.
The once proud and proud Turghut tribe suffered unparalleled suffering on the way back. It can be said that this nomadic people, who once stood out in the lower reaches of the Volga, paid a heavy price on the way back and had already suffered a great loss of vitality.
When they finally returned from the trek, they found that their homeland in Xinjiang was no longer what it used to be. The old part of Turghut had long since been occupied by other nomadic forces, and the pastures and estates had been completely destroyed in the turmoil. Now that there is no long-term object and no old master, this clan has become a tired and rootless wanderer in their homeland.
Fourth, Qianlong had a strategy to diverge and divert divergent currents
In the face of the surrendered Turghut tribe, Emperor Qianlong did not act rashly, but adopted a divide-and-conquer strategy through careful weighing.
First of all, Emperor Qianlong personally met with the leader of the Turghut tribe, Wubasi Khan. At this crucial meeting, Worbasi Khan reaffirmed his people's determination to "reconvert to the Qing Dynasty" and expressed his sincere sincerity in submitting to the Qing Dynasty. Although Emperor Qianlong had concerns, he also took the opportunity to express his cautious acceptance.
Then there is the issue of resettlement. Emperor Qianlong clearly instructed that such a large group of foreign ethnic groups should not be allowed to settle in Xinjiang, so as not to arouse suspicion and confrontation among other nomadic peoples. Therefore, he ordered the Turkut to be divided into a number of routes, which were to be placed in various parts of Xinjiang.
One of the routes was personally led by Wobasi Khan and settled in the Ili area. The other was led by his second son, Oyongqin Khan, and was stationed in the Hotan region. The rest of the men and horses were scattered in Aksu, Kashgar and other regions. Through this divide-and-rule approach, the entire tribe was broken up into several fragmented groups, reducing the threat of a concentrated rebellion.
At the same time, in order to prevent trouble, Emperor Qianlong stationed a large number of Qing generals in each station, always monitoring every move of the Turk Special Department. These Qing troops were not only responsible for maintaining law and order, but also for ensuring the absolute submission of their subordinates. If any signs of movement are detected, they will be severely suppressed.
In addition, Emperor Qianlong promulgated a series of policies to cut off the Turks from the outside world. They are forbidden to move freely and must not cross borders without permission; strictly restricted the trade channels with Tsarist Russia and other countries; Place the important leaders of the clan under house arrest separately. Through these strict control measures, it was ensured that the Turks would never betray again.
Although various preventive measures were taken, Emperor Qianlong's disposition of the Turkut Department was not satisfactory. This nomadic heroic tribe that had been rampant in the lower reaches of the Volga River for more than 100 years could only curl up and hide in various parts of Xinjiang, losing the sovereignty to build an independent capital. Although their submission existed in name only, it at least defused a possible war. Under the foresight of Emperor Qianlong, this potential scourge was finally completely extinguished.
5. After returning to the east, the water cloud nomadism finally entered the Sichuan
Over time, the resettlement of the Turks in various parts of Xinjiang has become more and more stable. However, their fate on the land of the motherland is far from over.
In the forty-third year of Qianlong (1778), the then old man Wubasi Khan returned to the west after settling down in Ili for seven years, and his second son, Oyongqin Khan, succeeded him as the new chief of the tribe. He was cautious and sophisticated, and he obeyed the Qing Dynasty, lest there be the slightest sign of rebellion.
Under his personal supervision, the Turgot tribe in the Hotan area gradually reclaimed the wasteland and developed animal husbandry and agricultural cultivation. The tribe is industrious and willing to work, and the day is not safe, but it also takes root among the Gobi mountains and rivers. However, due to its location in the borderland, the living environment is harsh, and it is far away from the Central Plains, so it is isolated from the world all year round. This made it difficult for them to fully integrate into the territory of the Qing Dynasty.
At this moment, a sudden political movement completely changed the whereabouts of the Turks. This is the "Lifan" movement launched by Emperor Jiaqing of the Qing Dynasty to rectify the frontier. In order to strengthen his rule over Xinjiang, Emperor Jiaqing adopted Xinjiang as a county in Zhili Prefecture through various means, so that foreign races submitted to orthodoxy. The Turkut Ministry became the focus of the movement.
Under the arrangement of the Qing officials, the then sixtieth year of the Oroqin Khan carried more than 7,000 people from the Turhut tribe across the Heishui and were sent to the Aba Tibetan area of Sichuan Province. Although Aba Mountain is beautiful, it is located in a remote area and has a difficult environment, which is in stark contrast to the Central Plains, which has been greatly developed. However, they have finally escaped the lonely pastoral areas of Xinjiang.
From then on, Oyongqin Khan led his subordinates to settle down in Xiaojin County, Aba Prefecture, and lived a half-farming and half-pastoral life. They took root there for many years, and some of them left until the Guangxu period of the late Qing Dynasty. The rest will always be rooted in this land, changing their paths, from the brave and warlike grassland rangers in the past to the villagers of the Central Plains.
After experiencing exile and wandering, the Turghut Special Division, which was once proud of the others, finally abandoned the conquest of swords and swords and found a home on the land of the motherland. They have lived in Aba for many years, and although their names have long been unknown, they have gradually become a happy integration with this land. The western Sichuan Plateau became the final habitat of this group of nomadic heroes.