CHAPTER XV
AN HISTORICAL SKETCH OF CHINESE TURKESTAN:
THE MODERN PERIOD
The soldiers of the Atalik in the Six Cities were many; gold-embroidered turbans and silk cloaks were the instruments of death for these dainty warriors.—From a Kashgar Ballad.
By way of introduction to this chapter some reference to the Khanates of Central Asia is called for. Half a century ago little or no accurate information on the subject was obtainable in England; for, although a brilliant band of British officers had penetrated to remote Bokhara and Khiva before the middle of the nineteenth century, the Khanates of the Sir Daria were beyond their ken.
With Russia it was otherwise. She was drawn forward mainly, perhaps, by the ambitions of her frontier officers but also by the desirability of controlling the raiders of the steppe. The Russian columns met with little serious opposition, being materially aided in their advance southwards by the Sir Daria, which not only provided drinking water, but to a certain extent helped to solve the difficult problems of supply and transport.
Russia reached the Sea of Aral and the mouth of the Sir Daria in 1847 and erected two forts, one in a harbour of that sea and the other at the mouth of the river. This forward step brought her into hostile contact with the state of Khokand, whose rulers bitterly resented the appearance of the Northern Power in an area where they had hitherto been unchallenged. But Russia was not to be denied. In 1849 the advance up the great river was begun, the first outpost of Khokand being captured in that year; and four years later Ak Masjid, situated 220 miles up the Sir Daria, was taken. The Crimean War paralysed Russian activity for some years, but in 1865 Tashkent was captured and the territory lying between the Sea of Aral and the Issik Kul was formed into the frontier province of Turkestan.
Having very briefly traced the advance of Russia to this point, we turn to Khokand, where a movement originated which profoundly influenced Chinese Turkestan and the adjacent countries. At this point some account must be given of Yakub Beg, an adventurer destined to play a leading part on the stage of Chinese Turkestan. The future Amir was born near Tashkent in 1820, his father, who claimed to be descended from Tamerlane, being a kazi or judge. At the age of twenty-five we find Yakub Beg a chamberlain in the service of the youthful Khudayar Khan, who was placed on the throne of Khokand by the Kapchak chief, Mussalman Kuli. Yakub’s sister married the Kapchak governor of Tashkent, and Yakub, mainly through his influence, was appointed Governor of Ak Masjid, which fort he stubbornly but unsuccessfully defended against the Russians. In 1858 Mussalman Kuli was barbarously executed by his ungrateful master, and the Kapchak and Kirghiz united to expel Khudayar in favour of his eldest brother, whom they set on the throne. Yakub tendered his services to the new Khan, who was assassinated two years later, whereupon Khudayar returned to the throne and took Yakub into favour once again. But that treacherous official soon deserted Khudayar in favour of Shah Murad Khan, another claimant to the throne. He was ordered by his new master to hold Khojand, but being threatened by a Bokharan force he surrendered his charge and joined the invaders. Later, Yakub Beg fought the Russians before Tashkent in 1864, when General Chernaieff, after the fall of Chimkent, failed in his attempt to capture the city by a coup de main.
At this juncture the envoys of Sadik Beg, a Kirghiz chief, brought news of an anti-Chinese revolt in Kashgar and asked for a scion of the Khoja family to lead it. Buzurg Khan, last surviving son of Jahangir, who lived in Khokand, was accordingly approached. He readily embraced the opportunity and appointed Yakub Beg to command the tiny body of sixty followers which constituted his entire military force, the Khan of Khokand being naturally averse from parting with his soldiers in face of the imminent Russian menace.
The little party of adventurers crossed the Tian Shan in mid-winter without encountering any opposition, and in January 1865 reached the neighbourhood of Kashgar. Meanwhile Sadik Beg had repented of the invitation given to the Khoja prince, and pointed out that the Chinese were sure to reconquer Kashgar, where they would exact stern retribution. But Yakub Beg, moulded in the school of adversity, disregarded the warning and insisted on entering Kashgar, where Buzurg Khan was received with enthusiasm and proclaimed Khan. The new ruler, who was cowardly, idle and dissolute, immediately became immersed in sensual pleasures, and Yakub Beg was left to deal with the difficulties of the situation, which were almost overwhelming.
In the first place Sadik Beg soon changed his attitude and, from being an ally, became an open enemy. Hostilities therefore commenced, which, mainly through the personal exertions of Yakub Beg, ended in the defeat of the Kirghiz chief, who fled to Tashkent.
Kashgar having been made fairly safe by this action, albeit the Chinese held the cantonment with a force 7000 strong, Yakub Beg decided to attack Yangi Hissar and Yarkand. He reached the latter city with a small force, leaving troops to invest Yangi Hissar; but the dominant Khojas were hostile to his pretensions and were strong enough to drive him back to Yangi Hissar. Nothing daunted, the indomitable adventurer, with the aid of reinforcements from Kashgar, pressed the siege of the Chinese cantonment at Yangi Hissar and finally captured and put to death its garrison of 2000 men. He followed up this success by enlisting the services of Sadik Beg, who had again appeared on the scene, and also of a force from Badakshan.
But his new allies were only half-hearted, and when he was attacked by a large force of Tunganis from Maralbashi he could only rely on his own followers. The action, which was fought outside Yangi Hissar, was nearly lost owing to the defection of the Kirghiz and Badakshanis, but Yakub Beg stood his ground firmly and won a well-earned victory, the immediate fruits of which included the submission of Yarkand.
The scene now shifts back to Kashgar, where the Chinese garrison surrendered and was enrolled in the army of Yakub Beg as “New Mussulman”; but the Amban, imitating the fine example of his colleague at Yarkand, blew up himself and his followers in the fort. Yakub Beg married the beautiful daughter of the Chinese general, and was much influenced by this wife, who bore him many children.
For a short time it seemed as if all would go well, but the Tunganis who had surrendered decided on a final bid for power at Yarkand and treacherously attacked Yakub Beg. Buzurg Khan, too, at this juncture deserted his general, whose position appeared desperate; but again Yakub Beg’s remarkable courage saved the situation. He imposed his will on the Tunganis by attacking and capturing Yarkand; then, marching on Kashgar, he defeated Buzurg Khan, who had declared him a rebel. As a sequel to this victory Buzurg Khan was deposed and finally expelled, and Yakub Beg assumed the powers of his master. His position was recognized by the Amir of Bokhara, who in 1866 conferred upon him the title of Atalik Ghazi or the “Champion Father”; but, on the other hand, he had to reckon with the constant jealousy and hostility of neighbouring Khokand, which was continually inflamed by Russia. The capture of Khotan, which followed in 1867, ended his first successful period of action, during which, in spite of inadequate means, he had accomplished much.
While Yakub Beg was establishing his power in Kashgar, Yarkand and Khotan, his chances of success were being increased by events in the districts to the north of the range. The Taiping rebellion, which raged from 1850 to 1864, had laid waste the richest provinces of China. In 1855, apart from this convulsion, a fierce Moslem insurrection broke out in Yunnan; and in 1862 there was a rebellion among the Moslems of Shensi and Kansu, which gradually spread across the desert to the Ili province, where the Tarantchis combined with the Tunganis against the Chinese authorities. This rebellion was successful, and Ili was seized in January 1866, when a Tungani-Tarantchi Government was formed, which remained in power until the occupation of the province by Russia in 1871.
We now turn to Yakub Beg’s campaigns to the east of Kashgar. The Tunganis and Khojas of Aksu were not supported to any material extent from Ili, and he therefore had mainly to deal with an already defeated force when he commenced operations in 1867. Aksu, although naturally a strong position, offered but slight resistance, and the Atalik marched on to Kucha, which he also captured. After receiving the submission of Karashahr, Turfan, Hami, and Urumchi he returned in triumph to Kashgar. He subsequently annexed the upland district of Sarikol, carrying off its inhabitants and filling their place with Yarkandis and Kirghiz.
It is probable that Yakub Beg was induced to resume operations against the Tunganis as much by the difficulty of feeding and paying his army as by ambition. In the autumn of 1869 he passed farther east to Korla, which fell, and the series of campaigns was continued, generally with success, until 1873, the Kashgar troops penetrating as far east as Chightam, a small town to the east of Turfan. Little regard was paid to the wretched inhabitants, who were plundered without mercy and sometimes massacred, in accordance with the usual practice in Central Asia. The Atalik thus achieved military success, but he failed to organize his conquests against the day when the slow-moving Chinese Government should attempt to regain its lost provinces. On the other hand, he probably could not control his troops, who would have deserted had looting been forbidden. In any case his constant military successes produced a great impression in the neighbouring states and spread his fame far and wide.
Yakub Beg’s power was based on a mercenary force which was remarkable for its heterogeneous composition. Just as his palace, which was built and organized on the lines of barracks, was full of cannon of every description, ranging from ancient Chinese pieces to modern artillery, so his army included men from every neighbouring province. The most trustworthy and efficient soldiers were Khokandis, who, being strangers in the land, would naturally be loyal to their chief and fellow-countryman, whereas the local peasantry made indifferent fighters. An element numerically important, but for the most part of untrustworthy quality, was the Tunganis, who served mainly from fear. There were also a number of Indian and Afghan adventurers, some of the former being deserters from the Indian army. The Chinese troops were never used for distant campaigns.
The men above mentioned, who constituted the regular troops, were divided into mounted infantry, artillery and infantry, the force being increased by levies of Kirghiz, Dulanis and other irregulars of doubtful military value. It is now believed that Yakub Beg had never more than 20,000 trustworthy men in his service, although exaggerated accounts of his strength were generally credited. His troops, owing to his somewhat remarkable personality and many victories, were of better fighting value than those of Khokand and Bokhara; but, as the event proved, they were unable to cope with Chinese troops trained on European lines, nor would they have withstood equal numbers of Russian troops.
His government was based on the Moslem law, and was very onerous. It must be recollected that he maintained a court and a large army, mainly at the expense of perhaps a million poverty-stricken peasants, who, in addition to paying the heavy taxes of nominally one-tenth of all produce, were ground down by the unjust tax-collectors until their condition was pitiable. Moreover, he kept a huge body of town police and also a large force of secret police, whose united activities must have added considerably to the general misery. The fact that he was a strong ruler implied the imposition of heavier burdens on his unhappy subjects. Moreover, during the period of his rule, trade with China entirely ceased, to the great loss of the merchants, who had but little commercial intercourse with Russia or India.
The relations of Yakub Beg with Russia were of primary importance to him until the Celestial army re-entered Chinese Turkestan, and it is consequently desirable to summarize them briefly. The Atalik’s defence of Ak Masjid and his action before Tashkent have already been mentioned and were not forgotten by the Russians, who in 1866 dismembered Khokand and defeated Bokhara. The establishment of his power at Kashgar caused the Russians much anxiety, and their frontier officials were at first instructed not to recognize Yakub Beg, but, at the same time, to be conciliatory, in the illusive hope that this line of action would induce the Atalik to make overtures.
In pursuance of this fatuous policy the Russians requested sanction to bridge the river Narin and to construct a road to Kashgar; but, needless to say, these concessions were categorically refused. By way of marking their displeasure the Muscovites began to construct a strong fort at Narin; but their hands were tied by attempts on the part of the Central Asian Khanates to throw off their hated domination. Yakub Beg, openly at any rate, preserved neutrality, and for five years the struggle continued, with the result that the Russian yoke was riveted more firmly than before on Khokand and Bokhara. To these preoccupations the Atalik probably owed his safety for the time being, as the construction of Fort Narin was avowedly intended as a preliminary to an attack on Kashgar, and it appears that an expedition destined for that task in 1870 was at the last hour diverted against Khokand, which unexpectedly revolted.
Later on the Russian authorities exchanged their somewhat menacing policy for one of peaceful penetration and attempted to gain an entry into Chinese Turkestan through their merchants. They also sent a young officer to discuss various questions with Yakub Beg, who in turn despatched one of his nephews to Russia. As, however, his envoy was accorded no official recognition, little progress was made in developing relations, and the Atalik maintained towards his formidable rival an uncompromising attitude, which convinced the Russians that his power was much greater than was actually the case.
Accordingly, in 1872, although military preparations were continued, an accredited envoy, Baron Kaulbars, was entrusted with the difficult task of opening up official relations with the Atalik. He was received by the gratified ruler with the extravagant expression of Oriental hyperbole: “Sit on my knees, on my bosom, or where you like, for you are guests sent to me from heaven.” For the first time complete freedom was accorded to the envoy, and two Russian merchants who accompanied the mission were granted every facility for visiting Yarkand and Khotan. Baron Kaulbars was so fully impressed with a sense of the power of his host that he regarded him as a potentate ranking with the Amir of Afghanistan; and, owing to these impressions, a treaty of commerce, satisfactory to both parties, was drawn up, Russian goods being subjected to a maximum charge of 2½ per cent ad valorem. The envoy, who had learnt a good deal about the country and had certainly scored a great personal success, returned to Tashkent with glowing accounts of the Atalik and his dominions.
Another nephew of Yakub Beg’s, Haji Tora by name, who had travelled widely, was next despatched to Russia, where he was received with much honour and entertained by the Tsar. From the court of the Northern Power he went on to visit Constantinople, where he conducted negotiations by which Yakub Beg, in return for an acknowledgment of his independence, accepted the suzerainty of the Sultan and issued coins bearing his effigy. Furthermore, as a mark of high favour, the Atalik was gazetted an Amir, with the title of Amin-ul-Muminin or “The Trusted One of the Believers.”
The Russian authorities in Central Asia naturally took umbrage at an alliance which united a leading Moslem power with their hereditary foe. Moreover, relations with Yakub Beg were not developing smoothly; for, realizing that his state would be overrun by Russian merchants, the Amir decided to go back on the spirit of the treaty of commerce and to discourage all Russian intruders. In the case of the first important caravan to reach Kashgar, he kept the owners under surveillance although he purchased their goods at a fair rate through one of his agents. But, as the payment was made in debased coinage the merchant stood to lose, and finally did lose, in spite of strenuous official Russian support. A year later Yakub again changed his mind and invited another Russian merchant to visit Kashgar. He received better treatment, with the result that trade gradually increased. The chief aim of Russia was to be permitted to appoint an Agent at Kashgar, whereas Yakub Beg would only allow a Caravanbashi or Superintendent of caravans (a man of little standing or education) to reside at the capital. In 1874 a Russian official was sent to arrange this question, but Yakub Beg, relying on the support of Great Britain, was entirely unyielding on the subject; indeed, his attitude towards Russia became almost menacing. So much was this the case that in the autumn of the same year the Russian authorities decided to break his power. They had massed twenty thousand troops on the frontiers, when a revolt in Khokand forced General Kaufmann to divert his forces. Had Yakub Beg been a great man he would have seized the opportunity to aid Khokand, and would thereby, in all probability, have given a serious set-back to the Power which had resolved on his destruction. His inaction on this occasion stamps him as an Oriental adventurer who kept the kingdom he had won rather by good fortune than by signal capacity.
The relations of Yakub Beg with the Indian Empire were of little permanent importance from the political point of view, but are of considerable interest to the geographer and to the student of politics and commerce. In the middle of the nineteenth century the British representative in Ladak heard vague accounts of affairs in Chinese Tartary, as it was then termed, from merchants, but gained little or no accurate information, although the veil was lifted somewhat in 1857 by Adolph Schlagintweit, the first European to travel from India to Yarkand and Kashgar. Unfortunately for him, Wali Khan was besieging the Chinese cantonment of Kashgar at that time, and by his orders the German explorer was murdered. Eight years later, in 1865, Johnson,[14] an English surveyor, crossed the Kuen Lun to Khotan, where he was received with much hospitality by its chief; but to Robert Shaw belongs the credit of being the first Englishman to explore this unknown land and open up relations with its ruler and people.
While he was living at Ladak an agent of Yakub Beg passed through, bound for the Punjab, under orders from his master to report on the neighbouring land. Shaw mentioned to this agent his intense desire to visit Yarkand and Kashgar for the purpose of paying his respects to its celebrated ruler. This proposal was almost immediately agreed to, and late in 1868 Shaw crossed the Kara Koram and reached Yarkand safely. His courage and resolution were evidently combined with considerable tact, as throughout his journey he created an excellent impression both on Yakub Beg and on his officials. The inopportune arrival of another Englishman, Hayward, who was an explorer and also a trader, aroused suspicions in the mind of the Oriental, and both men were treated for a while as honoured state prisoners; but in the end they were sent back to Ladak, thoroughly pleased with their reception.
Shaw’s reports excited intense interest, and created exaggerated ideas both as to the power of Yakub Beg and as to the richness of the prospective market. He had suggested to the Atalik the appointment of an agent for Chinese Turkestan at Lahore. This suggestion was accepted, and the agent was the bearer of a cordial invitation to the Government of India to despatch an official for the purpose of establishing friendly relations and opening up trade.
Forsyth, a capable Indian civilian, was appointed to carry out this mission, and, accompanied by Shaw, he reached Yarkand in 1870; but unfortunately the Atalik had just started off to his distant eastern frontier, and Forsyth returned to India without accomplishing his object.
Yakub Beg was as much disappointed as the British envoy at this fiasco, and through the insistence of his agent Forsyth was again appointed in 1873 to head a mission, which was of greater size than its predecessor. Under him were Lieut.-Colonel Gordon, Captain Chapman and Captain Trotter, who have all had distinguished careers. The caravan, consisting of 400 animals, required elaborate supply preparations, and great difficulty was experienced in crossing one of the passes, the last hundred feet of which was a wall of ice. But in due course Kargalik was reached, and thenceforward the mission was treated with friendliness and sumptuous hospitality. In December 1873 the party reached Kashgar, and Forsyth describes his reception as follows:
“According to etiquette we dismounted at about forty paces from the gateway, and walked slowly along with the Head Chamberlain going ahead. In the outer gateway soldiers were seated on a daïs with their firearms laid on the ground before them, their arms folded and their eyes on the ground. We then passed through a second gateway filled with soldiers, and crossed another court, on all sides of which soldiers in gay costumes were ranged seated. From this court we passed into the penetralia, a small court in which not a soul was visible, and everywhere a deathlike silence prevailed. At the further end of this court was a long hall, with several window-doors. The Chamberlain then led us in single file, with measured tread, to some steps at the side of the hall, and entering almost on tiptoe looked in, and returning, beckoned with his hand to me to advance alone. As I approached the door he made a sign for me to enter, and immediately withdrew. I found myself standing at the threshold of a very common-looking room; looking about I saw enter at a doorway on the opposite side a tall stout man, plainly dressed. He beckoned with his hand, and I advanced, thinking it must be a chamberlain who was to conduct me to ‘The Presence.’ Instinctively, however, I made a bow as I advanced, and soon found myself taken by both hands and saluted with the usual form of politeness, and I knew that I was standing before the far-famed ruler of Eastern Turkestan.”
This interesting description shows that Forsyth took Yakub Beg very much at his own valuation, and the fact that the British envoy agreed to dismount at a distance from the gateway must, at any rate, have raised the Atalik in the eyes of his subjects.
At the formal interview a few days later the gifts, consisting mainly of munitions, were presented, but Yakub Beg was chiefly pleased with the autograph letter from Her Majesty, which was enclosed in a magnificent casket. After exclaiming “Praise to Allah!” several times he proceeded to declare his friendship for the British, referring to the Queen as the sun “in whose genial rays such poor people as I flourish.”
The mission remained four months at Kashgar, its labours culminating in a treaty of commerce which was concluded in February 1874. By its terms a 2½ per cent ad valorem tax was to be levied on goods imported from India, British trade thus being placed on the same favourable footing as Russian.[15]
In addition to important surveys made along the main road, Gordon led a party to the Pamirs, which were explored to some extent. Indeed the Forsyth mission was a distinct success, if only because these surveys proved beyond doubt that India could not be seriously invaded from the Pamirs or from Chinese Turkestan. Moreover, it enlarged the horizon of the authorities in India, and by the establishment of friendly relations with Chinese Turkestan inaugurated a small but profitable trade.
Yakub Beg, however, regarded the mission far otherwise, as to him it signified an alliance, granting British protection against Russian hostility, and, had he retained his power, constant appeals for aid would have been received at Calcutta. As matters turned out, both Yakub Beg and his family were destined to disappear from the stage of Central Asia, and that speedily.
While the Atalik was entertaining the Forsyth mission the Chinese Government, having restored order at home, was preparing a formidable force for the reconquest of its lost possessions beyond the Gobi. The task was very difficult, owing to the width of the desert, estimated at about 1200 miles, but the Chinese army was well disciplined, well equipped, and well led, the difficulty as to supplies being successfully overcome in a very simple manner. The advanced guard sowed crops in one of the rare oases, and an abundant harvest was thus provided in the following autumn.
As soon as this was gathered in, an army 50,000 strong advanced without encountering any serious opposition, until in the spring of 1876 it reached the neighbourhood of Urumchi. The capture of this town in August, followed by that of Manas, fully re-established Chinese authority to the north of the Tian Shan.
The Celestials were now free to deal with Yakub Beg, whose position had become unenviable. His refusal to aid Khokand in her last desperate struggle with Russia must have lowered his prestige, while his hostility to that power must have weakened his position; it was clear, too, that Great Britain had no intention of supporting him with troops or money. Apart from this, his heterogeneous force was no match for the veteran Chinese army, to which, moreover, it was far inferior in numbers and equipment.
In the spring of 1877 the Chinese main force marched on Turfan, crossing the Tian Shan by the Devanchi Pass; while a second force, 10,000 strong, moved west from Hami in co-operation. Yakub Beg had placed his main body for the defence of the Devanchi Pass, but while it was holding this position news was received of the capture of Turfan by the Hami column. A panic ensued, and, although the Atalik fought a rearguard action to the west of Turfan, he was obliged to retreat to Karashahr, and later to Korla. Before this defeat Yakub Beg had sought aid from Russia, but in vain, partly because Kuropatkin (then a captain) had visited his camp and reported most unfavourably on his position.
For some unexplained reason, probably from lack of supplies, the Chinese army remained immobile for several months, while events were moving fast in the enemy camp, where the star of Yakub Beg was setting in gloom. After losing the eastern part of his territory the Atalik became morose and a danger to his courtiers. According to trustworthy information gained by me in Kashgar, the actual cause that led up to his death was a savage flogging, inflicted without any adequate reason, on one of his officials. This alarmed Niaz Hakim Beg, one of his principal followers, who poisoned him.
Thus died Yakub Beg, who for a period of twelve years had played a leading rôle on the stage of Central Asia. He was fortunate, as one of his titles of Bedolat signified, inasmuch as he quitted Khokand just before its fall and successfully founded a state only a few marches off. He was fortunate in his dealings with Russia, which would have crushed him, but for more serious tasks which stayed her hand, and finally he was fortunate in being killed just as his kingdom was falling from his grasp. Among the chiefs of Central Asia he was a man of capacity, and he was undoubtedly brave and resolute; but his outlook was narrow, as was inevitable from his environment. He remained alert and virile to the end, and was not addicted to the vice or self-indulgence that ruins many members of the upper classes in Central Asia. Although the stage he trod was circumscribed, Yakub Beg is the only Moslem of the nineteenth century in Central Asia whose name will live.
The death of the Atalik was followed by a period of confusion. One of his sons escorted his father’s corpse to Kashgar. There he was murdered by his elder brother Beg Kuli Beg, who succeeded to the throne, but not unchallenged, as a certain Hakim Khan Torah was able to seize Karashahr and Korla, and there were also outbreaks at Khotan. The new ruler in the end overcame his rivals, but in the effort exhausted his resources to a dangerous extent and made the way still easier for the Chinese.
The final operations for the recovery of Kashgar and Yarkand were conducted on somewhat the same lines as the first. The main force assembled to the north of the Tian Shan and, using a little-known pass, descended in overwhelming strength on Aksu, while a second column drove the Moslems before it to Karashahr and on to Kucha, where a hard-fought battle was won by the Chinese; and in December 1877 the campaign was brought to a successful conclusion by the capture of Kashgar.
The Celestials showed moderation in the hour of victory. They deprived the population of their horses, to prevent a fresh rising, but they appointed Moslem headmen and also recognized the religious law of Islam. Their strong position was acknowledged by Russia in 1881, when, by the Treaty of St. Petersburg, that Power restored Kulja to the Chinese, receiving in return the post of Irkeshtam, two stages on the eastern side of the Tian Shan. By the same treaty freedom of trade was secured, and this agreement is still in force.
In the last two decades of the nineteenth century great forward strides were made in the direction of Chinese Turkestan both by Great Britain and by Russia. The former Power, thanks to the energy and activity of Younghusband (a nephew of Robert Shaw) and other travellers, realized the importance of exploring the passes through which India could be threatened, if not invaded, from Russian Turkestan. A second aim was the control of the No Man’s Land which lay between the fertile valley of Kashmir and the plain of Chinese Turkestan. To this end British Political officers were stationed at Gilgit and Chitral, supported by the Imperial Service troops of the Maharaja of Kashmir.
During this period Russia also displayed considerable activity in the exploration and occupation of the No Man’s Land bordering on Russian Turkestan. One of her most active agents, Captain Grombchevsky, visited the hill state of Hunza in 1888, meeting Younghusband in the following year on the upper reaches of the Yarkand River. In 1891 Younghusband travelled in Wakhan, and at the stage of Bozai Gumbaz met Colonel Yonoff, who had issued a proclamation that the Pamirs (with the sole exception of the Taghdumbash Pamir) were Russian territory. That officer subsequently received instructions to escort Younghusband back to Chinese territory. He showed good feeling about his disagreeable task, and as Younghusband agreed, under protest, to proceed to Chinese Turkestan, he waived the instructions relating to escort. Upon this incident being reported, the Russian Government apologized for Yonoff’s act, and the two Powers finally decided to despatch a commission to settle their respective claims in a country visited hitherto merely by a few travellers. In 1895 the commission met, and by its findings the narrow strip of Wakhan was awarded to the Amir of Afghanistan, with the result that the boundary of the British Empire was drawn in this section some thirty miles to the north of the crest line of the Hindu Kush.
The great revolution which had broken out in China in 1911 began to make itself felt in its remote western provinces in the following spring. The first outbreak occurred in the district of Ili, where a young officer entered into a conspiracy against the Tartar general, with whom he had a private quarrel. The conspiracy was entirely successful, and resulted not only in the murder of the general, but in the capture of the machinery of government. As the revolution progressed in China, the republic was proclaimed in Ili, and after the defeat of a force despatched from Urumchi the Ili rebels became undisputed rulers of the surrounding country.
The unrest soon affected Urumchi itself, where Chinese rowdies, members of a secret society which existed for the sake of loot and blackmail, began to demonstrate in favour of the republican cause and to show their sympathy by acts of robbery and incendiarism. The governor, however, was no weakling, and realizing that the loyalty of the regular troops was very doubtful, he enlisted Tunganis in considerable numbers, through whose instrumentality he was able to control the situation for a time. Subsequently he dealt so mercilessly with every one suspected of being a member of the secret society, slowly slicing to death innocent and guilty alike, that the Chinese population rose and drove him out of Urumchi.
In April of this year the outward calm hitherto maintained in Kashgar was rudely disturbed by the murder of the Taotai and the Prefect of Aksu. Upon the arrival of the telegram announcing this deed, the Kashgar Taotai immediately cut off his queue and issued a proclamation advising the Chinese to follow his example. Moreover, he had a scroll prepared with the inscription, “Long live the Chinese Republic!” which he hung up in his yamen. After some hesitation the leading Chinese officials followed the example of the governor, the commander-in-chief of the province not only cutting off his queue and flying the flag of the Republic, but donning a nondescript European cap. The united officials then solemnly changed their chronological system from the fourth year of Hsuang-tang, the boy-emperor, to the first year of the Chinese Republic, an act which possessed tremendous significance in their eyes. The soldiers were by no means ready to follow the lead of their superior officers, but maintained a sullen and resentful attitude, which boded ill for the safety of the higher officials, military and civil alike.
Meanwhile Yuan-Shih-Kai had been informed by telegram of the adherence of the New Dominion to the Republic and had appointed the governor of Kashgar to Urumchi, hoping by this means to end the state of hostility which still existed between Ili and Urumchi. The governor of Kashgar at first refused the appointment, pleading his age and weak health, but in the end accepted it. The actual position, therefore, was that the Republic had been acknowledged throughout the province, and that the Chinese officials were all obeying the instructions of Yuan-Shih-Kai. It might have been supposed that the crisis had passed without bloodshed, but this was not so. At night a band of fifty Chinese, members of a secret society, forced their way into the yamens of the governor and of the city magistrate. The governor, who was awake, was greeted with the ironical exclamation,“Greetings to Your Excellency,” and both he and his wife were cut to pieces. The magistrate was also killed and the republican flags in the two yamens were cut down and destroyed.
In the morning the gamblers, as they were termed, were harangued by the commander of the garrison at the head of a few soldiers. They insisted on being armed and formed into a new regiment under the command of a ruffian, a pork-butcher by trade; and when this was done they appointed new officials to succeed the murdered men. The soldiers in the New City killed two of their officers and a panic ensued in Kashgar, but the disturbances and looting were confined to the New City. The administration was now controlled by the gang of gamblers, who appointed all officials and took advantage of their power to levy blackmail, mainly on Chinese officials. In the other centres there were murders. The governor of Yarkand, among others, was singled out for assassination; but an exceptionally violent storm, which turned day into night, suggested to the Chinese gamblers that heaven forbade the deed—and the official still lives to tell the tale.
In consequence of the unrest and lack of security caused by these deeds of violence, the Russian Government despatched a force 800 strong to protect Russian subjects. For some weeks after its arrival there was no friction or cause of alarm, but the celebration of a Chinese rite nearly gave rise to most serious consequences. On the day of the Festival of the Departed Spirits it is the custom of the Chinese to burn paper-money before the temples in order to ensure financial ease for their deceased relatives. One of the temples in Kashgar was the scene of this ceremonial, and a rumour reached the Russian consulate that the bazar was on fire. Help was immediately despatched in the shape of fifteen Cossacks, who, misunderstanding the situation, forcibly put out the fires in which the paper-money was being burnt. While this was being done some of the Cossack horses broke loose and galloped back to the consulate, where considerable anxiety was felt. The city gate was shut at the usual hour of 8 P.M., and, upon its arrival, the Russian main body, under the impression that their detachment had been cut off, blew it up with dynamite, and marching through the opening found the Cossacks perfectly safe.
Not long after this the “Gambler” regiment was ordered to Urumchi, and the officer commanding the Cossacks, who was disappointed at the entirely peaceful attitude of the Chinese, decided to attack it, his plan being to carry out night manœuvres to the east of the city across the line of march—and to create a “regrettable incident.” But he reckoned without Sir George Macartney, who, getting wind of this typically Russian scheme, which received confirmation from the sudden departure of the Cossacks, induced the Chinese authorities at the very last minute to change the line of march from due east to north-west, with a wide detour afterwards to the north. Thanks to this action by our able representative the trap was set in vain. The regiment, which had obeyed its orders with deep reluctance, finally reached Urumchi with its numbers much diminished by desertion, and the ruffianly pork-butcher was subsequently put to death. The Russian troops were shortly afterwards withdrawn from Kashgar, and that city once again settled down to its habitual drowsiness.
In conclusion, the old-world policy of China was to surround her fertile empire with buffer states. At the end of the eighteenth century these included Annam, Siam, Burma, Assam, Bhutan, Sikkim, Nepal, Ladak, Kashmir and Khokand, together with the maritime provinces of Siberia. But the nineteenth century, which saw the advance of Russia, the rise of Japan, and also powerful strangers from the west thundering at the watergates of the Middle Kingdom, brought heavy territorial losses to China, and to-day her system of buffer states has been swept away by the new powers. Great Britain has shown considerable activity and has occupied or gained political ascendency over many of these states, and at the present time marches with the Chinese Empire not only on the confines of Burma to the south, but also on the borders of Ladak and Kashmir.
Russia, on her side, has made a great advance, and now occupies Khokand, Andijan and the Khanates generally, together with the Pamirs to the west of Chinese Turkestan; to the north the Russian province of Semirechia, through which is being constructed a railway that will attract much of its commerce, overshadows the province of Chinese Turkestan.
Thus the old order of isolation, on which China relied, is passing, and the new order, which includes modern methods of communication, is coming into force, hastened by the desire for progress which is affecting large sections of mankind in Asia.
The future of Chinese Turkestan is not finally settled, but the World War which has temporarily broken up the Russian Empire will undoubtedly stimulate China to move along the path of progress. If so, there is hope that the condition of this outlying province of her empire may benefit, more especially by improved communications. At the same time there are many parts of Asia which have reason to envy the peace and plenty enjoyed by the inhabitants of Chinese Turkestan.