First Sino–Kazakh War

The First Sino–Kazakh War (Chinese: 第一次清哈戰爭; Kazakh: Бірінші Цин-қазақ соғысы), also known as the First Qing–Kazakh War, or in Kazakhstan as the Qing [Chinese] invasion of Kazakh Khanate, was the first of a series of conflicts and frontier disputes between the Kazakh Khanate and Qing China during the middle of the 18th century, following the collapse of the Dzungar Khanate.

The encounters included raids, skirmishes, and frontier clashes rather than simply just large-scale, formally declared wars. They were often intertwined with broader regional dynamics, including the movement of nomadic Kazakh tribes, Qing frontier garrisons, and the Qing efforts to secure trade routes, impose tribute, and in some occasions, open colonisation, from steppe polities.

While the conflicts did not result in a permanent Qing annexation of Kazakh lands, they significantly affected the political and military strategies of both sides. For the Kazakh Khanate, the encounters demonstrated the growing influence of the Qing in Central Asia and reinforced the need for diplomacy and strategic accommodation. For the Qing Empire, these engagements were part of a broader effort to consolidate its western frontier following the conquest of the Dzungars, to decimate the presence of nomadic resistances, and to stabilize trade and tribute relations across Central Asia, mainly with the sedentary Uzbek khanates. These engagements marked a turning point in Kazakh–Qing relations, shifting the balance of power in favor of the Qing, influencing Kazakh migration and political alignment in the eastern steppe, and the establishment of Chinese presence near Kazakh border.

The conflicts also had long-term implications for steppe geopolitics, contributing to eventual Russian involvement in the northern Kazakh territories and setting the stage for later treaties and border arrangements in the 19th century between Tsarist Russia and Qing China.