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The formation and development of country's own statehood was of crucial importance for the formation and consolidation, as well as preservation of the integrity of the Kazakh ethnic group on the long journey of its development.
Written sources contain reliable information about a large late medieval state — the Kazakh Khanate, which played a significant role in the Central Asian region, in the system of states of the Eurasian peoples.
The emergence of the Kazakh Khanate was a natural result of socio-economic and ethnopolitical processes in the vast territory of Eastern Desht-i-Kipchak, Zhetysu (Semirechye) and Turkestan (Southern Kazakhstan).
The formation of a single economic region in the XIV–XV centuries on the basis of natural integration prepared the conditions for the unification of all the lands of the region in one political structure.
The course of the creation of the Kazakh Khanate is connected with the crisis that arose on the ruins of the White Horde, the "State of Abul-Khair", or the "State of nomadic Uzbeks". The defeat in the war with the Oirats in 1457 showed the inability of Abul-Khair Khan to perform one of his main functions – to organize effective protection of the country from external aggression. Finally, the discontent of the broad masses of the population was formed due to tough domestic policy has.
One of the consequences of this was the rebellion of the sultans Kerey and Janibek, during which they and their supporters migrated to the area of the Shu and Kozybasy rivers. The migration or refusal to submit to the Khan's authority with the departure of neighboring sovereigns to citizenship was a fairly common form of protest against unpopular rulers. However, it was the migration of 1459-1460 that became the harbinger of the death of the state of Abul Khair — the last fragment of the Ulug (Great) Ulus in the eastern part of Desht-i-Kipchak. The subjects of Janibek and Kerey were given the nickname "Kazakh", which meant "freemen", "people who separated from their ulus", "free".
In the following decades of the XV — early XVI century, the Kazakh Khanate strengthened economically and expanded geographically, including a significant part of the ethnic territory of the Kazakhs.
Among the most famous rulers of this time, who contributed to the territorial expansion and comprehensive strengthening of the state, should be named Kasym Khan (1511-1518), Khaknazar Khan (1538-1580), Tauekel Khan (1582-1598) and Yesim Khan (1598-1628).
With the formation of the Dzungar Khanate in 1635, the threat of Western Mongolian tribes of Oirats seizing Kazakh lands in the Irtysh and Semirechye has increased.
Pressed by the Qing Empire (China), in search of pastures and access to the trade and craft centers of southern Kazakhstan and Central Asia, they did not weaken military pressure, which led to a whole era of conflicts in the region. The Dzungar raids were one of the significant reasons for the gradual extinction of the life of cities in the south of Kazakhstan. The raids of the Dzungars cut important trade routes, caused great damage to the economy of the civilian population.
A special milestone for the Kazakh Khanate was the period of the reign of Tauke Khan (1680-1718). Under him, a set of norms of customary law "Zhety Zhargy" was compiled, which defined the basic principles of law and order as well as the state structure.
"Zheti Zhargy" contains the norms of administrative, criminal, civil law, as well as provisions on taxes, religious beliefs, in other words, it covered all aspects of the life of Kazakh society.
"Zheti Zhargy" included the following main sections:
- The Land Law (Zher dauy), which discussed the resolution of disputes about pastures and watering holes.
2. The Family and Marriage Law, which established the procedure for the conclusion and dissolution of marriage, the rights and obligations of spouses, the property rights of family members.
3. The Military Law regulating the administration of military service, the formation of units and the election of military leaders.
4. The Regulation on the Judicial Process, which stipulates the procedure for judicial proceedings.
5. The Criminal Law that establishes penalties for various types of crimes other than murder.
6. The Kuna Law, which establishes penalties for murder and grievous bodily harm.
7. The Law on Widows (Zhesir dauy), which regulates the property and personal rights of widows and orphans, as well as the obligations towards them of the community and relatives of the deceased.
The highest legislative power in the Kazakh Khanate was held by the maslikhat — the congress of sultans and representatives of communities. The Maslikhat held a meeting once a year and solved the most important state issues — the conclusion of peace, the declaration of war, the redistribution of pastures, the designation of nomadic routes.
In addition, the maslikhat elected and deposed khans based on the principle of meritocracy — choosing the most worthy. A prerequisite for participation in the work of the maslikhat was the presence of weapons. Only males were full members of this body.
The entire executive power was in the hands of the Khan. Khan was elected by the maslikhat from the Torah estate — descendants of Genghis Khan and performed his duties for life. There are cases when khans were deposed and expelled. Khan performed the following functions:
- Organization of armed protection of the state from external enemies.
- Determination of the foreign policy course of the state.
- Functions of the supreme judicial power.
- Protection of the existing order and social structure.
In the XV–XVII centuries, Kazakh Khans had broad powers arising from the functions they performed. Thus, a khan, as the supreme commander-in-chief, could declare war, conclude peace, dispose of the entire territory of the khanate, appoint the heads of an Ulus and rulers of subordinate cities. In addition, a khan had the right to pass a death sentence on his subjects and issue laws and regulations binding on the entire population of the khanate.
The procedure for the enthroning of a new khan was to raise the khan on the white felt. Only when performing this ancient rite, a khan was considered legally elected.
Thus, the management model of the Kazakh Khanate, in fact, already at that time reflected the basic principles and standards of the democratic structure of the state and society.
But the relative peace did not last long. The war with the Dzungars lasted for a total of more than 150 years — from the beginning of the XVII century to the middle of the XVIII century . The hardest years of the Dzungar invasion remained in the memory of the Kazakh people as "Aktaban shubyryndy" — "The Years of the Great Disaster" (1723-1727). Subsequent years in the history of the Kazakhs were marked by active nationwide resistance to the Dzungars. The most striking episode of it was the Battle of Añyraqai in 1729. This battle and the victories that preceded it led to the liberation of most of the Kazakh lands. But the fight against external enemies did not end there.
In a difficult economic and political situation, the issue of accepting Russian temporary allegiance arose. Further stages of the political, economic and ethno-cultural history of the Kazakhs are associated with the entry of Kazakhstan into the Russian Empire.