How did Dzungar attacks affect the Kazakhs’ ability to resist Russia?

The Dzungar attacks significantly weakened the Kazakhs' ability to resist Russian encroachment from the north. These conflicts retarded the emergence of a unified Kazakh state and depressed the level of Kazakh cultural life, leaving the population less capable of defending their lands against external pressures.1

The devastation caused by the Dzungars, particularly during the "Great Disaster" of 1723, forced many Kazakhs to move westward toward Russian-held territories for safety. In this vulnerable state, some Kazakh leaders sought Russian protection as a security measure against further Dzungar raids. Consequently, the Little Horde accepted Russian protection in 1731, followed by the Middle Horde in 1740 and part of the Great Horde in 1742.213

Ultimately, Russia exploited these internal divisions and the weakened state of the Kazakhs to advance their influence, constructing a line of forts and steadily expanding southward into the steppe. This process of encroachment by sedentary agriculturalists into nomadic lands eventually led to the suppression of the autonomy of the Kazakh khans and the formal incorporation of their territories into the Russian sphere.13