LINEAR TRADE IN NORTHERN KAZAKHSTAN IN THE SECOND HALF OF THE 18TH CENTURY AS A MECHANISM OF ECONOMIC INTEGRATION INTO THE RUSSIAN EMPIRE

Abstract

The article examines the development of line trade in the northern region of Kazakhstan during the second half of the eighteenth century and its role as one of the key instruments for integrating the Kazakh steppe into the economic system of the Russian Empire. The relevance of the study is determined by the need for a deeper understanding of the trade and economic mechanisms that facilitated the incorporation of frontier territories and strengthened Russian influence in the region. The purpose of the research is to identify the main features of line trade development and determine its significance in the economic integration of Northern Kazakhstan. The source base includes published collections of documents on Kazakh–Russian relations, works of pre-revolutionary scholars, and archival materials from the State Archive of the Omsk region. The methodological framework is based on the principles of historicism, objectivity, and systematic analysis, as well as comparative-historical, historical-genetic, and problem-chronological methods. The study demonstrates that Orenburg, Troitsk, Petropavlovsk, and Presnogorkovskaya Fortress were the principal centers of frontier trade. It is shown that line trade contributed to the expansion of economic ties between the Russian Empire and the Kazakh population, stimulated commodity exchange, promoted the emergence of new economic relations, and facilitated the spread of elements of material culture. At the same time, imperial trade policy ensured control over trade routes, customs revenues, and commercial activities. The research concludes that line trade functioned not only as an important economic mechanism of interaction but also as an effective tool for integrating Northern Kazakhstan into the political and economic space of the Russian Empire.