WINNER TIGER. RAYIMBEK BATYR

Raiymbek-batyr is a Kazakh batyr of the 18th century, a fighter for the freedom of Kazakhs from the Dzungarian invaders, a talented commander. Hundreds of years later, Kazakhstan people honor his memory and thank him for the liberation of the Kazakh lands.

Batyr was born in 1705 on the territory of the present-day Almaty region. Raiymbek is the son of Tuke, the grandson of Hangeldy-batyr from the Alban clan of the Elder Zhuz.

Raiymbek lived in the most turbulent period of medieval Kazakhstan. When he was born, his native Semirechye was captured by the Dzungar (Kalmyk) hordes. Already in his youth, he was recognized by his fellow countrymen as a young batyr, when he defeated the Balkhash tiger in a battle. From an early age he took part in hostilities.

Project "MANGILIK EL ALYPTARY"

From the age of 18, Raiymbek led the self-defense forces that fought against the Dzungarian detachments of the Khuntaiji Tsewan-Rabdan. Under his leadership, the army of Aryskhan was defeated. The assault took place at night, and so that the soldiers could find each other in the dark, they shouted "Raiymbek!" Later this cry became generic: it was used by all the warriors belonging to the Alban clan. For his valor and bravery Abylaikhan appointed Raimbek one of his commanders.

In 1729, in the Anrakai battle between the lower reaches of the Chu and Ili rivers, the combined forces of the three Kazakh zhuzes under the leadership of Abulhaiyr Khan won a brilliant victory over the Dzungars and expelled them from Semirechye. The army of Raiymbek, together with the armies of the batyrs of Bogenbai and Kabanbai, played an important role in the long-awaited victory.

According to legend, during the hostilities, Raiymbek was wounded about 77 times and defeated hundreds of opponents. For bravery, courage, talent of a commander and diplomat, Raiymbek earned nationwide fame and respect of his comrades-in-arms. During his lifetime he was called a saint.

Raiymbek-batyr was a fearless warrior, but he valued a peaceful life more than battles. He understood that his people needed rest from endless wars, the opportunity to mourn the dead and heal their wounds. The diplomatic talent inherited from his grandfather helped him achieve his goal not only on the battlefield, but also helped to persuade China to make concessions when determining the border of two states. The red stele erected by the batyr in Narynkol two centuries later became indisputable in defining the Kazakh-Chinese border. In the same place, in the village of Narynkol near the Chinese border, in 1997 the first equestrian monument to the batyr was unveiled.

The commander lived for 80 years, of which more than 30 he spent in the saddle with a weapon in his hands.

The hero was buried in a mausoleum on the territory of the present city of Almaty, but during the civil war in the first decades of the twentieth century, the commander's grave was destroyed. In 1981, a granite stele was erected at the burial site of the batyr; in the 90s, a monumental mausoleum in the form of a tent, crowned with a crescent moon, was erected. The ashes of the great commander are kept inside, Kazakhstan people from all over the country come here to pray. Next to the mausoleum is a statue of a reclining camel. According to the legend, before his death, Raiymbek-batyr gathered all his comrades-in-arms and close people and said: "In case of my death, wrap my body in a felt mat, immerse me on a white camel, and where the camel lies down, bury me there".

An avenue in Almaty, an Almaty metro station, a village in the suburbs of Almaty and a district in the Almaty region are named after Raiymbek.

In 2005, Kazakhstan solemnly celebrated the 300th anniversary of the batyr's birth; at the entrance to the Raiymbek district on the Almaty-Kegen highway, another equestrian monument to Raimbek was erected.

In 2012, a 12-meter monument to the commander was unveiled in the southern capital at the intersections of Raiymbek and Pushkin streets. The years of the batyr's life and the lines of a poem by the Kazakh poet Mukagali Makatayev are engraved on the statue: "Urpagyn medet ber, uly babam!" ("Give support to descendants, Great ancestor").

The feat of Raiymbek is also immortalized in literature: Mukagali Makatayev in 1971 wrote the poem “Raiymbek, Raiymbek!”; in 1992, the poet Zholdasbay Turlybaev released the second part of the August morning dilogy, dedicated to Raiymbek-batyr; in 2007 the book by Shaken Kumisbayuly “Raiymbek-batyr. History, personality, time” as part of a series about famous people of the East.

In the Library of the First President of the Republic of Kazakhstan - Elbasy, the reader can find the following thematic literature in the Kazakh language: Zh.Turlybauly "Raiymbek batyr"; A. Galiev “Kerey men Zhanibek: tarikh, tulga, uakyt”; A. Baysultanova "Kazakhstan bolashagy - bilimdi urpakta"; Sh.Kumisbay “Raiymbek batyr. Tarikh, tulga, uakyt"; S. Kaskabasov, S. Kosan “Babalar sozi. Zhuz tomdyk. Tarihi zhyrlar"; K. Shalkar “Ush tomdyk shygarmalar. Babalar elinde "; K. Matyzhanov "Gave folklore anthologies, Tarihi zhyrlar", as well as the book by Sh. Kumisbayuly in Russian "Raimbek-batyr. History. Personality. Time".