Kurmanjan Datka

Who is Kurmanjan Datka?

Kurmanjan Datka was born on 22 May 1811 into a wealthy family of the Mungush clan in the Osh region of what is now southern Kyrgyzstan. As a young woman she broke with tradition by refusing an arranged marriage, briefly fleeing before returning to her father's household. She later married Alymbek Datka, the powerful feudal ruler of the Alai Kyrgyz. After his assassination in 1862, she succeeded him as "datka," a transfer of authority recognized both by the Khanate of Kokand and the Emirate of Bukhara, making her the effective ruler of the Alai region. When the Russian Empire annexed Alai in 1876, she judged armed resistance futile and negotiated her people's submission to spare them further bloodshed, a decision that preserved Kyrgyz communities through a period of conquest. Her resolve was tested again in 1895 when one of her sons was sentenced to death by Russian authorities; rather than allow a rescue that might endanger her people, she accepted the execution and attended it. She lived to nearly 96, was photographed in 1906 by Baron Carl Gustaf Mannerheim, later President of Finland, and today is honored as a national heroine, depicted on the 50 som banknote and commemorated in the 2014 biopic "Queen of the Mountains."

Sources: Wikipedia, "Kurmanjan Datka" · RFE/RL, "Who Was Kurmanjan Datka And What Does She Mean To The Kyrgyz People?" · Wikipedia, "Queen of the Mountains (film)"