After a long siege, the Ganja Khanate was occupied by the Russian Empire in January 1804, and Javad Khan, the Khan of the Ganja Khanate, and his son died in heroic deaths in battle. After the occupation of the Ganja Khanate, Russian army general Gulyakov was sent from Jar-Balakan to Ganja. In March 1804, Tsar Alexander changed the name of Ganja to Yelizavetpol in honor of his wife, Yelizaveta.[1]

The Russian Empire’s military attack on Azerbaijan affected its relations with the Qajar and Ottoman empires. The Ottoman Empire was forced to remain silent due to its 1798 agreement with the Russian Empire.[2] The Qajar Empire was faced with the Russian aggression in the South Caucasus. Although it had allied with the rulers of certain Azerbaijani khanates, the Qajar Empire was still looking for a new and powerful ally to help it stand up to the Russian Empire in the region. At the same time, European empires, especially Great Britain, were concerned about the southward expansion of the Russian Empire, which was viewed as a direct threat to its interests in the Middle East. European empires thus supported the Qajar Empire in its war with the Russian Empire that broke out in June 1804.[3]

At the time, the Karabakh Khanate, like other khanates of Azerbaijan, faced one of the most serious political dilemmas and challenging situations in its history. Ibrahimkhalil Khan, who was trying to behave independently, had to make choice between the Russian and the Qajar empires. According to Mirza Jamal Javanshir, who was vizier of the Karabakh Khanate at the time, after the Qajar Empire was defeated in a battle near the Tugh village, Fath Ali Shah Qajar, the Shah of the Qajar Empire, offered Ibrahimkhalil Khan to create an alliance against the Russian Empire.[4] The envoys of the Russian Empire also visited the Karabakh Khanate very often during that period. After a lengthy discussion of the existing political situation, Ibrahimkhalil Khan decided that the conquest of the Russian Empire was unavoidable. He was afraid that the tragic event that happened during the occupation of the Ganja Khanate by the Russian Empire might be reiterated in the Karabakh Khanate. Meanwhile, he was also concerned about the treachery of Karabakh Khanate’s Christian meliks, who were incited by the Armenian military officers serving in the Russian Empire’s army.[5]

When the Russian Empire was preparing for a military attack on the Karabakh Khanate, Ibrahimkhalil Khan made his decision and requested a meeting with General Sisianov, the commander-in-chief of the Russian Empire’s army in the Caucasus. As a result of this meeting between General Sisianov and Ibrahimkhalil Khan, the Treaty of Kurakchay, consisting of 11 articles, was signed between the Russian Empire and the Karabakh Khanate on May 14, 1805.[6] As a result of this treaty, the Karabakh Khanate lost its independence and came under the tutelage of the Russian Empire. Based on the Treaty, a group of 500 soldiers of the Russian Empire under the command of officer Lisianovich was stationed in the city of Shusha. They were given the right to intervene in all issues within the Karabakh Khanate. Meanwhile, the government of the Russian Empire gave Ibrahimkhalil Khan the rank of Lieutenant General and his sons, Muhammad Hasan Agha and Mehdigulu Bey, the rank of General Officer of the Russian Empire.[7]

[1] Bakıxanov, Gülüstani-İrəm, p. 193. See also: Əsədov and Kərimova, Çarizmi Azərbaycana gətirənlər, p. 56. See also: Bala, Mirze, “Gence,” İslam Ansiklopedisi, Vol. 4 (İstanbul, 1988), pp. 764–765.

[2] Uçarol, Rifat, Siyasi Tarih (1789–1994) (İstanbul: Filiz yayınevi, 1995), pp. 84–85.

[3] Azərbaycan Tarixi, Vol. 4, (2007), pp. 20–21.

[4] Qarabaği, “Qarabağ tarixi,” pp. 133–134.

[5] Əsədov and Kərimova, Çarizmi Azərbaycana getirənlər, p. 45.

[6] Bakıxanov, Gülüstani-İrəm, p. 194.

[7] Bakıxanov, Gülüstani-İrəm, p. 194. See also: Qaradaği, “Qarabağ vilayətinin qədim və cədid keyfiyyəti və övzaları,” p. 135.