The Kukunor lake campaign of the Oirats 1636–1637: run-up

The main issues discussed in the article are as follows: 1. identification of the time and place where the envoys of the Tibetan Geluk leaders met with the Oirats; 2. establishing the exact place of gathering and advancing of the Oirat army towards Kukunor lake in the autumn of 1636. The authors suggest that the commander-in-chief of the army was Elet (Dzungarian) Batur-Khuntaiji, who later became the "deputy" of the Khoshut Gushi Khan. The arrival of Lama Tsagan Nomyn Khan to the Oirats from the nomad camps which belonged to the Eastern Mongolian ruler Altyn Khan in 1616 enabled their leaders to send their sons to the Tibetan Geluk school monasteries and consequently to establish close relations with their leaders. The following period of 20 years of the Oirat history (between 1616 and 1636) was filled with vivid and dramatic events. Among them were the war with Altyn Khan and civil strife, during which the Khoshuts, Derbets, and in general the Oirats were significantly splitted. At the same time, the influence of the Elet Khara Khula became more significant, which was reflected in the fact that his son Khotogochin, who succeeded him in 1634, received from the Dalai Lama the title "Batur-khuntaiji". Since the second half of 1634, the leading Oirat rulers and above all the Elets (who later on became Dzungars), were geographically close to their former homeland. At that time they met in the Tarbagatai region with Geluk envoys, who asked for help to fight against their enemies in Tibet. The early connections of the Elets with the lamas, as well as the special attention, that the Geluk lamas paid to Elets' leader, invite a suggestion that he was the addressee of that appeal. However, as a result, the Oirat army was led by Khoshut Gushi Khan. The army was gathered near Alakol lake and in the autumn of 1636, it moved towards the Kukunor lake through the Dzungarian Gate.