The Last Great Jochid, or Akhmatova's Drama. Act One: Khorezm
Khan Akhmat. Still from the series “Sofia”
Hero and victim of fate
In a series of articles dedicated to G. Vasilchikov's embassy to the Safavid Empire, I mentioned Bakhchisarai's persistent desire in the 16th century to restore the Ulus of Jochi under its auspices, whose final surge of power came during the reign of Khan Akhmat. Every schoolchild knows about him from the Stand on the Ugra and the overthrow, as textbooks describe, of the Mongol-Tatar yoke.
Plus the tale of Ivan III trampling on the Khan's charter, depicted in a pompous painting by N. S. Shustov that doesn't correlate with actual events, which can also be found in textbooks – in any case, the author of these lines, in his Soviet one, seems to have seen it for the first time.
Excellent students in school and those who read beyond the assigned homework will likely recount the khan's death the following year following the aforementioned event, as a result of a joint raid by the Nogais and a detachment of the Siberian khan Ibak. That's all, really. A meager portrait of Akhmat, more of a loser and a victim of the logic that had overwhelmed him. stories rock.
Sarai Reconstruction. Unfortunately, I couldn't find an image of Akhmat online, but an anthropological reconstruction of his appearance can be found in Sh.E. Seit-Mametov's work "Manuscript Documents on the Activities of the Crimean Khan Mengli Giray in Turkish Archives," a link to which is provided in the bibliography.
In terms of the logic of history, it is perhaps true: the Horde, revived by the will of Akhmat, was doomed in the 1460s, and the last page of its history was turned not by the Siberian Tatars and Nogai, and Ivan III, but by the Crimean Khan Mengli Giray in 1502, who defeated the sons of Akhmat.
After this date, the Great Horde became history. Although one could put it another way: the status of the heir to the Ulus of Jochi shifted to Bakhchisarai, since the title of the same Mengli Giray was, according to the distinguished medievalist A.A. Gorsky, "Great King of the Great Horde."
It's worth noting that Mengli Giray, who called Ivan III his brother, is responsible for Rus''s final liberation from centuries of dependence on the Horde. But with Mengli Giray's death in 1515, a new chapter in Russo-Crimean relations was also turned. However, their deterioration began earlier: Ivan III married his daughter Elena to the Grand Duke of Lithuania, Alexander, without informing his Crimean ally, who was at odds with Vilnius.
However, I think I will devote a separate article to the transformation of Russian-Crimean relations.
A portrait of Mengli Giray in a miniature from the book "Hüner-name" by Seyyid Lokman, kept in the Topkapi Museum in Istanbul
So, Akhmat is the last great Jochid on the throne. Let's discuss his active foreign policy, as well as the role the Great Horde played in the balance of power on the chessboard, the western side of which rested on the Adriatic, and the eastern side on the plains of Transoxiana.
A few words about terminology. Ulus of Jochi.
Initially, according to the historian G.V. Vernadsky, it became the appanage of Batu Orda's elder brother and:
It encompassed a vast territory, including Western Siberia, Kazakhstan, and the lower Syr Darya basin. Jochi's two other sons, Shiban and Tuqa-Timur, also received their share of this territory. Although Batu's brothers, who ruled in the eastern part of Jochi's Ulus, were initially under his suzerainty, the eastern khanate later gained de facto independence. Since Jochi's Ulus was the westernmost part of the empire, we can assume that, in accordance with the system of color-cardinal direction correlation, it was designated white. According to Ioannis de Plano Carpini, during each of the four days of the ceremonies for the election of Guyuk (1246 – I.Kh.), the Mongols present at the kurultai wore dresses of a specific color. On the first day, the color was white. According to Khara-Davan (a publicist who lived at the turn of the 20th century – I.Kh.), this day symbolized the participation of the Ulus of Jochi in the elections. The reception on this day was held in a large tent of white velvet. Thus, the Ulus of Jochi was apparently known as the White Horde. After its division into two poduluses – eastern and western – the issue of colors became more complicated. Sources mention two names for the poduluses – the White and Blue Horde – but it is unclear which color corresponded to which khanate.
A little further down, we'll discuss the division of the Ulus into the White and Blue Horde. An equally important question: were Russian lands included in it?
The prominent Turkologist V.V. Trepavlov, analyzing the works of Soviet and Russian colleagues, believed that no:
The mere fact of the conquest did not seem sufficient grounds for Russian and Soviet researchers to consider Russian lands part of the Golden Horde. Yu. V. Krivosheev rightly noted: "The majority of Russian historians believed and continue to believe that Rus', as a territory and society, did not become part of the 'Juchi Ulus.'" It is no coincidence that V. L. Egorov, the author of the only monographic study of the historical geography of the Golden Horde, did not consider Russian lands among the Horde's possessions.
If we consider recent research, A.A. Gorsky can be cited as a condensed example of this approach: after Batu's campaigns and the administrative measures of the Yeke Mongol Ulus government in the 1240s–1250s, "Russian lands fell into the hands of the Mongol khans." When the Golden Horde became a separate state, "Russian principalities remained in vassalage solely to it"; this "vassal dependence" was expressed in the Horde khans' right to appoint princes to their thrones and receive tribute ("vykhod") and other dues from them.
If we consider recent research, A.A. Gorsky can be cited as a condensed example of this approach: after Batu's campaigns and the administrative measures of the Yeke Mongol Ulus government in the 1240s–1250s, "Russian lands fell into the hands of the Mongol khans." When the Golden Horde became a separate state, "Russian principalities remained in vassalage solely to it"; this "vassal dependence" was expressed in the Horde khans' right to appoint princes to their thrones and receive tribute ("vykhod") and other dues from them.
Already in the 13th century, having separated from the Mongol Empire, the Ulus of Jochi at the beginning of the next century disintegrated into the Kok Orda and Ak Orda - White and Blue, respectively.
"After the collapse of the Ulus of Jochi," wrote Soviet Turkologist B.A. Akhmedov, "the Kok Horde exercised power over the lands located between the Volga and Dnieper, including Crimea, the North Caucasus, Bulgar, and the northern part of Khorezm, and continued to be called the Golden Horde. The Ak Orda controlled the lands located in the lower and middle reaches of the Syr Darya, as well as a vast territory located north of the Syr Darya and the Aral Sea."
In fact, the White and Golden Horde are one and the same. It gained independence from the Mongol Empire in 1269, and its first khan was Batu's grandson, Mengu-Timur, who had ascended the throne three years earlier.
Regarding the name of Akhmat’s state, V.V. Trepavlov noted:
Some texts suggest a narrower meaning of the "Great Horde"—as the residence of the chief khan. This interpretation is, in particular, that of A.P. Grigoriev (a Turkologist and specialist in the history of the Golden Horde – I.Kh.). According to him, the official name of the Jochid Empire was Ulugh Ulus (Great State), and the Ulugh Horde was the main headquarters, housing Ulugh Orun, the chief throne.
He himself held the following point of view regarding the term in question:
It seems more accurate to interpret the Great Horde as the totality of the khan's court with its nukers, chanceries, economic services, and the nomadic communities (uluses) subordinate to the khan—accordingly, together with the nomadic camps they occupied; here, in the Horde, one should also include urban settlements that recognized the suzerainty of its khan.
An interesting explanation of the term is given by A. A. Gorsky:
"Bolshaya Horde" is most likely not a translation, but a term of Russian origin meaning "chief of the hordes." Accordingly, when declensing this phrase, one must assume that the nominative case form of the adjective, according to modern Russian norms, is not "Bolsháya" (meaning "Big"), but "Bolshaya" (meaning "Greater").
Larger, because “it is interpreted,” wrote V.V. Trepavlov, “by historians, as a rule, in the sense of ‘the most extensive and populous’ Horde (if we forget about the synchronous ‘Uzbek’ Khanate of Abu-l-Khair (about him below – I.Kh.) in eastern Desht-i-Kipchak).”
At the same time, Vadim Vintserovich linked the name itself with the fact that the state headed by Akhmat “had the reputation of being the maternal ‘ancestral lord’ – and therefore the Great or the Big One.”
The term Great Horde first appears in the chronicles in 1460:
That same year, the godless Tsar Akhmut of the Great Horde came with all his force to Pereslavl-Ryazan.
The direct step toward its creation was taken by our hero's father, Kichi-Muhammad, who took the throne in 1428 and defeated Tokhtamysh's grandson, Ulugh-Muhammad. Historians gave their namesakes nicknames to avoid confusion. Kichi means small, Ulugh means big.
A dangerous neighbor of two brothers
The twists and turns of their struggle are beyond the scope of this discussion. What's important for us is this: after Kichi-Muhammad's death in 1459, his sons succeeded him, dividing power in the Horde: Akhmat received the Volga region with Sarai, while his older brother, Mahmud, received the Black Sea and Caspian regions, with his headquarters in Khadzhi-Tarkhan (Astrakhan). Mahmud was formally considered the head of the Great Horde.
According to historian R. Yu. Pochekaev, the relationship between the brothers was not conflictual. A. A. Gorsky cautiously admits to a rivalry for power between them, though it presumably did not escalate into open confrontation. A rare occurrence in the era of feudal fragmentation.
And I don't think Mahmud had any time for confrontation with his brother. You wouldn't wish their proximity on your enemy, for, as we noted above, Crimea in the mid-15th century laid claim to power in the entire Ulus of Jochi. And when Mahmud set out on a campaign in the southern Russian lands, the Crimean Khan Haji Giray swept through his domains with fire and sword. Akhmat would have expected disaster after that.
For, having defeated Mahmud, the Crimean ruler would have turned on his brother. But the death of Hajji Giray in 1466 threw Crimea into disarray, temporarily descending into civil strife. Mahmud regained his lost positions in his domains, and Akhmat found himself with a free hand in the east, where Khorezm lay, with its cities richer than those along the Volga. Why richer?
It's all the Iron Lame's fault
Tamerlane. This name is a mortal wound on the body of the Ulus of Jochi. His attacks significantly weakened not only the Golden Horde but also the Ottoman Empire. But the latter rose like a phoenix after the defeat at the Angara in 1402.
This is how it differs from the Golden Horde, which was shattered at the Battle of Kondurcha eleven years earlier. I recommend to my esteemed readers the excellent work of military historian and orientalist L.A. Bobrov, "Commanders of the Chagatai Army of Emir Timur in the Battle of Kondurcha, 1391." It is perhaps the best account available of this battle, which, from a historical perspective, decided the fate of the Golden Horde.
The Ottomans were lucky: Timur died three years after the Battle of Angara. Moreover, he did not seek to destroy their cities. Some of them, located in the Balkans, were beyond his reach.
Monument to Tamerlane in Tashkent
Things turned out differently with Tokhtamysh. The Iron Lame Man not only routed his troops but also, by destroying the Golden Horde cities that had been major trade and craft centers in the Volga region, destroyed the economic foundation of the Ulus of Jochi.
For one of the sources of replenishment of the Sarai treasury was the Volga-Caspian trade route, which gave the Golden Horde not only relative economic prosperity, but also generally contributed to the rise of its cultural level.
Khorezm - to take back what is ours
Needing money, Akhmat turned his attention to wealthy Khorezm. Wealthy because another famous trade route, the Great Silk Route, passed through its lands.
This is the first reason for the khan's eastern policy. The second is that the northern part of Khorezm, by Genghis Khan's will, was once part of the Ulus of Jochi, until it was seized by Timur. The southern part was originally part of the Ulus of Chagatai.
It must be said, however, that the blow dealt by the Mongols during the war with the Khorezmshah Empire in 1219–1221 was, in a sense, fatal for the region: it never again achieved its previous cultural and economic prosperity.
Take the fate of the state capital, Urgench. It held out for seven months, the conquerors having to take it block by block. But after its fall in 1221, the city was destroyed, and the remaining population was exterminated, with the exception, of course, of the surviving artisans. No, Urgench was rebuilt, but never regained its former splendor.
Nevertheless, compared to the Volga region, Khorezm was an economically more developed region. In short, Akhmat sought to reclaim what was rightfully his.
This was facilitated politically by a successful marriage.
The fact is, writes R. Yu. Pochekaev, that one of Ahmad's wives in the 1450s was Badi al-Jamal (Badke) Begim, the sister of Husayn Bayqara, a descendant of Amir Timur who later became the ruler of Khorasan. It is likely that, as part of his sister's dowry, Sultan Husayn Mirza agreed to return Khorezm, which the Timurids had recaptured from the Golden Horde in 1412/1413, to the Khan of Sarai.
But, as the saying goes, a holy place abhors a vacuum. In the Safavid Cycle, I mentioned the khanate of the nomadic Uzbeks as Iran's main rival in the east in the 16th century.
This state, which emerged around the 1430s from the remnants of the White Horde, became such for Akhmat as well, since, on the one hand, it stretched between the Great Horde and Khorezm, while on the other, the latter's lands were claimed by Abu al-Khayr, the founder of the nomadic Uzbek state. School textbooks seem to have written nothing about him. And in vain. He was an outstanding ruler. It's no wonder that sources speak of Abu al-Khayr ascending the throne of Sain Khan, or Batu.
An image of Abu al-Khayr from the manuscript "Ta'rikh-i Abu al-Khayr-khani" by the Bukharan historian Mas'ud ibn Osmani Quhistani, 1541
So, Abu al-Khayr was a Shibanid, meaning a descendant of Jochi's fifth son, Shiban. War with him didn't promise Akhmat easy success, but in 1468, Abu al-Khayr died, opening a window of opportunity for the Jochid. Here's the deal.
Since Abu-l-Khayr possessed, as R. Yu. Pochekaev notes, a harsh disposition, the nomadic nobility placed the more docile Shibanid on the throne, but not Abu-l-Khayr's direct heir, Yadgar Khan, who, moreover, had once helped Kichi-Muhammad to take the throne.
Why Yadgar Khan? The reasons were named by B. A. Akhmedov:
In the 30s and 40s, Abu al-Khair had to fight against the separatism of the Uzbek nomadic nobility.
Of course, after his death, separatism intensified along with centrifugal tendencies in the unstable nomadic state, which in turn were caused by the lack of strong economic ties between the settled – mainly urban – and nomadic parts of the khanate’s population.
Yadgar Khan, however, was old and soon died. He was succeeded by Shaikh Haidar, the son of Abu al-Khair, but he failed to find support among the local elites. According to R. Yu. Pochekaev, even the future victors of Akhmat opposed him—an irony of history?):
Nogai mirzas Musa and Yamgurchi, great-grandsons of Idigu, as well as Bureke Sultan, Yadgar Khan and another Shibanid - the Tyumen prince Ibak.
Sheikh-Haidar was doomed and died. It seemed that Akhmat would have to confront his victors. But instead, he married Musa and Yamgurchi's sister, stubbornly paving his way to power over Khorezm.
And it seemed that his dream was coming true, but the death of Mahmud in 1471 upset the cards. No, it did not create a power vacuum, but it opened a window of opportunity for the grandsons of Abu-l-Khair Muhammad Shaybani and Mahmud Sultan, who came to Haji-Tarkhan, to enter the game.
They were received by the new ruler, Kasym, Akhmat's nephew. The latter acted quickly and decisively: joining forces with Ibak, he laid siege to Haji-Tarkhan. Kasym, not tempting fate, allowed his uncle into the city after warning the Shibanids. They fled and retaliated: they ravaged Ibak's lands, killing, according to R. Yu. Pochekaev, his son and brother.
The blow was calculated correctly: Akhmat couldn't help his ally because he was trying to show Ivan III who was boss. There were at least two reasons.
A portrait of Ivan III from the book "General Cosmography" by the French traveler André Thevet, published in Paris in 1575
First: in 1471, Vyatka ushkuiniks sacked the khan's capital, Sarai—remember, Golden Horde cities had no walls. A Russian attack on a khan's capital, according to sources, was unprecedented.
It's not entirely clear whether the ushkuiniks acted on their own initiative or in agreement with Moscow. Although the latter is unlikely. Ivan III was tackling a military and political challenge in the northwest: the battle with the Novgorodians on the Shelon River in 1471. Provoking a conflict with the Horde himself would have been rash for the Grand Duke.
Second: a year earlier, an ambassador from the Grand Duke of Lithuania, Casimir IV Kirey the Krivoy, arrived at Akhmat's headquarters with a proposal to form an anti-Moscow alliance. At first, the khan was in no hurry: why bother? In Akhmat's worldview, Moscow was a vassal, paying quits.
Accordingly, why ruin it and narrow in favor of Lithuania its own sphere of influence in the Russian lands, which represented, in modern terms, an important budget item.
However, the situation most likely changed during the year of Sarai's devastation: I believe funds were urgently needed to implement the Khorezm policy, and secondly, which contradicts the first, Ivan III demonstrated excessive independence in Akhmat's eyes. Plus, bringing Novgorod into Moscow's orbit of influence strengthened not only the economic but also the military and political potential of the Kalitichi.
Akhmat looked increasingly anxiously to the west.
So, let's follow him from the Caspian steppes, away from the Uzbek nomad camps and Khorezm fortresses, closer to the Oka forests. The year is 1472. It was in this year, according to A.A. Gorsky, that Moscow stopped paying the toll to the Great Horde, which, I would venture to suggest, in the context of the unfolding Khorezm events, Akhmat had been counting on.
To resume payments, the khan launched a campaign against Rus' and achieved a local success, capturing Aleksin, located on the Oka River. However, he was unable to cross the river. Either Ivan III's troops were the decisive factor, or the disease that struck the Tatars—presumably an epidemic, as A.A. Gorsky suggests.
It's important to note that the chronicles characterize this strategic success of Moscow as a victory and deliverance, while the stand on the Ugra River is described solely as a victory. Therefore, it makes sense to speak of Moscow's liberation from the Horde in 1472, as A.A. Gorsky suggests.
Why didn't Casimir IV, who had proposed an alliance the year before, help Akhmat? Because, as the chronicle states, Casimir IV was "clamoring" for the Hungarian throne, on which he intended to place his son Casimir.
After the unsuccessful stand at the Oka, Akhmat took no active steps in the Khorezm direction, reorienting his foreign policy from east to west. The reasons for this move will be discussed in the next article.
References
Akhmedov B.A. State of nomadic Uzbeks. – Moscow: Nauka, 1965
Vernadsky G.V. Mongols and Rus'. Moscow: LEAN, Agraf, 2004
Gorsky A.A. Moscow and the Horde. – M.: Nauka, 2000
Gorsky A.A. On the name Great Horde
Alekseev Yu. G. Sovereign of all Rus'. – Novosibirsk: Science, Siberian Branch, 1991
Pochekaev R. Yu. Tsars of the Horde. Biographies of the Khans and Rulers of the Golden Horde. — 2nd ed., corrected and enlarged. — St. Petersburg: EURASIA, 2012
Trepavlov V. V. Steppe empires of Eurasia: Mongols and Tatars. – Moscow: Quadriga, 2015
Trepavlov V.V. Russian ulus of the Golden Horde // Russian history. – M.: 2021. No. 1
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