Genghis Khan died in 1224. The division of his state into a number of independent uluses between his sons. On the territory of modern Russia - the ulus of Jochi. As a result of the campaigns of his son Batu, by the middle of the 13th century, this ulus expanded by joining the Middle and Lower Volga regions, the North Caucasus and the Northern Black Sea region.

Formation of the Golden Horde.

The term "Golden Horde" was originally applied to the Horde of Genghis Khan himself, and only later was rethought after his death as one of the names of the Ulus of Jochi, actually founded by Jochi's son Batu. This is the term of Russian sources.

Borders.

In the northeast - Bulgar, in the north - Russian principalities, in the south - Crimea and the Caucasus to Derbend + northern Khorezm with the city of Urgench, in the west - steppes from the Dniester and further, in the east - to Western Siberia and to the lower reaches of the Syr Darya.

Having made the Volga region the center of the ulus, Batu and his successors spent a lot of effort to revive urban life and the trade associated with it, from which they saw large incomes for their treasury. The merchants, who had documents from the khan, wandered freely and no one dared to touch them. The capital of the state was laid - Sarai Batu.

ethnically. It was not the resettlement of the Mongols in the Volga region. The bulk of the population of the Golden Horde are Kipchaks = Cumans (Turks, not Mongols). The conquerors made up a small part of the privileged population and gradually assimilated.

Already in the 14th century, a literary language was formed in the Golden Horde - not Mongolian, but Turkic, the following lived in the horde:

Oguzes (Turks - ancestors of Turkmens and Karakalpaks)

Bulgars and Ugrofins;

Mixed population of Crimea;

Tajiks (farmers).

Thus, an artificial and unstable association of sedentary and nomadic peoples who lived at different stages of the social system (from tribal to feudal).

State structure.

Monarchy, eastern despotism.

Khan at the head

Support - the army (up to 800 thousand)

All major positions are occupied by members of the dynasty.

For the election of a new khan or to discuss some military issues, a kurultai gathered. It was attended by the wives of the highest nobility.

The army was organized by order of Genghis Khan.

State orders and palace

The vizier both controls the state treasury and oversees the khan's stables and kitchen.

There were sofas in the control system. Everyone received funds from a certain territory (something like orders).

Socio-economic development of the XIII-XIV centuries.

The Kipchaks were at a slightly higher level of culture than the Mongols, so the nomadic pastoral practices were the same.

The entire population was considered to belong to the house of Jochi, headed by the khan.

The territory was divided between the princes of the khan's house and the noyons (owners of good pastures and a large number of livestock). They were both civil and military ranks (temniki, thousanders, centurions).

The owner of the pasture allotted to the nomadic family an ail - a site for nomadism. For this, he performed various services for the master + state taxes and duties, including military.

The main activities in the economy are cattle breeding and processing of livestock products (leather, milk, wool), hunting, and fishing.

But in Bulgar they were engaged in agriculture, and there was a lot of bread, and they were provided with cities, especially Sarai Batu and Sarai-Berke

From the Moscow lands, too, bread, forest products - honey, wax, fur.

So the Golden Horde society is not only nomadic, but also settled

There were also typically settled feudal lords in Bulgar, Crimea, on the Lower Volga, in Khorezm.

Dependent farmers paid various taxes. But it has not been established whether they were attached to privately owned land.

Sabanchi is an ordinary peasant community member.

Urtakchi is a sharecropper.

Slaves, mainly from captives, occupied a considerable place in the household of nomadic, semi-nomadic and sedentary feudal lords. Rarely did these slaves survive several generations in one line. Usually the children of a slave were turned into sharecroppers.

Slaves-artisans settled in the cities. Gradually they could become free.

Slaves did not form the basis of production in the Golden Horde. But they were a bargain. They were sold to Arab countries.

Sometimes the population of the Golden Horde themselves sold their children into slavery (usually daughters).

Cities were built and maintained on taxes from the rural population and tribute from dependent territories. There were 110 cities.

Typical eastern cities. Neighborhoods with narrow streets. Each quarter is occupied by a certain handicraft production. On market days, the craft quarters turned into a bazaar, where they traded in items produced here.

Craft.

Ceramics, tiles, metal products, including blades, fabrics, felt, leather, as well as clothes and shoes, were produced locally. But the ethnic composition of the artisans is motley, among them there are many prisoners, but not all. The Russians had a "monopoly" on woodworking (from dishes and furniture to shipbuilding). There were jewelers and gunsmiths.

Trade.

Some merchants were, as it were, khan's trade agents, the income from this trade was given to the khan.

caravan trade. A significant part of the trade in goods through, but not for the Horde, i.e. transit;

Export - horses (caravan up to 6 thousand heads);

Import - fabrics, glass (from Egypt), luxury goods.

The cities of Crimea were of great commercial importance.

Political history.

1237-1256 - Batu.

A pagan, but there are many Muslim merchants in the advisers, a skillful organization was established to collect taxes of all kinds.

1257 - 1266 - Berke.

The Golden Horde has already fully developed as a large state. From 1260 it became a completely independent state.

City building.

War in Iran

Diplomatic relations with Egypt.

The desire to annex Azerbaijan.

Berke converted to Islam.

In the 50s. the population of Russia was calculated. Per unit of account - a house or a family. The Baskaks are the occupying military police. In Vladimir, the Great Baskak of Vladimir, who subjugated the rest of the detachments. Tribute was collected from local tribute-payers. Mongolian officials interfered in Russian politics.

In the 70s, the Horde began to feed the Rostov princes - to marry them to their own, to include the Rostov squads in the troops, whose campaigns were promising.

1266 - 1280 - Mengu - Timur. Tatar campaign against Kostantinople.

1280 - 1290 - unrest, the authority of the khan's power is under threat. The rulers of Tver and Moscow supported the rebel Nogai, hoping to weaken the Horde. Rostov and Yaroslavl princes took the side of the khan. Pursuing their political goals, in 1293 the Rostovites brought Dudenev's army to Russia. This invasion was more devastating than Batyev.

1290 - 1312 years - Tokta.

Restored stability. But the Russians got rid of the Tatar tribute collectors and Baskaks.

1312 - 1342 years - Uzbek

Huge construction.

The new capital is Saray Berke. He also built in the Crimea, Urgench.

In the XIV century, the Golden Horde was divided into two states.

Ak-Ordu - lands in the area of ​​the Syr Darya and the Aral Sea. "Blue" according to Russian sources already in the XV century, Persian sources call it the Uzbek ulus.

Kok-Ordu - the Volga region, Crimea, Siberia. "White" according to Russian sources, and this is translated as Blue.

After the death of Khan Uzbek, dynastic strife began.

The last year of firm power and peace in the Golden Horde is considered to be 1356, when Janibek Khan captured Azerbaijan.

From 1360 to 1380 - 25 khans "great hush"

The territory is crumbling.

Under Temnik Mamai, the right bank of the Volga was also subject to him, and the left bank with both capitals, Khorezm, Bulgar, Mordva, was ruled by other rulers. At the same time, formally, the khan was alone.

Tokhtamysh (1380 - 1406).

He reunited the Golden Horde lands, but without Khorezm. Achieved the resumption of tribute payments to Russia. In the war with Tamerlane, he was defeated in 1395. Berke's barn was destroyed, as was Astrakhan. In 1399, the defeat of the Khan of the Volga Horde.

Temir-Kutluya.

After these blows, the Golden Horde was reduced to the position of a secondary state. A sharp decline in markets and crafts, production throughout the country began.

The collapse of the Golden Horde.

The nomadic aristocracy was at enmity with each other and could not control territories with a higher culture.

Emir Yedigey, not being Genghisid, did not dare to become a khan, the change of khans began again, although Yedigey actually ruled (until 1411).

Another zamyatna at the beginning of the 15th century.

The turmoil became more and more chaotic, when it is even difficult to establish which of the rival khans should be recognized as a truly leading figure.

The Golden Horde in the former sense no longer existed - agricultural areas were lost, cities were destroyed. Khan obeyed only the steppe nomadic uluses.

But, having ceased to be a powerful state, the Golden Horde still remained a force that could disturb its cultural neighbors - Russia, Lithuania, Poland.

The centrifugal forces originated from nomadic uluses, whose petty leaders strove for power. The system of collecting taxes and tributes was broken, and the khan's entourage lost their former income. The steppe gave much less income than the subservient cities and villages of farmers.

Trade has ceased to be of a transit nature and is closed to local markets.

Thus, the population saw a way out in the formation of independent ownership on its territory.

If there is no other income, it is necessary to intensify raids on neighbors

At the end of 1437 or 1445, the Kazan Khanate was formed. The Bulgarian population was numerically predominant. But the army and the nobility are Tatar.

In the late 1440s - Crimean. Some pastoralists in it at that time had already begun to switch to the settled labor of farmers.

The foundation of these khanates meant that the Golden Horde (what remained) turned almost entirely into a nomadic state - the Great Horde.

The only agricultural and urban base left was the Volga region near Astrakhan, which suffered from the invasion of Tamerlane.

The collapse of the Golden Horde was expressed not only in the separation of the most cultural areas, but also in the appearance of Tatar vassal principalities on the territory of Russia and Lithuania (Kasimovskaya).

The Great Horde considered itself the legal successor of the Golden Horde → it was she who solved the problems with Russia.

In 1502 it was defeated by the Crimean Khanate. On its Volga lands, the Astrakhan Khanate arose.

The Siberian Khanate arose at the end of the 15th century; there was no agricultural population in it.

The Nogai Horde stood out at the beginning of the 15th century. Caspian and Ural lands. Also without the agricultural population.

The central government is very weak.

It continued to be divided into the 16th century.

The collapse of the Golden Horde was inevitable as an artificial historical association.

The remaining nomadic units found themselves militarily in the 16th century. Weaker than recently conquered neighbors, since they already had other military equipment, a new military organization + huge mobilization resources (people, horses, food, fodder, weapons, ammunition).

Fortresses and the experience of the war with the steppes.

The relatively small detachments of the remaining khans were dangerous in a raid, but they were not able to conquer the state → they themselves were subdued.



Before considering the state structure of the Golden Horde, you need to find out the following essential point: what was the name of this state during its existence. This question arises because in no modern chronicle of the Golden Horde there is such a name for it. The well-known monograph by B. D. Grekov and A. 10. Yakubovsky also does not give an answer to it. Three aspects of the problem can be distinguished: how the Mongols themselves called their state, how it was called by those around it, its neighbors, and what name was established for it after the collapse. In all the Mongolian states that arose in the 13th century, ruling dynasties descended from Genghis Khan established themselves. The head of each of them considered the territory allocated to him or conquered not as a state, but as a family possession. The Kipchak steppes were given to the eldest son of Genghis Khan Jochi, who became the founder of the numerous Jochid family that ruled here. In full accordance with this, each of the khans who ascended the Sarai throne called their state simply “ulus”, that is, the people given to inheritance, possession. The label of Khan Tokhtamysh has been preserved, in which he calls his state the Great Ulus. Such a magnificent epithet, emphasizing the power of the state, was also used by other khans, especially in diplomatic correspondence. As for the name of the Jochid state by representatives of European and Asian powers, there was complete discord. In the Arabic chronicles, it was most often called the name of the khan who ruled at a certain moment, with the appropriate ethnic refinement: “Berke, the great king of the Tatars”, “Tokta, the king of the Tatars”. In other cases, a geographical specification was added to the name of the khan: “Uzbek, ruler of the northern countries”, “king of Tokta, owner of Saray and Kipchak lands”, “king of Desht-i-Kypchak Tokta”. Sometimes Arab and Persian chroniclers called the Golden Horde the ulus of Jochi, the ulus of Batu, the ulus of Berke, the ulus of Uzbek. Often these names were used not only directly during the reign of one or another khan, but even after their death (“King Uzbek, ruler of the Berke countries”). The European travelers P. Carpini and G. Rubruk, who traveled the entire Golden Horde, use the old terms “country of Komans” (i.e., Polovtsy), “Komania” to designate it, or they give a too generalized name - “the power of the Tatars”. In a letter from Pope Benedict XII, the state of the Jochids is called Northern Tataria. In Russian chronicles, the new southern neighbor was first designated with the help of an ethnic term. The princes go to "Tatars to Batyev" and return "from the Tatars." And only in the last decade of the XIII century, a new and only name "Horde" appeared and firmly established, which existed until the complete collapse of the Jochid state. As for the now familiar name "Golden Horde", it began to be used at a time when there was no trace left of the state founded by Khan Batu. For the first time this phrase appeared in the "Kazan chronicler", written in the second half of the 16th century, in the form "Golden Horde" and "Great Golden Horde". Its origin is associated with the khan's headquarters, or rather, with the khan's ceremonial yurt, richly decorated with gold and expensive materials. Here is how a 14th-century traveler describes it: “Uzbek sits in a tent, called a golden tent, decorated and outlandish. It consists of wooden rods covered with gold leaves. In the middle of it is a wooden throne, overlaid with silver gilded sheets, its legs are made of silver, and the top is studded with precious stones. There is no doubt that the term "Golden Horde" existed in Russia in colloquial speech as early as the 14th century, but it never appears in the annals of that period. Russian chroniclers proceeded from the emotional load of the word “golden”, which was used at that time as a synonym for everything good, bright and joyful, which could not be said about an oppressor state, and even inhabited by “nasty ones”. That is why the name "Golden Horde" appears only after all the horrors of Mongol rule have been erased by time.

From the first year of its existence, the Golden Horde was not a sovereign state, and the khan who led it was also not considered an independent ruler. This was due to the fact that the possessions of the Jochids, like other Mongol princes, legally constituted a single empire with a central government in the rakorum. The kaan who was here, according to one of the articles of the yasa (law) of Genghis Khan, had the right to a certain part of the income from all the territories conquered by the Mongols. Moreover, he had possessions in these areas that belonged to him personally. The creation of such a system of close interweaving and interpenetration was associated with an attempt to prevent the inevitable disintegration of a huge empire into separate independent parts. Only the central Karakorum government was authorized to decide the most important economic and political issues. The strength of the central government, which, due to the remoteness of its stay, rested, perhaps, only on the authority of Genghis Khan, was still so great that the khans of Batu and Berke continued to adhere to the "path of sincerity, humility, friendship and unanimity" in relation to Karakorum. But in the 60s of the XIII century, an internecine struggle flared up around the Karakoram throne between Khubilai and Arig-Buga. The victorious Khubilai transferred the capital from Karakorum to the territory of conquered China in Khanbalik (present-day Beijing). Mengu-Timur, who ruled at that time in the Golden Horde, supported Arig-Buga in the struggle for supreme power, hastened to take advantage of the opportunity that presented itself and did not recognize Khubilai's right to be the supreme ruler of the entire empire, since he left the capital of its founder and abandoned the indigenous yurt to the mercy of fate all Genghisides - Mongolia. From that moment on, the Golden Horde gained complete independence in resolving all issues of a foreign and domestic nature, and the so carefully guarded unity of the empire founded by Genghis Khan suddenly exploded, and it fell to pieces. However, by the time of the acquisition of full political sovereignty in the Golden Horde, of course, there already existed its own intrastate structure, moreover, it was sufficiently established and developed. There is nothing surprising in the fact that it basically copied the system introduced in Mongolia by Genghis Khan. The basis of this system was the army decimal calculation of the entire population of the country. In accordance with the division of the army, the entire state was divided into right and left wings. In the ulus of Jochi, the right wing constituted the possessions of Khan Batu, stretching from the Danube to the Irtysh. The left wing was under the rule of his elder brother, Khan of the Horde. It occupied lands in the south of modern Kazakhstan along the Syr Darya and to the east of it. According to the ancient Mongolian tradition, the right wing was called Ak-Orda (White Horde), and the left-Kok-Orda (Blue). It follows from the foregoing that the concepts of "Golden Horde" and "ulus of Jochi" in territorial and state-legal relations are not synonymous. Ulus Jochi after 1242 divided into two wings, which made up the independent possessions of two khans - Batu and the Horde. However, the khans of Kok-Orda throughout its history maintained a certain (largely purely formal) political dependence in relation to the khans of the Golden Horde (Ak-Orda). In turn, the territory under the rule of Batu was also divided into right and left wings. In the initial period of the existence of the Golden Horde, the wings corresponded to the largest administrative units of the state. But by the end of the 13th century, they had turned from administrative into purely military concepts and were preserved only in relation to military formations. In the administrative structure of the state, the wings were replaced by a more convenient division into four main territorial units, headed by ulusbeks. These four uluses were the largest administrative divisions. They were called Sarai, Desht-i-Kypchak, Crimea, Khorezm. In the most general form, the administrative system of the Golden Horde was described as early as the 13th century. G. Rubruk, who traveled the entire state from west to east. According to his observation, the Mongols “divided among themselves Scythia, which stretches from the Danube until sunrise; and every ruler knows, according to whether he has more or less people under his authority, the boundaries of his pastures, and also where he must pasture his flocks in winter, summer, spring and autumn. It is in winter that they descend south to warmer countries, in summer they rise north to colder ones. This sketch of the traveler contains the basis of the administrative-territorial division of the Golden Horde, defined by the concept of "ulus system". Its essence was the right of nomadic feudal lords to receive from the khan himself or another large steppe aristocrat a certain inheritance - an ulus. For this, the owner of the ulus was obliged to put up, if necessary, a certain number of fully armed soldiers (depending on the size of the ulus), as well as to perform various tax and economic duties. This system was an exact copy of the structure of the Mongolian army: the entire state - the Great Ulus - was divided according to the rank of the owner (temnik, thousand's manager, centurion, ten's manager) - into destinies of certain size, and from each of them, in case of war, ten, one hundred , a thousand or ten thousand armed warriors. At the same time, uluses were not hereditary possessions that could be passed from father to son. Moreover, the khan could take away the ulus completely or replace it with another. In the initial period of the existence of the Golden Horde, there were apparently no more than 15 large uluses, and rivers most often served as the borders between them. This shows a certain primitiveness of the administrative division of the state, rooted in the old nomadic traditions. Further development of statehood, the emergence of cities, the introduction of Islam, a closer acquaintance with the Arab and Persian traditions of government led to various complications in the possessions of the Jochids with the simultaneous death of Central Asian customs dating back to the time of Genghis Khan. Instead of dividing the territory into two wings, as already mentioned, four uluses appeared, headed by ulusbeks. One of the uluses was the personal domain of the khan. He occupied the steppes of the left bank of the Volga from its mouth to the Kama, that is, including the former territory of Volga Bulgaria. Each of these four uluses was divided into a certain number of "regions", which were the uluses of the feudal lords of the next rank. In total, in the Golden Horde, the number of such "regions" in the XIV century. was about 70 in number of temniks. Simultaneously with the establishment of the administrative-territorial division, the formation of the state administration apparatus took place. The period of the reign of the khans Batu and Berke can rightfully be called organizational in the history of the Golden Horde. Batu laid down the basic foundations of the state, which were preserved under all subsequent khans. The feudal estates of the aristocracy were formalized, an apparatus of officials appeared, a capital was founded, a yam connection was organized between all uluses, taxes and duties were approved and distributed. The reign of Batu and Berke is characterized by the absolute power of the khans, whose authority was associated in the minds of their subjects with the amount of wealth they stole. Sources unanimously note that the khans at that time had "amazing power over everyone." Khan, who stood at the top of the pyramid of power, for most of the year was in a roaming headquarters surrounded by his wives and a huge number of courtiers. He spent only a short winter period in the capital. The moving khan's horde-headquarters, as it were, emphasized that the main power of the state continued to be based on a nomadic beginning. Naturally, it was quite difficult for the Khan, who was in constant motion, to manage the affairs of the state himself. This is also emphasized by the sources, which directly report that the supreme ruler “pays attention only to the essence of the matter, without entering into the details of the circumstances, and is content with what is reported to him, but does not seek details regarding the collection and spending.” In conclusion, it should be added that the Golden Horde did not practice kuriltai, so characteristic of Mongolia, at which all representatives of the Genghisides family resolved the most important state issues. The changes that have taken place in the administrative and state structure have brought to naught the role of this traditional nomadic institution. Having a government in the stationary capital, consisting of representatives of the ruling family and the largest feudal lords, the khan no longer needed kuriltai. He could discuss the most important state issues, gathering, as needed, the highest military and civilian officials of the state. As for such an important prerogative as the approval of the heir, now it has become the exclusive competence of the khan. However, palace conspiracies and all-powerful temporary workers played a much larger role in the shifts on the throne. The first, most difficult time of the introduction of the khan's power into Russian life has passed.

The state structure of the Golden Horde was studied more than any other side of the Jochi Ulus. It was most fully covered in the last century in the work of I. Berezin "Essay on the internal structure of Ulus Dzhuchiev", which has already been mentioned more than once. But with all the merits of this work, one must not forget that it is at the height of the factual knowledge of the 60s of the XIX century. It would be in vain to look for any coherent picture of the political administration of this large state in it.

It is known that the Mongolian states, in fact, completely independent, were legally considered parts of the unified feudal empire of Genghis Khan. According to B.Ya. Vladimirtsova: “The power of the clan of Genghis Khan over his ulus, i.e., the people-state, is expressed in the fact that one of the relatives, altan urug (urux) "a, becomes the emperor, khan (xan, xagan), commanding the entire empire elected on the council of all relatives (xuriltai ∾ xurultai); other members of the clan, mainly its male offspring, are recognized as princes ... who have the right to receive inheritance-ulus for hereditary use.

The kuriltai of 1251 was very indicative, at which the princes of the Genghis house, with the active participation of the military nobility, elected the great khan (kaan) Munk, the son of Tulay, after a three-year break. The situation of this election, the struggle within the Genghis house itself for a candidate, the trips of princes from ulus to ulus, sending special messengers, intrigues - all this is so expressive and typical here that it can serve as a classic example of how large and small kuriltai were held in the Mongol Empire and its separate parts - uluses.

Rashid-ad-Din tells in detail how Möngke-kaan was elected. Two houses - Jochi and Tulaya - united against two houses - Ogedei and Chagatai. The main and most active role was played by Batu Khan, who wanted to take Mongke, the son of Tulai, to the all-Mongolian throne. His assistant in this matter was his brother Berke, who, with his trip to Mongolia, rendered a great service to Möngke. Batu initially wanted to convene a kuriltai in Desht-i-Kypchak, i.e. in the Jochid possessions, but this did not pass. The princes from the houses of Ogedei and Chagatai insisted on convening a kuriltai in a traditional place, on the banks of the Kerulen (Keluren) River, where Genghis Khan's headquarters had long been located. After long squabbles, in which, in addition to the princes, influential temniki and thousanders, who were at the head of their detachments, were involved, they decided to assemble a kuriltai in the capital Karakorum, where they put Mongke on the throne. The political significance of this act was discussed above. Like kuriltai of a general Mongol character, kuriltai of princes and nobility in uluses were supposed to gather. Initially, the "princes", who headed the large uluses, were subordinate to the great khan. However, after Mongke, who died in 1259, there were no all-Mongolian kuriltai, which were obligatory for all uluses.

“The first signs of a weakening of the unity of the empire,” according to V.V. Bartold, - appeared during the life of Genghis Khan, who was going to go to war against Jochi, who was too independent in managing his possessions. By the 60s of the XIII century. from the unity of the Mongol Empire, as we saw above, almost nothing remained. The Golden Horde, the Iranian state of the Hulagids, the Chagatai state were independent, in no way even coordinating their policies with the great khans.

The Golden Horde state can be regarded as a feudal monarchy, where the khan's power, which was from 1227 (the year of Jochi's death) to 1359 in the house of Batu, was in the full sense the power of nomadic, semi-nomadic and sedentary feudal lords Desht and Kypchak, the Lower Volga region, Bulgar, Crimea and Khorezm. We saw above that the ruling elite of this feudal aristocracy was the members of the ruling dynasty, who occupied all the major positions (military and civil) in the state. From them emerged oglans of the right and left wings, temniks and rulers, or governors, of certain parts of the state (for example, Kutlug-Timur in Khorezm). Finally, they also played the first role in kuriltai, which were convened both to select a new khan and to discuss the issue of some kind of military enterprise. “After the death of the emperor (Great Khan, - AND I.), - writes Plano Carpini, - the leaders gathered and elected Okkadai, the son of the aforementioned Genghis Khan, as emperor. He arranged a meeting of princes, divided the troops.

Armenian historian of the 13th century. Magaki says that Möngke Khan, before sending Hulagu to conquer Iran, decided to convene a kuriltai. Arguchi, having arrived at the place, according to the order of Mangu Khan, convened a kuriltai, where they invited all the leaders who arrived with Gulavu.

An interesting story about kuriltai is also given by the Armenian historian Vardan. “These holidays,” writes Vardan. - they called Khurultai, that is, the holidays of meetings, and lasted a whole month. During this time, other khans, relatives of Genghis Khan, in new clothes came to their ruler to confer about everything needed. Every day they wore dresses of a different color. By this day, the kings and sultans obedient to them appeared there with great gifts and offerings.

The same Magakiy says: “A year after the death of Gulavu, a great kuriltai was convened, at which Abagu (1265-1282), Gulava’s eldest son, was elevated to the khan’s throne.” The issues of distribution of individual regions of the conquered country among the Mongol military leaders are also resolved at the kuriltai. So, after returning to the Mugan steppe, the head of the Mongolian government in Transcaucasia and Iran, Dzhurmagun-noyon, or Chorma-khan (in the transcription of Magakia), convened a great kuriltai. According to Magakia, “at the great kuriltai, convened by the order of Chormakhan, these one hundred and ten chiefs divided all the lands among themselves ...”. Women also attended kuriltai and took an active part in their work. Talking about the election of the Khulagid khans to the throne, Rashid-ad-Din emphasizes that the election was made by kuriltai, in which, in addition to the princes and military leaders, Khatuns also took part. So at least Arghun (1284-1291), Geykhatu (1291-1295) and Ghazan Khan (1295-1304) were elected.

Rashid ad-Din says that Arghun Khan was chosen in the Yuzagach district near the Shur River, in the kuriltai. in which not only princes, emirs, but also khatuns participated. According to the same author, Geykhatu-khan was chosen at the kuriltai on 23 July 1291 in the area near Akhlat with the participation of not only princes, emirs, but also khatuns. Finally, also with the participation of princes, emirs and khatuns, the famous Gazan Khan was elected on 3 XI ​​1295 in Arran Karabakh.

Just as in other Mongolian states, and especially in Mongolia itself, the command posts following the temnik, namely the thousanders, sots, were in the hands of noyons and begs. In the chronicles of the Arab, Armenian, Persian, we constantly meet an indication that such and such a noyon or beg was a thousand-man, remembering, as was indicated above, that in the conditions of the nomadic feudal Mongol-Kypchak society, the military rank of “thousander” and “Sotsky” and the title “ noyon" ("running") cannot be separated from one another.

Following the example of the organization of the army of Genghis Khan, the Golden Horde khans apparently also had a guard, mainly from the feudal-aristocratic elite (mainly youth), called a keshik. Needless to say, holding in their hands command positions in the army, which consisted of the feudally dependent nomadic and semi-nomadic population of Desht-i-Kypchak, the feudal lords of the Ulus Jochi could feel in fact the masters of the state and, in case of disagreement with the policy of their khan, oppose him his strong will. With such their military strength, they could not but give the entire state of the Golden Horde a military-feudal character. And this is all the more true because the Golden Horde continuously waged hostilities either against its neighbors or simply against certain noyons or emirs: for example, a long struggle in the second half of the 13th century. of the Golden Horde khans against the famous temnik Nogai.

War, raids, robberies, tribute collection is one of the very important aspects of the life of the Golden Horde state. For the upper classes of society, this is one of the easiest ways to make money and accumulate treasures. Suffice it to say that the booty that the troops of the Golden Horde khans seized during the raids amounted to huge sums at that time. The booty was not only fabrics, silver utensils, money, furs, bread, weapons, but also people who could be turned into slaves and then sold in the markets or used as labor. As in other eastern countries of the era of feudalism, the Mongols, when capturing booty, had a strict order of its distribution.

In the Mongolian states, and in particular in the Golden Horde, there was a special position of the military bukaul. In an interesting form of documents "Dastur al-Katib", compiled by Mohammed ibn-Hindushah Nakhichevan for Sultan Uweys (1356-1374) from the Jelairid dynasty (1336-1411), there is the following data on the position of the bukkaul. The responsibility of the bukaul is the distribution of troops, the dispatch of detachments, the distribution of military maintenance relying from the great divan, the correct distribution of booty according to Mongolian customs, and the prevention of insults and injustices that may occur in the army. Emirs - temniks and thousanders - in the indicated area must obey the bukauls. Bukauls were supposed to have a significant content. Bukauls were at every fog (darkness).

The post of bukaul was noted by Hammer and Berezin as existing among the Khulagids, but without an exact disclosure of his duties. It can hardly be doubted that this post was also in the Golden Horde. In any case, it is noted in the Mengli-Giray label of 857 AH. (= 1453) in relation to the Crimea.

Next in importance to the military ranks (temniks, thousanders) were civil administration positions, which had as their function mainly the collection of all kinds of duties from the population. If the military power in the Golden Horde was clearly separated from the civil one, then the same cannot be said about the administrative apparatus. One and the same person could manage the administration of a given area and at the same time collect the income coming from the population. I. Berezin also speaks about the confusion of authorities and departments. He gives an example of how Jurmagun-noyon, sent to Iran, “was at the same time the commander of the army, the ruler of the country and the judge; during his illness, his duties were, by the will of the khakan. in the hands of his wife and children. Not without good reason, I. Berezin believes that the same thing happened in the Golden Horde.

The Golden Horde, like other Mongol uluses, built its central and regional power on a combination of Mongolian customs and the administrative practice of the conquered country. In the sources on the history of the Golden Horde, the term "vizier" is found in the appendix to the head of the government civil authority. However, these references in comparison with other administrative terms come across not very often. The term "vezier" is found in both Arabic and Persian sources. Ibn-Abd-az-Zahyr has a description of the reception of the ambassadors of Sultan Baybars to Berke Khan at his headquarters, which was on the banks of the Itil (Volga) River. Berke Khan sat in a large tent covered with white felt and silk fabrics. The tent accommodated at least 100 people. There were benches along the “wall” of the tent, on which 50 or 60 emirs sat. Khan sat on the throne, next to him was his wife. Berke Khan ordered the message of the Sultan to be read by his vizier. Al-Mefaddal also mentions the Golden Horde vizier Berke Khan, he even calls his name - Sheref-ad-din al-Kazvini, noting that he spoke Arabic and Turkic well. The Persian author also mentions the vizier of the Golden Horde Khan Dzhanibek, by the name of Saray-Timur, etc. However, a general idea of ​​​​the activities, duties and rights of the vizier can only be obtained from the book of the above-mentioned Muhammad ibn-Hindushah Nakhichevani "Dastur al-Katib". According to one of the samples of labels on the appointment of a vizier in the state of the Jalairids, the vizier must watch all the divans, especially the divan of the state treasury. In full accordance with feudal ideas, which poorly separate the central state departments and court positions, the vizier, along with watching the sofas, should supervise the korkhane (khan's workshop), the stables and the kitchen. The outward expression of the power of the vizier was a golden inkwell, a red seal and a belt studded with precious stones.

According to the Arab writer al-Kalkashandi, who was well versed - in his profession as a secretary - in positions, “governance of this state (Golden Horde, - AND I.) in the hands of the ulus emirs and the vizier, as in the kingdom of Iran, but ... the ulus emirs and the vizier of this [Golden Horde] kingdom do not have such executive power as there, i.e. ... they are lower in rank than the ulus emirs and vizier in Iran.

Along with the "vizier" we meet the position of "naib", in the meaning of the governor; thus, the well-known Kutlug-Timur, the governor of Khorezm, bore the title of “naib of Khorezm”. In the same sense, the term "naib" is applied to Kutlug-Timur and Ibn-Khaldun, telling about him that he enthroned Uzbek, the son of Togrylchi, after the death of Tokta Khan. Apparently, the term "naib" was also applied to the vizier's assistant.

The two highest administrative ranks in the Mongolian states, including the Golden Horde, are well known: "daruga" and "baskak". According to I. Berezin, both terms mean the same thing. Both translations mean "pressor". "Baskak" in the verb form "bas" - "davi" is the Turkish equivalent of the Mongolian "daruga". A.A. objects to the opinion of I. Berezin. Semenov. In his opinion, "baskak" does not mean "pressure" at all, but "protector". With the terms "baskak" and "daruga" not everything is clear yet. Apparently, I. Berezin is right, considering that the term "Baskak" was not used in the Golden Horde itself, and an official with his functions was called the Mongolian word "daruga". As for the conquered countries that paid tribute, both terms were in use there. So, in the labels to the Russian metropolitans, we sometimes meet “Baskaks” (the label of Mengu-Timur), then “roads” (the labels of Tyulyak, Taidula, etc.). The term "Baskak" was also used in the Caucasus, in particular in Armenia and Georgia. We find the following place in Stefan Orbelian: “Having gathered together with his like-minded people in Tiflis at Argun, a Baskak and a vizier, whom the great khan appointed the main ruler of our country and the head of state taxes and the great Divan, the same one that in 703 carried out a census in all the possessions [of the Tatars], - she [i.e. e. Messenger] with large gifts tried to persuade him to destroy Smbat and take away all his possessions from him. In these words of Stefan Orbelian, not only the mention of the term “baskak” itself is valuable, but also the indication that the baskak was also a vizier, combining the most important management functions. So, the term "daruga" in the sense of the supreme boss over all receipts to the treasury was used mainly in the Golden Horde. In the sources, however, no exact indications were preserved of the relationship the Darugs had with the rulers of certain regions (Crimea, the Caucasus, Bulgar, Khorezm); one must think that they were subordinate to them, although, probably, not in everything. Here, as in many other areas of the socio-political history of the Golden Horde, there are ambiguities that can be resolved only by painstaking work in the future. Apparently, in some - though relatively rare - cases, the functions of the daruga were transferred to the ruler of the region himself, however, even then the latter had officials with the rank of daruga. The term "daruga" was applied not only to the supreme bosses over the collection of duties in favor of the treasury, but also to his assistants, who acted as his agents in certain regions, cities and villages. It is in this sense that the label of Mengli Giray of 857 mentions the “darug”. X. (=1453). The label mentions the "darugs" of the Kyrk-yer area in the Crimea.

Interesting are the observations of A.N. Nasonov about the positions of baskak and daruga (road) in Russia in the XIII-XIV centuries. According to Russian sources, the Baskak should be regarded as a military leader, holding "in obedience to the conquered population."

As for the road, or darugi, their duty was to "census the population, collect tribute and deliver it to the court." Apparently, the Baskaks only in Russia were only military leaders and their duties did not include the functions of collecting tributes, taxes, taxes, etc.

Offices occupied an important place in the management system. In the center of the state, the khan had sofas; however, we cannot say exactly how many there were, just as we do not know the time when they were introduced. There were secretaries in the sofas, who were called bitikchi (scribes). Dastur al-Katib contains samples of labels for the appointment of a person to the post of bitikchi. It can be seen from these samples that this post was considered in Iran under the Mongols (Khulagids and Jelairids) respectable, respected and well paid. The labels for the appointment of bitikchi indicated that the ulus emirs, temniks, thousanders and other major civil and military officials should treat him with respect and pay everything he was supposed to. Here it is said, of course, about the main bitikchi, who was attached to the great divan. In addition to the main bitikchi, there were also bitikchi in ordinary sofas. In their hands was often the actual leadership. The most important was the divan, which was in charge of all income and expenses.

In this couch there was a special list - a list of receipts from certain regions and cities, which was called deftar. There were offices in some areas, at the governors and darugs, where the deftars were also located. The latter were in the conquered countries. Armenian historian of the late 13th century. Stefan Orbelian writes: “Having gone to Tiflis, he (Armenian atabeg Tarsaij, - AND I.) ordered the great Daftar to be brought from the royal sofa and read it to the end; and since it contained the names of Armenian monasteries that were obliged to pay taxes, he summoned the secretary of the main divan, gave him to rewrite Daftar, having previously crossed out the names of more than one hundred and fifty monasteries in it. After that, he burned the old Daftar and thus freed all our churches from taxes. Although these orders applied to Armenia and Georgia, the countries then subject to the Hulagids, however, we have every reason to believe that they were common wherever the Mongols ruled. A deftar - a valid list of receipts from the population - was available in each region where the ruler of the khan was and where the daruga was located as a person responsible for these receipts.

It is characteristic that revenues collected from a certain region, and sometimes from a subject country, were often farmed out to individual merchants, and sometimes, apparently, to merchant companies. Both the merchants and the merchant companies themselves consisted for the most part of Muslims, among whom there are names of Khorezmians. From Muslim merchants, including Khorezmian, Darugs within the country, and Baskaks and Darugs in conquered countries were often recruited. Needless to say, how much extortion, bribes and all sorts of oppression was associated with the taxpayer system. Chronicles of that time are full of stories about them. The words of the Armenian historian Kirakos, the author of the 13th century, a witness of these orders in his homeland, that “the princes, the rulers of the regions, assisted them [tax collectors] in torment and extortion, and they themselves profited”, can also be attributed to the Golden Horde .

Especially a lot of detailed information about the harassment of farmers carried out under the farming system can be found in the more than once mentioned Rashid ad-Din. The latter, in the part devoted to the history of Ghazan Khan, vividly paints a picture of the blatant, even under the conditions of Mongol power, abuses of tax-farmers and state officials associated with them in Iraq and Ajem and Azerbaijan at the end of the 13th century. In these areas, the Khulagid khans collected taxes and taxes in the form of kopchur and tamga, which were farmed out. The ruler of the region, the khakim, acted as a farmer. He had his own collectors and scribes, kept in touch and colluded with the entire official apparatus, sometimes up to the naib and even the vizier. Collectors forcibly collected up to 10 kopchurs a year, and sometimes more, which made the population completely ruined. These taxes and dues either reached the treasury in an insignificant amount, or did not reach at all, since they went into the pocket of the tax-farmer and official, as well as for bribery and bribes, in order to unsubscribe that such and such an amount went to the maintenance of messengers, such and such for fodder and food to various officials and military units.

Describing all this, Rashid ad-Din, who knew all these orders well as the vizier Ghazan Khan, wrote: “The khakims of the regions, based on the agreement that they had with the vizier, and on respect for his dignity, felt supported were impudent and repaired all sorts of harassment and insults.

Within a few decades, such a system led most of the regions of Iran under Mongol rule to complete impoverishment. Masses of rayats (peasants) left their homes, looking for a better life in a foreign land. Many villages and towns were so deserted that the person who used to live in them hardly recognized the familiar places. Ghazan Khan, in order to save the situation and, above all, the Mongol power in Iran, had to drastically change the order and carry out a number of reforms, which he did to a certain extent. We cited these facts as an example of the usual administrative practice for Iran under the Hulagids under the conditions of a taxpaying system. Sources did not retain information about the tax-paying system and its abuses in the Golden Horde. However, it cannot be concluded that it did not exist. The Golden Horde was hardly an exception in this respect.

Not a single special work is devoted to the organization of the court in the Golden Horde. Yes, and the information sources on this matter are very fragmentary. At first, before the adoption of Islam by the tops of society and before the Muslimization of the Mongolian authorities, the judicial procedures rested entirely on the yas (unwritten Mongolian law) in cases relating to the Mongols themselves. Yasa did not cease to operate in certain cases of civil life and during the period of Islamization, when some of the cases went to the representatives of Sharia. Ibn-Batuta, visiting in the 30s of the XIV century. Urgench, the capital of Khorezm, the most cultural region of the Golden Horde state, visited its governor, the above-mentioned Kutlug-Timur.

Describing in detail the very reception and the atmosphere of his house, Ibn-Batuta also touched upon the question of the court. “One of the habits of this emir (Kutlug-Timur, - AND I.), - he writes, - the one that every day the qadi comes to his waiting room and sits on the seat allotted to him; together with him [are] jurists and. scribes. Opposite him sits one of the senior emirs, with eight [other] senior emirs and Turkic sheikhs, called arguji [yarguchi]; people come to sue them. What concerns religious matters, the Qadi decides, while other [cases] are decided by these emirs. In these words, we see a clear indication that even under Uzbek Khan in the 14th century, when Islam had already become the dominant ideology of the feudal elite of the Golden Horde society, some cases were still in the hands of the yarguchi, i.e., judges who make decisions on the basis of the Yasa of Genghis Khan - Mongolian customary law. However, even with the existence of the latter, the influence of Sharia and its bearers - qadis - was great.

In Dastur al-Katib, Muhammad ibn-Hindush Nakhichevani gives three examples of labels on the appointment of certain persons to the position of emir yargu, i.e. the chief judge, who makes judgments on the basis of yas and common law in general. Usually such a position was entrusted to a noble and influential Mongol. The label indicated that he was worthy of being a yarguchi (judge) on the basis of a yasa, that he should make a decision in a dispute between two persons fairly, without causing harm, insults and violence. The decision must be formalized in a special letter, which in the Khulagid state was called yargu-name. In the Khulagid state there was a special divan yargu. We have every reason to believe that a similar sofa was in the Golden Horde.

The indicated samples of documents also reveal the main source of income for these yarguchi. The litigants had to pay a certain fee in favor of the yarguchi and his scribe (bitikchi). Needless to say, the entire court system in the Golden Horde, as in any other feudal society, was in the hands of the feudal lords and officials associated with them. Kadi and yarguchi, i.e. judges based on Sharia and judges guided by the yas of Genghis Khan, were either large landowners (owned land, herds or landed property in cities, etc.), or lived off the income from the court , including in the latter not only what they were entitled to by law, but also all sorts of illegal fees (bribes, extortion, etc.). Faqihs (jurists) and various kinds of sheikhs were associated with the qadi, which we will have to talk about below. The court in the Golden Horde was so closely intertwined with the administration (rulers, darugs) that there could be no question of its independence. Kadi and yarguchi always acted in full agreement with the highest administration in the interests of the ruling strata of the countryside, city and steppe.

The position of semi-nomadic feudal lords, who have large lands in settled areas and huge herds of cattle in the steppe, is best expressed in the system of suyurgals (feudal estates), which by the end of the 14th century. in Central Asia they are already becoming the dominant form of large-scale feudal landownership. Under suyurgal meant at the end of the XIV and in the XV century. "lan". A person who received a district or region as a suyurgal had the right to collect in his favor all taxes, taxes and duties that had hitherto gone to the treasury of the khan or sultan. A characteristic feature of the suyurgal is that this land was considered to be in hereditary possession. The distribution of suyurgals in this sense was widely practiced in Central Asia in the second half of the 14th century. In any case, Nizam-ad-din Shami was already under 780 AH. (= 1378/79) marks the granting of the suyurgal by Urus Khan in the White Horde. Since the 80s of the XIV century. suyurgals were distributed widely by Timur.

Under the Mongols, in particular in the Golden Horde, the khan's power distributed a huge amount of land with peasants sitting on them, and in some cases gift labels were accompanied by tarkhan labels, that is, letters that freed the population of this land from all or most duties in favor of the state and , thereby providing most of the surplus product of the direct producer in favor of the feudal owner. Only labels of the second kind have come down to us from the Golden Horde.

In the administrative and political life of the Golden Horde, many government orders were issued - decrees of a national and private nature. These decrees in Mongolian times were called labels on the territory of all Mongolian states. The most developed was the design and registration of labels in the state of the Hulagids under Ghazan Khan. The labels were different, some were issued for management to “noble sultans, emirs and meliks and on matters of possessions” - a large tamga of jasper was installed for them. Labels “on matters of medium importance” received a large tamga made of gold, but smaller than those made of jasper. Labels for military affairs also received a large tamga made of gold, only with the difference that it was depicted on it - “bow, mace and saber” around the circumference of the tamga.

Unfortunately, what were the tamgas in the Golden Horde, how they differed from the tamgas in the Khulagid state, is difficult to say. It is known that there were also tamgas there.

Along with the labels, the sources also speak of golden paizas, which were not only a sign of very high honor, but also gave a number of significant privileges. Paizi are boards - gold, silver, cast iron, bronze and even wooden - with a certain inscription, issued as a kind of passes and mandates, according to which their owners were provided with everything necessary for movement (on the way) - horses, wagons, premises, food, etc. e. Depending on the position of the face, the paizi were issued either gold, silver and cast iron, or simply wooden. Marco Polo, in his famous memoirs, tells of the golden paize, which was handed to his father, uncle and himself, the following: “It was written on it that in all countries where three ambassadors come, everything they need is given, both horses and escorts from place to place." In another place, Marco Polo, as it were, supplements the story of the paizi with the following interesting data: “Akhatu [ilkhan Gaykhatu], you know, gave the three ambassadors of the great khan Nikolai, Matthew and Mark four golden boxes (paizi, - AND I.) with orders. On two there were gyrfalcons, on one they climbed, and one was simple, it was written there by their letter, so that everywhere three ambassadors would be honored and served as the ruler himself, they would give horses, food and escorts. And so it was done; everywhere in his land they were given horses, food, whatever they needed. To tell the truth, sometimes they were given escorts from place to place up to two hundred people; and it was needed." Unfortunately, there is no known case where golden paizi have been preserved anywhere. But in the State Hermitage there are three fine examples of silver paizi and one of cast iron paizi with an inlaid inscription. One silver paiza - with a Mongolian inscription in the Uighur script. It was found in the village of Grushevka, near Dnepropetrovsk, in 1845. It is written on it: “By the power of the eternal sky. The patronage of great power. If someone does not treat with reverence the decree of Abdullah Khan, he will suffer [material] damage and die. Similar inscriptions are given on two other silver paizas with an inscription in a square alphabet (Pakba-Lama's alphabet), as well as on a cast-iron paiza.

Marco Polo in one place has a very interesting indication of how paizi were distributed among different ranks and social positions. “Sotnikov,” says M. Polo, “who distinguished himself, he [the great Khan Kaidu] made thousands of thousands, presented them with silver dishes, and gave them master's cabinets. The centurions have a silver drawer, and the thousand’s one has a gold or silver gilded one, and the one that is placed over ten thousand has a golden one with a lion’s head, and their weight is this: for centurions and thousand’s men they weigh one hundred and twenty saies, otherwise, that with a lion's head, weighs two hundred and twenty; an order was written on all of them: by the will of the great god, and by his great mercy to our sovereign, may the name of the khan be blessed, and may all the disobedient die and disappear.

Topic: Donts and Azov in the Horde period

1. Formation of the Golden Horde.

2.Mongol-Tatar invasion. Battle on Kalka.

3. The collapse of the Golden Horde and its consequences.

4. Transition of Donetsk lands under the control of the Crimean Khanate.

5. Penetration of the Russians to the lands of the Dontsovo region in the 14th century.

Formation of the Golden Horde.

By the beginning of the XI century. the territory of modern Mongolia and southern Siberia was settled by Kereites, Naimans, Tatars and other tribes who spoke the Mongolian language. The formation of their statehood belongs to this period. The leaders of nomadic tribes were called khans, noble feudal lords - noyons. The social and state structure of the nomadic peoples consisted of private ownership not of land, but of cattle and pastures. The nomadic economy requires constant expansion of the territory, so the Mongol nobility sought to conquer foreign lands.
In the second half of the XII century. The Mongol tribes under his rule were united by the leader Temujin. In 1206, a congress of tribal leaders awarded him the title of Genghis Khan ("Great Khan"). The Mongol lord went down in history as one of the most cruel conquerors of peoples, among whom was the Tatar tribe. Since the Tatars were considered one of the largest Mongol-speaking tribes, the chroniclers of many countries, including Russia, called all the Mongols Tatars. Modern historians use the term Mongolotatars borrowed from medieval Chinese sources.

The formation and formation of the Golden Horde begins in 1224. The state was founded by the Mongol Khan Batu, the grandson of Genghis Khan, and until 1266 was part of the Mongol Empire, after which it became an independent state, retaining only formal subordination to the Empire. Most of the population of the state were Polovtsy, Volga Bulgars, Mordovians, Mari. Having subjugated most of the Mongols, Genghis Khan carried out a number of reforms.

One of the most important is the reform of the army - the so-called decimal system of organization of society and the army. From now on, the entire adult population was divided into: darkness, thousands, hundreds, tens. Ten, as a rule, coincided with the family. The most severe discipline reigned in the army of Genghis Khan. Soon the war machine was up and running at full capacity. Genghis Khan captured Beijing and immediately put to his service the vast scientific and cultural experience of this empire. After China, the Mongols captured Northern Iran, Central Asia, and Azerbaijan. In front of them lay the Polovtsian nomad camps and the southern Russian steppes. The number of Mongolian troops is difficult to determine: 135 thousand, 500 thousand, 600 thousand. According to some modern estimates, 120-140 thousand soldiers moved to Russia. One thing is clear: these were huge forces and no one could put up so many soldiers.

In 1312 the Golden Horde became an Islamic state. In the 15th century, a single state broke up into several khanates, the main among which was the Great Horde. The Great Horde lasted until the middle of the 16th century, but other khanates fell apart much earlier.

The name "Golden Horde" was first used by Russians after the fall of the state, in 1556 in one of the historical works. Prior to this, the state was designated differently in different annals.

Territories of the Golden Horde

The Mongol Empire, from which the Golden Horde came, occupied territories from the Danube to the Sea of ​​Japan and from Novgorod to Southeast Asia. In 1224, Genghis Khan divided the Mongol Empire between his sons, and one of the parts went to Jochi. A few years later, the son of Jochi, Batu, undertook several military campaigns and expanded the territory of his khanate to the West, the Lower Volga region became a new center. From that moment on, the Golden Horde began to constantly capture new territories. As a result, most of modern Russia (except the Far East, Siberia and the Far North), Kazakhstan, Ukraine, part of Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan fell under the rule of the khans of the Golden Horde during its heyday.

In the 13th century, the Mongol Empire, which seized power in Russia (the Mongol-Tatar yoke), was on the verge of collapse and Russia came under the rule of the Golden Horde. However, the Russian principalities were not directly controlled by the khans of the Golden Horde, the princes were only forced to pay tribute (yasyr) to the Golden Horde officials (Baskaks), and soon this function came under the control of the princes themselves. However, the Horde was not going to lose the conquered territories, so its troops regularly made punitive campaigns against Russia in order to keep the princes in subjection. Russia remained subject to the Golden Horde almost until the very collapse of the Horde. The principalities were still headed by Russian princes. Only with the permission of the Khan of the Golden Horde, they had the right to occupy thrones, receiving special letters for this - khan's labels. In addition, Russian soldiers, on the orders of the Khan, were forced to participate in hostilities on the side of the Mongols.

The main form of dependence on the Horde was the collection of tribute (in Russia it was called the Horde exit). To determine its size more precisely, a special population census was conducted. Representatives of the khan, the Baskaks, were sent to control the collection of tribute in Russia. Only the clergy of the church lands were exempted from tribute. The Horde treated all religions of the world with respect and even allowed to open Orthodox churches on the territory of the Horde.

State structure and control system of the Golden Horde

Since the Golden Horde emerged from the Mongol Empire, the descendants of Genghis Khan were at the head of the state. The territory of the Horde was divided into allotments (uluses), each of which had its own khan, however, smaller uluses were subordinate to one main one, where the supreme khan ruled. Ulus division was initially unstable and the borders of uluses were constantly changing.

As a result of the administrative-territorial reform at the beginning of the 14th century, the territories of the main uluses were allocated and fixed, and the positions of ulus managers - ulusbeks were introduced, to whom smaller officials - viziers were subordinate. In addition to the khans and ulusbeks, there was a people's assembly - kurultai, which was convened only in emergency cases.

The Golden Horde was a semi-military state, so administrative and military posts were often combined. The most important positions were held by members of the ruling dynasty who were related to the khan and owned lands; smaller administrative positions could be occupied by feudal lords of the middle class, and the army was recruited from the people.

The capitals of the Horde were:

Sarai-Batu (near Astrakhan). During the reign of Batu;

Sarai-Berke (near Volgograd). From the first half of the 14th century.

In general, the Golden Horde was a multiform and multinational state, therefore, in addition to the capitals, there were several large centers in each of the regions. The Horde also had trading colonies on the Sea of ​​Azov.

Trade and economy of the Golden Horde

The Golden Horde was a trading state, actively engaged in buying and selling, and also had multiple trading colonies. The main goods were: fabrics, linen, weapons, jewelry and other jewelry, furs, leather, honey, timber, grain, fish, caviar, olive oil. Trade routes to Europe, Central Asia, China and India began from the territories that belonged to the Golden Horde.

The Horde also received a significant part of its income from military campaigns (robbery), tribute collection (yoke in Russia) and the conquest of new territories.

2.Mongol-Tatar invasion. Battle on the Kalka.

Genghis Khan managed to create a very combat-ready army, which had a clear organization and iron discipline. In the first decade of the thirteenth century Mongolotatars conquered the peoples of Siberia. Then they invaded China and captured its north (China was finally conquered in 1279). In 1219, the Mongolotatars entered the lands of Central Asia. In a short time they defeated the powerful state of Khorezm. After this conquest, the Mongol troops under the command of Subudai attacked the countries of Transcaucasia. After that, the Mongolotatars invaded the possessions of the Polovtsy, a nomadic people who lived next to the Russian lands. The Polovtsian Khan Kotyan turned to the Russian princes for help. They decided to act together with the Polovtsian khans.

Having received information about the movement of the Mongols, the South Russian princes gathered in Kyiv for advice. In early May 1223, the princes set out from Kyiv. On the seventeenth day of the campaign, the Russian army concentrated on the right bank of the lower reaches of the Dnieper, near Oleshya. Here the Polovtsian detachments joined the Russians. The Russian army consisted of Kyiv, Chernigov, Smolensk, Kursk, Trubchev, Putivl, Vladimir and Galician squads. The total number of Russian troops probably did not exceed 20-30 thousand people

Having discovered the advanced patrols of the Mongols on the left bank of the Dnieper, the Volyn prince Daniil Romanovich crossed the river with the Galicians and attacked the enemy.

The first success inspired the Russian princes, and the allies moved east, to the Polovtsian steppes. Nine days later they were on the Kalka River, where again there was a small clash with the Mongols with a favorable outcome for the Russians.

Expecting to meet large Mongol forces on the opposite bank of the Kalka, the princes gathered for a military council. Mstislav Romanovich of Kyiv objected to crossing the Kalka. He settled down on the right bank of the river on a rocky height and proceeded to strengthen it.

On May 31, 1223, Mstislav Udaloy and most of the Russian troops began crossing to the left bank of the Kalka, where they were met by a detachment of the Mongolian light cavalry. The warriors of Mstislav the Udaly overthrew the Mongols, and the detachment of Daniil Romanovich and the Polovtsian Khan Yarun rushed to pursue the enemy. At this time, the squad of the Chernigov prince Mstislav Svyatoslavich was just crossing the Kalka. Moving away from the main forces, the advance detachment of Russians and Polovtsians met large Mongols forces. Subedey and Jebe had the forces of three tumens, two of which came from Central Asia, and one was recruited from the nomads of the North Caucasus.

The total number of Mongols is estimated at 20-30 thousand people. Sebastatsi writes about 20 thousand Tatars who set out on a campaign from the country of China da Machina (northern and southern China China) in the year 669 of the Armenian chronology (1220).

A stubborn battle began. The Russians fought bravely, but the Polovtsians could not withstand the Mongol attacks and fled, sowing panic among the Russian troops that had not yet entered the battle. With their flight, the Polovtsy crushed the squads of Mstislav the Udaly.

On the shoulders of the Polovtsy, the Mongols broke into the camp of the main Russian forces. Most of the Russian troops were killed or captured.

Mstislav Romanovich Stary watched from the opposite bank of the Kalka for the beating of Russian squads, but did not provide assistance. Soon his army was surrounded by the Mongols.
Mstislav, having fenced himself with a tyn, held the defense for three days after the battle, and then went to an agreement with Jebe and Subedai on laying down arms and free retreat to Russia, as if he had not participated in the battle. However, he, his army and the princes who trusted him were treacherously captured by the Mongols and brutally tortured as "traitors to their own army." For three days the earth breathed from the sighs of the buried alive knights and eminent princes, under the carts on which the Mongols sat and escorted the Russian heroes, according to their custom, to another world.

After the battle, no more than a tenth of the Russian army remained alive.
Of the 18 princes who participated in the battle, only nine returned home.
The Mongols pursued the Russians to the Dnieper, destroying cities and settlements along the way (they reached Novgorod Svyatopolk south of Kyiv). But not daring to enter deep into the Russian forests, the Mongols turned to the steppe. The defeat at the Kalka marked the mortal danger hanging over Russia.

There were several reasons for the defeat. According to the Novgorod chronicle, the first reason is the flight of the Polovtsian troops from the battlefield. But the main reasons for the defeat include the extreme underestimation of the Tatar-Mongolian forces, as well as the lack of a unified command of the troops and, as a result, the inconsistency of the Russian troops (some princes, for example, Vladimir-Suzdal Yuri, did not speak, and Mstislav the Old, although he spoke, but ruined himself and his army).

Prince Mstislav of Galicia, having lost the battle of Kalka, escapes beyond the Dnieper “... ran to the Dnieper and ordered the boats to be burned, and others to be cut and pushed away from the shore, fearing the Tatars would chase them.”

Having achieved their goals in conquering the countries of Eastern Europe, the Genghisides, led by Batu Khan, began organizing the governing bodies of the conquered countries. “Being in an absolute minority,” points out L.N. Gumilev, - the Golden Horde Mongols did not have the opportunity to create a despotic regime. Therefore, the Horde led a confederation of local ethnic groups held within the state by the threat of attack.” In the subordinate countries, the Mongols established their own administration, which controlled the activities of local rulers and the collection of tribute by them. The head of this administration was called “Daruga” and at his disposal was an armed detachment of “Baskaks”.

It is quite natural that the Mongols could not create a single ethnosphere of the so-called "Tatar people", because this people did not exist.

The Kypchak kingdom, or the Golden Horde, as Russian historians call it, although it was a confederation of mainly Turkic ethnic groups, but by this time, i.e. by the time of the Mongol conquest, they were already developing independently with their established ethnospheres.

The Arab traveler Ibn-Batuta, who visited Sarai-Berke in 1333 during the reign of Uzbek Khan, wrote: . Different peoples live in it, such as: the Mongols are the (real) inhabitants of the country and its rulers: some of them are Muslims: Ases (Bulgars - R.B.), who are Muslims, Kipchaks, Circassians (Turks-Circassians - R. B.), Russians and Byzantines who are Christians. Each nation lives separately in its own area: their bazaars are also there.

The main population of the Golden Horde were Kipchaks, Bulgars and Russians. Before considering the state structure of the Golden Horde, you need to find out the following essential point: what was the name of this state during its existence. This question arises because in no modern chronicle of the Golden Horde there is such a name for it. The well-known monograph by B. D. Grekov and A. Yakubovsky also does not give an answer to it. Three aspects of the problem can be distinguished: how the Mongols themselves called their state, how the surrounding neighbors called it, and what name was established for it after the collapse. In all the Mongolian states that arose in the 13th century, ruling dynasties descended from Genghis Khan established themselves. The head of each of them considered the territory allocated to him or conquered not as a state, but as a family possession. The Kypchak steppes were given to the eldest son of Genghis Khan Jochi, who became the founder of the numerous Jochid family that ruled here. In full accordance with this, each of the khans who ascended the Sarai throne called their state simply “ulus”, that is, the people given to inheritance, possession. The label of Khan Tokhtamysh has been preserved, in which he calls his state the Great Ulus. Such a magnificent epithet, emphasizing the power of the state, was also used by other khans, especially in diplomatic correspondence. As for the name of the Jochid state by representatives of European and Asian powers, there was complete discord. In the Arabic chronicles, it was most often called the name of the khan who ruled at a certain moment, with the appropriate ethnic refinement: “Berke, the great king of the Tatars”, “Tokta, the king of the Tatars”. In other cases, a geographical specification was added to the name of the khan: “Uzbek, ruler of the northern countries”, “king of Tokta, owner of Sarai and the Kipchak lands”, “king of Desht-i-Kypchak Tokta”. Sometimes Arab and Persian chroniclers called the Golden Horde the ulus of Jochi, the ulus of Batu, the ulus of Berke, the ulus of Uzbek. Often these names were used not only directly during the reign of one or another khan, but even after their death (“King Uzbek, ruler of the Berke countries”). European travelers P. Carpini and G. Rubruk, who traveled the entire Golden Horde, use the old terms “Country of the Komans” (i.e., Polovtsy), “Komania” to designate it, or give a too generalized name - “the power of the Tatars”. In a letter from Pope Benedict XII, the state of the Jochids is called Northern Tataria. In Russian chronicles, the new southern neighbor was first designated with the help of an ethnic term. The princes go to "Tatars to Batyev" and return "from the Tatars."

And only in the last decade of the XIII century. the new and only name “Horde” appears and is firmly established, which existed until the complete collapse of the Jochid state.

As for the now familiar name “Golden Horde”, it began to be used at a time when there was no trace left of the state founded by Khan Batu. For the first time this phrase appeared in the “Kazan chronicler”, written in the second half of the 16th century, in the form “Golden Horde” and “Great Golden Horde”. Its origin is associated with the khan's headquarters, or rather, with the khan's ceremonial yurt, richly decorated with gold and expensive materials. Here is how a traveler of the 14th century describes it: “Uzbek sits in a tent, called a golden tent, decorated and outlandish. It consists of wooden rods covered with gold leaves. In the middle of it is a wooden throne, overlaid with silver gilded leaves, its legs are made of silver, and the top is studded with precious stones.

There is no doubt that the term “Golden Horde” was used in colloquial speech in Russia already in the 14th century, but it never appears in the annals of that period. Russian chroniclers proceeded from the emotional load of the word “golden”, which was used at that time as a synonym for everything good, bright and joyful, which could not be said about an oppressor state, and even inhabited by “nasty ones”.

That is why the name "Golden Horde" appears only after all the horrors of Mongol domination have been erased by time.

From the first year of its existence, the Golden Horde was not a sovereign state, and the khan who led it was also not considered an independent ruler. This was due to the fact that the possessions of the Jochids, like other Mongol princes, legally constituted a single empire with a central government in the rakorum. The kagan who was here, according to one of the articles of the yasa (law) of Genghis Khan, had the right to a certain part of the income from all the territories conquered by the Mongols. Moreover, he had possessions in these areas that belonged to him personally. The creation of such a system of close interweaving and interpenetration was associated with an attempt to prevent the inevitable disintegration of a huge empire into separate independent parts. Only the central Karakorum government was authorized to decide the most important economic and political issues. The strength of the central government, which, due to the remoteness of its stay, rested, perhaps, only on the authority of Genghis Khan, was still so great that the khans of Batu and Berke continued to adhere to the "path of sincerity, humility, friendship and unanimity" in relation to Karakorum.

But in the 60s of the XIII century. around the Karakorum throne, an internecine struggle broke out between Khubilai and Arig-Buga. The victorious Khubilai transferred the capital from Karakorum to the territory of conquered China in Khanbalik (present-day Beijing). Mengu-Timur, who ruled at that time in the Golden Horde, supported Arig-Buga in the struggle for supreme power, hastened to take advantage of the opportunity that presented itself and did not recognize Khubilai's right to be the supreme ruler of the entire empire, since he left the capital of its founder and abandoned the indigenous yurt to the mercy of fate all Genghisides - Mongolia.

From that moment on, the Golden Horde gained complete independence in resolving all issues of a foreign and domestic nature, and the so carefully guarded unity of the empire founded by Genghis Khan suddenly exploded, and it fell to pieces.

However, by the time of the acquisition of full political sovereignty in the Golden Horde, of course, there already existed its own intrastate structure, moreover, it was sufficiently established and developed. There is nothing surprising in the fact that it basically copied the system introduced in Mongolia by Genghis Khan.

The basis of this system was the army decimal calculation of the entire population of the country. In accordance with the division of the army, the entire state was divided into right and left wings.

In the ulus of Jochi, the right wing constituted the possessions of Khan Batu, stretching from the Danube to the Irtysh. The left wing was under the rule of his elder brother, Khan of the Horde. It occupied lands in the south of modern Kazakhstan along the Syr Darya and to the east of it.

According to the ancient Mongolian tradition, the right wing was called Ak-Orda (White Horde), and the left - Kok-Orda (Blue). It follows from the foregoing that the concepts of "Golden Horde" and "ulus of Jochi" in territorial and state-legal relations are not synonymous.

Ulus Jochi after 1242 was divided into two wings, which made up the independent possessions of two khans - Batu and Horde. However, the khans of Kok-Orda throughout its history maintained a certain (largely purely formal) political dependence in relation to the khans of the Golden Horde (Ak-Orda).

In turn, the territory under the rule of Batu was also divided into right and left wings. In the initial period of the existence of the Golden Horde, the wings corresponded to the largest administrative units of the state.

But by the end of the thirteenth century they turned from administrative into purely military concepts and were preserved only in relation to military formations.

In the administrative structure of the state, the wings were replaced by a more convenient division into four main territorial units, headed by ulusbeks. These four uluses were the largest administrative divisions. They were called Sarai, Desht-i-Kypchak, Crimea, Khorezm.

In the most general form, the administrative system of the Golden Horde was described as early as the 13th century. G. Rubruk, who traveled the entire state from west to east. According to his observation, the Mongols “divided among themselves Scythia, which stretches from the Danube until sunrise; and every ruler knows, according to whether he has more or less people under his authority, the boundaries of his pastures, and also where he must pasture his flocks in winter, summer, spring and autumn. It is in winter that they descend south to warmer countries, in summer they rise north to colder ones.

This sketch of the traveler contains the basis of the administrative-territorial division of the Golden Horde, defined by the concept of “ulus system”.

Its essence was the right of nomadic feudal lords to receive from the khan himself or another large steppe aristocrat a certain inheritance - an ulus. For this, the owner of the ulus was obliged to put up, if necessary, a certain number of fully armed soldiers (depending on the size of the ulus), as well as to perform various tax and economic duties.

This system was an exact copy of the structure of the Mongolian army: the entire state - the Great Ulus - was divided according to the rank of the owner (temnik, thousand's manager, centurion, ten's manager) - into destinies of certain size, and from each of them, in case of war, ten, one hundred , a thousand or ten thousand armed warriors. At the same time, uluses were not hereditary possessions that could be passed from father to son. Moreover, the khan could take away the ulus completely or replace it with another.

In the initial period of the existence of the Golden Horde, there were apparently no more than 15 large uluses, and rivers most often served as the borders between them. This shows a certain primitiveness of the administrative division of the state, rooted in the old nomadic traditions.

Further development of statehood, the emergence of cities, the introduction of Islam, a closer acquaintance with the Arab and Persian traditions of government led to various complications in the possessions of the Jochids with the simultaneous death of Central Asian customs dating back to the time of Genghis Khan.

Instead of dividing the territory into two wings, as already mentioned, four uluses appeared, headed by ulusbeks. One of the uluses was the personal domain of the khan. He occupied the steppes of the left bank of the Volga from its mouth to the Kama.

Each of these four uluses was divided into a certain number of "regions", which were the uluses of the feudal lords of the next rank.

In total, in the Golden Horde, the number of such “regions” in the XIV century. was about 70 in number of temniks. Simultaneously with the establishment of administrative-territorial division, the formation of the state administration apparatus took place.

The period of the reign of the khans Batu and Berke can rightfully be called organizational in the history of the Golden Horde. Batu laid down the basic foundations of the state, which were preserved under all subsequent khans.

The feudal estates of the aristocracy were formalized, an apparatus of officials appeared, a capital was founded, a yam connection was organized between all uluses, taxes and duties were approved and distributed.

The reign of Batu and Berke is characterized by the absolute power of the khans, whose authority was associated in the minds of their subjects with the amount of wealth they stole. Sources unanimously note that the khans at that time had "amazing power over everyone." Khan, who stood at the top of the pyramid of power, for most of the year was in a roaming headquarters surrounded by his wives and a huge number of courtiers. He spent only a short winter period in the capital. The moving khan's horde-headquarters, as it were, emphasized that the main power of the state continued to be based on a nomadic beginning. Naturally, it was quite difficult for the Khan, who was in constant motion, to manage the affairs of the state himself. This is also emphasized by the sources, which directly report that the supreme ruler “pays attention only to the essence of the matter, without entering into the details of the circumstances, and is content with what is reported to him, but does not seek details regarding the collection and spending.”

The entire Horde army was commanded by a warlord - beklyaribek. Sometimes his influence exceeded the power of the khan, which often led to bloody civil strife. From time to time, the power of the Beklyaribeks, for example, Nogai, Mamai, Edigei, increased so much that they themselves appointed khans.

With the strengthening of statehood in the Golden Horde, the administrative apparatus grew, its rulers took as a model the administration of the state of Khorezmshahs conquered by the Mongols. According to this model, a vizier appeared under the khan, a kind of head of government, who was responsible for all spheres of the non-military life of the state. The vizier and the divan (state council) headed by him controlled finances, taxes, and trade.

The khan himself was in charge of foreign policy with his closest advisers, as well as the beklyaribek.

The Golden Horde has long been the most powerful state in Central Asia and Eastern Europe. In addition to the expanses of Kazakhstan, among its possessions were Russia, Khorezm, Crimea, the North Caucasus, Western Siberia.

European kings and pans of Rome, Byzantine emperors and Turkish sultans of the Ottoman Empire tried to maintain friendly relations with the Golden Horde court. Evidence of this are letters of letters of the Golden Horde khans Tokhtamysh to the Polish king Jogaila. Ulug-Muhammad to the Turkish Sultan Murad II, preserved to our time.

Interestingly, the main external enemies of the Golden Eagle were not neighboring alien powers, but the same former uluses of the once united Mongol Empire - the state of the Khulaguid Mongols in Iran and the state of the Chagataid Mongols in Central Asia.

In the wars with the Khulaguid ulus, the Golden Horde, which had already undergone Turkization, whose main population was the Cumans, enlisted the support of their fellow tribesmen - the Mamluk sultans of Egypt, who came from the Kypchaks. For almost a century and a half, the Turkic rulers of Egypt, the Mamluk sultans, were faithful allies of the heirs of Batu.

Periodically, the Golden Horde "darkness" invaded Poland, Lithuania, the Balkans. The purpose of these campaigns was not to conquer, but to rob neighbors.

A vast territory, a large population, a strong central government, a large combat-ready army, skillful use of trade caravan routes, extortion of tribute from conquered peoples, all this created the power of the Horde empire. It grew stronger and stronger in the first half of the XIV century. survived the peak of its power.

In conclusion, it can be added that in the Golden Horde, kurultai, so characteristic of Mongolia, were not practiced at all, at which all representatives of the Genghisides family resolved the most important state issues.

The changes that have taken place in the administrative and state structure have brought to naught the role of this traditional nomadic institution. Having a government in the stationary capital, consisting of representatives of the ruling family and the largest feudal lords, the khan no longer needed kurultais. He could discuss the most important state issues, gathering, as needed, the highest military and civilian officials of the state. As for such an important prerogative as the approval of the heir, now it has become the exclusive competence of the khan. However, palace conspiracies and all-powerful temporary workers played a much larger role in the shifts on the throne.