Vol 12, No 2 (2024)

Following their unification under Genghis Khan in 1206, the Mongols began an era in which they would play a very influential role in the course of history. Despite the existence of a negative perception of the Great Mongol Empire in the sources of the era, its impact on the political, economic, and cultural life of Eurasia has continued for generations. Although Mongolians adopted a writing system as late as 1204, the transfer of their oral tradition into writing lasted only a short time so that their historical heritage could be passed on to the next generations. The tradition of Mongolian historiography, which began with the creation of the stele known as the Genghis Stele, developed differently compared to other contemporary Asian states and it has kept this distinction until today. In addition to providing valuable information about the history of the Mongols and other nations they interacted with, historical sources written in Mongolian such as ‘Secret History of the Mongols’ and ‘Altan Tovch’ are also important milestones in Mongol historiography. Especially with works like ‘Altan Tovch’ and ‘Erdeniin Tovch’ being written during the period when Buddhism became widespread among the Mongols, the influence of Buddhist historiography on the Mongols became apparent. As a result, it is evident that grounds of legitimacy were strengthened in the actions of Mongol khans, especially Chinggis Khaan, and motifs indicating that divine power that was with these khans were added.

The purpose of the study is to analyze of geographical terms in early variants of the Tale of the Battle on the Kalka River (mainly the Novgorod First and Ipatiev Chronicle with the Laurentian Codex partially), and to identify of mentioned points and build a route of Russian-Polovtsian troops to the battlefield and in the opposite direction.

Research materials include the Russian chronicles with the Tale of the Battle on the Kalka River.

Methods of the study: Early and late chronicles are compared with each other for detection of the late textual layers. Localization of individual geographical items are checked by archaeological data. Key opinions of historians are considered in every discussed theme.

Research results and scientific novelty: As a result, a logical picture of the allied troops route emerges: they joined forces near Zarub town and Varyazhskiy island, then followed down the Dnieper till rapids, crossed the river, and walked along the divide to the Karatysh and Kalchik rivers before they lost the battle and retreated back to Dnieper river.

With added chronology data to these observations, the possibility of creating of events' scientific reconstruction will possibly emerge.

The article deals with the main military operations of the Mongolian troops against the Southern Song Empire, which occurred in 1267–1273 during the reign of Khaan and Emperor, Kublai. An analysis of the information from the sources regarding the participation of Alanian warriors in this campaign formed the novelty of the research. The relevance of the study is determined by the lack of the researches that consider the participation of the Alans in specific military operations that formed the Mongol campaigns to conquer the Southern Song Empire. The objective of the research was to present the circumstances of the participation of the Alans in the main operations of the campaign. The relevant information contained in the various sections of the official chronicles of the Chinese imperial Song and Yuan dynasties, as well as the chronicles of Rashid al-din and Marco Polo’s narrative were the materials of the research. As a result, it was ascertained that the “History of Yuan” contains information about five Alanian commanders that took part in the campaign, the main military operations among which were the siege and capture of the strategically important city-fortress Xiangyang, as well as raids deep into the territory of Song. Besides, the presentation of the general course of the campaign events made it possible to eliminate the discrepancies between the information from the “History of Yüan” relating to the description of the participation of the Alanian commanders in the military operations of the campaign, and the translations of this information presented in the scientific tradition. The study allows one to assert that the Alanian commanders and their guards units participated in the most important military operations that made up the Mongolian Southern Song campaign of 1267–1273.

Purpose of the research: In the article, the author examines the chronicle article of 6869 (1361) which tells about the struggle for Sarai among khans after the demise of Khidr-khan. The text of the chronicle report of 6869 is presented in different ways in Old-Russian chronicles. The article aims at revealing textual reliability of one of the most confusing places in the Old-Russian chronicling for the 14^th–15^th centuries – the description and the course of events for 1361 which have become described as a new phase of the events in the Ulus of Jochi, known as the “Great Troubles”.

Research materials: The primary sources for this study were Old-Russian chronicles which focus closely on the described events, namely – the Rogozhsky and Simeonovskay Chronicles as well as the chronicles of the Novgorod-Sofia group. Important information was borrowed when referring to N.M. Karamzin’s comments on the «History of the Russian State», according to which, the lost Troitsk Chronicle is now being restored. Within the study, a number of other late chronicles are also involved in order to compare them textually with earlier ones.

Results of the research and scientific novelty: Based on the results of the scrutinization of chronicles of the 15^th–16^th centuries, it can be stated that there are three primary versions of the related material, two of them being placed one after the other in the Rogozhsky Сhronicler. The author concludes that the first version of the chronicle tale belongs to the Troitsk Chronicle or an even earlier chronicle than “the Codex of 1408”. The second version of the text, which is placed only in the Rogozhsky Chronicler, belongs to a currently unknown source, while the third version goes back to the Novgorod-Sophia Codex, which in turn descends back to “the Codex of 1408”. Based on the chronicle evidence of the 15^th – 16^th centuries, the author concludes that Khidr-khan was killed by his son Timur-Khoja, and not by his brother Murad.

The purpose of the article is to study the finds of coins of the Golden Horde from the environs of Endirey in the context of the medieval history of the settlement of Endirey.

Research materials: Finds of coins from the vicinity of the village.

Novelty of the research: Numismatic finds from the Endirey are published for the first time. The archaeology of Dagestan of the Golden Horde period remains largely a "white spot" to this day. Coin finds of the 14th–15th centuries made on the territory of Dagestan remain quite rare. In recent years, finds of a large number of Juchid coins from the end of the 14th to the first half of the 15th century became known for the first time at one of the archaeological sites in the vicinity of the village of Endirey, Dagestan. A hoard of silver coins of the Golden Horde of the early 15th century was also discovered. The author managed to get acquainted with some of the individual finds of coins. A number of medieval archaeological sites are known in the vicinity of the village. Archaeologically, the surroundings of the village have been poorly investigated and the monuments themselves have not been dated accurately enough. Judging by the coin finds that have become known, the Golden Horde city, located in the vicinity of Endirey, played an important economic role in the Caucasus in the 14th–15th centuries. Apparently, trade routes that led from mountainous area of Chechnya to the Caspian Sea and from the Volga Delta to Chechnya intersected here. It is possible that silver Golden Horde coins were minted in the city.

Research Objectives: Studying the contributions of the Crimean and Nogai Tatars to the military efforts of the Ottoman state from the moment that the Crimean Khanate fell under the Turkish protectorate until the mid-19th century.

Research Materials: The article is based on an analysis of sources and rich historiographical material, the works of domestic and foreign scientists on the topic of research.

Results and Novelty of the Research: An analysis of sources and historiography shows that over the centuries, thousands of Tatars (Crimean, Nogai, Kazan) fought in the ranks of the Ottoman army. The participation of the troops of the Crimean Khanate significantly strengthened the capabilities of the Sultan’s armies. After the joining of Crimea in 1783, thousands of Crimean and Nogai Tatars left the territory of the Khanate and continued to fight against Russia. In 1787, the Ottoman authorities proclaimed the revival of the Crimean Khanate. The armed forces of the Girays fought against the Russians and Austrians in the Russo-Turkish War of 1787–1791.

After the war of 1787–1791, despite the liquidation of the Khanate, the Ottoman government continued to actively involve Tatars in military service. The Tatar cavalry fought on the side of the Sultan in the Russian-Turkish wars of 1806–1812 and 1828–1829. Military personnel of the Dobruja Tatar Regiment took part in a number of key events in the Turkish military history of the 19th century.

During the Crimean War (1853–1856), the combined forces of British, French and Turkish troops landed in Crimea. The allies, at the same time, used the help from the Crimean Tatar population. Later, Crimean Tatars also participated in Turkish wars, such as the Russo-Turkish War of 1877–1878 and World War I (1914–1918).

The article is dedicated to the issues of political and ethnic history of Shamkhalate, revising the range of sources, shedding light on the history of this political entity, and the formation of its social institutions under the influence of the Golden Horde and the Crimean Khanate.

Research Materials: New, previously unpublished Arabic-script sources from private and state manuscript collections in Daghestan.

Results and Novelty of the Research: The authors delve into the socio-political evolution of Shamkhalate within the broader context of interconnected societies. This interdisciplinary framework yields novel perspectives on Shamkhalate’s polytonymous nature, its structural underpinnings, historical genesis, and its intricate relations with entities such as the Golden Horde and its successors. Furthermore, the study sheds light on the complex ethnic dynamics inherent within Shamkhalate. Ultimately, the findings challenge the notion of Shamkhalate’s development in isolation, highlighting its profound entanglement with the hegemonic influences of Genghisid states such as the Golden Horde, Hulaguid power, and the Crimean Khanate. Moreover, the study underscores the continuity of administrative traditions within Shamkhalate, echoing practices established following the collapse of the Golden Horde in the mid-15th century.

Research objectives: The consideration of information about the Kazakh khans of the 15th–17th centuries, contained in the scientific heritage of Shihabutdin Marjani.

Research materials: Sh. Marjani’s works, medieval written historical sources, and historical scientific literature on the history of the Kazakh Khanate of the 15th–17th centuries.

Results and scientific novelty: As a result of studying the works of Shigabutdin Marjani, it was found that in his works, “Mustafad al-akhbar” and "Wafiyat al-aslaf wa tahiyat al-akhlaf," there is little material about the Kazakh khans of the 15th–17th centuries, starting with the founders of this Juchid state, Kerey and Zhanibek to Tauke-khan, son of Zhangir-khan, the last ruler of the unified Kazakh Khanate. It is established that the main sources for his work were the studies of such historians of the previous period as A.I. Levshin, V.V. Velyaminov-Zernov, as well as famous historical works by Muslim authors of the Middle Ages, written in Persian and Turkic languages. Among these historical works, it is possible to mention “Tarikh-i Rashidi” by Mirza Muhammad Haidar Duglat, “Jami at-tavarih” by Kadir-Ali-bek (Kadirgali-bek Kosumuly), and “Shajara-yi Turk” by Abu-l-Gazi-khan.

Attention is drawn to the fact that in his works, Marjani uses terminology that differs from the terminology adopted in Russian literature of that time. This is explained by the fact that he was a representative of the Muslim world and wrote his works for the Muslims. Therefore, unlike other Russian historians of the 19th century, he writes “Kyrgyz”, and uses the authentic name of the nation “Kazakh” that was accepted among Muslim nations.

Marjani uses the term “Kazakhstan” to denote the possessions of Kazakh khans, something which is found in some works of Muslim authors of the Middle Ages. He also uses Turkic names (Ulu[g] yuz, Orta yuz, Kichi yuz) to denote the Kazakh yuzs.

In general, the scientific works of Sh. Marjani are of interest to the historical science of Kazakhstan as they contain information on the history of the Kazakh Khanate and its rulers.

The scientific novelty of the study is that in this work, for the first time, the information about the Kazakh khans of the 15th–17th centuries, which are contained in the scientific works of Marjani, are highlighted and some errors in their translations into Russian are revealed.

On April 25–26, 2024, in the spiritual capital of the Turkic world, the city of Turkestan, an international conference “Golden Horde and its heritage” was held, dedicated to the 800th anniversary of the formation of the Ulus of Jochi and the chairmanship of the Republic of Kazakhstan in the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO). The event was organized by the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Republic of Kazakhstan, the SCO Secretariat, the Scientific Institute for the Study of Ulus Jochi, the Akimat of the Turkestan Region and the International Kazakh-Turkish University, H.A.Yasawi. The conference was attended by more than 40 leading scientists, experts and researchers from Kazakhstan, Russia and Tatarstan, Uzbekistan and Karakalpakstan, Egypt, Qatar, Kuwait, and Turkey.

The main goal of the conference was to create a platform where representatives of the academic and modern scientific and educational communities could discuss the role and significance of the Golden Horde in world history, exchange views on new conceptual approaches and trends in the study of this very relevant and at the same time controversial and insufficiently studied topics at national and regional levels, and to develop strategies for future collaborative research.