Crimean Khanate
Encyclopedia
Sovereign state
A sovereign state, or simply, state, is a state with a defined territory on which it exercises internal and external sovereignty, a permanent population, a government, and the capacity to enter into relations with other sovereign states. It is also normally understood to be a state which is neither...
ruled by Crimean Tatars
Crimean Tatars
Crimean Tatars or Crimeans are a Turkic ethnic group that originally resided in Crimea. They speak the Crimean Tatar language...
from 1441 to 1783. Its native name was (Ottoman Turkish
Ottoman Turkish language
The Ottoman Turkish language or Ottoman language is the variety of the Turkish language that was used for administrative and literary purposes in the Ottoman Empire. It borrows extensively from Arabic and Persian, and was written in a variant of the Perso-Arabic script...
and Arabic :خانية القرم). Its khans were the patrilineal descendants of Toqa Temür, the thirteenth son of Jochi
Jochi
Jochi was the eldest of the Mongol chieftain Genghis Khan's four sons by his principal wife Börte. An accomplished military leader, he participated in his father's conquest of Central Asia, along with his brothers and uncles.-Early life:...
and grandson of Genghis Khan
Genghis Khan
Genghis Khan , born Temujin and occasionally known by his temple name Taizu , was the founder and Great Khan of the Mongol Empire, which became the largest contiguous empire in history after his death....
. This khanate was by far the longest-lived of the Turkic
Turkic peoples
The Turkic peoples are peoples residing in northern, central and western Asia, southern Siberia and northwestern China and parts of eastern Europe. They speak languages belonging to the Turkic language family. They share, to varying degrees, certain cultural traits and historical backgrounds...
khanate
Khanate
Khanate, or Chanat, is a Turco-Mongol-originated word used to describe a political entity ruled by a Khan. In modern Turkish, the word used is kağanlık, and in modern Azeri of the republic of Azerbaijan, xanlıq. In Mongolian the word khanlig is used, as in "Khereidiin Khanlig" meaning the Khanate...
s that succeeded the empire of the Golden Horde
Golden Horde
The Golden Horde was a Mongol and later Turkicized khanate that formed the north-western sector of the Mongol Empire...
.
Establishment
The Crimean Khanate was founded when certain clans of the Golden HordeGolden Horde
The Golden Horde was a Mongol and later Turkicized khanate that formed the north-western sector of the Mongol Empire...
Empire ceased their nomadic life in the Desht-i Kipchak (Kypchak Steppe
Steppe
In physical geography, steppe is an ecoregion, in the montane grasslands and shrublands and temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands biomes, characterized by grassland plains without trees apart from those near rivers and lakes...
s of today's Ukraine
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
and South Russia) and decided to make Crimea
Crimea
Crimea , or the Autonomous Republic of Crimea , is a sub-national unit, an autonomous republic, of Ukraine. It is located on the northern coast of the Black Sea, occupying a peninsula of the same name...
their yurt (homeland), which at that time had been an ulus (district) of the Golden Horde since 1239, with its capital at Qirim (Staryi Krym
Staryi Krym
Staryi Krym is a small historical town in the Eastern Crimea, approximately 25 km west of Theodosia. The population of Staryi Krym in 2001 was 9,960 people.-History:...
). The local separatists invited a Genghisid contender for the Golden Horde throne, Hacı Giray
Haci I Giray
Hacı I Giray Angel was the founder and the first ruler of the Crimean Khanate. He is sometimes referred to as Hacı Devlet Giray or Devlet Hacı Giray...
, to be their khan
Khan (title)
Khan is an originally Altaic and subsequently Central Asian title for a sovereign or military ruler, widely used by medieval nomadic Turko-Mongol tribes living to the north of China. 'Khan' is also seen as a title in the Xianbei confederation for their chief between 283 and 289...
. Hacı Giray accepted their invitation and traveled from exile in Lithuania
Grand Duchy of Lithuania
The Grand Duchy of Lithuania was a European state from the 12th /13th century until 1569 and then as a constituent part of Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth until 1791 when Constitution of May 3, 1791 abolished it in favor of unitary state. It was founded by the Lithuanians, one of the polytheistic...
. He warred for independence against the Horde from 1420 to 1441, in the end achieving success. But Hacı Giray then had to fight off internal rivals before he could ascend the throne of the khanate in 1449, after which he moved its capital to Qırq Yer (today part of Bahçeseray
Bakhchisaray
Bakhchisaray is a town in Central Crimea, centre of the Bakhchisaray raion , best known as the former capital of the Crimean Khanate...
). The khanate included the Crimean peninsula (except the south and southwest coast and ports, controlled by the Republic of Genoa
Republic of Genoa
The Most Serene Republic of Genoa |Ligurian]]: Repúbrica de Zêna) was an independent state from 1005 to 1797 in Liguria on the northwestern Italian coast, as well as Corsica from 1347 to 1768, and numerous other territories throughout the Mediterranean....
) and the steppes of modern southern Ukraine and Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
.
Becoming an Ottoman protectorate
Hacı I Giray's sons contended against each other to succeed him. The OttomansOttoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
intervened and installed one of them, Meñli I Giray
Meñli I Giray
Meñli I Giray , also spelled as Mengli I Giray, was a khan of the Crimean Khanate and the sixth son of the khanate founder Haci I Giray....
, on the throne. In 1475 the Ottoman
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
forces, under the command of Gedik Ahmet Pasha, conquered the Greek
Greeks
The Greeks, also known as the Hellenes , are a nation and ethnic group native to Greece, Cyprus and neighboring regions. They also form a significant diaspora, with Greek communities established around the world....
Principality of Theodoro
Principality of Theodoro
The Principality of Theodoro , also known as Gothia , was a small principality in the south-west of Crimea from the 13th through 15th centuries. Its capital was Doros, which was also sometimes called Theodoro and is now known as Mangup...
and the Genoese colonies at Cembalo
Balaklava
Balaklava is a former city on the Crimean peninsula and part of the city of Sevastopol which carries a special administrative status in Ukraine. It was a city in its own right until 1957 when it was formally incorporated into the municipal borders of Sevastopol by the Soviet government...
, Soldaia
Sudak
Sudak or Sudaq is a small historic town located in Crimea, Ukraine situated to the west of Feodosiya and to the east of Simferopol, the capital of Crimea...
, and Caffa ("Kefe" in Turkic languages). Thenceforth the khanate was a protectorate
Protectorate
In history, the term protectorate has two different meanings. In its earliest inception, which has been adopted by modern international law, it is an autonomous territory that is protected diplomatically or militarily against third parties by a stronger state or entity...
of the Ottoman Empire. The Ottoman sultan enjoyed veto power over the selection of new Crimean khans. The Empire annexed the Crimean coast, but recognized the legitimacy of the khanate rule of the steppes, as the khans were descendants of Genghis Khan
Genghis Khan
Genghis Khan , born Temujin and occasionally known by his temple name Taizu , was the founder and Great Khan of the Mongol Empire, which became the largest contiguous empire in history after his death....
.
Ottoman-Crimean relationship
In 1475, the Ottomans imprisoned Meñli I GirayMeñli I Giray
Meñli I Giray , also spelled as Mengli I Giray, was a khan of the Crimean Khanate and the sixth son of the khanate founder Haci I Giray....
for three years for having resisted the invasion. After returning from captivity in Constantinople
Constantinople
Constantinople was the capital of the Roman, Eastern Roman, Byzantine, Latin, and Ottoman Empires. Throughout most of the Middle Ages, Constantinople was Europe's largest and wealthiest city.-Names:...
, he accepted the suzerainty
Suzerainty
Suzerainty occurs where a region or people is a tributary to a more powerful entity which controls its foreign affairs while allowing the tributary vassal state some limited domestic autonomy. The dominant entity in the suzerainty relationship, or the more powerful entity itself, is called a...
of the Ottoman Empire
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
. Nevertheless, Ottoman sultans treated the khans more as allies than subjects. The khans continued to have a foreign policy independent from the Ottomans in the steppes of Little Tartary
Little Tartary
Little Tartary is a historical designation for areas north of the Black Sea under the suzerainty of the Crimean Khanate and inhabited by nomadic Tatars of the Lesser Nogai Horde from the 16th to the 18th centuries. Little Tartary was designated such vis-à-vis Tartary, areas of central and...
. The khans continued to mint coins and use their names in Friday prayers, two important signs of sovereignty. They did not pay tribute to the Ottoman Empire; instead the Ottomans paid them in return for their services of providing skilled outriders and frontline cavalry in their campaigns. Later on, Crimea lost power in this relationship as the result of a crisis which took place in 1523, during the reign of Meñli's successor, Mehmed I Giray
Mehmed I Giray
Mehmed I Giray known as Great — a khan of the Crimean Khanate in 1515 –1523.Son of Meñli I Giray, inherited power after his father's death. In 1520 signed a temporary alliance with king of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania, Zygmunt I Stary, against Muscovy. In 1521 he took Kazan, where he...
. He died that year and beginning with his successor, from 1524 on, Crimean khans were appointed by the Sultan.
The alliance of the Crimean Tatars and the Ottomans was comparable to Polish-Lithuanian
Polish-Lithuanian Union
The term Polish–Lithuanian Union sometimes called as United Kingdom of Poland and Lithuania refers to a series of acts and alliances between the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania that lasted for prolonged periods of time and led to the creation of the Polish–Lithuanian...
in its importance and durability. The Crimean cavalry became indispensable to the Ottomans' campaigns in Europe (Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
, Hungary
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
) and Asia (Persia).
Victory over the Golden Horde
In 1502 Meñli I GirayMeñli I Giray
Meñli I Giray , also spelled as Mengli I Giray, was a khan of the Crimean Khanate and the sixth son of the khanate founder Haci I Giray....
defeated the last khan of the Great Horde
Great Horde
- Dissolution of the Golden Horde :The peripheral regions of the Golden Horde broke off as follows: 1438: Kazan Khanate, 1441: Crimean Khanate, 1466: Astrakhan Khanate The remnant, which became known as the Great Horde, was left with the steppe between the Dnieper and Yaik, the capital Sarai and a...
, which put an end to the Horde's claims on Crimea. The Khanate initially chose as its capital Salaçıq near the Qırq Yer fortress. Later, the capital was moved a short distance to Bahçeseray, founded in 1532 by Sahib I Giray
Sahib I Giray
Sahib I Giray — a khan of the Crimean Khanate in 1532 –1551.Son of Meñli I Giray. In 1521 his brother, then Khan of Crimea, Mehmed I Giray, took Kazan, and gave it to Sahib. Together their army defeated Vasili III of Russia near Moscow....
. Both Salaçıq and the Qırq Yer fortress today are part of the expanded city of Bahçeseray.
Golden Age
The Crimean Khanate was undoubtedly one of the strongest powers in Eastern Europe until the 18th century. As Muslims, the Crimeans played an invaluable role in expanding the borders of Islam. The Crimeans engaged in raids into the Danubian principalitiesDanubian Principalities
Danubian Principalities was a conventional name given to the Principalities of Moldavia and Wallachia, which emerged in the early 14th century. The term was coined in the Habsburg Monarchy after the Treaty of Küçük Kaynarca in order to designate an area on the lower Danube with a common...
, Poland-Lithuania
Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth
The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth was a dualistic state of Poland and Lithuania ruled by a common monarch. It was the largest and one of the most populous countries of 16th- and 17th‑century Europe with some and a multi-ethnic population of 11 million at its peak in the early 17th century...
, and Muscovy. For each captive, the khan received a fixed share (savğa) of 10% or 20%. The campaigns by Crimean forces categorize into "sefers", officially declared military operations led by the khans themselves, and çapuls, raids undertaken by groups of noblemen, sometimes illegally because they contravened treaties concluded by the khans with neighbouring rulers). For a long time, until the early 18th century, the khanate maintained a massive slave trade with the Ottoman Empire and the Middle East. Caffa was one of the best known and significant trading ports and slave markets.
Alliances
The Crimean Khanate also made alliances with the Polish-Lithuanian CommonwealthPolish-Lithuanian Commonwealth
The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth was a dualistic state of Poland and Lithuania ruled by a common monarch. It was the largest and one of the most populous countries of 16th- and 17th‑century Europe with some and a multi-ethnic population of 11 million at its peak in the early 17th century...
, the Zaporizhian Sich
Zaporizhian Sich
Zaporizhian Sich was socio-political, grassroot, military organization of Ukrainian cossacks placed beyond Dnieper rapids. Sich existed between the 16th and 18th centuries in the region around the today's Kakhovka Reservoir...
and Muscovy. The assistance of İslâm III Giray
Islâm III Giray
İslâm III Giray — a khan of the Crimean Khanate in 1644–1654.In 1648 allied with Zaporozhian Cossack leader Bohdan Khmelnytsky in his revolt against the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. In 1654 after the Treaty of Pereyaslav, he switched sides and allied with Poland against the Tsardom of...
during the Khmelnytsky Uprising
Khmelnytsky Uprising
The Khmelnytsky Uprising, was a Cossack rebellion in the Ukraine between the years 1648–1657 which turned into a Ukrainian war of liberation from Poland...
1648 contributed greatly to the initial momentum of military successes for Cossacks. While relationship with the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth was also exclusive as the home dynasty of Girays used seek sanctuary in Lithuania in 15th century before establishing on Crimean peninsula.
The northern hinterlands of the khanate were coveted by Muscovy for their agricultural productivity, having longer growing seasons than Muscovy itself. Within Muscovy, the permanent warfare at the borderland and the burgeoning in size of the armies of the nobles (boyar
Boyar
A boyar, or bolyar , was a member of the highest rank of the feudal Moscovian, Kievan Rus'ian, Bulgarian, Wallachian, and Moldavian aristocracies, second only to the ruling princes , from the 10th century through the 17th century....
s) fomented intense exploitation of the peasantry.
Struggle over Astrakhan
In the middle of the 16th century the Crimean khanate asserted a claim to be the successor to the Golden Horde, which entailed asserting the right of rule over the Tatar khanates of the Caspian-Volga region, particularly the Kazan Khanate and Astrakhan KhanateAstrakhan Khanate
The Khanate of Astrakhan was a Tatar feudal state that appeared after the collapse of the Golden Horde. The Khanate existed in the 15th and 16th centuries in the area adjacent to the mouth of the Volga river, where the contemporary city of Astrakhan/Hajji Tarkhan is now located...
. This claim pitted it against Muscovy for dominance in the region. A successful campaign of Devlet I Giray
Devlet I Giray
Devlet I Giray was a khan of the Crimean Khanate during whose long reign the khanate rose to the pinnacle of its power....
upon the Russian capital, Moscow in 1571 culminated in the burning of Moscow, and he thereby gained the sobriquet, Taht-Algan (seizer of the throne). Just the next year, however, the Crimean Khanate eventually lost access to the Volga once and for all due to its catastrophic defeat in the Battle at Molodi.
Decline
The decline of the Crimean Khanate was a consequence of the weakening of the Ottoman empire and a change in the balance of power in Eastern Europe that favoured its neighbours. Crimean Tatars often returned from Ottoman campaigns without booty and Ottoman subsidies were less likely for unsuccessful campaigns. Tatar cavalry without sufficient guns suffered great loss against European and Russian armies with modern equipment . By the late 17th century, Muscovite RussiaTsardom of Russia
The Tsardom of Russia was the name of the centralized Russian state from Ivan IV's assumption of the title of Tsar in 1547 till Peter the Great's foundation of the Russian Empire in 1721.From 1550 to 1700, Russia grew 35,000 km2 a year...
became too strong a power for Crimea to pillage and the Treaty of Karlowitz
Treaty of Karlowitz
The Treaty of Karlowitz was signed on 26 January 1699 in Sremski Karlovci , concluding the Austro-Ottoman War of 1683–1697 in which the Ottoman side had been defeated at the Battle of Zenta...
(1699) outlawed further raids. The era of great slave raids in Russia and Ukraine was over, although brigands and Nogay raiders continued their attacks and Russian hatred of the Khanate did not decrease. These polito-economic losses led in turn to erosion of the khan's support among noble clans, and internal conflicts for power ensued. The Nogays, who provided a significant portion of the Crimean military forces, also took back their support from the khans towards the end of the empire.
Ayuka Khan
Ayuka Khan was a Kalmyk leader under whose rule the Kalmyk Khanate reached its zenith in terms of economic, military, and politic power. On behalf of Russia, Ayuka Khan protected the southern borders of Russia, engaging in many military expeditions against the Muslim tribes of Central Asia, the...
conducted many military expeditions against the Crimean Khanate and Nogays. By becoming part of Russia and taking an oath to protect its southeastern borders, the Kalmyk Khanate took an active part in all Russian war campaigns in 17th and 18th centuries, providing up to 40,000 fully equipped horsemen.
The united Russian and Ukrainian forces attacked the Khanate during the Chigirin Campaigns and the Crimean Campaigns
Crimean campaigns
Crimean campaigns of 1687 and 1689 were two military campaigns of the Russian army against the Crimean Khanate. They were a part of the Russo-Turkish War and Russo-Crimean Wars. These were the first Russian forces to come close to Crimea since 1569...
. It was during the Russo-Turkish War, 1735-1739
Russo-Turkish War, 1735-1739
Russo–Turkish War of 1735–1739, a war between Russia and the Ottoman Empire, caused by intensified contradictions over the results of the War of the Polish Succession of 1733–1735 and endless raids by the Crimean Tatars...
that the Russians, under the command of Field-Marshal Münnich
Burkhard Christoph von Munnich
Count Burkhard Christoph von Münnich was a Danish-born German soldier-engineer who became a field marshal and political figure in the Russian Empire. He was the major Russian Army reformer and founder of several elite military formations during the reign of Anna of Russia. As a statesman, he is...
, finally managed to penetrate the Crimean Peninsula itself, burning and destroying everything on their way.
More warfare ensued during the reign of Catherine II
Catherine II of Russia
Catherine II, also known as Catherine the Great , Empress of Russia, was born in Stettin, Pomerania, Prussia on as Sophie Friederike Auguste von Anhalt-Zerbst-Dornburg...
. The Russo-Turkish War, 1768-1774
Russo-Turkish War, 1768-1774
The Russo-Turkish War of 1768–1774 was a decisive conflict that brought Southern Ukraine, Northern Caucasus, and Crimea within the orbit of the Russian Empire.-Background:...
resulted in the Treaty of Kuchuk-Kainarji, which made the Crimean Khanate independent from the Ottoman Empire and aligned it with the Russian Empire
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...
.
The rule of the last Crimean khan Şahin Giray
Sahin Giray
Şahin Giray was the last Khan of Crimea. He was born in 1745 in Edirne.He studied in Greece and also in Venice.He reputedly spoke the Crimean Tatar language as well as Ottoman Turkish, Italian and Greek....
was marked with increasing Russian influence and outbursts of violence from the khan administration towards internal opposition. On 8 April 1783, in violation of the treaty (some parts of which had been already violated by Crimeans and Ottomans), Catherine II
Catherine II of Russia
Catherine II, also known as Catherine the Great , Empress of Russia, was born in Stettin, Pomerania, Prussia on as Sophie Friederike Auguste von Anhalt-Zerbst-Dornburg...
intervened in the civil war, de facto annexing the whole peninsula as the Taurida Governorate
Taurida Governorate
The Taurida Governorate or Government of Taurida was a historical governorate of the Russian Empire. It included the Crimean peninsula and the mainland between the lower Dnieper River and the coasts of the Black Sea and Sea of Azov It was formed after the defunct Taurida Oblast in was abolished in...
. In 1787, Şahin Giray
Sahin Giray
Şahin Giray was the last Khan of Crimea. He was born in 1745 in Edirne.He studied in Greece and also in Venice.He reputedly spoke the Crimean Tatar language as well as Ottoman Turkish, Italian and Greek....
took refuge in the Ottoman empire and was eventually executed, on Rhodes
Rhodes
Rhodes is an island in Greece, located in the eastern Aegean Sea. It is the largest of the Dodecanese islands in terms of both land area and population, with a population of 117,007, and also the island group's historical capital. Administratively the island forms a separate municipality within...
, by the Ottoman authorities for betrayal. The royal Giray
Giray dynasty
Giray , alternative spellings Guirey, Ghirai, Ghiray, Geray, is the Genghisid dynasty, which reigned in the Khanate of Crimea from its formation in 1427 until its downfall in 1783. The dynasty also supplied several khans of Kazan and Astrakhan between 1521 and 1550...
family survives to this day.
Through the 1792 Treaty of Jassy
Treaty of Jassy
The Treaty of Jassy, signed at Jassy in Moldavia , was a pact between the Russian and Ottoman Empires ending the Russo-Turkish War of 1787–92 and confirming Russia's increasing dominance in the Black Sea....
(Iaşi) the Russian frontier was extended to the Dniester River and the takeover of Yedisan was complete. The 1812 Treaty of Bucharest
Treaty of Bucharest, 1812
The Treaty of Bucharest between the Ottoman Empire and the Russian Empire, was signed on 28 May 1812, in Bucharest, at the end of the Russo-Turkish War, 1806-1812....
transferred Bessarabia to Russian
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...
control.
Government
Giray dynasty
Giray , alternative spellings Guirey, Ghirai, Ghiray, Geray, is the Genghisid dynasty, which reigned in the Khanate of Crimea from its formation in 1427 until its downfall in 1783. The dynasty also supplied several khans of Kazan and Astrakhan between 1521 and 1550...
clan which traced its origins to Genghis Khan
Genghis Khan
Genghis Khan , born Temujin and occasionally known by his temple name Taizu , was the founder and Great Khan of the Mongol Empire, which became the largest contiguous empire in history after his death....
and asserted its right to rule on this basis. According to the tradition of the steppes, the ruler was legitimate only if he was of Genghisid royal descent (i.e. "ak süyek"). Even the Muscovite Tsar claimed Genghisid descent. Although the Giray dynasty was the symbol of government, the khan actually governed with the participation of Qaraçı
Qarachi
Qarachi was the highest level of noble within Turkic khanates of 14-16 centuries, such as Siberia Khanate and Kazan Khanate. The name could be applied to the member of the four extended families: Shirin , Barghen , Arghen , Qepchaq ....
Bey
Bey
Bey is a title for chieftain, traditionally applied to the leaders of small tribal groups. Accoding to some sources, the word "Bey" is of Turkish language In historical accounts, many Turkish, other Turkic and Persian leaders are titled Bey, Beg, Bek, Bay, Baig or Beigh. They are all the same word...
s, the leaders of the noble clans such as Şirin, Barın, Arğın, Qıpçaq, and in the later period, Mansuroğlu and Sicavut. After the collapse of the Astrakhan Khanate
Astrakhan Khanate
The Khanate of Astrakhan was a Tatar feudal state that appeared after the collapse of the Golden Horde. The Khanate existed in the 15th and 16th centuries in the area adjacent to the mouth of the Volga river, where the contemporary city of Astrakhan/Hajji Tarkhan is now located...
in 1556, an important element of the Crimean Khanate were the Nogays, who most of them transferred their allegiance from Astrakhan to Crimea. Circassians (Atteghei) and Cossacks also occasionally played roles in Crimean politics, alternating their allegiance between the khan and the beys.
The Nogay
Nogais
The Nogai people are a Turkic ethnic group in Southern Russia: northern Dagestan and Stavropol Krai, as well as in Karachay-Cherkessia and the Astrakhan Oblast; undefined number live in Chechnya...
pastoral nomads north of the Black Sea
Black Sea
The Black Sea is bounded by Europe, Anatolia and the Caucasus and is ultimately connected to the Atlantic Ocean via the Mediterranean and the Aegean seas and various straits. The Bosphorus strait connects it to the Sea of Marmara, and the strait of the Dardanelles connects that sea to the Aegean...
were nominally subject to the Crimean Khan. They were divided into the following groups: Budjak
Budjak
Budjak or Budzhak is a historical region in the Odessa Oblast of Ukraine. Lying along the Black Sea between the Danube and Dniester rivers this multiethnic region was the southern part of Bessarabia...
(from the Danube to the Dniester), Yedisan
Yedisan
Yedisan is a historical region in modern southwestern Ukraine and southeastern Moldova . The region lies to the north of the Black Sea between the Dniester and Dnieper rivers...
(from the Dniester to the Bug), Jamboyluk (Bug to Crimea), Yedickul (north of Crimea) and Kuban
Kuban
Kuban is a geographic region of Southern Russia surrounding the Kuban River, on the Black Sea between the Don Steppe, Volga Delta and the Caucasus...
.
Internal affairs
Internally, the khanate territory was divided among the beys, and beneath the beys were mirzaMirza
Mirza , is of Persian origin, denoting the rank of a high nobleman or Prince. It is usually translated into English as a royal or imperial Prince of the Blood...
s from noble families. The relationship of peasants or herdsmen to their mirzas was not feudal. They were free and the Islamic law
Sharia
Sharia law, is the moral code and religious law of Islam. Sharia is derived from two primary sources of Islamic law: the precepts set forth in the Quran, and the example set by the Islamic prophet Muhammad in the Sunnah. Fiqh jurisprudence interprets and extends the application of sharia to...
protected them from losing their rights. Apportioned by village, the land was worked in common and taxes were assigned to the whole village. The tax was one tenth of an agricultural product, one twentieth of a herd animal, and a variable amount of unpaid labor. During the reforms by the last khan Şahin Giray
Sahin Giray
Şahin Giray was the last Khan of Crimea. He was born in 1745 in Edirne.He studied in Greece and also in Venice.He reputedly spoke the Crimean Tatar language as well as Ottoman Turkish, Italian and Greek....
, the internal structure was changed following the Turkish pattern: the nobles' landholdings were proclaimed the domain of the khan and reorganized into qadılıqs (provinces governed by representatives of the khan).
Crimean law
Crimean law was based on Tatar law, Islamic law, and, in limited matters, Ottoman law. The leader of the Muslim establishment was the muftiMufti
A mufti is a Sunni Islamic scholar who is an interpreter or expounder of Islamic law . In religious administrative terms, a mufti is roughly equivalent to a deacon to a Sunni population...
, who was selected from among the local Muslim clergy. His major duty was neither judicial nor theological, but financial. The mufti’s administration controlled all of the vakif lands and their enormous revenues. Another Muslim official, appointed not by the clergy but the Ottoman sultan, was the kadıasker, the overseer of the khanate’s judicial districts, each under jurisdiction of a kadi
Kadi
Kadi may refer to:*Kadi, Gujarat, a city and municipality in Mehsana district, Gujarat, India*Kadhi, an Indian dish*Kadı, an official in the Ottoman empire*Qadi or kadi, Islamic judge*Al-Qadi, an Arabic surname*Quadi, an ancient Germanic tribe...
. In theory, kadis answered to the kadiaskers, but in practice they answered to the clan leaders and the khan. The kadis determined the day to day legal behavior of Muslims in the khanate.
Non-Muslim minorities
Substantial non-Muslim minorities, GreeksGreeks
The Greeks, also known as the Hellenes , are a nation and ethnic group native to Greece, Cyprus and neighboring regions. They also form a significant diaspora, with Greek communities established around the world....
, Armenians
Armenians
Armenian people or Armenians are a nation and ethnic group native to the Armenian Highland.The largest concentration is in Armenia having a nearly-homogeneous population with 97.9% or 3,145,354 being ethnic Armenian....
, Crimean Goths
Crimean Goths
Crimean Goths were those Gothic tribes who remained in the lands around the Black Sea, especially in Crimea. They were the least-powerful, least-known, and almost paradoxically, the longest-lasting of the Gothic communities...
, Adyghe
Adyghe people
The Adyghe or Adygs , also often known as Circassians or Cherkess, are in origin a North Caucasian ethnic groupwho were displaced in the course of the Russian conquest of the Caucasus in the 19th century, especially after the Russian–Circassian War of 1862.Adyghe people mostly speak Adyghe and most...
(Circassians), Venetians
Venice
Venice is a city in northern Italy which is renowned for the beauty of its setting, its architecture and its artworks. It is the capital of the Veneto region...
, Genoese
Genoa
Genoa |Ligurian]] Zena ; Latin and, archaically, English Genua) is a city and an important seaport in northern Italy, the capital of the Province of Genoa and of the region of Liguria....
, Crimean Karaites
Crimean Karaites
The Crimean Karaites , also known as Karaim and Qarays, are a community of ethnic Turkic adherents of Karaite Judaism in Eastern Europe...
and Qırımçaq Jews
Krymchaks
The Krymchaks are a Turkic people, community of Turkic languages and adherents of Rabbinic Judaism living in Crimea. They have historically lived in close proximity to the Crimean Karaites...
, lived principally in the cities, mostly in separate districts or suburbs. Under the millet system, they had their own religious and judicial institutions. They were subject to extra taxes theoretically in exchange for exemption from military service but did not face any other discrimination, living like Crimean Tatars and speaking dialects of Crimean Tatar.
The Jewish population was concentrated in Çufut Kale ('Jewish Fortress'), a separate town near Bahçeseray that was the Khan's original capital. As with other minorities, they spoke a Turkic language. Crimean law granted them special financial and political rights as reward, according to local folklore, for historic services rendered to an uluhane (first wife of a Khan). The capitation tax on Jews in Crimea was levied by the office of the uluhane in Bahçeseray.
Economy
Nomad
Nomadic people , commonly known as itinerants in modern-day contexts, are communities of people who move from one place to another, rather than settling permanently in one location. There are an estimated 30-40 million nomads in the world. Many cultures have traditionally been nomadic, but...
ic part of the Crimean Tatars and all the Nogays were cattle breeders. Crimea had important trading ports where the goods arrived via the Silk Road
Silk Road
The Silk Road or Silk Route refers to a historical network of interlinking trade routes across the Afro-Eurasian landmass that connected East, South, and Western Asia with the Mediterranean and European world, as well as parts of North and East Africa...
were exported to the Ottoman Empire and Europe. Crimean Khanate had many large, beautiful, and lively cities such as the capital Bahçeseray, Gözleve (Yevpatoria), Karasu Bazaar
Bilohirsk
Bilohirsk , formerly Karasubazar is a town in Crimea, Ukraine, situated 25 miles east-northeast of Simferopol on the Biyuk Karasu river. Both Russian and Ukrainian names mean "white mountains", and original Crimean Tatar name Qarasuvbazar means "bazaar on the Karasu river".The site is low, but...
(Karasu-market) and Aqmescit
Simferopol
-Russian Empire and Civil War:The city was renamed Simferopol in 1784 after the annexation of the Crimean Khanate to the Russian Empire by Catherine II of Russia. The name Simferopol is derived from the Greek, Συμφερόπολις , translated as "the city of usefulness." In 1802, Simferopol became the...
(White-mosque) having numerous hans (caravansarais and merchant quarters), tanners, and mills. Many monuments constructed under the Crimean Khanate were destroyed or left in ruins after the Russian invasion. Mosques, in particular were demolished or remade into Orthodox churches. The settled Crimean Tatars were engaged in trade, agriculture, and artisanry. Crimea was a center of wine, tobacco, and fruit cultivation. Bahçeseray kilim
Kilim
Kilims are flat tapestry-woven carpets or rugs produced from the Balkans to Pakistan. Kilims can be purely decorative or can function as prayer rugs. Recently-made kilims are popular floor-coverings in Western households.-Etymology:...
s (oriental rug
Oriental rug
An authentic oriental rug is a handmade carpet that is either knotted with pile or woven without pile.By definition - Oriental rugs are rugs that come from the orient...
s) were exported to Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
, and knives made by Crimean Tatar artisans were deemed the best by the Caucasian tribes. Crimea was also renowned for manufacture of silk and honey.
The slave trade (15th-17th century) in captured Ukrainians and Russians was one of the major sources of income of Crimean Tatar and Nogay nobility. In this process, known as harvesting the steppe, raiding parties would go out and capture, and then enslave the local Christian peasants living in the countryside. In spite of the dangers, Polish and Russian serfs were attracted to the freedom offered by the empty steppes of Ukraine
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
. The slave raids entered Russian and Cossack folklore and many dumy
Duma (epic)
A Duma is a sung epic poem which originated in Ukraine during the Hetmanate Era in the sixteenth century...
were written elegising the victims' fates. This contributed to a hatred for the Khanate that transcended political or military concerns. But in fact, there were always small raids committed by both Tatars and Cossacks, in both directions.
The last recorded major Crimean raid, before those in the Russo-Turkish War (1768–1774) took place during the reign of Peter I(1682–1725)
Regions and administration
Main regions outside of Qirim yurt (the peninsula)- Kaztsiv ulus (located in KubanKubanKuban is a geographic region of Southern Russia surrounding the Kuban River, on the Black Sea between the Don Steppe, Volga Delta and the Caucasus...
) - Yedychkul Horde
- Djambayluk Horde
- Yedisan HordeYedisanYedisan is a historical region in modern southwestern Ukraine and southeastern Moldova . The region lies to the north of the Black Sea between the Dniester and Dnieper rivers...
- Budjak HordeBudjakBudjak or Budzhak is a historical region in the Odessa Oblast of Ukraine. Lying along the Black Sea between the Danube and Dniester rivers this multiethnic region was the southern part of Bessarabia...
(?) - Prohnoinsk Palanka (possibly leased to the Zaporizhian Host) (located on the Kinburn peninsula)
- Silistra Province, Ottoman EmpireSilistra Province, Ottoman EmpireThe Eyalet of Silistra , later known as Özü Eyalet was an eyalet of the Ottoman Empire along the Black Sea littoral and south bank of the Danube River in southeastern Europe. The fortress of Belgrade was under the eyalet's jurisdiction...
for sometime governed by BakhchisarayBakhchisarayBakhchisaray is a town in Central Crimea, centre of the Bakhchisaray raion , best known as the former capital of the Crimean Khanate...
The peninsula itself was divided by the khan's family and several beys. The estates controlled by beys were called beylik. Beys in the khanate were as important as the Polish Magnats. Directly to the khan belonged Cufut-Qale, Bakhchisaray
Bakhchisaray
Bakhchisaray is a town in Central Crimea, centre of the Bakhchisaray raion , best known as the former capital of the Crimean Khanate...
, and Staryi Krym
Staryi Krym
Staryi Krym is a small historical town in the Eastern Crimea, approximately 25 km west of Theodosia. The population of Staryi Krym in 2001 was 9,960 people.-History:...
(Eski Qirim). The khan also possessed all the salt lakes and the villages around them, as well as the woods around the rivers Alma
Alma River (Ukraine)
The Alma is a small river in Crimea that flows into the Black Sea. Its mouth is located half-way between Yevpatoria and Sevastopol. Alma is the Crimean Tatar word for an "apple". Near the Alma river the allied British, French, and Ottoman armies defeated the Russians under Prince Aleksandr...
, Kacha, and Salgir
Salhir River
The Salhir River is the longest river in the Autonomous Republic of Crimea, Ukraine. Its length is 204 km, and its drainage basin is 3,750 km². The average discharge of the water is 2 m³/s....
. Part of his own estate included the wastelands with their newly created settlements.
Part of the main khan's estates were the lands of the Kalga-sultan who was next in the line of succession of the khan's family. He usually administered the eastern portion of the peninsula. Kalga also was Chief Commander of the Crimean Army in the absence of the Khan. The next hereditary administrative position, called Nureddin, was also assigned to the khan's family. He administrated the western region of the peninsula. There also was a specifically assigned position for the khan's mother or sister — Ana-beim — which was similar to the Ottomans' Valide Sultan
Valide Sultan
Valide Sultan was the title held by the mother of a ruling Sultan in the Ottoman Empire. The Turkish pronunciation of the word Valide is . The title is sometimes translated as Queen Mother, although the position of Valide Sultan was quite different.The position was perhaps the most important...
. The senior wife of the Khan carried a rank of Ulu-beim and was next in importance to the Nureddin.
By the end of the khanate regional offices of the kaimakans, who administered smaller regions of the Crimean Khanate, were created.
Sanjaks
- Kefe, a seat of Ottoman Qirim BeylerbeyBeylerbeyBeylerbey is the Ottoman and Safavid title used for the highest rank in the hierarchy of provincial administrators It is in western terms a Governor-general, with authority...
(a special status) - Or QapıPerekopPerekop is a village located at the Perekop Isthmus connecting Crimean peninsula to the Ukrainian mainland. It is known for the Fortress Or Qapi that served as the gateway to Crimea...
(Perekop) had special status. The fortress was controlled either directly by the khan's family or by the family of Shirin.
See also
- Vassal and tributary states of the Ottoman EmpireVassal and tributary states of the Ottoman EmpireVassal States were a number of tributary or vassal states, usually on the periphery of the Ottoman Empire under suzerainty of the Porte, over which direct control was not established, for various reasons.-Functions:...
- Little TartaryLittle TartaryLittle Tartary is a historical designation for areas north of the Black Sea under the suzerainty of the Crimean Khanate and inhabited by nomadic Tatars of the Lesser Nogai Horde from the 16th to the 18th centuries. Little Tartary was designated such vis-à-vis Tartary, areas of central and...
- New Russia
- List of Crimean khans
- List of Crimean Tatars
- List of Ukrainian rulers
- Russo-Crimean WarsRusso-Crimean WarsThe Russo-Crimean Wars were fought between the forces of the Muscovy and the invading Tatars of the Crimean Khanate.-History:...
- Cossacks
- KipchaksKipchaksKipchaks were a Turkic tribal confederation...
- Nogai HordeNogai HordeThe Nogai Horde was a confederation of about eighteen Turkic and Mongol tribes that occupied the Pontic-Caspian steppe from about 1500 until they were pushed west by the Kalmyks and south by the Russians in the 17th century. The Mongol tribe called the Manghits constituted a core of the Horde...
- Lipka TatarsLipka TatarsThe Lipka Tatars are a group of Tatars who originally settled in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania at the beginning of 14th century. The first settlers tried to preserve their shamanistic religion and sought asylum amongst the non-Christian Lithuanians...
- EurasiansEurasian (mixed ancestry)The word Eurasian refers to people of mixed Asian and European ancestry. It was originally coined in 19th-century British India to refer to Anglo-Indians of mixed British and Indian descent....
- Nomadic people
- Tatar invasionsTatar invasionsThe Mongol invasion of Europe from the east took place over the course of three centuries, from the Middle Ages to the early modern period.The terms Tatars or Tartars are applied to nomadic Turkic peoples who, themselves, were conquered by Mongols and incorporated into their horde...
- Russo–Crimean War (1571)
- Ottoman wars in EuropeOttoman wars in EuropeThe wars of the Ottoman Empire in Europe are also sometimes referred to as the Ottoman Wars or as Turkish Wars, particularly in older, European texts.- Rise :...
- Ottoman-Habsburg warsOttoman-Habsburg warsThe Ottoman–Habsburg wars refers to the military conflicts between the Ottoman Empire and the Habsburg dynasties of the Austrian Empire, Habsburg Spain and in certain times, the Holy Roman Empire and the Kingdom of Hungary. The war would be dominated by land campaigns in Hungary and present day...
- List of the Muslim Empires
- List of Sunni Muslim dynasties
- Mongol invasionsMongol invasionsMongol invasions progressed throughout the 13th century, resulting in the vast Mongol Empire which covered much of Asia and Eastern Europe by 1300....
- Mongol EmpireMongol EmpireThe Mongol Empire , initially named as Greater Mongol State was a great empire during the 13th and 14th centuries...
- Ottoman EmpireOttoman EmpireThe Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...