Toqta
Encyclopedia
Tokhta (Тохтога, Тохтох) (died c.
1312) was a khan
of the Golden Horde
, son of Mengu-Timur
and great grandson of Batu Khan
.
His name "Tokhtokh" means "hold/holding" in the Mongolian language
.
. Tokhta gave Crimea
to Nogai as a gift. And Nogai beheaded many Mongol nobles, who were supporters of Tulabuga
, thanks to his new puppet khan.
Tokhta wanted to eliminate Russia
n princes' semi-independence and, therefore, sent his brothers - Dyuden (Tudan) to Rus lands
in 1293, whose army would devastate fourteen towns and Tokhta-Temur (probably he himself) to Tver
, finally forcing Dmitry Alexandrovich (Nogai's ally) to abdicate. Russians wrote the event in their chronicle as "The harsh-time of Batu returns". Some scholars claimed that Tokhta and Nogai did it together.
Soon, Tokhta and Nogai began a deadly rivalry. The Khan's father in law Saljiday of the Khunggirads
, his wife Bekhlemish, the granddaughter of Tolui
and other Chingisids in the Horde also complained about Nogai's contrariness to him. Nogai refused to come to the court of the Khan. And they disagreed on trade rights of Venetians
and Genoese
merchants as well.
The Khan's force lost the first battle with Nogai in 1299-1300. Nogai did not chase him and returned. Tokhta asked Ghazan his aid. The latter refused because he did not want to mix himself up with their quarrels. In 1300, Tokhta finally defeated Nogai at the battle of the Kagamlyk River near Poltava
and united the lands from the Volga to the Don under his authority. But Nogai's son Chaka
fled to at first Alan
s then to Bulgaria
and reigned as emperor there. Soon after it enraged Tokhta, Theodore Svetoslav sent Chaka's head to the Khan to show his alligiance. Tokhta divided Nogai's land which streched from Crimea and Russian principalities to modern Romania
into brother Sareibugha and his sons.
When Tokhta was busy with Nogai, Bayan
asked his assistance against rebels in White Horde. But Tokhta was unable to send him military forces. In 1301, Bayan fled to Tokhta. Tokhta helped him to reassert the throne of White Horde from Kuruichik who was backed by Kaidu
. The army of Golden Horde won the armed force under Chagatai Khan
Duwa
and Kaidu's son Chapar.
After stabilizing his control over Russia Principalities
and Kipchak steppes, he demanded Ghazan give back Azerbaijan
and Arran. But Ilkhan refused and replied, "That land was conquered by our ancestors Indian steel sword." Then Tokhta turned to Mamluks to restore the former alliance and sent them his envoys. During the reign of Oljeitu, their border troops engaged in a small conflict, but another event changed Tokhta's mind soon after.
In 1304, messengers from Chagatai Khanate
and Yuan Dynasty
arrived in Sarai
. They introduced their masters' plan and idea of peace. Tokhta accepted the nominal supremacy of the Yuan Khaan Temür Öljeytü Chengzong, the grandson of Kublai Khan
; at the same time Muhammad Khudabanda Öljeitü ruled Ilkhanid Persia and Duwa
retained nominal sovereignty in the Khanate of Chagatai. Postal system and trade routes restored again. Golden Horde sent 2 tumens (20,000) to buttress the Yuan frontier.
Tokhta arrested the Italian residents of Sarai
, and besieged Caffa in 1307. The cause was apparently Tokhta's displeasure at the Italian trade in Turkic
slaves who were mostly sold for soldiers to the Egypt
ian Mamluk Sultanate
. The Genoese
resisted for a year, but in 1308 set fire to their city and abandoned it. Relations between the Italians and the Golden Horde remained tense until 1312 when Tokhta died during preparations for a new military campaign against the Russian lands. Some sources claimed that he died without a male heir. But Yuan shi and some Muslim sources says that he had at least 3 sons and one of them was murdered by Ozbeg's supporters.
Although he was Shamanist, he was interested in Buddhism
. He was the last non-Muslim khan of Golden Horde.
Circa
Circa , usually abbreviated c. or ca. , means "approximately" in the English language, usually referring to a date...
1312) was a 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...
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...
, son of Mengu-Timur
Mengu-Timur
Mengu-Timur or Möngke Temür , Son of Toqoqan Khan and Buka Ujin of Oirat and the grandson of Batu Khan. He was a khan of the Golden Horde in 1266-1280.His name literally means "Eternal Iron" in the Mongolian language....
and great grandson of Batu Khan
Batu Khan
Batu Khan was a Mongol ruler and founder of the Ulus of Jochi , the sub-khanate of the Mongol Empire. Batu was a son of Jochi and grandson of Genghis Khan. His ulus was the chief state of the Golden Horde , which ruled Rus and the Caucasus for around 250 years, after also destroying the armies...
.
Mongolian language
The Mongolian language is the official language of Mongolia and the best-known member of the Mongolic language family. The number of speakers across all its dialects may be 5.2 million, including the vast majority of the residents of Mongolia and many of the Mongolian residents of the Inner...
.
Early reign under Nogai
In 1288, Tokhta was ousted by his cousins. In 1291, he reclaimed the throne with the help of Nogai KhanNogai Khan
Nogai , also called Isa Nogai, was a general and de facto ruler of the Golden Horde and a great-great-grandson of Genghis Khan. His grandfather was Baul/Teval Khan, the 7th son of Jochi...
. Tokhta gave 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...
to Nogai as a gift. And Nogai beheaded many Mongol nobles, who were supporters of Tulabuga
Talabuga
Talabuga, Tulabuga, Talubuga or Telubuga was the khan of Golden Horde between 1287 and 1291. He was the son of Tartu and great-grandson of Batu Khan.He assumed the power in Golden Horde in 1287 with the help of Nogai Khan, but was dethroned 4 years later by the same, replaced by Tokhta.- European...
, thanks to his new puppet khan.
Tokhta wanted to eliminate 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...
n princes' semi-independence and, therefore, sent his brothers - Dyuden (Tudan) to Rus lands
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...
in 1293, whose army would devastate fourteen towns and Tokhta-Temur (probably he himself) to Tver
Tver
Tver is a city and the administrative center of Tver Oblast, Russia. Population: 403,726 ; 408,903 ;...
, finally forcing Dmitry Alexandrovich (Nogai's ally) to abdicate. Russians wrote the event in their chronicle as "The harsh-time of Batu returns". Some scholars claimed that Tokhta and Nogai did it together.
Soon, Tokhta and Nogai began a deadly rivalry. The Khan's father in law Saljiday of the Khunggirads
Onggirat
The Hongirat , also known as Qongirat is a Central Asian tribe, one of the major divisions of the Mongols. Variations on the name include Onggirat, Wangjila , Yongjilie , and Guangjila in Chinese sources and Ongrat or Kungrat in Turkish.The original pastures of the Hongirats were in eastern...
, his wife Bekhlemish, the granddaughter of Tolui
Tolui
Tolui, was the youngest son of Genghis Khan by his chief khatun Börte...
and other Chingisids in the Horde also complained about Nogai's contrariness to him. Nogai refused to come to the court of the Khan. And they disagreed on trade rights of 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...
and 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....
merchants as well.
The Khan's force lost the first battle with Nogai in 1299-1300. Nogai did not chase him and returned. Tokhta asked Ghazan his aid. The latter refused because he did not want to mix himself up with their quarrels. In 1300, Tokhta finally defeated Nogai at the battle of the Kagamlyk River near Poltava
Poltava
Poltava is a city in located on the Vorskla River in central Ukraine. It is the administrative center of the Poltava Oblast , as well as the surrounding Poltava Raion of the oblast. Poltava's estimated population is 298,652 ....
and united the lands from the Volga to the Don under his authority. But Nogai's son Chaka
Chaka of Bulgaria
Chaka reigned as emperor of Bulgaria from 1299 to 1300. The date of his birth is unknown.Chaka was the son of the Mongol leader Nogai Khan by a wife named Alaka. Sometime after 1285 Chaka married an unnamed daughter of George Terter I of Bulgaria...
fled to at first Alan
Alan
-People :*Alan , the given name*alan , female Tibetan singer active in Japan*Alan , Mexican boy band singer*Alan , aka Gato Eveready, who wrestles in Asistencia Asesoría y Administración...
s then to Bulgaria
Bulgaria
Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...
and reigned as emperor there. Soon after it enraged Tokhta, Theodore Svetoslav sent Chaka's head to the Khan to show his alligiance. Tokhta divided Nogai's land which streched from Crimea and Russian principalities to modern Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
into brother Sareibugha and his sons.
Late reign
Buyan (khan)
Bayan was one of most famous khans of White Horde. "Bayan" means "rich" and "buyan" means "good deed/act" in the Mongolian language....
asked his assistance against rebels in White Horde. But Tokhta was unable to send him military forces. In 1301, Bayan fled to Tokhta. Tokhta helped him to reassert the throne of White Horde from Kuruichik who was backed by Kaidu
Kaidu
Kaidu was the leader of the House of Ogedei and the de facto khan of the Chagatai Khanate. He ruled part of modern-day Xinjiang and Central Asia during the 13th century, and actively opposed his uncle, Kublai Khan, who established the Yuan Dynasty in China until his death in 1301...
. The army of Golden Horde won the armed force under Chagatai Khan
Chagatai Khanate
The Chagatai Khanate was a Turko-Mongol khanate that comprised the lands ruled by Chagatai Khan , second son of the Great Khan Genghis Khan, and his descendents and successors...
Duwa
Duwa
Duwa , also known as Du'a, was khan of the Chagatai Khanate . He was the second son of Baraq. He was the longest reigning monarch of the Chagatayid Khanate and accepted the Great Khan's supremacy...
and Kaidu's son Chapar.
After stabilizing his control over Russia Principalities
Vladimir-Suzdal
The Vladimir-Suzdal Principality or Vladimir-Suzdal Rus’ was one of the major principalities which succeeded Kievan Rus' in the late 12th century and lasted until the late 14th century. For a long time the Principality was a vassal of the Mongolian Golden Horde...
and Kipchak steppes, he demanded Ghazan give back Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan , officially the Republic of Azerbaijan is the largest country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded by the Caspian Sea to the east, Russia to the north, Georgia to the northwest, Armenia to the west, and Iran to...
and Arran. But Ilkhan refused and replied, "That land was conquered by our ancestors Indian steel sword." Then Tokhta turned to Mamluks to restore the former alliance and sent them his envoys. During the reign of Oljeitu, their border troops engaged in a small conflict, but another event changed Tokhta's mind soon after.
In 1304, messengers from Chagatai Khanate
Chagatai Khanate
The Chagatai Khanate was a Turko-Mongol khanate that comprised the lands ruled by Chagatai Khan , second son of the Great Khan Genghis Khan, and his descendents and successors...
and Yuan Dynasty
Yuan Dynasty
The Yuan Dynasty , or Great Yuan Empire was a ruling dynasty founded by the Mongol leader Kublai Khan, who ruled most of present-day China, all of modern Mongolia and its surrounding areas, lasting officially from 1271 to 1368. It is considered both as a division of the Mongol Empire and as an...
arrived in Sarai
Sarai
-Places:*Saraj , an historic estate in Resen built by Ahmed Niyazi Bey*Bal-Sarai, a village in Amritsar District of Punjab, India*Sarai , the capital city of the Golden Horde*Saraj municipality, a municipality in Greater Skopje, Republic of Macedonia...
. They introduced their masters' plan and idea of peace. Tokhta accepted the nominal supremacy of the Yuan Khaan Temür Öljeytü Chengzong, the grandson of Kublai Khan
Kublai Khan
Kublai Khan , born Kublai and also known by the temple name Shizu , was the fifth Great Khan of the Mongol Empire from 1260 to 1294 and the founder of the Yuan Dynasty in China...
; at the same time Muhammad Khudabanda Öljeitü ruled Ilkhanid Persia and Duwa
Duwa
Duwa , also known as Du'a, was khan of the Chagatai Khanate . He was the second son of Baraq. He was the longest reigning monarch of the Chagatayid Khanate and accepted the Great Khan's supremacy...
retained nominal sovereignty in the Khanate of Chagatai. Postal system and trade routes restored again. Golden Horde sent 2 tumens (20,000) to buttress the Yuan frontier.
Tokhta arrested the Italian residents of Sarai
Sarai (city)
Sarai was the name of two cities, which were successively capital cities of the Golden Horde, the Mongol kingdom which ruled Russia and much of central Asia in the 13th and 14th centuries...
, and besieged Caffa in 1307. The cause was apparently Tokhta's displeasure at the Italian trade in 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...
slaves who were mostly sold for soldiers to the Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
ian Mamluk Sultanate
Mamluk Sultanate (Cairo)
The Mamluk Sultanate of Egypt was the final independent Egyptian state prior to the establishment of the Muhammad Ali Dynasty in 1805. It lasted from the overthrow of the Ayyubid Dynasty until the Ottoman conquest of Egypt in 1517. The sultanate's ruling caste was composed of Mamluks, Arabised...
. The 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....
resisted for a year, but in 1308 set fire to their city and abandoned it. Relations between the Italians and the Golden Horde remained tense until 1312 when Tokhta died during preparations for a new military campaign against the Russian lands. Some sources claimed that he died without a male heir. But Yuan shi and some Muslim sources says that he had at least 3 sons and one of them was murdered by Ozbeg's supporters.
Although he was Shamanist, he was interested in Buddhism
Buddhism
Buddhism is a religion and philosophy encompassing a variety of traditions, beliefs and practices, largely based on teachings attributed to Siddhartha Gautama, commonly known as the Buddha . The Buddha lived and taught in the northeastern Indian subcontinent some time between the 6th and 4th...
. He was the last non-Muslim khan of Golden Horde.