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82-753: Later, the term was used for the province, particularly in Kazan and the Siberian Khanates in the 15th and 16th centuries. It was used in the Turkic-populated parts of the Russian Empire in the 16th to 18th centuries. In Safavid Iran , it was a title meaning prefect . One of the many Safavid darughas was Mirman Mirimanidze . In 1762, the Bashkir people controlled the Kazan, Nogai, Osin and Siberian darughas . In

164-464: A cabinet council, or Diwan . The nobility comprised the ranks of bäk ( beg ), ämir ( emir ), and morza . Military estates consisted of the uğlan ( ulan ), bahadir , içki ( ichki ). Muslim clergy also played a major role. They were divided into säyet (seid), şäyex ( sheikh ), qazí ( qazi ), and imams . The ulema , or clergy, played a judicial role and maintained the madrassas (schools) and maktabs (libraries). The majority of

246-712: A deliberate policy by the Qing to enfeeble them. After the 1771 exodus, the Kalmyks that remained part of the Russian Empire continued their nomadic pastoral lifestyle, ranging the pastures between the Don and the Volga Rivers, wintering in the lowlands along the shores of the Caspian Sea as far as Sarpa Lake to the northwest and Lake Manych-Gudilo to the west. In the spring, they moved along

328-563: A sacred place, but had this function only, due to the emergence of Kazan as a major economic and political center in the 1430s. The architecture of the khanate is characterized by white-stone architecture and wood carvings. 55°47′N 49°09′E  /  55.783°N 49.150°E  / 55.783; 49.150 Kalmyks Kalmyks ( Kalmyk : Хальмгуд , Xaľmgud ; Mongolian : Халимагууд , romanized :  Khalimaguud ; Russian : Калмыки , romanized :  Kalmyki ; archaically anglicised as Calmucks ) are

410-723: A third theory suggests that the Torghuts grew weary of the militant struggle between the Oirats and the Altan Khanate. Upon arrival to the lower Volga region in 1630, the Oirats encamped on land that was once part of the Astrakhan Khanate but was now claimed by the Tsardom of Russia . The region was lightly populated, from south of Saratov to the Russian garrison at Astrakhan and on both the east and

492-612: The Gelug school of Tibetan Buddhism . Locked in between both tribes were the Choros, Dörbet Oirat and Khoid , collectively known as the " Dzungar people ", who were slowly rebuilding the base of power they enjoyed under the Four Oirat. The Choros were the dominant Oirat tribe of that era. Their leader, Erdeni Batur, attempted to follow Esen Khan in unifying the Oirats to challenge the Khalkha. Under

574-684: The Golden Horde . It included members of four leading noble families: Arghin, Barin, Qipchaq, and Shirin. Peoples subject to the khan included the Chuvash , Mari , Mordvins , Mishar Tatars , Udmurt , and Bashkir . Some of the Komi tribes were also incorporated into the Khanate. The Mishars had arrived during the period of the Golden Horde and gradually assimilated the resident Mordvins and Burtas . Their territory

656-627: The Karakalpaks . The Mangyshlak Peninsula was overtaken in 1639 by Kalmyks. At first, an uneasy relationship existed between the Russians and the Oirats. Mutual raiding by the Oirats of Russian settlements and by the Cossacks and the Bashkirs , Muslim vassals of the Russians, of Oirat encampments was commonplace. Numerous oaths and treaties were signed to ensure Oirat loyalty and military assistance. Although

738-670: The Khovd region in northwest Mongolia, reuniting most of Mongolia in the process . The Oirats would later regroup south of the Altai Mountains in Dzungaria. But Geresenz's grandson, Sholoi Ubashi Khuntaiji, pushed the Oirats further northwest, along the steppes of the Ob and Irtysh Rivers. Afterwards, he established a Khalkha Khanate under the name, Altan Khan, in the Oirat heartland of Dzungaria. In spite of

820-724: The Manchu -led Qing dynasty . For 400 years, the Oirats conducted a military struggle for domination and control over both Inner Mongolia and Outer Mongolia . The struggle ended in 1757 with the defeat of the Oirats of the Dzungar Khanate against the Qing Empire , in the Dzungar–Qing Wars ; they were the last of the Mongol groups to resist vassalage to Qing. At the start of this 400-year era,

902-553: The Mari language , the Mordvin languages and the Bashkir language , likewise developed from the Bolgar and Kipchak languages . The former territories of Volga Bulgaria (Kazan Ulus or Kazan Duchy) may have regained a degree of independence within the disintegrating Golden Horde by the turn of the 15th century. The principality was self-governed and maintained a dynasty of Bolgar rulers. Whatever

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984-532: The Mughal Empire , a daroga was the title of a district police officer. This title was kept until the 20th century during the British Raj . This Russian history –related article is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . This Iranian history -related article is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Kazan Khanate The Khanate of Kazan was a Tatar state that occupied

1066-545: The Muslim Bulgar -populated lands of the Bolğar , Cükätäw , Kazan , and Qaşan duchies and other regions that originally belonged to Volga Bulgaria . The Volga , Kama and Vyatka were the main rivers of the khanate, as well as the major trade ways. The majority of the population were Kazan Tatars . Their self-identity was not restricted to Tatars; many identified themselves simply as Muslims or as "the people of Kazan". Islam

1148-571: The Nogays , to aid them. In August 1552, forces of Ivan the Terrible , operating from the Russian castle of Sviyazhsk , laid siege to Kazan. The Russians defeated the Tatar inland troops and burnt Archa and some castles. On October 3, after two months of siege and destruction of the citadel walls , the Russians entered the city. Some defenders managed to escape but most were put to the sword. Yadegar Moxammad

1230-634: The North Caucasus . These campaigns highlighted the strategic importance of the Kalmyk Khanate which functioned as a buffer zone, separating Russia and the Muslim world, as Russia fought wars in Europe to establish itself as a European power. To encourage the release of Oirat cavalrymen in support of its military campaigns, the Russian Empire increasingly relied on the provision of monetary payments and dry goods to

1312-552: The Semey region along the lower portions of the Irtysh River, where they built several steppe monasteries . The Khoshut were adjacent to the Khalkha khanates of Altan Khan and Dzasagtu Khan. Both khanates prevented the Khoshut and the other Oirat from trading with Chinese border towns. The Khoshut were ruled by Baibagas Khan and then Güshi Khan , who were the first Oirat leaders to convert to

1394-630: The Tibetan Plateau , where he formed the Khoshut Khanate to protect Tibet and the Gelug from both internal and external enemies. Erdeni Batur and his descendants, by contrast, formed the Dzungar Khanate and came to dominate Central Eurasia. In 1618, the Torghut and a small contingent of Dörbet Oirats (200,000–250,000 people) chose to migrate from the upper Irtysh River region to the grazing pastures of

1476-423: The "Frontier Period", lasting from the advent of the Torghut under Kho Orluk in 1630 to the end of the great khanate of Kho Orluk 's descendant, Ayuka Khan , in 1724, a phase accompanied by little discernible acculturative change: There were few sustained interrelations between Kalmyks and Russians in the frontier period. Routine contacts consisted in the main of seasonal commodity exchanges of Kalmyk livestock and

1558-521: The "pastures". The ancestors of Kalmyks were nomadic groups of Oirat -speaking Mongols , who migrated from Western Mongolia to Eastern Europe three times: in early medieval times, establishing in the 6th–8th centuries the Avar Khanate ; in medieval times, establishing the Ulus of Juchi and Il-Kanate as Khuda-in-laws of Genghis Khan ; and finally, in early modern times, establishing the Kalmyk Khanate in

1640-738: The 15th century, the three major groups of Oirat formed an alliance, adopting "Dörben Oirat" as their collective name. In the early 17th century, a second great Oirat Confederation emerged, which later became the Dzungar Empire. While the Dzungars (initially Choros, Dörbet and Khoit tribes) were establishing their empire in Central Eurasia, the Khoshuts were establishing the Khoshut Khanate in Tibet, protecting

1722-531: The 15–17th centuries, they established under the name "10 tumen Mongols", a cavalry unit of 10,000 horsemen, including four Oirat tumen and six tumen composed of other Mongols. They reestablished their traditional pastoral nomadic lifestyle during the end of the Yuan dynasty. The Oirats formed this alliance to defend themselves against the Khalkha Mongols and to pursue the greater objective of reunifying Mongolia. Until

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1804-668: The 17th century, the First Altan Khan drove the Oirats westward to present-day eastern Kazakhstan . The Torghuts became the westernmost Oirat tribe, encamped in the Tarbagatai Mountains region and along the northern stretches of the Irtysh , Ishim and Tobol Rivers . Further west, the Kazakhs – a Turco-Mongol people – prevented the Torghuts from sending its trading caravans to

1886-576: The 17th century. The Oirat language belongs to the western branch of the Mongolic language family, whose speakers include numerous sub-ethnic groups (Derbet, Torgut, Khoshut, Olot, Dzungar (Zunghar), Bayad, Zakhchin, Khoton, Myangad, Buzava) across a wide geographical area of Uvs and Khovd provinces (aimags) of Western Mongolia ( N  = 209,412), and in Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, China ( N  = 194,891). Ethnic groups of Oirat speakers in

1968-563: The Don Cossack region, Orenburg, Stavropol, the Terek and the Ural Mountains. Another generally accepted name is Ulan Zalata or the "red-buttoned ones" . In January 1771 the oppression of Tsarist administration forced the larger part of Kalmyks (33 thousand households, or approximately 170,000–200,000 people) to migrate to Dzungaria. Ubashi Khan , the great-grandson of Ayuka Khan and

2050-473: The Dzungars, to centralize political and military control over the tribes under his leadership. Some scholars, however, believe that the Torghuts sought uncontested pastures as their territory was being encroached upon by the Russians from the north, the Kazakhs from the south and the Dzungars from the east. The encroachments resulted in overcrowding of people and livestock, thereby diminishing the food supply. Lastly,

2132-551: The Four Oirat unified Mongolia for a short period. After Esen's death in 1455, the political union of the Dörben Oirat dissolved quickly, resulting in two decades of Oirat-Eastern Mongol conflict. The deadlock ended during the reign of Batmunkh Dayan Khan , a five-year-old boy in whose name the loyal Eastern Mongol forces rallied. Mandukhai Khatun and Dayan Khan took advantage of Oirat disunity and weakness and brought Oirats back under Mongolian rule. In doing so, he regained control of

2214-607: The Gelugpa sect from its enemies, and the Torghuts formed the Kalmyk Khanate in the lower Volga region. After encamping, the Oirats began to identify themselves as "Kalmyk." This named was supposedly given to them by their Muslim neighbors and later used by the Russians to describe them. The Oirats used this name in their dealings with outsiders, viz., their Russian and Muslim neighbors. But they continued to refer to themselves by their tribal, clan, or other internal affiliations. The name Kalmyk, however, wasn't immediately accepted by all of

2296-467: The Golden Horde period. Later, Nogais were transplanted and replaced with Kalmyks . More recently, this area was settled by Tatars, Chuvash and Russians, who erected defensive walls to guard the southern border. Since the khanate was established, Tatar Cossack troops defended the khanate from the Nogais. Russian sources indicate that at least five languages were used in the Kazan khanate. The first and foremost

2378-557: The Great executed influential nobles from among them. Approximately five-sixths of the Torghut followed Ubashi Khan. Most of the Khoshut, Choros, and Khoid also accompanied the Torghut on their journey to Dzungaria. The Dörbet Oirat, in contrast, elected not to go at all. Catherine the Great asked the Russian army, Bashkirs, and Kazakh Khanate to stop all migrants. Beset by Kazakh raids, thirst and starvation, approximately 85,000 Kalmyks died on their way to Dzungaria. After failing to stop

2460-679: The Kazan khan. In July 1487, Grand Duke Ivan III of Moscow occupied Kazan and seated a puppet leader, Möxämmädämin , on the Kazan throne. After that, the Kazan Khanate became a protectorate of Moscow, and Russian merchants were allowed to trade freely throughout its territory. Supporters of a union between the Ottoman Empire and the Crimean Khanate tried to exploit the population's grievances to provoke revolts (in 1496, 1500, and 1505), but with negligible results. In 1521, Kazan emerged from

2542-445: The Khanate had to pay the yasaq . The Khanate was divided into 5 daruğa : Alat, Arça, Gäreç, Cöri and Nuğay. The term daruğa translates as "direction". They replaced the "duchies" that the khanate originated from. Some feudal lords sporadically asserted independence from Kazan, but such attempts would be promptly suppressed. The military of the khanate consisted of armament and men from the darughas and subject lands, khan guards, and

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2624-634: The Mongol homeland and restored the hegemony of the Eastern Mongols. After the death of Dayan in 1543, the Oirats and the Khalkhas resumed their conflict. The Oirat forces thrust eastward, but Dayan's youngest son, Geresenz, was given command of the Khalkha forces and drove the Oirats to Uvs Lake in northwest Mongolia. In 1552, after the Oirats once again challenged the Khalkha, Altan Khan swept up from Inner Mongolia with Tümed and Ordos cavalry units, pushing elements of various Oirat tribes from Karakorum to

2706-561: The Muslim towns and villages located along the Syr Darya river. As a result, the Torghuts established a trading relationship with the newly established outposts of the Tsarist government whose expansion into and exploration of Siberia was motivated mostly by the desire to profit from trade with Asia . The Khoshut , by contrast, were the easternmost Oirat, encamped near the Lake Zaysan area and

2788-525: The Oirat Khan and the Oirat nobility. In that respect, the Russian Empire treated the Oirats as it did the Cossacks. The provision of monetary payments and dry goods, however, did not stop the mutual raiding, and, in some instances, both sides failed to fulfill its promises . Another significant incentive the Russian Empire provided to the Oirats was tariff-free access to the markets of Russian border towns, where

2870-560: The Oirat caused dissension among the tribes and their Chief Tayishis who were independent minded but also highly regarded leaders themselves. This dissension reputedly caused Kho Orluk to move the Torghut tribe and elements of the Dörbet tribe westward to the Volga region where his descendants formed the Kalmyk Khanate. In the east, Güshi Khan took part of the Khoshut to the Tsaidam and Qinghai regions in

2952-527: The Oirat tribes in the lower Volga region. As late as 1761, the Khoshut and Dzungars (refugees from the Manchu Empire) referred to themselves and the Torghuts exclusively as Oirats. The Torghuts, by contrast, used the name Kalmyk for themselves as well as the Khoshut and Dzungars. Generally, European scholars have identified all western Mongolians collectively as Kalmyks, regardless of their location ( Ramstedt , 1935: v–vi). Such scholars (e.g. Sebastian Muenster) have relied on Muslim sources who traditionally used

3034-431: The Oirats became subjects of the Tsar, such allegiance by the Oirats was deemed to be nominal. In reality, the Oirats governed themselves pursuant to a document known as the "Great Code of the Nomads" ( Iki Tsaadzhin Bichig ). The Code was promulgated in 1640 by them, their brethren in Dzungaria and some of the Khalkha who all gathered near the Tarbagatai Mountains in Dzungaria to resolve their differences and to unite under

3116-461: The Oirats were permitted to barter their herds and the items they obtained from Asia and their Muslim neighbors in exchange for Russian goods. Trade also occurred with neighboring Turkic tribes under Russian control, such as the Tatars and the Bashkirs. Intermarriage became common with such tribes. This trading arrangement provided substantial benefits, monetary and otherwise, to the Oirat tayishis, noyons and zaisangs. Fred Adelman described this era as

3198-519: The Republic of Kalmykia, Russia ( N  = 162,740 ) include Torguts, Derbets and Buzavas, together with a smaller group called Khoshuts, who live in just two villages of Kalmykia. Up until today the Kalmyks have retained their distinguished sub-ethnic groups, being quite separated from their geographical neighbours in Russia and northeast Caucasus. The Kalmyks are the only traditionally Buddhist ethnic group who are located inside Europe . Through emigration, small Kalmyk communities have been established in

3280-406: The Russian Empire sought the increased use of Oirat cavalry in support of its military campaigns against the Muslim powers in the south, such as Safavid Iran , the Ottoman Empire, the Nogais, the Tatars of Kuban and the Crimean Khanate . Ayuka Khan also waged wars against the Kazakhs, subjugated the Turkmens of the Mangyshlak Peninsula , and made multiple expeditions against the highlanders of

3362-406: The United States, France, Germany, and the Czech Republic. The contemporary Kalmyks are a branch of the Mongolian Oirats , whose ancient grazing-lands spanned present-day parts of Kazakhstan , Russia , Mongolia and China . After the fall of the Mongol-led Yuan dynasty of China in 1368, the Oirats emerged as a formidable foe against the Khalkha Mongols , the Han -led Ming dynasty and

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3444-410: The Western Mongols designated themselves as the Four Oirat . The alliance comprised four major Western Mongol tribes: Khoshut , Choros , Torghut and Dörbet . Collectively, the Four Oirat sought power as an alternative to the Mongols, who were the patrilineal heirs to Genghis Khan . The Four Oirat incorporated neighboring tribes or splinter groups at times, so there was a great deal of fluctuation in

3526-406: The Western Mongols' self-designation as the Four Oirat, the Eastern Mongols began to refer to themselves as the "Forty Mongols", or the "Forty and Four". This means that the Khalkha Mongols claimed to have forty tümen to the four tümen maintained by the Four Oirat. The Oirat alliance was decentralized, informal and unstable. For instance, the Four Oirat did not have a central location from which it

3608-412: The banner of the Gelug school. Although the goal of unification was not met, the summit leaders did ratify the Code, which regulated all aspects of nomadic life. In securing their position, the Oirats became a borderland power, often allying themselves with the Russian Empire against the neighboring Muslim population. During the era of Ayuka Khan , the Oirats rose to political and military prominence as

3690-446: The beginning of 1551 invited a supporter of Tsar Ivan the Terrible , Şahğäli , for the second time. At the same time the lands to the west of the Volga River ( Taw yağı ) were ceded to Russia. Ütämeşgäräy, along with his mother, was sent to a Moscow prison. Şahğäli occupied the Kazan throne until February 1552. Anti-Moscow elements in the Kazan government exiled Şahğäli and invited the Astrakhan prince Yadegar Mokhammad , along with

3772-524: The composition of the alliance, with larger tribes dominating or absorbing the smaller ones. Smaller tribes belonging to the confederation included the Khoits, Zakhchin, Bayids and Khangal. Together, these nomadic tribes roamed the grassy plains of western Inner Asia, between Lake Balkhash in present-day eastern Kazakhstan and Lake Baikal in present-day Russia north of central Mongolia. They pitched their yurts and kept herds of cattle, flocks of sheep, horses, donkeys and camels. Paul Pelliot translated

3854-417: The documents of early Russian colonial administration (Prikaz Kazanskogo Dvortsa) were all destroyed during the Time of Troubles . During the reign of Ulugh Muhammad and his son Maxmud, Kazan forces raided Muscovy and its subject lands several times. Vasily II of Moscow engaged in the Muscovite War of Succession against his cousins, was defeated in a battle near Suzdal , and was forced to pay ransom to

3936-448: The dominance of Moscow, concluding a mutual aid treaty with the Astrakhan Khanate , the Crimean Khanate and the Nogay Horde . The combined forces of khan Muhamed Giray and his Crimean allies then attacked Muscovy. The reinforcement of Crimea displeased the pro-Moscow elements of the Kazan Khanate, and some of these noblemen provoked a revolt in 1545. The result was the deposition of Safa Giray . A Moscow supporter, Şahğäli , occupied

4018-587: The dynamic leadership of Erdeni Batur, the Dzungars stopped the expansion of the first Altan Khan and began planning the resurrection of the Four Oirat under the Dzungar banner. In furtherance of such plans, Erdeni Batur designed and built a capital city called Kubak-sari on the Emil River near the modern city of Tacheng . During his attempt to build a nation, Erdeni Batur encouraged diplomacy, commerce and farming. He also sought to acquire modern weaponry and build small industry, such as metal works, to supply his military with weapons. The attempted unification of

4100-434: The era of Ayuka Khan, the Kalmyk Khanate reached its peak of military and political power. The Khanate experienced economic prosperity from free trade with Russian border towns, China, Tibet and with their Muslim neighbors. During this era, Ayuka Khan also kept close contacts with his Oirat kinsmen in Dzungaria, as well as the Dalai Lama in Tibet. Historically, Oirat identified themselves by their respective sub-group names. In

4182-479: The flight, Catherine abolished the Kalmyk Khanate, transferring all governmental powers to the governor of Astrakhan. The title of Khan was abolished. The highest native governing office remaining was the Vice- Khan , who also was recognized by the government as the highest ranking Kalmyk prince. By appointing the Vice-Khan, the Russian Empire was now permanently the decisive force in Kalmyk government and affairs. After seven months of travel, only one-third (66,073) of

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4264-424: The last Kalmyk Khan, decided to return his people to their ancestral homeland, Dzungaria, and restore the Dzungar Khanate and Mongolian independence. As C.D Barkman notes, "It is quite clear that the Torghuts had not intended to surrender the Chinese, but had hoped to lead an independent existence in Dzungaria." Ubashi sent 30,000 cavalry in the first year of the Russo-Turkish War (1768–74) to gain weaponry before

4346-421: The lower Volga region south of Saratov and north of the Caspian Sea on both banks of the Volga River . The Torghut were led by their taishi, Kho Orluk . They were the largest Oirat tribe to migrate, bringing along nearly the entire tribe. The second-largest group was the Dörbet Oirats under their taishi, Dalai Batur. Together they moved west through southern Siberia and the southern Ural Mountains , avoiding

4428-421: The majority of the native inhabitants, the Nogai Horde . Large groups of Nogais fled southeast to the northern Caucasian plain and west to the Black Sea steppe, lands claimed by the Crimean Khanate , itself a vassal or ally of the Ottoman Empire . Smaller groups of Nogais sought the protection of the Russian garrison at Astrakhan . The remaining nomadic tribes became vassals of the Oirats. The Kalmyks battled

4510-428: The mid-17th century, when bestowal of the title of Khan was transferred to the Dalai Lama , all Mongol tribes recognized this claim and the political prestige attached to it. Although the Oirats could not assert this claim prior to the mid-17th century, they did in fact have a close connection to Genghis Khan by virtue of the fact that Genghis Khan 's brother, Qasar , was in command of the Khoshut tribe. In response to

4592-419: The migration. The 8th Dalai Lama was contacted to request his blessing and to set the date of departure. After consulting the astrological chart, he set a return date, but at the moment of departure, the weakening of the ice on the Volga River permitted only those Kalmyks (about 200,000 people) on the eastern bank to leave. Those 100,000–150,000 people on the western bank were forced to stay behind and Catherine

4674-414: The more direct route that would have taken them through the heart of the territory of their enemy, the Kazakhs. En route, they raided Russian settlements and Kazakh and Bashkir encampments. Many theories have been advanced to explain the reasons for the migration. One generally accepted theory is that there may have been discontent among the Oirat tribes, which arose from the attempt by Kharkhul, taishi of

4756-408: The name "Torghut" as garde de jour . He wrote that the Torghuts owed their name either to the memory of the guard of Genghis Khan or, as descendants of the Keraites , to the old garde de jour . This was documented among the Keraites in The Secret History of the Mongols before Genghis Khan took over the region. The Four Oirat was a political entity formed by the four major Oirat tribes. During

4838-426: The one hand and Cossacks and Bashkirs on the other. A few Kalmyk nobles became russified and nominally Christian who went to Moscow in hope of securing Russian help for their political ambitions on the Kalmyk steppe. Russian subsidies to Kalmyk nobles, however, became an effective means of political control only later. Yet gradually the Kalmyk princes came to require Russian support and to abide in Russian policy. During

4920-416: The only Mongolian -speaking people living in Europe , residing in the easternmost part of the European Plain . This dry steppe area, west of the lower Volga River, known among the nomads as Itil/Idjil, a basin on the northwest shore of the Caspian Sea, was the most suitable land for nomadic pastures. Itil or Idjil, the ancient name of the Volga River, written in the archaic Oirat script, means exactly that:

5002-488: The original group reached Balkhash Lake , the western border of Qing China . This migration became the topic of The Revolt of the Tartars , by Thomas De Quincey . The Qing shifted the Kalmyks to five different areas to prevent their revolt and influential leaders of the Kalmyks soon died. The migrant Kalmyks became known as Torghut in Qing China. The Torghut were coerced by the Qing into giving up their nomadic lifestyle and to take up sedentary agriculture instead as part of

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5084-445: The people of Central Asia , the Caucasus , and Russia . In the 16th century, Russia became the main trading partner of Kazan, and the khanate shared the economic system of Moscow. The major markets were the Taşayaq Bazaar in Kazan and the Markiz Isle fair on the Volga River. Agricultural landownership was based on the söyurğal and hereditary estates. The khan governed the state. He based his actions on decisions and consultations of

5166-405: The population comprised qara xalıq (black people), a free Muslim population who lived on state land. The feudal lands were mostly settled by çura (serfs). Prisoners of war were usually sold to Turkey or into Central Asia . Occasionally they were sold within the Khanate as slaves ( qol ) and sometimes were settled on feudal lands to become çura later. The Muslim and non-Muslim population of

5248-407: The population continued to resist Russian rule until 1556. Rebel governments were formed in Chalem and Mishatamaq , but as the Nogays under Ğäli Äkräm often raided the agricultural population, the coalition went to ruin. After a brutal repression against the Kazan rebels, their commanders were executed. By some estimates, the population of the former khanate declined by several thousand during

5330-440: The products thereof for such nomad necessities as brick tea, grain, textiles and metal articles, at Astrakhan, Tsaritsyn and Saratov. This was the kind of exchange relationship between nomads and urban craftsmen and traders in which the Kalmyks traditionally engaged. Political contacts consisted of a series of treaty arrangements for the nominal allegiance of the Kalmyk Khans to Russia, and the cessation of mutual raiding by Kalmyks on

5412-402: The setbacks, the Oirats would continue their campaigns against the Altan Khanate, trying to unseat Sholoi Ubashi Khuntaiji from Dzungaria. The continuous, back-and-forth nature of the struggle, which defined this period, is captured in the Oirat epic song "The Rout of Mongolian Sholoi Ubashi Khuntaiji", recounting the Oirat victory over the Altan Khan of the Khalkha in 1587. At the beginning of

5494-411: The status of this proto-state, the founder of the khanate was Ulugh Muhammad , who assumed the title of khan and usurped the throne of Kazan with some help from local nobility in 1437 or 1438. It has been suggested that the transfer of power from the local Bolgar dynasty to Muhammad was finalized by his son Maxmud in 1445. Throughout its history, the khanate was prone to civil turmoil and struggles for

5576-403: The support of lesser noyons, who were also called taishi. These minor noyons controlled divisions of the tribe ( ulus ) and were politically and economically independent of the chief tayishi. Chief taishis sought to influence and dominate the chief taishis of the other tribes, causing intertribal rivalry, dissension and periodic skirmishes. Under the leadership of Esen, Chief Taishi of the Choros,

5658-420: The territory of the former Volga Bulgaria between 1438 and 1552. The khanate covered contemporary Tatarstan , Mari El , Chuvashia , Mordovia , and parts of Udmurtia and Bashkortostan ; its capital was the city of Kazan . It was one of the successor states of the Golden Horde (Mongol state), and it came to an end when it was conquered by the Tsardom of Russia . The territory of the Khanate comprised

5740-405: The throne. Following that year, Moscow organized several campaigns to impose control over Kazan, but the attempts were unsuccessful. With the help of the Nogays , Safa Giray returned to the throne. He executed 75 noblemen, and the rest of his opposition escaped to Russia. In 1549 he died, and his 3-year-old son Ütämeşgäräy was recognized as khan. His regent and the de facto ruler of the khanate

5822-412: The throne. The khans were replaced 19 times in 115 years. There were a total of fifteen reigning khans , some ascending the throne multiple times. The Khan was often elected from the Gengizides by vernacular nobility and even by the citizens themselves. Regarding the history of the khanate, there is a scarcity of sources. Not only no single document of the khanate survived the Russian conquest, but even

5904-489: The troops of the nobility. The number of soldiers was never constant, ranging from 20,000 to 60,000 in number. Often, troops from Nogay , the Crimea and Russia also served the Kazan khans. Firearms (arquebuse) were used for defending the walls of Kazan. In general, the culture of the Kazan Khanate descended from that of Volga Bulgaria . Cultural elements of the Golden Horde were also present in noble circles. A large part of

5986-478: The urban population was literate. Large libraries were present in mosques and madrassahs . Kazan became a center of science and theology. Although Islamic influence predominated, lay literature also developed. The most prominent Old Tatar language poets were Möxämmädyar , Ömmi Kamal , Möxämmädämin , Ğärifbäk , and Qolşärif . Möxämmädyar renovated the traditions of Kazan poetry, and his verses were very popular. The city of Bolghar retained its position as

6068-653: The wars. The administration, known as the Kazan Palace's Office undertook the forced Russification and Christianization of the Tatars and other peoples. The term Tsardom of Kazan was in use until 1708 when the Kazan Governorate was formed. The Khanate's urban population produced clay ware, wood and metal handiworks, leather, armor, ploughs and jewels. The major cities included Qazan , Arça , Cükätaw , Qaşan , Çallı, Alat and Cöri. The urban population also traded with

6150-545: The west banks of the Volga River. The Tsardom of Russia was not ready to colonize the area and was in no position to prevent the Oirats from encamping in the region, but it had a direct political interest in ensuring that the Oirats would not become allied with its Turkic-speaking neighbors. The Kalmyks became Russian allies and a treaty to protect the southern Russian border was signed between the Kalmyk Khanate and Russia. The Oirats quickly consolidated their position by expelling

6232-465: The word "Kalmyk" to describe western Mongolians in a derogatory manner and the western Mongols of China and Mongolia have regarded that name as a term of abuse . Instead, they use the name Oirat or they go by their respective tribal names, e.g., Khoshut, Dörbet, Choros, Torghut, Khoit, Bayid, Mingat, etc. . Over time, the descendants of the Oirat migrants in the lower Volga region embraced the name "Kalmyk" irrespective of their locations, viz., Astrakhan,

6314-540: Was governed by former steppe Tatars. Some Mishar duchies were never controlled from Kazan and instead gravitated towards the Qasim Khanate or Muscovite Russia . Most of the khanate territory was covered by forests, and only the southern part adjoined the steppe . The main population of the steppes were the nomadic Manghites, also known as Nogais, who sometimes recognized the rule of the Kazan khan, but more often raided agricultural Tatars and Chuvash, as they had done in

6396-456: Was governed, and it was not governed by a central figure for most of its existence. The four Oirats did not establish a single military or a unified monastic system. Lastly, it was not until 1640 that the Four Oirat adopted uniform customary laws. As pastoralist nomads, the Oirats were organized at the tribal level, where each tribe was ruled by a noyon or prince who also functioned as the chief taishi "chieftain". The chief taishi governed with

6478-400: Was his mother Söyembikä . The administration of the ulan Qoşçaq gained a degree of independence under her rule. At that time Safa Giray's relatives (including Devlet I Giray ) were in Crimea . Their invitation to the throne of Kazan was vitiated by a large portion of vernacular nobility. Under Qoşçaq's government relations with Russia continued to worsen. A group of disgruntled noblemen at

6560-503: Was imprisoned and the population was slaughtered. After the fall of Kazan, territories such as Udmurtia and Bashkortostan joined Russia without a conflict. The administration of the khanate was wiped out; pro-Moscow and neutral nobles kept their lands, but others were executed. Tatars were then resettled far away from rivers, roads and Kazan. Free lands were settled by Russians and sometimes by pro-Russian Tatars. Orthodox bishops such as Germogen forcibly baptized many Tatars. Part of

6642-710: Was the Tatar language , including the Middle dialect of the Kazan Tatars and the Western dialect of the Mishars. Its written form ( Old Tatar language ) was the favoured language of the state. The Chuvash language was a descendant of the Bolgar language , spoken by the pagan Chuvash people . The Bolgar language also strongly influenced the Middle dialect of Tatar language. The other three were probably

6724-456: Was the state religion. The local feudal nobility consisted of ethnic Bulgars, but the court and bodyguard of the Kazan khans were composed of steppe Tatar ( Kipchaks , and later of Nogais ) that lived in Kazan. According to the Ginghizide tradition, the local Turkic tribes were also called Tatars by the steppe nobility and, later, by the Russian elite. Part of the higher nobility hailed from

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