Jewish Kaganate... a strange and unexpected formulation, isn’t it? We are used to talking about the “Khazar Khaganate”, but did the Jews really have such a concept – i.e. among the Jews?
Here we should start by clarifying one misunderstanding. The fact is that “Jews” is not an ethnic term at all, i.e. this word is not the name of a people. The mistake is due to the fact that we are accustomed to saying “Jews”, meaning “Jews”, but this is incorrect: the ethnic term is “Jews”, and “Jews” is a designation of religion. True, this mistake can be called natural: Judaism, like most ancient religions, is “attached” to the Jewish people. An important point in this religion is the idea that the Jewish people are chosen by God. But in principle, there are no obstacles to representatives of other nations, and even nations as a whole, becoming Jews. This is exactly what the Khazars did - the same Khazars against whom the prophetic Oleg was going to “take revenge.”
Initially, the Khazars were a nomadic tribe. In the middle of the 7th century. They defeated the Bulgars, some of whom migrated across the Danube, and the rest recognized the supremacy of the Khazars. The ruler of the Khazars takes the title of kagan. In the nomadic hierarchy it was highest title- “Khan of Khans.” From this time on, we can already talk about a state - the Khazar Kaganate.
This state included the territory of the Ciscaucasia, the Middle and Lower Volga region, the northwestern part of modern Kazakhstan, the east of Crimea, the Azov region and the steppe to the Dnieper River. Of course, initially this state was pagan, but in the second half of the 8th century. A remarkable event concerning the religious life of the Khazars takes place here.
According to legend, a dispute was held between adherents of three religions - Christianity, Islam and Judaism... remember? "The Tale of Bygone Years", Prince Vladimir receives clergy different religions, each of which describes the merits of his faith, and the prince, weighing all their advantages and disadvantages, decides which religion to introduce in Rus'... It is difficult to say whether there was such a dispute - both with us and the Khazars - but there was definitely a choice, since it was inevitable: the development of the state requires a unifying principle, a pagan religion with its ancestral and tribal deities cannot become one... to unify the country, a monotheistic religion is needed, the question is which one.
What gave Rus' the preference given by Prince Vladimir to Christianity is known. If we talk about the short term, we were talking about an alliance with Byzantium - the most powerful state that era. But the Khazar authorities relied on another monotheistic religion - Judaism.
Why Judaism? Most likely, this was due to the fact that a large number of Jews lived in the territory that the Khazars controlled, including the territory of modern Dagestan, where they came from. Scientists are still arguing how deeply Judaism penetrated into Khazar society - whether only the “power elite” accepted it or ordinary people did it too, how it interacted with Khazar paganism...
But in general we can say that it was not the right step. The idea of the chosenness of Jews occupies too large a place in Judaism so that it could become a unifying principle for another people. And the Jews at that time had long lost their statehood. The main task of Judaism was to preserve identity while living among other peoples, and not to strengthen the state - and Judaism failed to cope with this task. In the middle of the 10th century. The Khazar Kaganate as a state ceased to exist.
By the time the Jews arrived in Khazaria, white and black Khazars lived quite amicably in this provincial state. White Khazars- This is the ruling caste of professional warriors from the Slavic-Aryans. Black Khazars- these are Turkic tribes who came to the lower reaches of the Ra River (Itil - Volga) from the depths of Asia, as refugees from Ancient China. They left their homeland following the Dinglin tribes, their allies in the struggle for independence against the ancient Chinese. In principle, the black Khazars are representatives of yellow peoples with an admixture of black ones. They had pitch black hair, black eyes and dark skin. This is what gave rise to the name – Black Khazars, because in comparison with the fair-haired and blue-eyed Slavic-Aryans, they looked very dark.
One way or another, Khazaria existed as a multinational state-province in which Whites and Yellows coexisted peacefully. Just like with all your neighbors. The Great Silk Road passed through the Khazar Khaganate, this is exactly what the Persian Jews from the tribe of Simon liked very much.
Jews from Persia and Byzantium
First, Mazdakite Jews appeared in Khazaria, and very soon they were joined by anti-Mazdakite Jews, expelled from Byzantine Empire.
Mazdakite Jews. At the beginning of the 6th century AD. In the Persian Empire, under the vigilant leadership of Exarch Mar-Zutra, the Jews organized the first revolution under the slogans of Freedom, Equality and Brotherhood (these events are better known as the uprising of the Vizier Mazdak). The ruling caste was destroyed - the White Persians - the descendants of the Slavic-Aryans, who created Persian Empire. They were declared "enemies of the people" and their wealth was expropriated, which was divided between the poor Jews and the Jewish leaders. But such “justice” and “equality” were not appreciated by the Persian poor and the remnants of the Persian nobility. They organized a counter-revolution, and in Summer 6038 from S.M.Z.H. (529 AD) Kavad was overthrown, and the vizier Mazdak was brutally executed, along with his supporters who could be found. However, the Mazdakite Jews managed to leave the “country of social equality and brotherhood” they had created, along with the looted wealth of the Persian nobility, and settled in Khazaria.
Anti-Mazdakite Jews- These are the rich Jews of Persia who opposed Mazdak. But “for some reason” the Jewish revolutionaries did not touch them, but simply expelled them from Persia along with their wealth. Anti-Mazdakite Jews asked for refuge from the “Persian Revolution” from the emperor of the Roman Empire (Byzantine Empire). The Romans accepted the anti-Mazdakite Jews and, it would seem, the latter should at least be grateful to the Roman Empire. But the Jewish “gratitude” turned out to be very strange:
“The Jews who found salvation in Byzantium should have helped the Byzantines. But they helped in a rather strange way. Making secret agreements with the Arabs, the Jews opened the gates of the cities at night and let in Arab warriors. They slaughtered the men and sold the women and children into slavery. The Jews, buying up slaves cheaply, resold them at a considerable profit for themselves. The Greeks could not like this. But, deciding not to make new enemies for themselves, they limited themselves to inviting the Jews to leave. Thus, a second group of Jews appeared in the lands of the Khazars - the Byzantine one."
Judean Khazar Khaganate
Main trade routes through the Khazar Khaganate:
1. The Silk Road from China to Northern Europe, the Middle East and Africa (through the Roman Empire).
2. Trade route from Great Biarmia and Siberia to the South, through Constantinople to the Middle East and Africa.
3. Trade route from Africa through the Middle East to the North and East.
4. Trade route from northern European countries.
The next Night of Svarog was approaching - a time desired by the Jews, when they could easily “press” the necessary “buttons” of human animal nature and, manipulating this, achieve their cherished goal - the accumulation of capital. That's why to 7th century AD first the Mazdakite Jews, and then the anti-Mazdakite Jews, came to Khazaria “by chance.” “Poor” wanderers without a homeland began to implement their next grandiose plan.
The first “echelon” in the Jewish offensive against the still unsuspecting Khazaria was Institute of Jewish Brides. The Jews gave away their most beautiful sisters, daughters, and sometimes their own wives, high nobility Khazaria as wives, concubines or sex slaves. Jewish women gave birth to children for the Khazar nobility, who, according to Jewish laws, were Jews, were raised by their mothers, like Jews, ACCORDING TO JUDIAN TRADITIONS, but the situation in social system The Khazars inherited from their fathers. In Khazaria, as elsewhere in the lands of the Slavic-Aryan Empire, nationality was determined by father. Thus, among the Khazar nobility, children were born from Jewish women who received after their fathers not only property, but also THEIR POSITION. This is exactly what the “wise men of Zion” needed. Children born from mixed marriages with Jewish women occupied a high position in the Khazar hierarchy, and contributed to their relatives in obtaining trading rights.
Gradually, there were so many Jews on their mother’s side among the highest nobility of Khazaria that they began to directly interfere with the Khazar traditions. First in Summer 6239 from S.M.Z.H. ( 730 AD) one of the leaders named Bulan restored Judaism among his fellow Jews, and then in Summer 6308 from S.M.Z.H. ( 799 AD) a direct descendant of Bulan, the Khazar military leader Obadiah, carried out a coup d'etat and turned the Kagan into an obedient puppet. Power passed completely into the hands of the Jewish king(bek), and Judaism became state religion Khazaria. Obadiah, with the help of mercenaries - the Pechenegs and the Guzes - unleashed a bloody civil war. After a long civil war with the invaders, the Khazar Turks were defeated. Some of them were slaughtered along with their wives and children, the other part left their homeland and settled on the territory of modern Hungary. After the victory, the Khazar Jews imposed a heavy tribute on ordinary Khazars, turned into real powerless slaves, prohibited, on pain of death, from having weapons and learning how to use them. IN Once again The Jews “thanked” the people who had provided them with refuge in a very unique way.
“The Jews, unlike the Khazars, by the 9th century. actively involved in the then international trade system. The caravans that went from China to the West belonged mainly to Jews. And trade with China in the 8th-9th centuries. was the most profitable occupation. Tang Dynasty, seeking to replenish the empty due to the content big army treasury, allowed the export of silk from the country. The Jewish caravans went to China for silk... Then the caravans crossed the Yaik River and went to the Volga. Here tired travelers rest, plentiful food and entertainment awaited. Beautiful Volga fish and fruits, milk and wine, musicians and beauties delighted the caravaners. And the Jewish traders who ruled the economy of the Volga region accumulated treasures, silks, and slaves. Then the caravans went further, ending up in Western Europe: Bavaria, Languedoc, Provence, and, having crossed the Pyrenees, ended long haul among the Muslim sultans of Cordoba and Andalusia..."
* L.N. Gumilev "From Rus' to Russia". Chapter II. Slavs and their enemies.
In Summer 6472 (964 AD) Prince Svyatoslav defeated the Judean Khazar Khaganate. The capital of Khazaria - Itil - was destroyed to the ground, the key fortresses of Khazaria were taken. The Jews left the borders of modern Russia. The lands of the Bulgars, Burtases, Yases and Kasogs, dependent on the Kaganate, were also crushed. But as an inheritance from the Khazar Kaganate the Jews were left with trading posts, which by the time the Kaganate was defeated, in most cases had already turned into shadow states within states and had a powerful influence on the economy and politics of the countries in which they were located.
One way or another, it was thanks to Svyatoslav, Dark forces could not completely enslave the Russian land at the very beginning of the Night of Svarog.
*Based on materials from books by Levashov N.V.
The Savirs were defeated and, together with part of the Khazars, resettled in Transcaucasia. A fragment of the Savir union continued to exist in Dagestan, where it was later known as the “Huns”.
The rise of the Khazars is associated with history, with the rulers of which the Khazar rulers were probably related. Altai Turks created in a huge empire, which soon split into two parts. In the 2nd half. The orbit of the Western Turkic Kaganate reached the Caspian-Black Sea steppes.
The Khazars as a significant military force were first mentioned in connection with the Iranian-Byzantine war of 602-628, in which the Khazar ruler Dzhebukagan became the main conductor of the Turkic-Byzantine alliance directed against. The Khazar army plundered (the territory of modern) and, uniting with the Byzantines, took it by storm.
However, resources warring parties were incomparable. The Arab commander Merwan ibn Muhammad (the future caliph), at the head of an army of 120 thousand, suddenly invaded Khazaria simultaneously through Derbent and Daryal. Troops stormed the Khazar capital of Semender. The Kagan fled into the depths of his possessions. The Arabs, pursuing him, went further north than ever before: all the way to the “Slavic River,” apparently, or the Volga. As a result, the Khazar army was defeated, and the Kagan was forced to ask for peace. In exchange for retaining the throne, he promised to convert to Islam, but this procedure appears to have been nominal.
The Arabs did not gain a foothold in the North Caucasus, and after their departure, Khazaria remained an independent state. Soon, turmoil arose again in the Caliphate, as a result of which the Abassid dynasty came to power, refusing further expansion to the north. In the 2nd half. VIII century after a twenty-five-year break, the Khazars launched two more raids into Transcaucasia, in 762-764 and 799. After which their interference in the affairs of the region ceased. Thus, the Khazar Kaganate played the role of a barrier, which, firstly, physically stopped the Arab advance into Eastern Europe, and secondly, helped Byzantium survive.
Full article: Arab-Khazar wars
The geopolitical consequence of the Arab onslaught was the movement of the population of Khazaria from the dangerous Caucasian borderland to the interior regions - the Don region, where Alan tribes settled, and. A new Khazar capital arose in the lower reaches of the Volga - which soon turned into a large shopping mall. Dagestan with its old capital has turned from a central region into southern outskirts Khazaria. Probably, in line with these same processes, the appearance of Bulgarians and Savirs occurred in the Middle Volga region and, where in the middle. arose . The establishment of Khazar dependence over the region is often associated with a reorientation of attention to the north, although there is no news about the exact date of this event.
The proximity to the Byzantine possessions on the Crimean Peninsula led to the participation of the Khazars in the politics of the Empire. OK. The deposed emperor, who was in exile in Russia, turned to the kagan for help. Kagan gave him his daughter as his wife and promised help. However, then representatives of the current emperor persuaded the Kagan to change his decision and kill Justinian. The disgraced emperor, having learned about the conspiracy, fled to the Danube Bulgarians and, with their help, returned to power. Fearing his wrath, the inhabitants of Kherson voluntarily came under the protection of the Khazars, and a Khazar governor appeared in the city, while maintaining self-government. As a result, Justinian was again overthrown, and the Kherson exile, Vardan Phillipik, became emperor with the support of the Khazars. The allied relationship between the two powers was sealed by the marriage between the heir to the Byzantine throne (the future Constantine V) and the Kagan's daughter, the princess, named Irina at baptism. The Khazars suppressed the uprising in Gothia (the region of the Crimean Mountains), putting its instigator - the local bishop - in prison. Khazarian control over Eastern Crimea remained until about the middle. ., and over Taman () until the fall of the Kaganate.
Exclusively important factor For the history of the Khazar Kaganate, it turned out that a large number of communities lived in the territory it controlled, including the homeland of the Khazars, Dagestan. Approximately one of the Khazar princes - moved to. Apparently, this strengthened the position of his clan, while the position of the ruling pagan dynasty began to deteriorate due to a reduction in military spoils and the inability to continue the traditional policy of conquest. In the beginning. . a descendant of Bulan - took the second post in the state after the Kagan and concentrated real power in his hands. From that moment on, a system of dual rule was established in Khazaria, in which the country continued to be nominally headed by kagans from the old royal family, but real governance was carried out on their behalf by beks from the clan. It is very likely that the establishment of a new order was accompanied by internecine clashes. Part of the Khazars, known as Kavars, rebelled against ruling dynasty, and after the suppression of the rebellion moved to. The son of Obadiah, Hezekiah, and the grandson, Manasseh, ruled short enough to have time to transfer the throne to Obadiah’s brother, Chanukah, behind whose line he remained until the fall of the Kaganate.
Full article: Adoption of Judaism by the Khazars
From this moment on, the politics of Khazaria reoriented from conquests for the development of international transit trade. However, the foreign policy situation for the Kaganate was unfavorable. A new wave began, and new Asian nomads began to cross the Volga. The first to be pushed out were . In they occupied the Black Sea region. It is unknown to what extent the Khazars’ position in this process was voluntary or forced, but the Hungarians recognized their suzerainty. The Hungarian leader Levedia was confirmed by the Khazar Kagan and married a noble Khazar woman. After this, the Hungarians took part in the Khazar wars. The Hungarians were forced to withdraw under attacks, which in turn were pressed by the Guzes, and those by them. As a result, the Khazars lost control over the Black Sea steppes for the first time, and communication with the Crimean possessions became difficult. It is known that the Khazar kings periodically made campaigns against the Pechenegs.
A new enemy appeared among the Khazars with the formation of. The question of the so-called, which was first mentioned in the sources under. The title of Kagan was later worn Kyiv princes, and his walk in is usually regarded as a claim to equality with the Khazars. Be that as it may, the squads that penetrated into Eastern Europe began to successfully challenge the hegemony of the Khazars over the Slavic tribes. (), () and () were freed from the Khazars.
Full article: Russian-Khazar relations
Responding to the challenges that arose, the Khazars, with the help of Byzantium, built a series of fortresses on the northeastern borders. The kagan and bek turned to the emperor with a request for help in the construction of the fortress. The fortress was located on the left bank of the Don and became the main stronghold of the Khazars in the region. In addition to Sarkel, as archaeological data indicate, a network of similar fortifications was created along the tributaries of the Don.
Until a certain time, the aggression of Russian squads was successfully redirected by the Khazars to Transcaucasia. For a share of the spoils, the Khazars allowed the Russian fleet into the Caspian Sea, and when the thinned army returned, they attacked and killed it. In the 30s one of the Russian leaders Helgu (possibly prince or), at the instigation of Byzantium, attacked the Khazar outpost on the Taman Peninsula. The Khazar army under the command of a Jew defeated the Rus and plundered the Byzantine possessions in the Crimea. After this defeat, the Rus turned their arms towards Byzantium (). And then they again made a raid in Transcaucasia (). Unlike the previous raid, which was accompanied by simple robbery, this time the Russians moved on to the systematic conquest of the territory, but were unable to gain a foothold for long.
Full article: Campaigns of the Rus in Transcaucasia
An unfavorable situation was developing for Khazaria and southern border, where independent Islamic ones arose in place of the Caliphate. To the beginning V. the entire Southern Caspian region was united as part of the Samanid state. The new power became an active promoter of Islam. Under her influence, the religion of Muhammad began to spread among the Ghuz and Karluks in Central Asia, and then in Volga Bulgaria. Khazaria found itself surrounded by Islam, which was doubly dangerous due to the presence of a strong Islamic party at the court of the beks. In -, the Khazars, in alliance with local Dagestan associations, made several campaigns against Derbent. Relations with the Muslim world formally remained peaceful until the fall of the Kaganate, and then the Samanid vassal subjugated Khazaria for some time.
The dynamically developing Volga Bulgaria also sought to free itself from Khazar domination. Its rulers converted to Islam, counting on the help of their fellow believers. The ambassador of the Caliph of Baghdad visited this country.
On the eve of its death, the Khazar Kaganate managed to establish relations with the Cordoba Caliphate. The latter's minister and the Khazar king Joseph exchanged letters. From the surviving letter of Joseph (c.) it is clear that he did not consider the situation of his country catastrophic and still considered himself as the ruler of a vast territory from Khorezm to the Don.
Played a decisive role in the death of Khazaria Old Russian state. The prince freed the last dependent Slavic tribe and the next time he defeated the Khazar army led by the Kagan and captured it. Then, in 965 or, according to other sources, in 968/969, the Rus, in alliance with the Guz, defeated Itil and Semender. This moment is considered the end of the independent Khazar state.
For some time the Rus, apparently, dominated the lower reaches of the Volga. Imperial Courtyard at that time he was hiding somewhere on the islands of the Caspian Sea. After the departure of the Rus, in the Khazar ruler received help from Khorezm (according to other sources) and returned to Itil. In exchange for support, most of the Khazars converted to Islam, and later (after another help) the king himself did this. Prince Vladimir committed new trip against Khazaria and imposed tribute on it. Below it is reported about the embassy of the Khazar Jews to Vladimir with an offer to accept their faith.
The further history of Khazaria is not clearly traced and develops in isolation in the center and former provinces. The Khazars of the Volga region were finally swept away, apparently, in the middle. during the invasion of a new nomadic wave - and. On the site of Itil in the lower reaches of the Volga in - centuries. There was a city called Saksin, inhabited by Guz. In Dagestan, sources do not mention any significant role of the Khazars. Several hundred Khazar families were resettled beyond Derbent on the initiative of local rulers. The Khazars of the Don region (Sarkela) and the Black Sea region fell under Russian rule. Khazar troops were part of the army during his battle with his brother Yaroslav. The last time the Khazars were mentioned in the Russian chronicle was in connection with the actions of the prince, whom they captured and handed over to Byzantium. There is some evidence of the migration of the Khazar Jews to the countries of Central Europe, where they became part of the Jews.
After the fall of the Kaganate, the South Russian steppes fell under the undivided domination of nomads. In the Volga region, the dominant role passed to Volga Bulgaria, and in the North Caucasus - to Alania. Once again under one authority, this territory was united as part of the Golden Horde.
Full article: Fall of the Khazar Khaganate
State structure
Initially, Khazaria was a typical nomadic khanate. She inherited political traditions and titles from the Turkic Kaganate. He was at the head of the state. Formally, he had full military and administrative power, but did not have an apparatus to impose his decisions. The position of the Khagans depended, first of all, on the ability to successfully obtain military booty and distribute it among the nobility. Another important pillar of their power was sacralization. The Kagan was the head of a pagan cult and was endowed with supernatural abilities in the eyes of his subjects. His power was considered established by Heaven. Only a member of one royal family could become a kagan, power in which was transferred according to the ladder system adopted by the Turks from the older brother to the younger. It is sometimes believed in retrospect that the Khazars were ruled by the Turkic family of Ashina. K ser. The Kagan family was on the verge of degeneration, and one of its representatives, according to sources, traded at the bazaar.
Belief in the divine power of the ruler led to the fact that in the event of misfortune occurring in the country, he could be blamed for failures and removed. His life was subject to strict regulation; in fact, it could be turned into complete prohibitions. During his enthronement, the Kagan was strangled with a silk cord, and in a semi-conscious state he had to name the number of years of his reign. After this period, he was killed. In the pre-Jewish period, the Kagan dynasty firmly controlled the army and therefore easily avoided sacred restrictions. However, after the rise of another Khazar clan that professed Judaism, the real power came from the second person in the state - the bek. He was called “melech” - king, the Arabs passed on his position as “califa” - literally “deputy” or “malik” - ruler. Power within the new dynasty, obviously under the influence of Judaism, began to be transferred strictly from father to son. In the new system, the kagan retained sacred functions (formally more significant), and all earthly affairs were led by the bek. At the same time, the bek provided ritual honors to the kagan, bordering on humiliation. Entering him, he knelt down and held a burning branch in his hands. The Kagan lived in isolation in his palace, usually leaving only once a year at the head of a solemn procession or in the event of disasters befalling the country. Recognized by neighboring pagan peoples and having unshakable authority among ordinary Khazars, the Khagans served as an important stabilizing factor until the very end of the Khazar state.
Full article: Dual power in Khazaria
The highest class in the state were the Tarkhans - the tribal aristocracy. Among it, the highest stratum was made up of relatives of the royal family, and the rulers of the vassal peoples stood lower in rank. Early Khazar state did not have a specific bureaucracy, but it begins to take shape as the Khazars become familiar with the structure of neighboring highly developed states. In Transcaucasia, the Khazars adopted Sasanian tax practices and installed overseers to monitor artisans and traders. In the Crimean cities, where Khazar control in a number of cases coexisted with Byzantine control, the kagan's governors are known - tuduns, who performed supervisory functions under the local administration. During the Jewish period, significant progress was made in the field of government. There were outposts at key trade routes where special officials collected duties. The capital of the country had a developed judicial system: there were seven judges for each religion (two for monotheistic religions, one for pagans). The judges were subordinate to an appointed royal official. The population of the capital region bore taxes in kind, and foreign-ethnic artisans and merchants were subject to an annual tax.
The territory of Khazaria consisted of several regions, varying in the degree of control by the central government. The core of the country was the Lower Volga region. The Khazars themselves lived here. The migrations of the king and the Khazar nobility passed through this territory. The ruler made an annual tour of the central region, starting in April and ending in September.
Strategic points were controlled directly by the center. They housed Khazar garrisons. Of these, two are the most famous: - the outpost on the Don and - at Kerch Strait. The old Khazar capital in Primorsky Dagestan occupied a special position. The city was inhabited by the Khazars, but was not directly part of the capital region. According to some sources, it had its own ruler, according to others - a relative of the Khazar king - a Jew.
Most of the territory was governed without any administrative intervention. Subordinate peoples: , and others retained their own socio-political structure. They had their own rulers, who were obliged to collect and send tribute to Khazaria, give their daughters to the Kagan's harem and field an army. It is known that the Volga Bulgarians paid a fur skin per house, and the Slavic tribe of Vyatichi paid a shchelyag (silver coin) per plow.
Army
During the era of the Arab-Khazar wars, the main force of Khazar power was the militia. At the request of the Khazars, the dependent peoples deployed military contingents. The number of troops could reach 100-300 thousand people. The backbone of the army was the cavalry. Military tactics were typical for nomads: part of the army hid in ambush and entered the battle at a convenient moment. The Khazars knew how to take cities using siege engines. The army of the Kaganate turned out to be capable of confrontation with the regular Arab army, under the command of the best commanders Caliphate.
Economy
In the early period, the economy was based on nomadic pastoralism and military robbery neighboring countries, later more on agriculture and especially trade. The ancient settled center of Khazaria was Dagestan, where viticulture developed. In - in the coastal regions of Crimea, Taman, in the lower reaches of the Kuban and Don, an important consequence of Khazar domination was the process of settling of nomads on the land.
On a global scale in the 2nd half. - beginning international trade began to rise. Several international trade routes passed through Khazaria. In Eastern Europe, the Volga became the main trade artery, the lower and middle reaches of which were under Khazar control. The Volga route went from the mouth to the Don (via Perevoloka), then to the lands of the Slavs and the countries adjacent to. This path is marked by numerous treasures of Arabic dirhams. Key role From a certain time the Russians began to play it. From the mouth of the Volga, where Itil was located, merchants entered the Caspian Sea and, landing on its southern shores, could travel overland to Baghdad or Central Asia. Archaeological research has discovered the existence of land routes: a chain of caravanserais from Khorezm to the Lower Volga region. Through port cities Crimea Khazaria also participated in the Black Sea trade with Byzantium.
Control over important transit routes led to the fact that the main (but not the only) source of income for Khazaria began to be trade duties. turned into the largest trading point. At the same time, the Khazars themselves retained their traditional nomadic way of life and international trade didn't do it. It was in the hands of the Jewish and Muslim communities. Khazaria was famous as a large market for the resale of slaves. Its own exports included fish glue and sheep.
Khazaria minted its own coins, although the question of the regularity of this process remains open. On the territory of the Khazar Don region, a series of imitations of Arab dirhams with the inscription “land of the Khazars” was discovered. Several coins belong to the 2nd floor. - beginning centuries, the rest - by the 30s. V. A dirham found on the island of Gotland dates back to the same time. On it, instead of the inscription “messenger of God,” there is “messenger of God.”
Religion
Initially, the Khazars adhered to traditional Turkic beliefs. The main place in the pantheon was occupied by the god of the sky. Sacrifices were made to him in sacred groves. Kagan was considered the embodiment of his patronage. He possessed kut - a special vital force that ensured the happiness of the people. The pagan cult of the ruler ultimately turned the kagan into an inactive, super-sacralized demigod.
However, the location at the junction of both worlds, as well as the exclusive influence of Jewish communities, led to the formation of a unique confessional situation in Khazaria: the penetration and coexistence of three monetistic religions. There are known positive responses about Khazaria from representatives of all these faiths. According to sources, Christians, Muslims, Jews and pagans lived peacefully in Itil.
Chronologically, it was the first to penetrate the borders of Khazaria. This was facilitated both by the proximity of Byzantium and the acquaintance of the Khazars with the Christian states of Transcaucasia. Already in in Dagestan the appearance of Christian churches. As one of the Khazar vassals, the prince of the Dagestan Huns Alp-Ilitver was baptized and accepted the Armenian catalycos Viro, who destroyed the pagan shrine - the sacred oak. In traditionally Christian Crimea, during the rule of the Khazars, the construction of temples continued. Byzantium attached serious importance missionary activity, which prompted her to establish a con. V. a special metropolis, the center of which was in the Crimean city, and the territory covered the possessions of the Khazars. A large Christian community existed in Semender. Of the Khazar vassals, the largest newly converted territory was Caucasian Alania, although among its elite there was also a Jewish party.
Migrations of Jews to Khazaria came from two sources: from the Middle East and Byzantium. Within Dagestan, Jewish communities found themselves in VI as a result of the Mazdakit uprising in Iran. Sources have preserved the legend of a religious dispute, which was arranged at the request of the Khazar king between preachers of three religions. Judaism was chosen because its provisions were accepted by both Islam and Christianity. The uniqueness of the situation lies in the fact that Judaism does not involve the conversion of non-Jews. Modern scientists among the reasons for the Khazar choice cite the desire to maintain independence from both Byzantium and the Caliphate or point to the connections of the Jews with part of the Khazar nobility.
According to the surviving data, the process of Judaization was long and, apparently, Judaism did not immediately become the ruling religion. The establishment of Orthodox (rabbinic) Judaism is associated with the activities of King Obadiah, who built synagogues and introduced and. Jews from other countries began to move to Khazaria. Migration during the reign was especially massive when Jewish persecution began in Byzantium. The Khazar king responded by persecuting Christians. In scientific literature, the adoption of Judaism is often groundlessly associated with the decline of the Khaganate (in fact, the crisis began about 100 years later). And this topic is often the subject of unscrupulous speculation. As for the prevalence of this religion in Khazaria, the views of researchers vary greatly. More balanced estimates, naming only the upper layer of the ruling class, are based on archaeological sources, where traces of the Jewish cult are negligible. Apparently, there was simply not enough time for Khazar Judaism to penetrate deeper.
List of Khazar rulers
Khagans
Dynastic information is extremely scarce due to the lack of actual Khazar monuments - c. In messages from foreign language chronicles, instead of names, heavily distorted titles usually appear. There are only a few cases where we can speak with confidence about individual kagans.
- Dzhebukagan Zievil
- Leader of the Khazars during the Iranian-Byzantine War. Had a son Shad, -
-
- Kagan during the exile of Justinian II, (-).
- Barjeel
- The son of the Kagan, he commanded the army in the campaign / and the famous campaign /. In the same campaign, according to the “Jewish-Khazar Correspondence,” the prince, the founder of the future bek dynasty, took part.
- Parsbit
- According to the information of the Armenian author, the regent for the young heir in /.
-
- According to the Armenian edition of the life of Stephen of Sourozh, the name of the kagan, whose daughter married the future Emperor Constantine V.
- Bagatur
- Kagan during the campaign /. His daughter had married the Arab governor of Armenia a few years earlier.
- Zechariah (?)
- According to the life of the Kagan during the embassy of Constantine in .
Becky
In Russian-language literature, beks are usually called kings. From the Jewish-Khazar correspondence, a list of 10 generations of the dynasty, starting with Obadiah, is known. Different versions differ somewhat in details. In more full edition stands one more name - Aaron I between Nissi and Menachem. More information about activities of three the last kings are given in the Letter of an unknown Khazar Jew. In the same letter, the first ruler who converted to Judaism (it is unclear Bulan or Obadiah) is called by a Jewish name. The Arabic author al-Ya "kubi (do) names, apparently, the first (Turkic) name of the deputy kagan ruling at that time - Yazid Bulash. And in the History of Derbent the distorted name of the malik who ruled in - K-sa ibn Buljan.
- Obadiah is supposedly a contemporary of the Arab caliph Harun al-Rashid (-)
- Hezekiah
- Manasseh I
- Chanukah
- Isaac
- Zebulun
- Manasseh II
- Nissi
- Aaron I
- Menachem
- Benjamin -
- Aaron II -
- Joseph wrote a letter to Hasdai ibn Shaprut no later than .
main sources
The history of the Khazars is reflected in various written sources. Most of the information was left by the peoples neighboring the Khazars, who had a stable written tradition. Coverage of Khazar history is not uniform. The Khazars are practically unknown to sources, since at that time they were in the shadow of more powerful peoples. In later chronicles, there is information about the Khazars in relation to this era, but they are often anachronistic. During the period -., when the Khazar power was at the peak of power, information related to the Khazar conquests predominates. Much of this data was recorded later, not earlier than ser. In the 2nd half. with the formation of Arab geographical science, descriptions of the internal structure of Khazaria appeared. The most informative in terms of source studies is, since from him came, firstly, the original Khazar monuments, and secondly, several works written by contemporaries of the events and specifically devoted to the description of foreign states, including Khazaria (,).
- Khazar sources
No texts in the Khazar language have been found, although some Khazar chronicles may have existed. However, their own Khazar monuments exist. They are represented by the so-called. Jewish-Khazar correspondence, including two letters to, one of which was written by the Khazar king Joseph (c.), and the other by his subject - an anonymous Jew (c.). Both documents provide information about the origin of the Khazars, the circumstances of their adoption of Judaism, ruling kings and their activities, as well as the geography of Khazaria. Recently, another source of Jewish-Khazar origin was discovered - an autograph from the Jewish community of Kyiv (10th century). Some of its signatories, along with Jewish ones, bore Khazar (Turkic) names, which confirmed the practice of proselytism in the Kaganate. The last phrase in the letter is written in the . Similar inscriptions (very brief) were discovered during archaeological research. It is not yet possible to decipher them.
- Arab-Persian sources
The largest and most diverse array of information, both quantitatively and qualitatively, is contained in sources from the countries of the Caliphate. They are represented by two genre groups: historical and geographical works, which respectively reflect two types of contacts between Khazaria and the Islamic world. Historical writings are devoted to the Khazar-Persian and Khazar-Arab conflicts, and the geographical ones are devoted to peaceful interaction based on trade. In the first case, we are talking about the era - ., when the Arabs clashed with the Khazars in the battles for Transcaucasia, in the second - about - ser. ., when trade was established through Khazaria and a Muslim community arose in Itil. For an earlier period (), the Arabs drew information from the Sasanian chronicles, which have not survived to this day. Among the authors, historians include Belazuri, al-Yakubi, at-Tabari, al-Kufi and others. The regional historiography of the Caspian regions bordering Khazaria is poorly preserved. chronicles of Derbent and neighboring regions partially survived as part of the work of the Turkish author Munadzhi-Bashi. It contains information about the role of the Khazars in the Caucasus during the decline of the Kaganate.
Many issues of Khazar history would be impossible to reconstruct without geographical works. This group of sources has exceptional source study value, since the works, firstly, were created by contemporaries of the events, and secondly, were specifically devoted to describing the internal structure of foreign peoples, which was not in Christian historiography. These works have survived to this day in later and abridged editions, thanks to the fact that each generation of geographers reproduced in contemporary works information from predecessors. According to the Arabs, Khazaria was located in the penultimate of the inhabited regions - the sixth climate of the Earth. Its territory was initially presented as a country of demonic peoples, but as contacts developed, the fantastic view was replaced by the real. It is from Arab geography that the details of the Khazar dual power are known (about the kagan and bek deprived of power), some circumstances of the Judaization of the Khazars and the extent of the spread of Judaism, descriptions of the Khazar cities are known, of which the capital is described in more detail. Direct and indirect instructions about ethnic background Khazars Among geographical works highest value have books of routes and countries dedicated to the description of trade routes. The first surviving work of this kind is work (). Information from Ibn-Rust goes back to this time. The situation is reflected in the so-called geographers. " classical school": , Muqaddisi). Works adjacent to this circle famous travelers- and Mas’udi, who visited the borders of Khazaria. (The first visited Volga Bulgaria, and the second visited the Southern Caspian region).
- Byzantine sources
Greek news about the Khazars is relatively sparse, since Byzantine historiography of this time was in decline. For the first period of the history of the Kaganate, the Chronicle of Theophanes, written in the beginning, is significant. and "Breviary" ( Short story) Patriarch Nicephorus, created a little earlier. The Byzantines preserved the most clear definition the moment of the rise of the Khazars, which they associated with the defeat of Great Bulgaria. This view (supported by Khazar tradition in Joseph's letter) passed into modern science. We owe information about late Khazaria to the emperor. B - he wrote a treatise “On the Management of an Empire” as an instruction for his son Roman. The work tells about the peoples surrounding Byzantium and gives frank advice on how to deal with them. Among the reports about Khazaria there is confirmation of Arab data about the Judaization of the Khazars and dual power, and unique evidence about the construction of Sarkel, Khazar-Hungarian, Khazar-Pecheneg and Khazar-Alan relations, as well as perhaps the only mention of some kind of unrest in the Kaganate in connection with the Kavar rebellion.
Another important source of information is represented by hagiographic literature, the heroes of which, despite the specifics of the genre, act in a real political situation. The monuments have been preserved in both Greek and Slavic editions. Khazaria is mentioned in the Life (for events), Life (.) and, especially, the Life of Constantine-Cyril (lengthy edition), which describes the visit of a missionary to Khazaria in - and provides a Christian version of the Khazar controversy.
- Transcaucasian sources
Sources in ancient Armenian and ancient Georgian languages are important. They reflect the period of the 7th-8th centuries, when the Khazars, who were called here “northern barbarians,” ruled Transcaucasia. Armenian historiography abandoned the earliest descriptions of the Khazars, but Armenian authors tended to transfer the activities of the Khazars to the first centuries new era. An indispensable source on the initial Khazar history is the work of Movses Kalankatvatsi “The History of the Country of Agvan”, dedicated to the history Caucasian Albania. It contains unique information about the life and religion of the Khazars. It is also worth noting Levond’s “History,” where the Arab-Khazar wars are described from the position of an independent observer. From Georgian sources there is valuable information about Khazar events in the 2nd half. VIII century contained in the Chronicle of Kartli and in the hagiographic work “The Martyrdom of St. Abo of Tbilisi.
- Syrian sources
It is believed that the first indisputably reliable news about the Khazars is contained in the Syrian chronicle, 2nd half. VI century The eventful history of the Khazars was reflected in the works of the later authors Michael of Syria (XI century) and Bar Gebrey (XII century).
- Russian sources
There is little evidence of Khazars of East Slavic origin. This is due to the fact that Old Russian chronicle began after the fall of the Khaganate. The main source is where data about the Khazars came, partly from Byzantine literature, and in its original part, probably from oral tradition. From the point of view of the characteristics of Russian-Khazar relations, the information is extremely laconic, but it sheds important light on the system of relations between the Khazars and dependent peoples. And such data themselves are very rare. After the year in which the defeat of the Khazar army by Svyatoslav is dated in the chronicle, the embassy of the Khazar Jews to Vladimir is mentioned, and then the Khazars appear only in connection with the events in the Tmutarakan principality. Another ancient Russian source mentioning the Khazars is “Memory and Praise to Prince Vladimir” by Jacob Mnich (second half of the 11th century), which provides details of Vladimir’s Khazar policy unknown in the chronicle. IN ancient Russian literature there is a story, preserved in the Hellenic chronicler of the 15th century, “About King Kozarin and his wife,” which is a version of the Byzantine work about Justinian II, who married a Khazar princess.
- Jewish sources
Jewish authors have separate references to the Khazars. Among his contemporaries - the Spaniard Eldad ha-Dani, who is believed to have visited Khazaria in the 2nd half. 9th century and in the letters of the head of the Babylonian diaspora -, as well as in the Italian chronograph (10th century). Of the later sources, the largest in volume is the book “Kuzari”, which has as its plot a religious polemic during the conversion of the Khazars. The author sought to prove the triumph of Judaism, and constructed the narrative in the form of fictitious dialogues between the Khazar king and a Jewish preacher. Halevi refers to Khazar chronicles and gives the date of the Khazar conversion.
- Western European sources
Works created in Christian Europe contain practically no original news about the Khazars, but are of some interest from the point of view of confirming some facts and help to understand how information about the Khazars spread throughout the world. outside world. For the first time in Latin-language writings, the Khazars are mentioned c.
state in the mid-7th - late 10th centuries. led by the Kagan. The capital is Semender, from the beginning of the 8th century - Itil. At the beginning of the 8th century. included the territories of the North Caucasus, Azov region, most Crimea, steppe and forest-steppe territories to the Dnieper. Traded with the peoples of Eastern Europe, Central Asia, Transcaucasia, etc. Believers - Jews, Muslims, Christians. In 964-965 it was defeated by Prince Svyatoslav Igorevich.
Excellent definition
KHAZAR KAGANATE
early feudal state education that arose in the middle. 7th century on the territory Lower Volga region and eastern parts of the North Caucasus as a result of the collapse of the Western Turkic Kaganate (see Turkic Kaganate). The Turk remained at the head of the Kh. Ashina dynasty. The capital of the Kaganate until the beginning. 8th century there was the city of Semender in Dagestan, and then the city of Itil (on the Lower Volga). In the 2nd half. 7th century The Khazars subjugated some of those who were part of the state. the unification of the Great Bulgaria of the Azov Bulgarians (some of them, after the defeat, went to the Middle Volga, and the rest - beyond the Dnieper to the Danube), as well as the kingdom of the Savir Huns in coastal Dagestan; Caucasian Albania became a tributary of X. K. Byzantium established an alliance with X. K. (concluded with the Western Turkic Khaganate against Sasanian Iran), directed against the established in the 2nd half. 7th century in Transcaucasia Arab Caliphate. To the beginning 8th century The Khazars owned the North. The Caucasus, the entire Azov region, b. part of Crimea (taken from Byzantium), as well as the steppe and forest-steppe territories of the East. Europe to the Dnieper. At the same time, they waged a fierce struggle with the Arabs for the possession of Transcaucasia, repeatedly raided there, but were unable to establish themselves there. In 735, the Arabs invaded the lands of the Kh. K. through the Caspian pass and Daryal, defeating the army of the Kagan (the title of the head of the Kh. K.). The Kagan and his entourage were forced to convert to Islam (that is, actually submit to the Arabs), which, however, became widespread only among part of the population of the Kh. k., and the Kagan himself and his entourage soon abandoned it. With the center of X. moving to Nizh. On the Volga, agriculture and horticulture are developing in its valley, and in the capital of the Kaganate, Itil, crafts and trade are developing. The city has become important center international (transit) trade, which brought X. large incomes. In the Don-Donetsk interfluve, in connection with the resettlement of part of the North Caucasus there. Alans, settled settlements arise, cities are revived on the Taman and Kerch Peninsulas. Although the main type of household activities of the population of X. k. nomadic cattle breeding remains, the process of disintegration of clan orders accelerates, and an early feud takes shape. relationship. As a result of the defeat inflicted by the Arabs on the Kagan's army, the authority of the Turkic dynasty in the Khaganate Empire fell. Actual power in the state is concentrated in the hands of local Khazar and Bulgarian feudal lords, and the kagan turns into a revered but powerless ruler. During the 8th century. X. K. maintained strong relations with Byzantium, which contributed to the spread of Christianity. She was allowed to create on the territory. X. k. church. organization (metropolis), which included 7 dioceses, including the diocese in Itil, which provided Byzantium. influence in X. k. In connection with the great international. the role of X. K. the question of his state. religion had an important political meaning. The Arabs tried unsuccessfully to establish Islam there, and Byzantium - Christianity. The Khazars did not associate themselves with the church. ties neither with the Caliphate nor with Byzantium. In the 1st half. 8th century (c. 731) part of the Khazars North. Dagestan adopted Judaism (Jews expelled from Sasanian Iran and, later, from Byzantium settled in Northern Dagestan), including a certain prince. Bulan. In con. 8 - beginning 9th centuries one of his descendants, Obadiah, became the head of the X. c. and declared Judaism state. religion. The coup he carried out caused discontent among other Khazar princes. A long and stubborn struggle began, during which the rebels called for help from the Magyars from across the Volga, and Obadiah hired the Ghuz nomads. The uprising was suppressed, the Magyars were pushed back beyond the Dnieper, and the surviving rebels (kabars) left with them. The Crimean Goths, who came under the rule of Byzantium, and certain other peoples who had previously paid tribute to the Khazars (including the Dnieper Slavs) took advantage of the turmoil in the Khazars. During these years, the Sarkel fortress was built on the Don, intended to protect the market. path from 3. to Itil. In con. 9th century all in. The Pechenegs broke through the Black Sea region and expelled (895) the Magyars dependent on the X. K. into the Danube region. The Black Sea and Don steppes came under the rule of the Pechenegs. Byzantium, interested in further weakening the Kaganate, took advantage of this. She began to set the nomadic tribes surrounding them against the Khazars. But ch. The force that opposed X. k. was Old Rus. state Back in the 9th century. rus. squads penetrated into the Caspian Sea. , disrupting trade along the Caspian-Volga route, which was important for the Khazars. In 913/914 and 943/944 Russian. troops passed through Khazaria and devastated the Caspian coast. In 964/965 Rus. Prince Svyatoslav Igorevich made a campaign on the Volga and defeated X. k. The towns were ruined. Itil and Semender and the city of Sarkel was captured. The Khazars' attempt in the 2nd half was unsuccessful. 10th century save the situation with the help of Khorezm, at the cost of accepting Islam, i.e., subordination to Khorezm. Weakened internal contradictions and will devastate. invasions of nomadic peoples (Pechenegs, Guzes), defeat 964/965, towards the end. 10th century X. k. ceased to exist. Lit.: Artamonov M.I., History of the Khazars, L., 1962; Pletneva S. A., From nomads to cities, M., 1967; Zakhoder B.N., Caspian Code of Information about Eastern Europe, vol. 1-2, L., 1962-67; Kokovtsov P.K., Jewish-Khazar correspondence in the 10th century, Leningrad, 1932; Dunlop D. M., The history of the Jewish Khazars, Princeton (N.Y.), 1954. M. I. Artamonov. Leningrad.
At the head of this formation is the kagan, or, according to one interpretation of this title, “khan of khans.” The term itself was first mentioned in connection with the ancient Mongol tribe of nomads Xianbi.
Originally from China
In the 3rd century BC, one of the tribes emerged from the ancient union called “Dungu”, formed around 1100 BC. The new association was called differently over the course of three centuries, and in 330 the Rouran Khaganate arose. formed by the Xianbei tribe, existed until 555. In 402, the ruler of the Rouran tribes was the first of all to call himself kagan, thus creating a new title supreme ruler. According to one historical version, the name of the tribe under his control is a contemptuous nickname given to them by the Chinese. Rourans are slow crawling or reptiles. It is not surprising that these people wanted to be independent. IN in this case The Kaganate was a union of the Rouran tribes, which was also a confederation.
Mighty State
And at the beginning of the 6th century, a tribe, in turn, separated from this formation and wished to be independent. It was they who formed the Avar Khaganate, which existed from 562 to 823. The territories of modern Slovakia and Croatia, Romania and Hungary, Serbia and Ukraine made up the area of this state, founded by Hagan Boyan I. Back in 555, the Avars were known as persecuted by the Turks nomadic people, forced to leave the steppes of western Kazakhstan and move to the remote bank of the Volga. And already in 565-566, having rounded the Carpathians from the north, they captured the Frankish king Sigibert I, defeating his army. Contemporaries were so shocked by this fact that they attributed the gift of magic to the Avars. At its peak, the Avar Khaganate extended from the Black Sea region to the Adriatic and from the Alps to the Elbe. The Avars achieved such power thanks to the wise and tough rule of the talented leader Boyan I, who ruled the country from its formation in 562 until his death in 602. The cunning and cynical leader, without hesitation, changed allies, destroyed entire tribes to achieve his goal, and as a result forced even Byzantine emperor Tiberius II pay him tribute. The Kaganate is a harsh dictatorship, and the Kagan is the sovereign in the medieval nomadic hierarchy, the person who has absolutely all power without any restrictions.
Fall of a Colossus
When studying the history of ancient times, several views on the same question always arise. Thus, Avars are classified as different ethnic groups: Mongol-speaking, Iranian-speaking, Turkic. Representatives of the archaeological school of Hungary, on whose territory the Avar Kaganate was located, classify most of the Avars as Caucasoids and only a small stratum as Mongoloids. But this smaller part of the population played a dominant role and was the elite of the Avar state. It can be assumed that representatives of the ruling elite did not assimilate with the conquered peoples. The presumptuous Avars received their first defeat near Constantinople in 626. Immediately, individual tribes began to separate from the Kaganate - the Kutrigurs, modern Bulgarians, were the first to flee. In 631, Khan Altsek, the ruler of the future Great Bulgaria, withdrew his army from the Kaganate after an unsuccessful attempt to seize power. Then the Avars only defend themselves and retreat. The Croats oust them from Dalmatia in 640. The Kaganate was finished off by the Franco-Avar War, which lasted a very long time. Gradually all the enslaved peoples rebelled. And the last region, Pannonia, allocated by the Franks to the Avars, headed by the already baptized Hagan, was captured by the Hungarians in 899. The Avars completely ceased to exist. The once powerful state that lived for about 3.5 centuries disappeared without a trace.
State structure of the most powerful kaganates
The question arises about what the kaganate is, how it is structured, and why it disappears, as a rule, without a trace. It is interesting that the Kagan is a man who later possessed absolute power, was elected people's assembly. In the Khazar and Aavr Khaganates, the ruler had a governor, tudun, who was entrusted with supervisory, organizational and diplomatic functions, and a yugur, who was probably the high priest. Tribute was collected by representatives of the nobility - Tarkhans. And behind them, according to the hierarchy, came the tribal leaders, who played an important role in the structure of the country. They also took their peoples away from the Kaganate. Maybe that’s why this state disappeared from the face of the Earth, because it was multi-ethnic.
Another Turkic state
The Turgesh Kaganate did not last long - from the beginning to the middle of the 8th century. At the very beginning of the century, the Turgesh leader Ushlik overthrew the Chinese governor and demanded recognition of himself as the Kagan of the Celestial Empire. He made the city of Suyab, where his headquarters was located, his capital. The entire territory of the new Kaganate included 20 territorial units, each of which contained 7 thousand soldiers. They were located in the squares of the Chinese provinces and stretched from Beshbalyk to Tashkent. In 705, in view of the threat of the country being captured by the Arabs, the Kaganate entered into an alliance with China and defeated the Arab troops. The following rulers - Soge, Zheng, Great Suluk, under whom the Kaganate reached its greatest prosperity, led successful wars both with the Arabs and with China. But after the murder of Suluk, power began to slip out of the hands of his successors, who were Kutsha and Baga-Tarkhan, Bilge and Tengri-Ilmysh - the last Kagan, with whose death the Turgesh Kaganate ceased to exist. There remain coins of this state with Sogdian inscriptions, minted under these rulers.
New in place of old
The capital was the city of Orda-Balyk. The history of this nomadic state began in 603 after the collapse of the Turkic Khaganate into the Western and Eastern parts. For three decades, the newly formed Eastern Kaganate, which had a common border with China, waged quite successful wars with it, but in 630 the country was again captured by the Turkic Empire. 50 years later, the Kok-Turks rebelled, as a result of which the Eastern Kaganate was restored under a new name - Kok-Turkic. And again his troops defeated the army of neighboring China - in 686 near Xinzhou, in 694 - near Lingzhou. The second Khagan, Kapagan Mochur, who reigned from 693 to 716, successfully invaded China in 698 and defeated the imperial forces. The 6 rulers who followed him did not achieve such success. And under the latter, Kulun-bek, the troops of the Kaganate in 745 were defeated by the Uyghur troops of Khan Moyut-Chur. The Kok-Turkic Khaganate with an area of 4 million square kilometers, formed in 682, ceased to exist.
New strong education
The Karluk Kaganate, which arose 11 years after the collapse of the Kok-Turkic, is also a Turkic state, and it existed from 756 to 940. The territory occupied by him included the space between lakes Issyk-Kul and Balkhash, from the middle reaches of the Syr Darya to the Dzungarian Alatau. That is, it was located within modern Kazakhstan. The roots of the Karluk Kaganate grew from the Western part of the Turkic state that once collapsed (in 603). Being under a certain period strong influence China, at the beginning of the 8th century, the Karluks (residents of these areas) began a gradual migration towards the west. They have been known since the 5th century. This is also a multi-tribal community - such tribes as Bulak, Chigil and Tashlyk joined their composition in the 7th century. Along the way, the strengthening detachments of the future new Kaganate won a number of major victories. Thus, they helped the Arabs in 751 win the Talas, or Atlakh (Talas Valley, city of Atlakh) battle against China. They also fought with the Eastern Turkic Kaganate. But the Karluk power, which knew ups and downs, did not last long. It was also absorbed by another Turkic formation - East Turkestan, which captured the capital of the Karluk Kaganate, Balasgun, in 940. However, part of the population managed to escape across the Ili River, the longest in Semirechye, where they created a new state called the Karluk Khanate. The capital was the city of Kailyk.
Sad fate
To the question of what a kaganate is, one can answer that it is a purely Asian form of government. Nowhere in Europe or America have there ever been such formations. There were quite a lot of them in Asia - there was even a Russian Kaganate on the Lower Don. It also ended its existence in the middle of the 9th century. As history shows, it was a rather unlucky form of government - all the Khaganates were defeated, and the population of many disappeared without a trace or disappeared among other tribes, such as the Khazars and Avars. But the meaning of these Turkic states very difficult to overestimate.
Thanks to military expansion, the culture of the East was enriched by the achievements of the ancient civilizations of the Mediterranean. Many tribes left China and reached Western Europe, along the way assimilating with the peoples living in these spaces.