Who was Dad? Batu Image in art

Genghis Khan's grandson Batu Khan is undoubtedly a fatal figure in the history of Rus' in the 13th century. Unfortunately, history has not preserved his portrait and has left few descriptions of the Khan during his lifetime, but what we know speaks of him as an extraordinary personality.

Place of birth - Buryatia?
Batu Khan was born in 1209. Most likely, this happened on the territory of Buryatia or Altai. His father was Genghis Khan's eldest son Jochi (who was born in captivity, and there is an opinion that he is not the son of Genghis Khan), and his mother was Uki-Khatun, who was related to Genghis Khan's eldest wife. Thus, Batu was the grandson of Genghis Khan and the great-nephew of his wife.

Jochi owned the largest inheritance of the Chingizids. He was killed, possibly on the orders of Genghis Khan, when Batu was 18 years old. According to legend, Jochi is buried in a mausoleum, which is located on the territory of Kazakhstan, 50 kilometers northeast of the city of Zhezkazgan. Historians believe that the mausoleum could have been built over the khan's grave many years later.

Damned and fair
The name Batu means "strong", "strong". During his lifetime, he received the nickname Sain Khan, which in Mongolian meant “noble,” “generous,” and even “fair.” The only chroniclers who spoke flatteringly about Batu were Persians. Europeans wrote that the khan inspired great fear, but behaved “affectionately”, knew how to hide his emotions and emphasized his belonging to the Genghisid family. He entered our history as a destroyer - “evil,” “cursed,” and “filthy.”

A holiday that became a wake
Besides Batu, Jochi had 13 sons. There is a legend that they all gave up their father’s place to each other and asked their grandfather to resolve the dispute. Genghis Khan chose Batu and gave him the commander Subedei as his mentor. In fact, Batu did not receive power, he was forced to distribute the land to his brothers, and he himself performed representative functions. Even his father’s army was led by his elder brother Ordu-Ichen. According to legend, the holiday that the young khan organized upon returning home turned into a wake: a messenger brought the news of the death of Genghis Khan. Udegey, who became the Great Khan, did not like Jochi, but in 1229 he confirmed the title of Batu. Landless Bata had to accompany his uncle on the Chinese campaign. The campaign against Rus', which the Mongols began to prepare in 1235, became a chance for Batu to gain possession.

Tatar-Mongols against the Templars
In addition to Batu Khan, 11 other princes wanted to lead the campaign. Batu turned out to be the most experienced. As a teenager, he took part in a military campaign against Khorezm and the Polovtsians. It is believed that the khan took part in the Battle of Kalka in 1223, where the Mongols defeated the Cumans and Russians. There is another version: the troops for the campaign against Rus' were gathering in the possessions of Batu, and perhaps he simply carried out a military coup, using weapons to convince the princes to retreat. In fact, the military leader of the army was not Batu, but Subedey.

Batu vs Karakorum
The election of the new Great Khan dragged on for five years. Finally, Guyuk was chosen, who understood that Batu Khan would never obey him. He gathered troops and moved them to the Jochi ulus, but suddenly died in time, most likely from poison. Three years later, Batu carried out a military coup in Karakorum. With the support of his brothers, he made his friend Monke the Great Khan, who recognized Bata's right to control the politics of Bulgaria, Rus' and the North Caucasus. The bones of contention between Mongolia and Batu remained the lands of Iran and Asia Minor. Batu’s efforts to protect the ulus bore fruit. In the 1270s, the Golden Horde ceased to depend on Mongolia.

In 1254, Batu Khan founded the capital of the Golden Horde - Sarai-Batu (“Batu City”), which stood on the Akhtuba River. The barn was located on the hills and stretched along the river bank for 15 kilometers. It was a rich city with its own jewelry, foundries and ceramic workshops. There were 14 mosques in Sarai-Batu. Palaces decorated with mosaics awed foreigners, and the Khan's palace, located on the highest point of the city, was lavishly decorated with gold. It was from its magnificent appearance that the name “Golden Horde” came. The city was razed to the ground by Tamrelan in 1395.

Batu and Nevsky
It is known that the Russian holy prince Alexander Nevsky met with Batu Khan. The meeting between Batu and Nevsky took place in July 1247 on the Lower Volga. Nevsky “stayed” with Batu until the fall of 1248, after which he left for Karakorum. Lev Gumilev believes that Alexander Nevsky and Batu Khan’s son Sartak even fraternized, and thus Alexander allegedly became Batu Khan’s adopted son. Since there is no chronicle evidence of this, it may turn out that this is only a legend. But it can be assumed that during the yoke it was the Golden Horde that prevented our western neighbors from invading Rus'. The Europeans were simply afraid of the Golden Horde, remembering the ferocity and mercilessness of Khan Batu.

The mystery of death
Batu Khan died in 1256 at the age of 48. Contemporaries believed that he could have been poisoned. They even said that he died on the campaign. But most likely he died from a hereditary rheumatic disease. Khan often complained of pain and numbness in his legs, and sometimes because of this he did not come to kurultai, where important decisions were made. Contemporaries said that the khan’s face was covered with red spots, which clearly indicated ill health. Considering that maternal ancestors also suffered from pain in their legs, then this version of death looks plausible.

Batu’s body was buried where the Akhtuba River flows into the Volga. They buried the khan according to Mongolian custom, building a house in the ground with a rich bed. At night, a herd of horses was driven through the grave so that no one would ever find this place.

Live at least a hundred years, at least ten hundred years,

I still have to leave this world,

Be a padishah or a beggar at the market, -

There is only one price for you: there are no dignities for death.

Of course, the death of such a powerful ruler was bound to give rise to rumors and legends. And they appeared, and they came not from eastern historians who glorified the heir of Jochi, but from his malicious detractors - the authors of Russian chronicles and other works. The most widely circulated is the so-called “Tale of the Murder of Batu.”

According to its contents, Batu “reached... to the great Varadin city of Ugorskato,” when “the autocrat of that land, the king Vlaslov,” ruled in Hungary. While “the most wretched Tsar Batu came to the earth, destroying cities and destroying the people of God,” and “Vladislav saw this theft, and began to cry and sob deeply, and began to pray to God,” “his sister helped Batu.” The pious king Vladislav managed to gain divine support, found a wonderful horse and an ax and “sat on a horse and held an ax in his hand, and with it killed Batu” together with his traitor sister [Gorsky 20016, p. 218-221].

“The Tale” has repeatedly attracted the attention of researchers [see: Rozanov 1916; Alperin 1983; Ulyanov 1999; Gorsky 20016], and today it has been established that it was not only created much later than the Batu era, but in general is a political and not a historical work.

Nevertheless, the basis of the “Tale” was the events recorded in historical sources!

Since Batu did not even approach Varadin during his campaign in Hungary (the city was taken and destroyed by Kadan, the son of Ogedei) and, in addition, King Bela IV ruled in Hungary at that time, and not Vladislav, according to researchers, this work reflected the unsuccessful campaign of Khan Tula-Buga, the great-grandson of Batu, in Hungary in 1285, when the Mongol troops actually suffered serious losses and were actually defeated [Vernadsky 2000, (p. 187; Veselovsky 1922, p. 30-37; Gorsky 20016, p. 198] In addition, at this time King Vladislav (Laszlo) IV (1272-1290) ruled in Hungary...

But in any case, the Tale was not a story about a historical event at all, but a political pamphlet created between the 1440s and 1470s. This was an order from the Moscow sovereigns, who were preparing to fight the weakening Golden Horde and wanted to show their subjects that the Horde were not so invincible. The authorship of the “Tale” is attributed to Pachomius Serb (Logothetus), the compiler of the “Russian Chronograph” [Lurie 1997, p. 114; Gorsky = 20016, p. 205-212]. The political and ideological nature of the work makes it possible to explain the numerous references to God’s providence and appeals to Orthodox saints. For example, the hero of the Tale is a Balkan saint of the 12th century. Savva of Serbia, and in the image of King Vladislav, the conqueror of the pagans, one can discern not so much Vladislav IV (who had the nickname “Kun”, that is, “Polovtsian”, and at the end of his life he was inclined to renounce Christianity [see, for example: Pletneva 1990, p. 180]), as much as Vladislav I (1077-1095), who had the nickname “Saint”. This allows us to conclude that when compiling the “Tale,” materials from more ancient Central European legends were undoubtedly used [Gorsky 20016, p. 197-199].

It was very important for the Moscow sovereigns, before the decisive battle with the Horde (which culminated in the “stand on the Ugra” in 1480), to justify the legality of their action against the former overlord, and they tried with all their might to discredit the Horde “kings” in the eyes of their subjects, to undermine faith in the legitimacy of their rule from the very beginning. Thus, Russian ideologists did not even spare the memory of Jochi, who had nothing at all to do with the conquest of Rus' or the establishment of its dependence on the Mongols: “This king Yegukhan of this tormented people... was a filthy idolater, having cast out his damned soul, he went to hell.” [Lyzlov 1990, p. 21].

Hence the opposition of Orthodox Rus' to the Muslim Horde, and the chroniclers of the 15th-16th centuries, and after them later authors, began to assert that Batu “was the first of those people of the accursed Mahomet to accept and spread the teachings” [Lyzlov 1990, p. 21]. Moreover, Archbishop Vassian, in his message to Ivan III on the Ugra, speaks of “the accursed Batu, who came as a robber and captured our entire land, and enslaved us, and reigned over us, although he is not a king and not from the royal family” [PLDR 1982, p. 531]. Thus, “The Tale of the Murder of Batu” fits very clearly into the anti-Horde ideological campaign carried out in Rus' in the second half of the 15th century: the Horde khans, starting with their ancestor Batu, were accused of illegally seizing power, accepting the “damned” faith, and even and were represented as very unsuccessful warriors who were defeated by Christian monarchs who fought for the true faith. It is also no coincidence that the chroniclers inserted the “Tale” immediately after the “Tale of the Murder of Mikhail of Chernigov”: this is how they carried out the idea of ​​quick and inevitable retribution to the pagan Batu for the murder of the prince who died for the Orthodox faith [cf.: Gorsky 20016 p. 211].

The plot of the “Tale” has much in common with “The Word of Mercury in Smolensk” - another work created at the turn of the 16th-16th centuries. It also tells about Batu’s invasion of Rus', that is, it gives a very real historical context; but the story about the arrival of Batu “with a great army to the God-saved city of Smolensk” can be considered historically reliable with a big reservation: perhaps in the spring of 1238 one of the Mongol troops entered the Smolensk principality, but Smolensk itself did not suffer during the invasion. The Smolensk principality was the only one that, it seems, was not subject to Mongol raids at all, either during the campaigns of Batu or under his successors. The only attack of the Horde troops on Smolensk is recorded in the chronicles under 1340 [see. eg: Moskovsky 2000, p. 235], but even during this period of time the principality was part of the sphere of influence of the Horde. Accordingly, the plot of the “Tale” about the death of Batu is completely fictitious: a pious resident of Smolensk named Mercury, encouraged by the Mother of God who appeared to him, “having reached the troops of the evil king, with the help of God and the Most Pure Mother of God, exterminating enemies, gathering captive Christians and releasing them to his city, bravely galloped along the shelves, like an eagle flying in the sky. The evil king, having heard about such an extermination of his people, was seized with great fear and horror and, despairing of success, quickly fled from the city with a small squad. And when he reached the Ugric land, the evil one was killed there by King Stephen” [PLDR 1981, p. 205, 207]. As we see, despite some differences in the text of the “Tale” and “The Tale of the Murder of Batu”, the circumstances of Batu’s “death” are very similar in them: he comes to Hungary, where he dies at the hands of the local king Vladislav (“The Tale”) or Stephen ("Word"). Undoubtedly, this similarity should be explained by the same reason for the creation of “The Tale” and “The Lay” - the political order of the Russian sovereigns, who were eager to justify the legitimacy of the fight against the Golden Horde and its heirs, and perhaps the “Tale” served as a source for the “Tale”.

“The Tale of Mercury of Smolensk” is an independent work, while “The Tale of the Murder of Batu” was included in many chronicles, which gave reason to later authors to consider it a reflection of real events. So, for example, Sigismund Herberstein sets out the plot of the “Tale” in “Notes on Muscovy,” noting that “this is how the chronicles tell” [Gerberstein 1988, p. 165-166], some modern authors generally tend to accept it as an immutable truth. For example, V.I. Demin writes: “There is even a legend, not refuted by anyone (sic! - R.P.), about the death of Batu... during the siege of a Hungarian city” [Demin 2001, p. 212-213]. The most curious, in my opinion, version of Batu’s death is offered by the modern Russian military historian A.V. Shishov: “The year 1255 brought Grand Duke Alexander Yaroslavich Nevsky good news from Sarai in all respects. Khan Batu was hacked to death during his campaign of conquest in the Ugric land.” It is interesting that the date of Batu’s death (1255), noted in a number of sources, is superimposed by Mr. Shishov on the legendary message about the “killing of Batu” in Hungary, and the author himself, by “Ugric land”, means territories inhabited by Finno-Ugric tribes! [Shishov 1999, p. 261].

It is curious that the death of Batu did not serve as the basis for the creation of myths and legends in the East. Muslim historians, unlike Russian and Western European ones, did not try to somehow embellish (or even more so present in an unfavorable light) the circumstances of the death of the heir Jochi. Neither Juvaini nor Rashid ad-Din, who left perhaps the most detailed (compared to others) information about Batu, do we find a word about the circumstances and causes of his death: they report it simply as a fait accompli. Other slave, Persian, Turkic, Armenian authors report his death in a similar way.

Indirect information allows us to conclude that in fact the true cause of Batu’s death was very prosaic: he died from some kind of rheumatic disease. This disease was common among the Chingizids, in whose veins flowed the blood of representatives of the Kungrat tribe: “the well-known disease of the legs of the Kungirat tribe is due to the fact that, without conspiring with others, they came out of the gorge first and fearlessly trampled underfoot their fires and hearths; for this reason, the Kungirat tribe is dejected" (Rashid ad-Din 1952a, p. 154]. Batu, the son of the Kungrat woman Uki-Khatun, repeatedly complained of joint pain and numbness in his legs. For example, Rashid ad-Din writes that "Batu.. . avoided participation in the kurultai, citing poor health and leg disease" (although, it is likely that when Batu made such excuses not to go to the kurultai, perhaps his illness was not yet so severe, since he, declaring words about his torment, in reality he showed miracles of activity). The Persian author of the 16th century Ghaffari also reports that “Batu developed weakness in his limbs in 639 and died in 650” [Rashid ad-Din 1960, p. 118 ; SMIZO 1941, p. 210]. Note that his uncle Ogedei, son of Borte-Khatun, also a representative of the Kungrat tribe, also complained of swelling of his legs. Wilhelm de Rubruk, who saw Batu in the last years of his life, reports that “Batu’s face was then covered with reddish spots" [Wilhelm de Rubruk 1997, p. 117; Yazykov 1840, p. 141], which is also one of the symptoms of rheumatic disease.

Batu was buried in accordance with ancient steppe traditions. Juzjani reports: “They buried him according to the Mongolian rite. It is customary among this people that if one of them dies, then a place like a house or niche is built underground, in accordance with the rank of the damned one who went to the underworld. This place is decorated with a bed, a carpet, vessels and many things; They bury him there with his weapons and all his property. They bury with him in this place some of his wives and servants, and (that) person whom he loved more than anyone. Then at night they bury this place and until then they drive the horses over the surface of the grave until not the slightest sign of that place (burial) remains” [SMIZO 1941, p. 16]. Probably, other relatives of Batu, who did not accept either Islam or Buddhism, were buried in the same way.

Most of us know Batu’s personality from our general school history course. Just as the sad history of Rus' is known, “being” under the Tatar-Mongol yoke for a very long time.

However, in reality, not everything in history is as smooth as it is written in textbooks. The events of our days made me think about the events of those distant times, and one of the results of these thoughts was the material that was posted on this site.

The authorship of the idea that united many “disparate” events of the 13th century in Europe and Asia into a coherent logical system does not belong to me. My work is only a systematic and reasoned presentation of the material.

Most of us know Batu’s personality from our general school history course. I will give a quote from Wikipedia, which fully reflects traditional ideas about the origins and deeds of this undoubtedly extraordinary person:

“Batu (in the Russian tradition Batu) (c. 1209 - 1255/1256) - Mongol commander and statesman, ruler of the Jochi ulus, son of Jochi and Uki-Khatun, grandson of Genghis Khan.

In 1236-1242, Batu led the all-Mongolian Western Campaign, as a result of which the western part of the Polovtsian steppe, Volga Bulgaria, Rus' were conquered, all countries to the Adriatic and Baltic were defeated and conquered: Poland, Czech Republic, Hungary, Croatia, Dalmatia, Bosnia, Serbia, Bulgaria etc. The Mongol army reached Central Europe. Frederick II, Holy Roman Emperor, tried to organize resistance, but when Batu demanded submission, he replied that he could become the khan's falconer. Later, Batu did not make any trips to the west, settling on the banks of the Volga in the city of Sarai-Batu.

Batu completed his campaign to the West in 1242, having learned of the death of Khan Ogedei. The troops retreated to the Lower Volga, which became the new center of the Jochi ulus. At the kurultai of 1246, Guyuk, Batu’s longtime enemy, was elected kaan. Guyuk died in 1248, and in 1251 the loyal Batu Munke (Mengu), a participant in the European campaign of 1236-1242, was elected fourth great khan. To support him, Batu sent his brother Berke with troops.

In 1243-1246, all Russian princes recognized their dependence on the rulers of the Mongol Empire and the Golden Horde. Prince Yaroslav Vsevolodovich of Vladimir was recognized as the oldest in the Russian land; Kyiv, devastated by the Mongols in 1240, was transferred to him. In 1246, Yaroslav was summoned to Karakorum and poisoned there. Mikhail of Chernigov was killed in the Golden Horde (he refused to undergo the pagan ritual of worshiping the bush without betraying the Orthodox faith). The sons of Yaroslav - Andrei and Alexander also went to the Horde, and from it to Karakorum and received the first Vladimir reign, and the second - Kyiv and Novgorod (1249). Andrei sought to resist the Mongols by concluding an alliance with the strongest prince of Southern Rus' - Daniil Romanovich Galitsky. This led to the Horde punitive campaign of 1252. The Tatar army led by Nevryuy defeated the Yaroslavichs Andrei and Yaroslav. By decision of Batu, the label to Vladimir was transferred to Alexander.

Batu was succeeded by Sartak (a supporter of Christianity), Tukan, Abukan and Ulagchi. Sartak's daughter was with Gleb Vasilkovich; daughter of Batu's grandson Mengu-Timur - for St. Fedor Cherny; From these two marriages came the princes of Belozersk and Yaroslavl, respectively. Thus, it is possible to trace the descent from Batu (through the female line) of almost the entire Russian pillar nobility.”

Also shown is an image of Batu Khan by an unknown Chinese artist from the 14th century.

Let's start with the simplest thing: let's look for traces of the Mongol conquerors in the genetic fund of the peoples they conquered. If historical documents can be destroyed, then at the genetic level this is almost impossible. If Batu and his associates were Mongols, then we will find at least partial “Mongoloid” in the features of their descendants.

Let’s take a look at one very interesting source (“History of the Russian Church” Volume 3 Section 1 Chapter 2), in which we will take an interest in the list of famous Russian families that originated in the Horde:

“a) Prince Beklemish, son of Prince Bakhmet, who came from the Great Horde to Meshchera in 1298, took possession of it and became the ancestor of the Meshchera princes; b) Tsarevich Berka, who came in 1301 from the Great Horde to Prince John Danilovich Kalita - the ancestor of the Anichkovs; c) Tsarevich Aredich, it is unknown in what year he was baptized, the ancestor of the Beleutovs; d) Prince Chet, who came from the Horde in 1330 to Grand Duke John Danilovich Kalita - the ancestor of the Saburovs and Godunovs; e) Tsarevich Serkiz, who left the Great Horde to visit Grand Duke Dimitri Donskoy - the ancestor of the Starkovs; f) the grandson of Tsar Mamai, Prince Oleks, who came to the Grand Duke of Lithuania Vitovt (1392-1430) - the ancestor of the Glinsky princes.

A) the grandfather of the Monk Paphnutius of Borovsk, who was a Baskak in Borovsk back in the days of Batu; ...; c) Tatar Kochev, who came to Grand Duke Dimitri Ioannovich Donskoy, is the ancestor of the Polivanovs; d) Murza, who came to the same prince from the Great Horde - the ancestor of the Stroganovs; e) Olbuga, who was an ambassador to the same prince - the ancestor of the Myachkovs; ...; g) Tatar Kichibey, who arrived to the Ryazan prince Feodor Olgovich, the ancestor of the Kichibeyevs;..."

From there about the wives:

“The daughters of the khan and princes accepted Christianity on the occasion of entering into marriage alliances with our princes. Such was the daughter of Khan Mengu-Temir, who married the Yaroslavl prince Theodore when he was already a Smolensk prince (from 1279). In the same way, the sister of Uzbek Khan named Konchaka, who (c. 1317) married the Grand Duke of Moscow Yuri Danilovich and was named Agathisya in Christianity, was baptized.

Below is a small gallery of portraits of representatives of the above-mentioned genera taken from the Internet:

Meshchersky Ivan Terentyevich (prince, 1756)

Solomonia Saburova (Sofia of Suzdal) from 1505 to 1525 the wife of Vasily III.

Venerable Paphnutius Borovsky

Polivanov, Alexey Andreevich (1855-1920), Minister of War of the Russian Empire

Portrait of Count A.N. Stroganov. 1780.

Reconstruction of the appearance of Elena Glinskaya, mother of Ivan the Terrible, (1508 - 1538)

Vasily Borisovich Glinsky. (unknown artist) 1870

Holy noble princes Theodore of Smolensk and his children David and Constantine (from his marriage with the daughter of Mengu-Temir)

Even taking into account the “artistic fiction” of the portrait painters, it is obvious that the representatives of these families do not have Mongolian features. Although, recalling the appearance and pedigree of Alexander Sergeevich Pushkin, it is logical to assume that some Mongoloid features should have been preserved among the representatives of the mentioned genera. After all, even despite the three hundred and fifty years of difference, the similarity in the Glinskys’ features is obvious.

As another argument, I will quote from an article published in the newspaper “Arguments and Facts” (May 2010):

“Our research has shown that the Tatar-Mongol yoke left virtually no traces in the Russian gene pool,” says Oleg Balanovsky, Ph.D., leading researcher at the Medical Genetics Center of the Russian Academy of Medical Sciences, one of the authors of the study “Russian Gene Pool on the Russian Plain” " - “The gene pool of Russians is almost entirely European. No Mongolian genes were found in it

Scientists have also dispelled another myth - about the degeneration of the Russian nation. It turned out that the Russian gene pool has managed to preserve its original features to this day - the gene pool of its ancestors. Although there are no ethnically pure peoples in the world at all, says Oleg Balanovsky. “Siberia can boast of the best genetic memory.”

It turns out that genetics also denies the presence of the Mongols on the territory of modern Russia.

It turns out that there were no Mongols in Rus', contrary to “official” sources. Who was it then?

Let us turn to other sources that have preserved information about the attack on Rus' by invaders - Russian chronicles:

Novgorod Chronicle: “In the summer of 6746. That summer, the foreign tribesmen, Glagolemy Tatarov, came to the land of Ryazan, a lot of beschisla, like pruzis; and the first one came and stasha about Nuzla, and took you, and stasha became that... Then the foreigners of abomination set Ryazan... Then Ryazan was taken over by the godless and filthy Tatars... And as the lawless ones were already approaching,... The abominations... the lawless... the atheism of the atheist...

In the summer of 6758. Prince Alexander arrived from the Horde, and there was great joy in Novgorod.

In the summer of 6765. Evil news will come from Rus', as if they want Tatar tamgas and tithes /l.136./ on Novgorod; and people were in confusion all summer long.

In the summer of 6767. ... That same winter, the raw-food workers Berkai and Kasachik with their wives arrived in Tatarov. and there are many of them; and there was a great rebellion in Novgorod, and a lot of evil was done throughout the volost, taking over the tusk with the help of the Tatars. And they began to fear death, and said to Oleksandr: “Give us a guard so they don’t beat us.” And the prince ordered the mayor’s son and all the boyar’s children to guard them at night.”

Ipatiev Chronicle: “The arrival of the godless Izmaltina... the godless Agar parish, ... the lawless Bourondai..., ... the Totars, the foreign tribes, ... the godless Tatars... the filthy Tatars... possessed by the devil...”

Laurentian Chronicle: “to the Rzan land through the forest of the godless Tatars, ... the abominations, ... the godless Tatars... foreigners... godless Tatars...”

So, we get that Russian chroniclers record the attack of the Tatars (they also do not mention any Mongols). The names of the neighboring tribes are familiar to the chroniclers and they mention them. The ancestors of modern Tatars in the period described were called Bulgars. Who then are the Tatars?

Chroniclers always write “Tatars” with a capital letter, and this suggests that this is a proper name. Again, the descriptions of the princes’ trips to the Horde are interesting: “Prince Alexander went to the Tatars....To the Horde...” (Novgorod Chronicle), “Great Prince Oroslav. Let's go to Tatars to see Batyevi" (Laurentian Chronicle), "...ko was in the Tatars..., ...all the Tatars." (Ipatiev Chronicle). In fact, Russian princes travel “to the Tatars” and return “from the Tatars” (to / from the Horde).

One gets the strong impression that Rus' was attacked by a certain state. Let us remember that the Horde, as a state, arose no earlier than 1241, which means that in 1237 it simply could not do this.

Wikipedia confirms this:

“In Russian chronicles, the concept of “Horde” was usually used in a broader sense to designate the entire state. Its use has become constant since the turn of the 13th-14th centuries; before that, the term “Tatars” was used as the name of the state. The term “Golden Horde” appeared in Rus' in 1565 in the historical and journalistic work “Kazan History.”

What kind of state was this? Chroniclers call the Tatars “godless foreigners,” which, first of all, indicates that the religion of the Tatars differed from the Greek-style Christianity accepted in Rus', and also that the chroniclers do not determine the “national identity” of the conquerors.

There may be two reasons for using the concept “foreigners”: Russian chroniclers do not know which tribe the invaders belong to, which is unlikely, because they are very educated people and they know the names of not only neighboring peoples. The second reason may be hidden in the fact that the chroniclers talk about a certain unification of Tatars, which is supranational (i.e., nationality for the invaders is not a “unifying” factor).

Well, let's try to find on a map of the 13th century a state or an association that could afford such an attack.

By the way, if we use chronicles, I think it is quite acceptable to cite medieval miniatures that depict historical events with the participation of the Tatars. A small gallery from the Internet:

Battle of Legnica (Tatars on the left)

Fragment of the tomb of Henry the Pious, who died in the Battle of Legnica. (Henry tramples the Tatar underfoot)

It is obvious that it is quite difficult to distinguish Russian vigilantes from Tatars. Both sides have a completely European appearance and similar weapons, and in the fragment of the tomb the “defeated Tatar” has a frankly Slavic appearance. The miniatures only further confirmed our assumptions about the absence of Mongols among the Tatars and that the Tatars were not united along national lines (it is worth taking a closer look at the “Battle of Legnica”). The image on the Tatar flag (the same engraving) is also interesting; a male head in a crown is clearly visible on it: either an emperor or an image of Christ. There are still more questions than answers.

Perhaps the chronicles can help us determine the location of the Tatar state. After all, each of us knows that it is logical to look for the possessions of the “sultan” in Asia, the “kingdoms” are ruled by Catholic sovereigns, and the estates of the great princes lie in Slavic territories. If Batu is a khan (as we are accustomed to believe), then we will look for the khanate of the eastern sovereign.

But Russian chronicles call Batu differently: “...I wanted to tell Tsar Batu...; ... I want to go to the Tsar in the Horde; Caesar Batu gave great honor and gifts to the Russian prince Alexander, and let him go with great love” (Novgorod Chronicle). On the miniature from “The Life of Euphrosyne of Suzdal” we read: “the godless Tsar Batu.” It is much easier to find a Tsar-Tsar; this title can only be held by one person - the Byzantine Emperor.

Let's look at the history of the Byzantine Empire in the 13th century. Wikipedia says:

“The Byzantine Empire, Byzantium, Eastern Roman Empire (395-1453) is a state that took shape in 395 as a result of the final division of the Roman Empire after the death of Emperor Theodosius I into western and eastern parts. Less than eighty years after the partition, the Western Roman Empire ceased to exist, leaving Byzantium as the historical, cultural and civilizational successor to Ancient Rome for almost ten centuries of late Antiquity and the Middle Ages. The Eastern Roman Empire received the name “Byzantine” in the works of Western European historians after its fall; it comes from the original name of Constantinople - Byzantium, where the Roman Emperor Constantine I moved the capital of the empire in 330, officially renaming the city New Rome.

Western sources referred to it as the "Empire of the Greeks" for most of Byzantine history due to its predominance of Greek language, Hellenized population and culture. In Ancient Rus', Byzantium was usually called the “Greek Kingdom”, and its capital was Constantinople.”

Also in connection with the history of the Byzantine Empire, another interesting fact is connected - the split of Christianity.

“The schism of the Christian Church in 1054, also the Great Schism - a church schism, after which the Church was finally divided into the Roman Catholic Church in the West, centered in Rome, and the Orthodox Church in the East, centered in Constantinople.” (Wikipedia).

How were things in Byzantium during the period of Batu’s existence?

Let's look at Wikipedia again:

“In 1204, the Crusader army captured Constantinople.

Byzantium broke up into a number of states - the Latin Empire and the Achaean Principality, created in the territories captured by the crusaders, and the Nicaea, Trebizond and Epirus empires - which remained under the control of the Greeks."

In fact, the Byzantine Empire did not exist; the Nicaean Empire became its successor(Nicaea).

Who ruled Nicaea? What will Wikipedia say?

"John III Dukas Vatatz - Nicaean emperor in 1221-1254."

This is already quite good, but there is no letter denoting the sound [v] in the Greek language, due to the absence of the sound itself, so the name of the emperor without distortion sounds like “Batats”. If we add the title, then, indeed, it is very close to “Tsar Batu”.

“The reign of John passed in concerns about the restoration of the former Byzantine Empire. Of great importance was John's victory over the Latins at Pimanion (near Lampsacus) in 1224, which resulted in the seizure of all lands in Asia from the Constantinople government. Then John in a short time conquered Lesbos, Rhodes, Chios, Samos, Kos; but in his attempt to take possession of Candia, as well as under the walls of Constantinople, John failed. While Asen was the Bulgarian king, John acted in alliance with him against the Latins..." A little...

“History of Byzantium” (volume 3, collection) is more generous with information:

“During the summer of 1235, Vatatz and Aseni captured most of Thrace from the Latins. The border between Bulgaria and the western possessions of the Nicaean Empire became the Maritsa River in its lower reaches from the mouth almost to Didymotika. The strongest Thracian fortress of the Latins, Tsurul, was besieged by Vatatz. In his campaigns against the Latins in 1235 and 1236. the allies reached the walls of Constantinople."

From the same source we know that after March 1237, the Bulgarian Tsar Asen dissolved the alliance with the Nicene emperor, which, however, was restored by the end of the same year. It is interesting, in this case, that in 1237 the Nicene emperor no longer took personal part in military operations either in southern Europe or in Asia (the personal presence of the Nicene emperor in southern Europe, according to this source, was recorded only in 1242 - participation in the campaign against Thessalonica).

In December 1237, Batu attacked the first of the Russian cities of Ryazan, having previously (according to some sources) defeated the Volga Bulgaria (the ancestors of modern Tatars).

If this is the Byzantine emperor, then what reasons could have brought him to Rus'?

What reasons could have brought the Nicene emperor to Rus'?

In 1237 (presumably April), probably having learned about the decision of Asen of the Bulgarian (refusing an alliance with Batatz), the Pope demands that the Nicene emperor join the Roman church, the latter refuses. Realizing the threat of a crusade against Nicaea, left without an ally, Batatz had to look for reinforcements somewhere.

It is logical to assume that the emperor went for help to his fellow believers - the Russian princes.

By being baptized in 988, Rus' recognized the spiritual supremacy of Byzantium.

Gumilyov described the situation this way:

“In Rus' it was believed that there was only one king - Basileus in Constantinople. In the Russian land, princes ruled - independent rulers, but second persons in the hierarchy of statehood. After the capture of Constantinople by the crusaders (1204) and the collapse of the power of the Byzantine emperors, the khans of the Golden Horde began to be called “Tsar” in Rus'.”

The Horde as a state did not yet exist in 1237, but someone was considered king at that time. And this title, as we have already found out, could only be claimed by the Nicene emperor Batatz.

The fact that the adoption of Christianity was a step that consolidated the political union is also evidenced by the fact that Vladimir in baptism took the name Vasily, in honor of the reigning Byzantine monarch. In addition, this union was sealed by the marriage of Vladimir-Vasily and the Byzantine princess Anna.

In itself, this method of consolidating an alliance between two states, when the weaker one accepts the religion of the stronger one, is not unique in history (Jagailo, Grand Duke of Lithuania, Russia and Zhemoytsk in 1386 converted to Catholicism and married the Polish queen Jadwiga; Uzbek adoption of Islam around 1319 year; Mindovg converted to Catholicism in 1251, Danila Galitsky - in 1255). True, as soon as a weak state became strong, or found a stronger ally, it could again change religion. Rus' did not change its religion, which means that formally this union was in effect in 1237.

Like any political union, the union of Rus' with Byzantium obligated both sides to provide assistance if necessary. But the Nicene emperor had a need: first of all, he wanted to return Constantinople, and for this he needed troops and supplies.

The Novgorod Chronicle speaks about the same thing: “the foreigners, the Glagolemy Tatars, came to the land of Ryazan, a multitude of people became merciless, like pruzis; and the first one came and stasha about Nuzl, and took it, and stasha stood there. And from there he sent his ambassadors, his sorceress wife and two husbands with her, to the princes of Ryazan, asking them for tenths of tithes: both for the people, and for the princes, and for the horses, for every tenth.”

One can, of course, regard this as a demand for tribute, but taking tribute from princes and not money, you will agree, is somehow quite strange, but all of the above fits into the concept of “military assistance”.

In addition, the marriage of the Ryazan prince to Princess Eupraxia(?) also suggests that the political union of Nicaea and at least one of the principalities of Rus' existed.

It is difficult to judge the reasons that prompted the Russian princes to refuse the Nicene emperor; perhaps they were embarrassed by the “weakness” of Nicaea; perhaps it seemed controversial that Batatz was the heir of Byzantium, but, according to the Novgorod Chronicle, they acted as follows:

“The princes of Ryazan Gyurga, Ingvorov’s brother, Oleg, Roman Ingorovich, and Muromsky /l.121ob./ and Pronsky, not in vain to the city, rode against them to Voronazh. And the princes told them: “There won’t be all of us, everything will be yours too.” And from there I sent them to Yury in Volodymyr, and from there I sent them to Nukhla Tatars in Voronazhi.”

What the Russian princes were counting on when they refused to recognize the supremacy of the Nicene emperor, we are unlikely to ever know. The subsequent reaction of the Tsar, accompanied by professional military men, was quite predictable.

The results of the military actions of the Tatars on the territory of Rus' are well known. In fairness, we admit that not all the princes of Rus' refused to recognize the supreme power of the Nicene emperor: for example, Alexander Yaroslavovich (Nevsky) preferred “peace to quarrel,” which, it seems, he did not regret later (except for Novgorod, in which his power, thanks to the “yoke” strengthened, he received Vladimir and even Kiev), and Danila Galitsky, despairing of getting the coveted Kyiv, also recognized the power of the Tatars.

It is interesting that historians motivate Batu’s refusal to advance towards the territories of Lithuania and Novgorod by the “spring thaw” in March 1238: “The Tatars, having taken Torzhek on March 15, burned everything, beat some people, took others captive, and even chased those who left along the Seliger road to Ignach the cross, cutting people like grass. And just before they reached Novagrad 100 miles away, they returned, it was too warm, they were afraid to go further between so many rivers, lakes and swamps” (V.N. Tatishchev). The Novgorod Chronicle moves the date of the capture of Torzhok to March 5.

Tatishchev’s hypothesis is refuted by the well-known fact that the Battle of the Ice took place in 1242 on April 5, old style. If the ice at the beginning of April was so strong that it could withstand armed squads, then the mud at the beginning of March near Novgorod is simply impossible.

Most likely, the Nicene emperor simply did not intend to march on Novgorod. As well as Polotsk, Turov and Novogrudok, as well as other cities that became part of the state “Grand Duchy of Lithuania, Russia and Zhemoytsk” (GDL).

We will talk separately about the reasons why the Byzantine emperor chose a different direction of movement, as well as about the Horde.

I will provide a map (I will immediately apologize for the significant “inaccuracies” in the northern part), so that you can use it to consider the details of the movements of the Nicene emperor.

Let's continue to study the sources:

“In 1241 Asen died. His son Koloman I Asen (1241-1246) established peace with Vatatz.

He invited Theodore Angelos to his place for negotiations and detained him, setting out on a campaign against Thessalonica in 1242.

Vatatzes took the fortress of Rentina and devastated the area around Thessalonica. At the same time, Vatatz’s fleet also arrived at Thessalonica. But the siege did not take place. From Pyg, news was received from Vatatz's son Theodore Laskaris that the Mongols had defeated the Turkish troops. …. Before his departure, he sent his father Theodore to John, demanding that the ruler of Thessalonica renounce the imperial title and recognize the sovereignty of the Nicene emperor. John accepted the terms of Vatatz's ultimatum and received the title of despot.

The Turkish Sultan, defeated by the Mongols, proposed an alliance with Vatatsu. Vatatz met with the Sultan on Meander. The alliance was concluded. But the Mongols, having made the Sultan their tributary, as well as the ruler of the Empire of Trebizond, temporarily stopped their advance to the west, going to Baghdad" (History of Byzantium)

“He (Batatz) captured vast territories in Northern Thrace, Southern and Central Macedonia. Adrianople, Prosek, Tsepena, Shtip, Stenimakh, Velbuzhd, Skopje, Veles, Pelagonia, and Serra came under his rule. Melnik was surrendered voluntarily to the Bulgarian nobility in exchange for Chrisovul Vatatz, who established the rights and privileges of the city.

The borders of the Nicaean Empire in the west now included Verria.” (History of Byzantium);

“John Vatatz crossed with his army to the European coast and in a few months took from Bulgaria all the Macedonian and Thracian regions conquered by Asenem II. Without stopping there, Vatatz went further to Thessaloniki, where complete destruction reigned, and in 1246 he easily captured this city. The Solunsk state ceased to exist. The following year, Vatatzes conquered some Thracian cities that belonged to the Latin Empire and brought the Nicaean emperor closer to Constantinople. The Epirus despotate was made dependent on his power. Vatatz had no more rivals in his quest for the shores of the Bosphorus.” (Vasiliev “History of the Byzantine Empire”).

When comparing the dates indicated in the sources, a tendency is clearly visible - if John Batats acts directly with his army, then Batu personally does not participate in any military actions, and vice versa, if we read about Batu’s conquests, then during this period the Nicene emperor “takes a vacation ”, and only his military leaders “work”.

In Europe, the hordes of Batu, after the total defeat of the crusaders, can really only be resisted by the powerful army of the Nicene emperor, but even in 1242 they “managed” not to meet on the territory of Bulgaria. It’s strange, to say the least, if we assume that these are different people.

A little about the troops of the Byzantine emperors.

Wikipedia:

“Byzantine lightly armed archers and javelin throwers used tactics similar to those of Slavic warriors. In battle they were supported by heavy infantry. The best tactical formation was considered to be one in which heavy cavalry was located in the center, and lightly armed horse archers were on the flanks.

Over time, as a result of long wars with the Arab world, horse archers were gradually replaced by mounted spearmen. In the VII-VIII centuries. The standard formation looked like this: infantry was located in the center, heavy cavalry was located behind the infantry, and light cavalry was on the flanks. During the battle, the heavy cavalry moved forward through gaps in the infantry ranks. Own units of horse archers existed until the 9th century and were subsequently replaced by mercenaries from among the Turkic-speaking nomads.

Mercenaries, according to the Byzantines, were more reliable and less susceptible to riots and rebellions. Some of these soldiers remained to serve in the empire's troops on a permanent basis, while others only served the imperial troops temporarily. The hiring of foreign soldiers was sanctioned by the central government. Mercenaries served mainly in the central forces. The Alans supplied Byzantium with highly qualified lightly armed mounted riflemen. Some of them were settled in Thrace in 1301. The Albanians served mainly in the cavalry and fought on the borderlands under the command of their own commanders. Armenians, Georgians and Bulgarians also made up a certain percentage of the mercenary and allied auxiliary forces. A less significant but noticeable role was also played by the Burgundians, Catalans and Cretans. A major role in the Byzantine troops until the beginning of the 14th century was played by Polovtsian (Cuman) warriors, who fought as horse archers.

However, the majority of lightly armed horsemen were mercenaries from among the Turkic-speaking nomads who had their own military organization. From the middle of the 11th century, the majority of mercenaries in the light cavalry were Pechenegs. Many of them served in provincial troops. Their main weapon was the bow. The Pechenegs also fought with darts, sabers, spears, and small axes. They also had lassos for pulling the enemy out of their saddles. In battle, the warrior was covered with a small round shield. Rich warriors wore armor of plate construction.

In addition to the Pechenegs, Seljuks also served in the Byzantine light cavalry. Their weapons were bows, darts, swords, and lassos. Most warriors did not wear armor. Rich and noble warriors wore plate armor, like the Seljuks and chain mail. The main protection of a simple warrior was a small round shield.”

As we see, the Byzantine emperors regularly and willingly used the services of mercenaries. Batats was no exception. The Nicaean emperor's own army could not be large, but he knew how to attract allies. It seems that it is precisely this quality of Batats that explains the “innumerability” of Batu’s hordes.

In this part, we will try to figure out how one person was the Nicene emperor and king of the Tatars, and why this could happen.

We continue to study information about the Tatars. What do sources say about them?

The authors of domestic chronicles characterize the Tatars as “godless,” “filthy,” “lawless” and “cursed,” which, alas, does not characterize them in any way from a religious point of view. If only because I did not come across a single mention of the deliberate destruction of Orthodox Christian churches by the Tatars, except, perhaps, a description of the fall of Ryazan, but this is clearly a “special case”...

Moreover, the Tatars were not only calm about Orthodoxy, they even supported it, freeing the clergy from paying tribute. In addition, the Horde gave the Orthodox Church labels, according to which any defamation of the faith, and especially the plunder of church property, was punishable by death. The same Berke did not provide any opposition to the creation of the Orthodox Sarai diocese on the territory of the Horde. Only after Uzbek adopted Islam did the Horde’s attitude towards Orthodoxy change.

Domestic historians generally have a strong opinion about Batu’s religious tolerance.

Western chroniclers claim the opposite, replete with evidence of the Tatars’ persecution of Christianity:

“[Message from Heinrich Raspe, Landgrave of Thuringian 101 to the Duke of Brabant 102 about the Tatars. 1242]

I heard from Brother Robert of Pheles that without hesitation these Tartars destroyed the seven monasteries of his brothers.

[Message from the Abbot of St. Mary's Monastery in Hungary]:

They sleep in churches with their wives, and from other places sanctified by God, oh woe! make stalls for horses.

[Message of Jordan, Provincial Vicar of the Franciscans in Poland].:

...and places consecrated by God are desecrated...

Know that five monasteries of preachers and two custodians of our brothers have already been completely destroyed...

...they desecrate places consecrated by God, [and] sleep in them with their wives, and tie their horses to the tombs of saints; and the relics of the saints are given to be devoured by the beasts of the earth and the birds of the air...” (Matvey of Paris)

“The Pope... is surprised at such a huge massacre of people carried out by the Tatars, and mainly Christians, and mainly Hungarians, Moravians and Poles, who are subject to him...” (John de Plano Carpini, Archbishop of Antivari).

Let's try to find the reasons for such strange selectivity in religious tolerance on the part of Batu in the history of Byzantium.

Let's go back to 1204, when Constantinople was taken by the Latins. What did the invaders do?

“After this campaign, all of Western Europe was enriched with the exported Constantinople treasures; it is rare that a Western European church has not received something from the “sacred remains” of Constantinople.” (Vasiliev “History of the Byzantine Empire”)

“A list of crimes compiled by the Greeks that were committed by the Latins in Holy Constantinople during the capture, placed in the manuscript after the list of religious sins of the Latins, has reached us. They, it turns out, burned more than 10,000 (!) churches and turned the rest into stables. At the very altar of St. Sophia they introduced mules to load church wealth, polluting the holy place; They also let in a shameless woman, who sat down in the patriarch’s place and blasphemously blessed; they smashed the throne, priceless in its art and material, divine in its holiness, and plundered its pieces; their leaders rode into the temple on horseback; they ate from sacred vessels together with their dogs, they threw away the holy gifts as uncleanness; from other church utensils they made belts, spurs, etc., and for their harlots they made rings, necklaces, even jewelry on their feet; vestments became clothing for men and women, bedding for beds and horse saddlecloths; marble slabs from altars and columns (ciboria) were placed at intersections; They threw the relics out of the holy crayfish (sarcophagi) like an abomination. At the hospital of St. They took Sampson’s iconostasis, painted with sacred images, punched holes in it and placed him on the “so-called. cement” so that their patients could perform their natural needs on it. They burned icons, trampled them, chopped them with axes, and placed them instead of boards in the stables; even during services in churches, their priests walked over icons placed on the floor. The Latins plundered the tombs of kings and queens and “discovered the secrets of nature.” In the very temples they slaughtered many Greeks, clergy and laity, who were seeking salvation, and their bishop with a cross rode at the head of the Latin army. A certain cardinal came to the Church of the Archangel Michael on the Bosphorus and covered the icons with lime and threw the relics into the abyss. How many women, nuns they dishonored, how many men, noble ones at that, they sold into slavery, moreover, for high prices, even to the Saracens. And such crimes were committed against innocent Christians by Christians who attacked foreign land, killed and burned, and tore off the last shirt from the dying!” (Uspensky. “History of the Byzantine Empire”)

As we see, the reasons for the “antipathy” of the Nicene emperor towards the Roman Catholic Church are quite justified, just as the respect shown to the temples and monasteries of his own faith is logical.

It seems that the Roman Catholic Church of that period was very biased towards Orthodox Christians. In addition to “schismatics,” the terms “infidels” and “heretics” used by the Latins in the 13th century often applied to Orthodox Christians.

So, let's return to the sources compiled by Roman Catholic priests in an attempt to find information that describes the reality of the Tatars.

Matvey Parishsky:

“This was said by Peter, Archbishop of Russia, who fled from the Tartars:

When he was asked about [their] religion, he replied that they believe in a single ruler of the world, and when they sent an embassy to the Ruthenians, they instructed [to say] the following words: “God and his son are in heaven, Chiarkhan is on earth.”

About their rituals and beliefs he said: “Everywhere in the morning they raise their hands to heaven, worshiping the Creator. ... And they say that their leader is Saint John the Baptist.”

They believe and say that they will have a severe battle with the Romans, for they call all the Latins Romans, and they are afraid of miracles, [since they believe that] the verdict about future retribution can change.

[Message from a certain Hungarian bishop to the Parisian bishop]

...I asked who are the ones who teach them to read and write; they said that these people are pale, they fast a lot, wear long clothes and do no harm to anyone...

[Message from G., head of the Franciscans (?) in Cologne, including a message from Jordan and from the head in Pinsk (?) about the Tatars. 1242]

...and peaceful people who are defeated and subjugated as allies, namely a great many pagans, heretics and false Christians, are turned into their warriors, the fear arises that all Christianity may be destroyed...

[Report on the Tatars, reported in Lyon 130 by the Dominican Andre 1245]:

Also, the brother, who was asked about their religion, replied that they believe that there is one god, and have their own rituals, which must be observed by everyone under threat of punishment.”

Carpini:

“...In a word, they believe that by fire they are purified in all respects.

..., obey their rulers more than any other people living in this world, either spiritual or secular, respect them more than anyone else and do not easily lie to them. Arguments between them rarely or never happen, but fights never happen, wars, quarrels, wounds, murders never happen between them. There are also no robbers and thieves of important items there...

One respects the other enough, and they are all quite friendly with each other; and although they have little food, they quite willingly share it among themselves...

And these are not pampered people. They don’t seem to have mutual envy; there are almost no legal quarrels among them; no one despises the other, but helps and supports as much as he can within his means. Their women are chaste...

Discord between them arises either rarely or never...

...These Komans were killed by the Tatars. Some even fled from their presence, while others were enslaved by them; however, many of those who fled return to them. (Interestingly, according to Matvey of Prague, the Komans generally refuse to fight against the Tatars)"

Now about the emperor himself:

“A person never sees him laugh in vain or commit some frivolous act, as the Christians who were constantly with him told us. The Christians who belonged to his servants also told us that they firmly believed that he should become a Christian; and they see a clear sign of this in the fact that he keeps Christian clergy and gives them maintenance, and also always has a Christian chapel in front of his large tent; and they sing publicly and openly and ring the clock, according to the custom of the Greeks, like other Christians, no matter how large the crowd of Tatars or other people may be; other leaders don't do this."

It is difficult to imagine that the described “Mongals” have nothing to do with Christianity.

The same Carpini, describing Batu’s campaign, reports: “Having completed this, they then entered the land of the Turks, who are pagans, having defeated it, they went against Russia and carried out a great massacre in the land of Russia, destroyed cities and fortresses and killed people, besieged Kyiv , which was the capital of Russia

Returning from there, they came to the land of the Mordvans, who are pagans, and defeated them by war.”

Karpini calls the Mordvans and Turks “essentially pagans,” avoiding applying this term to the Russians and does not call the Tatars in any way. If the Tatars were pagans, why not write: “The Tatars are pagans,” but he prefers not to call them anything, focusing the reader’s attention on the “idolatrous” elements of the rituals. Just as his Russians are neither pagans nor Christians, but Russia’s acceptance of baptism according to the Greek rite long before the birth of Carpini is well known (including himself). And the Nicene emperor and his army cannot be “essentially pagans” because they are still followers of Christian teaching, contrary to the ideas of Christianity of the Latins.

There is no doubt that the Nicene emperor was Orthodox within the framework of Christianity (at that time the emperor, together with the patriarch in Byzantium, decided which movement of Christianity was correct and which was not), but some points make it possible to identify the features of his beliefs, and, at the same time, and to clarify the reasons why the Roman Catholic Church was so aggressive towards Byzantine-style Christianity.

Name: Batu (Batu)

Years of life: around 1209 - 1255/1256

State: Golden Horde

Field of activity: Army, politics

Greatest Achievement: Became the ruler of the Golden Horde. He carried out a number of conquests in the north-west, including Rus'.

Batu Khan (ca. 1205-1255) was a Mongol ruler and founder of the Blue Horde. Batu was the son of Jochi and the grandson of Genghis Khan. His (or Kipchak Khanate), which ruled Russia and the Caucasus for about 250 years, after destroying the armies of Poland and Hungary. Batu was the figurehead of the Mongol invasion of Europe, and his general Subedei is credited with being an excellent strategist. Having gained control of Russia, Volga Bulgaria and Crimea, he invaded Europe, winning the Battle of Mochy against the Hungarian army on April 11, 1241. In 1246 he returned to Mongolia to elect a new Great Khan, apparently hoping for primacy. When his rival Guyuk Khan became the Great Khan, he returned to his khanate and built a capital on the Volga - Sarai, known as Sarai-Batu, which remained the capital of the Golden Horde until it disintegrated.

The role of Khan Batu in Russian and European campaigns is sometimes downplayed, giving the leading role to his general. Nevertheless, Batu's merit is that he heeded the advice of his general to gain experience in military affairs. Perhaps the most important effect of Batu Khan's Mongol invasion of Europe was that it helped draw Europe's attention to the world beyond its borders.

As long as the Mongol Empire existed, trade as well as diplomacy developed: for example, the papal nuncio was able to attend the assembly of 1246. To some extent, the Mongol Empire and the Mongol invasion of Europe, for which Batu Khan was at least nominally responsible, served as a bridge between different cultural parts of the world.

Pedigree of Batu

Although Genghis Khan recognized Jochi as his son, his origins remain in question, as his mother Borte, Genghis Khan's wife, was captured and he was born shortly after her return. While Genghis Khan was alive, this situation was known to everyone, but it was not discussed publicly. However, she drove a wedge between Jochi and his father; Shortly before his death, Jochi almost fought with him because of the stubborn refusal of his wife, Yuki, to join military campaigns.

Jochi was also given only 4 thousand Mongol soldiers to found his own khanate. Jochi's son Batu (Batu), described as "the second and most capable son of Yuki", obtained most of his soldiers by recruiting them from among the conquered Turkic peoples, mainly from the Kipchak Turks. Batu later played an important role in winning over his uncle Udegey to the side of Tolui, his other uncle. After Jochi and Genghis Khan died, Jochi's lands were divided between Batu and his older brother Horde. The Horde ruled the lands approximately between the Volga and Lake Balkhash - the White Horde, and Batu ruled the lands west of the Volga - the Golden Horde.

After the death of Batu's heir, Sartak, Batu's brother Berke inherited the Golden Horde. Berke was unwilling to unite with his cousins ​​in the Mongol family by going to war with Hulagu Khan, although he officially only recognized the Khanate of China as his theoretical overlord. In fact, by that time Berke was an independent ruler. Fortunately for Europe, Berke did not share Batu's interest in conquering it, but he demanded the extradition of the Hungarian king Béla IV and sent his general Boroldai to Lithuania and Poland. Batu had at least four children: Sartak, Khan of the Golden Horde from 1255-1256, Tukan, Abukan, Ulagchi (probably son of Sartak). Batu's mother Yuka-fuj-khatun belonged to the Mongolian clan Kungirat, and his chief khatun Borakchin was an Alchi-Tatar.

Batu's early years

After Jochi's death, his territory was divided among his sons; The Horde received the right bank of the Syr Darya and areas around Sari Bu, Batu, the northern coast of the Caspian Sea to the Ural River.

In 1229, Ogedei sent three tumens under Kukhdei and Sundei against the tribes in the lower Urals. Batu then joined Ogedei's military campaign in the Jin Dynasty in Northern China as they fought the Bashkirs, Cumans, Bulgars and Alans. Despite strong resistance from their enemies, the Mongols conquered many Jurchen cities and turned the Bashkirs into their allies.

Batu's invasion of Rus'

In 1235, Batu, who had previously led the conquest of Crimea, was entrusted with an army, perhaps 130,000, to oversee the invasion of Europe. His relatives and cousins ​​Guyuk, Buri, Mongke, Khulgen, Kadan, Baydar and the famous Mongol generals Subutai (Subedei), Borodal (Boroldai) and Mengyuser (Mnkhsar) joined him on the orders of their uncle Ogedei. The army, actually under the command of Subedei, crossed the Volga and invaded Volga Bulgaria in 1236. It took them a year to crush the resistance of the Volga Bulgars, Kipchaks and Alans.

In November 1237, Batu Khan sent his envoys to the Ryazan prince Yuri Igorevich and demanded his allegiance. A month later, the hordes besieged Ryazan. After six days of bloody battle, the city was completely destroyed. Excited by the news, Yuri sent his sons to delay the Horde, but was defeated. Afterwards Kolomna and Moscow were burned, then on February 4, 1238, the Horde besieged Vladimir. Three days later, the capital of the Vladimir-Suzdal principality was taken and burned to the ground. The princely family died in the fire, and the prince himself hastily retreated to the north. Having crossed the Volga, he gathered a new army, which was completely destroyed by the Mongols on March 4 on the Sit River.

Subsequently, Batu divided his army into several units, which devastated fourteen more cities of Rus': Rostov, Uglich, Yaroslavl, Kostroma, Kashin, Kshnyatin, Gorodets, Galich, Pereslavl-Zalessky, Yuryev-Polsky, Dmitrov, Volokolamsk, Tver and Torzhok. The most difficult was the city of Kozelsk, where the young Vasily reigned - the inhabitants resisted the Mongols for seven weeks. Only three large cities escaped destruction: Smolensk, which submitted to the Mongols and agreed to pay tribute, and Novgorod and Pskov, which were too far away, and besides, winter had begun.

In the summer of 1238, Batu Khan devastated Crimea and conquered Mordovia. In the winter of 1239 he took Chernigov and Pereyaslav. After several months of siege, in December 1239 the Horde broke into Kyiv. Despite the fierce resistance of Danila Galitsky, Batu managed to take two main capitals - Galich and Vladimir-Volynsky. The states of Rus' became vassals, and did not enter the Central Asian empire.

Batu decided to go to central Europe. Some modern historians believe that Batu was primarily concerned with ensuring that his flanks were protected from possible attack by Europeans and partly ensured further conquests. Most believe that he intended to conquer all of Europe once his flanks were strengthened and his army was ready again. He probably planned a campaign against Hungary, because Russian princes and commoners found refuge there and could pose a threat.

The Mongols invaded Central Europe in three groups. One group conquered Poland, defeating a combined army under the command of Henry the Pious, Duke of Silesia and Grand Master of the Teutonic Order at Legnica. The second crossed the Carpathians, and the third crossed the Danube. The armies reunited and defeated Hungary in 1241, defeating an army led by King Béla IV at the Battle of Mochy on 11 April. The troops swept across the plains of Hungary in the summer, and in the spring of 1242 they extended their control into Austria and Dalmatia, and also invaded Bohemia.

This attack on Europe was planned and carried out by Subedei, under the nominal command of Batu. During his campaign in Central Europe, Batu wrote to Frederick II, Holy Roman Emperor, demanding his surrender. The latter replied that he knew bird hunting well and would like to become the guardian of Batu's eagle if he ever lost his throne. The Emperor and Pope Gregory IX called for a crusade against the Mongol Empire.

Subedai achieved perhaps his most lasting fame with victories in Europe and Eastern Persia. Ruining many Russian principalities, he sent spies to Poland, Hungary and Austria, preparing for an attack on the central part of Europe. Having a clear picture of the European kingdoms, he prepared an attack with two "princes of the blood" (distant descendants of the line of Genghis Khan), Kaidu and Kadan, although the actual commander on the field was again General Subedei. While in the north Kaidu won the Battle of Legnica and Kadan's army was victorious in Transylvania, Subedei was waiting for them on the Hungarian plain. The reunited army withdrew to the Sajo River, where they defeated King Béla IV at the Battle of Mohi.

Towards the end of 1241, when Batu and Subedei had completed their invasions of Austria, Italy and Germany, they were overtaken by news of the death of Ogedei Khan (died December 1241), and the Mongols withdrew in the late spring of 1242, as the "princes of the blood" and Subedei were recalled to Karakorum, where a kurultai (congress of the Mongol nobility) was held. Batu was not actually present at the kurultai; he learned that Guyuk had received enough support to become khan and remain aloof. Instead, he turned around to consolidate his conquests in Asia and the Urals. Subedei was not with him - he remained in Mongolia, where he died in 1248, and the enmity of Batu and Guyuk Khan made further European invasion impossible.

The beginning of the feud dates back to 1240: celebrating the victory over Russia, Batu declared that the winner had the right to be the first to drink from the ceremonial cup. But his cousin apparently believed that this right belonged to General Batu. The deterioration of relations between Genghis Khan's grandchildren ultimately led to the collapse of the Mongol Empire.

After his return, Batu Khan founded the capital of his khanate in Sarai in the lower Volga. He planned new campaigns after Guyuk's death, intending to take advantage of Subedei's original plans to invade Europe, but died in 1255. The heir was his son Sartak, who decided not to invade Europe. It is speculated that if the Mongols had continued their campaign, they would have reached the Atlantic, since "no European army could have resisted the victorious Mongols."

The Kipchak Khanate ruled Russia through local princes for the next 230 years.

The Kipchak Khanate was known in Rus' and Europe as the Golden Horde. Some people think that it was named so because of the golden color of the khan’s tent. "Horde" comes from the Mongolian word "orda" (ordu) or camp. The word “golden” is believed to also have the meaning “royal”. Of all the khanates, the Golden Horde ruled the longest. After the fall of the Yuan dynasty in China and the fall of the Ilkhanate in the Middle East, the descendants of Batu Khan continued to rule the Russian steppes.

Although Subedei is described as the real mastermind of the campaigns carried out by Batu: "It is possible that Batu was only the supreme commander using his name, and that the real command was in the hands of Subedei." But Batu was wise enough to “masterfully exploit the discord between the various kingdoms of Europe” for the purposes of the Mongol campaign. And Batu’s undeniable merit was that he listened to the advice of his general and skillfully used his many years of experience in this area.

Perhaps the most significant legacy of Batu and the Mongol invasion of Europe was that it helped draw Europe's attention to the world beyond its borders, especially to China, which was effectively made available for trade as the Mongol Empire itself was held together by the Silk Road and carefully guarded his. To some extent, the Mongol Empire and the Mongol invasion of Europe served as a bridge between different cultural worlds.

, ᠪᠠᠲᠤ ᠬᠠᠨ

This article is about the Mongol ruler. For the Uzbek poet, writer, journalist and public figure, see Batu (poet).

Origin

Batu was the second son of Jochi, the eldest of the sons of Genghis Khan. Jochi was born shortly after the return of his mother Borte from Merkit captivity, and therefore the paternity of Genghis Khan in this case could be called into question. Sources report that Chagatai called his older brother a “Merkit gift” in 1219, but Genghis Khan himself always recognized such statements as offensive and unconditionally considered Jochi his son. Bata was no longer reproached for his father's origins.

In total, the eldest Chingizid had about 40 sons. Batu was the second most senior of them after Horde-Ichen (although Bual and Tuga-Timur could also be older than him). His mother Uki-khatun came from the Khungirat tribe and was the daughter of Ilchi-noyon; there is a hypothesis that Batu’s maternal grandfather should be identified with Alchu-noyon, the son of Dei-sechen and the brother of Borte. In this case, it turns out that Jochi married his cousin.

Name

Since the 1280s, Bata began to be called in sources Batu Khan.

Biography

Date of Birth

Batu's exact date of birth is unknown. Ahmed Ibn Muhammad Ghaffari in the Lists of the Organizers of the World gives the year 602 Hijra, that is, the period between 18 August 1205 and 7 August 1206, but the truth of this account is disputed, since the same historian apparently erroneously dates Batu's death to 1252/1253. Rashid ad-Din writes that Batu lived for forty-eight years, and gives the same incorrect date of death. Assuming that Rashid ad-Din was not mistaken with the overall life expectancy, it turns out that Batu was born in 606 (between July 6, 1209 and June 24, 1210), but this date contradicts sources that Batu was older his cousins ​​Munke (born January 1209) and even Guyuk (born 1206/07).

In historiography, opinions on this issue differ. V.V. Bartold refers the birth of Batu to the “first years of the 13th century”, A. Karpov in his biography of Batu for “ZhZL” names 1205/1206 as a conventional date, R. Pochekaev considers 1209 the most preferable option, in the cycle of biographies “ “Tsars of the Horde” even calling him without any reservations. The lack of consensus is clearly demonstrated by the round table held on the occasion of the 790th anniversary of Batu Khan on October 25, 2008.

early years

Under the terms of the division made by Genghis Khan in 1224, his eldest son Jochi received all the steppe spaces west of the Irtysh River and a number of adjacent agricultural territories, including the already conquered Khorezm, as well as Volga Bulgaria, Rus' and Europe, which had yet to be conquered. Jochi, who was in strained relations with his father and some brothers, remained in his possessions until his death, which occurred at the beginning of 1227 under completely unclear circumstances: according to some sources, he died of illness, according to others, he was killed.

V.V. Bartold wrote in one of his articles that after the death of his father, “Batu was recognized by the troops in the west as the heir of Jochi, and this choice was subsequently approved by Genghis Khan or his successor Ogedei.” At the same time, the scientist did not refer to any sources, but his words were uncritically repeated by others. In reality, there was no “selection by troops,” later approved by the supreme power: Genghis Khan appointed Bata as the ruler of the ulus, and to implement this order he sent his brother Temuge to Desht-i-Kipchak.

The sources do not say anything about why Genghis Khan chose this one from the numerous Jochids. In historiography there are statements that Batu inherited as the eldest son, that he was appointed as a promising commander. There is a hypothesis that influential relatives on the female side played a key role: if Batu’s grandfather Ilchi-noyon is the same person as Alchu-noyon, then Genghis Khan’s son-in-law Shiku-gurgen was Batu’s uncle, and Borte was not only his own grandmother, but also his cousin. The eldest wife of Genghis Khan could ensure that out of her many grandchildren, one was chosen, who was also the grandson of her brother. At the same time, there is no reason to talk about Batu’s seniority, about his military abilities demonstrated before 1227, and also about the fact that the choice of heirs among the Chingizids was influenced by the family ties of the princes in the female line.

Batu had to share power in the ulus with his brothers. The eldest of them, Horde-Ichen, received the entire “left wing,” that is, the eastern half of the ulus, and the main part of his father’s army; Batu was left with only the “right wing”, the west, and he also had to allocate shares to the rest of the Jochids.

Western campaign

In 1236-1243, Batu led the all-Mongolian Western Campaign, as a result of which the western part of the Polovtsian steppe, Volga Bulgaria, and the Volga and North Caucasian peoples were first conquered.

The Mongol army reached Central Europe. The Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II tried to organize resistance, and when Batu demanded submission, he replied that he could become the khan's falconer. Although there was no clash between the troops of the Holy Roman Empire and the Mongols, the Saxon city of Meissen became the extreme western point of Batu’s troops.

Later, Batu did not make any trips to the west, settling on the banks of the Volga in the city of Sarai-Batu, founded by him in the early 1250s.

Karakoram affairs

Batu completed his campaign to the West in 1242, having learned about the death of Khan Ogedei at the end of 1241 and the convening of a new kurultai. The troops retreated to the Lower Volga, which became the new center of the Jochi ulus. At the kurultai of 1246, Guyuk, Batu’s longtime enemy, was elected kagan. After Guyuk became Great Khan, a split occurred between the descendants of Ogedei and Chagatai, on the one hand, and the descendants of Jochi and Tolui, on the other. Guyuk set out on a campaign against Batu, but in 1248, when his army was in Transoxiana near Samarkand, he unexpectedly died. According to one version, he was poisoned by Batu's supporters. Among the latter was a loyal Batu Munke (Meng), a participant in the European campaign of 1236-1242, who was elected the next, fourth, Great Khan in 1251. To support him against the heirs of Chagatai, Batu sent his brother Berke with the 100,000-strong corps of the temnik Burundai to Otrar. After Munke's victory, Batu, in turn, became aka (that is, the eldest in the clan).

Strengthening the ulus

In 1243-1246, all Russian princes recognized their dependence on the rulers of the Golden Horde and the Mongol Empire. Prince Yaroslav Vsevolodovich of Vladimir was recognized as the oldest on Russian soil; Kyiv, devastated by the Mongols in 1240, was transferred to him. In 1246, Yaroslav was sent by Batu as a plenipotentiary representative to the kurultai in Karakorum and there he was poisoned by Guyuk’s supporters. Mikhail Chernigovsky was killed in the Golden Horde (he refused to pass between two fires at the entrance to the Khan's yurt, which indicated the visitor's malicious intent). The sons of Yaroslav - Andrei and Alexander Nevsky also went to the Horde, and from it to Karakorum and received the first Vladimir reign there, and the second - Kyiv and Novgorod (1249). Andrei sought to resist the Mongols by concluding an alliance with the strongest prince of Southern Rus' - Daniil Romanovich Galitsky. This led to the Horde punitive campaign of 1252. The Mongol army led by Nevryu defeated the Yaroslavichs Andrei and Yaroslav. The label to Vladimir was transferred to Alexander by decision of Batu.

Christian

According to the Persian historian Wassaf al-Hazrat Batu accepted Christianity, although he was not distinguished by fanaticism. According to him: " Although he ( Batu) was of Christian faith, and Christianity is contrary to common sense, but (he) had no inclination or disposition towards any of the religious faiths and teachings, and he was alien to intolerance and boasting» .

Muslim

Family

Memory

Image in art

In literature

• Batu Khan became an episodic character in V. G. Yan’s novel “Genghis Khan” () and one of the central characters in his novels “Batu” () and “To the “last” sea” ().
• He acts in A.K. Yugov’s novel “Ratobortsy” (-).
• Batu is the main antagonist and deuteragonist of Vladimir Korotkevich’s legend “The Swan Monastery” (1950s).
• The last day of Batu occupies a significant place in the book “The Six-Headed Idahar” - the first part of Ilyas Yesenberlin’s trilogy “The Golden Horde” (-).
• Batu Khan is the “obviously positive” hero of the little-known humorous story “Man-Khan” (the author’s pseudonym is Akhotirpalan), as well as other stories about superheroes from the organization “Sh. I.T.” In the story by the same author, “Saharan Sugar,” Khan Batu saves Potap Man and Sylvia by shooting a megahyena with a bow.

To the cinema

• "Tatars" () - shown under the name "Toghrul".
• "Mongols" () - shown under the name "Genghis Khan".
• “Daniil - Prince of Galicia” () - in the role of Nurmukhan Zhanturin.
• “The Life of Alexander Nevsky” () - in the role of Asanbek Umuraliev.
• “The Legend of Kolovrat” () - in the role of Alexander Tsoi.

In animation

• “The Tale of Evpatiy Kolovrat” () - “Soyuzmultfilm”. Batu is the antagonist of the cartoon's main character.

Notes

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2. , With. 12-15.
3. , With. 65.
4. , With. 50.
5. , With. 51-52.
6. , With. 17-19.
7. , With. 210.
8. , With. 296.
9. , With. 81.
10. , With. 496.
11. , With. 17, 296.
12. , With. 31.
13. , With. 10.