The Golden Horde, also known as the Kipchak Khanate, was the northwestern khanate of the Mongol Empire, founded by Batu Khan, the grandson of Genghis Khan, in the aftermath of the Mongol invasion of Europe in the 1240s. The Golden Horde was the longest-lasting of the four major khanates, and it was the one that left the deepest imprint on the political life of Eastern Europe and Central Asia.
The name “Golden Horde” is a European translation of the Turkic-Mongol term “Altın Orda,” which is itself a translation of the Mongol term “All Ordu,” meaning “Golden Camp” or “Golden Horde.” The name refers to the golden tent of the khan, which was the center of the khanate’s political and military power. The name was used by the Russians and other European observers, and it eventually became the standard European name for the khanate.
The Founding of the Golden Horde
The Golden Horde was the major beneficiary of the Mongol invasion of Europe in the 1240s. Batu, who led the invasion, emerged from the campaigns as the most powerful prince in the western part of the empire, and he used his new position to establish a major state on the lower Volga. The Horde was organized along the lines of the original Mongol Empire, with a decimal military structure, a Yassa-based legal system, and an imperial administration that drew on the experience of the conquered peoples.
The Golden Horde was based on the lower Volga, where the khans maintained a shifting capital, first at Sarai Batu (Old Sarai) and later at Sarai Berke (New Sarai). The cities of the Horde were major centers of trade, with merchants from all over Eurasia visiting the khanate to conduct business. The Sarai cities were also major centers of Islamic learning, particularly after the conversion of the Horde to Islam in the early fourteenth century.
The Tribute System
The Golden Horde ruled the Russian principalities through a system of tribute collection that became increasingly elaborate over time. The system required the Russian princes to travel to Sarai to receive a patent (the yarlyk) authorizing them to rule their principalities. In return, the princes were required to pay tribute (the vykhod) in the form of furs, silver, and other goods, and to provide military service to the khan when required.
The tribute system was a major source of income for the Horde, and it gave the khan a powerful tool for intervening in Russian political affairs. The system was also a major burden on the Russian population, and it was a constant source of tension between the Russian principalities and the Horde. The system was eventually broken in 1480, when the Grand Duke of Moscow Ivan III declared independence from the Horde. The standoff on the Ugra River is traditionally taken as the end of Mongol rule over Russia.
The Conversion to Islam
The Golden Horde was initially a polytheistic and shamanist state, drawing on the religious traditions of the Mongol heartland. The conversion of the khan and the ruling class to Islam was a gradual process that took place over the course of the late thirteenth and early fourteenth centuries. The first Muslim khan of the Horde was Berke, who converted in the 1250s; the conversion of the mass of the population was a much slower process, and large parts of the Horde remained non-Muslim until the late fourteenth and early fifteenth centuries.
The conversion of the Horde to Islam had important political and cultural effects. The Horde became a major patron of Islamic culture, and the cities of Sarai became major centers of Islamic learning. The Horde also became a major ally of the Mamluk Sultanate of Egypt, with which it shared a common interest in opposing the Ilkhanate in Persia. The alliance between the Golden Horde and the Mamluks was one of the defining features of late medieval Middle Eastern politics.
The Decline of the Golden Horde
The Golden Horde entered a long period of decline in the late fourteenth and early fifteenth centuries. The decline was caused by a combination of internal divisions, the rise of new regional powers, and the gradual exhaustion of the tribute economy. The Horde split into a number of smaller khanates in the mid-fifteenth century, including the Crimean Khanate, the Khanate of Kazan, the Khanate of Astrakhan, and the Khanate of Sibir.
The final blow came in 1502, when the Crimean Khanate, with the support of the Grand Duchy of Moscow, conquered the last remnant of the Golden Horde. The conquest marked the end of the Golden Horde as a political entity, but the successor khanates — the Crimean Khanate, the Khanate of Kazan, the Khanate of Astrakhan, and the various Kazakh and Uzbek states — continued to rule the steppe for centuries afterward.
The Legacy of the Golden Horde
The Golden Horde left a deep imprint on the political, cultural, and economic life of Eastern Europe and Central Asia. The political frameworks established by the Horde continue to shape the modern states of Russia, Ukraine, and Kazakhstan, and the cultural traditions of the Horde are still visible in the modern world. The Tatar language, which developed in the Horde, is still spoken by millions of people in Russia and Central Asia, and the Islamic culture that was patronized by the Horde remains an important part of the cultural heritage of the region.
The Golden Horde is also significant for the role it played in the development of the Russian state. The Grand Duchy of Moscow, which had been a tributary of the Horde, gradually emerged as the major power in the northern steppe, and the political traditions of the Horde — including the yarlyk system, the postal relays, and the decimal military structure — were adopted by the Moscow court and became the basis of the Russian imperial system.
Sources
- David Morgan, The Mongols (2nd ed., Oxford, 2007).
- Peter Jackson, The Mongols and the West, 1221–1410 (London, 2005).
- Timothy May, The Mongol Conquests in World History (London, 2012).