Genghis Khan’s eldest son was Juchi, Juchi’s eldest son was Orda-Ezhen. In the understanding of the Mongols of that time, primogeniture was an important, though not obligatory, argument in favor of the right to the throne. The main thing, after all, was the personal abilities of a man, as well as his support by the significant masses of the nomadic population.
For this reason, the throne of the Mongol Empire received the third son of its founder Ugedei, and at the head of the Golden Horde was the second son of the governor of this ulus. But at Mongols there was a strict rule, that not admitted to supreme authority sons should be given considerable indemnification. Mainly so that they would not rebel against the supreme ruler.
So it came out that the great-grandson of Djuchi, grandson of Buval and son of Tatar, who bore the name Nogai, was one of the most influential princes of the Tatar Empire. Already by virtue of his origin he was endowed with lands and power from childhood.
Let us tell you about him today.
The word «Nokhai» in the Mongolian language means «dog». However, it does not carry any negative meaning. For nomads, it is the best friend who helps in hunting and watching the herds. Even Genghis Khan called his commanders battle dogs, meaning their selflessness and canine loyalty. In addition, sickly children could be called this name to divert the attention of evil spirits. It was believed that these malevolent beings would not be interested in the animal.
When his grandfather and father died, Nogai was the eldest in the family. In the middle of 1250th he was something about twenty years old, and Batu-Khan assigned to him strategically important steppes on the border with Romania and Bulgaria. The granting of such an inheritance testified to the high trust that the dynasty of the Golden Horde had in the younger kin. Under Berk, Batyi’s brother and heir, the young Chingizid became one of the most influential commanders of the Juchi ulus, located between Europe and Asia.
He became famous already in the 1260s, when civil war broke out in the nomadic world. Complicated by dynastic rivalry for the general Mongol throne, it led to a scramble of all ulus. Then the Horde converged in a severe struggle with Mongols from the Middle Eastern state of Hulaguids.
At the end of summer of 1262 Nogai led three tumens to Transcaucasia. On the approaches to the historical region of Azerbaijan, the stronghold of power and authority of his rivals, he defeated the vanguard of the enemy army, but because of the clash with the main forces was forced to retreat. The general left his wagons for the enemy to plunder and then attacked unexpectedly. His dashing attack was repulsed with great difficulty. But as a result Hulaguids faced the main army of the Golden Horde, and were completely and utterly defeated.
The next time Nogai again commanded tumens going ahead of all. In one of the battles he lost an eye, and together with his men fled. However, the victory was again snatched by the timely approaching khan Berke. He prevented the defeat of his nephew, and from this war he returned with the reputation of the best commander of his people.
Berke in recent years, as well as immersed in geopolitics Mengu-Timur, more than once trusted his kin to command the entire Tatar army. With his own forces or with the participation of khan’s and Russian reinforcements, in 1260-1280th years the commander repeatedly went against Poles, Hungarians, Lithuanians, Bulgarians, Greeks. Everywhere he received fabulous booty. For his son Chaki Nogai snatched the royal throne, and from the Byzantine emperor took a daughter as a wife.
Nogai, after the passing of Berke, made no effort to seize the throne for himself, and recognized the authority of the next ruler. However, it autocratically disposed external affairs, appointed and removed from reigning subordinate to Horde Rurikovich, concluded marriage unions and put the vassals on thrones of the Balkan states. Some subsequent Horde khans were under Nogai, and not Nogai under them — such serious influence has got this person.
However, the Poles and Hungarians learned from their earlier failures. They relied on crossbowmen, castles and knightly cavalry. The Horde invasions of the 1280s were repulsed by them with great difficulty. True, it was not this that led to the downfall of our present-day hero. And the fact that the great Khan Tokhta was stubborn and very principled man. He did not tolerate rivals in his state, and therefore his political confrontation with his relative in 1290s eventually turned into an open war.
In 1297 beklarbek defeated his sovereign halfway between his and his own possessions. It happened on the Don, somewhere in the vicinity of modern Novocherkassk. But the monarch still had superior resources and gathered a larger army to stage a revenge. This time luck was on his side: the old dog fled with little forces.