It seemed that at first, the Kiyats in the Golden Horde were not very lucky, and they did not gain high positions and rich possessions. Only a few of them have managed to prove themselves and advance. Thus, the Crimean Tatar historian of the XVIII century. Abd al-Ghaffar Kyrim mentions a certain Bor Altai from the Tarakli-kiyat clan, whom he calls atalyk Shiban, the son of Jochi. During the Mongols’ western campaign of 1235-1242. they invaded Crimea at the head of a 30,000-strong army; the same «kyyat Buruldai bik» is mentioned among the commanders of Shiban and in a Turkic historical work of the early 16th century. «Tavarikh-i guzida-i Nusrat-name» (the author of which is considered, not without reason, to be the Bukhara Khan Muhammad Shaybani).[25] It is suggested that this Altai Bor (Buruldai) is none other than the famous commander Bunday, an associate of Batu in the war with Volga Bulgaria and Vladimir—Suzdal Russia, and then a Baskak in the southern Russian steppes, who broke the resistance of Daniil Galitsky in 1258-1260.[26]
Thus, Buruldai (let’s focus on this version of his name) made a brilliant military career in the Golden Horde and managed to pave the way to power for his relatives, who probably flocked to the Golden Horde in large numbers after his elevation. Rashid al-Din mentions the Kiyats as a tribe «which at the present time (i.e. at the turn of the XIII—XIV centuries. P.) is located at Toktai» and «makes up one fog.»[27] Consequently, by this time, not individual representatives, but a whole powerful clan was in the service of the Golden Horde khans and could field a 10,000-strong detachment of soldiers in the event of war. It is doubtful, however, that the entire «fog» was made up of representatives of the Kiyat family: for example, at the end of the XII century. The Kiyat-Jurkin clan united not only the descendants of Okin-Barkhak, the son of Khabul Khan, but also representatives of various clans and tribes who at different times and for various reasons recognized the power of the Jurkins.[28] As noted above, Kiyat Ongur, an associate of Genghis Khan, received a thousand bayouts (not kiyats) under his command. Thus, the «mist» of Kiyats in the Golden Horde could also unite representatives of various clans and tribes of both Mongolian and Turkic origin, but it was named in accordance with the ancestral affiliation of its leaders— the descendants of Mungedu-Kiyan.[29]
At an early stage in the history of the Golden Horde, the fate of the Golden Horde kiyats turned out to be connected with Crimea. If Buruldai participated in the conquest of the peninsula in the 1230s and 1240s, then his relatives (or even direct descendants), apparently, established themselves in these lands. Some researchers definitely believe that the «domenial» possessions of the Golden Horde kiyats were located in the Crimea.[30] Modern researchers of Crimean toponymy have discovered on the peninsula more than 25 names of settlements containing the element «kiyat».[31] However, it is quite possible that the Kiyats finally settled in Crimea only at the beginning of the 14th century, and under circumstances that could hardly serve to their credit.
The Kiyats’ path to power began at the turn of the 13th—14th centuries, during that difficult period in the Golden Horde when the legitimate Khan Tokta (right. 1291-1312) fought for power and unity in the state with his rebellious beklari-bek Nogai, who also proclaimed himself Khan (right. 1296-1299). And this path began with betrayal. Seeing that the preponderance was clearly leaning towards the legitimate monarch, a number of emirs who were in the service of Nogai left their master and went over to the side of Tokta with 30,000 soldiers. On his side, they participated in the last battle with Nogai, in which the rebellious beklyari bek died. One of them, Ak-Buga, belonged to the Kiyat tribe.[32]
Of course, since the Kiyat noyon defected from the rebellious Beklari bek to the legitimate khan, it is possible that his actions were not formally a betrayal. One thing is certain: Ak-Buga showed treachery by betraying Nogai’s trust. And, one must think, treachery was a distinctive feature of the leaders of the Kiyat clan: other representatives of it, including Mamai, inherited it, as we will see later.
After joining Tokty’s camp, Ak-Buga continued to remain true to his principle of siding with the victors. And therefore, when, after the death of Khan Tokta, his nephew Uzbek carried out a coup d’etat and took the khan’s throne, Ak-Buga immediately left Tokta’s heirs and defected to the new ruler. He probably rendered some important services to the new khan: Uzbek Khan brought Ak-Bug closer and entrusted him with important embassy missions to foreign countries.
Ak-Buga, having occupied a high position at the Uzbek Khan’s court, apparently believed that he owed this not only to his own merits, but also to his high origin — after all, the Kiyats were close relatives of the descendants of Genghis Khan! And Ak-Buga did not forget to remind others of this, which sometimes put him in an awkward position. For example, Hafiz-i Abru, a Central Asian historian of the early 15th century, describes how Ak-Buga behaved when he arrived in Iran at the head of the Golden Horde embassy.: «Emir Hussein-gurgan…, having arranged a feast in honor of him (Ak-Buki)…, wanted to serve him a cup while sitting. Ak-Buka got angry and started making noise, saying: «You are a vassal and a serf, how am I going to accept the cup from you sitting there, and secondly, you have forgotten the ancient charter (yasyk) and custom (yusun), according to which gurgan must stand as a servant before Uruk.» In response, Emir Hussein said: «The emir has now come with an embassy, and not for the establishment (of yasamysh) of Uruk Genghis Khan.» As a result of these words, the ambassador fell silent.»[33] As we can see, the khan’s mercy turned Ak-Bug’s head so much that he even dared to classify himself as an «Uruk», i.e., a Golden family to which only the Genghisids belonged![34]
Other kiyats also enjoyed the favor of Khan Uzbek. One of them, Isa (also known as Isatai or Astai Kiyat), made a brilliant career under this khan.[35] In the 1320s. Uzbek Khan began a management reform in the Golden Horde, during which he limited the power of the Genghisid appanages and placed his governors at the head of the Horde regions. This was opposed by the descendants of Ordu-Ichen, the eldest son of Jochi, the hereditary rulers of the eastern wing of the Golden Horde, also known as the Blue Horde. After Mubarak-Khoja, one of the descendants of Ordu-Ichen, in 1328-1329. He rebelled against the Uzbek, but was defeated and fled from the Horde’s possessions, Uzbek Khan transferred the Blue Horde under the rule of Isatai Kiyat.[36]
Such a rapid and rather unexpected rise of Isatai gave rise to a number of different versions explaining the reasons for his career. For example, the aforementioned Khiva historian Utemish-hadji, who used various written sources and relied even more heavily on oral steppe traditions,[37] cites a completely fantastic version of the reign of Uzbek and the rise of Isatai under him. Allegedly, Tokta Khan, wanting to transfer the throne to his son, decided to exterminate all his other blood relatives, but his son-heir died before his father, and not a single member of the khan’s family remained. Then one of the wives informed the khan that during the beating of her relatives, she managed to save the Khan’s Uzbek nephew, who had found refuge in the Caucasus. The khan, as Utemish-haji further reports, immediately ordered the Uzbek to be brought to him, for whom he sent Isatai Kiyat and Alatai sijiut. However, before they could return with the prince, Khan Tokta died, and a usurper who was not related to the Genghisids, Bajir Tok—Buga from the Uighur tribe, took the vacant throne.[38] Isatai and Alatai, pretending to recognize Tok-Bug as Khan, came to him as if to greet him and killed him, after which Uzbek was proclaimed khan. In gratitude for the return of the throne, he rewarded Isatai and Alatai, and Isatai Kiyat was appointed ruler of the eastern wing of the Golden Horde, and the Jochids of the «left wing» (descendants of the «seventeen sons» of Jochi), who dutifully recognized the power of the usurper Tok-Bugi, were subordinated to Isatai as punishment.[39]
As we can see, the story of the rise of the Kiyats as presented by Utemish-hadji is a complex text that contains both wandering epic plots (the beating of relatives by a tyrant ruler, the loss of his only son, as well as the miraculous rescue of a young relative who inherits the throne) and real, apparently, information about the transfer of the left wing of the Golden Hordes under the control of Isa / Isatai. Nevertheless, some researchers are inclined either to fully acknowledge the reliability of Utemish-hadji’s information[40] or to see them as a reflection of real events, albeit somewhat distorted.[41] The second point of view is closer to us.
Isatai was the governor of the Blue Horde until the end of Uzbek Khan’s reign and died, apparently, almost simultaneously with him, in the early 1340s: he is no longer mentioned under Janibek.[42] Isatai’s influence turned out to be so significant that he managed to retain the post of governor of the eastern wing of the Golden Horde in his family, passing it on to his son Jir-Kutlug.
The new governor enjoyed no less influence under the new khan than his father had under the Uzbek: in Tatar historical writings, Jir-Kutlug is named among the closest confidants of Janibek Khan.[43] However, Jir-Kutlug was content with his position as the all-powerful governor of the Blue Horde and did not try to influence politics at the khan’s court. His prudent decision ensured him a neutral attitude from the powerful emirs of the Kungrat Mogul Bugi and Kutlug Bugi families, who alternately held the post of beklari beg under Janibek Khan.[44]
Meanwhile, the khan’s power under the Uzbek heir had weakened significantly, and he had to make certain concessions to the Jochid princes and tribal leaders and return to them a number of former privileges in order to secure their loyalty. Perhaps Jir-Kutlug also took advantage of the weakening of the central government and tightened control over the princes of the Blue Horde, using his «administrative resources» as the senior emir (bek) of the left wing, as well as relying on his powerful Kiyat relatives. However, he probably failed to fully assess the changed situation and understand that the weakening of the khan’s power had freed his hands not only to him, but also to the tsarevichs, whom he continued to consider his subordinates, as had been the case since the time of Uzbek Khan and Isatai. Jir-Kutlug’s management methods aroused the discontent of the Blue Horde Jochids, and they started a riot in which Jir-Kutlug died. According to steppe legends reflected in the «Collection of Chronicles» by Kadyr-Ali-biya Jalairi, compiled in the early 17th century, «Urus Khan killed Chir-Kutla.»[45] Most likely, when the troubles began (apparently after Janibek’s death), the Blue Horde oglan Urus (the future Khan of the Blue Horde, ruled 1368-1377) took advantage of the opportunity and killed the governor.
Nevertheless, the death of Jir-Kutlug did not free the eastern Jochids from the power of the Kiyats: Tengiz-Buga, the son of the murdered emir, became the new governor. Deciding to take revenge on the princes for the murder of his father, he behaved like a real tyrant. Utemish-hadji reports that «he cruelly tortured and humiliated these oglans… when he decided to erect a mausoleum over his father Jir-Kutla, he declared: «They should be the builders,» and he entrusted them with all the work on the construction of the mausoleum, without involving anyone else. They even had to bring water, make bricks, and bring bricks. They suffered a lot: some had their backs turned into wounds, others had their chests, and others had their legs torn to pieces.»[46] Although the Khiva historian seems to be exaggerating (it is unlikely that the Genghisid princes really bent their backs on the construction of the mausoleum!), in principle he is probably not far from the truth: Tengiz-Bug, in an effort to maintain power over the Blue Horde, began to strongly oppress the local Jochids.
Tengiz-Buga Kiyat, who ruled the Blue Horde at the turn of the 1350s and 1360s, was a contemporary and close relative of Mamai. Let’s try to find out the degree of their relationship.