Edigu
Encyclopedia
Edigu (also İdegäy or Edege Mangit) (1352–1419) was a Mongol emir
of the White Horde who founded the new political entity, which came to be known as the Nogai Horde
.
Edigu was from the Crimea
n Manghud tribe, the son of Baltychak, a Mongol noble who was defeated and killed by Khan Tokhtamysh
of the Golden Horde in 1378. He gained fame as a highly successful general of Tokhtamysh
before turning the arms against his master. By 1396, he was a sovereign ruler of a large area stretching between the Volga and Ural
(known locally as Yayyk
) rivers, which would later be called the Nogai Horde
.
In 1397 Edigu allied himself with Timur-Qutlugh
and was appointed General and commander-in-chief of the Golden Horde
armies. In 1399 he inflicted a crushing defeat on Tokhtamysh
and Vytautas of Lithuania
at the Vorskla River
. Thereupon he managed to unite under his rule all Jochi
's lands, albeit for the last time in history.
In 1406 he located his old enemy Tokhtamysh
in Siberia
. Edigu's agents killed Tokhtamish. The following year he raided Volga Bulgaria
. In 1408, he staged a destructive Tatar invasion of Russia
, which hadn't paid the tribute due to the horde for several decades. Edigu burnt Nizhny Novgorod
, Gorodets
, Rostov
, and many other towns but failed to take Moscow
, though he had still burnt it.
Two years later Edigu was dethroned in the Golden Horde
and had to seek refuge in Khwarezm
. Shah Rukh
of Herat
expelled him back to Sarai
, where he was assassinated by one of Tokhtamysh
's sons in 1419. Edigu's dynasty in the Nogai Horde
continued for about two centuries, until his last descendants moved to Moscow
, where they converted to Orthodox Christianity
and became known as Princes Urusov and Yusupov.
Emir
Emir , meaning "commander", "general", or "prince"; also transliterated as Amir, Aamir or Ameer) is a title of high office, used throughout the Muslim world...
of the White Horde who founded the new political entity, which came to be known as the Nogai Horde
Nogai Horde
The Nogai Horde was a confederation of about eighteen Turkic and Mongol tribes that occupied the Pontic-Caspian steppe from about 1500 until they were pushed west by the Kalmyks and south by the Russians in the 17th century. The Mongol tribe called the Manghits constituted a core of the Horde...
.
Edigu was from the Crimea
Crimea
Crimea , or the Autonomous Republic of Crimea , is a sub-national unit, an autonomous republic, of Ukraine. It is located on the northern coast of the Black Sea, occupying a peninsula of the same name...
n Manghud tribe, the son of Baltychak, a Mongol noble who was defeated and killed by Khan Tokhtamysh
Tokhtamysh
Tokhtamysh was the prominent khan of the White Horde, who briefly unified the White Horde and Blue Horde subdivisions of the Golden Horde into a single state. He was a descendant of Genghis Khan's eldest grandson, Orda Khan or his brother Tuqa-Timur...
of the Golden Horde in 1378. He gained fame as a highly successful general of Tokhtamysh
Tokhtamysh
Tokhtamysh was the prominent khan of the White Horde, who briefly unified the White Horde and Blue Horde subdivisions of the Golden Horde into a single state. He was a descendant of Genghis Khan's eldest grandson, Orda Khan or his brother Tuqa-Timur...
before turning the arms against his master. By 1396, he was a sovereign ruler of a large area stretching between the Volga and Ural
Ural River
The Ural or Jayıq/Zhayyq , known as Yaik before 1775, is a river flowing through Russia and Kazakhstan. It arises in the southern Ural Mountains and ends at the Caspian Sea. Its total length is 1,511 mi making it the third longest river in Europe after the Volga and the Danube...
(known locally as Yayyk
Ural River
The Ural or Jayıq/Zhayyq , known as Yaik before 1775, is a river flowing through Russia and Kazakhstan. It arises in the southern Ural Mountains and ends at the Caspian Sea. Its total length is 1,511 mi making it the third longest river in Europe after the Volga and the Danube...
) rivers, which would later be called the Nogai Horde
Nogai Horde
The Nogai Horde was a confederation of about eighteen Turkic and Mongol tribes that occupied the Pontic-Caspian steppe from about 1500 until they were pushed west by the Kalmyks and south by the Russians in the 17th century. The Mongol tribe called the Manghits constituted a core of the Horde...
.
In 1397 Edigu allied himself with Timur-Qutlugh
Temur Qutlugh
Temür Qutlugh was a khan of Golden Horde in 1397–1399. He was a son of Timur-Malik, khan of the White Horde, who struggled against Toqtamysh. After the death of Temur Malik in 1379 Qutlugh was reared at Toqtamysh's court. After an unsuccessful revolt against Toqtamysh in 1388, he, along with...
and was appointed General and commander-in-chief of the Golden Horde
Golden Horde
The Golden Horde was a Mongol and later Turkicized khanate that formed the north-western sector of the Mongol Empire...
armies. In 1399 he inflicted a crushing defeat on Tokhtamysh
Tokhtamysh
Tokhtamysh was the prominent khan of the White Horde, who briefly unified the White Horde and Blue Horde subdivisions of the Golden Horde into a single state. He was a descendant of Genghis Khan's eldest grandson, Orda Khan or his brother Tuqa-Timur...
and Vytautas of Lithuania
Lithuania
Lithuania , officially the Republic of Lithuania is a country in Northern Europe, the biggest of the three Baltic states. It is situated along the southeastern shore of the Baltic Sea, whereby to the west lie Sweden and Denmark...
at the Vorskla River
Battle of the Vorskla River
The Battle of the Vorskla River was a great battle in the medieval history of Eastern Europe. It was fought on August 12, 1399, between the Tatars, under Edigu and Temur Qutlugh, and the armies of Tokhtamysh and Grand Duke Vytautas of Lithuania...
. Thereupon he managed to unite under his rule all Jochi
Jochi
Jochi was the eldest of the Mongol chieftain Genghis Khan's four sons by his principal wife Börte. An accomplished military leader, he participated in his father's conquest of Central Asia, along with his brothers and uncles.-Early life:...
's lands, albeit for the last time in history.
In 1406 he located his old enemy Tokhtamysh
Tokhtamysh
Tokhtamysh was the prominent khan of the White Horde, who briefly unified the White Horde and Blue Horde subdivisions of the Golden Horde into a single state. He was a descendant of Genghis Khan's eldest grandson, Orda Khan or his brother Tuqa-Timur...
in Siberia
Siberia
Siberia is an extensive region constituting almost all of Northern Asia. Comprising the central and eastern portion of the Russian Federation, it was part of the Soviet Union from its beginning, as its predecessor states, the Tsardom of Russia and the Russian Empire, conquered it during the 16th...
. Edigu's agents killed Tokhtamish. The following year he raided Volga Bulgaria
Volga Bulgaria
Volga Bulgaria, or Volga–Kama Bolghar, is a historic Bulgar state that existed between the seventh and thirteenth centuries around the confluence of the Volga and Kama rivers in what is now Russia.-Origin:...
. In 1408, he staged a destructive Tatar invasion of Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
, which hadn't paid the tribute due to the horde for several decades. Edigu burnt Nizhny Novgorod
Nizhny Novgorod
Nizhny Novgorod , colloquially shortened to Nizhny, is, with the population of 1,250,615, the fifth largest city in Russia, ranking after Moscow, St. Petersburg, Novosibirsk, and Yekaterinburg...
, Gorodets
Gorodets
Gorodets is a town and the administrative center of Gorodetsky District of Nizhny Novgorod Oblast, Russia, located on the left bank of the Volga River, northwest of Nizhny Novgorod...
, Rostov
Rostov
Rostov is a town in Yaroslavl Oblast, Russia, one of the oldest in the country and a tourist center of the Golden Ring. It is located on the shores of Lake Nero, northeast of Moscow. Population:...
, and many other towns but failed to take Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
, though he had still burnt it.
Two years later Edigu was dethroned in the Golden Horde
Golden Horde
The Golden Horde was a Mongol and later Turkicized khanate that formed the north-western sector of the Mongol Empire...
and had to seek refuge in Khwarezm
Khwarezm
Khwarezm, or Chorasmia, is a large oasis region on the Amu Darya river delta in western Central Asia, which borders to the north the Aral Sea, to the east the Kyzylkum desert, to the south the Karakum desert and to the west the Ustyurt Plateau...
. Shah Rukh
Shah Rukh (Timurid dynasty)
Shāhrukh Mīrzā was the ruler of the eastern portion of the empire established by the Central Asian warlord Timur - the founder of the Timurid dynasty - governing most of Persia and Transoxiana between 1405 and 1447...
of Herat
Herat
Herāt is the capital of Herat province in Afghanistan. It is the third largest city of Afghanistan, with a population of about 397,456 as of 2006. It is situated in the valley of the Hari River, which flows from the mountains of central Afghanistan to the Karakum Desert in Turkmenistan...
expelled him back to Sarai
Sarai (city)
Sarai was the name of two cities, which were successively capital cities of the Golden Horde, the Mongol kingdom which ruled Russia and much of central Asia in the 13th and 14th centuries...
, where he was assassinated by one of Tokhtamysh
Tokhtamysh
Tokhtamysh was the prominent khan of the White Horde, who briefly unified the White Horde and Blue Horde subdivisions of the Golden Horde into a single state. He was a descendant of Genghis Khan's eldest grandson, Orda Khan or his brother Tuqa-Timur...
's sons in 1419. Edigu's dynasty in the Nogai Horde
Nogai Horde
The Nogai Horde was a confederation of about eighteen Turkic and Mongol tribes that occupied the Pontic-Caspian steppe from about 1500 until they were pushed west by the Kalmyks and south by the Russians in the 17th century. The Mongol tribe called the Manghits constituted a core of the Horde...
continued for about two centuries, until his last descendants moved to Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
, where they converted to Orthodox Christianity
Eastern Orthodox Church
The Orthodox Church, officially called the Orthodox Catholic Church and commonly referred to as the Eastern Orthodox Church, is the second largest Christian denomination in the world, with an estimated 300 million adherents mainly in the countries of Belarus, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Georgia, Greece,...
and became known as Princes Urusov and Yusupov.