{{Short description|Khan of the Golden Horde from 1369 to 1377}} {{Infobox royalty |title = | name =Urus Khan | image =Urus khan's coin Sarai.jpg | caption =Urus khan's coins in [[Lower Volga]] | succession =[[List of khans of the Golden Horde|Khan of the Golden Horde]]<br/>''Eastern Half (White Horde) '' | reign1 =1369–1377 | predecessor1 =[[Chimtay]] | successor1 =[[Toqtaqiya]]
| succession2 =[[List of khans of the Golden Horde|Khan of the Golden Horde]]<br/>''Western Half (Blue Horde) '' | reign2 =1373–1375 | predecessor2 =[[Muhammad Sultan (Golden Horde)|Muḥammad-Sulṭān]] | successor2 =[[Qaghan Beg|Qāghān Beg]] | spouse = | issue = | house =[[Borjigin]] | house-type =Dynasty | father =Badiq | mother = | birth_date = | birth_place = | death_date =1377 | death_place = | religion =[[Sunni Islam]] |}}
'''Urus Khan'''{{efn|[[Cuman language|Kypchak]]/[[Chagatai language|Turki]] and {{langx|fa|محمد اروس خان|Muḥammad Urūs Khān}}<br/>{{langx|kk|Ұрыс-Хан|Ūrys-Xan}}<br/>'''Urus''' had varying Perso-Arabic spellings including: {{lang|fa|اوروس, اورس, ارس}} and was varyingly transliterated as: ''Orys'', ''Arys'', ''Yrys'', or ''Orys''}} (died 1377) was the eighth [[Khan (title)|Khan]] of the [[White Horde]] and a disputed Khan of the [[Blue Horde]]; he was a direct descendant of [[Genghis Khan]]. Urus himself was the direct ancestor of the khans of the [[Kazakh Khanate]].
== Ancestry == The descent of Urus, according to the genealogical information of the ''[[Jāmiʿ al-tawārīkh]]'', the ''Muʿizz al-ansāb'' and the ''Tawārīḫ-i guzīdah-i nuṣrat-nāmah'' was as follows: [[Genghis Khan]] - [[Jochi]] - [[Tuqa-Timur]] - Uz-Timur/Urung-Timur - Achiq - Taqtaq - Timur Khwaja - Badiq - Urus.<ref>Gaev 2002: 10-15, 53; Sagdeeva 2005: 5, 42, 71; Počekaev 2010a: 155-156, 372; May 2018: 302, 304; for the primary sources, see Judin 1992, Tizengauzen 2005 and 2006, Vohidov 2006.</ref> However, the fictional descent from Jochi's son [[Orda Khan|Orda]] found in older literature continues to be cited in many works.<ref>For example, Munedjimbashi says he was a descendant of [[Orda Khan]], the eldest son of Jochi and a brother of Tuqa-Timur. Howorth makes him the son of the previous khan of the White Horde, supposedly [[Chimtay]], and thus a descendant of Orda: Howorth 1880: 221. This is followed even in Bosworth 1996: 252.</ref>
The word Urus has multiple meanings in [[Turkic languages]]. One means "battle" and "warlike", thus Urus-Muhammad can be interpreted as Warlike-Muhammad.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Gafurov |first=Alim |title=Имя и история. Об именах арабов, персов, таджиков и тюрков |publisher=Izdatelstvo Nauka |year=1987 |location=Moscow |pages=197 |language=ru |trans-title=Name and history. About the names of Arabs, Persians, Tajiks and Turks.}}</ref> Another meaning of the word Urus is "Russian" in the [[Turkic languages]] and his mother was presumably a Russian princess, a fact he later exploited to press his claims in Russia.{{sfn|Vernadsky|1953|p=247}} The third version interprets it as unity and blessing from Kipchak-Turkic. There is no order in the coins of Urus-khan himself – Urus, Arus, Urs, Ursh.<ref>https://e-history.kz/en/library/show/25671</ref>
==Biography== Urus Khan was a descendant of [[Jochi]]'s thirteenth son [[Tuqa-Timur]]. In 1260, coins may have been minted in Tuqa-Timur's name in [[Crimea]]. When [[Mengu-Timur]] ruled the Golden Horde, he gave Tuqa-Timur's son Urung-Timur (also called Uz-Timur and Urungbash) lands in the Crimea, which were retained by his descendants.<ref>Desmaisons 1871-1874: 182.</ref>
The early years of Urus Khan are not recorded in the sources. In the 1350s Urus decided to move from the Volga region to the south-eastern part of the Golden Horde. This was the former [[Orda (organization)|Ulus]] of [[Orda Khan|Orda]], which had been suppressed by 1330 by [[Öz Beg Khan]]. It was governed on behalf of the khan from [[Sighnaq]] by a governor from the Qiyats clan, [[Jir-Qutluq]], son of Isatay. He was killed in a skirmish by Urus, who was cossacking with a small group of his associates. Nevertheless, Jir-Qutluq was succeeded as governor by his son [[Tingiz-Buqa]], who ruthlessly suppressed the opposition.<ref>Počekaev 2010b: 25.</ref>
When Khan [[Berdi Beg]] was dying, Tingiz-Buqa conspired to set up a khan of his own, but his choice, a descendant of [[Tuqa-Timur]] named [[Qara Nogai]], betrayed and murdered him, in 1359/1360. Qara Nogai nevertheless did assume the throne of the former Ulus of Orda, but died after only three years, in 1363.<ref>Počekaev 2010b: 43-44.</ref> He was succeeded by a nephew (Tughluq-Timur), a cousin ([[Mubarak Khwaja]], who began to strike his own coins), and a brother (Qutluq Khwaja).<ref>Gaev 2002: 12-14.</ref> Urus had somehow escaped the wrath of Tingiz-Buqa, and survived the short reigns of his distant cousins. In 1368/1369, he seized the throne of the Ulus of Orda from Qutluq Khwaja and made himself khan. To secure his position and increase his authority, he eliminated those princes and emirs whom he considered his opponents. One of these victims was his cousin Tuy Khwaja, the father of the future Khan Tokhtamysh, which caused the implacable enmity of the latter toward Urus and his sons.{{sfn|Seleznëv|2009|p=204}}
Having established himself in the east, Urus attempted to take over the Golden Horde's traditional capital, [[Sarai (city)|Sarai]] on the Lower Volga. He chased out the [[beylerbey|beglerbeg]] [[Mamai]]'s protégé [[Muhammad Sultan (Golden Horde)|Muḥammad-Sulṭān]] in 1373 and appears to have briefly held the city, before losing it almost immediately to a local ruler, Ḥājjī Cherkes of Astrakhan, and then the [[Shaybanids|Shibanid]] [[Il Beg|Īl Beg]]. When Mamai recovered Sarai for Muḥammad-Sulṭān again in 1374, Urus made another successful attempt on the city. Nevertheless, he did not manage to hold it long, losing it to Īl Beg's son Qāghān Beg in 1375.{{sfn|Počekaev|2010b|p=61–63}}
During Urus' campaigns on the Lower Volga, his alienated and vengeful cousin Tokhtamysh made his way to [[Timur]] (Tamerlane) and sought his assistance against Urus and his family. Timur was accommodating, and furnished Tokhtamysh with resources and forces, allowing him to establish himself at [[Otrar]] and [[Sayram (city)|Sayram]]. Urus' son Qutlu-Buqa, who was governing the east in his father's absence attacked and expelled Tokhtamysh, who sought refuge with Timur again. Qutlu-Buqa, however, was mortally wounded in the battle. Supplied with more wealth and a fresh army by Timur, Tokhtamysh tried his luck again, only to be defeated by Urus' next son, Toqtaqiya; Tokhtamysh was wounded with an arrow in the arm, and only saved himself by swimming across the Seyhun ([[Syr Darya]]) river.{{sfn|Howorth|1880|p=222}}{{sfn|Seleznëv|2009|p=204}}
Urus Khan sent envoys to Tamerlane demanding to hand over Tokhtamysh: {{quote|«Toktamysh killed my son and, running away, came to your dominions; give me my enemy, if not, then, having appointed the place of battle, immediately come to battle»<ref>Klyashtorny S. G., Sultanov T. I. Kazakhstan: The Chronicle of three millennia / S. G. Klyashtorny, T. I. Sultanov. — Alma-Ata: Rauan, 1992. — page 201. 376 p.</ref>}}
The stage was now set for a major confrontation between Urus, who had temporarily given up on his ambition to hold Sarai, and Timur, who insisted on protecting and supporting Tokhtamysh. Urus and Timur advanced on each other <span class="anchor" id="Battle of Sauran">in the space between Sighnaq and Otrar in 1376</span>. In the course of small battles, Urus Khan's detachments inflicted several defeats on the commanders of Timur's troops. Having suffered significant losses in men, horses and supplies, Timur retreated to Samarkand and Kesh in the winter of 1376-1377. Bad weather delayed the impending engagement and, despite some skirmishes (in which Urus' son Timur-Malik was wounded), no decisive battle ensued. Urus marched home. By the time hostilities resumed and Timur advanced beyond Otrar, he learned in 1377 that Urus had died.{{sfn|Howorth|1880|p=223}}{{sfn|Seleznëv|2009|p=204}}<ref>{{Cite book |last=combined |first=work |title=The Golden Horde in World History |date=2016 |publisher=Sh.Marjani Institute of History of the Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Tatarstan |isbn=978-5-94981-229-7 |location=Kazan |pages=214 |language=ru}}</ref>
Timur now declared Tokhtamysh khan of the Golden Horde, but returned home himself. Urus was actually succeeded by his sons, Toqtaqiya, who died after two months, and Timur-Malik, who was defeated and killed by Tokhtamysh in 1379. Urus had reigned for nine years, but his attempts to hold Sarai and take over the western portions of the Golden Horde had met with failure.<ref>Howorth 1880: 223-225; Seleznëv 2009: 204.</ref>
==Descendants== Urus had four sons who played a political role: [[Kutlug-Buga]], who governed in the east while Urus attempted to take over [[Sarai (city)|Sarai]] but predeceased his father; [[Toqtaqiya]], who succeeded his father but died after two months; [[Temur-Malik (White Horde)|Timur-Malik]], who succeeded his brother but was overthrown by his cousin [[Tokhtamysh]]; and [[Quyurchuq]], who challenged Tokhtamysh for control of the Golden Horde in 1395–1397. Toqtaqiya's son Beg-Pulad and Quyurchuq's son [[Barak Khan|Baraq]] also attempted to become khans of the Golden Horde, Baraq meeting with some success in 1423–1428.
== Kazakh Khanate == For the khans of the [[Kazakh Khanate]], Urus Khan had a symbolic significance. In addition to the fact that he was the great-grandfather of the first Kazakh khans [[Janibek Khan|Jānī Beg]] and [[Kerei Khan|Giray]], neighboring countries called the Kazakh Khanate "Urus Tsarev Yurt" or "Urus Khanov Yurt". Thus, it was his medieval contemporaries who considered the first khan of this state. Some historians, notably Radik Temirgaliev, identify Urus Khan with the legendary [[Alasha Khan]], who, according to various sources, was called the first Kazakh khan and was considered the ancestor of all Kazakh khans and sultans. The mausoleum of [[Alash Khan]] is located in [[Ulytau (village)|Ulytau]], not far from the mausoleum of [[Jochi]], but some historians say that Alasha Khan may be [[Genghis Khan]] himself.{{Citation needed|date=October 2022}}
==Genealogy== *[[Genghis Khan]] *[[Jochi]] *[[Tuqa-Timur]] *Urung-Timur (Uz-Timur, Urungbash) *Achiq *Taqtaq *Timur Khwaja *Badiq *'''Urus'''
==See also== *[[List of khans of the Golden Horde]]
== Notes == {{notelist}}
== References == <references />
==Bibliography== * {{cite Efron|Урус-хан}} * Bosworth, C. E., ''The New Islamic Dynasties'', New York, 1996. * Desmaisons, P. I. (transl.), ''Histoire des Mongols et des Tatares par Aboul-Ghâzi Béhâdour Khân'', St Petersburg, 1871–1874. * Gaev, A. G., "Genealogija i hronologija Džučidov," ''Numizmatičeskij sbornik'' 3 (2002) 9-55. * {{cite book|last=Howorth|first=H. H.|title=History of the Mongols from the 9th to the 19th Century|volume=2|location= London|year=1880}} * Judin, V. P., ''Utemiš-hadži, Čingiz-name'', Alma-Ata, 1992. * May, T., ''The Mongol Empire'', Edinburgh, 2018. * Počekaev, R. J., Cari ordynskie: Biografii hanov i pravitelej Zolotoj Ordy. Saint Petersburg, 2010a. * {{cite book|last=Počekaev|first=R. J.|title=Mamaj: Istorija “anti-geroja” v istorii|location= Sankt-Peterburg|year=2010b}} * Sabitov, Ž. M., ''Genealogija "Tore"'', Astana, 2008. * Sagdeeva, R. Z., ''Serebrjannye monety hanov Zolotoj Ordy'', Moscow, 2005. * {{cite book|last=Seleznëv|first=J. V.|title=Èlita Zolotoj Ordy|location=Kazan|year= 2009}} * Tizengauzen, V. G. (trans.), ''Sbornik materialov, otnosjaščihsja k istorii Zolotoj Ordy. Izvlečenija iz arabskih sočinenii'', republished as ''Istorija Kazahstana v arabskih istočnikah''. 1. Almaty, 2005. * Tizengauzen, V. G. (trans.), ''Sbornik materialov otnosjaščihsja k istorii Zolotoj Ordy. Izvlečenija iz persidskih sočinenii'', republished as ''Istorija Kazahstana v persidskih istočnikah''. 4. Almaty, 2006. * {{citation|last=Vernadsky|first=George|year=1953|title=The Mongols and Russia|publisher=Yale University Press}} * Vohidov, Š. H. (trans.), ''Istorija Kazahstana v persidskih istočnikah''. 3. ''Muʿizz al-ansāb''. Almaty, 2006.
{{S-start}} {{s-hou|[[Borjigin|House of Qiyat]] (1206–1635)}} {{s-reg|}} {{s-bef|before=[[Qutluq Khwaja]]}} {{s-ttl|title=[[List of Mongol Khans|Khan]] of the [[Blue Horde]]|years=1369–1377}} {{s-aft|after=[[Toqtaqiya]]}} {{s-bef|before=[[Muhammad Sultan (Golden Horde)|Muḥammad-Sulṭān]]}} {{s-ttl|title=[[List of Mongol Khans|Khan]] of the [[Golden Horde]]|years=1373–1375<br/>(in competition with Muḥammad-Sulṭān, Ḥājjī Cherkes, [[Il Beg|Īl Beg]]}} {{s-aft|after=[[Qaghan Beg|Qāghān Beg]]}} {{end}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Urus Khan}} [[Category:1377 deaths]] [[Category:14th-century khans of the Golden Horde]] [[Category:Khans of the White Horde]] [[Category:Year of birth unknown]]