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The Crimean Khanate (Khanate of Crimea) was an independent Turkic state (khanate) founded in 1441 by Haci Giray Khan, a descendant of Genghis Khan.

Contents

1 Golden Horde 2 Establishment of the Khanate 3 Ottoman Empire 4 Annexation by Russia 5 References 6 See also 7 Links

Golden Horde

In the early 13th century, the Crimea was populated by Alans, Cumans, Slavs, Armenians and Greeks, as well as a small remnant Goth population. The Tatar-Mongol conquest of the Crimea began in 1223 with an attack on Soldaia. By 1229, the entire steppe area of the Crimea was conquered by Tatar-Mongols. The economy of the invaders was nomadic. The local societies, based on agriculture, were destroyed. By the end of the 13th century, the Crimea became a preferred place of winter stay for Qarachi families. In the late 13th to early 14th century, the Crimea obtained the status of ulus (governance) within the Golden Horde, with its capital in Solkhat (contemporary Stary Krym). In 1394-95, Bas Timur, a descendant of Jochi, minted coins with his name in the Crimea and claimed sovereignty.

Establishment of the Khanate

In 1433, after a civil war, Haci Giray became the governor. In 1437, he defeated an attempt by Genoan colonists to remove him from power. In 1441, with the help of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, Haci Ghiray declared the province to be independent as the Crimean Khanate. The khanate included the Crimean peninsula and the lower Dniepr areas.

Ottoman Empire

During the rule of the next khan, Mengli Ghiray, the Ottoman Empire, under the orders of Mehmed II, invaded the Crimean Khanate in 1475. The invading forces, under the command of Gedik Ahmet Pasha and instigated by Mengli Ghiray, destroyed the Genoan colonies in Eupatoria, Cembalo, Soldaia, and Kaffa. The khanate became a vassal of the Ottoman Empire.

Sahib Giray I founded Bakhchisaray in 1532 and moved the capital there. The Hansaray (Khan's Palace) was built in the same year.

The Crimean khanate participated in numerous wars on the side of the Ottoman Empire. In 16th-17th centuries, it led or participated in raids against Russia (Muscovy) and Poland, as well as territories of contemporary Ukraine.

In the 16th century, the troops of the Crimean khanate besieged Moscow, Tula, and other Russian cities on several occasions. The other Turkic khanates, such as the Kazan Khanate and the Siberian Khanate, were incorporated into Russia in the 16th century. In 1571, Devlet Ghiray I captured and burned Moscow. Between 1600 and 1650, the khanate brought at least 200 thousand slaves to Crimea.

During the end of the 17th century, Russia fought the Russo-Turkish War, 1676-81 against the Ottoman Empire. As a part of this war, a number of unsuccessful raids was made to Crimea. The Russo-Turkish Wars continued with the Ottoman Empire gradually losing lands, such as the Castle of Azov.

Annexation by Russia

After the Russo-Turkish War, 1768-74, the Treaty of Kuchuk-Kainarji was signed, which made the Crimean Khanate independent from the Ottoman Empire, and aligned it with the Russian Empire. On 8 April 1783, in violation of the treaty, Catherine II annexed the whole of the Crimea into the Russian Empire.

References

• This article incorporates text from the "Great Soviet Encyclopedia"

See also

• List of Crimean khans
• List of Turkic states and empires
• Crimean Tatars
• Ottoman Empire
• Golden Horde
• Kazan Khanate

Links

• The Palace of the Crimean Khans (http://www.hansaray.iatp.org.ua/)
• Tatar.Net (http://www.tatar.net/)
• Annexation of the Crimean Khanate (http://www.qurultay.org/linkshow.asp?AD=../links/eng/history/rus_period/3_1.html)

ja:クリミア・ハン国 pl:Chanat_Krymski