Pages: 259-268 | DOI: https://doi.org/10.55086/sp265259268

This article examines the policy of Genghis Khan’s second son, Chagatai, toward Mawarannahr (Transoxiana). The early history of the Chagatai ulus remains understudied, and one of its key questions concerns when and under what circumstances the Chagataids came to dominate Transoxiana. Based on an analysis of written and numismatic sources, the author concludes that Chagatai’s personal domain initially encompassed only part of Semirechye, with its center at Almalyk. During Ögedei’s reign, Chagatai began to expand his presence in the regions west of the Syr Darya. In the 1230s, he attempted to organize repressive measures against Muslims, invoking the status of “keeper of the Yasa” granted to him by Genghis Khan. In the second half of the 1230s, Chagatai intensified his policy toward Transoxiana and seized Bukhara. The sharp increase in tax collection caused by his actions heightened social tensions, culminating in the Tarabi Rebellion. The uprising was suppressed by Chagatai’s troops under the command of Ilduz Noyon, son of Karachar Noyon of the Barlas tribe. Chagatai died in May or June 1241. Immediately after Ögedei’s death on December 31, 1241, Chagatai’s descendants intervened in the struggle for control of Khorasan in early 1242 and removed Korguz, the Jochid governor of the region. The evidence suggests that throughout Ögedei’s reign, Chagatai sought to gain control of Transoxiana or, at least, Bukhara.

Keywords: Chagatai, Ogedei, Mongol Empire, Bukhara, Mawarannahr, Jochi ulus

Information about author:

Artem Porsin (Astana, Kazakhstan). Candidate of Historical Sciences.  Institute for the Study of the Ulus of Jochi. Aleksandr Pushkin St., 15B, Astana, 010000, Republic of Kazakhstan
E-mail: [email protected]
ORCID: 0009-0008-4517-5265