Turkmen incursions into Georgia

Turkmen incursions into Georgia
	Part of Kara Koyunlu, Aq Qoyunlu invasions
	; Georgian Kingdom in 1460, bordering Kara Koyunlu to the south.
Date	Throughout the 15th century
Location	Caucasus, eastern Anatolia, western Iran
Result	Indecisive

Last updated August 07, 2022

After the devastating invasions by Timur and subsequent enfeeblement of the Kingdom of Georgia, it soon faced a new threat. Timur's death in 1405 marked the beginning of the end of his Empire, unified only by fear and blood of the subjected peoples. Turkomans, particularly the Kara Koyunlu clan, were among the first to rebel against Shah Rukh who ruled most of the Persia and Mawerannahr. Qara Yusuf, ruler of the Kara Koyunlu, defeated Shah Rukh, captured Baghdad, and repulsed Timurids from western Persia. After they established themselves as the new leading power in the middle east. They took advantage of the temporary weakness of the Georgians and launched attacks against them as early as 1407 during which Qara Yusuf took 15,000 prisoners and killed George VII of Georgia.^[1] Constantine I of Georgia, fearing further encroachment, allied himself with the Shirvanshah Ibrahim I to counter Turkoman advance and engaged them in the Battle of Chalagan, in which he was defeated and taken captive. In captivity Constantine behaved very proudly, which infuriated Qara Yusuf to such an extent, that he ordered his, his half-brother David's and 300 Georgian nobles' execution.

Alexander I of Georgia who sought to strengthen and restore his declining Kingdom, faced constant invasions by the tribal Turkomans. They sacked Akhaltsikhe, city of the vital regional importance in 1416, in response of suggested oppression of Muslims. Alexander re-conquered Lorri from the Turkomans in 1431, which was of great importance in securing of the Georgian borders. Around 1434/5, Alexander encouraged the Armenian prince Beshken II Orbelian to attack the Kara Koyunlu clansmen in Siunia and, for his victory, granted him Lorri under terms of vassalage. In 1440, Alexander refused to pay tribute to Jahan Shah of the Kara Koyunlu. In March, Jahan Shah surged into Georgia with 20,000 troops, destroyed the city of Samshvilde and sacked the capital city Tbilisi.^[1] He massacred 8,000 and enslaved 9,000 in Tbilisi, put heavy indemnity on Georgia, and returned to Tabriz.^[1] He also mounted a second military expedition against Georgia in 1444. His forces met those of Alexander’s successor, King Vakhtang IV at Akhaltsikhe, but the fighting was inconclusive and Jahan Shah returned to Tabriz once more.

As a result of foreign and mostly internal struggles unified Kingdom of Georgia stopped to exist after 1466 and was subdivided into several political units. Kara Koyunlu tribal confederation was destroyed by Aq Qoyunlu, their kin tribesmen who formed another confederation, which was similar in many ways to its predecessor. Aq Qoyunlu Turkomans naturally took advantage of the Georgian fragmentation. Georgia was at least twice attacked by Uzun Hasan, the prince of the Aq Qoyunlu in 1466, 1472 and possibly 1476-7. Bagrat VI of Georgia, temporary ruler of most of Georgia at the time, had to make peace with the invaders, abandoning Tbilisi to the enemy. It was only after Uzun Hasan’s death (1478) when the Georgians were able to recover their capital. In the winter of 1488, the Ak Koyunlu Turkomans led by Sufi Khalil Beg Mawsilu attacked Georgia’s capital Tbilisi, and took the city after a long-lasted siege in February 1489. Alexander II of Imereti, another pretender to the throne, took advantage of the Aq Qoyunlu Turkoman invasion of Kartli, and seized control of Imereti. Occupation of the capital did not last long and Constantine II of Georgia was able to repel them, but it was still costly to Georgians. Ismail I, founder of the Safavid dynasty, formed an alliance with the Georgians in 1502 and decisively defeated Aq Qoyunlu in the same year, destroying their state and marking the end of their invasions.

Related Research Articles

The Qara Qoyunlu or Kara Koyunlu, also known as the Black Sheep Turkomans, were a Persianate Muslim Turkoman monarchy that ruled over the territory comprising present-day Azerbaijan, Georgia, Armenia, northwestern Iran, eastern Turkey, and northeastern Iraq from about 1374 to 1468.

Uzun Hasan or Uzun Hassan, where uzun means "tall" in Oghuz Turkic, was a ruler of the Turkoman Aq Qoyunlu state, and generally considered to be its strongest ruler. Hasan ruled between 1452 and 1478, and would preside over the confederation's territorial apex, when it included parts or all of present-day Iraq, Turkey, Azerbaijan, Iran, Transcaucasia and Syria.

Muzaffar al-Din Jahan Shah ibn Yusuf was the leader of the Qara Qoyunlu Oghuz Turkic tribal confederacy in Azerbaijan and Arran who reigned c. 1438 – 1467. During his reign he managed to expand the Kara Koyunlu’s territory to its largest extent, including Eastern Anatolia, most of present-day Iraq, central Iran, and even eventually Kerman. He also conquered neighbouring states. He was one of the greatest rulers of the Kara Koyunlu. He was also allegedly fond of drinking and entertainment. During his reign Jahan Shah had the Gökmedrese and Muzafferiye theological schools constructed in his capital city Tabriz.

Qara may refer to:

Alexander I the Great, of the Bagrationi house, was king of Georgia from 1412 to 1442. Despite his efforts to restore the country from the ruins left by the Turco-Mongol warlords and Timur's invasions, Georgia never recovered and faced the inevitable fragmentation that was followed by a long period of stagnation. Alexander was the last ruler of a united Georgia which was relatively free from foreign domination. In 1442, he abdicated the throne and retired to a monastery.

Khalilullah I, also known as Sultan-Khalil (سلطان-خلیل), was the Shirvanshah from 1418 to 1465. He was the son and successor of Ibrahim I. He was succeeded by his son Farrukh Yasar.

The Kingdom of Georgia, also known as the Georgian Empire, was a medieval Eurasian monarchy that was founded in circa 1008 AD. It reached its Golden Age of political and economic strength during the reign of King David IV and Queen Tamar the Great from 11th to 13th centuries. Georgia became one of the pre-eminent nations of the Christian East and its pan-Caucasian empire and network of tributaries stretching from Eastern Europe to Anatolia and northern frontiers of Iran, while also maintaining religious possessions abroad, such as the Monastery of the Cross in Jerusalem and the Monastery of Iviron in Greece. It was the principal historical precursor of present-day Georgia.

The Aq Qoyunlu was a Persianate Sunni Turkoman tribal confederation that ruled parts of present-day eastern Turkey from 1378 to 1503, and in their last decades also ruled Armenia, Azerbaijan, most of Iran, and Iraq. The Aq Qoyunlu empire reached its zenith under Uzun Hasan.

Abu NasrQara Yusuf ibn MohammadBarani was the ruler of the Qara Qoyunlu dynasty from c.1388 to 1420, although his reign was interrupted by Tamerlane's invasion (1400–1405). He was the son of Qara Mahammad Töremish, a brother-in-law to Ahmad Jalayir.

Qara Iskander ruled the Qara Qoyunlu or Black Sheep Turcoman tribe from 1420 to 1436. His struggles with the Timurid ruler Shah Rukh show that he was a brave leader, but he was not able to continue developing what he inherited from his father Qara Yusuf and his reign saw the decline and attenuation of the Qara Qoyunlu.

Hasan 'Ali, also called Hasan 'Ali Beg — was the last effective ruler of the Kara Koyunlu Turkmen tribal federation, ruling for just one year from 1467 to 1468.

The Samtskhe-Saatabago or Samtskhe Atabegate, also called the Principality of Samtskhe, was a Georgian feudal principality in Zemo Kartli, ruled by an atabeg (tutor) of Georgia for nearly three and a half centuries, between 1268 and 1625. Its territory consisted of the modern-day Samtskhe-Javakheti region and the historical region of Tao-Klarjeti.

The Battle of Qarabagh was fought on February 4, 1469, between Aq Qoyunlu under Uzun Hasan, and the Timurids of Samarkand under Abu Sa'id Mirza, resulting in the latter's defeat, imprisonment and execution. After the battle, the Timurids forever lost any hopes of gaining Iraq or Iran back into their kingdom.

The Battle of Chapakchur was a decisive battle fought between Kara Koyunlu under the leadership of Jahan Shah and Aq Qoyunlu under the leadership of Uzun Hasan. Jahan Shah was defeated by Uzun Hasan in a battle near the sanjak of Çapakçur in present-day eastern Turkey on October 30, 1467.

The Battle of Qara-Derrah Pass was fought between Pir Muhammad of the Timurid Empire and Qara Yusuf of the Turcoman Kara Koyunlu confederation in eastern Turkey near Lake Van in 1395.

Mirza Yusuf died 22 October 1469, r. 1468–1469) was the last sultan of the Qara Qoyunlu, also known as the Black Sheep Turkomans, to have significant authority.

Bayram Khwaja (died 1380, r. 1351–1380) was the founder of the Qara Qoyunlu, a Muslim Turkoman tribal confederation, that in a short space of time came to rule the territory comprising present-day Azerbaijan, Georgia, Armenia, northwestern Iran, eastern Turkey, and northeastern Iraq from about 1374 to 1468.

Abu Bakr Tihrani was an Iranian secretary, who served under the Timurid, Qara Qoyunlu, and Aq Qoyunlu dynasties in the 15th century. Initially serving in the provincial divan of the Timurid ruler Shah Rukh, Tihrani shifted his allegiance to the rising Qara Qoyunlu leader Jahan Shah, whom he accompanied in his campaigns. However, with the downfall of the Qara Qoyunlu and the rise of the Aq Qoyunlu leader Uzun Hasan, Tihrani eventually joined the latter in April 1469, becoming one of his close companions. He played an influential role in the correspondence of the Aq Qoyunlu, and also became their court historian, composing the Kitab-i Diyarbakriyya in 1473/4, the main account of the Qara Qoyunlu and Aq Qoyunlu. The last mention of Tihrani is in 1481; he probably died not longer after.

The High Middle Ages, or Classic Feudalism Period in what constitutes the present-day Republic of Azerbaijan, lasted from around the 11th century to the 15th century AD. The High Middle Ages were preceded by the Early Middle Ages and were followed by the Late Middle Ages, which ended around the 15thcentury AD. Key historical trends of the High Middle Ages include the incorporation of the territories that constitute present-day Azerbaijan into the Seljuk Empire, the establishment of the Eldiguzids, the Mongol invasions and the rule of the Ilkhanate, the invasions of Timur and the establishment of the Turkoman Kara Koyunlu and Aq Qoyunlu tribal confederations.

The collapse of the Georgian realm was a political and territorial fragmentation process that resulted in the dynastic triumvirate military conflict of the Bagrationi monarchs and war of succession in the united Kingdom of Georgia culminating during the second half of the 15th century.

References

1 2 3 Kouymjian, Dickran, and Dickran Kouymjian. 1998. Armenia from the fall of the Cilician Kingdom (1375) to the forced emigration under Shah Abbas (1604) ; and, A critical bibliography for the history of Armenia from 1375 to 1605. [Fresno]: Armenian Studies Program, California State University, Fresno.

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.

[Kouymjian-1] 1 2 3 Kouymjian, Dickran, and Dickran Kouymjian. 1998. Armenia from the fall of the Cilician Kingdom (1375) to the forced emigration under Shah Abbas (1604) ; and, A critical bibliography for the history of Armenia from 1375 to 1605. [Fresno]: Armenian Studies Program, California State University, Fresno.

[1]