Bayanchur Khan
| Bayanchur Khan[citation needed] | |
|---|---|
| Khagan | |
| Reign | Uyghur Khaganate: 747–759 |
| Full name | El-etmish bilge |
| Predecessor | Guli Peilo |
| Successor | Qutluq tarqan sengün |
| Father | Guli Peilo |
Bayanchur Khan[citation needed] (known also as Moyanchur Khan[1]) (Chinese: 藥羅葛磨延啜; pinyin: Yàolúogě Mòyánchùo),[2] was an Uyghur khagan from 747 to 759 AD. His official titles were "Ay Tengrida Qut Bolmish" and "El Etmish Bilge Qaghan" ("born with glory on Moon Heaven" and "state settled wise ruler"). His Tang Dynasty-invested title was Yingwuweiyuanpiqiejuo Khan (英武威遠毗伽闕可汗) or Yingwu Khan (英武可汗) in short. He was succeeded in the Uyghur Khaganate by his son Bogu Tekin (759-779 AD)
Bayanchur succeeded his father, Guli Peilo,[3] who had headed the rebellion against the Göktürks, annihilated them and had established in 744 the Uyghur Khaganate ( known as third uyghur " El " or khaganate ).
Bayanchur Khan belonged to the ruling Yaghlaqar ("people of the Sun") tribe of the on-uyghur confederation of ten tribes ( known as northern alliance ) and toquz-oghuz confederation of nine tribes ( known as southern alliance ). At that time both allied confederations adopted a name, Uyghur, which composed of two elements: Uy or Uymak ("to bond") and Ghur ("the people"), i.e. " United people " or " free confederation of people (Erkin Budun), voluntarily bound into an alliance ".[4]
In 751, Bayanchur established the new capital in the Orkhon Valley and named it Ordu- Balik. It was built with help of the invited Chinese and Sogdian builders at the foot of the sacred Otukan. The city had city walls made of brown bricks and was probably ringed with a rectangular moat. There was a detached citadel fortified by walls with two gates and watch towers, where the Khagan and his nobles lived with their families.
About seven years later, Ordu- Balik was followed by Bai-Balik ("rich city") on the Selenge River. Its construction was a result of the empire's expansion north to Lake Baikal ("rich lake").
In October 756 Bayanchur Khan came to Tang China to rescue Tang Dynasty from collapse during An Lushan Rebellion and to quell rebels. This military expedition was preceded by Treaty of Peace and Alliance with newly ascended Emperor Suzong of Tang, who took in marriage Uyghur princess while Bayanchur himself was given Chinese princess Ninguo. In December 756 Bayanchur joined his 4,000 selected cavalry with Tang forces which launched operations against rebels, these operations were successful and in 757 joined troops liberated from rebels the capital Chang'An. For this campaign Uyghurs took tribute from China in 10,000 rolls of silk, later ( in 762) Treaty was concluded of annual exchanging of horses from Uyghur Empire for silk rolls from Tang China, each horse was paid by 40 rolls of silk, for 20,000 of silk rolls Uyghurs had obligation to supply 500 selected horses, it was a concealed kind of annual tributes or reparations for saving of Tang Dynasty from annihilation.
Bayanchur Khan erected a number of Bitig Tash (stone steles) during his life-time with Runic Turkic inscriptions on them to preserve the memory of Uyghur Els for future generations. Most famous stele is the granite stele inserted to the base in the shape of Turtle (Tariat inscriptions), on which Bayanchur Khan described not only current events, but also made references to the previous Uyghur Els (First and Second Uyghur Khaganates). First Uyghur El was ruled by 3 prominent Uyghur khagans and existed about 200 years. Then it died and about 100 years another foreign power ruled Uyghurs on the Orkhon River( "Qalmisi Budun On-Uyghur, Tokuz-Oghuz uza yuz yil olurups "- Remaining people of On-Uyghur, Tokuz-Oghuz they 100 years ruled"). Then Uyghurs rebelled and Second Uyghur El was founded by Yaghlaqar clan in around 605 AD, giving the beginning of Yaghlaqar Dynasty ( it was in power for around 400 years, last Yaghlaqar Khagan of Uyghur Ganzhou Kingdom in Gansu was killed by Tanguts in 1028 AD). It existed about 80 years and collapsed when ruling Bazh Khagan was killed by Gokturks in 688. Then for around 50 years Gokturks ruled Uyghurs. Rebellion against Gokturks was launched in 742 again by Yaghlaqars who fled to Ganzhou in Gansu after Bazh Khagan death and returned to Orkhon after 50 years, united with other Tokuz-Oghuz tribes and overthrew all enemies.
Bayanchur Khan died soon after ending his successful expedition against hostile tribes of the Sayan Mountains in the summer of 759 AD, during a feast devoted to this victory. Por-Bazhyn ( Kasar Korug in Uyghur runic inscriptions, summer residence of Bayanchur Khan) was among seventeen brick forts that had been erected during that and previous khagan expeditions ( 751, 756, 758 ) in Tuva with permanently stationed garrisons to guard the sources of the Yenisei River and northern borders of the Khaganate, most forts were connected with each other by stone defense wall, stretched for hundreds of miles, this wall was later known as Chengiz Khan's wall, remnants of most forts, fourteen, known as Shagonar cities, were discovered in 50's of XX century, but not investigated and soon engulfed by water of giant Water Reservoir due to erection of Sayano-Shushenskaya Dam in Khakassia on Yenisei River in 70's) . The purpose of these expeditions was a neutralization of the emerged and permanently growing threat from the North from Kyrgyz tribes, the treat which proved to be fatal in 840 AD, when the Uyghur Empire collapsed.
Contents |
[edit] See also
- Tariat inscriptions by Bayanchur Khan (El etmish Bilge kagan).[5]
[edit] Notes
- ^ Rene Grousset, The Empire of The Steppes, 1970, p.567: From Chinese transcription Mo-yen-cho, Schlegel has postulated a Turkic name Moyun-chor; whereas, as Pelliot notes, the equivalent would more probably be Bayan-chor (Pelliot, "A propos des Comans," JA [1920], p. 153). The Uigur title of this prince is Tangrida qut bulmysh il etmish bilga qagan. In the Orgötü valley, between the Orkhon and the Selenga, his tomb has been found, and on it an inscription still in ancient or "runic" Turkic.
- ^ E.g., Bo Yang Edition of the Zizhi Tongjian, vol. 53.
- ^ This is a Chinese transcription of the title. His real-life Uyghur name is unknown, while the official titles were El Tutmish, Kutluk, Bilge, Kul Qaghan, i.e., "state gained", "glorious", "wise", and "mighty ruler".
- ^ Element " Ghur " can be found in the word " Ghurkhan "- the karakhitai Khan, elected by Council of tribes in accordance with consensus and in the word " Khur + Altai " (Kurultai) - political and military Council of all Altai tribes since around III century A.D.
- ^ Inscription El etmish Bilge kagan (Tariat // Terh). The "Turk bitig" site (English)
[edit] References
Lev Gumilev. Ancient Turks. Kyzyl, 2004.
Turghun Almas. The Uyghurs ("Uyghurlar"). Almaty, Kazakhstan, 1992 (In the Uyghur language. Published originally in China, then banned with all issues being seized. Republished in Almaty)
| Preceded by Guli Peilo |
Khagan of the Uyghur Khaganate 759–779 |
Succeeded by Qutlugh tarqan sengün |
[edit] External links
- The ruins of walls of Ordu-Baliq city- former Uyghur capital (Mongolia) are at coordinates 47°25′53″N 102°39′34″E / 47.431288°N 102.659349°E
- The ruins of walls of Uyghur fortress on island in Tere-Kol lake - source of Yenisey River (Tuva Republic, Russia) are at coordinates 50°36′54″N 97°23′05″E / 50.6151°N 97.3847°E
- The ruins of Uyghur King Palace in Karakhoja (Turpan Basin in Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of People's Republic of China) are at coordinates 42°51′02″N 89°31′10″E / 42.8505°N 89.5195°E
- [1] Present Uyghur flag (prohibited in communist China). Contains five- point white star, pentagram, well known symbol of "Power" (represents all five fingers of hand- Unity, or orientations- forward, backward, left, right, above). Background is blue with crescent- symbol of Moon Heaven.
- [2] The National Museum of Mongolian History: the early Turk Empire and Uyghurs.
![[1]](http://www.crwflags.com/fotw/images/c/cn-xj.gif){kind=link}