Kebek or Kepek (Kibak) (

Persian Persian may refer to: * People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language ** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples ** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...

: ;

Tatar The Tatars ()Tatar
in the Collins English Dictionary is an umbrella term for different

: ''Käbäk'') was a Khan of the

Golden Horde The Golden Horde, self-designated as Ulug Ulus, 'Great State' in Turkic, was originally a Mongol and later Turkicized khanate established in the 13th century and originating as the northwestern sector of the Mongol Empire. With the fragme ...

in 1413–1414.

Ancestry

Kebek was a son of

Tokhtamysh Tokhtamysh ( kz, Тоқтамыс, tt-Cyrl, Тухтамыш, translit=Tuqtamış, fa, توقتمش),The spelling of Tokhtamysh varies, but the most common spelling is Tokhtamysh. Tokhtamısh, Toqtamysh, ''Toqtamış'', ''Toqtamıs'', ''Toktamy ...

and a brother of his immediate predecessor (and successor) Karīm Berdi. They were descendants of

Tuqa-Timur Tūqā-Tīmūr or Tūqāy-Tīmūr or Tuqa-Temür (also ''Toqa-Temür'' and ''Togai-Temür'') was the thirteenth and perhaps youngest son of Jochi, the eldest son of Genghis Khan. He was a younger brother of Batu Khan and Berke Khan, the rulers ...

, the son of

Jochi Jochi Khan ( Mongolian: mn, Зүчи, ; kk, Жошы, Joşy جوشى; ; crh, Cuçi, Джучи, جوچى; also spelled Juchi; Djochi, and Jöchi c. 1182– February 1227) was a Mongol army commander who was the eldest son of Temüjin (aka G ...

, the son of

Chinggis Khan Genghis Khan (born Temüjin; ; xng, Temüjin, script=Latn; ., name=Temujin – August 25, 1227) was the founder and first Great Khan (Emperor) of the Mongol Empire, which became the List of largest empires, largest contiguous empire in history a ...

Life

After their father was killed in battle against Shādī Beg Khan and Nūr ad-Dīn, the son of

Edigu Edigu (or Edigey) (also İdegäy or Edege Mangit) (1352–1419) was a Mongol Muslim emir of the White Horde who founded a new political entity, which came to be known as the Nogai Horde. Edigu was from the Crimean Manghud tribe, the son of B ...

, in 1407, the sons of Tokhtamysh dispersed. Some, led by the eldest, Jalāl ad-Dīn, fled to

Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 millio ...

and then to Lithuania. Others, including Kebek, sought refuge in

Sighnaq Sighnaq ( kk, Сығанақ, Syğanaq; uz, Sigʻnoq) was an ancient city in Central Asia (in modern Kazakhstan, Kyzylorda Region), it was the capital of the Blue Horde (i.e., the White Horde of Persian sources), although the city is almost unk ...

, under

Timurid Timurid refers to those descended from Timur (Tamerlane), a 14th-century conqueror: * Timurid dynasty, a dynasty of Turco-Mongol lineage descended from Timur who established empires in Central Asia and the Indian subcontinent ** Timurid Empire of C ...

protection. In early 1409, one of the brothers, Karīm Berdi, briefly seized the capital Sarai. In early 1412, Jalāl ad-Dīn did the same, eliminating his rival, Tīmūr Khan. In October of the same year, however, Jalāl ad-Dīn was murdered by one of his brothers, according to some accounts Kebek. Karīm Berdi became khan again, reversing Jalāl ad-Dīn's policies, showing himself amenable to the reigning princes in

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eig ...

and hostile to Grand Prince

Vytautas Vytautas (c. 135027 October 1430), also known as Vytautas the Great ( Lithuanian: ', be, Вітаўт, ''Vitaŭt'', pl, Witold Kiejstutowicz, ''Witold Aleksander'' or ''Witold Wielki'' Ruthenian: ''Vitovt'', Latin: ''Alexander Vitoldus'', O ...

of Lithuania. Vytautas responded by proclaiming a certain "Betsabul" as khan in opposition to Karīm Berdi. In combination with other evidence, it is believed that "Betsabul" was actually Kebek, who succeeded in driving out Karīm Berdi with Lithuanian help, in the spring of 1413. Now khan, Kebek naturally favored his Lithuanian protector and ally, Vytautas. Kebek's authority was quickly recognized throughout the Golden Horde. In the summer of 1413, he campaigned in the

Crimea Crimea, crh, Къырым, Qırım, grc, Κιμμερία / Ταυρική, translit=Kimmería / Taurikḗ ( ) is a peninsula in Ukraine, on the northern coast of the Black Sea, that has been occupied by Russia since 2014. It has a pop ...

, besieging Genoese Kaffa, but he abandoned the siege on 12 June. He was apparently called away by the threat posed by Edigu. Engaged in negotiations with Jalāl ad-Dīn and Karīm Berdi, Edigu had refrained from setting up a new puppet khan of his own, but Kebek's usurpation led him to proclaim one Chekre, a descendant of Tuqa-Timur, as khan in Sibir and

Bolghar Bolghar ( tt-Cyrl, Болгар, cv, Пăлхар) was intermittently the capital of Volga Bulgaria from the 8th to the 15th centuries, along with Bilyar and Nur-Suvar. It was situated on the bank of the Volga River, about 30 km downstream ...

in 1413. Despite an initial victory over Chekre, Kebek suffered reverses at the hands of Edigu; but the main beneficiary of this was Karīm Berdi. After several battles, Karīm Berdi defeated, captured, and beheaded Kebek in 1414. The victory allowed Karīm Berdi to resume the throne, but before long another of his brothers, Jabbār Berdi was set up as a rival khan by Vytautas of Lithuania.

Descendants

According to the ''Muʿizz al-ansāb'', Kebek had a son, Chaghatāy-Sulṭān, and two daughters, Sarāy-Mulk and Shīrīn-Bīka. The ''Tawārīḫ-i guzīdah-i nuṣrat-nāmah'' mentions only the first and last.Gaev 2002: 53; Tizengauzen 2006: 435; Vohidov 2006: 45.

Genealogy

* Genghis Khan *

*Saricha *Kuyunchak *Qutluq Khwāja *Tuy Khwāja *

*Kebek

References

* Gaev, A. G., "Genealogija i hronologija Džučidov," ''Numizmatičeskij sbornik'' 3 (2002) 9-55. * Howorth, H. H., ''History of the Mongols from the 9th to the 19th Century.'' Part II.1. London, 1880. * Sabitov, Ž. M., ''Genealogija "Tore"'', Astana, 2008. * Seleznëv, J. V., ''Èlita Zolotoj Ordy: Naučno-spravočnoe izdanie'', Kazan', 2009. * Pilipčuk, J. V., and Ž. M. Sabitov, "Bor'ba Toktamyševičej za vlast' v 10–20-h gg. XV v.," ''Iz istorii i kult'ury narodov Srednego Povolž'ja'' 6 (2016) 110–125. * Počekaev, R. J., ''Cari ordynskie: Biografii hanov i pravitelej Zolotoj Ordy''. Saint Petersburg, 2010. * Reva, R., "Borba za vlast' v pervoj polovine XV v.," in ''Zolotaja Orda v mirovoj istorii'', Kazan', 2016: 704–729. * Vohidov, Š. H. (trans.), ''Istorija Kazahstana v persidskih istočnikah.'' 3. ''Muʿizz al-ansāb.'' Almaty, 2006. {{DEFAULTSORT:Kebek 1414 deaths Khans of the Golden Horde People in the Battle of Grunwald 15th-century monarchs in Europe