Khan Temir
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Khan Temir (before 1594 to 1637) was a steppe warlord and raider. He ruled the Budjak Horde in what is now the southwestern corner of Ukraine (
Budjak Budjak or Budzhak (Bulgarian and Ukrainian: Буджак; ro, Bugeac; Gagauz and Turkish: ''Bucak''), historically part of Bessarabia until 1812, is a historical region in Ukraine and Moldova. Lying along the Black Sea between the Danube ...
) along the Romanian border. Budjak is the southwesternmost corner of the Eurasian Steppe. He raided mostly along the eastern frontier of the Polish Commonwealth. Nominally a vassal of the Ottoman Empire, the Turks used him to pressure the Poles just as the Poles used the Zaporozhian Cossacks to pressure the Turks and Crimeans. His habit of acting independently caused problems. The Turks several times tried to move him east from Poland and eventually executed him. The most important event in his life was his conflict with the Crimean khan in 1628.


Family

He was the first and greatest leader of the Bujak Horde which seems to have formed up about the time he came to power. A connection to the
Cantemirești The House of Cantemirești or House of Cantemir was a Moldavian ruling boyar family. History The family was of Tatar origin, and came from Crimea in the 17th century. In the 17th and 18th centuries it brought forth several Voivodes of Moldavia ...
of Moldavia is likely, but cannot be established exactly. He was associated with the Mansur clan which held the northwestern steppe-like corner of Crimea and had connections with the steppe nomads. He is sometimes described as a Crimean Tatar, but this is not accurate. He traced his ancestry to
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 Balt ...
(died 1491) and his son Mansur who was executed by
Barak Khan Barak ( fa, ) was Khan of the Golden Horde from 1423 to 1429. His father was Quyurchuq, the son of Urus Khan, who was a descendant of Tuqa-Timur, the son of Jochi, the eldest son of Genghis Khan. Barak took support from Ulugh Beg, the Timu ...
in 1427. His grandfather was Divey-Mirza who was captured at the
Battle of Molodi The Battle of Molodi (Russian: Би́тва при Мóлодях) was one of the key battles of Ivan the Terrible's reign. It was fought near the village of Molodi, south of Moscow, in July–August 1572 between the 40,000–60,000-strong'' ...
and died in Russian captivity around 1575. His father was Araslanay-Mirza who married a daughter of khan Devlet I and died fighting for khan Gazi II in Hungary around 1595. He had several sons who were killed during his lifetime.


Life


Before Mehmed

His early life and rise to power need more documentation. In 1606 he led 10,000 men to raid Podolia and was defeated by Crown hetman
Stanisław Żółkiewski Stanisław Żółkiewski (; 1547 – 7 October 1620) was a Polish nobleman of the Lubicz coat of arms, magnate, military commander and a chancellor of the Polish crown of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, who took part in many campaigns of ...
at the Battle of Udycz. In 1610 Janibek became Crimean khan and
Shahin Giray Shahin or Shaheen , is a persian and kurdish male given name which is the generic term for ''hawk'' or ''falcon'', although in specific, the peregrine falcon. The name Shahin is a composite of two nouns, "''shah''" - king and "''īn''" - which is a ...
fled to Khan Temir. Shahin was a successful raider until the Turks forced him out in 1614. In June 1612 he led a Turko-Tatar army to Moldavia where he captured
Constantin Movilă Constantin Movilă (1594 – July 1612) is the Prince of Moldavia from 1607 to 1611. The son of Prince Ieremia Movilă and driven by his mother, the ambitious Erszébet Csomortany de Losoncz, he twice seized the Moldovan throne at the expense of ...
. The period 1612-1617 needs more documentation. In 1617 the sultan sent an army north to force the Poles to limit Cossack raids. Instead of fighting they made the
Treaty of Busza The Peace of Busza (Busha, Bose) also known as the Treaty of Jaruga was negotiated by Stanisław Żółkiewski of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth and Iskender Pasha of the Ottoman Empire in Busza ( Busha or Bose) near the Jaruga and Dni ...
in which they agreed to halt raids by their Cossack and Tatar vassals. The freebooters ignored the treaty. Next year Khan-Temir and his sons raided Galicia, Cossacks raided the Turkish coast and in response the sultan sent Crimeans and Khan-Temir to raid Volhynia (
Battle of Orynin The Battle of Orynin took place on 28 September 1618. Polish forces under Hetmans Stanislaw Zolkiewski and Stanislaw Koniecpolski faced Crimean Tatars from Budjak, commanded by Khan Temir. The battle took place near Orynin in Podolia: after one day ...
(1618)). In 1620 the ruler of Moldavia switched from the Turks to the Poles, leading to the Polish-Ottoman War (1620-21). The Poles were defeated at the
Battle of Cecora (1620) The Battle of Cecora (also known as the ''Battle of Țuțora'') was a battle during the Polish–Ottoman War (1620–21) between the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth (aided by rebel Moldavian troops) and Ottoman forces (backed by Nogais), fou ...
.
Stanisław Żółkiewski Stanisław Żółkiewski (; 1547 – 7 October 1620) was a Polish nobleman of the Lubicz coat of arms, magnate, military commander and a chancellor of the Polish crown of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, who took part in many campaigns of ...
offered to retreat if he could hold Khan Temir hostage until he reached the Polish border. Khan Temir refused. He retreated anyway, his army was chewed up by Khan Temir’s men and Zolkiewski was killed. The Budjaks then raided the surrounding country. Next spring they raided Galicia. In 1621 the sultan led a large army north supported by Khan Temir and Crimean khan Janibek. The resulting
Battle of Khotyn (1621) The Battle of Khotyn or Battle of Chocim or Hotin War (in Turkish: ''Hotin Muharebesi'') was a combined siege and series of battles which took place between 2 September and 9 October 1621 between a Polish-Lithuanian army with Cossack allies, co ...
was a stalemate with heavy losses on both sides. During and after the battle Khan Temir raided the countryside. For his services he was made governor the
Silistra Eyalet The Eyalet of Silistra or Silistria ( ota, ایالت سیلیستره; ''Eyālet-i Silistre''), later known as Özü Eyalet ( ota, ایالت اوزی; ''Eyālet-i Özi'') meaning Province of Ochakiv was an ''eyalet'' of the Ottoman Empire along ...
along the Black Sea coast. (In July 1623 he was removed for unauthorized raiding.) During the negotiations for the
Treaty of Khotyn Treaty of Khotyn (Chocim/Hotin), signed in the aftermath of the Battle of Khotyn, ended the Polish–Ottoman War. This peace treaty resulted in no border change but Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, for ...
around October 1621 the Poles asked that Khan Temir be moved away from their border, something that the Turks were not strong enough to do. Politicians like
Mere Hüseyin Pasha Mere Hüseyin Pasha (died July 1624) was an Ottoman statesman of Albanian origin.Uzunçarsılı, İsmail Hakkı, (1954) ''Osmanlı Tarihi III. Cilt, 2. Kısım , XVİ. Yüzyıl Ortalarından XVII. Yüzyıl Sonuna kadar'', Ankara: Türk Tarih Ku ...
wanted Khan Temir out of the way.


Under Mehmed III

In 1623
Mehmed III Giray Mehmed III Giray (1584–1629, reigned 1623–1628) was a khan of the Crimean Khanate. Much of his life was spent in conflict with nearly everyone around him. Part of the trouble was caused by his over-aggressive brother Shahin Giray. His reign was ...
became Crimean khan. His first task was to move Khan Temir from the Polish border to stop his private raiding after the Turko-Polish peace. He led the Crimean army west and somehow talked Khan Temir into moving east to the Syut-Su river (location?). In 1624, when the Turks tried to remove Mehmed, he moved back to Budjak. In 1624 he led a raid into Polish territory and was defeated by
Stanisław Koniecpolski Stanisław Koniecpolski (1591 – 11 March 1646) was a Polish military commander, regarded as one of the most talented and capable in the History of Poland in the Early Modern era (1569–1795), history of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. ...
. In 1624 or 1625 Shahin Giray lead a Crimean army east to bring him under control. Temir’s nobles convinced him that their position was untenable, so the Budjak Horde moved back east for the second time, after burning everything they could not carry. Starting in January 1626 a Crimean-Budjak army plundered some 200 villages in Volhynia and Galicia and withdrew before Koniecpolski and Stefan Chmielecki could bring up troops. Later, Khan Temir raided Podolia. In early 1627 khan Mehmed led 10000 Crimeans and Budjaks east to deal with some Besleney who had stopped paying tribute. Shahin Giray and Khan Temir stayed in Crimea. In the mountains Mehmed met his Circassian father-in-law. As he left some Budjak mirzas slipped away and murdered Mehmed’s father-in-law who in 1622 had killed Khan Temir’s uncle. Mehmed assumed that this could not have happened without Khan Temir’s consent, so he sent a messenger to Shahin ordering him to be arrested. Khan Temir learned of it and fled to the steppes. Shahin rounded up Temir’s relatives and threatened to kill them if Temir did not return. He refused and the threat was carried out. Mehmed and Shahin had now made a dangerous enemy. Khan Temir offered his services to the Turks. In 1628 the Turks again tried to remove Mehmed, now with Khan Temir’s help. In spring Shahin made a preemptive attack of Khan Temir. Khan Temir fell back to the Danube delta, lured Shahin’s army into the woods and killed most of them, only Shahin and a few friends escaping. In early May Shahin reached Crimea, followed by Khan Temir. Shahin and Mehmed fled to the ancient rock-fort of Chufut-Kale, which Khan Temir besieged. Four weeks later 4000 Zaporozhian Cossacks under
Mykhailo Doroshenko Mykhailo Doroshenko ( uk, Михайло Дорошенко; died 1628) was the Hetman of the registered Ukrainian Cossacks from 1623 to 1628. Brief biography He was elevated to the rank of Cossack colonel in 1616, and he was active in Petro K ...
burst into the peninsula. At first Khan Temir thought that they were merely raiding, but he was quickly disabused. On 31 may he was defeated by the Cossacks on the Alma River. Khan Temir fled to Kaffa. Since he had an order from the sultan telling Ottoman officials to help him, the gates of Kaffa were opened. The place soon filled with Budjak warriors, their families, yurts, carts and cattle. Mehmed besieged Kaffa. Khan Temir attacked, was defeated and barely got back through the gates. His son was captured and executed. Crimean forces rounded up the Budjak warriors who had not reached Kaffa. Turkish galleys landed at Kaffa, Mehmed was deserted by his men (30 June) and fled to the Cossacks.


After Mehmed

With Mehmed gone,
Canibek Giray Canibek or Janibek Giray (1568–1636, reigned 1610–23, 1628–1635) was twice khan of the Crimean Khanate. During his first reign he fought for the Turks in Persia and Poland. He proved a poor commander and had difficulty making his men obey. ...
(Janibek) became khan for the second time (1628) with Khan Temir as a supporter. In late 1628 Mehmed tried to restore himself but was abandoned by his Cossack allies while Khan Temir guarded the entrance to Crimea at Perekop. In 1629 Mehmed tried again, and was defeated and killed by Khan Temir’s men. In 1628 Khan Temir attacked the leaders of the Shirin clan. This caused so much hostility that he thought it best to return to Budjak. Janibek was glad to see him go. In the fall of 1629 kalga Devlet Giray and Khan Temir attacked Galicia in revenge for Polish support of Mehmed. They were defeated by
Stefan Chmielecki Stefan Chmielecki (died 1630) was a Polish noble of Chmieleccy noble family and voivode of Kiev (1629–1630). He was married to Teofila Chmielecka. He used Chmielecki's family crest: Bończa coat of arms Bończa is a Polish coat of arms. Nota ...
and lost half their men. The period 1629-1633 needs more documentation.The Russian Wikipedia, following Novoselsky (1948) has Khan Temir and kalga Devlet and 20,000 men raid Podolia in August 1629. In October the Poles defeated their main force, freed 10,000 captives and killed one of Temir's sons and captured another. In 1633 the Polish-Ottoman War (1633-34) broke out. In June about 1000 Budjaks raided Podolia and returned to Moldavia with their loot where Koniecpolski defeated them and Khan Temir’s son-in-law was captured. In September the Turkish commander marched north with much of the Budjak horde under Khan Temir. In October there was a battle which the Poles won. In 1634 the Russo-Polish
Smolensk War The Smolensk War (1632–1634) was a conflict fought between the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth and Russia. Hostilities began in October 1632 when Russian forces tried to capture the city of Smolensk. Small military engagements produced mix ...
ended, which freed up Polish troops. The sultan had never been happy with this war which was mostly started by a local governor. Peace was made and the Turks promised to remove the Budjak horde. In the summer of 1634 khan Janibek assembled an army on the Dnieper to get this done, but the sultan changed his mind and ordered Janibek to attack Persia. In 1635 khan Janibek was replaced by Inayet. In 1636 he was ordered to attack Persia. Since he could not make his nobles obey he expected that the Turks would remove him. He assumed that Khan Temir would attack from the north and the Turks would come by sea to Kaffa. He boldly determined to resist. He took Kaffa by surprise and in January 1637 led a large army against Budjak. Khan Temir was greatly outnumbered, so he told his men to make the best deal they could and fled south to Turkish
Kiliya Kiliia or Kilia ( uk, Кілія́, translit=Kiliia, ; ro, Chilia Nouă) is a town in Izmail Raion, Odesa Oblast of southwestern Ukraine. It hosts the administration of Kiliia urban hromada, one of the hromadas of Ukraine. Kiliia is located in t ...
where he stored his treasures and then on to
Istanbul Istanbul ( , ; tr, İstanbul ), formerly known as Constantinople ( grc-gre, Κωνσταντινούπολις; la, Constantinopolis), is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, serving as the country's economic, ...
. Inayet sent his brother south to retrieve the treasure and then led the Budjaks east for a third time. At the
Dnieper } The Dnieper () or Dnipro (); , ; . is one of the major transboundary rivers of Europe, rising in the Valdai Hills near Smolensk, Russia, before flowing through Belarus and Ukraine to the Black Sea. It is the longest river of Ukraine and B ...
crossing they revolted, killed Inayet’s brothers and returned to
Budjak Budjak or Budzhak (Bulgarian and Ukrainian: Буджак; ro, Bugeac; Gagauz and Turkish: ''Bucak''), historically part of Bessarabia until 1812, is a historical region in Ukraine and Moldova. Lying along the Black Sea between the Danube ...
. In June 1637 a Turkish fleet arrived in Kaffa and Inayet decided to give up and go to
Istanbul Istanbul ( , ; tr, İstanbul ), formerly known as Constantinople ( grc-gre, Κωνσταντινούπολις; la, Constantinopolis), is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, serving as the country's economic, ...
. On 1 July 1637 both Inayet and Khan Temir appeared before the sultan. Inayet was taken away and strangled. Khan Temir was exiled to a governorship in
Anatolia Anatolia, tr, Anadolu Yarımadası), and the Anatolian plateau, also known as Asia Minor, is a large peninsula in Western Asia and the westernmost protrusion of the Asian continent. It constitutes the major part of modern-day Turkey. The re ...
. Khan Temir was accompanied to
Istanbul Istanbul ( , ; tr, İstanbul ), formerly known as Constantinople ( grc-gre, Κωνσταντινούπολις; la, Constantinopolis), is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, serving as the country's economic, ...
by his youngest son. The young man killed a man in a drunken brawl. The Turks beheaded him and sent his headless corpse to Khan Temir. The father could not resist strong language, so the Turks sent men to his house and strangled him, killing him on 10 July 1637.


Source and footnotes

*Oleksa Gaivoronsky «Повелители двух материков», Kiev-Bakhchisarai, second edition, 2009, , volume 2, under first Janibek, 1610: pp 48,53,57-60,63, 64; Mehmed III, 1623: 84, 105, 113, 114-127; second Janibek, 1628: 154, 155, 157, 158, 160-168, 173; Inayet, 1635: 205, 208, 210-211, 212-218. *footnotes {{DEFAULTSORT:Temir, Khan 16th-century births 1637 deaths Crimean Khanate Ottoman period in Romania Military personnel of the Ottoman Empire History of Moldavia (1504–1711) Nogai people 17th-century monarchs in Europe 17th-century executions by the Ottoman Empire Executed royalty