Mongol Invasions of Europe (1223-1242)

The Golden Horde 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 fragmentation of the Mongol Empire after 1259 it became a functionally separate khanate. It is also known as the Kipchak Khanate or as the Ulus of Jochi. After the death of Batu Khan (the founder of the Golden Horde) in 1255, his dynasty flourished for a full century, until 1359, though the intrigues of Nogai instigated a partial civil war in the late 1290s. The Horde's military power peaked during the reign of Uzbeg Khan (1312–1341), who adopted Islam. The territory of the Golden Horde at its peak extended from Siberia and Central Asia to parts of Eastern Europe from the Urals to the Danube in the west, and from the Black Sea to the Caspian Sea in the south, while bordering the Caucasus Mountains and the territories of the Mongol dynasty known as the <a href="https://history-maps.com/story/Ilkhanate" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Ilkhanate</a>. The khanate experienced violent internal political disorder beginning in 1359, before it briefly reunited (1381–1395) under Tokhtamysh. However, soon after the 1396 invasion of <a href="https://history-maps.com/story/Conquests-of-Tamerlane" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Timur</a>, the founder of the Timurid Empire, the Golden Horde broke into smaller Tatar khanates which declined steadily in power. At the start of the 15th century, the Horde began to fall apart. By 1466, it was being referred to simply as the "Great Horde". Within its territories there emerged numerous predominantly Turkic-speaking khanates.

Visual Timelines

Golden Horde Timeline

Golden Horde Timeline

Prologue

Mongol Conquest of the Khwarazmian Empire

Mongol Invasion of Volga Bulgaria

Battle of the Kalka River 1223

Mongol invasion of Kievan Rus'

Siege of Ryazan

Battle of the Sit River

Siege of Kozelsk

Sack of Chernigov

Formation and Expansion

Siege of Kiev

Mongol Invasions of Anatolia

Battle of Legnica

Battle of Mohi

End of Westward Expansion

Mongol invasion of Bulgaria and Serbia

Death of Batu Khan

Mongol invasions of Lithuania

Second Mongol invasion of Poland

Toluid Civil War

Sack of Sandomierz

Berke defeats Hulagu Khan on the Terek River

War between the Golden Horde and Byzantium

Byzantine-Mongol Alliance

Republic of Genoa establishes Kaffa

Reign of Mengu-Timur

Conflict with Ghiyas-ud-din Baraq

Kaidu–Kublai war

Dual Khanship

Second Mongol invasion of Hungary

Third Mongol invasion of Poland

Nogai-Talabuga Conflict

Serbian conflict with the Nogai Horde

Nogai-Toqta Conflict

Battle of Nerghi Plains

Period of Political Stability and Prosperity

Reign of Öz Beg Khan

Wars with Bulgaria and the Byzantine Empire

Tver Uprising of 1327

Reign of Jani Beg

Siege of Kaffa

Black Death

Internal Strife and Fragmentation

Great Troubles

Battle of Blue Waters

Decline and Loss of Dominance

Turning Point: Battle of Kulikovo

Battle of the Kalka River 1381

Tokhtamysh Restoration of Power

Siege of Moscow

Tokhtamysh–Timur war

Battle of the Kondurcha River

Battle of the Terek River

Battle of the Vorskla River

Decline of the Golden Horde

Disintegration

Disintegration and Aftermath

Battle of Lipnic

End of Mongol Yoke

Last Khan

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