Khan Tokhtamysh was the son of one of the influential Horde princes. His reign was marked by the revival of the Golden Horde power, which was greatly shaken as a result of numerous strife under his predecessors. In Russian history, he is known as the organizer of the campaign against Moscow in 1382, which ended in the terrible devastation of the city and the burning of its settlement.
Accession
After his father was killed, the future Khan Tokhtamysh fled in 1376 to Timur, who at that time ruled in one of the Central Asian states. Over the next two years, with the help of his patron, he attempted to overthrow the ruler who executed his father, but each time he failed. When his opponent died, Khan Tokhtamysh in 1378 overthrew his weak successor and became the ruler of one of the parts of the Horde state that had already begun to disintegrate by that time. The following year, he invaded those possessions controlled by Mamai and managed to capture all the Horde lands, including the capital. After the Battle of Kulikovo in 1380, with the help of Timur, he became the ruler of the newly united state and contributed to the restoration of the prestige of power. In addition, under him, the revival of a number of Volga Horde cities began.
The situation in Russia
Immediately after the accession, Khan Tokhtamysh sent ambassadors to the Russian princes with news of this and a demand to come to his headquarters to undergo the traditional ritual of obtaining labels for principalities and bringing tribute. The specific rulers followed the new khan, but the Moscow Grand Duke Dmitry Donskoy refused. The fact is that after the Battle of Kulikovo, the situation in the Russian lands changed: the victory over the Mongol-Tatars made Moscow the center of the unification of the Russian lands. This major event raised the question of the formation of a single Russian state. This alignment of forces changed Moscow-Horde relations, which the new khan could not accept. After two years, he began preparations for a campaign against Moscow.
Attack on the capital
The ruin of Moscow by Khan Tokhtamysh in 1382 was one of the most terrible episodes in Russian history. This blow struck his contemporaries especially strongly in view of the fact that it happened so soon after the memorable victory at the Kulikovo field. Before moving to the capital, the Tatars approached the Nizhny Novgorod land, the ruler of which, wanting to protect his possessions from devastation, gave him his sons. The Ryazan prince, also wanting to take the blow away from his patrimony, sent the Tatars to the river routes, along which they got to the main city. Then Dmitry Donskoy, together with his cousin and closest assistant, went to the centers near Moscow to gather troops to repulse the enemy.
Invasion
The ruin of Moscow by Khan Tokhtamysh became possible only thanks to his cunning. For several days, the inhabitants of the capital and the Lithuanian troops who came to their aid fought off the attackers and would certainly have won if the conqueror had not deceived: he assured the Muscovites that he had come only to take the traditional tribute, and in that case, if he receives it, he will immediately move away from the walls of the city. The inhabitants believed and opened the gates. Then the khan made a terrible devastation in the city and burned the settlement, after which he plundered part of the cities near Moscow. Khan Tokhtamysh's campaign against Moscow ended with his retreat after one of his detachments was defeated by the troops of Vladimir Serpukhov.
Consequences
The results of this terrible attack were terrible. About twenty-four thousand people died in the city, which was about half of the entire population of the capital. Surrounding towns and villages were burned and plundered. The prince, upon his return, immediately took active measures to eliminate these consequences. He paid money for the burial of the dead, in addition, he contributed to the restoration of destroyed settlements. The raid of Khan Tokhtamysh was a serious blow to his contemporaries, but he did not stop the process of uniting the lands around Moscow that had already begun. Nevertheless, after this event, the Moscow prince was forced to send his son to the headquarters, and then he came himself, paid a two-year tribute and achieved a shortcut to the grand prince's throne. Tver land was recognized as independentfrom Vladimir Principality.
Struggle for power
The Horde Khan Tokhtamysh since 1388 began to fight with his former patron Timur. Fearing that the latter would seize part of the Transcaucasian and Western Iranian lands, he seized part of this territory. However, in the 1390s, his opponent won two major victories over him, and he subsequently had to wage a constant struggle with Tamerlane's henchmen. After some time, he fled to the Lithuanian prince, who decided to use him in order to defeat the Tatars. He succeeded in this in a battle in 1399, but the new strong ruler Edigey defeated him, after which Tokhtamysh began to bow to peace with his former patron, who, however, died six years later, and the khan was finally defeated and killed in 1405.
Despite the devastation he caused in the Russian lands, the unification process continued. The successors of Dmitry Donskoy had much less regard for the Golden Horde rulers, and soon the power of the khan generally became nominal. This continued until 1480, when under Ivan III the Tatar-Mongol yoke was finally overthrown.
