| Meñli I Giray | |
|---|---|
 Turkish miniature of Meñli I Giray, 16th century | |
| Khan of Crimea | |
| 1st reign | 1467 |
| Predecessor | Nur Devlet |
| Successor | Nur Devlet |
| 2nd reign | 1469–1475 |
| Predecessor | Nur Devlet |
| Successor | Hayder Giray |
| 3rd reign | 1478–1515 |
| Predecessor | Nur Devlet |
| Successor | Mehmed I Giray |
| Born | 1445 |
| Died | 17 April 1515(1515-04-17) (aged 69–70) |
| Burial | |
| Spouse | Nur Sultan Zayan Sultan Fülane Sultan |
| Issue more... | |
| Dynasty | Giray dynasty |
| Religion | Islam |
Meñli I Giray[n 1] (1445–1515) was thrice thekhan of the Crimean Khanate (1466, 1469–1475, 1478–1515) and the sixth son ofHacı I Giray.[1]
It took Meñli 12 years to establish himself as khan. When Haji Giray died, power went to his eldest sonNur Devlet. Meñli revolted. He was supported by the Crimean nobility while Nur Devlet was supported by theGreat Horde. In 1467 Meñli occupied the capital of Kyrk-Er (Chufut-Kale) but was soon driven out by Nur Devlet and fled to the Genoese atKaffa. In June 1468 a delegation of nobles elected him khan at Kaffa. He, the nobles and a Genoese detachment marched on the capital. After six months, Nur Devlet was expelled and fled to the North Caucasus, but was captured and imprisoned in the Genoese fortress atSudak.
He made an anti-Turkish alliance withPrincipality of Theodoro. In the summer of 1469 a Turkish fleet burned some villages near Kaffa. From late 1473 Eminek made himself head of the Shirin clan which held the eastern peninsula of Crimea. He became the second most powerful man in the country and was often hostile to Meñli.
In March 1475 the nobles replaced Meñli with his elder brotherHayder of Crimea. Meñli fled to Kaffa. In May 1475 a large Turkish fleet arrived at Kaffa seeking to subordinate the Genoese. They took Kaffa and other Genoese forts and the Principality of Theodoro. Meñli, who had supported the Genoese, was captured and taken to Constantinople. Nur Devlet was released from prison and restored as a Turkish vassal. Nur Devlet's third reign (1475–78) was unsuccessful. In the winter of 1477–78 Crimea was briefly conquered by Janibeg, a nephew ofAhmed Khan of the Great Horde. Eminek wrote to the sultan asking that Meñli be restored. In the spring of 1478 Meñli was released and arrived at Crimea with a Turkish fleet and Turkish soldiers. He was joined by Eminek's troops, Nur Devlet was driven out and Meñli became khan as a Turkish vassal.
He made a great contribution to the development ofCrimean Tatar statehood. He founded the fortress ofÖzü.[2]
In 1480, Meñli entered into a treaty of alliance withIvan III, thegrand prince of Moscow. The alliance was directed against Poland-Lithuania, the Great Horde and theKhanate of Astrakhan. This was an important factor in theGreat stand on the Ugra River which led to Russian independence from the Great Horde.
In September 1482, Meñli managed to ravageKiev, in whichIvan Chodkiewicz and his family were taken hostage.[3] From 1489 to 1500, Crimean Tatars repeatedly devastatedPodolia andVolyn.
In 1502, Meñli defeated the lastkhan of theGolden Horde and took control over its capital,Saray. He proclaimed himselfKhagan (Emperor), claiming legitimacy as the successor of the Golden Horde's authority over the Tatar khaganates in the Caspian-Volga region.
Meñli was buried in theDürbe (ortürbe) of Salaçıq inBakhchysarai. In that city, he commissionedZıncırlı Medrese (medrese with chains) in Salaçıq (1500),Dürbe in Salaçıq (1501), and "Demir Qapı" (Iron Gate) portal in theBakhchisaray Palace byAloisio the New (1503).
Meñli often depended on troops from the Crimea's numerous Italian trading cities, and Genoese mercenaries formed a significant part of his army.
For his raids on Lithuania seeCrimean-Nogai raids for 1480–1511.
Meñli was a father ofMehmed I Giray andSahib I Giray.[4] One of his wives wasNur Sultan, who was one of only three women known to have played a political role in the Crimean Khanate.[5]
Meñli's known consorts were:
Meñli's sons were:
Meñli's daughters were:
Meñli I Giray was once thought to be the maternal grandfather ofSuleiman the Magnificent through his putative daughterHafsa Sultan (mistakenly confused with Ayşe Hatun), but this has been disproved.[7][8]
That she was a Tatar, a daughter of the Crimean Khan Mengli Giray, was a story apparently begun byJovius, repeated by other western sources, and taken up by Merriman in his biography of Suleyman
| Preceded by | Khan of Crimea 1467 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Khan of Crimea 1469–1475 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Khan of Crimea 1478–1515 | Succeeded by |
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