Second Turkic Khaganate 𐱅𐰇𐰼𐰜:𐰃𐰠 Türük el | |||||||||||||||||||
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| 682–744 | |||||||||||||||||||
 Approximate map of Second Turkic Khaganate, 720 AD. | |||||||||||||||||||
| Status | Khaganate (Nomadic empire) | ||||||||||||||||||
| Capital | Otuken (summer camp) Yarγan yurtï (winter camp)[1][page needed] | ||||||||||||||||||
| Common languages | Old Turkic (official)[2] | ||||||||||||||||||
| Religion | Tengrism (official)[3] | ||||||||||||||||||
| Government | Hereditary monarchy | ||||||||||||||||||
| Khagan | |||||||||||||||||||
• 682 – 691 | Elteriš Qaghan | ||||||||||||||||||
• 691 – 716 | Qapγan Qaghan | ||||||||||||||||||
• 716 | İnäl Qaghan | ||||||||||||||||||
• 716 – 734 | Bilgä Qaghan | ||||||||||||||||||
• 744 | Ozmıš Qaghan | ||||||||||||||||||
| Tarkhan | |||||||||||||||||||
• 682 – 716 | Tonyukuk | ||||||||||||||||||
• 716 – 731 | Kul Tigin | ||||||||||||||||||
| Legislature | Kurultay | ||||||||||||||||||
| History | |||||||||||||||||||
• Established | 682 | ||||||||||||||||||
• Disestablished | 744 | ||||||||||||||||||
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TheSecond Turkic Khaganate[a] was akhaganate inCentral andEastern Asia founded byIlterish of theAshina clan of theGöktürks and lasted from 682 to 744.[6] It was preceded by theEastern Turkic Khaganate (552–630) and the earlyTang dynasty period (630–682). The Second Khaganate[7][8][9] was centered onÖtüken in the upper reaches of theOrkhon River. It was succeeded by its subjectToquz Oghuz confederation, which became theUyghur Khaganate.
A few decades after the fall ofEastern Turkic Khaganate (630),Ashina Nishufu was declaredQaghan in 679 but soon revolted against theTang dynasty.[10] In 680, he was defeated byPei Xingjian. Shortly afterwards, Nishufu was killed by his men.[10] Following Nishufu's death,Ashina Funian, another member of the royal clan, was made qaghan and the Eastern Türks once again rebelled against Tang rule.[11] The early stages of the rebellion brought about some victories for Funian. However, they were eventually defeated again by Pei Xiangjin.[11] According toTonyukuk, the attempt to revolt against the Tang and set a qaghan on the throne was a legitimate action. It was the people's fault that they deposed and killed Nishufu, and subdued themselves to the Tang dynasty again.[12]
Qutlugh (laterIlterish Qaghan), a grandson ofIllig Qaghan, rebelled in 681, leading to his withdrawal into theGobi Desert in 682. Once they had established themselves in theYin Shan mountains, Qutlugh, his brotherBögü-chor, and his closest comrade-in-arms, Tonyukuk succeeded in winning the support of most of the Türks and conducted successful military operations against the imperial forces inShanxi between 682 and 687. In 687 Ilterish Qaghan left the Yin Shan mountains and turned his united and battle-hardened army to the conquest of the Türk heartlands in modern-day central and northern Mongolia. Between 687 and 691Toquz Oghuz and theUyghurs, who had occupied those territories, were routed and subjugated. Their chief, Abuz Kaghan, fell in battle. The centre of the Second Turkic Khaganate shifted to theOtuken mountains, and the riversOrkhon,Selenga andTola.[13]
In 691Ilterish Qaghan died and was succeeded by his younger brother, who assumed the titleQapaghan Qaghan. In 696–697 Qapaghan subjugated theKhitans and sealed an alliance with theKumo Xi (Tatabï in Turkic texts), which stemmed the advance of the Tang armies to the northeast, into the foothills of the Khingan, and secured the empire's eastern frontier. Between 698 and 701 the northern and western frontiers of Qapaghan's state were defined by theTannu Ola,Altai andTarbagatai mountain ranges. After defeating the Bayirku tribe in 706–707, the Türks occupied lands extending from the upper reaches of theKerulen toLake Baikal. In 709–710 the Türk forces subjugated the Az and the Chik, crossed theSayan Mountains, and inflicted a crushing defeat on theYenisei Kyrgyz. The Kyrgyz ruler, Bars beg, fell in battle, and his descendants were to remain vassals of theGöktürks for several generations. In 711 the Türk forces, led byTonyukuk, crossed the Altai Mountains,defeated theTürgesh army inDzungaria on the River Boluchu. Tonyukuk forced a crossing over theSyr Darya in pursuit of the retreating Türgesh, leading his troops to the border ofTokharistan. However, in battles with the Arabs nearSamarkand the Türk forces were cut off from their rear services and suffered considerable losses; they had difficulty in returning to the Altai in 713–714. There they reinforced the army that was preparing to besiegeBeshbalik. The siege was unsuccessful and, after losing in six skirmishes, the Türks lifted it.[14]
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In violation of custom, the throne was taken by Qapaghan's sonInel Qaghan in 716. Inel and his supporters, were killed by Ilterish's sonKul Tigin, who had support of many Turkic families, and gave the throne to his elder brotherBilge Qaghan, who ruled from 716 to 734.[15]
Bilge Qaghan took the throne at a time when the empire was on the verge of collapse. The western lands seceded for good, and immediately after the death of Qapagan, theTürgesh leaderSuluk proclaimed himself kaghan. The Kitan andTatabi tribes refused to pay tribute, theToquz Oghuz revolt continued, and the Türk tribes themselves began to rebel. Feeling unable to control the situation, Bilge Qaghan offered the throne to Kul Tigin. The latter, however, would not go against the legal order of succession. Then, at last, Bilge decided to act. Kul Tigin was put at the head of the army, andTonyukuk, who had great authority among the tribes, became the qaghan's closest adviser.
In 720Emperor Xuanzong of Tang attacked but Tonyukuk defeated hisBasmyl cavalry and the Türks pushed intoGansu. Next year Xuanzong bought him off. In 727 he received 100,000 pieces of silk in return for a 'tribute' of 30 horses. He refused to ally with theTibetan Empire against the Tang dynasty. His wisdom was praised byZhang Yue.
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The deaths of Tonyukuk (726) and Kul Tigin (731) removed Bilge's best advisors. It is reported that Bilge was killed by poison, but the poison was slow-acting and he killed his murderers before he died. Bilge was succeeded by his elder sonYollıg Khagan, and later Yollıg was succeeded by his brotherTengri Qaghan. After the death of Tengri Qaghan, the empire began to disintegrate. TheAshina tribe was less and less able to cope with central power. The young Tengri Qaghan was killed by his uncle, Kutlug Yabghu, who seized power. War broke out with the tribal groups of the Uyghurs, the Basmils and the Karluks, andKutluk Yabgu Khagan and his followers died in the fighting.
Kutlug I Bilge Khagan of Uyghurs allied himself with theKarluks andBasmyls. In 744 Kutlug seizedÖtüken and beheaded the last Göktürk qaghan,Ozmish Qaghan. His head was sent to the Tang court.[16] In the span of a few years, the Uyghurs gained mastery of Inner Asia and established theUyghur Khaganate.Kulun Beg succeeded his father Ozmish. The Tang emperorXuanzong decided to destroy the last traces of the Turkic Khaganate and sent generalWang Zhongsi Kulun's forces. Meanwhile,Ashina Shi was deposed by Kutlug. Wang Zhongsi, defeated the eastern flank of Turkic army headed by Apa Tarkhan. Although Kulun Beg tried to escape, he was arrested by theUyghurs and was beheaded in 745. Most of the Türks fled to other Turkic tribes like the Basmyl. However, a group includingQutluğ Säbäg Qatun,Bilge Khagan's widow, andTonyukuk's daughter, took refuge in the Tang dynasty. The Tang emperor legitimised her as a princess and she was appointed as the ruler of her people.[17]
| Khagan | reign | father, grandfather | Regnal name (Chinese reading) | Personal name (Chinese reading) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ilterish Qaghan | 682–692 | Etmish Beg, Illig Qaghan | Xiédiēlìshī Kèhán | 阿史那骨篤祿 Āshǐnà Gǔdǔlù |
| Qapaghan Qaghan | 692–716 | Etmish Beg, unknown | Qiānshàn Kèhán | 阿史那默啜 Āshǐnà Mòchuài |
| Inel Qaghan | 716–717 | Qapaghan Qaghan, Etmish Beg | Tàxī Kèhán | 阿史那匐俱 Āshǐnà Fújù |
| Bilge Qaghan | 717–734 | Ilterish Qaghan, Etmish Beg | Píjiā Kèhán | 阿史那默棘連 Āshǐnà Mòjílián |
| Yollıg Khagan | 734–739 | Bilge Qaghan, Ilterish Qaghan | Yīrán Kèhán | 阿史那伊然 Āshǐnà Yīrán |
| Tengri Qaghan | 739–741 | Bilge Qaghan, Ilterish Qaghan | Dēnglì Kèhán | 阿史那骨咄 Āshǐnà Gǔduō |
| Ozmish Qaghan (Usurped the throne) | 742–744 | Pan Kul Tigin, Ashina Duoxifu | Wūsūmǐshī Kèhán | 阿史那乌苏米施 Āshǐnà Wūsūmǐshī |
| Kutluk Yabgu Khagan (Usurped the throne) | 741–742 | Unknown (notAshina) | N/A | Gǔduō Yèhù |
| Ilterish Alp Bilge Qaghan | 742–744 | Uti beg, Ashina Duoxifu | Hèlà Píjiā Kèhán | Ashina Shi (阿史那施) |
| Kulun Beg | 744–745 | Özmiş Khagan, Pan Kul Tigin | Báiméi Kèhán | Ashina Gulongfu |
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Under Ilterish, the traditional structure of the Turkic state was restored. The empire created by Ilterish and his successors was a territorial union of ethnically related and hierarchically co-ordinated tribes and tribal groups. They were ideologically linked by common beliefs and accepted genealogies, and politically united by a single military and administrative organization (el) and by general legal norms (törü). The tribal organization (bodun) and the political structure (el) complemented one another, defining the strength and durability of social ties. In the words of the Türk inscriptions, the khan controlled the state and was head of the tribal group (el tutup bodunïm bašladïm). The principal group in the empire was composed of twelve Turkic tribes headed by the dynastic tribe of theAshina.[20]
The basis of the Türk economy was nomadic cattle-raising.[21] Organized hunting in the steppes and mountains was of military as well as economic significance: during these hunts the warriors were trained and the various detachments were coordinated. A Chinese chronicler describes the economy and way of life of the Türks thus: "They live in felt tents and wander following the water and the grass". Horses were of vital importance to the Türks. Although the economy rested on cattle-raising, winter feed for livestock was not stored. The advantage of the horse was that it could be at grass all year round, feeding even under a light cover of snow. Sheep and goats followed the horses, eating the grass that they themselves would have been unable to clear of snow.Bulls,yaks andcamels are also frequently mentioned in Türk texts as valuable livestock.[22]
Tengrism was the official religion of the Second Turkic Khaganate. Khagans believed that rulingAshina family gained legitimacy "through its support fromTengri".[23] Chinese sources state that Bilge wanted to convert toBuddhism and establish cities and temples. However,Tonyukuk discouraged him from this by pointing out that their nomadic lifestyle was what made them a greater military power when compared toTang dynasty.[24] While Türks' power rested on their mobility, conversion to Buddhism would bring pacifism among population. Therefore, sticking toTengriism was necessary to survive.[25][26]
| History of the Turkic peoplespre–14th century | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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While I have ruled here, I have become reconciled with the Chinese people. The Chinese people, who give in abundance gold, silver, millet, and silk, have always used ingratiating words and have at their disposal enervating riches. While ensnaring them with their ingratiating talk and enervating riches, they have drawn the far-dwelling peoples nearer to themselves. But after settling down near them these we have come to see their cunning.[27]
Early Turkic Khaganates
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Camels, women, girls, silver, and gold were seized from Sogdia during a raid byQapaghan Qaghan.[28]
𐰦𐰀:𐰘𐰼𐰝𐰃:𐰽𐰀:𐰉𐰽𐰞𐰍𐰺𐰆:𐰺𐰑𐰴:𐰉𐰆𐰑𐰣:𐰸𐰆𐰯:𐰚𐰠𐱅𐰃:𐰆𐰞:𐰚𐰇𐰤𐱅𐰀:𐱅𐰏𐱅𐰃:𐱅𐰇𐰼𐰝:𐰉𐰆𐰑𐰣:𐱅𐰢𐰼:𐰴𐰯𐰍𐰴𐰀:𐱅𐰃𐰤𐰾𐰃:𐰆𐰍𐰞 | Anta berüki As-oq baslïγaru Soγdaq budun qop kelti jükünti ..tegti Türük budun Temir Qapïγqa Tensi oγulï. | The whole Sogdian people leading by Asuk came and obeyed. Those days the Turkish people reached theIron Gates.[29] |
Numerous artifacts of gold and silver are known from the graves of the rulers of the Second Turkic Khaganate.
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![Gold belt ornaments, Tonyukuk ritual place, Tov, Erdene.[31]](/mt/?noimg=&dark=on&url=http%3a%2f%2fen.wikipedia.org%2fwiki%2fFile%3aTurkic_Gold_Belt_Ornaments_(35671983336).jpg)
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