TheUyghur Khaganate,Khanate, orEmpire,self defined as theToquz Oghuz ("Nine Clans")[7][8][9] and known to theTang Chinese as theJiuxing[10] was aTurkic empire[11] that existed for about a century between the mid 8th and 9th centuries. It was a tribal confederation under theUyghur nobility.[10]
In the mid-5th century, Uyghurs were a tribe of theTiele, which was under the Turkic Khaganate.[12]
In 657, theWestern Turkic Khaganate was defeated by theTang dynasty, after which the Uyghurs defected to the Tang. Prior to this the Uyghurs had already shown an inclination towards alliances with the Tang when they fought with them against theTibetan Empire andTurks in 627.[13][14]
In 744, the Basmyls captured the Turkic capital ofÖtüken and killed the reigningÖzmiş Khagan. Later that year, a Uyghur-Karluk alliance formed against the Basmyls and defeated them. Their khagan was killed, and the Basmyls ceased to exist as a people. Hostilities between the Uyghurs and Karluks then forced the Karluks to migrate west intoZhetysu and conflict with theTürgesh, whom they defeated and conquered in 766.[16]
The Uyghur khagan wasKutlug I Bilge Khagan, who claimed to be the supreme ruler of all the tribes. He built his capital atOrdu-Baliq. According theNew Book of Tang, the territory of the Uyghur Empire then reached "on its eastern extremity, the territory ofShiwei, on the west theAltai Mountains, on the south it controlled theGobi Desert, so it covered the entire territory of the ancientXiongnu".[17]
In 745, the Uyghurs killed the last khagan of the Göktürks,Kulun Beg, and sent his head to the Tang.[18]
TheTang Huiyao, vol. 98, listed nine Toquz Oghuz surname tribes (姓部xìngbù); another list of tribes (部落bùluò) was recorded in theOld Book of Tang and theNew Book of Tang. According to Japanese scholars Hashimoto, Katayama, and Senga, each name in the lists in the Books of Tang recorded each subtribal surname of each chief, while the other list in Tang Huiyao recorded the names of the Toquz Oghuz tribes proper.[19][20]Walter Bruno Henning (1938)[21] linked nine names recorded in theSaka language "Staël-Holstein Scroll" with those recorded by Han Chinese authors.
In 747, Qutlugh Bilge Köl Kaghan died and was succeeded by his youngest son,Bayanchur Khan. After building a number of trading outposts with the Tang, Bayanchur used the profits to construct the capital, Ordu-Baliq, and another city further up theSelenga River,Bai Baliq. He then embarked on a series of campaigns to bring all the steppe peoples under his banner. During this time the empire expanded rapidly and brought the Sekiz Oghuz, Kyrgyz, Karluks, Türgesh, Toquz Tatars, Chiks and the remnants of the Basmyls under Uyghur rule.[citation needed]
In 751, the Tang Empire suffered a strategic defeat against the Arabs at theBattle of Talas. After that, the Tang retreated fromCentral Asia, allowing the Uyghurs to emerge as the new dominant power.[24]
In 755An Lushan instigateda rebellion against theTang dynasty and in 756Emperor Suzong of Tang turned to Bayanchur for assistance. Bayanchur agreed and ordered his eldest son to provide military service to Suzong. In 757 approximately 4,000 Uyghur horsemen assisted Tang armies in retakingChang'an andLuoyang. After the battle at Luoyang the Uyghurs looted the city for three days and only stopped after large quantities of silk were extracted. For their aid, the Tang sent 20,000 rolls of silk and bestowed them with honorary titles. In addition the horse trade was fixed at 40 rolls of silk for every horse and Uyghurs were given "guest" status while staying in Tang China.[15][25] The Tang and Uyghurs conducted an exchange marriage. Bayanchur married Princess Ninguo while a Uyghur princess was married to a Tang prince.[18] The Uyghur Khaganate exchanged princesses in marriage with Tang dynasty China in 756 to seal the alliance against An Lushan. Bayanchur had his daughter Uyghur Princess Pijia (毗伽公主) married to the Tang prince Li Chengcai (李承采), Prince of Dunhuang (敦煌王李承采), son ofLi Shouli, Prince of Bin. while the Tang princess Ningguo (寧國公主), daughter of Suzong, married Bayanchur.[citation needed]
In 758, the Uyghurs turned their attention to the northernYenisei Kyrgyz. Bayanchur destroyed several of their trading outposts before defeating a Kyrgyz army and executing their khan.[25]
On theren-shen day of the fifth month of the first year of the Qianyuan reign [on March 29, 758 CE], The envoys fromHui-he [Uyghur Khaganate],Duo-yi-hai-a-bo and others, totaling eighty people, and an emir from theBlack-robedDashi [Abbasid Caliphate],Nao-wen and others, totaling eight people, come at the same time to pay a visit [to the Tang court]; when they walk to the side entrance of the palace, [both delegations] argue who should be the first [to see the Emperor]. The interpreters and palace secretaries arrange them as left team and right team, and enter through the Eastern Gate and the Western Gate all at once. [After this,]Wen-she-shi and the Black-robedDashi envoy pay their visit [to the Chinese Emperor].[26]
In 759 the Uyghurs attempted to assist the Tang in stamping out the rebels but failed. Bayanchur died and his son Tengri Bögü succeeded him asBögü Qaghan.[25]
In 762 Bögü planned to invade the Tang with 4,000 soldiers but after negotiations switched sides and assisted them in defeating the rebels at Luoyang. After the battle the Uyghurs looted the city. When the people fled to Buddhist temples for protection, the Uyghurs burnt them down, killing over 10,000. For their aid, the Tang were forced to pay 100,000 pieces of silk to get them to leave.[27] During the campaign Bögü encountered Manichaean priests who converted him toManichaeism. From then on the official religion of the Uyghur Khaganate became Manichaeism.[28]
In 779, Bögü Qaghan planned to invade the Tang dynasty based on the advice of hisSogdian courtiers. However, his uncle,Tun Baga Tarkhan, opposed this plan and killed him and "nearly two thousand people from among the Kaghan's family, his clique and the Sogdians."[29] Tun Bagha Tarkhan ascended the throne, and enforced a new set of laws, which he designed to secure the unity of the khaganate. During his reign, Manichaeism was suppressed, but his successors restored it as the official religion.[30]
In 780, a group of Uyghurs and Sogdians was killed while leaving Chang'an with tribute. Tun demanded 1,800,000 strings of cash in compensation and the Tang agreed to pay this amount in gold and silk.[31] In 789, Tun Bagha Tarkhan died and his son succeeded him asKülüg Qaghan. The Karluks took this opportunity to encroach on Uyghur territory and annexed Futu Valley.[32] In 790, the Uyghurs and Tang forces were defeated byTibetan Empire at Tingzhou (Beshbalik).[14] Külüg Qaghan died, and his son succeeded him asQutluq Bilge Qaghan.
In 791, the Tibetans attacked Lingzhou but were driven off by the Uyghurs, who presented captured prisoners and cattle toEmperor Dezong of Tang. The Tibetans and Karluks suffered another defeat against the Uyghurs atBeiting. The captured Tibetan general Zan Rgyal Sum was sent to Dezong.[33] In 792, the Uyghurs, led by Qutluq's sonBaoyi Qaghan, defeated the Tibetans and Karluks, taking Gaochang. Not long after the Tibetans attacked Yushu, a fortified town 560li east ofKucha. They were besieged by Baoyi there and destroyed.[34] In 795, Qutluq Bilge Qaghan died and theYaghlakar dynasty came to an end. A general,Qutluq II, declared himself the new qaghan,[15] founding a new dynasty, theÄdiz (CN. AdieChinese:阿跌氏).[23]
In 803, the Uyghurs captured Gaochang.[35] In 808, Qutluq II died and his son, Baoyi Qaghan, succeeded him. In the same year, the Uyghurs seizedLiang Province from the Tibetans.[36] In 816, a Tibetan raid reached within two days' journey of Ordu-Baliq.[37] In 821, Baoyi Qaghan died, and his son,Chongde, succeeded him. Chongde was considered the last great khagan of the Uyghur Khaganate. His achievements included improved trade up with the region ofSogdia, and on the battlefield he repulsed a force of invading Tibetans in 821. After defeating the Tibetan and Karluk force, the Uyghurs entered thePrincipality of Ushrusana and plundered the region.[38] In 822, the Uyghurs sent troops to help the Tang in quelling rebels. The Tang refused the offer but had to pay them 70,000 pieces of silk to go home.[31] In 823, the Tibetan Empire waged war on the Uyghurs.[39] In 824, Chongde died and was succeeded by a brother,Zhaoli Qaghan. In 832, Zhaoli was murdered. He was succeeded by the son of Chongde,Zhangxin Qaghan. In the same year, the Tibetan Empire failed to make war on the Uyghurs.[39]
Painted silk fragments of men in armour, from aManichaean Temple nearQocho. Turkic, 8th century or 9th century. Museum für Asiatische Kunst, Berlin.[40]
In 839, Zhangxin Qaghan was forced to commit suicide and a minister namedQasar Qaghan seized the throne with the help of 20,000Shatuo horsemen fromOrdos. In the same year, there was a famine and an epidemic, with a particularly severe winter that killed much of the livestock the Uyghur economy was based on.[41]
In 840, one of nine Uyghur ministers, Kulug Bagha, rival of Qasar, fled to theYenisei Kyrgyz and invited them to invade from the north. With a force of around 80,000 horsemen, they sacked Ordu-Baliq, razing it to the ground.[42] The Kyrgyz captured Qasar, and promptly beheaded him. They went on to destroy other cities throughout the Uyghur Empire, burning them to the ground. The Uyghurs fled in two groups. A 30,000-strong group led by the aristocratOrmïzt sought refuge in Tang territory butEmperor Wuzong of Tang ordered the borders to be closed. The other group, 100,000 strong, led byWujie Qaghan, son of Baoyi and the new khagan, also fled to Tang territory. However Wujie demanded a Tang city for residence as well as the protection ofManichaeans and food. Wuzong found the demands unacceptable and refused. He granted Ormïzt asylum in return for the use of his troops against Wujie. Two years later, Wuzong extended the order to banChristianity,Zoroastrianism, and especiallyBuddhism.[43]
The Yenisei Kyrgyz and Tang dynasty launched a successful war between 840 and 848 against the Uyghur Khaganate using their claimed familial ties as justification for an alliance.[44]
In 841, Wujie led the Uyghurs in an invasion of today'sShaanxi.
In 843, a Tang army led byShi Xiong attacked the Uyghurs and killed 10,000 on February 13, 843, at "Kill the Barbarians" Mountain (Shahu).[45] Wujie was wounded.[46][45][47][48] After the defeat of Wujie, Wuzong ordered Ormïzt's troops to be broken up and dispersed among different units. Ormïzt refused to obey. His troops were massacred by general Liu Mian. With the defeat of the two major Uyghur groups, Wuzong saw his chance to get rid of the Manichaeans. He ordered Manichaean temples in several cities to be destroyed, the confiscation of their estates, and the execution of the clergy.[49]
In the fourth moon of 843 an Imperial edict was issued [ordering] the Manichaean priests of the empire to be killed. [...] The Manichaean priests are highly respected by the Uighurs.[43]
In 846, Wujie, was killed after having spent his 6-year reign fighting the Kyrgyz, the supporters of his rival Ormïzt, a brother of Qasar, andTang dynasty troops in Ordos and todayShaanxi.[28] His brother,Enian Qaghan, was decisively defeated by Tang forces in 847.[49]
Uyghur king from Turfan region attended by servants. Mogao cave 409, 11th–13th century.
TheYenisei Kyrgyz which replaced the Uyghur Khaganate had little interest in running the empire which they had destroyed. They held the territory fromLake Baikal in the east to theIrtysh River in the west and left Kulug Bagha, the Uyghur who defected to them, in charge of theOrkhon Valley. During the reign ofEmperor Yizong of Tang (860–873), there were three recorded instances of contact between the Tang and Kyrgyz, but the nature of their relationship is unclear. Tang policy makers argued that there was no point in building any relations with the Kyrgyz since the Uyghurs no longer threatened them. TheKhitans seized the Orkhon Valley from the Kyrgyz in 890 and no further opposition from the Kyrgyz is recorded.[50][51]
The Khitan ruler Abaoji did extend his influence onto the Mongolian Plateau in 924, but there is no indication whatsoever of any conflict with the Kyrgyz. The only information we have from Khitan (Liao) sources regarding the Kyrgyz indicates that the two powers maintained diplomatic relations. Scholars who write of a Kyrgyz "empire" from about 840 to about 924 are describing a fantasy. All available evidence suggests that despite some brief extensions of their power onto the Mongolian Plateau, the Kyrgyz did not maintain a significant political or military presence there after their victories in the 840s.[52]
— Michael Drompp
After the fall of the Uyghur Khaganate, the Uyghurs migrated south and established theGanzhou Uyghur Kingdom in modernGansu[53] and theKingdom of Qocho near modernTurpan. The Uyghurs in Qocho converted to Buddhism, and, according toMahmud al-Kashgari, were "the strongest of the infidels", while the Ganzhou Uyghurs were conquered by theTangut people in the 1030s.[54] Even so, Kashgari praised contemporary Uyghurs as bilingual Turkophones whose Turkic dialect remained "pure" and "most correct" (just like dialects spoken by monolingualYagmas, andTuhsis); meanwhile, Kashgari derided other bilingual Turkophones (Qay,Tatars,Basmyls,Chömüls,Yabakus, etc.), for incorporating foreign loanwords and "slurring" in their speech.[55] In 1134, Qocho became a vassal ofYelü Dashi's nascentQara Khitai empire. In 1209, the Qocho ruler Idiqut ("Lord of happiness")Barchuk Art Tegin declared his allegiance toGenghis Khan, and the Uyghurs became important civil servants in the laterMongol Empire, which adapted theOld Uyghur alphabet as its official script. According to theNew Book of Tang, a third group went to seek refuge among the Karluks.[56]
The Karluks, together with other tribes such as theChigils andYagmas, later founded theKara-Khanid Khanate (940–1212). Some historians associate the Karakhanids with the Uyghurs as the Yaghmas were linked to theToquz Oghuz.Sultan Satuq Bughra Khan, believed to be a Yagma fromArtux, converted to Islam in 932 and seized control ofKashgar in 940, giving rise to the new dynasty, known asKarakhanids.[57]
To control trade along theSilk Road, the Uyghurs established a trading relationship with the Sogdian merchants who controlled some oases ofCentral Asia. The Uyghur adoption ofManichaeism was one aspect of this relationship—choosing Manichaeism overBuddhism may have been motivated by a desire to show independence from Tang influence.[58] Not all Uyghurs supported conversion – an inscription atOrdu-Baliq states that Manichaens tried to divert people from their ancient shamanistic beliefs.[59] A rather partisan account from a Uyghur-Manichean text of that period demonstrates the unbridled enthusiasmBögü Qaghan had for Manichaeism:
"At that time when the divine Bögü Qaghan had thus spoken, we the Elects of all the people living within the land rejoiced. It is impossible to describe this ourjoy. The people told the story to one another and rejoiced. At that time, groups of thousands and tens of thousands assembled and with pastimes of all sorts they entertained themselves even unto dawn. And at the break of the day they made a short fast. The divine ruler Bögü Qaghan and all the elects of his retinue mounted on horses, and all the princes and the princesses led by those of high repute, the big and the small, the whole people, amidst great rejoicing proceeded to the gate of the city. And when the divine ruler had entered the city, he put the crown on his head... and sat upon the golden throne."
As conversion was based on political and economic concerns regarding trade with the Sogdians, it was driven by the rulers and often encountered resistance in lower societal strata. Furthermore, as the khaghan's political power depended on his ability to provide economically for his subjects, "alliance with the Sogdians through adopting their religion was an important way of securing this objective."[58] Both the Sogdians and the Uyghurs benefited enormously from this alliance. The Sogdians enabled the Uyghurs to trade in the Western Regions and exchange silk from China for other goods. For the Sogdians it provided their Chinese trading communities with Uyghur protection. The 5th and 6th centuries saw large emigration of Sogdians to China. The Sogdians were the main traders along the Silk Roads, and China was always their biggest market. Among the paper clothing found in theAstana cemetery nearTurfan is a list of taxes paid on caravan trade in theGaochang kingdom in the 620s. The text is incomplete, but out of the 35 commercial operations it lists, 29 involve a Sogdian trader.[60] Ultimately both rulers of nomadic origin and sedentary states recognized the importance of merchants like the Sogdians and made alliances to further their own agendas in controlling the Silk Road.
UyghurManichaean Elect depicted on a temple banner fromQocho
Uyghur Manichaean Electae (female Chosen ones) from Qocho
The Uyghurs created an empire with clear Persian influences, particularly in areas of government.[61] Soon after the empire was founded, they emulated sedentary states by establishing a permanent, settled capital,Ordu-Baliq, built on the site of the formerGöktürk imperial capital, northwest of the later Mongol capital,Karakorum. The city was a fully fortified commercial center, typical along the Silk Road, with concentric walls and lookout towers, stables, military and commercial stores, and administrative buildings. Certain areas of the town were allotted for trade and handcrafts, while in the center of the town were palaces and temples, including a monastery. The palace had fortified walls and two main gates, as well as moats filled with water and watchtowers.
The khaghan maintained his court there and decided the policies of the empire. With no fixed settlement, theXiongnu had been limited in their acquisition of Chinese goods to what they could carry. As stated by Thomas Barfield, "the more goods a nomadic society acquired the less mobility it had, hence, at some point, one was more vulnerable trying to protect a rich treasure house by moving it than by fortifying it."[62][page needed] By building a fixed city, the Uyghurs created a protected storage space for trade goods from China. They could hold a stable, fixed court, receive traders, and effectively cement their central role in Silk Road exchange.[62][page needed] However, the vulnerability that came with having a fixed city was to be the downfall of the Uyghurs.[58]
A 2020 study analyzed the genetic ancestry of 12 Uyghur Khaganate individualsc. 9th century fromMongolia. The sample exhibited high (~60%) but variableWest Eurasian ancestry, modeled as a mixture of Indo-IranianAlans andBactria-Margiana Archaeological Complex ancestry. The sample also carried substantial (~40%) ancestry from anEast Asian source, closely related to theSlab Grave culture. The admixture between West and East Eurasian sources was estimated to have occurred around the year 500.[65]
An Uyghur remain (GD1-3) analysed in a 2024 study was found to have carried primarily ancestry derived fromAncient Northeast Asians (c. 83% ±2–3%) with the remainder of ancestry being derived fromWestern Steppe Herders (Sarmatians; c. 17% ±2–3%). The authors note that this is "providing a new piece of information on this understudied period".[68]
^"Chapter 195".舊唐書 [Old Book of Tang].葛祿乘勝取回紇之浮圖川，回紇震恐，悉遷西北部落羊馬於牙帳之南以避之。 [translation: "The Karluks took the opportunity to win control of Uyghur's Fu-tu valley; the Uyghurs, shaken with fear, moved their north-western tribes, with sheep and horses, to the south of the capital to escape."] (In Xin Tangshu, Fu-tu valley (浮圖川) was referred to as Shen-tu Valley深圖川)
^Drompp, Michael R. (2018)."THE UIGHUR-CHINESE CONFLICT OF 840–848". In Cosmo, Nicola Di (ed.).Warfare in Inner Asian History (500-1800). Handbook of Oriental Studies. Section 8 Uralic & Central Asian Studies. BRILL. p. 92.ISBN978-9004391789.
^Drompp, Michael R. (2018)."THE UIGHUR-CHINESE CONFLICT OF 840–848". In Cosmo, Nicola Di (ed.).Warfare in Inner Asian History (500-1800). Handbook of Oriental Studies. Section 8 Uralic & Central Asian Studies. BRILL. p. 99.ISBN978-9004391789.
^Maħmūd al-Kašğari. "Dīwān Luğāt al-Turk". Edited & translated byRobert Dankoff in collaboration with James Kelly. InSources of Oriental Languages and Literature. (1982). Part I. p. 82-84
^新唐書 [New Book of Tang].俄而渠長句錄莫賀與黠戛斯合騎十萬攻回鶻城，殺可汗，誅掘羅勿，焚其牙，諸部潰其相馺職與厖特勒十五部奔葛邏祿，殘眾入吐蕃、安西。 [Translation: Soon the great chief Julumohe and the Kirghiz gathered a hundred thousand riders to attack the Uyghur city; they killed the Kaghan, executed Jueluowu, and burnt the royal camp. All the tribes were scattered—its ministers Sazhi and Pang Tele with fifteen clans fled to the Karluks, the remaining multitude went to the Tibetan Empire andAnxi.]
^Pan, Yihong (1990).Sui-Tang foreign policy: four case studies (Thesis). University of British Columbia.doi:10.14288/1.0098752.
^Swendseid, Katrina (1 January 2018)."Turkic Stelae - Figures".Turkic Stelae of Central and Inner Asia: 6th - 13th Centuries C.E.: Figure 34.
^Jeong 2020: "The high genetic heterogeneity of the Early Medieval period is vividly exemplified by 12 individuals from the Uyghur period cemetery of Olon Dov (OLN; Figure 2) in the vicinity of the Uyghur capital of Ordu-Baliq. Six of these individuals came from a single tomb (grave 19), of whom only two are related (OLN002 and OLN003, second-degree; Table S2D); the absence of closer kinship ties raises questions about the function of such tombs and the social relationships of those buried within them. Most Uyghur-period individuals exhibit a high but variable degree of west Eurasian ancestry—best modeled as a mixture of Alans, a historic nomadic pastoral group likely descended from the Sarmatians and contemporaries of the Huns (Bachrach, 1973), and an Iranian-related (BMAC-related) ancestry—together with Ulaanzuukh_SlabGrave (ANA-related) ancestry (Figure 3E). The admixture dates estimated for the ancient Türkic and Uyghur individuals in this study correspond to ca. 500 CE: 8 ± 2 generations before the Türkic individuals and 12 ± 2 generations before the Uyghur individuals (represented by ZAA001 and Olon Dov individuals)."
Asimov, M.S. (1998),History of civilizations of Central Asia Volume IV The age of achievement: A.D. 750 to the end of the fifteenth century Part One The historical, social and economic setting, UNESCO Publishing
Barfield, Thomas (1989),The Perilous Frontier: Nomadic Empires and China, Basil Blackwell
Baumer, Christoph (2012),The History of Central Asia: The Age of the Steppe Warriors
Beckwith, Christopher I (1987),The Tibetan Empire in Central Asia: A History of the Struggle for Great Power among Tibetans, Turks, Arabs, and Chinese during the Early Middle Ages, Princeton University Press
Benson, Linda (1998),China's last Nomads: the history and culture of China's Kazaks, M.E. Sharpe
Bregel, Yuri (2003),An Historical Atlas of Central Asia, Brill
Bosworth, Clifford Edmund (2000),The Age of Achievement: A.D. 750 to the End of the Fifteenth Century – Vol. 4, Part II : The Achievements (History of Civilizations of Central Asia), UNESCO Publishing
Bughra, Imin (1983),The history of East Turkestan, Istanbul: Istanbul publications{{citation}}: CS1 maint: publisher location (link)
Latourette, Kenneth Scott (1964),The Chinese, their history and culture, Volumes 1–2, Macmillan
Mackerras, Colin (1990), "Chapter 12 - The Uighurs", in Sinor, Denis (ed.),The Cambridge History of Early Inner Asia, Cambridge University Press, pp. 317–342,ISBN0-521-24304-1
Mackerras, Colin (1972),The Uighur Empire: According to the T'ang Dynastic Histories, A Study in Sino-Uighur Relations, 744–840, Australian National University Press,ISBN0-7081-0457-6
Millward, James A. (2007),Eurasian Crossroads: A History of Xinjiang, Columbia University Press
Rong, Xinjiang (2013),Eighteen Lectures on Dunhuang, Brill
Sinor, Denis (1990),The Cambridge History of Early Inner Asia, Cambridge University Press,ISBN978-0-521-24304-9
Wan, Lei (2017),The First Chinese Travel Record on the Arab World
Wang, Zhenping (2013),Tang China in Multi-Polar Asia: A History of Diplomacy and War, University of Hawaii Press
Xiong, Victor (2008),Historical Dictionary of Medieval China, United States of America: Scarecrow Press, Inc.,ISBN978-0810860537
1These are traditional areas of settlement; the Turkic group has been living in the listed country/region for centuries and should not be confused with modern diasporas. 2State with limited international recognition.
.png)
_to_Manicheism_in_762_(detailed_of_B%25C3%25B6g%25C3%25BC_Qaghan_in_a_suit_of_armour%2c_kneeling_to_a_Manichean_high_priest).jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.png)
