Qazaghan (died 1358) was the

amir Emir (; ' (), also transliterated as amir, is a word of Arabic origin that can refer to a male monarch, aristocrat, holder of high-ranking military or political office, or other person possessing actual or ceremonial authority. The title has ...

of the

Qara'unas The Qara'unas or Negüderi were the Mongols who settled in Afghanistan after moving from Turkestan and Mongolia. Foundation The word Qarauna derived from the Turkic word ''Qara'' meaning black in Mongolian. At first they were subjects of the ...

(1345 at the latest – 1358) and the effective ruler of the Chagatai ''ulus'' (1346–1358). The following opinions were expressed about the ethnic origin of the Qazaghan: 1)

Vasily Bartold Vasily Vladimirovich Bartold (; – 19 August 1930), who published in the West under his German baptismal name, Wilhelm Barthold, was a Russian orientalist who specialized in the history of Islam and the Turkic peoples ( Turkology). Biogra ...

wrote that Qazaghan was very likely from the Kauchin tribe; he believed that the Kauchins were a Turkisized

Mongol Mongols are an East Asian ethnic group native to Mongolia, China (Inner Mongolia and other 11 autonomous territories), as well as the republics of Buryatia and Kalmykia in Russia. The Mongols are the principal member of the large family of M ...

tribe; 2) In his other early work, Bartold called Qazaghan a Turkic emir. Qazaghan's lineage is mostly unknown; it is possible that he became head of the Qara'unas through appointment instead of inheritanceManz, p. 160 In 1345 he rebelled against his sovereign, the

Chagatai Khan Chagatai Khan (; – 1242) was a son of Genghis Khan and a prominent figure in the early Mongol Empire. The second son of Genghis's wife Börte, Chagatai was renowned for his masterful knowledge of Mongol custom and law, which he scrupulously ...

Qazan, but was defeated. The following year he tried again and succeeded in killing the khan. Qazan's death signified the end of the effective power of the Chagatai khans within the ''ulus''; subsequent khans were rulers in name only. Qazaghan, in the interest of maintaining an image of legitimacy, contented himself with his title of amir and conferred the title of khan on descendants of

Genghis Khan Genghis Khan (born Temüjin; August 1227), also known as Chinggis Khan, was the founder and first khan (title), khan of the Mongol Empire. After spending most of his life uniting the Mongols, Mongol tribes, he launched Mongol invasions and ...

of his own choosing: first

Danishmendji Dānishmandchī ( Chagatai and Persian: دانشمندچی; died 1348) was Khan of the Chagatai Khanate from 1346 to 1348. He was the second Khan of the Western Chagatai ''ulus'' to be descended from Ögedei, the third son of Genghis Khan. In ...

(1346–1348) and then

Bayan Quli Bayan may refer to: Educational institutions * Bayan Islamic Graduate School, Chicago, IL Places *Bayan-Aul, Pavlodar, Kazakhstan *Bayan Mountain, an ancient mountain name for part of Tarbagatai Mountains at Kazakhstan in Qing Dynasty period *B ...

(1348–1358). During the twelve years that Qazaghan served as the

power behind the throne The phrase "power behind the throne" refers to a person or group that is understood to ''de facto'' wield the power of a high-ranking official (originally, and hence the name, a monarch), or whose support must be maintained to continue in office. ...

, the khanate devolved into a loose confederation of tribes that respected the overall authority of Qazaghan and his puppet khans, although he primarily commanded the loyalty of the tribes of the southern portion of the ''ulus''. Following the example of the khans before him, Qazaghan raided northern

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

. He also sent several thousand troops to aid the

Sultan of Delhi The Sultan of Delhi was the absolute monarch of the Delhi Sultanate which stretched over large parts of the Indian subcontinent during the period of medieval era, for 320 years (1206–1526).Muhammad bin Tughluq Muhammad bin Tughluq (; ; 1290 – 20 March 1351), or Muhammad II, also named Jauna Khan as Crown Prince, further known by his epithets, The Eccentric Prince, or The Mad Sultan, was the eighteenth Sultan of Delhi. He reigned from 4 February 1 ...

, against rebels in his country in 1350 or 1351 and also supported his son

Firuz Shah Tughlaq Firuz Shah Tughlaq (1309 – 20 September 1388), also known as Firuz III, was Sultan of Delhi from 1351 until his death in 1388. He succeeded his cousin Muhammad bin Tughlaq following the latter's death at Thatta, Sindh. His father was ...

to the throne. Following complaints from the Arlat and the Arpardi tribes, who were members of the ''ulus'', of raids by the

Kartids The Kart dynasty, also known as the Kartids (), was a Sunni Muslim dynasty of Tajik origin, closely related to the Ghurids, that ruled over a large part of Khorasan during the 13th and 14th centuries. Ruling from their capital at Herat and cent ...

under Mu'izzu'd-Din, Qazaghan coordinated a

punitive expedition A punitive expedition is a military journey undertaken to punish a political entity or any group of people outside the borders of the punishing state or union. It is usually undertaken in response to perceived disobedient or morally wrong beha ...

with most of the tribes of the southern part of the ''ulus''. The coalition sacked

Herat Herāt (; Dari/Pashto: هرات) is an oasis city and the third-largest city in Afghanistan. In 2020, it had an estimated population of 574,276, and serves as the capital of Herat Province, situated south of the Paropamisus Mountains (''Se ...

and gathered a large amount of plunder. In 1358 Qazaghan was assassinated by the son of Borolday, who had been amir of the Qara'unas before Qazaghan. He had aroused the anger of his murderer by denying him the tumen of Borolday. He was succeeded as leader of the Qara'unas by his son, ‘Abdullah.

Notes

References

*Manz, Beatrice Forbes, ''The Rise and Rule of Tamerlane''. Cambridge University Press, 1989, . {{DEFAULTSORT:Qazaghan, Amir Year of birth unknown 1358 deaths Mongol Empire people Mongol Empire Muslims Mongol monarchs Chagatai khans 14th-century Muslims