Bars Bek (

Old Turkic Old Siberian Turkic, generally known as East Old Turkic and often shortened to Old Turkic, was a Siberian Turkic language spoken around East Turkistan and Mongolia. It was first discovered in inscriptions originating from the Second Turkic Kh ...

: 𐰉𐰺𐰽:𐰋𐰏; ; ; 637–710 or 711), also known as Inanch Alp Bilge (), was the first

khagan Khagan or Qaghan (Middle Mongol:; or ''Khagan''; ) or zh, c=大汗, p=Dàhán; ''Khāqān'', alternatively spelled Kağan, Kagan, Khaghan, Kaghan, Khakan, Khakhan, Khaqan, Xagahn, Qaghan, Chagan, Қан, or Kha'an is a title of empire, im ...

of the

Yenisei Kyrgyz Khaganate The Kyrgyz Khaganate () was a Turkic peoples, Turkic empire that existed between the early 6th century, 6th and 13th centuries. It ruled over the Yenisei Kyrgyz people, who had been located in southern Siberia since the 6th century. By the 9th ce ...

Reign

Nothing is known about Bars Bek's early reign, except minor information fragments contained within Orkhon and Yenisei inscriptions. The royal Aje clan, which Bars Bek was a member of, claimed descent from the

Han dynasty The Han dynasty was an Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China (202 BC9 AD, 25–220 AD) established by Liu Bang and ruled by the House of Liu. The dynasty was preceded by the short-lived Qin dynasty (221–206 BC ...

general Li Ling. During his reign, he was believed to be hostile to the

Göktürks The Göktürks (; ), also known as Türks, Celestial Turks or Blue Turks, were a Turkic people in medieval Inner Asia. The Göktürks, under the leadership of Bumin Qaghan (d. 552) and his sons, succeeded the Rouran Khaganate as the main powe ...

until he married with one of the daughters of Ilterish Qaghan and was appointed as a lesser khagan ruling over Az and Kyrgyz tribes. In the late 7th century, according to Takeshi Osawa, Bars Bek mediated talks between Suoge and the

Emperor Zhongzong of Tang Emperor Zhongzong of Tang (26 November 656 – 3 July 710), personal name Li Xian, and at other times Li Zhe or Wu Xian, was the fourth and seventh emperor of the Tang dynasty of China, ruling briefly in 684 and again from 705 to 710. During ...

. According to Klyashtorny, he sent an ambassador named Eren Ulug to the

Tibetan Empire The Tibetan Empire (,) was an empire centered on the Tibetan Plateau, formed as a result of expansion under the Yarlung dynasty heralded by its 33rd king, Songtsen Gampo, in the 7th century. It expanded further under the 38th king, Trisong De ...

in an attempt to form an alliance but was unsuccessful.

Title

According to Sergei Klyashtorny, Bars Bek's anointed name was Inanch Alp Bilge and was mentioned as such in Yenisei inscriptions. Turkish historian Saadeddin Gömeç argued against this.

Death

After news of the triple alliance reached Tonyukuk, he decided to eliminate the Kyrgyz first. Roads to Kyrgyz lands were blocked by heavy snow, forcing them to find a guide. They first crossed Ak Termel (modern Ona - a

tributary A tributary, or an ''affluent'', is a stream or river that flows into a larger stream (''main stem'' or ''"parent"''), river, or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean. Tributaries, and the main stem river into which they ...

of Abakan). However, after ten nights of searching for a way out, their guide became lost and was executed on the orders of Qapaghan. After a few days, they arrived at Kyrgyz headquarters and launched a night attack on Bars Bek, killing him. A memorial

stele A stele ( ) or stela ( )The plural in English is sometimes stelai ( ) based on direct transliteration of the Greek, sometimes stelae or stelæ ( ) based on the inflection of Greek nouns in Latin, and sometimes anglicized to steles ( ) or stela ...

was erected after his death, on the left side of the

Abakan river The Abakan (; , ''Ağban''), (from the Khakas word for "bear's blood") is a river in the Republic of Khakassia, Russia. It is a left tributary of the Yenisey. The river is used for log driving and irrigation. The city of Abakan is located at ...

. He was succeeded by his son and

Bilge Khagan Bilge Qaghan (; ; 683 – 25 November 734) was the fourth khagan, Qaghan of the Second Turkic Khaganate. His accomplishments were described in the Orkhon inscriptions. Names As was the custom, his personal name and the name after assuming the t ...

's nephew.

Legacy

A commemorative coin honouring Bars Bek was issued by the National Bank of the Kyrgyz Republic in 2010. In 2017, a monument to Bars Bek was erected in Osh.

References

{{Authority control Founding monarchs in Asia 7th-century monarchs in Asia 711 deaths 637 births 8th-century murdered monarchs Ethnic Kyrgyz people (individuals) Military leaders