Qarachar Noyan (1166 – 1243/44 or 1255/56), also spelt Karachar, was a

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 ...

military commander under

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 ...

as well as a paternal ancestor of

Timur Timur, also known as Tamerlane (1320s17/18 February 1405), was a Turco-Mongol conqueror who founded the Timurid Empire in and around modern-day Afghanistan, Iran, and Central Asia, becoming the first ruler of the Timurid dynasty. An undefeat ...

, founder of the

Timurid Empire The Timurid Empire was a late medieval, culturally Persianate, Turco-Mongol empire that dominated Greater Iran in the early 15th century, comprising modern-day Iran, Iraq, Afghanistan, much of Central Asia, the South Caucasus, and parts of co ...

. Though there is little mention of him in early sources, where he is only described as a military official, the link Qarachar provided between the old

Mongol Empire The Mongol Empire was the List of largest empires, largest contiguous empire in human history, history. Originating in present-day Mongolia in East Asia, the Mongol Empire at its height stretched from the Sea of Japan to parts of Eastern Euro ...

and the

Timurid dynasty The Timurid dynasty, self-designated as Gurkani (), was the ruling dynasty of the Timurid Empire (1370–1507). It was a Sunni Islam, Sunni Muslim dynasty or Barlās clan of Turco-Mongol originB.F. Manz, ''"Tīmūr Lang"'', in Encyclopaedia of I ...

was paramount to the latter's foundational history. His role and that of his relations were thus heavily expanded and potentially mythologised by Timurid court historians, who portrayed him as a hereditary supreme commander and administrator endowed with a unique intimacy with the ruling clan. This disparity in information results in the actual details regarding his life and position becoming matters of dispute among modern academics.

Life

Pre-Timurid sources

Qarachar features very little in the histories contemporary to his lifetime. In ''

The Secret History of the Mongols The ''Secret History of the Mongols'' is the oldest surviving literary work in the Mongolic languages. Written for the Borjigin, Mongol royal family some time after the death of Genghis Khan in 1227, it recounts his life and conquests, and parti ...

'', he is mentioned alongside his father, Suqu ''Sechen'' ("the Sage"), as having attended the assembly which proclaimed

(then called Temüjin) ruler of the Mongols in 1190. Having belonged to the Mongol

Barlas The Barlas (;Grupper, S. M. 'A Barulas Family Narrative in the Yuan Shih: Some Neglected Prosopographical and Institutional Sources on Timurid Origins'. Archivum Eurasiae Medii Aevi 8 (1992–94): 11–97 Chagatay language, Chagatay/ ''Barlās'' ...

tribe, the two acted as one of the delegations representing the group at the event. ''The Secret History'' also states that in 1206, Qarachar was given command of a thousand by the emperor. According to the thirteenth century historian Juvayni, Qarachar later had a base in

Taloqan Taloqan (, also transcribed Taleqan or Taluqan) is the capital of Takhar Province, in northeastern Afghanistan. It is located in the Taluqan District. The population was estimated as 196,400 in 2006. In 2021, the Taliban gained control of ...

from which, in 1222, he marched on

Merv Merv (, ', ; ), also known as the Merve Oasis, was a major Iranian peoples, Iranian city in Central Asia, on the historical Silk Road, near today's Mary, Turkmenistan. Human settlements on the site of Merv existed from the 3rd millennium& ...

to suppress a rebellion. By 1227, the year that Genghis died, Qarachar and his contingent had been assigned to the retinue of Genghis Khan's second son Chagatai, a transfer which is also mentioned in the works of

Rashid-al-Din Hamadani Rashīd al-Dīn Ṭabīb (;‎ 1247–1318; also known as Rashīd al-Dīn Faḍlullāh Hamadānī, ) was a statesman, historian, and physician in Ilkhanate Iran. Later Timurid historians, such as

Sharaf ad-Din Ali Yazdi Sharaf ad-Din Ali Yazdi or Sharif al-Din Ali’ Yazdi (; died 1454, Yazd), also known by his pen name Sharaf, was a 15th-century Persian scholar who authored several works in the arts and sciences, including mathematics, astronomy, enigma, liter ...

in his '' Zafarnama'' and

Hafiz-i Abru Hafez-e AbruMaria Eva Subtelny and Charles Melville, (; died June 1430) was a Persian historian working at the courts of Timurid rulers of Central Asia. His full name is ʿAbdallah (or Nur-Allah) Ebn Lotf-Allah Ebn 'Abd-al-Rashid Behdadini; ...

in his ''Majma'' and ''Zubdat'', greatly elaborated on the origins of the dynasty, including on the life and background of Qarachar. In such works, his ancestry (which is never clarified in earlier accounts) is said to link to that of Genghis Khan. His paternal grandfather was stated to be Erdemchu Barlas, son of Qachuli, himself a son of Tumanay Khan, Genghis Khan's great-great-grandfather. This relationship is expressed in other works as well as engraved on Timur's cenotaph and tombstone in the

Gur-e-Amir The Gūr-i Amīr or Guri Amir (, ) is a mausoleum of the Turkic conqueror Timur (also known as Tamerlane) in Samarkand, Uzbekistan. It occupies an important place in the history of Turkestan's architecture as the precursor for and had influence o ...

, in Samarkand, Uzbekistan. Qarachar's father Suqu Sechen was depicted as having been a trusted advisor of

Yesugei Yesükhei () or Yesugei Baghatur ( Traditional Mongolian: ; Modern Mongolian: Есүхэй баатар, ''Yesukhei baatar'', ) (b. 1134 – d. 1171) was a major chief of the Khamag Mongol confederation and the father of Temüjin, who later be ...

, Genghis Khan's father, having been present at the latter's birth and foretelling the infant's future greatness. Suqu is claimed by Yazdi to have died shortly after Yesugei while their children were still young, though this would contradict ''The Secret History'', which states that he was still alive in 1190. Qarachar was described as being among the earliest tribal leaders to swear allegiance to Genghis Khan. He was given a command of 10,000 and advised the emperor frequently throughout his decades-long conquests. As Khan was dying, he is recounted to have summoned his sons and brothers as well as Qarachar. There, after having received their homage, he praised the wisdom of the latter and urged his sons to follow his council and commands. Genghis Khan then ordered the division of his empire among his progeny, bestowing to his second son Chagatai the lands of

Transoxiana Transoxiana or Transoxania (, now called the Amu Darya) is the Latin name for the region and civilization located in lower Central Asia roughly corresponding to eastern Uzbekistan, western Tajikistan, parts of southern Kazakhstan, parts of Tu ...

, which would later become the

Chagatai Khanate The Chagatai Khanate, also known as the Chagatai Ulus, was a Mongol and later Turkification, Turkicized khanate that comprised the lands ruled by Chagatai Khan, second son of Genghis Khan, and his descendants and successors. At its height in the l ...

. In continuation of a covenant made between their respective great-grandfathers Qachuli and Qabul, he commended this son to Qarachar's care, who was also entrusted with the administration and armies to manage on his behalf. This arrangement was formalised by the legal adoption by the nobleman of Chagatai, whose daughter Qarachar also married, so as to establish a "bond of fatherhood and sonship". It was from this marriage that

claimed descent. Yazdi records that Qarachar subsequently occupied a prominent position in the Chagatai court, performing the actual duties of ruling while the Khan revelled and hunted. This arrangement is mentioned by other Timurid historians such as Hafiz-i Abru, who states that as

generalissimo ''Generalissimo'' ( ), also generalissimus, is a military rank of the highest degree, superior to field marshal and other five-star ranks in the states where they are used. Usage The word (), an Italian term, is the absolute superlative ...

, he undertook matters of law, rule and custom. Natanzi in his ''Muntakhab'' further relates that after Chagatai's death in 1241, Qarachar was given command of the household under his successor

Qara Hülegü Qara Hülegü (died 1252) was head of the ''ulus'' of the Chagatai Khanate (1242–1246, 1252). He was the son of Mutukan (killed during the siege of Bamyan), who was the favored son of Chagatai Khan. He was nominated by Chagatai Khan, as well ...

. The ''Mu'izz al-Ansab'', a genealogical work from the reign of

Shah Rukh Shah Rukh or Shahrukh Mirza (, ''Šāhrokh''; 20 August 1377 – 13 March 1447) was the ruler of the Timurid Empire between 1405 and 1447. He was the son of the Central Asian conqueror Timur (Tamerlane), who founded the Timurid dynasty in 1370 ...

, also adds that he carried out legal decisions based on the laws set out by Genghis Khan (the ''

Yassa The Yassa (alternatively ''Yasa'', ''Yasaq'', ''Jazag'' or ''Zasag''; ) was the oral law code of the Mongols, gradually built up through the reign of Genghis Khan. It was the '' de facto'' law of the Mongol Empire, even though the "law" was kep ...

''). The year of his death is disputed between accounts. Hafiz-i Abru states that Qarachar survived Chagatai by only a year, with his death occurring in 640 AH (1243/44 CE). Conversely, Yazdi narrates that he had outlived the Khan by thirteen years, dying in 652 AH (1255/56 CE) at the advanced age of eighty-nine. Depending on the source, he may have had up to nineteen sons, with his descendants forming seven of the Barlas clans of

Turkestan Turkestan,; ; ; ; also spelled Turkistan, is a historical region in Central Asia corresponding to the regions of Transoxiana and East Turkestan (Xinjiang). The region is located in the northwest of modern day China and to the northwest of its ...

and Transoxiana. Qarachar's position of generalissimo was bequeathed to his son

Ichil Ichil Barlas, also known Ichil Noyan (Mongolian script, Mongol: Ичил Барлас, Persian language, Persian: ایچیل بارلاس, ; died 13th century A.D.) was a Tribal chief, Head of Barlas Confederation,Grupper, S. M. "A Barulas Family ...

(Timur's great-great-grandfather), with the office becoming hereditary among his descendants.

Historicity

The first historian to question the narratives presented by Timurid histories was Constantine d'Ohsson in 1834, who stated that they were falsified, with the character of Qarachar being an invention due to an apparent lack of mention in the works of

Rashid-al-Din Hamadani Rashīd al-Dīn Ṭabīb (;‎ 1247–1318; also known as Rashīd al-Dīn Faḍlullāh Hamadānī, ) was a statesman, historian, and physician in Ilkhanate Iran.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 ...

, who discovered a comment by Hamadani regarding Qarachar. However, he was only described as being one of Chagatai's military chiefs as opposed to an all-powerful vizier, leading to an implication that his position and exploits had been greatly exaggerated. This is a view shared by Yuri Bregel, who adds that there is no evidence that Qarachar enjoyed any special power.

Zeki Velidi Togan Zeki Velidi Togan (, , ; 1890 – 1970 in Istanbul), was a Turkish- Bashkir historian, Turkologist, and leader of the Bashkir revolutionary and liberation movement, doctor of philosophy (1935), professor, honorary doctor of the University of Man ...

attempted to dispute this claim, revealing that early versions of Hamadani's ''

Jami' al-tawarikh ''Jāmiʿ al-Tawārīkh'' () is a work of literature and history, produced in the Mongol Ilkhanate. Written by Rashid al-Din Hamadani (1247–1318 AD) at the start of the 14th century, the breadth of coverage of the work has caused it to be call ...

'' contain two mentions of Qarachar's son

, who was stated by the Timurids to have inherited Qarachar's premier position. Togan also states that the general importance of the Barlas among the Chagatai tribes was proved by the influential marriages made by Timur and his sisters prior to the former's ascension. His findings are confirmed by the writings of Jean of Sultaniyya and Clavijo. Beatrice Forbes Manz argues that this does not prove that the Barlas were the ''most'' important tribe in the khanate, which is the suggested view of the Timurid histories. Such influence, she states, would have led to marriages between the imperial clan and the Barlas, of which there is no evidence of from the time of Qarachar to Timur. In relation to this, Eiji Mano adds that while he believes that the tribe had a shared origin with Genghis Khan, by Timur's time the Barlas had become relatively unimportant. He further says that Qarachar's position likely did not exceed that of a

Majordomo A majordomo () is a person who speaks, makes arrangements, or takes charge for another. Typically, this is the highest (''major'') person of a household (''domūs'' or ''domicile'') staff, a head servant who acts on behalf of the owner of a larg ...

. John E. Woods extensively discussed the matter of Timur's ancestry, including Qarachar, and stated his belief that the conqueror had manipulated his genealogy for political means. Woods relates that as a non-member of the imperial clan, Mongol law dictated that Timur was unable to rule under his own name, instead being forced to make use of a puppet-Chagatai Khan. This arrangement was solemnised by the marriages of himself and his sons with Mongol princesses. However, other regional warlords, many of whom were Timur's rivals, also used similar tactics to support their own authority. To justify his own paramountcy being more legitimate, Woods argues that Timur used the genealogical traditions of Qarachar to suggest that he had a hereditary right to govern the khanate. Such a position therefore diminished his opponents to usurpers to the will of Genghis Khan. This view was made clear in Nizam al-din Ali Shami's version of the '' Zafarnama'', which portrays that Timur "revived the house of Chagatai" by enthroning his puppet-Khan, thus vindicating the trust Genghis Khan had placed in Qarachar. However, Maria Subtelny contends that the exalted position ascribed to Qarachar does in fact have basis in Mongol tradition. She notes that Woods did not take into account that the '' Yuan Shih'', the official history of the

Yuan dynasty The Yuan dynasty ( ; zh, c=元朝, p=Yuáncháo), officially the Great Yuan (; Mongolian language, Mongolian: , , literally 'Great Yuan State'), was a Mongol-led imperial dynasty of China and a successor state to the Mongol Empire after Div ...

, specifically mentions that the Barlas belonged to the imperial guard corps, the ''

Kheshig Kheshig ( Mongolian: ; also Khishig, Keshik, Khishigten; "mugay", "blessed") were the imperial guard and shock troops for Mongol royalty in the Mongol Empire, particularly for rulers like Genghis Khan and his wife Börte. Their primary purpose ...

''. These corps, which combined the roles of an elite military division, imperial bodyguards and supervisors of the imperial household, were a central institution for the Mongols, under whom the leadership was hereditary. Subtenly suggests that based on the Timurid descriptions of Qarachar's duties under Chagatai Khan, it can be deduced that he would have been the head of the latter's personal division of the ''Kheshig''. She therefore believes that the contingent of Qarachar which had been assigned to Chagatai by Genghis Khan, unspecified in Mongol histories, would have been this division. She further states that since members of the corps were traditionally given administrative roles, this would tie in with the influence in government attributed to Qarachar. Subtenly specifically identifies his position as the ''yarghuchi'' (chief judge), given his association with legislative powers mentioned in the ''Mu'izz al-Ansab''. Thus Qarachar's military, administrative and legislative functions would be explained by his positions as ''yarghuchi'' and head of the ''Kheshig''. She posits that the ''Kheshig'' role is not explicitly acknowledged in Timurid sources because it was a "submerged" institution, finding little mention in post-Mongol Persian works, which instead prefer circumlocutions.

Notes

References

Bibliography

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *{{citation, first=John E., last=Woods, authorlink=John E. Woods (historian), title=The Timurid dynasty, url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0XcMAQAAMAAJ, year=1991, publisher=Indiana University, Research Institute for Inner Asian Studies Generals of the Mongol Empire Genghis Khan 13th-century Mongols Timur Timurid dynasty Borjigin Barlas 1160s births 1166 births 1250s deaths 1256 deaths 13th-century deaths Year of birth uncertain Year of death uncertain