Sheikh Ahmed ( Turki and

Persian Persian may refer to: * People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language ** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples ** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...

شیخ احمد; died 1529) was the last Khan of the Great Horde, a remnant of the

Golden Horde The Golden Horde, self-designated as ''Ulug Ulus'' ( in Turkic) was originally a Mongols, Mongol and later Turkicized khanate established in the 13th century and originating as the northwestern sector of the Mongol Empire. With the division of ...

, reigning from 1481 to 1502.

Reign

He was one of the three sons of Ahmed Khan bin Küchük, the man who lost Russia in 1480. After the assassination of Ahmed Khan in 1481, his sons feuded for power and it only further weakened the Horde. The Horde, then allied with the

Grand Duchy of Lithuania The Grand Duchy of Lithuania was a sovereign state in northeastern Europe that existed from the 13th century, succeeding the Kingdom of Lithuania, to the late 18th century, when the territory was suppressed during the 1795 Partitions of Poland, ...

, was fighting with the

Crimean Khanate The Crimean Khanate, self-defined as the Throne of Crimea and Desht-i Kipchak, and in old European historiography and geography known as Little Tartary, was a Crimean Tatars, Crimean Tatar state existing from 1441 to 1783, the longest-lived of th ...

, allied with the

Grand Duchy of Moscow The Grand Principality of Moscow, or Muscovy, known as the Principality of Moscow until 1389, was a late medieval Russian monarchy. Its capital was the city of Moscow. Originally established as a minor principality in the 13th century, the gra ...

. In 1500, the Muscovite–Lithuanian War resumed. Lithuania once again allied with the Great Horde. In 1501, Khan Sheikh Ahmed attacked Muscovite forces near Rylsk,

Novhorod-Siverskyi Novhorod-Siverskyi (, , , ''Novgorod-Severskiy''), historically known as Novhorod-Siversk () or Novgorod-Seversk (), is a historic city in Chernihiv Oblast, northern Ukraine. It serves as the administrative center of Novhorod-Siverskyi Raion, alth ...

, and

Starodub Starodub (, , ) is a types of inhabited localities in Russia, town in Bryansk Oblast, Russia, on the Babinets (river), Babinets River in the Dnieper basin, southwest of Bryansk. Population: 16,000 (1975). History Starodub has been known ...

.Kolodziejczyk (2011), p. 26. According to the accounts of the

Bychowiec Chronicle The ''Bychowiec Chronicle'' (; ; also spelled ''Bykhovets'', ''Bykovets'' or '' Bychovec'') is an anonymous 16th-century chronicle of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. Although one of the least reliable sources of the epoch, it is considered the most ...

Sheikh Ahmed gave the rule of these occupied cities to the Lithuanian diplomat of Ruthenian origin, Michał Chalecki. These territories were held by the Grand Duchy of Lithuania prior to the war of 1500-1503. Sheikh Ahmed would spend the following winter of 1501–1502 camping between

Kiev Kyiv, also Kiev, is the capital and most populous List of cities in Ukraine, city of Ukraine. Located in the north-central part of the country, it straddles both sides of the Dnieper, Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2022, its population was 2, ...

and

Chernigov Chernihiv (, ; , ) is a city and municipality in northern Ukraine, which serves as the administrative center of Chernihiv Oblast and Chernihiv Raion within the oblast. Chernihiv's population is The city was designated as a Hero City of Ukrain ...

. Lithuanian Grand Duke

Alexander Jagiellon Alexander Jagiellon (; ; 5 August 1461 – 19 August 1506) was Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1492 and King of Poland from 1501 until his death in 1506. He was the fourth son of Casimir IV and a member of the Jagiellonian dynasty. Alexander was el ...

was preoccupied with his succession in the Kingdom of Poland and did not participate in the campaign, failing to provide necessary support. A harsh winter combined with burning of the steppe by

Meñli I Giray Meñli I GirayCrimean Tatar language, Crimean Tatar, Ottoman Turkish and (1445–1515) was thrice the List of Crimean khans, khan of the Crimean Khanate (1466, 1469–1475, 1478–1515) and the sixth son of Hacı I Giray. Biography Stru ...

, Khan of the Crimean Khanate, resulted in famine among Sheikh Ahmed's forces. Many of his men deserted him and the remainder was defeated on the Sula River in 10 June 1502. Sheikh Ahmed was forced into exile. He sought refuge at the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...

Nogai Horde The Nogai Horde was a confederation founded by the Nogais that occupied the Pontic–Caspian steppe from about 1500 until they were pushed west by the Kalmyks and south by the Russians in the 17th century. The Mongol tribe called the Manghuds con ...

or an alliance with the Grand Duchy of Moscow, before turning to the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. Instead of helping its former ally, the Grand Duchy imprisoned Sheikh Ahmed.Kolodziejczyk (2011), p. 27. He was arrested in Kyiv in late 1503 or early 1504. Sheikh Ahmed was used as a bargaining chip in negotiations with the Crimean Khanate: if the Khanate did not behave, Sheikh Ahmed would be released and would resume his war with the Khanate. Meñli I Giray became a reluctant ally of Lithuania. Sheikh Ahmed was held in Vilnius Upper Castle,

Trakai Trakai (; see Trakai#Names and etymology, names section for alternative and historic names) is a city and lake resort in Lithuania. It lies west of Vilnius, the capital of Lithuania or just from the administrative limits of the Lithuanian capi ...

and moved to

Kaunas Castle Kaunas Castle () is a medieval castle in Kaunas, the second-largest city in Lithuania. Archeological evidence suggests that it was built during the mid-14th century in the Gothic style. Its site is strategic—a rise on the banks of the Nemunas ...

after an escape attempt. After the Battle of Olshanitsa in 27 January 1527, Sheikh Ahmed was released from prison. It is said that he managed to seize power in the

Astrakhan Khanate The Khanate of Astrakhan was a Tatar rump state of the Golden Horde. The khanate existed in the 15th and 16th centuries in the area adjacent to the mouth of the Volga river, around the modern city of Astrakhan. Its khans claimed patrilineal de ...

.Kolodziejczyk (2011), p. 66, this is hard to find in other sources He died around 1529.Kolodziejczyk (2011), p. 68.

Genealogy

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 ...

Jochi Jochi (; ), also spelled Jüchi, was a prince of the early Mongol Empire. His life was marked by controversy over the circumstances of his birth and culminated in his estrangement from his family. He was nevertheless a prominent Military of the ...

Orda Khan Orda Ichen ( Mongolian: – 1251) was a Mongol Khan and military strategist who ruled the eastern part of the Golden Horde (division of the Mongol Empire) during the 13th century. First Khan of the White Horde Orda Ichen ( – 1251) is cr ...

*Sartaqtay * Köchü *

Bayan 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 ...

* Sasibuqa * Ilbasan * Chimtay * Urus * Temur-Malik *

Temür Qutlugh Temür Qutlugh or Tīmūr Qutluq ( Kypchak: تمور قوتلق; Turki and Persian: تیمور قتلغ; 1370 – 1399) was Khan of the Golden Horde from 1397 to 1399. Ancestry According to the detailed genealogies of the ''Muʿizz al-ans� ...

*Temur ibn Temur Qutlugh * Küchük Muhammad * Ahmed Khan bin Küchük *Sheikh Ahmed

References

Bibliography

* *{{cite book , title= The Crimean Khanate and Poland-Lithuania: International Diplomacy on the European Periphery (15th-18th Century). A Study of Peace Treaties Followed by Annotated Documents , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FHrTxHmegRYC&pg=PA66 , series =The Ottoman Empire and its Heritage , first=Dariusz , last=Kolodziejczyk , publisher=BRILL , year=2011 , isbn=9789004191907 1529 deaths Khans of the Golden Horde 15th-century monarchs in Europe Year of birth unknown