His name entered everyday culture at the level of sayings: "how Mamai passed." One of the most famous pages of history is connected with it - the Battle of Kulikovo. He played secret political games with Lithuanians and Genoese. Beklyarbek of the Golden Horde Mamai.
Origin
Khan Mamai became the prototype of the famous character of Ukrainian folk culture - the Cossack knight (knight) Mamai. Modern Ukrainian reformist historians even seriously write about the Ukrainian origin of the khan, and esotericists call the Cossack-Mamai "the cosmogonic personification of the Ukrainian people as a whole." For the first time in the everyday culture of the common people, it appeared rather late, in the middle of the 18th century, but it became so popular that it hung in every house next to the icons.
Mamai was half Polovtsian - Kipchak, half - Mongol. On his father, he is a descendant of Khan Hakopa from the Kiyat clan, and on his mother, from the clan of the Golden Horde temnik Mamai. Then it was a common name, meaning in Turkic Mohammed. He successfully married the daughter of the ruler of the Sarai - Khan Berdibek, who had previously killed his father and all the brothers, the Great Zamyatnya began in the Horde - a long period of civil strife. Berdibek himself was also killed, and the direct line of the Batuid dynasty on the main throne of the Horde was interrupted. Then the eastern descendants of Jochi began to lay claim to Saray. Under these conditions, Mamai captured the western part of the Horde and installed khans there - indirect heirs of the Batuid clan. He himself could not rule without being Genghisides. And here a big policy with the participation of Mamai unfolded.
“The talented and energetic temnik Mamai came from the Kiyat clan, hostile to Temujin and who lost the war in Mongolia back in the 12th century. Mamai revived the Black Sea power of the Polovtsians and Alans, and Tokhtamysh, heading the ancestors of the Kazakhs, continued the Dzhuchiev ulus. Mamai and Tokhtamysh were enemies." Lev Gumilyov.
Mamai vs Tokhtamysh
Tokhtamysh was an adherent of the old Horde order, striving to unite the splitting horde. In addition, he was a Chingizid and had uncontested rights to Sarai, as opposed to Mamai. Tokhtamysh's father was killed by the ruler of the White Horde, Urus Khan, but after the death of the latter, the nobility there refused to obey his descendants and called Tokhtamysh. Tokhtamysh lost the internal war, but escaped after a decisive battle, having sailed across the wounded Syr Darya - to the possessions of Tamerlane. He said: "You, apparently, are a courageous person; go, return your khanate to yourself, and you will be my friend and ally." Tokhtamysh took the White Horde, received the Blue Horde - by right of inheritance, and moved on Mamai. Now everything depended on alliances formed in the West.
big politics
Since the Golden Horde weakened in strife, the Lithuanians began to strengthen in the territories formerly controlled by the Mongols. Kyiv became practically Lithuanian, Chernihiv and Severskaya were under the influence of Lithuania. Prince Olgerd was a militant anti-Orthodox, while the majority of the population in the expanded Lithuania was already Russian, and Moscow used this against the Lithuanians. However, other Russian princes, on the contrary, used Lithuania against Moscow - first of all, Suzdal and Novgorod. There was also a division according to Western politics in the Horde.
Mamai bet on Lithuania, and Tokhtamysh on Moscow. Mamai led a pro-Western line, because he needed money to fight Tokhtamysh. The Crimean Genoese promised to help with money in exchange for concessions for the extraction of furs in the north of Rus'. Mamai tried for a long time to persuade Moscow to fulfill the conditions of the Genoese in exchange for a label and other privileges. Both the Muscovites accepted. Metropolitan Alexy, who ruled de facto when Dmitry was a child, used Mamai to elevate, both legally and de facto, the Principality of Moscow. But in the end, Moscow turned its back on Mamai, and the so-called “great peace” took place. Not without the influence of Sergius of Radonezh, who said that there could be no business with the Latins (Genoese and Latins).
From the “Word on the Life and Repose of Grand Duke Dmitry Ivanovich, Tsar of Russia”: “Mamai, instigated by crafty advisers who adhered to the Christian faith, and themselves did the deeds of the wicked, said to his princes and nobles: “I will seize the Russian land, and I will destroy the Christian churches … Where there were churches, I’ll put murmurs here.”
Before the Battle of Kulikovo
Interesting events took place before the Battle of Kulikovo. Since Mamai hoped to conclude an alliance either with Moscow, and then with other principalities against Moscow, he often sent embassies to Rus'. To Ryazan, Tver, Moscow itself, etc. These embassies were often mistreated. This happened in Nizhny Novgorod (then under the reign of the Suzdalians), where the Suzdal Bishop Dionysius was sitting. He raised the townspeople against the Tatar embassy. As Lev Gumilyov writes, “all the Tatars were killed in the most cruel way: they were stripped naked, released onto the ice of the Volga and poisoned by dogs.” Mamai overtook the drunken Suzdal troops on the Pyana River and cut them, repeating the same thing a little later in Nizhny. On adrenaline, Mamai decided to continue moving towards Moscow, but the troops of Mamaisky Murza Begich were defeated on the Vozha River. After that, the main open clash between Mamai and Moscow became inevitable.
The princes of Glinsky called themselves descendants of Mamai. According to their family legend, the descendants of Mamai served in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, and supposedly the Glinskys descended from Mamai's son Mansur Kiyatovich. If so, then Mamai was the ancestor of Ivan IV the Terrible by his mother, Elena Glinskaya.
Doom
In the Battle of Kulikovo, about which we have written a lot, Mamai lost not only the army, but also legitimacy: the infant Khan Mohammed, who ruled de jure in Saray, was killed. Thus, Tokhtamysh almost did not have to fight in order to finish off the remnants of Mamai's army on the Kalka River - people themselves went over to a more legitimate ruler. Mamai went to the Genoese in Kafa (present-day Feodosia), but it is clear that they were no longer interested in him. There he was killed. Whether by the Genoese, or Tokhtamysh's scouts: this is not so important, since his fate was sealed, and his time was over.
Mamai is a military leader and ruler of the Golden Horde.
The tragic hero of his era
Mamai is one of the famous khans of the Golden Horde, which remains the greatest mystery for modern researchers.
The question is still not clear: why such an influential politician could lose power only because of one lost battle on the Kulikovo field in 1380, who managed to expand the boundaries of his possessions in a short time.
And he was the only ruler who managed to hold the power of the Golden Horde for 20 years and play a significant role in the history of Rus' and Eastern Europe.
A modern look at the life of the Khan of the great Empire
After all, if you follow the saying: heroes are not born, but become heroes, this catchphrase fully corresponded to the young commander Mamai, who came from a hereditary Kipchak family.
His father was Khan Hakob, who brought up endurance in his son, taught military affairs, which allowed him to achieve a military career in the future and become beklyar - bek, only two people could have this title of supreme administration of state power.
Mamai was entrusted with the territory of the Crimea and the Northern Black Sea region. He was given full power over the army, with the conduct of foreign policy, diplomacy, the supreme court.
The influence of personality on historical events
But as historical events show, the outcome of his fate, even without the Battle of Kulikovo, was already a foregone conclusion and far from in favor of Mamai, despite the fact that the Golden Horde was one of the most powerful states not only on the European continent, but also in Asia.
This was preceded by:
- the military structure of the state system, which carried an aggressive essence;
- the motley and fragmented ethnic composition of the population of the empire;
- the growth of the political and economic power of individual khanates;
- the divergence of interests of the feudal elite and the central government.
And only his determination, willingness to achieve his goal, led Mamai to the pinnacle of power, thereby allowing him to go down in history and leave his mark on it.
A new institution of government for the conquered lands
The role of Mamai in the events of the past years was undeniable. However, possessing unsurpassed diplomatic skills and a subtle flair for the ongoing changes of that time, he did not take into account the most important thing, namely:
- Aspects of the inner life of the Golden Horde
- Lack of control over the entire empire
- Lack of strong support from the khans and subjects.
He was alone in his struggle for power, despite his noticeable influence in relation to European monarchs and vassal rulers. In addition, in order to maintain power, he introduced a completely new institution of government through figureheads, which violated the established privileges of that time and the inviolability of traditions, giving rise to a weakening of the unity of command of the Genghisides.
Which, of course, caused disapproval on their part, a special young khan - Chingizid, Tokhtamysh.
Historical facts
The last Battle of Kulikovo in 1380 ended not in favor of the Mongol Khan. He failed to subjugate Moscow, just as he failed to regain its former glory in the next battle with Tokhtamysh after the defeat of the Kulikovo battle in 1381 at the mouth of the Kalka River.
Death of Mamai
Mamai was the last warrior and khan who defended the dynastic interests of the Batuids in the Golden Horde. And the true cause of the death of this great commander of his time has not been established. And it is not known how his life would have developed in the future, because he could not just leave the political arena.
He was consistent in politics, developed the economy of the state, unlike the nomadic tribal union, and allocated funds for architectural construction. Thanks to this, he built several cities that served as his foundation during his reign. And with each of his victories, the rulers of the uluses and the leaders of the tribes could defect to him, and in case of failure, they could also go to the camp of his rivals.
Therefore, the defeat of Mamai and his death in those conditions remained a natural fact, as well as the end of his career. And the whole tragedy of this person lies not so much in his personal character traits, but in the time and era in which he lived.
Mamai was allegedly killed by Tokhtamysh's mercenaries in 1380.
MAMAY - KHAN OF THE GOLDEN HORDE AND HIS TIME OF RULE (1367-1391)
Mamai did not belong to the khan's family of Genghis Khanovich, seized power due to the ensuing general internal turmoil and was not recognized by a significant part of the tribes of both the Golden and the White Horde. His power was not recognized by the Nogai hordes and Cossacks. The attitude towards him was also defiant on the part of the Moscow prince.
Mamai, in order to strengthen his position, began to seek an alliance with the Lithuanian prince, and through him with some Russian princes. In 1377 Prince Olgerd died and his son Jagiello took his place. Mamai entered into an alliance with him and began to prepare for an internal war in order to bring the tribes recalcitrant to him into obedience, including the Moscow prince.
By that time, the possessions of the Lithuanian princes had spread far to the east and included the Ryazan principality. The Prince of Pronsk married the daughter of Prince Olgerd and, with his help, became the Prince of Ryazan. Thus, the Ryazan principality was made dependent on Lithuania. The prince of Tver was in alliance with the Lithuanian princes, continued to spread his possessions to the east and occupied several cities on the Volga. Prince Dimitry Donskoy, who by that time had matured, did not reckon with the labels of Mamai and openly began to resist the Tatar detachments attacking the borders of Russian possessions. Mamai, in order to humble the Moscow prince, sent a significant detachment under the command of Tsarevich Arapsha to the borders of the Moscow principality. Against the Tatars, Prince Dimitri sent troops under the command of his son, Ivan. The troops met on the river. Piave. During the battle, Tsarevich Ivan drowned in the river. Piyave, his troops were defeated and the Tatars occupied and defeated Nizhny Novgorod.
In 1378, Mamai sent a stronger detachment against Moscow, and they again captured Nizhny Novgorod and Ryazan and destroyed them. But Prince Dimitri spoke out against this detachment of Tatars, met with them within the Ryazan possessions on the river. Vozhe and defeated them. According to the chronicler: "Demetrius fought with the Tatars on the Vozha and the Tatars ran away." Fight on the river Vozhe put Rus' in a position of open war with the Golden Horde. Mamai could not put up with the disobedience of Moscow and began to prepare for a campaign against her.
By the time of the imminent war against the Golden Horde, the possessions of the Moscow principality were limited to the Moscow and Vladimir-Suzdal regions and the Yaroslavl principality. In the southeast, the Meshchersky principality, formed by Khan Togai, entered the possessions of Moscow.
The son of Tog, Makhmet Useinovich, turned his possessions into a stable principality, and his son, Belimesh, converted to Christianity, received the name Michael, baptized his squad and "many people" and recognized the power of the Moscow prince; in the position of henchmen were: Beloozero, Kargopol, Kubensk, Mypom-Eletsk and some other petty rulers of the fragmented Russian principalities. The possessions of Moscow were compressed from all sides by its opponents and were limited to the limits of the flow of the Volga and Oka rivers, and in the south of the river. Gums and the borders of the Ryazan principality. The Tver and Ryazan princes were in alliance with the Lithuanian prince and, together with him, with Khan Mamai. Prince Daniel waged war at the same time with Tver and Ryazan; these wars ended in peace treaties, according to which the princes of Tver and Ryazan promised to live in peace and fight together with a common enemy. “Your enemy will be my enemy,” the treaties said. The general situation for Moscow's open action against Mamai could not give any hope of success. The Muscovite prince could have hopes for success only on the condition of external assistance, and he could count on such assistance from the allies who appeared on his western borders.
After the death of Prince Olgerd, his eldest son Jagiello became the Lithuanian prince. He married a Polish princess, Jadwiga, converted to Catholicism and became king of the united Polish-Lithuanian kingdom. Catholicism was adopted as the dominant religion and became mandatory for all Lithuanian citizens. The independence of Lithuania was threatened by absorption by Poland. Lithuania could not reconcile with Jagiello's decision, and his three brothers rebelled against him. Prince Alexander of Pskov fled to Moscow and entered the service of the Moscow prince. Volyn and Bryansk princes got out of the power of their brother and took a position hostile to him. These Jagiello brothers decided to continue the policy of the former Lithuanian princes, who created an independent Lithuania while preserving its internal life and order. They could not abandon the common goal pursued by their father - the absorption of the Moscow principality and the destruction of the Golden Horde. Despite the split that occurred as a result of the Polish-Lithuanian Union adopted by their brother, they had enough funds to continue their previous policy, counting on the forces they had at their disposal and on the sympathy of the Russian people. Only with their help could the Moscow prince have any hope of success in an open war against Mamai.
In the brewing conflict between Moscow and the Golden Horde, the policy of Jagiello and his brothers was the same, the difference was only in tactics. Jagiello entered into an alliance with Mamai, hoping in alliance with him to break the resistance of the Moscow prince and even to finally destroy his armed forces. His brothers wanted war between the Moscow prince and the Golden Horde, but they wanted to use it in order to weaken both sides. They saw that in the upcoming battle, the troops of the Moscow prince, poorly armed, without experienced commanders, would have to be defeated if they were not completely destroyed, after which the Golden Horde would be strengthened and the prestige of the khan would rise .. Therefore, in order to prevent the final destruction of the troops Moscow prince and undermine the prestige of Mamai, they wanted to support Moscow.
The unexpected meeting of the troops of the Moscow prince and the Lithuanian princes when approaching the battlefield is a legend of the distant past. The Moscow prince Dimitri knew that he was not opposed to one Khan of the Golden Horde, but to a whole coalition: Mamai, Jagiello, the Ryazan and Tver princes, and without securing support from the allies in advance, he could not lead the troops to their certain death. In solving an open war against Mamai and supporting him from the Lithuanian princes, Prince Dimitri had a plan developed in advance and his Western allies were the main advisers in this matter.
Mamai began to prepare for a campaign against Moscow. He went up the Volga and began to replenish the troops with the Volga tribes - Buryats, Cheremis and Tatars. The Moscow prince also began to gather troops and prepare to repulse the Tatars. He sent requests for help to all the princes and Novgorod. Ambassadors were sent to Mamai with rich gifts and a promise to pay tribute to the khan as before. Mamai did not agree and demanded more. Zakhary Tyutchev, who headed the embassy, learned that Jagiello and the Ryazan prince Oleg kissed Mamai and concluded an agreement on a joint campaign against Moscow with the aim of dividing it. The Allied troops were to unite on the river. Oka and from there to conduct a further offensive. Neither Novgorod, nor Tver, nor Suzdal, nor Nizhny Novgorod responded to the call of the Moscow prince. Only henchmen of Beloozero, Rostov and Pereyaslavl promised to join. By the end of August 1380, the troops of the Moscow prince united at Kolomna. From Kolomna, the prince ordered the troops to move to the upper reaches of the Don. At the mouth of the Lopast River, the troops crossed the Oka and continued to move in the indicated direction. By the time the troops approached the upper reaches of the Don, there was an event that in the history of the Battle of Kulikovo borders on a miracle.
The troops of the Moscow prince were joined with the troops by the Pskov and Bryansk princes Olgerdovichi and the troops of the Volyn prince under the command of the governor Bobrok. Another miracle also dates back to the same time: the Don atamans came with the troops to the Moscow prince, about whom the chronicler reports: “There, in the upper reaches of the Don, the people of the Christian military rank live, called “Cossacks”, in joy meeting the Grand Duke Dimitri, with holy icons and with crosses congratulating him on his deliverance from the adversary, and bringing him gifts from his treasures, even if he has Miraculous Icons in his churches. The “unexpected” appearance of the troops of the Lithuanian princes and Cossacks on the way to the battlefield corresponded in the best way to the general plan of the upcoming battle. The troops of the Moscow prince, going to the upper reaches of the Don, moved away from Moscow by 250-300 miles, and approaching the battlefield, they were placed in a position surrounded on three sides by their opponents. The troops of Mamai, the Ryazan prince and Jagiello from the mouth of the Nepryadva were at the same distance, in relation to the Moscow troops, occupying an enveloping position in relation to them. The appearance of the troops of the Lithuanian kings and Cossacks from the southwest and south separated the troops of Jagiello from the troops of his allies, and, in addition, reinforced the troops of the Moscow prince with units well prepared for battle and excellent military leaders.
The Don Cossacks in the upcoming war between Mamai and Moscow were not on the side of Mamai and some of them took the side of the Moscow prince. The collapse of the Golden Horde and the seizure of power by the usurper posed the question for the Cossacks, where to look for a way out of the situation, and, if not all, then part of them joined the troops of the Moscow prince and opposed Mamai. Coming out of Moscow, "watchmen" were sent from the troops to search for the enemy, from whom no information was received. After the joining of the Lithuanian and Cossack troops, outfits of new "watchmen" were sent, under the command of Semyon Medic. Information was received from Melik that Mamai's troops were on the river. Vorone, the Lithuanian prince Jagiello - near Odoevsk, and the Ryazan prince on his territory, the distance of the location of those and other troops from Nepryadva was about one hundred and fifty miles, Mamai with the troops was at a closer distance. Semen Melik was all the time in contact with the troops of Mamai. From the captured Tatar, information was received that “Mamai has all the Tatar and Polovtsian strength, and he also hired Besermen, Armenians, Fryazi, Circassians, Yases and Buryats ...” and that his army is innumerable and cannot be counted. On September 2, Melik's watchmen withdrew gradually under pressure from the Tatars to Nepryadva, to Red Hill, from the top of which the whole neighborhood was visible. By September 5, the troops of the Moscow prince and his allies approached the mouth of the river. Nepryadvy. The chronicler writes: “And having come to the Don and the stash and thinking a lot ...” the Grand Duke gathered a council in the village. Chernov, and asked all the princes and governor to express their opinion on the order of the battle. At the council, some said “go the prince for the Don”, others - “do not go, for the sake of multiplying our enemies, not only the Tatars, but also Lithuania and Ryazan ...” The voice of the Volyn governor, Bobrok, turned out to be decisive. He stated: “If you want the prince to have a strong army, then they ordered him to fuss over the Don, so that there would not be a single one who thought back, but the great forces would say nothing, as God is not in power, but in truth Yaroslav is transporting the river - defeat Svyatopolk; and your great-grandfather, the great prince, Alexander, Izhera crossed the river, defeat the king. It is befitting God to do the same to you, if we win, then we will be saved, if we die, then we will accept all common death from the prince and to ordinary people ... ". After listening to Bobrok and the opinion of other princes, the Grand Duke said: “Brothers, the death of an evil belly is better, and it was better not to go against the godless, rather than having come, and doing nothing, to return back: their heads are all for the holy churches and for the Orthodox faith, and for our brothers, for Christianity. It was ordered to build bridges for each regiment: advanced, large, right and left hand and ambush - the troops began to cross the Don on five bridges. After the crossing, the bridges were ordered to be destroyed so that no one thought about retreat. Semyon Melik continued to observe the Tatar army and on September 7 reported that the Tatars were on the "goose ford", 8-9 versts from the river. Nepryadvy, and advised the prince to prepare for battle.
The combat disposition of the troops was entrusted to the voivode Bobrok. Bobrok "arranging half a dozen and placing them according to their property, where it is appropriate for anyone to stand." A large regiment was placed in the center under the command of the boyar Timofey Velyaminov; on the flanks - regiments of the right and left hands under the command of Prince Andrei Olgerdovich, the second - Prince Vasily Yaroslavsky; behind the left flank was put in the form of a reserve - the regiment of the Lithuanian prince Dmitry Olgerdovich; an advanced regiment was placed in front of the troops, under the command of princes Semyon Obolensky and Ivan Tarussky; in Zelenaya Grove, an "ambush regiment" was set up, under the command of the voivode Bobrok, under whom was the brother of the Grand Duke, Vladimir.
The identity of the voivode Bobrok has not been clarified to date, there is no doubt that he was one of the chieftains of the Dnieper Cossacks who came from Volhynia, whose descendants among the Don Cossacks existed until recently.
Zelenaya Grove was located in the northeast corner of the Kulikovo field and adjacent to the Don, where bridges were left, which were under the supervision of an ambush regiment, in whose firmness there was no doubt.
The number of troops is calculated by chroniclers, according to ancient custom, not taking into account reality, but with the expectation of a stronger effect on the reader's imagination. According to the chronicler Safony Ryazanets, who wrote about a hundred years after the event, it seems: “And having gathered our hundred thousand and one hundred, contrary to the Russian princes and local governors. Byache of all the strength and all the armies in the number of 150,000 or 200,000; the troops were replenished with the approaching princes of Lithuania, whose number was 40,000 and were brought to 400,000 soldiers. The number of troops, of course, is exaggerated, their number could not exceed 50,000 - 60,000 people. These considerations are based on the fact that the dimensions of the Kulikovo Field were 5 versts in length and 4 versts in depth and were not sufficient for deploying 400,000 armies. In addition, the population of the Moscow possessions could not put up such a number, which is why the actual number could not exceed 50-60 thousand. With 40,000 troops that joined from outside, all the troops could number 90-100 thousand.
Exaggerated troops and Mamai, the number of which also could not have an overwhelming superiority over Moscow.
“Mamai, hearing the arrival of the Grand Duke to the river. Don, gave the order to move with all his strength and stand at the Don against Prince Dmitry Ivanovich, until the adviser Jagiello, the prince with all the strength of Lithuania, comes to us ... ".
Mamai sent ambassadors to the Moscow prince for negotiations, and Prince Dmitry offered tribute on the previous agreement, but Mamai demanded more. From these secondary negotiations it is clear that Prince Dmitry Donskoy did not flatter himself with the hopes of liberation from the dependence of the Mongols, and, consequently, his military campaign against Mamai was forced.
Even with a favorable outcome of the upcoming battle, the prince should have foreseen that the Mongols would not leave him alone and that his own forces would not be enough to repel their invasion.
Purposeful work on a total change in history began in the seventeenth century as part of the so-called reformist activities of the first representatives of the Romanov dynasty. Old monuments, tombstones - basically everything is destroyed. And they died because they had symbols that the Romanovs rejected. It was replaced by a new symbolism of the reformist time of the seventeenth century. And in order to remove these traces as much as possible, in particular, a large-scale destruction campaign was undertaken. As part of this action, the Peresvet stove was destroyed. Such large-scale transformations could have been caused by religious motives and the desire to bring Russian historical science in line with new Western standards.
Allegedly, in Rus' before the era of Peter the Great, the era of the Romanovs, in general, there was no cartography of its own. Existing maps, such as maps of Moscow, are maps made by foreigners. Old documents, old maps, in the first place, often categorically contradicted the new one. They depicted geography (the geography of Russia, Europe, the geography of the world), which is at odds with the new geography created in Western Europe by the Scaliger school and in our country by the Romanov school of historians.
Icon depicting the battle on the Kulikovo field
The museum of Yaroslavl is stored, dating from the middle of the seventeenth century. Unique image. How many centuries this image lay in oblivion - we do not know. According to the technology of icon painting, the image was covered with drying oil, which had the property of gradually darkening. After about a hundred years, the icon without restoration became completely black. And on top of the disappeared image, a new image was drawn, not always coinciding with the previous one.
When in the twentieth century they learned to remove old layers with the help of chemical means, many initial plots were revealed. The same story happened with this icon. Only in 1959 was the image of the Battle of Kulikovo revealed. The masterpiece of Yaroslavl painting will tell a lot of interesting things to an attentive and unprejudiced eye.
Here are the troops led by Mamai, crossing the river, descending from a high hill. There are no such height differences on the plains of the Tula region. But the red hill in Moscow exactly follows the image of the icon painter. But the most intriguing thing is that on the Yaroslavl icon there are no significant differences between the Tatar 
and the Russian army. The same faces, the same banners. And on these banners is the image of the Savior not made by hands, which from time immemorial was considered the patron of Russian soldiers. On both sides were both Russians and Tatars.
At that time there was no division into nations in the modern sense. It was all mixed up and more unified. And we see that these old images convey to us completely, than the one we know today from the textbooks of Romanov history. Moreover, some documents say that the Volga Tatars were very reluctant to serve Mamai. And there were few of them in his army. Mamai led: Poles, Crimeans, Yasses, Kosogs and Genoese, who were also involved in the financial support of his company. Meanwhile, the baptized Tatars, along with the Lithuanians, fought on the side of Dmitry.
Who was Khan Mamai really?
As you know, Mamai had an army called the “horde”. However, the Russian army is also called exactly the same. Here is a quote from Zadonshchina: “Why are you, filthy Mamai, encroaching on Russian land? Did the Zalesky horde beat you?
"Zaleska land" was called the Vladimir-Suzdal principality. So maybe the word "horde" simply means - an army, and not the Tatar hordes, as we used to understand? But who, then, was Mamai really? According to the chronicle, a temnik or a thousand, that is, a military leader. A few years before the Battle of Kulikovo, he betrays his khan and tries to usurp power.
Grand Duke Dmitry Ivanovich in Moscow has a very similar story, and even taking place at the same time. The son of a thousand Ivan Velyaminov, having quarreled with Dmitry, flees to the horde and there he is preparing for a campaign against his ruler. It is not difficult to notice that the actions of the thousands in the history of the Battle of Kulikovo somehow strangely duplicate each other.
According to the chronicles, Ivan Velyaminov, who appeared in the Russian land, is a traitor and will be executed right on the Kulikovo field after Dmitry's victory. In memory of this event, the Grand Duke will even order. On the coin of Donskoy there was an image of the prince himself, who holds a sword and shield in his hand. At his feet lies a defeated enemy whose head is cut off. It is known that Ivan Velyaminov was executed. His head was cut off and this coin records the fact of victory over his enemy.
Dmitry and his opponent with swords in their hands. A few more minutes and the bloody slaughter will begin. And on the reverse side of the coin is a man with a shield. But do they use a shield during an execution? It turns out that the thousand Velyaminov died on the battlefield. According to the generally accepted version, Mamai fled to the steppes after the defeat and 
in the same year he faced a new enemy - Tokhtamysh Khan of the Zayaitskaya horde. They met on the banks of the Kalka, where history repeated itself exactly. As on the Kulikovo field, poor Mamai was betrayed by his Lithuanian ally and was defeated.
If we take into account that vowels were not used in the ancient chronicles, then the names "Kalka" and "Kulikovo" are not just similar, but absolutely identical and consist of only three letters - KLK. In addition, coins have been preserved, on which, on one side, it is engraved - Khan Tokhtamysh in Arabic; on the other in Russian - Grand Duke Dmitry Donskoy. Historians are trying to explain this by the fact that coins were minted on the one hand by Takhtamysh, and on the other hand by Dmitry Donskoy.
But this can also be explained in another way. Several languages were used in Rus': Russian, Arabic, Tatar. And on the same coin, the name of the same ruler could be minted on both sides in two different languages. The presence of such is a fairly strong argument in favor of the fact that Dmitry Donskoy and Khan Tokhtamysh are one and the same person.
So maybe there were no two different battles that are similar to each other like two drops of water? And there was one - on the Kulikovo field. Where Prince Dmitry Donskoy, aka Khan Tokhtamysh, defeated the troops of the traitor Ivan Velyaminov, also known as Mamai.
There was no Mongol-Tatar yoke!
But in this case, an even more unexpected question arises. Was there a Mongol-Tatar yoke at all? In the light of new assumptions, it turns out that it was not. And there was a huge Russian-Horde empire, which in the second half of the fourteenth century was divided into three parts: the Golden Horde, the White Horde (or White Rus') and Little Russia (aka the Blue Horde).
The Golden Horde (another name for the Volga kingdom) falls into a long and dangerous turmoil. There are twenty-five rulers in twenty-one years. There is a fierce struggle for the throne, which in 1380 is resolved by a grandiose battle on the Kulikovo field.
The history of the distant fourteenth century needs further research. And most importantly - in the search for new documents and material evidence unknown to science. It is they who can confirm or refute the theories that exist today. However, there are facts that are not in doubt. The Battle of Kulikovo really took place. It took place in 1380, and Dmitry Donskoy won it. And, of course, it is rightfully considered a symbol of courage, valor and honor of Russian soldiers.
And one more curious detail. Already today, in the center of Moscow on Krasnokholmskaya embankment, a cross has been erected on a granite base, which is engraved: “In this place, a monument will be erected to the holy faithful, Prince Dmitry Donskoy, the defender of the Russian land. In the summer of 1992, September 25".
Then the sculptor could not know about the Moscow version of the battle. It just wasn't designed. But it so happened that the memorial cross is exactly oriented to the place where the legendary Kulikovo field could be located.
One of the prominent representatives of the Mongolian military aristocracy, a talented and energetic military leader and politician in the Golden Horde.
The name Mamai is an ancient Turkic version of the name Muhammad, was widespread during the time of the Kazan Khanate. For the Georgian holy Catholicos of the same name, see Art. Mamai Georgian
On the paternal side, he was a descendant of the Kipchak Khan Akopa, descended from the Kiyan clan, on the maternal side, from the Golden Horde temnik Murza Mamai. He rose under the Golden Horde Khan Berdibek (1357–1361), marrying his daughter. Not belonging to the clan of Genghis Khan, he could not be a khan himself. But, taking advantage of the internecine struggle for the khanate in the Golden Horde, after the death of Khan Berdibek, in the middle of the XIV century, in the fight against Tokhtamysh, he subjugated most of the Golden Horde western territory, that is, the land from the Don to the Danube, made his way to power with poison and dagger. By the end of the 1370s, he became the de facto ruler of the Golden Horde, ruling it through dummy khans (Russian chronicles called them "Mamaev tsars"). Under him, several khans were replaced, who obeyed him in everything: Abdul, Mohammed-Sultan, Tyulyubek, and others, after which he himself proclaimed khan.
Inciting feudal strife between the Russian princes, who fought among themselves for a label for a great reign, counteracting the strengthening of the strongest of the lands subject to him in Rus' - Moscow, Mamai consistently supported her opponents. He made the main bet on Tver, and also - for tactical reasons - and on Ryazan. At the same time, for the sake of warning, he repeatedly broke into the territory of the Ryazan principality (which served as a buffer between Moscow Russia and the Horde), devastating it. Mamai's orientation towards the Grand Duchy of Lithuania was accompanied by his hostile attitude towards Muscovite Rus'.
In an effort to revive the power of the Golden Horde, he undertook a number of campaigns in Russian lands. In Mamai, he burned Nizhny Novgorod, which by that time was under the patronage of Moscow, and at the same time sent a detachment of Murza Begich to collect the missing taxes from the Moscow prince Dmitry Ivanovich. As the chronicle tells, Mamai wanted to restore power over Russia, wishing "to be like under Batu".
During the conduct of hostilities, Mamai used such factors as surprise, swiftness, attack by large masses of cavalry in open areas. Often maneuvered on the battlefield in order to dismember the enemy or bypass his flanks and go to the rear, followed by encirclement and destruction; at the same time, he showed excessive self-confidence, due to success in battles with weaker opponents.
In the summer, he gathered a large army, which included not only the Tatars, but also the Circassians, Yases, and Chechens conquered by him. However, on September 8, 1380, the Battle of Kulikovo took place in which Mamai was defeated and fled from the battlefield with a small detachment of Tatars to Kafu (Feodosia). The chronicler reported: "... the filthy Mamai ran with four men into the bend of the sea, gnashing his teeth, crying bitterly ..."- this is how the Legend of the Mamaev Battle told about it. In the Crimea, he was met by Tamerlane's henchman, Khan Tokhtamysh, to whom Mamai was to cede power over the Golden Horde. Mamai wanted to hide with his treasures and a few adherents in Kaffa, but here he was treacherously killed.
Literature
- Nasonov A. N., Mongols and Rus', M.-L., 1940.
- Grekov B. D., Yakubovsky A. Yu., Golden Horde and its fall, M.-L., 1950.
- Egorov V. A., Historical geography of the Golden Horde in the XII-XIV centuries., M., 1985.
- Rus' under the yoke: how it was, M., 1991.
Used materials
- Encyclopedic Dictionary of Brockhaus and Efron.
- "MAMAI," Dictionary of personal names: