Mysteries of history. Avar Khaganate
The steppes of southern Russia are for the geographer nothing more than a continuation of the steppes of Asia. The same is true for the historian. We have already seen this in antiquity, in relation to the Scythians, Sarmatians, Huns. This fact is also applicable to the period of the early Middle Ages, from the Avars to the Genghis Khans.
The migration of the Avars from Upper Asia to southern Russia is known to us thanks to the Byzantine historian Theophylact Simocatta. Theophylact distinguishes between real Avars and what he calls false Avars. (Pseudo-failures).
Under the former, he sees, as Marcoir notes, those whom we call Zhuan-zhuani, a people of Mongolian origin who were the masters of Mongolia throughout the entire 5th century. before being crushed and forced out in 552 by the Tukyu Turks. And he gives under the "false Avars" who appropriated this formidable name - Avars - the people of our medieval history. These latter consisted of two united hordes, namely, Uar (or Var), whence the name Avar originated, and Kunni or Khuni, a name reminiscent of their Hunnic etymology.
The two combined names "Uar" and "Huni" designate Avars and Huns. On the other hand, these Uars and Khunis, from whom the Byzantines derive the Uarkhonitai, were, according to the same Byzantine sources, two tribes of the Ogors, that is, as some Orientalists think, the Uighurs. But the historical Uighurs are Turks, while the Avars of Europe were probably Mongols. In addition, Albert Herrmann, by means of a map from his atlas, proposes to identify the Huars and Khunis with the Juan-Juans, who were certainly Mongols. Finally, as Minorsky points out, the distinction between "real Avars" and "pseudo-Avars" is based on only one Byzantine source, and that is not entirely reliable. In addition, according to the same Herrmann, if the Avars, who emigrated to Europe in the second half of the VI century. were not Juan-Juans, then they must be Hephthalites Huns. Recall that the Hephthalites, who owned the Ili region, Transoxiana and Bactria in the 5th century, and were of Mongol origin, like the Juan-Juan, were defeated and dispersed after them, by 565 by the same tukyu opponents who made an alliance against them with the Sassanid Persia.
Regardless of this discussion, it is obvious that by the end of the reign of Justinian (died in 565), the Avars - in Greek: “abares, abaroi”, in Latin: “Avari, Avares” - moved into Europe, pressing on marching ahead of them, as Theophylact Simokatta says, "Hunnugurs, Sabirovs and other Hunnic hordes." The leader of the Alans, called Sarozios by the Byzantines, was able to remain on friendly terms with them. Their appearance reminded the Byzantines of the ancient Huns, except that, unlike the Huns, the Avars braided their hair into two long braids that fell from their backs. We know that they were shamanists; Theophylact mentions one of their sorcerers or "bokolabras" (from the Mong. "god" - a sorcerer). Their ambassador Kandih, when received by Justinian, demanded land and tribute (557). Justinian sent his ambassador Valentine to them (the same one who later visited the tukyu) and persuaded their kagan to go to war with other hordes, the Hunnugurs and Sabirs or Vigury and Sabiri, who were defeated. The Avars also defeated the Huns of the Kutrigurs and the Huns of the Uturgurs, who, both of them, were the descendants of the people of Attila, and who roamed, the first - in the north-west of the Sea of \u200b\u200bAzov, the second - near the mouth of the Don. The Avars included these Huns in their own horde. Since the Huns in question were Türks, and our Avars, obviously, Mongols, it is certainly clear that each of these two large Turkic-Mongolian groups united within their own empire with representatives of another group. The Avars, acting as the federals of the Byzantine Empire, destroyed these Hunnic kingdoms. In 560, their possessions extended to the territory from the Volga to the mouth of the Danube. Their kagan set up his wagon camp on the northern bank of the Danube. In the north, he defeated the Slavic tribes of the Antes, Slovenes and Wends; in the west he entered Germany and, finally, was defeated in a major battle in Thuringia by the Frankish king of Astrasia - Sigebert, grandson of Clovis (562). The Avars retreated to the Black Sea.
Some time later (about 565), a very capable kagan, named Bayan, whose name, as Pelliot notes, was purely Mongol, entered the Avar throne.
As before him - Attila, and after him - Genghis Khan, he was probably a more prudent and cunning politician than a strategist. In 567, in alliance with the Lombard Germanic peoples who inhabited Pannonia, he defeated the Gepids, another Germanic people (Gothic in origin), located in Hungary and Transylvania.
Hungary was occupied by the Avars, and Bayan placed his royal stations near the old capital of Attila. Thus, on the Hungarian plain, which throughout history figured as a continuation of the Asian steppes, the chain of Turkic-Mongolian empires was restored. The Avars now ruled from the Volga to Austria. This unexpected expansion of the Zhuan-Zhuan-kih or Hephtalite hordes, which avoided clashes with the tukyu army, greatly annoyed the latter. They accused the Byzantines of making an agreement between Justinian and the Avars. When Tardu, the leader of the western tukyu, received the Byzantine ambassador Valentine in 575-576. in the upper reaches of the Yulduz, north of Kucha, he accused him of concluding this treaty. Menander cites his speech: “Let these Varchonitae dare to stand before my cavalry, and simply look at our whips, which will make them flee into the bowels of the earth! We must destroy this nation of slaves without using our swords; we will crush them like miserable ants under the hooves of our horses.” In order to punish the Byzantines for their connections with the Avars, the tukyu was sent to the Russian steppes in 576 by a cavalry detachment under the command of a certain Bokhan, who, together with the last leader of the Uturgur Huns, Anagay, attacked the Byzantine city of Bosporus or Panticapaeum, located near modern Kerch, in the Crimea , at the entrance to the Sea of Azov.
In 582 Bayan started a war against the Byzantines and captured Sirmium (Mitrovitsa), a fortress on the Sava. Under the pressure of the Avars, part of the Bulgars - a people, probably of the Turkic race, descended, perhaps, from the Huns of the Kutrigurs, settled in Bessarabia and Wallachia, from where, after the appearance of the Magyars in these places, they later left for Moesi, subsequently turning it into Bulgaria. In the west, Bayan - "gaganus", as Gregory of Tours renders his Mongol title - resumed, by 570, the fight against the Franks, and this time defeated Sigebert, king of Austasia. Then Bayan attacked the Byzantine Empire again, captured Singidum (Belgrade) and plundered Moesi up to Anchialus (near Burgas). In 587, the Byzantines managed to defeat it near Andrianople. For some time he was inactive. But already in 592, Bayan undertook a new campaign. He managed to capture Anchialus and plunder part of Thrace up to Zurulum (Korlu). The outstanding Byzantine commander Priscus managed to stop the kagan; having crossed the Danube, he imposed a battle in the very heart of the steppe empire, namely, in Hungary. Bayan was finally defeated in the battle off the banks of the Tisza. During this battle four of his sons were killed (601). Bayan himself, unable to bear the shock, died shortly thereafter (602).
The next Avar Khagan turned his troops against Italy, which was dominated by the Lombards. The Avars took advantage of the fact that the Lombards were leaving Pannonia and migrated en masse to Italy. The Avars tried to take over Pannonia. In 610, their kagan captured and plundered Friul. In 619, in connection with a meeting in Heraclea in Thrace (Eregli), he committed a betrayal by attacking the emperor Heraclius. In the future, the siege of Constantinople was planned. But, both of these actions were not implemented. Meanwhile, for the Avars, the contradiction that arose between the ruler of Persia, Khosroes II, and the Byzantine Empire was a good sign. The Persians managed to unite with the Avars in their quest to capture Constantinople. If the first attacked through Asia Minor, the second - through Thrace. In June-July 626, the Persian commander Shahrvaraz, who crossed Asia Minor from end to end, set up his camp at the entrance to the Bosphorus in Calcedon. At the same time, the Avar Khagan settled down in front of the Constantinople fortifications. Due to the absence of Emperor Heraclius, who was on a campaign in the Caucasus, the defense of Constantinople was carried out by the patrician Bonus. The Avars launched an offensive from July 31 to August 4, 626. This was the most serious danger faced by Western civilization in a significant period of time. It is not known what would have happened to this civilization if the Mongol horde had managed to gain a foothold at that time in the capital of Christianity? But the Byzantine flotilla, the mistress of the Bosporus, forced the Persians and Avars to abandon their joint actions. Having suffered huge losses as a result of all attacks, the kagan lifted the siege and returned to Hungary.
This turn of events caused great damage to the prestige of the Avars. After the death of the kagan, who allowed such a development of events, (630), the Bulgars - a people of Turkic origin, who had previously helped the Avars more as an ally than as a subordinate, demanded that the title of kagan pass to their own khan Kubrat, and the Avars were forced to , up in arms, reject these claims to hegemony. However, the Avars were forced to leave the Bulgars to rule in modern Wallachia and "Bulgaria" in the north of the Balkan Mountains, just as they allowed the Slavs (Croats, etc.) to occupy the territory between the Danube and the Sava. They themselves remained on the Hungarian plain until the end of the 8th century.
Charlemagne (Charlemagne) had to complete relations with the Mongol horde. In August 791, during the first campaign, he managed to capture the Avar Khaganate and advance to the confluence of the Danube and Raaba. In 795, his son Pepin, assisted by Erik, Duke of Friol, attacked Rin, the stronghold of the Avars, and seized part of the kagan's treasury, which was spoils of war collected over two centuries of confrontation with Byzantium. In 796, as a result of the third campaign, Pepin destroyed Rin and captured the rest of the treasury. One of the Avar leaders, who bore the ancient Turko-Mongolian title tudun, in 795 converted to the Baptist faith in Aix la Chapelle. In 799, this Tudun rebelled against Frankish influence, but this was his last battle, and after his death, the new Avar ruler named Zodan was forced in 803 to recognize complete submission. In 805 the Avars were dependent on Charlemagne and were ruled by a kagan who took the Christian name Theodore.
After so many defeats, the Avars were unable to defend themselves against the double pressure of the Slavs and Bulgars. At the end of the reign of Charlemagne, and with his permission, they left the northern bank of the Danube to group, under the command of their Khagan Theodore, in western Pannonia, between Carnuntum and Sabaria. At the end of the ninth century ancient Avaria was divided between (1) the Slavic empire, the so-called Great Moravia, Svyatopolk (died 895), which stretched from Bohemia to Pannonia inclusive, and (2) the Turkic Bulgar Khaganate, which occupied southern Hungary, Wallachia and Bulgaria to the north Balkans. The Bulgar tribes, who probably gave their name to Hungary, namely, Onogundur or Onogur, captured, in particular, the region east and south of the Carpathians.
The Avars had their own art, which is confirmed by archaeological finds in Hungary. This is a branch of steppe art, with motifs of a modified "animal style" and, in addition, plant motifs or spiral geometric shapes, delicately intertwined and creating a solid decorative effect. The finds, mostly bronze, consist of waist plates and plaques decorated with ornaments of armor, hooks, and clasps. Of particular interest is the similarity of the Avar finds from Hungary with similar bronze items found in the Ordos, in the big loop of the Yellow River, dating back to the era of the Xiongnu, Zhuan-Zhuan and Tukyu. Let us note the richest among the Hungarian burials: Kezteli, Ksuni and Nemesvolgi, Pachy-Pushta, Xongrad and Zentes, Scilogi - Somlio, Dunapentele, Ullo and Kizkorosh.
Avar art, as noted by Nandor Fetish, is associated, in particular, with the latest Siberian style of Minusinsk, known as the nomadic horseman. The comparisons made by Fettysh between this style and the finds from Minzent, Fenech, and Push-tatochi are striking. Note that there is a high probability that it was the Avars who taught the West to use the stirrup.
A nomadic empire that existed in Eastern Europe in the 6th-9th centuries, created by the Khagan Bayan, the leader of the Turkic Avars tribe. At first, the kaganate was the westernmost province of the huge Turkic khaganate, and after the collapse it became a separate power. The territory of the Avar Khaganate was quite large for that time. The Avars owned the territories of modern Hungary, Austria, Ukraine, the Czech Republic, Bulgaria, Serbia, Croatia, Montenegro and partly Switzerland. The Avars were excellent warriors, so many states of Europe, including the Byzantine Empire, sought to conclude an alliance with them. Byzantium, concluding an alliance with the Avars, provided them with their best lands, in exchange for an alliance and protection of the empire from the attacks of its neighbors. The Avars fought on the side of Byzantium against the Slavs, Germans, Franks, Goths, Gepids. But the kagans, replacing each other on the throne, also changed their policy. Some khagans even broke off the alliance with Byzantium and attacked Constantinople. For example, in 626, the Avars supported the Persians in the Byzantine-Persian war. When the Byzantine army fought with Persia, the Avars, in alliance with the Slavs, stormed some cities and towns of the Byzantines, then besieged Constantinople, but unsuccessfully.
Civil strife, constant wars with neighbors, the suppression of uprisings of conquered peoples, the defeat at the walls of Constantinople in 626 and the attack of the Franks from the west significantly weakened the Khaganate. The unsuccessful assault on the capital of Byzantium was especially strong, the Avars lost many people, and the army was significantly weakened. The Avar Khaganate begins to disintegrate, first the Turkic tribe of the Bulgars separates from the empire. A few years later they create their own Khaganate. After the Bulgars, the Croats separated. Taking advantage of the weakening of the Khaganate, the king of the Franks, Charlemagne, makes a campaign in the country of the Avars. The Avars decided not to give up and make an alliance with the Saxons. The Saxons decided to make an uprising behind enemy lines. However, such a move did not help the Avars, in the kaganate there were internecine warriors between the heirs. The Franks took the Avars by surprise and defeated their army, captured the horde of the kagan. The Franks took away all the treasures collected by the Avars over the centuries. The remaining Avars fled, but after a short time they revolted against the Frankish empire. Charlemagne had to repeat the campaign in the country of the Avars and pacify them. The last Avar Khagan swore allegiance to the king of the Franks and converted to Christianity. The former Avar possessions along the Danube were conquered by the Bulgarian Khan Krum.
Thus, the once formidable Avar Khaganate, which had instilled fear in all of Europe for several centuries, was destroyed.
The peoples who left the historical map in the last millennium often did not leave behind written sources. The only evidence for their existence is archaeological evidence. This is the case with the history of the Avar Khaganate. Much in the life of the people and their state remains mysterious.
The emergence of the Avars in Europe
The Avars settled in the Carpathian region. This was facilitated by the Great Migration. On the territory of modern Hungary, the tribe had a strong political power. Information about the Avars was preserved only in the chronicles of Byzantium and the Frankish state.
It is known that in 568 the Lombards moved to the territory of Northern Italy, forming Lombardy there. Avars came to their former place on both banks of the Danube River. It was they who at one time helped the Lombards to oust the Germanic tribe of the Gepids from the desired lands.
Avar envoys first came to Europe in 558. They wanted to enter the territory of the Byzantine Empire. To do this, the envoys asked for help from the ruler of the Alans. A little later, the ambassadors arrived in Constantinople. Sources note that men wore hairstyles with ribbons of different tones woven into their hair. It was a distinctive attire for nomads. The Avars' ambassador offered the Byzantine emperor military assistance in exchange for land grants.
At that time, the main rival of Byzantium was the state of the Franks. Another danger was the appearance of the Slavs in the Carpathian basin. The Avars became a profitable ally for Constantinople.
Before you find out when the Avar Khaganate was founded, it is worth understanding the territory of the tribe. At first, the Avars were offered land on the site of modern Serbia, but they refused them. They asked to settle in Dobruja, which lay along the banks of the Danube. The plain was more suitable for the nomadic people. But the tribe did not stay here for long. Then there was the already well-known alliance with the Lombards and a settlement in Pannonia. The formation of the state began.
Avar Khaganate: creation
After fixing on the new territory, the tribe created its own state association. It was called "Avar Khaganate". Bayan is considered the first known ruler. Neighboring tribes also fell under his control: Gepids, Slavs. By the end of the 6th century, other peoples joined the kaganate, for example, the Kutrigurs, the Zabenders.
Since Byzantium was occupied with the war with the Persians, the Avars with the Slavs carried out devastating raids on the lands of the lower Danube. They were owned by Constantinople. In 591, the Avars were driven out of the Balkan lands. Military skirmishes between the Khagan Bayan and the Byzantines were of an alternate nature.
In the 7th century, a state was established on the western border side of the Avar Khaganate. It lasted thirty-five years, but brought a lot of harm to the Avars and Franks. It was founded by the Slavs in alliance with the Frankish merchant Samo. The collapse of the warlike state was associated with the death of its head.
In the middle of the 7th century, a crisis occurred in the Khaganate itself due to the termination of the previous dynasty. The Kutriguro-Bulgarians were aiming for the throne. They raised an uprising within the state, which the Avars managed to suppress. As a result, the Kutriguro-Bulgarians were ousted from the lands of the Khaganate.
In the seventies, the Proto-Bulgarians settled along the Danube. They created a separate state association called Great Bulgaria. The Avar Khaganate maintained friendly relations with them. The country existed until the 9th century. There is evidence that the son of the Bulgarian Khan Kuvrat moved with his people to the lands of the Avars. This was due to the appearance of the Khazars in the southern Russian steppes. The tribes mixed with each other, which could not but affect the ethnic type of the Avars. The Khazar and Avar Khaganates existed at the same time. Only the state of the Khazars lasted until the 11th century.
Origin of the people
There are several versions of the origin of the Avars. According to one of them, the tribes came from Central Asia. There they were known as Juan-Juan. According to the second - the tribes came out of Central Asia.
Many researchers believe that the Avars were not isolated, they were an ethnically mixed people. This is evidenced by the found graves. In some, large burial grounds were arranged with a separate burial of people and horses (the customs of the Mongoloids), in others, the legs and skulls of horses were found (typical of the Iranian peoples).
The study of the skulls also showed that Avars with Mongoloid and Caucasoid features lived at the same time. The Avars entered into a marriage alliance with all peoples. They could well have mixed with the Sarmatians who lived on the territory of Hungary, as well as with the Slavs. They called themselves obrovs.
Society
The society is known thanks to the research of burials, which are located on the territory of modern Hungary and neighboring powers.
Approximate hierarchy in society:
- the kagan was in power;
- katun - the first wife of the ruler;
- tudun, yugur - governors of the ruler who ruled over certain lands;
- tarkhans - tribute collectors in the country;
- leaders of tribes, clans;
- warriors are the largest part of the population.
Judging by the late burials, a strong stratification began in society. There are many graves with scarce inventory. Wealthy nobles were sometimes buried in wooden coffins. Ordinary residents were wrapped in material that rotted in the ground.
The Avars did not have a developed institution of slavery. For domestic work, they could use captured warriors from other tribes or ruined fellow tribesmen.
Settlement and occupation
Several hundred settlements have been found that date back to the 7th-9th centuries. The most impressive excavations were carried out near Dunaujváros in Hungary. The remains of thirty-seven dwellings were found there. They looked like semi-dugouts with wooden walls. Inside each house there was a stove-heater. Many dwellings are equipped with grain pits. In such settlements, the Avars lived during the cold season, when they returned from summer pastures. In warm weather, they grazed cattle, moving from place to place, so they used easily portable yurt-like structures.
The Avars were engaged in semi-nomadic cattle breeding. Gradually they settled down, turning to agriculture.
Horses played an important role in their lives. The animals were of eastern origin, they were fast, suitable for movement on the steppes and sandy soils. The tribe also raised sheep, chickens, goats. The remains of the shell are found during excavations. From plant crops, millet, wheat, and later - rye and oats were grown.
culture
The Avars knew runic writing, but there is no evidence that they used it for correspondence. Symbols were carved in order to protect themselves from troubles or to designate the owner of a particular item.
The language can only be judged by the names of kagans, ambassadors and titles. They are of Turkish origin. However, it was not the Avars who could give such names and titles, but those who wrote about them.
Beliefs
Almost nothing is known about the beliefs of the peoples of the Avar Khaganate. According to the sources, they were idolaters, they had shamans. Judging by the burials, they believed in the afterlife. The deceased person was left food, weapons and a horse. For a ritual purpose, a quiver with ten arrows was left to the soldiers.
Art
Representatives of the kaganate were famous for their ability to cut bones. They also created carpets, fabrics, carried out artistic processing of gold and silver. The creations of the Avars have not been preserved. During the excavations, decorations were found, but they are attributed to the work of the masters of the East.
Men wore belts with plaques. These attributes are different. The quiver, the sword of the leader were covered with gold, the rest of the soldiers - with silver. Vegetation, figures of people, an image of a struggle between animals were used as an ornament.
The Avars made pottery, including on the potter's wheel, and fired it in kilns. But the ornament was almost not applied to it.
Franco-Avar War
Charlemagne became the leader of the Franks in 768. His power began to grow. They conquered the Saxons, part of the Slavic tribes. He began the forcible introduction of Christianity among the population. For the Franks, the Avars remained the most dangerous opponents. Two strong states tried to live in peace, in 780 they exchanged embassies.
But this did not prevent the Khaganate in 788 from concluding an alliance against the Franks with the Bavarian prince Tassilo. Allied troops were defeated. This accelerated the defeat of the Avar Khaganate. Karl decided to deal with the unfaithful neighbors as soon as possible. He took up the fortification of cities, including Regnsburg.
In 791, the army of Charles opposed the Avars. The Kaganate was attacked from two sides: Pepin (son of Charles) led troops from Italy, the leader of the Franks was heading along the Danube. The Saxons decided to come to the aid of the Avars. They raised an uprising, flooding the rear of the Franks with blood. But strife began within the kaganate. This led to the death of the kagan.
Fall of the Khaganate
In 796, the Avar ambassadors swore allegiance to Charlemagne. But until 803 there were protests against the Franks. At the same time, the Bulgarian Khan Krum attacked the lands of the Khaganate. So the Avar state was completely defeated. The conquered people accepted Khan Krum as their ruler and assimilated with the Proto-Bulgarians.
The defeat of the Avar Khaganate (9th century) endowed the Franks with western lands, and the Bulgarians with eastern territories. The winners drew the border along the middle Danube. The remnants of the conquered people dissolved in stronger states.
However, references to the Avar kingdom are found in sources from the middle of the 9th century, for example, in the Treaty of Verdun in 843. In it, the kingdom is called part of the empire of Charles.
The history of the origin of the Avar Khaganate is connected with the Great Migration of Peoples. The state association forced even Byzantium to reckon with itself. The state existed for two centuries, preserving many settlements and graves on the territory of modern Hungary and other neighboring countries. They are also mentioned in the "Tale of Bygone Years" as a proud people who were waiting for death.
The history of many states, going back centuries, is overgrown with legends, tales and, alas, less often - chronicle evidence. The Avar Khaganate, a Muslim state that arose on the territory of Western Dagestan in the thirteenth century and lasted until the 19th century, was no exception.
Relations between the Khaganate and the Golden Horde
It arose on the site of the ancient Christian Serir, which fell apart as a result of contradictions between Jews, Christians, Muslims, and pagans.
Islam became the main religion in the Khunzakh Khanate. This state reached its greatest power in the thirteenth century and not without outside help. In 1222, the Genghisides sent a military detachment under the leadership of Subedei to the raid, including the Caucasus region. The Avars initially declared their support for the Kharezm Shah Mohammed II in his fight against the Mongols.
Chronicle sources are extremely scarce regarding the events of those years. But some sources believe that the Avars not only recognized the power of the Mongols, but also became tax collectors for them in this region. This version is also supported by the fact that the Avars secured their alliance with dynastic marriages with the Mongols.
Such influential patrons contributed to the strengthening of the influence of the Avars in the region. But in 1395, having defeated the Kumyks, he headed for the allies of the Mongols hostile to him - the Avars. According to legend, the inhabitants of the villages fought bravely, but the forces were unequal, Tamerlane ordered the survivors to be trampled by horses.
Then he went to other areas, leaving mountains of corpses behind him. After the devastating attack of Tamerlane, the state was in decline, but by the middle of the fifteenth it had expanded its possessions to the west and north. Having gained strength, the state stopped paying taxes and became independent. At the end of the fifteenth century, the Avar language becomes the language of interethnic communication between different tribes.
Khaganate laws
As for legislation, Umma Khan I, nicknamed the Just, compiled the Code of Laws of the Avar Khaganate. This document regulates various spheres of the life of the state - household, administrative, family and household, the rights of the nobility, regulated the recovery from debtors, in particular, the seizure of the debtor's property was possible only with the permission of the administration. They also introduced rules for the settlement of blood feuds by paying off the victims, and attention was paid to the protection of private property.
War for independence
In 1629, feeling threatened by the Iranian shahs, Umma Khan turned to the protection of Russia, expressing a written readiness to swear allegiance. After his death, a whole series of changes of rulers on the Avar throne begins.
In 1741, Nadir Shah moved a hundred thousandth army to Dagestan, he was waiting for the Avar Khan to come to bow to him. But the Avars began to prepare for defense.
The plans of Nadir Shah in his army were unpopular. The inaccessibility of the Avar Khanate, as well as the courage of its defenders, inspired strong doubts about the successful outcome of the battle.
Having defeated the detachments that tried to surround the Khanate from all sides. A decisive battle took place on the territory of Andalal.
The best troops of Nadir Shah met with the Avars near the villages of Sogratl, Megeb, Oboh and Chokh, where they met a worthy rebuff. The fight was fierce.
Women also fought alongside the men. Both sides suffered huge losses, but the stubbornness of the Avars made it possible to defeat Nadir's army. Encouraged by this victory, other villages conquered earlier by the Persians began to rebel against Nadir.
In order to avoid collapse, he began to retreat from Dagestan. The news of his defeat was greeted with great enthusiasm in Turkey, it pushed back the threat of a Persian attack. Satisfaction was also expressed in St. Petersburg.
power struggle
At the end of the eighteenth century, tribute was paid to the Avar Khaganate by the Georgians, the khans of Derbent, Kubinsky, Baku and others. At the beginning of the nineteenth century, Ummakhan V, who had the nickname "Mad" or "Great", the ruler of the khanate, assessing the capabilities and strength of Russia, turned to Emperor Alexander I with a request to take him into citizenship. But he was refused because of a campaign against Georgia, which was an ally of Russia.
In the campaign against the Ganja Emir, Ummakhan fell ill and took to his bed. He did not leave an heir, because the brother began to rule the khanate, who decided to marry a widow to strengthen his own power.
Inviting him to the house, the khansha ordered him to be killed. She herself put her son-in-law on the throne, pushing her husband's illegitimate son from the throne. After his death, an acute crisis of power began in the state, which continued until Dagestan joined.
Inter-teip disagreements, lack of land forced the Avars to settle - someone went to the plain, someone under the protection of other khans.
By the beginning of the nineteenth century, most of Chechnya was under the rule of the Avar khans.
Accession to Russia
The Avar khans sought to establish good relations with Russia, and as a result, in early April 1803, by decree of Alexander I, Captain Meshcheryakov took the oath from Sultan Ahmed Khan of the Avar, and all the Avar people to the allegiance of the Russian Empire.
After that, letters were granted to the khan, and 5 thousand silver per year were also assigned. But for many decades, the relationship of the newly acquired citizens with the empire was ambiguous. There were military clashes.
The struggle of the proteges of the Russian tsar against the rebellious khans and civil strife tore apart the khanate for almost sixty years. As a result, the khanate entered Shamil's imamate and existed there until its defeat in 1859.
After that, it was finally annexed to Russia.
AVARS
The history of Attila's heirs - Irnach and Dengizikh - is the history of the collapse of the Hunnic association. It begins approximately from 461 (testimony of Priscus).Already to the horse. 5th century AD, when, according to Western and Armenian sources, the Huns return to the East, they appear there under a different name. Procopius and Moses Khorensky call the leader of the White Huns who defeated Peroz "Kushnavar". The name of this commander combined two words: Kushan - a term used by a number of Armenian historians to designate nomads, i.e. Kushans of Central Asia, and Avaz=Avars, the name of the famous successors of the Huns in Eastern Europe. The origin of the term avar is not entirely clear. Note that the Dnieper was called the term Gunnovar, which combines the two names Huns + Avars. In an abbreviated form, the terms Avars and Huns were preserved in the tribal name Varhonites, which is a change in the phrases yap + Khuni. The appearance of this name in written sources falls at the beginning of the second half of the 6th century, (approximately 557). Prisk mentions in 461-465. the Avars, who defeated the Savirs, who, in turn, forced out the Saraugurs, Ugurs and Onougurs, and sent an embassy to Constantinople.
E. Chavannes believed, on the basis of Theophylact’s data, that Uar and Khuni were the names of the two most ancient Uyghur princes, who put the rock to two clans, on the basis of which the Varhonites subsequently arose: from the two most ancient Uyghur princes". Varhonites and Avars were "pseudo-Avars". Real Avars, or Avars proper, Ed. Chavannes sees in the kermichions. Markvart believed that kermihion consists of two words: Kerm - a worm and Khion - the name of the Zhuanzhuan, known in the East in the 5th-6th centuries. AD Since zhuanzhuan is the name of an insect, which the Chinese contemptuously called the Mokulu tribes, this contemptuous name has been preserved in the West in the Iranian form Kerm + Khion. Ed. Chavannes assumed that the broken in the 50s. 6th century Zhuanzhuan Turks arrived in the West, where they formed the Avar Union and differed from the pseudo-Avars in their name "Kermichions".
V. Thomsen showed that the tribes "apar apurym", mentioned in the ancient Turkic runic texts, are the Avars who migrated from Central Asia to Europe, but it is hardly necessary to assume the migration of all Zhuanzhuan to Europe. It must be reckoned with the fact that along the path of the alleged migration there were semi-settled massifs of the tribes of Central Asia, in particular the Kangyui and the Hephthalites. The reason for the migration of the Zhuanzhuans could be the defeat of their Turks in 550. But the Avars were known in the West already in the second half of the 5th century. (in 461). The same should be said about the Uighur tribes, whose names with different attributive prefixes were known in the West earlier than in the East. It is necessary to accept in this part the statement of V.V. Radlov that all varieties of Uighurs - Kuturgurs, Uturgurs, Saragurs and Onogurs - are tribes and divisions of the Uyghur tribe; their names are of Western Turkic origin. The term avar is the Greek pronunciation of the term abar. The Russian chronicles know the obrovs, the Arab writer Ibn Khordadbeh notes (along with the Khazars) the Abars or Avars.
Avar society, apparently, consisted of four main elements:
1) local, 2) Hunnic, 3) Turkic (Ephthalite), 4) Zhuanzhuan.
The Zhuanzhuan after their defeat in some part were probably included in the Turkic hordes of Central Asia, whose connection with the south of Russia is indisputable. One part of the Zhuanzhuan became part of the Turks of Mongolia, the other fled to China. In direct connection with the Western Turkic Khaganate, the Khazars arose. This penetration of the Mongol-Turkic tribes into Eastern Europe does not remove the possibility of the autochthonous emergence of the Avarian Union as the direct "heir" of the Hunnic formation.
After the collapse of the association of Attila, numerous tribes reappear, which broke away from the Huns and for some time represented completely autonomous formations.
The main tribal formations that were associated with the Hun-Avar association. Here, first of all, it is necessary to single out: 1) Uturgurs, 2) Kuturgurs, 3) Sabirs, 4) later Bulgarians (for Eastern Europe) and 5) Hephthalites or White Huns for Central Asia.
The gur tribes that appeared on the territory of Eastern Europe with their various attributive prefixes (kut - happy, he - ten, ut - fire (or grass), sary - yellow), are the hordes of the Uyghurs, at the end of the 5th century. (492) defeated to the West of Altai by the Zhuanzhuan Khagan Deulun and his uncle Nagai. Since that time, the Uighurs (in Chinese, gaogui) were divided into several parts, and one part of them migrated to the West. They gained their independence after the defeat of the Huns, when private tribal names appear in the steppes of Eastern Europe in general.
Uturgurs and Kuturgurs were called Huns-Cimmerians and made up two branches of the Hunnic tribe. The Uturgurs lived in the area from the confluence of the Don into the Sea of Azov and up to the Cimmerian Bosporus. Kuturgurs occupied a place between the Tisza and the Danube. The Uturgurs penetrated the Crimea, where they encountered the Tetraxite Goths. Kuturgurs in 551 entered into an alliance with the Gepids against the Lombards.
Emperor Justinian, striving to appease the Kuturgurs, entered into an alliance with the Uturgurs, who, after the victory of the Tetraxites, defeated the Kuturgurs, taking many of them prisoner. Rome greatly contributed to the conquest of the Kuturgurs by the Uturgurs. Having recovered from the defeat, in 559 the Kuturgurs, led by Zabergan, crossed the Danube and defeated several Eastern Roman provinces. Justinian succeeded in rousing the Uturgurs again under the leadership of Sandilakh against the Kuturgurs. The struggle of the tribes among themselves weakened them; the Avars thereby obtained the opportunity to subjugate them and make them their subjects.
Sabirs or Savirs (Uighurs) formed into a “nation”, in the words of Y. Klaproth, from several clans. All R. 5th century (456 is indicated) they lived in the North Caucasus and were part of the Avar Khaganate, where they were under the direct control of the Urogs or Onugurs. Prior to that, back in 516, they penetrated through the Caspian gates into Armenia, also occupied Cappadocia, Galatia and Pontus, up to Euchatia, which, however, they did not conquer.
In 528, the Sabirs participated in the uprising of the Mazdakites, like the Hephthalites, but were defeated by the Byzantine troops under the command of Dorotheus. In 531, the Sabirs, again passing through the Caspian Gates, attacked the Byzantine possessions in Armenia, on the Euphrates, in Cilicia and Kirrestika. In 555, 2000 Sabirs under the command of Balmakh, Kutilsiz and Iliger, in alliance with Byzantium, oppose Iran. At that time, the Sabirs were still an impressive military force. By 558 they were defeated by the Varhonites and settled in Albania, and in 585 they were conquered by the Byzantines. The last mention refers to 585, when the Sabirs form part of the Byzantine troops, but as early as 622 they participate in the troops of Heraclius against Sasanian Iran. The final stage of their history is the submission to the Bulgarians.
“The Bulgars called servants and slaves Siberians or Serbs, and in this sense the word Serb was not only used by the Bulgar Slavs, but also by their neighbors, the Serbs, which is why in the ancient Serbian laws a simple person, a subject (plebeujus, rustiens) is not otherwise called a Serb. Even now (1837), despite all sorts of changes, the Serbs and Dalmatians call the peasant sebar, sibor, zipor, etc. Thus, from the proper and popular name of Sabira, or Sebira, a common (common) Serb (peasant, villager, peasant) was formed. This type of change in the semantics of tribal names is repeated. Such names arose in general quite often, because the labor of a farmer, in the view of a barbarian nomad, was the lot of a slave first of all.
A significant place in the tribal composition of the Avar union was occupied by the Bulgarians.
The Danube Bulgarians were captured into the orbit of the Hunnic conquest and temporarily subjected to the Hunnic, later Avar influence, which was reflected in their language in the form of the Turkic vocabulary.
Juan period:
522-552 - khan A-na-kuei;
552-554 Khan Kutty.
AVAR INVASION
The Byzantine Menander reports that the Avars “after a long wandering tried to establish contact with the Romans through their envoy Kandikh, demanding tribute from the latter and promising him (Justinian) protection of the Roman possessions.” Menander further notes that "the Avars made war on the Uturgurs with the Zalas (of the Hunnic tribe) and crushed the forces of the Savirs."
The further history of the Avars is connected with the defeat of the Ants (557 AD) and the murder of the Ants envoy Mezamir for his impudent treatment of the Avar Khagan. The Avars were also in conflict with the Western Turks, their Khakan Silzivul.
In 558 - 560 years. The North Caucasus and the eastern Sea of \u200b\u200bAzov were invaded by the Avars under the command of bayana(Bayan) who took the title of kagan.
Most of the settlements ceased to exist in the 6th century. The reason for their death, in particular, those located on the territory of Ukraine, can be seen in the events associated with the struggle of the Slavs with the nomadic tribes of the Avars, which ended with the subjugation of the former.
This difficult event for the Slavic history was reflected in the Chronicle: "Behold, you have fought in the Slavs for the primuchish of the Dulby, drying the Slavs and violence to the Duleb wives." First of all, the Avars destroyed the fortified points of the Slavs. So the Zimnevskoe, Khotomel settlements were burned. In the ash layer at the site of Zimno there was a charred tree, deformed dishes, charred grains of cereals, burnt human bones. On the slope of the mound, below the fortifications, a skeleton of a man, obviously, the defender of the settlement, was found. The attackers were undoubtedly the Avars, as evidenced by the finds of three-bladed arrowheads characteristic of the Avars, some metal ornaments of the Avar type.
After the subjugation of the Sabirs, Uturgurs and Kuturgurs, the Avars attacked the Antes, who sent the ambassador Mezamir to them. The latter was killed by them on the advice of a certain Kotragig (559-561).
In Pannonia, between the Danube and the Carpathians, the Avar Khagan Bayan founded a state association Avar Khaganate(558 - 823).
The Avar Khaganate was a multi-ethnic power, in which the main population was Slavic. Often Byzantine historians identified the Slavs with the Avars.
European Avar Khaganate:
552 - 558 - Khan Kandlik;
558-602 - khan Accordion;
602-630 - Reign in succession of two sons of kagan Bayan.
The capital of the kaganate was hring on the territory of Timisoara.
Administrative management
The supreme power belonged to the kagan, who was elected by the people's assembly. The governor of the kagan was a tudun, who was probably the ruler of a separate part of the country, and a yugur (possibly the chief priest). On behalf of the kagan, tribute was collected in the country by the so-called tarkhans (most likely - to know). Behind the tarkhans - down the hierarchical ladder - were the leaders of tribes and clans. The role of tribal elders was significant in the life of both each tribe and the kaganate as a whole. At least half of the above terms have a Turkic etymology. The same stable Türkic background can also be traced in the analysis of the Avar anthroponyms that have come down to us, which, however, cannot serve as convincing evidence in favor of the Türkic-speaking of the Avars proper, who came out of Asia. The latter - the "physical" Avars - represented the dominant elite in the kaganate, while being in a minority compared to the "ideological" Avars (that is, those who did not have Avar roots, self-identified with the Avar ethnos and defended the interests of the kaganate), not to mention those who did not identify themselves with Avaria in any way, did not show the slightest interest in its strengthening and elevation, but still had to pay tribute and obey the will of the kagan.
Economy
The economic system of the Khaganate was weak and based on nomadic pastoralism; agriculture among the Avars was not developed, and there was a kaganate at the expense of dependent tribes.
Slavery among the Avars was not widespread. This is indicated, in particular, by the fact that at the end of the VI century. Avars, capturing about 10 thousand prisoners, killed them all. It is also known that most of the captive inhabitants of the Balkan Peninsula, settled by the Avars in Srem, soon became free. These settlers, who had in the VII century. of their prince appointed by the kagan, were considered by the Avars as a separate "people". In fact, they turned into one of the military-tribal divisions of the kaganate. The quality of jewelry testifies to the high level of development of jewelry art among the Avars. The Avars were good bone carvers, made magnificent carpets, embroideries, fabrics, and were engaged in artistic processing of silver and wood. Throughout Europe, the famous Avar belts with rich metal fittings were in great demand. The art of the Avars, in many respects, was a continuation of the so-called "Scythian animal style" with its small plasticity and stylized images of fantastic animals, as a rule, in dynamic poses, among which the griffin is often found.
Researchers have noticed a certain Byzantine influence on the jewelry art of the Avars. In general, judging by the things discovered by archaeologists, the Avar culture has both proto-Turkic and Iranian, as well as Chinese features. The successful development of jewelry among the Avars was affected by the fact that it was in demand in the Khaganate, since the Avars concentrated in their hands a huge number of items made of precious metals, including coins of Byzantine coinage.
From Ser. 6th century The Byzantines paid tribute to the Khaganate in gold. The total amount of the annual tribute reached 80 thousand gold solidi, and starting from 599 it increased to 100 thousand. Over time, these amounts became insufficient. In the beginning. 7th century Byzantine emperors paid the Avars "for peace" annually 120 thousand solidi. Until 626, the Avar Khagan was paid about 6 million solidi, which corresponded to 25 tons of gold. This myriad of coins did not enter circulation. Probably, the Avars melted them to make jewelry, a small part was divided among the leaders.
Art
The quality of jewelry testifies to the high level of development of jewelry art among the Avars. The Avars were good bone carvers, made magnificent carpets, embroideries, fabrics, and were engaged in artistic processing of silver and wood. Throughout Europe, the famous Avar belts with rich metal fittings were in great demand. The art of the Avars, in many respects, was a continuation of the so-called "Scythian animal style" with its small plasticity and stylized images of fantastic animals, as a rule, in dynamic poses, among which the griffin is often found.
Researchers have noticed a certain Byzantine influence on the jewelry art of the Avars. In general, judging by the things discovered by archaeologists, the Avar culture has both Iranian and Chinese features. The successful development of jewelry among the Avars was affected by the fact that it was in demand in the Khaganate, since the Avars concentrated in their hands a huge amount of products made of precious metals, including coins of Byzantine coinage.
Armament
In the clothing and weapons of the warriors of the kaganate, a mixture of Avar, Germanic and Byzantine styles is often traced, which looks quite logical in view of the multi-ethnicity of its population. The backbone of the Avar power was primarily a well-organized plate cavalry. The very concept of "chivalry" in Europe goes back to this type of horsemen. The Avars first introduced Europe to iron stirrups and blades with a one-sided blade - the prototype of later sabers.
military tactics
The military tactics of the Avars had much in common with the tactics of the later Mongols: exhausting the enemy with endless maneuvers without accepting close combat ("raid - rebound"), accompanied by salvo shots from long-range bows, followed by the unexpected introduction of heavily armed elite plate cavalry, designed to demoralize and cut through enemy formations. These actions were often combined with the suggestion to the enemy of false ideas about the proximity of his victory and the helplessness of the enemy, who was allegedly forced to evade and retreat all the time. The Byzantines carefully studied these methods and recognized them as the most effective, having borrowed from the Avars not only their "revolutionary" stirrups - which allowed them to deliver powerful chopping blows and, in general, to stay steadily in the saddle - but also the type of such a system, when in front - equestrian archers without heavy armor (skirmishers avoiding close combat), as well as Avar pikes with belt loops and some elements of felt protective ammunition. Among other things, the Avars skillfully used the Slavic infantry, powerless against the Avar-type cavalry, but fought well in the forests and swampy areas.
The power of the Avar Khaganate over the Slavs was drawn to the middle. VII century., When the Avars suffered a series of major defeats from the Byzantines, Czechs and Slovenes, and finally after the defeat in the battles of 635 - 641. with the Bulgarian Union of Tribes, headed by Kurbat.
The Avars demanded land from the Romans for settlement and sent a special embassy to Justinian in 562. However, the envoys were delayed, as a certain Ikunimon betrayed them, saying that the Avars conceived an uprising immediately after moving to Roman lands. The delay of the ambassadors is also noted by Menander as the reason for the Avars' dissatisfaction with the Romans and their Khakan Bayan's attempt to defeat the Romans.
Shafarik points out that “the Avars, by the way, also leaned so stubbornly on the Eastern Antes, so that, having instilled fear in the other Western Slavs, it would be easier through them to open their way to the middle of Europe, the Panonian Danube, this paradise of nomads and robbers. tribes."
Their camp, divided into nine large circles, surrounded by a moat and embankments (567-568), "occupies both sides of the Danube, from where they terribly smashed and crowded the surrounding peoples for too 250 years." Safarik also suggests that at this time (in 563) the Dulebs were subjugated during the invasion of Hungary by the Avars. Dulebs lived between the Bug and Styr and penetrated into Hungary through the Tatra Mountains near Dukla. It was one of the oldest and most powerful unions of Slavic tribes that retained their significance despite the defeat inflicted on them by the Avars. It is obvious that its formation occurred after the collapse of the Hunnic tribal union.
The Avars manage to receive tribute from the Romans for a number of years. They could not spread their expansion to the East, since there, in particular over the Hephthalites, the Western Turks dominated. Naturally, after the refusal of the Romans (in about 565) to pay tribute to the Avars, the Avars oriented towards the West.
Thanks to the constant relationship of the Avars with the Romans, we have received indications that the Avars communicated with the Alans, in particular, they asked the Alanian king Saros to facilitate their access to Constantinople.
Byzantium knew that the Avars were under the rule of the Turks.
Due to the multi-tribal nature of the Avar Khaganate, it is difficult to establish their ethnic origin, especially since the ethnicity of the Zhuanzhuan has not yet been established, some of which became part of the Avar Khaganate. It can be pointed out that in the Avar Khaganate there were Turkic-speaking tribes, Slavic, and probably Finno-Ugric. Mongolian elements are also noted. So, for example, the name of the leader of the Avars "Bayan" is nothing but the Mongolian word rich. In the tribal name "varhunits" the ending "t" is one of the Mongolian plural forms. It is possible that the Mongol elements in the Avar alliance were brought by the Zhuanzhuans, whose Mongolism is now more or less established. Byzantine and Western European sources (for example, Menander, Paul Deacon) connect the Avars with the Huns, pointing (Menander) to the similarity of the Avars with the Huns, in customs and language, or to the genealogical connection of the Avars with the Huns (Paul Deacon). Byzantine historians were struck by the obviously oriental custom of wearing braids by the Avars.
All this only proves that the Avar Khaganate, regardless of how many newcomers were included in it, continued the history of local tribal formations at a new stage of the barbarian semi-state. Written sources say little about the economy of the Avars. As already mentioned, back in 562 they sent an embassy to Justinian with a request to provide them with land for settlement. It can be assumed that they were going to switch to pastoral forms of cattle breeding, i.e. coexisting with agriculture. The camp on the Danube was their main headquarters. Here the opportunity was created for the settling Avars to engage in agriculture, especially since the Kaganate included Slavic tribes who knew agriculture long before that. However, even in con. 6th century Avars, as a rule, were pastoralists.
Konstantin Porphyrogenitus reports: “Equestrian warriors gathered from other cities of Dalmatia every year and about a thousand were sent from Salona to stand guard on the Danube River for the sake of the Avars. The Avars lived on the other side of the Danube River, where the Turks are now, and led a nomadic lifestyle. Those who came every year from Dalmatia often saw cattle and people across the river. One day they decided to cross over to find out who lives there. Having crossed in this way, they found only the women and children of the Avars, while the men and youths were on the campaign. This evidence points to the common economic basis of the Avars and Huns-pastors. The Avars were pastoral nomads who expanded their economic base through plunder and conquest. The conquest served as an exchange with the agricultural peoples, obtaining slaves, tributaries and new territories.
Thanks to the embassy of Maniach in 568 and the return of Zemarch, the Romans directly contacted the Turks and learned that the latter considered the Avars to be their subjects. Since that time, the Avars were called pseudo-Avars.
Byzantium's refusal to pay tribute gave the Avars a reason to go to Western Europe, where, according to Gregory of Tours, they had clashes with the tribes that inhabited Thuringia, fought with the Austrasian Franks, led by their king Sigibert, even capturing him on the Elbe.
In 570, a certain Aspsych was sent from the Avars to Byzantium. Only after a successful battle with the Byzantine commander Tiberius, the agreement proposed by the Avars was approved and implemented.
Fearing military clashes with the Asian Turks, the Avars enter into an alliance with Byzantium and enjoy its protection. This arouses the indignation of the leader of the Turks, Turksanf, who told the Byzantine ambassador Valens (576) that the "Varhonites" were subjects and slaves of the Turks. The Turks considered their subjects not only Varhonites, but also Uturgurs.
In 578, the Avars, at the insistence of Byzantium, oppose the Slavs who attacked it and their leader Lawrence. Under the pretext of hostilities against the Slavs, Bayan breaks into Pannonia, and the struggle with Byzantium for the city of Sirmium is resumed. The Avars used the moment when Byzantium was distracted by the war with Iran. The struggle for Sirmium ended successfully for the Avars. Peace with Iran was concluded by Byzantium in 591.
In 582, the Avars captured the strategic Byzantine outpost of Sirmium, and the following year, Singidun devastated Illyria.
In 597, the Avars captured Dalmatia, flooding it with Croats.
In 599 they besiege Tomis on the Black Sea coast.
Around 600, the Avars, together with the Horutan Slavs, settled Inner Norik.
The Avars, together with the Lombards, opposed the Gepids and their leader Gunimund. They occupied the territory of the Gepids, and later defeated the Lombards.
The defeat of the Gepids, the allies of Byzantium, was carried out by the Avars together with the Lombards, demanding from them "a tenth of all the four-legged and if they defeat the enemies, then the Lombards should give up to the Avars half of the booty and all the land of the Gepids." At this time, the Avars united many tribes. Bayan agreed to leave the Byzantine possessions, demanding a relatively small tribute from the Romans, but offended by the undiplomatic behavior of the Roman envoys, “ordered ten thousand Unns, called Kontrigurs (Kuturgurs), to cross the Sava River and ravage Dalmatia, and he himself, with all the army that was with him, went through Istres and had a stay within the Gepids.
Further attempts by Bayan to demand tribute from the Byzantines are known. So, for example, I will note the embassy of Targitius, who demanded tribute that Justinian paid to the Kuturgurs and Uturgurs, “since Bayan currently owns these peoples, you will also give us (Avars) Usdivad, Giped and his people; no one will deny that these are Bayanov's slaves. In his second embassy, Targitius demanded the city of Sirmium and tribute for all the years. The embassies of Targitia were unsuccessful and ended in a war between the Avars and the Byzantines.
In 618, the Avars, together with the Slavs, besiege Thessalonica.
In 623, the Western Slavs, led by Samo, raised an uprising against the Avars. After the victory of the uprising, the former Frankish merchant was elected prince. He waged successful wars with the Avars and the Franks - in particular, after the victory in 631, he won the lands inhabited by the Lusatian Serbs from the Franks.
In 626, the Avars supported Persia in the Iranian-Byzantine war and, at the head of the Slavic armies, laid siege to Constantinople. The Byzantines defeated the Avars due to the fact that the Slavs could not provide the Avars with assault ships of the proper quality, and then, offended by the kagan, who was angry about this, they left the place of deployment. The Avars, without the Slavic infantry and assault boats, were unable to take such a well-fortified city as Constantinople.
As a result of the defeat of the Avars near Constantinople in 626, the Kutrigurs separated from the Khaganate.
In 631, the Avars temporarily suppressed the uprising of the Kutrigurs. Khan Alzek, after an unsuccessful attempt to seize the throne in the Avar Khaganate, leaves the Khaganate with his horde.
By 632 khan Kubrat uniting the Kutrigur, Utigur and Onogur tribes, he creates the medieval state of Great Bulgaria, finally ousting the Avars from the Northern Black Sea region and the Lower Danube.
By 640, the Croats had driven the Avars out of Dalmatia. It is probably to this event that the following words from the poems of George Pisid refer: A Scythian (i.e. Avars) kills a Slav and dies himself, so they fight in blood until mutual destruction.
Franco-Avar War
The final defeat of the Avar Khaganate suffered in the battle. 8th century as a result of the Franco-Avar war.
In 788, the Bavarian Duke Tassilon III managed to conclude an alliance with the Avars against the Franks. However, in the same year, their army was defeated and Bavaria became part of the Frankish state. Then Charlemagne developed a plan for the final reprisal against the Avars. This marked the beginning of a long struggle between the Franks and the Khaganate.
In 791, the Franks launched a major counter-offensive against the Avars, in which Slavic detachments also took part, including the Karantans (presumably one of the ancestors of the Slovenes, Croats). The Frankish troops set out in two columns: one, under the leadership of Charlemagne, captured the Avar border fortifications in the lower reaches of the Rab, the other, led by Charles's son, Pepin, moved from the Friuli lowland and, having reached the upper reaches of the Sava, captured the Avar hring here.
Already these first failures led to internal unrest, which resulted, among other things, in the murder of the yugur and the kagan, which allowed the Friulian margrave Eric in 796 to inflict a decisive blow on the Avars and take the capital of the kaganate - the main hring of the Avar tribe, which was probably located in Transylvania (Ring). The Franks won a complete victory, which eliminated the political independence of the Avar Khaganate. Wagon trains with treasures accumulated by the Avars over the centuries went to Aachen. The situation was aggravated by the active anti-Avar position of the Proto-Bulgarians. Despite the hopeless situation, the Avars - in the vast majority - did not want to either admit their defeat or migrate to a safe place, but, on the contrary, fiercely resisted, as a result of which the losses were so catastrophic that they could never recover from them. Almost all the nobility perished.
Nevertheless, the Avars did not resign themselves to defeat for a long time. In 797 they rebelled, and the Franks were forced to repeat the campaign, again crowned with success. At the end of 797, the Avar ambassadors again swore allegiance to Charlemagne. However, the uprising rose again in 799, and in 802 Frankish officials were killed. Separate performances of the Avars against the Franks took place until 803. In 803-804. Bulgarian ruler Khan Krum captured all the Avar lands up to the Middle Danube. The Avars themselves within these territories were clearly quickly assimilated, probably due to the kinship of the Avars and Proto-Bulgarians ethnic groups. In 798, an archbishopric was established in Salzburg, which preached the Christian religion to the Avars. In 805, the kagan himself accepted the new faith. In the same year, the Bulgarian Khan Krum conquered the lands of the Timochan from the Avar Khaganate.
In 814, on the eve of the Frankish defeat, the Avar was headed by the tudun Kazhd, who later took the name Theodorus.
Disappearance of the Avars
Turning the remnants of the Avars into their vassals and placing a baptized kagan at their head, the Franks granted them, within the Eastern Mark, part of the region, with a center near Savaria (now the city of Szombathely, which belongs to Hungary). Soon, the Quarantans began to penetrate here. Their onslaught was so intense that in 811 the Franks were forced to defend the Avars. The last time, as a separate tribe that was in vassal dependence on the Franks, the Avars are mentioned in sources dated 822. Six years later, during the administrative reforms of the Frankish state, they were turned into royal subjects. During the ninth century the Avars are gradually dissolving among the Slavic and German settlers who have flooded into the Transdanubia.
In 899, the Hungarians captured Pannonia, with whom the remnants of the Avars merge.
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