History of the Aral Sea region in the late xiv century according to chronicles and numismatic data (part 1. Events of ah 773-781)

Purpose. Comparing the information from chronicles and numismatic sources, authors make an attempt to reconstruct the history of how two Ulus Juchi territories (the Khorezm and Sygnaq Country) were annexed by the Timur state. Conclusion. The authors state that in 773 and 774 AH, amir Timur twice invaded Khorezm in order to put under his power the cities of Kath and Khiva. The reason for that was that the taxes from those cities had been gathered not for the benefit of the Chaghatayid state but for that of the Kungrat rulers of Urgenj, which violated the regulations of Genghis Khan. Since 762 AH, the Kungrat leaders had held a policy of separating Khorezm from Ulus Juchi in order to create their own state on a theocratic basis. However, after the campaigns of Timur they were forced to make a decision either to return under the power of the Ulus of Juchi, or to join amir Timur. The Khorezmian ruler Yusuf-Sufi preferred to recognize Ilbak-khan, one of the Juchid leaders, as his suzerain. This fact is reflected in the coins with the name of Ilbak Khan, which were issued in 775 AH in Saraichuq and Khorezm. In 777 AH, amir Timur started military actions against the rulers of the Juchi state. It was his third campaign against Khorezm. Then he met Toqtamysh-oglan, announced him as his adopted son and granted him the Syr-Darya territory. Next year, Timur defeated the Ulus Juchi army. Uruskhan had already died. His son Toqtaqiya died after two months of his reigning. In 778 AH, Toqtamysh was enthroned by Timur as the ruler of whole Dashti Kipchak. However, that year Toqtamysh was defeated by Timur-Malik, an Uruskhan’s son, and was forced to seek refuge in Timur’s lands again. At the end of the year 780 AH, Toqtamysh defeated Timur-Malik and began to rule in the Syghnaq lands. Next year Timur conquered Urgench. Later Khorezm was ceded to Toqtamysh, who was a rightful Juchid and an adopted son of Timur at the same time. That year Toqtamysh went to conquer Saray. The authors plan to proceed with presenting a more accurate report on the events in the Aral Sea region in 782-793 AH, during the reign of tuqatimurid Kuncha Khan (ÆBa ÉVÃÌ·) in the Syr Darya lands, who was the head of the descendants of the Nugman clan. We know from some written resources that the period was followed by the interregnum in Sygnak in AH 783 and capture of the Syghnaq’s lands by Timur in the mid-1780’s of the Hijra. There were some reasons for a breakdown between Timur and Toktamysh Khan which led to a series of wars between them. The fifth campaign of Timur in Khorezm resulted in the destruction of Urgench and absorption of the Aral Sea lands by the Timur state. All these events, though, require verification and more accurate dating according to the numismatic resources available, which has not been done yet. Results. The authors introduce numismatic evidences of Ilbak Khan minting in Khorezm in 775 AH and Kuncha Khan on the Syghnaq territory in 783-784 AH into scientific circulation. The historical events are described more accurately as they are based on new reliable resources, and some previous hypothesis of various researchers are considered inaccurate.