Subject and method of history of the Russian state and law
- Subject of the history of the Russian state and law
- Method of history of the domestic state and law
- Periodization of the history of the Russian state and law
Old Russian state and law (IX - beginning of the 12th century)
- Formation of the Old Russian State
  - Historical factors in the formation of the Old Russian state
- Social system of the Old Russian state
  - Feudal-dependent population: sources of education and classification
- Political system of the Old Russian state
- System of law in the Old Russian state
  - Property rights in the Old Russian state
  - Law of obligations in the Old Russian state
  - Marriage, family and inheritance law in the Old Russian state
  - Criminal law and judicial process in the Old Russian state
State and law of Rus' during the period of feudal fragmentation (beginning of the XII-XIV centuries)
- Feudal fragmentation in Rus'
- Features of the socio-political system of the Galicia-Volyn principality
- Socio-political system of the Vladimir-Suzdal land
- Socio-political system and law of Novgorod and Pskov
- State and law of the Golden Horde
Formation of the Russian centralized state
- Prerequisites for the formation of the Russian centralized state
- Social system in the Russian centralized state
- Political system in the Russian centralized state
- Development of law in the Russian centralized state
Estate-representative monarchy in Russia (mid-16th - mid-17th centuries)
- Social system during the period of the estate-representative monarchy
- The political system during the period of the estate-representative monarchy
  - Police and prisons in mid. XVI - mid. XVII century
- Development of law during the period of estate-representative monarchy
  - Civil law in mid. XVI - mid. XVII century
  - Criminal law in the Code of 1649
  - Legal proceedings in the Code of 1649
Education and development of the absolute monarchy in Russia (second half of the 17th-18th centuries)
- Historical background for the emergence of absolute monarchy in Russia
- Social system of the period of absolute monarchy in Russia
- The political system of the period of absolute monarchy in Russia
  - Police in absolutist Russia
  - Prisons, exile and hard labor in the 17th-18th centuries.
  - Reforms of the era of palace coups
  - Reforms during the reign of Catherine II
- Development of law under Peter I
  - Criminal law under Peter I
  - Civil law under Peter I
  - Family and inheritance law in the XVII-XVIII centuries.
  - The emergence of environmental legislation
State and law of Russia during the period of decomposition of the serfdom and the growth of capitalist relations (first half of the 19th century)
- Social system during the period of decomposition of the serfdom system
- The political system of Russia in the nineteenth century
  - State reform of authorities
  - His Imperial Majesty's Own Office
  - The police system in the first half of the 19th century.
  - The Russian prison system in the nineteenth century
- Development of a form of state unity
  - Status of Finland within the Russian Empire
  - Incorporation of Poland into the Russian Empire
- Systematization of the legislation of the Russian Empire
State and law of Russia during the period of establishment of capitalism (second half of the 19th century)
- Abolition of serfdom
- Zemstvo and city reforms
- Local government in the second half of the 19th century.
- Judicial reform in the second half of the 19th century.
- Military reform in the second half of the 19th century.
- Reform of the police and prison system in the second half of the 19th century.
- Financial reform in Russia in the second half of the 19th century.
- Educational and censorship reforms
- The Church in the system of government of Tsarist Russia
- Counter-reforms of the 1880-1890s.
- Development of Russian law in the second half of the 19th century.
  - Civil law of Russia in the second half of the 19th century.
  - Family and inheritance law in Russia in the second half of the 19th century.
State and law of Russia during the period of the first Russian revolution and before the outbreak of the First World War (1900-1914)
- Prerequisites and course of the first Russian revolution
- Changes in the social system of Russia
  - Agrarian reform P.A. Stolypin
  - Formation of political parties in Russia at the beginning of the 20th century.
- Changes in the Russian government system
  - Reform of government bodies
  - Establishment of the State Duma
  - Punitive measures P.A. Stolypin
  - The fight against crime at the beginning of the 20th century.
- Changes in law in Russia at the beginning of the 20th century.
State and law of Russia during the First World War
- Changes in the government apparatus
- Changes in the field of law during the First World War
State and law of Russia during the period of the February bourgeois-democratic republic (February - October 1917)
- February Revolution of 1917
- Dual power in Russia
  - Resolving the issue of state unity of the country
  - Reform of the prison system in February - October 1917
  - Changes in the government apparatus
- Activities of the Soviets
- Legal activities of the Provisional Government
Creation of the Soviet state and law (October 1917 - 1918)
- All-Russian Congress of Soviets and its decrees
- Fundamental changes in the social order
- The destruction of the bourgeois and the creation of a new Soviet state apparatus
  - Powers and activities of the Councils
  - Military revolutionary committees
  - Soviet armed forces
  - Workers' militia
  - Changes in the judicial and penitentiary systems after the October Revolution
- Nation-state building
- Constitution of the RSFSR 1918
- Creation of the foundations of Soviet law
Soviet state and law during the Civil War and intervention (1918-1920)
- Civil war and intervention
- Soviet state apparatus
- Armed forces and law enforcement agencies
  - Reorganization of the police in 1918-1920.
  - Activities of the Cheka during the Civil War
  - Judicial system during the Civil War
- Military Union of Soviet Republics
- Development of law during the Civil War
The Soviet state and law during the period of the New Economic Policy (1921-1929)
- Nation-state building. Education USSR
  - Declaration and Treaty on the Formation of the USSR
- Development of the state apparatus of the RSFSR
  - Restoration of the national economy after the civil war
  - Judicial authorities during the NEP period
  - Creation of the Soviet prosecutor's office
  - USSR police during the NEP period
  - Correctional labor institutions of the USSR during the NEP period
  - Codification of law during the NEP period
The Soviet state and law during the period of radical change in social relations (1930-1941)
- State economic management
  - Collective farm construction
  - National economic planning and reorganization of government bodies
- State management of socio-cultural processes
- Law enforcement reforms in the 1930s.
- Reorganization of the armed forces in the 1930s.
- Constitution of the USSR 1936
- Development of the USSR as a union state
- Development of law in 1930-1941.
The Soviet state and law during the Great Patriotic War
- The Great Patriotic War and the restructuring of the work of the Soviet state apparatus
- Changes in the organization of state unity
- Development of Soviet law during the Great Patriotic War
The Soviet state and law in the post-war years of restoration of the national economy (1945-1953)
- The internal political situation and foreign policy of the USSR in the first post-war years
- Development of the state apparatus in the post-war years
  - The system of correctional labor institutions in the post-war years
- Development of Soviet law in the post-war years
The Soviet state and law during the period of liberalization of social relations (mid-1950s - mid-1960s)
- Development of external functions of the Soviet state
- Development of a form of state unity in the mid-1950s.
- Restructuring of the USSR state apparatus in the mid-1950s.
- Development of Soviet law in the mid-1950s - mid-1960s.
The Soviet state and law during the period of slowdown in social development (mid-1960s - mid-1980s)
- Development of external functions of the state
- Constitution of the USSR 1977
- Form of state unity according to the 1977 USSR Constitution.
  - Development of the state apparatus
  - Law enforcement in the mid-1960s - mid-1980s.
  - USSR judicial authorities in the 1980s.
- Development of law in the middle. 1960s - mid. 1900s
- Correctional labor institutions in the middle. 1960s - mid. 1900s
Formation of the state and law of the Russian Federation. Collapse of the USSR (mid 1980s - 1990s)
- The policy of “perestroika” and its main content
- Main directions of development of the political regime and state system
- Collapse of the USSR
- External consequences of the collapse of the USSR for Russia. Commonwealth of Independent States
- Formation of the state apparatus of the new Russia
- Development of the form of state unity of the Russian Federation
- Development of law during the collapse of the USSR and the formation of the Russian Federation

State and law of the Golden Horde

The Golden Horde is a state whose emergence is associated with the aggressive campaigns of the Mongol Khan Temujin, or Genghis Khan (c. 1155-1227), and his descendants. Genghis Khan's grandson Batu (1208-1255) formed a huge state, which in eastern sources was called the Blue Horde, and in Russian chronicles - the Golden Horde. Batu built the city of Saray, which he made the capital of his state.

The bulk of the nomadic population in the Golden Horde consisted of Kipchak-Polovtsians (Turks). Over time, the Mongols disappeared into the mass of the Turks. Turkic became the generally accepted language.

Along with the Turkification of the Mongols in the Golden Horde from the end of the 13th century. Islamization of its population began. The reign of Uzbek Khan (1312-1340) was decisive in the spread of Islam.

The huge Golden Horde Empire subjugated fragmented Rus'. In 1243, the Russian princes went to the Horde and recognized the power of Batu Khan over them. The power of the Golden Horde was also recognized by the Russian Metropolitan.

The Russian principalities became vassal states of the Golden Horde. They were obliged to perform military service to the Golden Horde khans and pay tribute - a “way out”. In the Russian lands there were representatives of the khan's administration - the Baskaks, who often committed arbitrariness against the Russian population.

A natural phenomenon was the process of gradual fragmentation and collapse of the Golden Horde. In the middle of the 15th century. the Kazan and Crimean khanates emerged from its composition, then the Astrakhan and Siberian khanates were formed.

State system. The Golden Horde was a feudal monarchy. Its political structure repeated that of the great empire of Genghis Khan. Supreme power belonged to the khan. Although his power was despotic in nature, he was surrounded by a feudal elite that directed and controlled his activities. The khan was the supreme owner and administrator of all lands in the state (he could distribute land to relatives and officials), headed the armed forces, appointed and dismissed all senior officials, declared war and made peace, and was the supreme judge.

To resolve the main political issues, congresses of the largest feudal lords were convened in the Golden Eagle - kurultai. The members of the kurultai were princes and noyons who occupied the highest military positions. At the kurultai, a new khan was elected, issues of war and peace were resolved, the boundaries of the uluses were revised, and disputes between large feudal lords were considered. The will of the khan and his decision at the kurultai were final.

An important link in the central administration was the sofas (offices). They were in charge of various branches of government. The sofas consisted of secretaries called bitakchi. The most important was the sofa, which controlled income and expenses. This divan contained a special document with a list of receipts from individual regions and cities, called a dedotar.

The highest official in the Golden Horde was the vizier. He was in charge of the khan's treasury and the general management of state affairs, which he carried out on behalf of and on behalf of the khan.

The military department was headed by beklyari-bek, who directed the activities of emirs, temniks, and thousand officers. He was the eldest of the emirs, of whom there were four in total.

Another influential official was the bukaul, who was in charge of supplies, weapons, food for the troops, accounting and delivery of military booty.

Darugs and Baskaks served in the central apparatus of the state. They were engaged in counting the population, collecting taxes, and organizing military campaigns. The main purpose of the Baskaks was to ensure the payment of tribute and the fulfillment of other duties in favor of the Golden Horde. The army in the Golden Horde was built according to the decimal system. It was divided into tens of thousands, led by temniks, and into thousands, divided into hundreds and tens. The highest command staff - temniks and thousanders - consisted of princes and noble noyons.

Class hierarchy. Characterizing the social system of the Golden Horde, it should be said that there was no clear class organization, which was based on hierarchical feudal ownership of land. The status of a subject of the Golden Horde depended on his origin, services to the khan and his family, and his position in the military-administrative apparatus. The dominant position in the feudal society of the Golden Horde was occupied by the aristocratic family of the descendants of Genghis Khan - the so-called princes. It was a fairly numerous family that owned all the land in the country. He owned huge herds and palaces. Like khans, members of this clan gave labels to their subordinate people. The princes had a preferential right to occupy the highest government posts. They essentially determined the domestic and foreign policy of the state.

At the next level of the military-feudal hierarchy of the Golden Horde were noyons, or beks. They traced their origins to the companions of Genghis Khan and their sons. The Noyons had huge herds, many servants and dependent people. From their possessions they received huge incomes - up to 100-200 thousand dinars per year. Noyons were appointed to responsible government and military positions - temniks, thousanders, baskaks. They were given tarhan letters, which exempted them from various duties. The signs of their power were labels and naizi (a sign of command, order, credentials in the form of a thin plate).

Next came the nukers - warriors of large feudal lords. They occupied middle and lower positions in the military administrative apparatus - centurions, foremen. This allowed them to extract significant income from the population of the territories in which they were located.

The middle feudal lords also included tarkhans, who received tarkhan letters from the khan, in which privileges were established for them. They were free from taxes and were put on trial after committing nine offenses.

The clergy belonged to the privileged part of society. The Muslim clergy had the greatest privileges. Its representatives were not only the richest people, but also occupied important positions in the administrative and judicial apparatus.

The bulk of the feudal-dependent population consisted of nomadic pastoralists - Karachu - “black bone”, as well as farmers and the urban population. The Karachus farmed on lands that belonged to feudal landowners. Being engaged in cattle breeding, they bore duties on mare's milk and other cattle products. Karachu served in the army and provided him with transport.

In addition to the nomads, feudal-dependent peasants lived in the agricultural areas of the Golden Horde - Sabanchi and Urtakchi. The Sabanchi lived in rural communities, paid in-kind and other duties to the feudal lords, and also cultivated the plots allocated to them. Urtakchi (sharecroppers) - enslaved people - worked the land of the feudal lords for half the harvest, and bore other duties.

In the cities lived artisans and traders who paid taxes to the city authorities and carried out other duties.

Slavery existed in the Golden Horde. The main source of slavery was captivity. A bunch of slaves were used in all sectors of the economy. However, slaves often turned into serfs. They were planted on the land, given the means of production, and gradually slaves became Sabanchi.

Right. The main source of law in the Golden Horde was a collection of legal norms compiled by Genghis Khan, called the Great Yasa. Its norms that have come down to us relate to a greater extent to criminal law. They indicate extreme cruelty towards offenders. The most commonly mentioned punishments are the death penalty and caning.

For treason, Yasa Genghis Khan provided for the death penalty. Property crimes included the appropriation of an escaped slave or an escaped captive. This was punishable by death.

Horse theft involved the return of not only the stolen horse, but the addition of ten more horses. If there were no horses, the culprit paid with his children. If there were no children, the culprit could be “slaughtered like a ram.”

The death penalty was provided for adultery, bestiality and some other crimes and was carried out, as a rule, in public by being caught on a rope suspended from the neck of a camel or horse, as well as dragged by horses.

The inheritance of property took place in such a way that the eldest son received more than the younger ones, the youngest son inherited his father's farm.

The court in the Golden Horde before the adoption of Islam acted on the basis of Mongolian customary law - yasa. After the introduction of Islam, the court was based on Sharia. The judges were qads (qadis), who judged according to Sharia, as well as yarguchi. making decisions based on the Great Yasa of Genghis Khan.

During the first century of its existence, the Golden Horde was one of the uluses of the Great Mongol Empire. The descendants of Genghis Khan ruled the Golden Horde even after the fall of the empire, and when the Horde collapsed, they owned the states that replaced it. The Mongol aristocracy was the highest stratum of society in the Golden Horde. Therefore, government in the Golden Horde was based mainly on the principles that guided the government of the empire as a whole. The “Great Yasa” of Genghis Khan constituted its legal basis. At the same time, however, as in other parts of the empire, the application of the basic principles of Mongol rule in the Golden Horde was determined by the geographical location, ethnic composition of the population and spiritual atmosphere in a particular territory.

The Mongols constituted a national minority in Golden Horde society. The majority of the population in the Horde were Turks. From a religious point of view, the spread of Islam among both the Mongols and the Turks in the Horde became a factor of great importance. Gradually, Muslim institutions established themselves along with the Mongol ones.

Most of the Mongols of the Golden Horde came from the four thousand army that was transferred to Jochi by Genghis Khan; they belonged to the Khushin, Kyiyat, Kynkyt and Saijut tribes. In addition, there were also Mangkyts, but they, as we know, kept aloof from the rest and, since the time of Nogai, formed a separate horde. As already mentioned, the Turks were recognized as full members of the steppe society. In the western part of the Golden Horde, the Turkic element was represented mainly by the Kipchaks (Cumans), as well as a remnant of the Khazars and Pechenegs. To the east of the middle Volga, in the Kama River basin, lived the remaining Bulgars and semi-Turkified Ugrians (Bashkirs). To the east of the lower Volga, the Mangkyt (Nogai) and other Mongol clans ruled over a number of Turkic tribes, such as the Kipchaks and Oguzes, most of whom mixed with the Iranian aborigines. The numerical superiority of the Turks made it natural that the Mongols should gradually become Turkicized, and the Mongolian language, even within the ruling classes, should give way to the Turkic. Diplomatic correspondence with foreign countries (such as Egypt) was conducted in Mongolian, but most of the documents from the late 14th and 15th centuries concerning internal government that we know are in Turkic (mainly Chagatai Turkic). From unofficial texts, a manuscript of a Mongolian poem (written on birch bark) dating back to the early 14th century was recently discovered. At a lower political level than the Turks were the Russians, Alans and Circassians with settlements provided to them in the city of Sarai. Tribes of Finno-Ugric origin, such as the Cheremis, Mordvins and Meshchera, lived in the Lower Oka basin, and many Italians and Greeks lived in the Crimea and the Sea of Azov.

From an economic point of view, the Golden Horde was a symbiosis of nomadic and sedentary populations. The South Russian and North Caucasian steppes provided the Mongols and Turks with vast pastures for herds and livestock. On the other hand, some parts of this territory on the periphery of the steppes were also used for growing cereals. The country of the Bulgars in the region of the middle Volga and Kama was also agricultural with highly developed agriculture; and, of course, Western Rus' (Ukraine) and the southern principalities of Central and Eastern Rus', especially Ryazan, produced grain in abundance. Sarai and other large cities of the Golden Horde, with their highly developed crafts, served as points of intersection between nomadism and sedentary civilization. Both the khan and the princes lived part of the year in cities, and during the other part of the year they followed their herds. Most of them also owned land. A significant part of the urban population lived there permanently, so that an urban class was created, consisting of a variety of ethnic, social and religious elements. Both Muslims and Christians had their own temples in every major city. Cities played a role of primary importance in the development of Golden Horde trade. The complex economic organism of the Horde was focused on international trade, and it was from this that the khans and nobles received a large share of their income.

As we know, the Golden Horde was ruled by the Juchids branch from the house of Genghis Khan. Legally, until the fall of the Mongol Empire, the Khan of the Golden Horde was a vassal of the Great Khan, and he was also, in a certain sense, a shareholder of the imperial concern, since he had appanages in other uluses. The khan was elected by the assembly of the Juchid princes, the regional kurultai. The ceremony for the new khan to assume his office followed the model of the enthronement of great khans. According to Johann Schiltberger, a German traveler who visited the Golden Horde at the beginning of the 15th century, “when they choose a khan, they take him and seat him on white felt, and lift him up three times. Then they lift him up and carry him around the tent, and seat him on the throne, and put a golden sword in his hand. According to custom, one must swear allegiance to him.” The ritual of carrying a new khan on felt is called khan kutermiak in Turkic.

In addition to functioning as an electoral body during periods of interregnum, the kurultai met regularly to discuss with the khan all important issues of domestic and foreign policy. Moreover, members of the kurultai of the princely family occupied the most important positions in the army and administration. Over time, they began to be called oglan. As in other Mongolian states, women belonging to the ruling clan - the Khatun - played an active role in political life. No less important was the fact that each member of the ruling house, including women, received an inheritance independent of the general government administration. Thus, we can say that the Jochids ruled in the Golden Horde in two ways: as sovereigns and as feudal lords.

Below the princes were those who could be called Mongolian and Turkic nobles: initially called noyons (Mongolian term), and later beks (Turkic term); and senior management and judicial officials. Many of them were given feudal-type land plots, which were called soyurghal. Often the khan would issue the nobleman a label of immunity, exempting him and the people assigned to the land plot from taxes and government service. The owner of such an allotment was called darkkhan. Often this term was applied to smaller landowners, since it was assumed that the nobles enjoyed immunity in any case. As a result of this policy, by the middle of the 15th century, the “feudal” sector (let’s call it that) expanded significantly more than the “state” sector. This factor played a huge role in the collapse of the Horde.

The organization of the army in the Golden Horde was built mainly on the Mongol type established by Genghis Khan, with decimal division. Army units were grouped into two main battle formations: the right wing, or western group, and the left wing, or eastern group. The center, in all likelihood, was the khan's guard under his personal command. Each large army unit was assigned bukaul(quartermaster). As in other parts of the Mongol Empire, the army formed the basis of the khan's administration; each army unit was subordinate to a separate region in the Horde. From this point of view, we can say that for administrative purposes the Golden Horde was divided into myriads, thousands, hundreds and tens. The commander of each unit was responsible for order and discipline in his area. All together, they represented local government in the Golden Horde. The label on the immunity of Khan Timur-Kutlug from 800 Gijra (1397-1398), issued to the Crimean Tarkhan Mehmet, was addressed to “the oglans of the right and left wings; venerable commanders of myriads; and commanders of thousands, hundreds and tens.”

For the collection of taxes and other purposes, the military administration was assisted by a number of civilian officials. Timur-Kutlug's label mentions tax collectors, messengers, people serving horse-mail stations, boatmen, officials in charge of bridges, and market police. An important official was the state customs inspector, who was called " daruga"(in Russian chronicles it is also pronounced as "road"). The basic meaning of the root of this Mongolian word is “to press” in the sense of “to stamp” or “to stamp.” The term can be rendered as "custodian of the seal". The duties of the daruga included overseeing the collection of taxes and recording the amount collected.

The entire system of administration and taxation was controlled by central boards ( sofas). In each of them, the business was, in fact, conducted by a secretary ( bitikchi). The chief bitikchi was in charge of the khan's archive. Sometimes the khan entrusted general supervision of the internal administration to a special official, whom Arab and Persian sources, speaking of the Golden Horde, call the “vizier.” It is unknown whether this was actually his title. Officials at the khan's court, such as stewards, butlers, falconers, keepers of wild animals, and huntsmen, also played important roles.

The legal proceedings consisted of the Supreme Court and local courts. The competence of the first included the most important matters affecting state interests. It should be remembered that a number of Russian princes appeared before this court. The judges of local courts were called Yarguchi (dzargudzhi). According to Ibn Batuta, each court consisted of eight such judges presided over by the chief ( Amir Yargu). He was appointed with a special label of the khan. In the 14th century, a Muslim judge ( kazi) together with lawyers and clerks also attended sessions of the local court. All matters falling under Islamic law (Sharia) were related to it.

In view of the fact that trade played an important role in the economy of the Golden Horde, it was quite natural that merchants, especially those who had access to foreign markets, enjoyed great respect from the khan and nobles. Although not officially associated with the government, eminent merchants could quite often influence the direction of internal affairs and foreign relations. In fact, Muslim merchants were an international corporation that controlled the markets of Central Asia, Iran and Southern Rus'. Individually, they swore an oath of allegiance to one or another ruler, depending on the circumstances. Collectively, they preferred peace and stability in all countries with which they had to deal. Many of the khans were financially dependent on the merchants, since they controlled large amounts of capital and were able to lend money to any khan whose treasury was depleted. Merchants were also willing to collect taxes when required of them, and were useful to the khan in many other ways.

The bulk of the urban population were craftsmen and a wide variety of workers. In the early period of the formation of the Golden Horde, gifted artisans captured in conquered countries became slaves of the khan. Some of them were sent to the Great Khan in Karakorum. The majority, obliged to serve the Khan of the Golden Horde, settled in Sarai and other cities. Mostly they were natives of Khorezm and Rus'. Later, free workers also, apparently, began to flock to the craft centers of the Golden Horde, mainly to Sarai. In Tokhtamysh's label dated 1382, issued to Khodja-Bek, “elder artisans” are mentioned. From this we can conclude that artisans were organized into guilds; most likely, each craft formed a separate guild. One craft was given a special part of the city for workshops. According to evidence from archaeological research, in Sarai there were forges, knife and weapon workshops, factories for the production of agricultural implements, as well as bronze and copper vessels. A large number of workers were engaged in leather dressing and weaving. Weavers produced mainly woolen fabrics, although raw cotton imported from Central Asia was also used for some fabrics. High quality ceramic products were also made in Sarai, mainly according to Khorezm samples.

Little is known about the situation of peasants in the agricultural regions of the Golden Horde. They are mentioned in Timur-Kutlug's label as Sabanchi(plowmen) and urtakchi. The latter were sharecroppers. Peasants were probably greatly burdened by taxes, but in some cases they apparently took advantage of their position if they were assigned to an estate with guaranteed immunity. However, in this case, without a doubt, various local duties were imposed on them. Some peasants, apparently, were free people - descendants of prisoners of war who settled on the land. Usually prisoners of war were turned into slaves, but if they were skilled craftsmen, then, as mentioned above, they were requisitioned by the khan. The conquerors could do whatever they wanted with the rest: use them at work in their homes or sell them. For Italian as well as for Muslim merchants, the slave trade was a profitable business.

The Golden Horde (Ulus Jochi) is a Mongol-Tatar state that existed in Eurasia from the 13th to the 16th centuries. At its height, the Golden Horde, nominally part of the Mongol Empire, ruled over the Russian princes and exacted tribute from them (the Mongol-Tatar yoke) for several centuries.

In Russian chronicles, the Golden Horde bore different names, but most often Ulus Jochi (“Possession of Khan Jochi”), and only since 1556 the state began to be called the Golden Horde.

The beginning of the era of the Golden Horde

In 1224, the Mongol Khan Genghis Khan divided the Mongol Empire between his sons, his son Jochi received one of the parts, and then the formation of an independent state began. After him, his son, Batu Khan, became the head of the Jochi ulus. Until 1266, the Golden Horde was part of the Mongol Empire as one of the khanates, and then became an independent state, having only a nominal dependence on the empire.

During his reign, Khan Batu made several military campaigns, as a result of which new territories were conquered, and the lower Volga region became the center of the Horde. The capital was the city of Sarai-Batu, located near modern Astrakhan.

As a result of the campaigns of Batu and his troops, the Golden Horde conquered new territories and during its heyday occupied the lands:

Most of modern Russia, except the Far East, Siberia and the North;
Ukraine;
Kazakhstan;
Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan.

Despite the existence of the Mongol-Tatar yoke and the power of the Mongols over Russia, the khans of the Golden Horde were not directly involved in governing Rus', collecting only tribute from the Russian princes and carrying out periodic punitive campaigns to strengthen their authority.

As a result of several centuries of rule of the Golden Horde, Rus' lost its independence, the economy was in decline, the lands were devastated, and the culture forever lost some types of crafts and was also in the stage of degradation. It was thanks to the long-term power of the Horde in the future that Rus' always lagged behind the countries of Western Europe in development.

State structure and management system of the Golden Horde

The Horde was a fairly typical Mongol state, consisting of several khanates. In the 13th century, the territories of the Horde kept changing their borders, and the number of uluses (parts) was constantly changing, but at the beginning of the 14th century, a territorial reform was carried out and the Golden Horde received a constant number of uluses.

Each ulus was headed by its own khan, who belonged to the ruling dynasty and was a descendant of Genghis Khan, while at the head of the state there was a single khan, to whom all the others were subordinate. Each ulus had its own manager, ulusbek, to whom smaller officials reported.

The Golden Horde was a semi-military state, so all administrative and military positions were the same.

Economy and culture of the Golden Horde

Since the Golden Horde was a multinational state, the culture absorbed a lot from different peoples. In general, the basis of culture was the life and traditions of the nomadic Mongols. In addition, since 1312, the Horde became an Islamic state, which was also reflected in traditions. Scientists believe that the culture of the Golden Horde was not independent and throughout the entire period of the state’s existence was in a state of stagnation, using only ready-made forms introduced by other cultures, but not inventing its own.

The Horde was a military and trading state. It was trade, along with the collection of tribute and the seizure of territories, that was the basis of the economy. The khans of the Golden Horde traded furs, jewelry, leather, timber, grain, fish and even olive oil. Trade routes to Europe, India and China ran through the territory of the state.

The end of the era of the Golden Horde

In 1357, Khan Janibek died and turmoil began, caused by the struggle for power between the khans and high-ranking feudal lords. In a short period, 25 khans changed in the state, until Khan Mamai came to power.

During this same period, the Horde began to lose its political influence. In 1360, Khorezm separated, then, in 1362, Astrakhan and the lands on the Dnieper separated, and in 1380, the Mongol-Tatars were defeated by the Russians and lost their influence in Rus'.

In 1380 - 1395, the unrest subsided, and the Golden Horde began to regain the remnants of its power, but not for long. By the end of the 14th century, the state carried out a number of unsuccessful military campaigns, the power of the khan weakened, and the Horde broke up into several independent khanates, headed by the Great Horde.

In 1480, the Horde lost Rus'. At the same time, the small khanates that were part of the Horde finally separated. The Great Horde existed until the 16th century, and then also collapsed.

The last khan of the Golden Horde was Kichi Muhammad.

State system of the Golden Horde

The Golden Horde was a feudal state of the developed Middle Ages. The highest power in the country belonged to the khan, and this title of head of state in the history of the entire Tatar people is associated mainly with the period of the Golden Horde. If the entire Mongol Empire was ruled by the dynasty of Genghis Khan (Genghisids), then the Golden Horde was ruled by the dynasty of his eldest son Jochi (Juchids). In the 60s of the 13th century, the empire was actually divided into independent states, but legally they were considered uluses of Genghis Khan.

Therefore, the system of state governance, established during his time, practically remained until the end of the existence of these states. Moreover, this tradition continued in the political and socio-economic life of those Tatar khanates that were formed after the fall of the Golden Horde. Naturally, some transformations and reforms were carried out, some new government and military positions appeared, but the entire state and social system as a whole remained stable. Fakhrutdinov R.G. History of the Tatar people and Tatarstan. (Antiquity and Middle Ages). Textbook for secondary schools, gymnasiums and lyceums. - Kazan: Magarif, 2000.P.123

Under the khan there was a divan - a state council, consisting of members of the royal dynasty (oglans-princes, brothers or other male relatives of the khan), large feudal princes, high clergy, and great military leaders. Large feudal princes are noyons for the early Mongol period of the times of Batu and Berke, and for the Muslim, Tatar-Kipchak era of Uzbek and his successors - emirs and beks. Later, by the end of the 14th century, very influential and powerful beks with the name “Karacha-bi” appeared from the largest families of Shirin, Baryn, Argyn, Kipchak (these noble families were also the highest feudal-princely elite of almost all Tatar khanates that arose after the collapse Golden Horde).

At the divan there was also the position of bitikchi (scribe), who was essentially a secretary of state who had significant power in the country. Even large feudal lords and military leaders treated him with respect.

All this high elite of government is known from Eastern, Russian and Western European historical sources, as well as from the labels of the Golden Horde khans. The same documents record the titles of a large number of other officials, various government officials, medium or small feudal lords. The latter included, for example, tarkhans, who were exempt from taxes and taxes for one or another public service, receiving so-called tarkhan labels from the khan.

Label- this is a khan’s charter or decree that gives the right to government in individual uluses of the Golden Horde or states subordinate to it (for example, labels for reigning Russian princes), the right to conduct diplomatic missions, other important government affairs abroad and within the country and, of course, to the right of land ownership by feudal lords of various ranks. In the Golden Horde, and then in the Kazan, Crimean and other Tatar khanates, there was a system of soyurgals - military fief ownership of land. The person who received the soyurgal from the khan had the right to collect in his own favor those taxes that previously went to the state treasury. According to Soyurgal, land was considered hereditary. Naturally, such great privileges were not given just like that. The feudal lord, who received legal rights, had to provide the army with an appropriate amount of cavalry, weapons, horse-drawn transport, provisions, etc. in wartime.

In addition to labels, there was a system of issuing so-called paizov. Paiza- this is a gold, silver, bronze, cast iron, or even just a wooden tablet, also issued on behalf of the khan as a kind of mandate. The person who presented such a mandate locally was provided with the necessary services during his movements and trips - guides, horses, carts, premises, food. It goes without saying that a person with a higher position in society received a gold paizu, and a simpler person received a wooden one. There is information about the presence of paits in the Golden Horde in written sources; they are also known as archaeological finds from the excavations of Saray-Berke, one of the capitals of the Golden Horde.

In the Ulus of Jochi there was a special position of the military bukaul, which was responsible for the distribution of troops and the dispatch of detachments; He was also responsible for military maintenance and allowances. Even ulus emirs - in wartime temniks - were subordinate to Bukaul. In addition to the main bukaul, there were bukauls of individual regions.

The clergy and, in general, representatives of the clergy in the Golden Horde, according to the records of labels and Arab-Persian historical geography, were represented by the following persons: the mufti - the head of the clergy; sheikh - spiritual leader and mentor, elder; Sufi - a pious, pious person, free from bad deeds, or an ascetic; qadi - a judge who decides cases according to Sharia, that is, according to the code of Muslim laws.

The Baskaks and Darukhachi (Darukha) played a major role in the political and social life of the Golden Horde state. The first of them were military representatives of the authorities, military guards, the second were civilians with the duties of a governor or manager, one of whose main functions was control over the collection of tribute. The position of baskak was abolished at the beginning of the 14th century, and darukhachi, as governors of the central government or heads of administrations of darug regions, existed even during the period of the Kazan Khanate.

Under the baskak or under the daruhach there was the position of tribute, i.e. their assistant in collecting tribute - yasak. He was a kind of bitikchi (secretary) for yasak affairs. In general, the position of bitikchi in the Ulus of Jochi was quite common and was considered responsible and respected. In addition to the main bitikchi under the khan's divan-council, there were bitikchi under the ulus divans, who enjoyed great power locally. They could, for example, be compared with the volost clerks of pre-revolutionary Russia, who performed almost all government work in the outback.

There were a number of other officials in the system of government officials who are known mainly by khan's labels. These are: “ilche” (envoy), “tamgachy” (customs officer), “tartanakchy” (tax collector or weigher), “totkaul” (outpost), “guard” (watch), “yamchy” (postal), “koshchy” (falconer), “barschy” (leopard keeper), “kimeche” (boatman or shipbuilder), “bazaar and torganl[n]ar” (guardians of order at the bazaar). These positions are known by the labels of Tokhtamysh in 1391 and Timur-Kutluk in 1398.

Most of these civil servants existed during the periods of the Kazan, Crimean and other Tatar khanates. It is also very noteworthy that the vast majority of these medieval terms and titles are literally understandable to any modern person who speaks the Tatar language - they are written like this in documents of the 14th and 16th centuries, and they still sound like this today.

The same can be said about the various types of duties that were levied on the nomadic and sedentary population, as well as about various border duties: “salyg” (poll tax), “kalan” (quitrent), “yasak” (tribute), “herazh” "("haraj" is an Arabic word meaning a 10 percent tax on Muslim peoples), "burych" (debt, arrears), "chygysh" (exit, expense), "yndyr haky" (payment for the threshing floor), "barn is small "(barn duty), "burla tamgasy" (residential tamga), "yul khaky" (road toll), "karaulyk" (payment for guard), "tartanak" (weight, as well as tax on import and export), "tamga "(there is a duty there).

In the most general form, he described the administrative system of the Golden Horde back in the 13th century. G. Rubruk, who traveled the entire state from west to east. His sketch of the traveler contains the basis of the administrative-territorial division of the Golden Horde, defined by the concept of “ulus system”.

Its essence was the right of nomadic feudal lords to receive from the khan himself or another large steppe aristocrat a certain inheritance - an ulus. For this, the owner of the ulus was obliged to field, if necessary, a certain number of fully armed soldiers (depending on the size of the ulus), as well as to perform various tax and economic duties.

This system was an exact copy of the structure of the Mongol army: the entire state - the Great Ulus - was divided in accordance with the rank of the owner (temnik, thousand-man, centurion, foreman) - into definite-sized destinies, and from each of them, in case of war, ten, hundred , a thousand or ten thousand armed warriors. At the same time, uluses were not hereditary possessions that could be transferred from father to son. Moreover, the khan could take away the ulus completely or replace it with another.

In the initial period of the existence of the Golden Horde, there were apparently no more than 15 large uluses, and rivers most often served as the borders between them. This shows a certain primitiveness of the administrative division of the state, rooted in old nomadic traditions.

The further development of statehood, the emergence of cities, the introduction of Islam, and closer acquaintance with Arab and Persian traditions of governance led to various complications in the Juchids' possessions with the simultaneous withering away of Central Asian customs dating back to the time of Genghis Khan.

Instead of dividing the territory into two wings, four uluses appeared, led by ulusbeks. One of the uluses was the personal domain of the khan. He occupied the steppes of the left bank of the Volga from its mouth to the Kama.

Each of these four uluses was divided into a certain number of “regions”, which were uluses of feudal lords of the next rank.

In total, the number of such “regions” in the Golden Horde in the 14th century. was about 70 in number of temniks. Simultaneously with the establishment of the administrative-territorial division, the formation of the state administration apparatus took place.

The Khan, who stood at the top of the pyramid of power, spent most of the year at his headquarters wandering across the steppes, surrounded by his wives and a huge number of courtiers. He spent only a short winter period in the capital. The moving khan's horde headquarters seemed to emphasize that the main power of the state continued to be based on a nomadic beginning. Naturally, it was quite difficult for the khan, who was in constant motion, to manage the affairs of the state himself. This is also emphasized by sources that directly report that the supreme ruler “pays attention only to the essence of affairs, without going into the details of the circumstances, and is content with what is reported to him, but does not seek out details regarding collection and expenditure.”

The entire Horde army was commanded by a military leader - beklyaribek, that is, the prince of princes, the grand duke. Beklyaribek usually exercised military power, often being the commander of the khan's army. Sometimes his influence exceeded the power of the khan, which often led to bloody civil strife. From time to time, the power of the Beklyaribeks, for example, Nogai, Mamai, Edigei, increased so much that they themselves appointed khans.

As statehood strengthened in the Golden Horde, the administrative apparatus grew, its rulers took as a model the administration of the Khorezmshah state conquered by the Mongols. According to this model, a vizier appeared under the khan, a kind of head of government who was responsible for all spheres of the non-military life of the state. The vizier and the diwan (state council) headed by him were in charge of finances, taxes, and trade. Foreign policy was in charge of the khan himself with his closest advisers, as well as the beklyaribek.

The heyday of the Horde state was marked by the highest level and quality of life in Europe at that time. The rise occurred almost during the reign of one ruler - Uzbek (1312 - 1342). The state took upon itself the responsibility to protect the lives of its citizens, administer justice, and organize social, cultural and economic life.

All this testifies to the well-coordinated state mechanism of the Golden Horde with all the attributes that are necessary for the existence and development of a large medieval state: central and local government bodies, a judicial and tax system, a customs service and a strong army.

Social order

The social structure of the Golden Horde was complex and reflected the variegated class and national composition of this predatory state. There was no clear class organization of society, similar to that which existed in Rus' and in Western European feudal states and which was based on hierarchical feudal ownership of land.

The status of a subject of the Golden Horde depended on his origin, services to the khan and his family, and his position in the military-administrative apparatus. Fedorov-Davydov G.F. Social structure of the Golden Horde. - M., 1993. P.23-67.

In the military-feudal hierarchy of the Golden Horde, the dominant position was occupied by the aristocratic family of the descendants of Genghis Khan and his son Jochi. This numerous family owned all the land of the state, it owned huge herds, palaces, many servants and slaves, innumerable wealth, military booty, the state treasury, etc.

Subsequently, the Jochids and other descendants of Genghis Khan retained a privileged position in the Central Asian khanates and in Kazakhstan for centuries, securing the monopoly right to bear the title of sultan and occupy the khan's throne.

The Khan had the richest and largest ulus type domain. The Jochids had a preferential right to occupy the highest government posts. In Russian sources they were called princes. They were awarded state and military titles and ranks.

The next level in the military-feudal hierarchy of the Golden Horde was occupied by noyons (in eastern sources - beks). Not being members of the Jochid clan, they nevertheless traced their genealogy back to the associates of Genghis Khan and their sons. The Noyons had many servants and dependent people, huge herds. They were often appointed by khans to responsible military and government positions: darugs, temniks, thousand officers, baskaks, etc. They were awarded tarkhan letters, which exempted them from various duties and responsibilities. The signs of their power were labels and paizi.

A special place in the hierarchical structure of the Golden Horde was occupied by numerous nukers - warriors of large feudal lords. They were either in the retinue of their lords, or occupied middle and lower military administrative positions - centurions, foremen, etc. These positions made it possible to extract significant income from the population of those territories where the corresponding military units were stationed or where they were sent, or where nukers occupied administrative positions. positions.

From among the nukers and other privileged people, a small layer of tarkhans advanced to the Golden Horde, who received tarkhan letters from the khan or his senior officials, in which their owners were granted various privileges.

The ruling classes also included numerous clergy, primarily Muslim, merchants and rich artisans, local feudal lords, clan and tribal elders and leaders, large landowners in the settled agricultural regions of Central Asia, the Volga region, the Caucasus and Crimea.

The peasantry of agricultural regions, urban artisans, and servants were in varying degrees of dependence on the state and feudal lords. The bulk of the workers in the steppes and foothills of the Golden Horde were Karacha - nomadic cattle breeders. They were part of clans and tribes and were forced to unquestioningly obey clan and tribal elders and leaders, as well as representatives of the military-administrative power of the Horde. Carrying out all the economic duties, the Karachus at the same time had to serve in the army.

In the agricultural regions of the Horde, feudal dependent peasants worked. Some of them - Sabanchi - lived in rural communities and, in addition to the plots of feudal land allocated for them, worked and carried out other duties in kind. Others - urtakchi (sharecroppers) - bonded people worked the land of the state and local feudal lords for half the harvest, and carried out other duties.

Artisans driven from conquered countries worked in the cities. Many of them were in the position of slaves or people dependent on the khan and other rulers. Small traders and servants also depended on the arbitrariness of the authorities and their masters. Even wealthy merchants and independent artisans paid taxes to the city authorities and carried out various duties.

Slavery was a fairly common phenomenon in the Golden Horde. First of all, captives and residents of conquered lands became slaves. Slaves were used in craft production, construction, and as servants of feudal lords. Many slaves were sold to the countries of the East. However, most slaves, both in cities and in agriculture, after one or two generations became feudal dependents or received freedom.

The Golden Horde did not remain unchanged, borrowing a lot from the Muslim East: crafts, architecture, bathhouses, tiles, ornamental decor, painted dishes, Persian poetry, Arabic geometry and astrolabes, morals and tastes more sophisticated than those of simple nomads.

Having extensive connections with Anatolia, Syria and Egypt, the Horde replenished the army of the Mamluk sultans of Egypt with Turkic and Caucasian slaves, and the Horde culture acquired a certain Muslim-Mediterranean imprint. Egorov V.L. Golden Horde: myths and reality. - M.: Publishing house “Knowledge”, 1990. P.129.

Islam became the state religion in the Golden Horde by 1320, but, unlike other Islamic states, this did not lead to the total Islamization of its society, state and legal institutions. A feature of the judicial system of the Golden Horde, firstly, was the above-mentioned coexistence of the institutions of traditional Mongolian justice - the dzargu courts and the Muslim kadi court; At the same time, there was no conflict between seemingly incompatible legal systems: representatives of each of them considered cases within their exclusive jurisdiction.

Right of the Golden Horde

The judicial system of the Golden Horde has not yet become an object itself no thorough research has been carried out by oriental historians or legal historians. The question of the organization of the court and process of the Golden Horde was only touched upon in works devoted to the history of this state, in particular in the study of B.D. Grekova and A.Yu. Yakubovsky Grekov B.D., Yakubovsky A.Yu. The Golden Horde and its fall. M., 1998. P. 103-104., as well as in the work of G.V. Vernadsky “Mongols and Rus'” Vernadsky G.V. History of Russia: Mongols and Rus'. Tver; Moscow, 2000. P. 219..

American researcher D. Ostrovsky, in an article devoted to the comparison of the Golden Horde and Russian state legal institutions, limits himself to a brief mention of the Supreme Court of the Golden Horde Ostrovsky D. Mongolian roots of Russian state institutions // American Russian Studies: Milestones of Historiography of Recent Years. The period of Kievan and Muscovite Rus': An Anthology. Samara, 2001. P. 159..

The bodies administering justice in the Mongol Empire were: the court of the Great Khan, the court of the kurultai - a congress of representatives of the ruling family and military leaders, the court of specially appointed persons - judges-dzarguchi Skrynnikova T. D. Legal proceedings in the Mongol Empire // Altaica VII. - M., 2002. pp. 163-174. All these bodies operated in the Golden Horde.

As in the Mongol Empire, the highest court was the rulers of the Golden Horde, who in the second half of the 13th century. received first actual and then official independence and accepted the title of khan. Justice as one of the functions of the khan's power was inherited by the Mongols from the ancient Turks: already in the Turkic Khaganate in the VI-IX centuries. Khagan is the highest court.

The central government in Mongolia recognized the right of the actual founder of the Golden Horde, Batu (Batu, ruled in 1227-1256) to try the noyons and officials subordinate to him, although with the proviso that “the judge of Batu is the kaan.”

Subsequent khans of the Golden Horde also actively carried out judicial functions. It was under Mengu-Timur, the grandson of Batu, in 1269. The Golden Horde officially became an independent state, and its rulers became sovereign sovereigns, one of the integral signs of whose power was the exercise of the function of the supreme judge.

Based on what legal norms did the khans make court decisions? The main source of law in the Mongol Empire and the Chingizid states were the so-called yas (laws) of Genghis Khan (collectively called the Great Yasa) and his successors - the great khans. The Great Yasa of the founder of the empire and the yasa of his successors constituted the main source of law for all bodies administering justice, including the khan. Other sources should not contradict the jars.

The Great Yasa of Genghis Khan, compiled in 1206 as an edification to his successors, consisted of 33 fragments and 13 sayings of the khan himself. The Yasa contained mainly the rules of the military organization of the Mongol army and the norms of criminal law. It was distinguished by the unprecedented cruelty of punishment not only for crimes, but also for misdeeds.

Another important source is the labels of the khans themselves. A label was any document issued on behalf of the supreme ruler - the khan and which had certain characteristics (had a certain structure, was equipped with a scarlet seal - tamga, was addressed to persons of lower position than the person who issued it, etc.). Oral and written orders and instructions of the khans were the highest law for their subjects, including the feudal nobility, subject to immediate and unquestioning execution. They were used in the practice of government bodies of the Golden Horde and senior state officials.

Not all labels were sources of law that were used to guide the administration of justice. For example, yarlyk-messages, which were not legal, but diplomatic documents, could not serve as sources of law for khans (and lower ulus judges); Nor were labels - letters of protection and letters of protection, issued in large numbers to diplomats and private individuals - sources for the court.

However, there were other labels that can be considered sources of law, and which were guided by the khans of the Golden Horde and the judges subordinate to them - these are the decrees of the rulers of various Chingizid states mentioned in historical chronicles and chronicles (for example, the “firmans” of the Persian Ilkhan Ghazan cited by Rashid ad-Din “ On the elimination of fraud and unfounded claims”, “On the award of the position of judge”, “On claims thirty years ago”), labels-agreements with Venice that have come down to us in Latin and Italian translations (more about them below) Grigoriev A.P., Grigoriev V.P. Collection of Golden Horde documents of the 14th century from Venice. SPb., 2002.P.235.; in the work of Muhammad ibn-Hindushah Nakhichevan (a close associate of the Jelairid rulers of Iran) “Dastur al-Katib” (XIV century), labels are given that describe the procedure for appointing the “emir yargu” (i.e., judge) and his powersGrekov B.D. , Yakubovsky A. Yu. Decree. op. P.104..

It is logical to assume that the khan, being the creator of law (he confirmed or repealed the decisions of his predecessors, issued his own labels and other normative and individual acts), was not bound by any norms. In making decisions, the khans were guided not only by their will, but also by written documents - jars and labels of Genghis Khan and his successors.

The difference between these sources of law was that the jars were permanent laws, which subsequent rulers were prohibited from changing, while each label was valid only during the life (reign) of the khan who issued it, and the next khan could, at his own discretion, either confirm, or cancel its action.

The Khan's court was only one, albeit the highest, judicial authority. In addition to the Khan's court, there were other courts to which he delegated judicial powers as needed. There is information that kurultai administered justice in the Golden Horde, as well as in Mongolia.

References to the kurultai court in sources are quite rare. It can be assumed that his judicial function was only a tribute to the ancient Mongol tradition and was soon reduced to nothing, as, indeed, were his other functions. This is due to the fact that these functions were transferred at the beginning of the 14th century. to the Karachibeys - the ancestral princes who became something like a “state council” under the khan of the Golden Horde.

In addition to the princes, judicial functions were also performed by darugs - governors of the regions of the Golden Horde.

The sources of law on the basis of which the princes and darugs administered justice were jars and labels, which were also binding on the khan himself. In addition, the princes could largely be guided by their own discretion, which they correlated with the political situation and the personal position of the khan.

The next judicial authority was, just like in the Mongol Empire, the court itself - “dzargu” (or “yargu”). The legal basis for the activity of dzargu courts was primarily the jars and yarlyks of the great khans and khans of the Golden Horde.

The labels appointing judges (dzarguchi) expressly require that decisions be made on the basis of Yasa. Decisions were supposed to be written down in special letters “yargu-name” (this, in principle, corresponds to the order of Genghis Khan: “Let them write down “Koko Defter-Bichik” in the Blue Painting, then binding them into books ... court decisions,” which was carried out by a special the staff of scribes is the “divan yargu.” Researchers believe, not without reason, that a similar order existed in the Golden Horde.

Thus, these “Blue Paintings” are another source that guided the judges of the Golden Horde. The qadi judges, who appeared in the Golden Horde after Islam became the official religion (in the 1320s), relied on traditional Muslim sources of law - Sharia and fiqh (doctrine).

Finally, we should consider another judicial institution, the emergence of which can only be explained by the international relations of the Golden Horde: a joint court of representatives of the authorities of the Golden Horde and other states, which operated in areas where there were lively relations between merchants of the Golden Horde and other states, diplomats, etc.

First of all, this applies to the Black Sea region, which long before the emergence of the Golden Horde became a center of international trade and diplomacy. The special status of this region lay in the fact that its population lived and conducted business, as a rule, not only according to the laws of the state that was considered its overlord (which was formally the Golden Horde in the 13th-15th centuries), but also in accordance with the historical established norms of international law, business customs, which were a kind of mixture of Byzantine, Turkic, Persian, Arab and other legal systems, whose representatives had interests in the region. Accordingly, the authorities of the Golden Horde had to take these realities into account in their legislative and judicial practice.

Based on the general principles of the Great Yasa, as well as on the specific labels of the khans, the judges of the “international courts” were largely guided by their own discretion, which, like the court princes, was correlated with the current political situation and the personal position of the khan or his immediate superior - the darug, and representatives of the Italian republics, respectively, their consul and the government of the republics.

The judges’ own discretion reflected a trend widespread at that time in the legal proceedings of the Italian trading republics: judges (official and arbitration) made decisions that corresponded to the peculiarities of the moment, giving preference to public opinion and the current situation rather than strictum ius Barabanov O. N. Arbitration court in the Genoese community of the 15th century: Judicial practice of Bartolomeo Bosco // Black Sea region in the Middle Ages. Vol. 4. M.; St. Petersburg, 2000. P. 213..

To no lesser extent, it reflected the principle of ijtihad accepted in Islamic law - the free discretion of a judge (later a legal scholar) in the event of silence on a given issue by a generally recognized source of law.

The law of the Golden Horde is characterized by extreme cruelty, legalized arbitrariness of feudal lords and state officials, archaism and formal uncertainty.

Property relations in the Golden Horde were regulated by customary law and were very complicated. This especially applies to land relations - the basis of feudal society. Ownership of the land and the entire territory of the state belonged to the ruling khan family of the Jochids. In a nomadic economy, land inheritance was difficult. Therefore, it took place mainly in agricultural areas. The owners of the estates, naturally, had to bear various vassal duties to the khan or the local ruler appointed by him. In the khan family, power was a special object of inheritance, and political power was combined with the right of ownership of the land of the ulus. The youngest son was considered the heir. According to Mongolian law, the youngest son generally had priority in inheritance.

The family and marriage law of the Mongol-Tatars and the nomadic peoples subject to them were regulated by ancient customs and, to a lesser extent, by Sharia. The head of the patriarchal polygamous family, which formed part of the ail, clan, was the father. He was the owner of all the family property and controlled the fate of the family members under his control. Thus, the father of an impoverished family had the right to give his children into service for debts and even sell them into slavery. The number of wives was not limited (Muslims could have no more than four legal wives). Children of wives and concubines were legally in an equal position, with some advantages for sons from older wives and legal wives among Muslims. After the death of the husband, management of all family affairs passed into the hands of the eldest wife. This continued until the sons became adult warriors.

The criminal law of the Golden Horde was exceptionally cruel. This stemmed from the very nature of the military-feudal system of the Golden Horde, the despotic power of Genghis Khan and his successors, the severity of the attitude of low general culture inherent in a nomadic pastoral society located in the very initial stage of feudalism.

Cruelty and organized terror were one of the conditions for establishing and maintaining long-term domination over the conquered peoples. According to the Great Yasa, the death penalty was imposed for treason, disobedience to the khan and other feudal lords, and officials, unauthorized transfer from one military unit to another, failure to provide assistance in battle, compassion for a prisoner in the form of helping him with food and clothing, for advice and assistance from one of the parties in a duel lying to elders in court, appropriation of someone else's slave or escaped captive. It was also imposed in some cases for murder, property crimes, adultery, bestiality, spying on the behavior of others and especially the nobility and authorities, magic, slaughter of cattle in an unknown way, urinating in fire and ashes; They even executed those who choked on a bone during the feast. The death penalty, as a rule, was carried out publicly and in ways characteristic of a nomadic way of life - by strangulation on a rope suspended from the neck of a camel or horse, or by dragging by horses.

Other types of punishment were also used, for example, for domestic murder, a ransom in favor of the victim’s relatives was allowed. The size of the ransom was determined by the social status of the murdered person. For the theft of horses and sheep, nomads demanded a tenfold ransom. If the culprit was insolvent, he was obliged to sell his children and thus pay a ransom. In this case, the thief, as a rule, was mercilessly beaten with whips. In criminal proceedings, during the investigation, witnesses were brought in, oaths were pronounced, and cruel torture was used. In a military-feudal organization, the search for an undetected or escaped criminal was entrusted to the dozen or hundreds to which he belonged. Otherwise, the entire ten or hundred were responsible.

The Mongol Empire is a centralized state that conquered in the first half of the 13th century. a vast territory of the Eurasian continent, from the Pacific Ocean to Central Europe.

In the 40s XIII century On a vast territory from the Irtysh to the steppes of the Volga and Danube, a state was founded, called the Golden Horde. The separation of the Horde from the empire of Genghis Khan occurred at the end of the 13th century. The Golden Horde was a feudal state.

It was characterized by the following features:

Nomadic and semi-nomadic nature of society;

Great role of tribal leaders;

Hierarchy of nomadic agriculture.

The ruling class was the feudal class (“white bone”), which included the Mongol-Tatar nomadic aristocracy.

The first group of feudal lords consisted of the khan and princes from the Jochi clan - the first khan of the Golden Horde. The second group included the largest feudal lords - beks and nayons. The third group of feudal lords consisted of tarkhans - people who held low positions in the state. apparatus. The fourth group consisted of nukers - they were part of their master’s inner circle and were dependent on him.

After the adoption of Islam as a state. Muslim clergy began to play a significant role in religion.

The feudal-dependent population was called “black bone” and included nomadic pastoralists, farmers, and city dwellers.

The peasant population was divided into communal peasants who had their own equipment, outbuildings (sobanchi), etc. and impoverished members of the peasant community (urtakchi).

During his lifetime, Genghis Khan divided the empire into 4 uluses, headed by a cat. put his sons. The Golden Horde was led by a khan who had strong despotic power. He was elected by the kurultai - a congress of the Mongolian aristocracy.

The central bodies of industry management were the sofas. Their work was coordinated by the vizier, the nominal head of the government. The highest officials in the usuls were emirs, in the army - bakouls and temniks. Local administration was carried out by Baskaks and Darugs.

The military organization of the Golden Horde was based on the decimal system. The entire population was divided into tens, hundreds, thousands and thousands; the commanders of these units were foremen, centurions, etc. The main branch of the Mongol troops was light and heavy cavalry.
Sources of law of the Golden Horde

The main sources of law of the Golden Horde were the following:

Collection of Mongolian laws and customs - Great Yasa of Genghis Khan;

Customary law of the Mongol tribes;

Sharia norms;

Certificates, labels, orders to local administrators, etc.;

- “hidden legend”.

Inheritance and marriage and family relations were based on customary law and traditions. Thus, the custom required the ransom of the wife from her parents; after the death of the husband, the property was managed by the main wife until the sons reached adulthood.

It is characteristic of criminal law that the laws of Yasa were extremely cruel. Their failure to comply was often punishable by death or self-mutilation. Military crimes were punished with particular cruelty.

The trial was adversarial in nature. In addition to testimony, oaths, and duels, torture was used, and the principle of mutual responsibility and group responsibility was used.