Turxanthos

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Turxanthos (or Turksathos ) was a partial ruler of the Western Turks in the second half of the 6th century. He ruled in Sogdia for several years after 576 .

Turxanthos is the Greek form of the name of this Turkish ruler, whose name (or title) was probably Turksad . According to the late ancient (Greek-speaking) and Chinese sources, the Turkish khaganate was divided into four khanates, with a superordinate khan. In Sogdia until about 576 Sizabulos ruled, who according to the majority opinion of the research is to be identical with the ruler Iştämi known from Turkish inscriptions . Sizabulos an alliance had around 570 successful with the Eastern Roman Empire against the Persian Sassanid Empire finished after it had come between Turks and Persians to the conflict, had a Turkish embassy under Maniakh visited Konstantin Opel, in turn traveled in August 569 a Byzantine embassy under Zemarchus to Turks rulers . This was the beginning of a regular exchange of ambassadors between the Western Turks and Eastern Streams. The late antique historian Menander Protektor reported in great detail on the journey of Zemarchus and the other Eastern Roman-Turkish contacts in the following years in his work, which is only fragmentary today, based on very good sources.

When an Eastern Roman embassy under Valentinos reached the Turkish court in 576, Sizabulos had recently died. The embassy wanted to announce the takeover of the new emperor Tiberios I and renew the alliance against Persia. However, the discussions that followed were very tense. Turxanthos made grave reproaches to the Eastern Roman ambassadors and accused them of lying and falsehood because the Eastern Roman emperor was now in contact with the Avars who had advanced west, despite the alliance with the Turks . The Avars, however, regarded Turxanthos as escaped slaves of the Turks and made violent threats against them. Turxanthos refused to negotiate with the Eastern Romans. He then even sent the Utigurs west, who conquered the city of Pantikapaion .

It is not easy to determine the exact rank of the turxanthos in the hierarchy of the Turkish khaganate. He ruled in Sogdia and probably also in parts of Khorezmia . The further statements made by Menander, however, clearly indicate that Turxanthos was by no means the overlord of the Western Turks, perhaps not even the first among equals. Furthermore, Turxanthos had to allow the Eastern Roman embassy to move on to Tardu . This Turkish ruler is well documented in Chinese sources and ruled from about 576 to 603; he was probably a brother of Turxanthos (this is not entirely certain and is based on the fact that Sizabulos is identical with Iştämi ), but in any case a higher ranking ruler of the Western Turks. The Roman-Turkish alliance was not renewed and finally broke up, although Tardu was again in contact with Emperor Maurikios in 598 and Emperor Herakleios later successfully contacted the Western Turks in order to persuade them to fight against Persia again.

literature

  • Mihály Dobrovits: The Altaic world through Byzantine eyes: Some remarks on the historical circumstances of Zemarchus' journey to the Turks (AD 569-570). In: Acta Orientalia 64, 2011, pp. 373-409.
  • Hans Wilhelm Haussig : The sources about the Central Asian origin of the European Avars. In: Central Asiatic Journal 2, 1956, pp. 21-43.
  • Hans Wilhelm Haussig: The relations of the Eastern Roman Empire to Central Asia and their resonance. In: Oriens Extremus 19/20, 1972, pp. 231-237.
  • Bertold Spuler : History of Central Asia since the appearance of the Turks . In: Karl Jettmar (Ed.): History of Central Asia . Brill, Leiden 1966, p. 123ff.
  • Denis Sinor : The Establishment and Dissolution of the Turk Empire. In: Denis Sinor (ed.): The Cambridge History of Early Inner Asia. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge 1990, pp. 285-316.

Remarks

  1. ↑ See Hans Wilhelm Haussig: The relations of the Eastern Roman Empire to Central Asia and their resonance. In: Oriens Extremus 19/20, 1972, p. 235.
  2. ↑ See the evidence from Hans Wilhelm Haussig: The sources on the Central Asian origin of the European Avars. In: Central Asiatic Journal 2, 1956, pp. 27f. with note 26.
  3. ↑ See Mihály Dobrovits: The Altaic world through Byzantine eyes: Some remarks on the historical circumstances of Zemarchus' journey to the Turks (AD 569-570). In: Acta Orientalia 64, 2011, pp. 373-409.
  4. ↑ On the Turkish-Eastern Roman contacts, see also Christoph Baumer : The History of Central Asia. Vol. 2, London 2014, pp. 175ff .; Walter Pohl: The Avars . 2nd edition Munich 2002, p. 42f .; Étienne de La Vaissière: Sogdian Traders. A history . Leiden 2005, p. 234ff.
  5. ↑ Hans Wilhelm Haussig: The relations of the Eastern Roman Empire to Central Asia and their resonance. In: Oriens Extremus 19/20, 1972, p. 232ff.
  6. ↑ Menander, fragment 43.
  7. ^ Cf. Walter Pohl: The Avars . 2nd edition Munich 2002, p. 66f.
  8. ↑ Walter Pohl: The Avars . 2nd edition Munich 2002, p. 67.
  9. ^ Hans Wilhelm Haussig: The sources on the Central Asian origin of the European Avars. In: Central Asiatic Journal 2, 1956, p. 29ff.
  10. ↑ See Denis Sinor: The Establishment and Dissolution of the Turk Empire. In: Denis Sinor (ed.): The Cambridge History of Early Inner Asia. Cambridge 1990, p. 304.
  11. ↑ See Denis Sinor: The Establishment and Dissolution of the Turk Empire. In: Denis Sinor (ed.): The Cambridge History of Early Inner Asia. Cambridge 1990, pp. 304f.
  12. ^ Walter E. Kaegi: Heraclius - Emperor of Byzantium. Cambridge 2003, pp. 142f.
personal data
SURNAME Turxanthos
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Partial ruler of the Gök Turks
DATE OF BIRTH 6th century
DATE OF DEATH 6th century