Mongol invasions of Chechnya
| Mongol invasions of Dzurdzuketia | |||||||||
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| Part of the Mongol invasions of Georgia, Toluid Civil War, Berke–Hulagu war, Kaidu–Kublai war | |||||||||
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During the 13th and 14th centuries, the Mongols launched two long, massive invasions of the territory of modern Chechnya (then the Georgian-allied Vainakh kingdom of Dzurdzuketia). They caused massive destruction and human death for the Dzurdzuks, but also greatly shaped the people they became afterward. The ancestors of the Chechens and Ingush bear the distinction of being one of the few peoples to successfully resist the Mongols, not once, but twice, but this came at great cost to them, as their state was utterly destroyed. These invasions are among the most significant occurrences in Chechen history, and have had long-ranging effects on Chechnya and its people.
During what was the late Middle Ages of Western Europe, the Caucasus was invaded by Mongols and their Turkic vassals. The first appearance of Mongol troops in the Caucasus was an arrival of scouts in 1220-1222.Kypchak Turkic peoples - some of which becoming future affiliates of Genghis Khan - had been invading and settling areas further and further South and West (a process that had was continuing since the fall of the Khazars), including the fertile river valleys of the Terek and the Kuban, so there was already plenty of tension in the region, and weapons. There were plenty of early warnings of the Turco-Mongolian threat. In the 1230s, the Mongols gained rule over the Kypchaks, and turned them into vassals.
The clearest sign of the oncoming destruction was the Mongol invasion of Georgia, which commenced a year earlier to the invasion of the Vainakh kingdom of Dzurdzuketia. The Kingdom of Georgia was a strong ally of Dzurdzuketia, and its collapse under the weight of Mongol invasion was a signal event for the Dzurdzuks of the oncoming disaster (whether they actually realized it or not). The lack of support from Georgia (which had historically aided the Dzurdzuks in times of need in accordance with the alliance) and the situation of being surrounded on all sides was disastrous. This was a situation that Dzurdzuketia had never dealt with at least for centuries. Dzurdzuketia was a buffer state protecting Georgia, and as such Georgia would aid them as well, according to the alliance. The invasion of Georgia deprived the Dzurdzuks of this crucial lifeline.
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