Gokturks

The state's most famous personalities other than its founder Bumin are princes Kul Tigin and Bilge and the vizier Tonyukuk , whose life stories were carved on the famous Orkhon Inscriptions .

ETYMOLOGY

''Kök-Turks'' is said to mean "Celestial Turks," but this is contested. Alternate meanings are Blue Turks, and Numerous Turks; as "kök" meant both "sky" and "blue" in the Köktürk language, and a similar sounding word stands for "root." According to the ancient East Asian cosmology outlined in the theory of the Five Elements (五行 Wǔ-xíng), to which the Turks have also ascribed since ancient times, the color blue is a symbol representing the eastern direction, and it is associated with good omens. The Guardian Deity of the Eastern Direction is the Blue Dragon. Thus, it would not be surprising if the Gokturks had chosen to call themselves "Blue Turks" in the primary sense of "East Turks," with all the associated connotations of "first," "rising," "dawning," "auspicious," and so forth.

ORIGINS

Two hundred years after the collapse of Hun ( Xiongnu ) power in Asia , leadership of the Turks was taken over by the Gokturks. The Gokturks inherited the Huns traditions and administrative experience. From 552 to 745 , Gokturkish leadership bound together the Nomad ic Turkic tribes into an empire, which finally fell due to internal conflicts over transfer of power. The great difference between the Gokturk Khanate and its Hunnish predecessor was that the Gokturks' temporary '' Khan s'' (lords) were ''subordinate'' to a Sovereign authority that was left in the hands of a council of tribal chiefs. The Gokturks were the first turkic people to write Their Language in a Runic script. ''See Orkhon Script .'' The Khanate received missionaries from the Buddhist s, Manichean s, and Nestorian Christian s, but retained their original Shamanistic religon, Tengriism .

ates at their height, ca. 600 CE. Lighter areas show direct rule; darker areas show spheres of influence.]]

FIRST UNIFIED EMPIRE

The Turks' rise to power began in 546 when Tumen made a pre-emptive strike against the Tiele tribes who were planning a revolt against their overlords the Rouran. For this service he expected to be rewared with a Rouran princess, ''i.e.'' marry into the royal family. But there was to be no princess. Enraged, Tumem allied with the Wei state against their common enemy Rouran. In 552 , Tuman defeated the last Rouran Khan, Yujiulü Anagui . He was formally recognized by China, and married the Wei princess Changle. Thus proving himself both in battle and diplomacy he declared himself Il-Qaghan (great king of kings) of the new GokTurk empire at Otukan, the old Xiong-Nu capital. He died one year later, the Gokturk state was really built by his son Mukhan. Tuman's brother Istämi (d. 576 ) was titled yabghu of the west and collaborated with the Persia n Sassanid s to defeat and destroy the White Hun s allies of the Rouran. This war drove the Avars into Europe . Istami initiated diplomatic contact with the Byzantine Empire and together they built an alliance against the Persians. Both rival states in north China paid large tributes to the Gokturks from 581 .

CIVIL WAR

This first Gokturkish empire split in two after the death of the fourth Qaghan, Taspar Khan (ca. 584 ). He had willed the title Qaghan to Mukhan's son Talopien, but the high council appointed Ishbara. Factions formed around both leaders. Soon, four rival khans claimed the title Qaghan. They were successfully played off against each other by Sui and Tang Dynasty China. The most serious contender was the Western Khan, Istämi's son Tardu , a violent and ambitious man who had already declared himself independent of the Qaghan after his father's death. He now titled himself as Qaghan (Khagan) the supreme ruler, and lead an army to the east to claim otukan. Ishbara, Khan of the Eastern Khanate fearing defeat became formally subordinate to the Chinese Emperor Yangdi for protection. Tardu attacked Changan the Sui capital around 600 as a warning to Emperor Yangdi to end his interference in the civil war. However, Chinese diplomacy incited a revolt of Tardu's Tiele Vassal tribes, and Tardu's reign was cut short in 603 . Among the dissident tribes were the Uyghur and Syr-Tardush.

DUAL EMPIRES

The civil war left the empire divided into an east and west. The east retained the name Gokturk as vassals of the Sui Empire, and the newly independent west was called Onoq (ten arrows). Khan Hsien of the East attacked China at its weakest moment during the transition between Sui and Tang dynasties. He was brought down by a revolt of his Tiele vassal tribes ( 626 - 630 ), allied with Emperor Taizong Of Tang . This tribal alliance is recorded as the Huihe (Uyghur). The Khan was taken prisoner and his empire divided into independent states. The Western Khan Tung Sche-hu was murdered in 630 by Persian diplomacy, despite strong support by the Byzantine Empire against the Persians. The Onoq were divided into east and west factions called Tulu and Nushipi respectively. By 659 the Tang Emperor of China could claim to rule the entire Silk Road as far as Po-sse (Persia). The Turks now carried Chinese titles and fought by their side in their wars.

INTER-IMPERIAL ERA

630-682 AD This era was charecterized by numerous independent rulers weak divided and engaged in constant petty wars. In the east the Uyghurs defeated their one time allies the Tardush, In the west the Turgish emerged as successors to the Onoq.

SECOND EMPIRE

Nonetheless, , was also a strong leader, but at his death in 734 , the empire declined. They ultimately fell to a series of internal crises and renewed Chinese campaigns. After Kutluk (Ko-lo) Khan 's military victory in 744 , the successors to the Gokturks became their more China-friendly junior partners, known as the Uyghur s.

RULERS (''QAğAN OR KAğAN'')

''for a more detailed list see'' Göktürk Qağans

First Gokturk Empire: