Golden Horde
Dual khanship (1281–1299)

Mengu-Timur was succeeded in 1281 by his brother Töde Möngke, who was a Muslim. However, Nogai Khan was now strong enough to establish himself as an independent ruler. The Golden Horde was thus ruled by two khans.

Töde Möngke made peace with Kublai, returned his sons to him, and acknowledged his supremacy. Nogai and Köchü, Khan of the White Horde and son of Orda Khan, also made peace with the Yuan dynasty and the Ilkhanate. According to Mamluk historians, Töde Möngke sent the Mamluks a letter proposing to fight against their common enemy, the unbelieving Ilkhanate. This indicates that he might have had an interest in Azerbaijan and Georgia, which were both ruled by the Ilkhans.

In the 1270s, Nogai had raided Bulgaria, as well as Lithuania. He blockaded Michael Asen II inside Drăstăr in 1279, executed the rebel emperor Ivailo in 1280, and forced George Terter I to seek refuge in the Byzantine Empire in 1292. In 1284, Saqchi came under the Mongol rule during the major invasion of Bulgaria, and coins were struck in the Khan's name. Smilets was installed by Nogai as emperor of Bulgaria. Accordingly, the reign of Smilets has been considered the height of Mongol overlordship in Bulgaria. When he was expelled by a local boyars c. 1295, the Mongols launched another invasion to protect their protege. Nogai compelled Serbian king Stefan Milutin to accept Mongol supremacy and received his son, Stefan Dečanski, as hostage in 1287. Under his rule, the Vlachs, Slavs, Alans, and Turco-Mongols lived in modern-day Moldavia.

At the same time, the influence of Nogai greatly increased in the Golden Horde. Backed by him, some princes, such as Dmitry of Pereslavl, refused to visit the court of Töde Möngke in Sarai, while Dmitry's brother Andrey of Gorodets sought assistance from Töde Möngke. Nogai vowed to support Dmitry in his struggle for the grand princely throne. On hearing about this, Andrey renounced his claims to Vladimir and Novgorod and returned to Gorodets. He returned with Mongol troops sent by Töde Möngke and seized Vladimir from Dmitry. Dmitry retaliated with the support of Mongol troops from Nogai and retook his holdings. In 1285, Andrey again led a Mongol army under a Borjigin prince to Vladimir, but Dmitry expelled them.

In 1283, Mengu-Timur converted to Islam and abandoned state affairs. Rumors spread that the khan was mentally ill and only cared for clerics and sheikhs. In 1285, Talabuga and Nogai invaded Hungary. While Nogai was successful in subduing Slovakia, Talabuga stalled north of the Carpathian Mountains. Talabuga's soldiers were angered and sacked Galicia and Volhynia instead. In 1286, Talabuga and Nogai attacked Poland and ravaged the country. After returning, Talabuga overthrew Töde Möngke, who was left to live in peace. Talabuga's army made unsuccessful attempts to invade the Ilkhanate in 1288 and 1290.

During a punitive expedition against the Circassians, Talabuga became resentful of Nogai, whom he believed did not provide him with adequate support during the invasions of Hungary and Poland. Talabuga challenged Nogai, but was defeated in a coup and replaced with Toqta in 1291.

Andrey, accompanied by a number of Rostov princes and the bishop of Rostov, went to Toqta to renew his patent and complain about Dmitry. Mikhail Yaroslavich was summoned to appear before Nogai in Sarai, where he chose to side with Nogai and went to him instead for confirmation of his throne, while Dmitry refused to appear, considering himself to be a vassal of Nogai. Daniel, Alexander Nevsky's youngest son, failed to appear at the court of Toqta. The division of the authority of the Golden Horde led to the creation of two rival groups of Russian princes. Toqta attempted to reassert his authority over northern Russia; he confirmed Andrey as the grand prince and authorized him to depose Dmitry, who refused to surrender his throne. Toqta sent a punitive expedition led by his brother, Dyuden, to punish those stubborn subjects, leading to the sacking of a number of cities in 1293, including Vladimir and Moscow, finally forcing Dmitry to abdicate. Only the city of Tver offered stiff resistance to the Mongol invaders, leading to another Mongol army being sent to attack the city. Nogai did not choose to intervene in Russian affairs but was concerned by Toqta's actions; he found it necessary to remind Toqta that he still held supreme power in the affairs of the Golden Horde and consequently sent his senior wife to Toqta in 1293, where she was received with due honor. In the same year, Nogai sent an army to Serbia and forced the king to acknowledge himself as a vassal.

Nogai's daughter married a son of Kublai's niece, Kelmish, who was wife of a Qongirat general of the Golden Horde. Nogai was angry with Kelmish's family because her Buddhist son despised his Muslim daughter. For this reason, he demanded Toqta send Kelmish's husband to him. Nogai's independent actions relating to Russian affairs and foreign merchants had already irritated Toqta. Toqta thus refused and declared war on Nogai. Toqta was defeated in their first battle. Nogai's army turned their attention to Caffa and Soldaia, looting both cities. Within two years, Toqta returned and killed Nogai in 1299 at the Kagamlik, near the Dnieper. Toqta had his son stationed troops in Saqchi and along the Danube as far as the Iron Gate. Nogai's son Chaka of Bulgaria, first escaped to the Alans, and then Bulgaria where he briefly ruled as emperor before he was murdered by Theodore Svetoslav on the orders of Toqta.

After Mengu-Timur died, rulers of the Golden Horde withdrew their support from Kaidu, the head of the House of Ögedei. Kaidu tried to restore his influence in the Golden Horde by sponsoring his own candidate Kobeleg against Bayan (r. 1299–1304), Khan of the White Horde. After taking military support from Toqta, Bayan asked help from the Yuan dynasty and the Ilkhanate to organize a unified attack on the Chagatai Khanate under the leadership of Kaidu and his second-in-command Duwa. However, the Yuan court was unable to send quick military support.
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