Қалқа өзені шайқасы

1223 battle where the Mongols fought against Rus' princes and Cumans
the 1223 battle between Kievan Rus'–Cuman forces and the Mongol Empire

The Battle of the Kalka River was fought between the Mongol Empire, whose armies were led by Jebe and Subutai, and a coalition of several Rus' principalities, including Kiev and Galicia Volhynia, and the Cumans under Köten. They were under the joint command of Mstislav the Bold and Mstislav III of Kiev. The battle was fought on May 31, 1223 on the banks of the Kalka River in present day Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine, and ended in a decisive Mongol victory. Following the Mongol invasion of Central Asia and the subsequent collapse of the Khwarezmian Empire, a Mongol force under the command of generals Jebe and Subutai advanced into Iraq i Ajam. Jebe requested permission from the Mongolian emperor, Genghis Khan, to continue his conquests for a few years before returning to the main army via the Caucasus. While waiting for Genghis Khan's reply, the duo set out on a raid in which they attacked the Kingdom of Georgia. Genghis Khan granted the duo permission to undertake their expedition, and after making their way through the Caucasus, they defeated a coalition of Caucasian tribes before defeating the Cumans. The Cuman Khan fled to the court of his son in law, Mstislav Mstislavich of Galicia, whom he convinced to help fight the Mongols. Mstislav the Bold formed an alliance of the Rus' princes including Mstislav III of Kiev. The combined Rus' army defeated the Mongol rearguard at first. The Rus' pursued the Mongols, who were in a feigned retreat, for several days, which spread out their armies. The Mongols stopped and assumed battle formation on the banks of the Kalka River. Mstislav the Bold and his Cuman allies attacked the Mongols without waiting for the rest of the Rus' army and were defeated. In the ensuing confusion, several other Rus' princes were defeated, and Mstislav of Kiev was forced to retreat to a fortified camp. After holding for three days, he surrendered in return for a promise of safe conduct for himself and his men. Once they surrendered, however, the Mongols slaughtered them and executed Mstislav of Kiev. Mstislav the Bold escaped, and the Mongols went back to Asia, where they joined Genghis Khan.

In 1219, in retaliation for the murders of his ambassadors, the Mongol Khan, Genghis Khan, invaded the Khwarezmian Empire. In a campaign that lasted three years, Genghis Khan and his generals destroyed the Khwarezmian armies and caused the empire to disintegrate. The Khwarezmian Sultan Ala ad Din Muhammad succumbed to disease on an island in the Caspian Sea, leaving his son, Jalal ad Din Mingburnu landless. When Jebe (one of the Mongol generals pursuing Muhammad) heard of Ala ad Din Muhammad's death, he asked Genghis Khan for a year or two to continue his conquests before returning to Mongolia via the Caucasus. While awaiting Genghis' reply, Jebe and Subutai (another general pursuing Muhammad) led their army of 20,000 men, with each general commanding a tumen. From Tabriz, the Mongols advanced north and made their winter base in the Mugan Steppes. There, the army was strengthened by the arrival of Kurdish and Turcoman freebooters, who offered their services to the Mongols.

At the same time, Jebe's and Subutai's attention had turned elsewhere. In January and February 1221, they made a reconnaissance into the Kingdom of Georgia, entering through the Kura River. The goal of the Mongols was not to conquer the country but to plunder it, and the Kurds and Turcoman freebooters were sent off in the vanguard. However, the King of Georgia, George IV Lasha, advanced with 10,000 men and drove the Mongols back near Tbilisi. The Mongols withdrew, but continued to launch counter attacks on the Georgian army. In March 1221, the Mongols returned to Azerbaijan and besieged Maragheh, using prisoners as the vanguard to take the brunt of each assault on the city. By the end of the month, they had captured the city and put most of the population to death. Jebe and Subutai planned to advance south and capture Baghdad, the capital of the Abbasid Caliphate, and hold it for ransom while the Caliph was in Iraq i Ajam with a small army. Instead, the Mongols turned once again to Hamadan. This time, however, the city's leaders failed to surrender, and its defenders inflicted many casualties upon the Mongol forces before the Mongols captured and plundered the city. In late 1221, the Mongols advanced north into Georgia once again, entering through the Kura River. A 30,000 men strong Georgian—Armenian army was assembled near Tbilisi. The Mongols were also reinforced, numbering 30,000 and received further support from local Turkmen tribes. Jebe set up an ambush with 5,000 men while the main Mongol army feigned retreat. The Georgian cavalry pursued Subutai's army after defeating the Turkmen and were destroyed when Jebe closed the trap. The Georgian army suffered a heavy defeat at Khunan, and King George was mortally wounded. The Mongols proceeded to plunder southern Georgia.

The Mongols attacked the coalition army when most of it had crossed the Kalka River. The Mongols appear to have caught the coalition forces by surprise in a fast transition from horse archer fire to massed cavalry charges, because the coalition rout began incredibly quickly: the Rus forces bringing up the rear had not yet arrived on the battlefield by the time the front ranks were dissolving. The armies of Volhynia and Kursk made a gap in their line so that the fleeing Cumans could retreat. However, the Mongol heavy cavalry charged through the newly formed gap and also enveloped them. The army of Chernigov, which was not aware that the battle had started, was advancing when they collided head on with the retreating Cumans. Using smoke bombs to disrupt the coalition's ability to coordinate, the Mongol cavalry took advantage of the confusion in the Chernigov line and attacked, causing the line to collapse. This, in turn, led to the death of Prince Mstislav of Chernigov. At the same time, the Mongol wings closed around the shattered Rus' army, cutting off its retreat. The surrounded Rus' were hit by volley after volley, accompanied by cavalry charges at any weakness in the formation. As the Mongols were carrying this annihilation out, some of the army – led by Mstislav the Bold – managed to cut their way through the Mongol ring and escape. Mstislav of Kiev arrived to see what remained of the Rus' army fleeing. With his contingent of 10,000 men, he retreated to his stockaded camp, on a hill by the Dnieper. The pursuing Mongol army caught up with Mstislav of Kiev's forces and started to besiege the camp. This battle was a significant defeat, given that many of the Rus principalities lost much of their armies, with the notable exception of Vladimir Suzdal. Historian Robert Marshall describes the raid as follows: "The rest of Subutai's campaign has entered the annals of military history as one of the greatest adventures of cavalry warfare." The Mongols executed Mstislav of Kiev and the Kievan nobles with the traditional Mongol caveat reserved for royalty and nobility: without shedding blood. Mstislav and his nobles were buried and suffocated under the Mongol general's victory platform at the victory feast. Meanwhile, Mstislav the Bold managed to reach the western side of the Dnieper with what remained of his army. To stop the Mongols from crossing to the western side of the Dnieper, Mstislav destroyed all the boats he could find. After the battle, the people of Rus trembled in fear of this unknown scourge who had emerged from the frontier and destroyed the flower of their army. However, the Mongols were not there to conquer, and merely marched east after plundering. What the Rus' feared would happen did not come to pass, as the Mongols pursued the prince of Galicia and plundered a few towns in the south before turning around. The Mongol army crossed the Volga River near modern day Volgograd and passed through Volga Bulgaria. The Mongol army was routed by the Bulgars at the battle of Samara Bend and the remainder of the army continued marching east towards their rendezvous. The Mongols followed this up by attacking the Qanglis Cumans, who had supported their fellow Cumans in the Caucasus a year before. They fought against the Cuman army near the Ural Mountains, defeating and killing the Khan before making them pay tribute. Following this victory, the Mongols turned east and met Genghis Khan and the rest of the Mongol army in the steppes to the east of the Syr Darya River. Genghis Khan showed great appreciation for his generals' achievements and heaped praise on Jebe and Subutai. Jebe, however, did not survive the campaign long; he died soon afterwards. The importance of the expedition was immense. The expedition was history's longest cavalry raid, with the Mongols riding 5500 mile (8851 km) in three years. Subutai also stationed numerous spies in Rus', who provided frequent reports on what was happening in Europe and Rus'. In 1237 Subutai together with Batu led another attack, and with 120,000 men, conquered the Kievan Rus'.

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