In 1381 A.D., Tokhtamyshin Khan defeated the forces of Mamai, a powerful minister of the Golden Horde, at the Battle of the Ajri River, and reunited the Golden Horde, which had been mired in more than 20 years of infighting.
In its heyday, the territory of the Golden Horde has not yet been recovered in two places, one is the Governor of Khorezm in the middle of the river in Central Asia, and the other is the territory of the Russian principalities.
Much to the surprise of Dmitry, Grand Duke of Muscovy, Tokhtamysh not only wiped out Mamai's power in such a short period of time, but also reunited the fragmented Golden Horde and strengthened it. After Tokhtamysh lost his succession to the Golden Horde, he issued an edict to the Slavic principalities, including Muscovy, asking them to reaffirm their vassals to the Golden Horde.
Although Muscovy defeated Mamai's 200,000-strong army in the previous Battle of Kulikovo, the price paid was also very heavy. For this war, the entire Muscovy had more than 100,000 people, and its national strength and civilian strength were exhausted. The Russians, who had tried their best to embark on the road to independence and freedom, were now filled with endless despair and fear in the face of the resurgence of the Golden Horde.
Faced with the choice of national survival, Dmitry had no choice but to send his cronies to Belgosare with a large amount of gold, silver, treasures and supplies to renew his submission to the Golden Horde.
Dmitry naively thought that Tokhtamysh would not mind, and that the Battle of Kulikovo was a shame for the Mongols of the Golden Horde. After all, their common enemy was Mamai, and it was precisely because of the devastation of Mamai in the battle of Kulikovo that Tokhtamysh had a chance to regain control of the Golden Horde.
Tokhtamysh was an aspiring Mongol king who defeated all forces and reunited the Golden Horde to become the Golden Horde. Of course, he cared about the brilliant achievements of the Mongols, and he could not tolerate shame in his heart.
In 1382, Tokhtamysh Khan was determined to reconquer the city-states of the Russian principalities. In order to make the war secretive, Tokhtamysh ordered the execution of all Russian merchants who were doing business in the territory of the Golden Horde** to prevent them from returning to report the news. Then he quickly assembled his troops from the vassal states and the governor's jurisdiction, and prepared to attack Moscow with the force of ploughing and sweeping the holes.
Due to the high degree of secrecy attached to Tokhtamysh's attack on Muscovy, by the time Tokhtamysh arrived in Muscovy with the Golden Horde army, the Russians were defenseless, and many cities soon fell. Although Muscovy was the most powerful of the Russian principalities, the smaller principalities under him were more afraid of the mighty Golden Horde.
The Mongol attack came so suddenly that it was too late for Grand Duke Dmitry to rally a large army against the Golden Horde in a short time. Moreover, the princes and princes of the Russians had different aspirations and were not in line with each other, and they all watched the fire from the other side in the face of the Mongol attack, trying to protect themselves. Dmitry could not collect troops, so he had to abandon Moscow and run to Kostroma to mobilize troops, and the whole of Russia and Moscow fell into a situation of being leaderless.
Tokhtamysh Khan led the army of the Golden Horde to the city of Moscow, and a nobleman named Ostier was elected as the main general of the city, and the Russians in the city swore not to surrender. The Mongols began to attack the city, and groups of signed troops attacked the city wall with cloud ladders, and the huge siege towers slowly advanced to the edge of the city, and the city crashing vehicles smashed frantically towards the city gates. Both the offensive and defensive sides were engaged in fierce and brutal fighting, and the defenders of Moscow fought to the death, resisted stubbornly, and constantly attacked the Mongols with rudimentary artillery.
The Mongol assault under the city of Moscow was thwarted and suffered a heavy blow. Since an armed attack cannot achieve the desired goal, then use some conspiracy means. Tokhtamysh sent a large number of letters of persuasion to the city**: if you surrender, you will be pardoned, and the lives and property of your family, your wife and children will be protected, and you will be richly rewarded.
This was originally a battle to defend the city with no hope, and in the face of such a powerful condition offered by the Mongols, Ostie, who was defending the city at this time, may have been terrified to the extreme, and did not suspect that this was a trap at all. What could have been remembered in Russian history was that Ostier was too gullible to the promise given by Tokhtamysh, and he surrendered in Kaesong.
After the gates of Moscow were opened, the Mongols did not keep their promises, Ostier was executed, and the cavalry of the Golden Horde frantically poured into the city and began to plunder, and the entire city of Moscow became a purgatory on earth, endless killing, and the city of Moscow was burned to ruins. Tokhtamysh Khan washed away the humiliation of the Battle of Kulikovo and returned to Belgosare with the Golden Horde army.
The Golden Horde's army had looted the entire city of Moscow, and by the time Dmitry returned from Kostroma, the Mongols had already withdrawn, leaving behind a corpse-strewn and devastated city. The national strength and wealth accumulated over more than 140 years by Dmitry's ancestors have been in vain on the eve of the prospect of independence. Demitry has countless reluctances in his heart about what has happened, as well as worries about the future of the entire country and nation.
Many Russian historians, when evaluating this historical tragedy, believe that even if Moscow was reduced to ashes in this battle, the potential of the Russian nation and Muscovy had not yet been lost, and it was only a matter of time before they embarked on the road of independence and freedom.
What Dmitry did not expect was that the revival of the mighty Golden Horde would be broken in the years that would be broken by another, more powerful lord, Timur, who had the grace to reinvent Tokhtamysh Khan.