The historical period in question focuses on the Russian-Khazar confrontation during the ninth and tenth centuries, for which source material is not as extensive as for the Russian-Byzantine relations. The Khazar Empire faced significant challenges, losing its western dependencies after the Russian occupation of Kiev around 862. The Rus, who had previously expanded westward and seized Kiev, began to encroach eastward into Muslim lands around the Caspian Sea. These territories, including Azerbaijan and the regions around the Volga River, were lucrative for the Rus due to both possibilities of plunder and trade. This intrusion led to tensions with the Khazars, who controlled access to the Caspian through the Volga delta, demanding duties from the Rus for passage.
Tensions between the Khazars and Rus eventually erupted in violent confrontations. A significant incident occurred in 912–913 when a Rus fleet, having negotiated passage with the Khazar king, launched raids on Caspian coastal regions, resulting in widespread plunder and bloodshed. The Khazars, allied with local Muslim forces, later attacked the Rus during their return journey, decimating their forces. This account by the Arab historian Masudi, though biased, highlights the complex political dynamics and dilemmas faced by the Khazar leadership, including maintaining peaceful relations with the nearby Muslim Caliphate while managing the aggression of the Rus.
After the disaster of 913, there were no significant Rus raids on the Caspian region for thirty years. However, in 943, the Rus, feeling emboldened, launched another incursion into the region, capturing the city of Bardha for a year before being repelled due to a pestilence outbreak. This raid occurred concurrently with a Rus campaign against Byzantine territories. Joseph, a Khazar leader, later claimed that the Khazars were involved in resisting these Rus aggressions. From 943 onward, the Khazars actively denied the Rus access to the Caspian, leading to further skirmishes until a decisive battle in 965 signaled the end of the Khazar Empire.
The pivotal campaign against the Khazars in 965 was led by Prince Svyatoslav of Kiev. Known for his aggressive military expeditions, Svyatoslav attacked Khazar territories along the Oka and Volga rivers. Upon defeating the Khazar forces, he captured the fortress of Sarkel, known as Biela Viezha to the Slavs. Despite the capture of strategic locations and the breakdown of Khazar control over distant Slavonic tribes, the core Khazar territories remained largely intact, illustrating that while the empire’s political dominance ended, the Khazar state persisted, similar to other historical empires that continued in diminished forms after losing territorial control.
The ultimate decline of Khazar power, particularly their control over the Slavonic tribal region, marks a significant shift in the balance of power in Eastern Europe. Svyatoslav’s military campaigns were among the last great expansions of early Russian influence in the region before facing setbacks themselves, such as defeat by the Byzantines. The Khazars managed to preserve parts of their domain despite these intrusions, maintaining the sovereignty of their heartland for several more centuries. The complex nuances of Khazar-Rus interactions during this period illustrate the intricate web of alliances, power struggles, and cultural exchanges that shaped the historical landscape of Eastern Europe in the medieval era.
After Svyatoslav’s death, a civil war erupted among his sons, leading to the emergence of his youngest, Vladimir, as the victor. Initially a pagan, Vladimir, reminiscent of his grandmother Olga, later converted to Christianity and was sainted. During his early reign, Vladimir indulged in a libertine lifestyle with numerous concubines, drawing criticism from historical accounts likening him to Solomon. His eventual baptism in 989 marked a turning point with enduring repercussions for Eastern Europe. Diplomatic engagements with various religious emissaries – Muslims, Roman Catholics, Khazar Jews, and Greeks – reflected theological debates reminiscent of the Khazar conversion discussions. However, Vladimir gravitated towards Orthodox Christianity, influenced by the Byzantine Empire’s cultural and political appeal.
Vladimir’s conversion signified a strategic alignment with the Byzantine Empire, strengthening ties through marriage to the Byzantine Princess Anna after the military conquest of Cherson. This alliance catalyzed the end of Byzantine-Khazar collaboration against Rus and facilitated the adoption of Greek Christianity as the official faith of Russia. Byzantine diplomacy achieved a significant victory, reshaping regional power dynamics, as the Rus shifted towards more significant cultural and political influence through their association with Byzantium, ensuring cultural independence from both Europe and Asia.
Despite Byzantium’s diplomatic success, their decision to abandon their long-standing alliance with the Khazars proved strategically flawed. Historically, the Khazar Empire had served as a buffer against various invasions, including those from the Arabs and Turks. By transferring the mantle of regional control to the Rus, the Byzantines underestimated the steppe nomads’ martial prowess. Consequently, the Rus and their territories were ill-equipped to manage the nomadic threats, leading to Kiev’s decline and Russia’s shift of power centers northward to places like Novgorod and Moscow.
The collapse of Khazar authority and the subsequent Byzantine miscalculation created a power vacuum, eventually filled by the nomadic Polovtsi, or Kipchaks, who dominated the steppes until the Mongol invasions. This shift resulted in the fragmentation of Russian territories and ongoing conflicts with nomadic tribes. Concurrently, the Seljuks, an offshoot of the Ghuzz, inflicted defeats on the Byzantine army, capturing Emperor Romanus IV Diogenes and gaining control of key regions in Asia Minor. This period of decline and fragmentation underscored the strategic missteps of Byzantine Realpolitik, which failed to anticipate the long-term consequences of severing ties with their traditional Khazar allies.
During the era of Kuman dominance and the subsequent Mongol invasion, the eastern steppes regressed into a period known as the Dark Ages, casting a shadow over the latter history of the Khazars. Historical references to the Khazar state during its decline, primarily found in Muslim sources, are highly ambiguous, making it difficult for historians to draw definitive conclusions. A significant factor contributing to the Khazar decline was not merely Svyatoslav’s military victories but Vladimir’s conversion to Christianity, which altered regional alliances. The ambiguity surrounding the destruction of Itil, the Khazar capital, highlights the challenges in tracing the Khazars’ decline; varying accounts leave open questions about who was responsible for the sacking of the city and the extent of its destruction.
Despite accounts alleging “utter destruction” by the Rus or other invaders, evidence suggests that the devastation was not permanent. Arab chroniclers noted that many Khazars fled to the Caspian shores, only to later return with assistance from Muslim allies. The recurrence of Khazaran-Itil in chronicles and its survival until the 13th century, noted in Arabic as “Saksin,” indicate that Khazar urban centers managed periods of reconstruction. Historical records suggest that the Khazar state, though weakened, continued to exist within diminished borders, surviving until at least the mid-12th century and possibly beyond.
The persistence of the Khazars is further evidenced by later references, including a report by Ibrahim Ibn Jakub circa 973 and anecdotes in the Russian Chronicle that indicate interactions with Khazar Jews. Into the 11th century, the Byzantine-Rus campaign against Khazaria and subsequent military activities illustrate their ongoing presence despite political setbacks. Notably, in the 12th century, Persian poets Khakani and Nizami mention Khazar involvement in military campaigns in the Caucasus. The writings of travelers like Rabbi Petachia of Regensburg and historians like Joannes de Plano Carpini, who documented Khazar communities during the Mongol era, reinforce the notion of their enduring, albeit reduced, cultural footprint.
By the mid-13th century, references to the Khazars as a distinct entity dwindled as the Mongol Empire expanded. Carpini’s documentation of Jewish Khazar communities in the northern Caucasus is the last substantial mention before their historical presence fades into obscurity. Although their direct influence waned, the legacy of Khazaria persisted in place names like “Gazaria,” used by Genovese and Venetian merchants for Crimea into the 16th century. This continued usage reflected a geographical memory of the Khazars long after their state had dissolved, marking the end of a once-powerful and enigmatic civilization.
Even after their political power was diminished, the Khazars continued to exert influence in various unexpected ways. Notably, a connection is suggested between the Khazars and the Seljuk dynasty, who were instrumental in the formation of Muslim Turkey. According to historical accounts, Seljuk’s father served in the Khazar army, and Seljuk himself was raised in the Kagan’s court, illustrating a close relationship that persisted until the Seljuks’ conversion to Islam. Despite this eventual break, Jewish influence lingered, apparent in the distinctly Hebrew names among Seljuk’s descendants, suggesting that Khazar-Jewish cultural and religious influences endured in some capacity within the Ghuzz tribes.
Folklore and legend have also preserved the memory of the Khazars in intriguing ways. Unlike the Christian-dominated narratives of the Primary Russian Chronicle, secular Russian epics, known as bylina, refer to Khazaria as the “country of the Jews” and depict its people as formidable Jewish warriors. This portrayal, as reflected in folk tales, emphasizes Khazaria’s identity as a Jewish state, arguably more vividly in popular imagination than historical documentation reveals. Similarly, Jewish lore in medieval Europe romanticized Khazaria as a kingdom of “Red Jews,” indicating a broader cultural memory of the Khazars long after their decline, fueled by the allure of an autonomous Jewish polity.
A fascinating episode in Khazar history involves a messianic movement led by a Khazar Jew, Solomon ben Duji, and later his son, David al-Roy. Attempting to reconquer Palestine, this movement reflects the enduring spirit and ambition within the Khazar Jewish community even after their political decline. Al-Roy gained a following in Kurdistan, seizing the fortress of Amadie and inspiring hopes of a Jewish triumph during a time of turmoil among Muslim and Christian powers. Although ultimately unsuccessful and ending in assassination, al-Roy’s legacy persisted in Jewish culture, with some suggesting his influence extended to the adoption of the six-pointed “shield of David” as a Jewish symbol.
In sum, the Khazars left a lasting imprint that extended beyond their geopolitical sphere. Their historical and cultural legacy continued to resonate in different ways, from influencing the Seljuk rise to power to inspiring legends in Russian and Jewish folklore. Khazaria’s experiment in Jewish statecraft, lasting for centuries, wielded a more profound influence on Jewish and regional history than often acknowledged, embedding itself into the cultural consciousness with enduring fascination and significance.