Podcasts about Circassian

Shawn Ryan Show: Read the notes at at podcastnotes.org. Don't forget to subscribe for free to our newsletter, the top 10 ideas of the week, every Monday --------- Marat Gabidullin, born in Siberia and raised in Uzbekistan, served in Soviet airborne forces until 1994, then spent three years in prison for shooting a crime boss. After security work in Russia, he joined the Wagner Group in 2015, rose to lead a reconnaissance company, and was badly wounded near Palmyra in 2016. He later advised the ISIS Hunters Battalion and fought at Khasham, but quit Wagner in 2019, briefly ran a Redut detachment in Syria, and left disillusioned. Gabidullin's 2022 memoir denounced Wagner and Russia's invasion of Ukraine; he now lives in France. Journalist and researcher John Lechner reports from conflict zones and specializes in Russian PMCs. His book Death Is Our Business (Bloomsbury, 2025) charts the rise of Wagner, following earlier work such as Beginner's Chechen and upcoming Circassian and Sango language texts. A former policy analyst for the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom and an emerging-markets banker at Deutsche Bank and Lazard, Lechner holds degrees from Harvard (Slavic Languages) and Georgetown (MSFS). Fluent in five languages and conversant in several others, he is a recognized expert on Russian foreign policy and has written for The Washington Post, The New York Times, The Atlantic, and Foreign Policy. He lives in Washington, DC. Shawn Ryan Show Sponsors: ⁠https://www.roka.com⁠ - USE CODE SRS https://www.americanfinancing.net/SRS NMLS 182334, nmlsconsumeraccess.org https://www.expressvpn.com/SRS https://www.shawnlikesgold.com https://www.hillsdale.edu/SRS https://www.shopify.com/SRS https://trueclassic.com/SRS https://www.ziprecruiter.com/SRS Guest Links: Marat Gabidullin FB - https://www.facebook.com/share/15TBVmf2mt/  Book - Moi, Marat, ex-commandant de l'armée Wagner - Les dessous de l'armée secrète de Poutine enfin révélé https://a.co/d/csNMjFH  Book - Ma vérité https://a.co/d/bLZYssf  John Lechner X - https://x.com/JohnLechner1 IG - https://www.instagram.com/johnalechner/ FB - https://www.facebook.com/john.lechner.5 Book - Death Is Our Business: Russian Mercenaries and the New Era of Private Warfare https://a.co/d/7rKXhnI Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Marat Gabidullin, born in Siberia and raised in Uzbekistan, served in Soviet airborne forces until 1994, then spent three years in prison for shooting a crime boss. After security work in Russia, he joined the Wagner Group in 2015, rose to lead a reconnaissance company, and was badly wounded near Palmyra in 2016. He later advised the ISIS Hunters Battalion and fought at Khasham, but quit Wagner in 2019, briefly ran a Redut detachment in Syria, and left disillusioned. Gabidullin's 2022 memoir denounced Wagner and Russia's invasion of Ukraine; he now lives in France. Journalist and researcher John Lechner reports from conflict zones and specializes in Russian PMCs. His book Death Is Our Business (Bloomsbury, 2025) charts the rise of Wagner, following earlier work such as Beginner's Chechen and upcoming Circassian and Sango language texts. A former policy analyst for the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom and an emerging-markets banker at Deutsche Bank and Lazard, Lechner holds degrees from Harvard (Slavic Languages) and Georgetown (MSFS). Fluent in five languages and conversant in several others, he is a recognized expert on Russian foreign policy and has written for The Washington Post, The New York Times, The Atlantic, and Foreign Policy. He lives in Washington, DC. Shawn Ryan Show Sponsors: ⁠https://www.roka.com⁠ - USE CODE SRS https://www.americanfinancing.net/SRS NMLS 182334, nmlsconsumeraccess.org https://www.expressvpn.com/SRS https://www.shawnlikesgold.com https://www.hillsdale.edu/SRS https://www.shopify.com/SRS https://trueclassic.com/SRS https://www.ziprecruiter.com/SRS Guest Links: Marat Gabidullin FB - https://www.facebook.com/share/15TBVmf2mt/  Book - Moi, Marat, ex-commandant de l'armée Wagner - Les dessous de l'armée secrète de Poutine enfin révélé https://a.co/d/csNMjFH  Book - Ma vérité https://a.co/d/bLZYssf  John Lechner X - https://x.com/JohnLechner1 IG - https://www.instagram.com/johnalechner/ FB - https://www.facebook.com/john.lechner.5 Book - Death Is Our Business: Russian Mercenaries and the New Era of Private Warfare https://a.co/d/7rKXhnI Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Join us as we delve into the rich cultural heritage of the Circassian community in Jordan. Our guest, Sama, shares her unique perspective on Circassian history, traditions, and customs. From the Circassian diaspora to their significant role in Jordan today, we explore how this community has preserved its identity. We also dive into how Sama and her community celebrate Ramadan, highlighting the ways they observe this holy month. Tune in for a fascinating conversation about cultural resilience, spiritual growth, and community bonding during Ramadan (and you'll learn some key Arabic phrases along the way).

On 9 January, Ukraine's Parliament has recognised the Russian Empire's 19th century genocide of the Circassians, during which Russian forced killed or deported hundreds of thousands of Circassians from their homeland in the Caucasus. This week, OC Media's Yousef Bardouka talks about the genocide and its impact on the Circassians and the Caucasus and the significance of the resolution, while Ukrainian MP Oleksiy Goncharenko, a co-author of the resolution, talks about how the bill came to be and Ukraine's role in supporting the people of the North Caucasus. Read more: Ukraine recognises Circassian Genocide Support independent journalism in the Caucasus and become an OC Media Member: Join today. …or donate to the collective Georgian media security fund.

OC Media's Robin Fabbro, Nate Ostiller, Arshaluys Barseghyan, and Yousef Bardouka talk about the regime change in Syria and what it means for the Caucasian diaspora communities in the country and what it says about Russia's influence and power globally. Read more: Armenia says ‘no opportunity' to evacuate Syrian–Armenians Syrian rebel leader condemns Abkhazia and South Ossetia recognition Right of return? — The struggles of the Circassian diaspora to settle in Adygea   Support independent journalism in the Caucasus and become an OC Media Member: Join today. …or donate to the collective Georgian media security fund.

Does your personal library overwhelm your home? Are there too many books in your life -- but you'll never get rid of them? Then you have a lot in common with Gilded Age mogul J.P. Morgan!Morgan was a defining figure of the late 19th century, engineering corporate mergers and crafting monopolies from the desk of his Wall Street office. His vast control over the steel and railroad industries paired with his connections in international banking granted him great power over American life and helped fuel the great economic disparities of the Gilded AgeIn the process Morgan became one of the wealthiest men in America -- but he did not tread the traditional path through New York high society. He preferred yachts over ballrooms.And books! For decades he collected thousands of rare books, letters, paintings and manuscripts from Gutenberg bibles to medieval illuminated tomes. There were so many books that Morgan decided to start the new century with his own personal project -- the construction of a library.Today the Morgan Library and Museum is open to the public and, as an active and thriving institution, continues to highlight the world's greatest examples of the printed word -- from Charles Dickens's manuscript for A Christmas Carol to past exhibitions on Beatrix Potter, James Joyce and even The Little Prince.Tom and Greg explore the biography of J. Pierpont Morgan then head to the Morgan Library to speak with Jennifer Tonkovich, the Eugene and Clare Thaw Curator of Drawings and Prints.And then they wander through the winding connections of buildings that comprise the Morgan Library & Museum -- from Morgan's study (and its 'hidden' vault of books) to the glorious main stacks, lined with triple tiers of bookcases fashioned of bronze and inlaid Circassian walnut.

In her new book, The Unseen Truth: When Race Changed Sight in America (Harvard University Press), the historian and Harvard professor Sarah Lewis unpacks a major part of United States history that until now wasn't just brushed over, but was intentionally buried: how the ​​Caucasian War and the end of the Civil War were conflated by P.T. Barnum, former President Woodrow Wilson, and others to shape how we see race in America. Long overdue, The Unseen Truth is a watershed book about photography and visuality that calls to mind works by history-shaping authors such as James Baldwin, Toni Morrison, and bell hooks. Lewis is also the founder of the Vision & Justice initiative, which strives to educate the public about the importance of art and culture for equity and justice in the U.S., and is launching a new publishing venture with Aperture this fall.On the episode, she discusses the tension between pedagogy and propaganda; the deep influence of Frederick Douglass's 1861 “Pictures and Progress” lecture on her work; how a near-death car crash altered the course of her life and The Unseen Truth; and the special ability of certain photographs to stop time.Special thanks to our Season 10 presenting sponsor, L'École, School of Jewelry Arts.Show notes:Sarah Lewis[04:01] The Unseen Truth[05:24] Woodrow Wilson[05:24] Frederick Douglass[05:24] P.T. Barnum[06:51] Toni Morrison[06:51] Angela Davis[06:51] Mathew Brady[51:14] Vision & Justice[11:35] Caucasus[14:02] Imam Shamil[17:38] Caucasian War[19:31] MFA Boston[19:31] The Metropolitan Museum[22:30] “Pictures and Progress”[28:41] “A Circassian”[28:41] “Slave Ship”[28:41] “The Gulf Stream”[35:13] Frances Benjamin Johnston[39:20] Jarvis Givens[39:20] Fugitive Pedagogy[44:05] The Rise: Creativity, the Gift of Failure, and the Search of Mastery[49:08] Montserrat[49:08] Under the Volcano[51:36] Aperture[52:26] Maurice Berger[52:26] Coreen Simpson[52:26] Doug Harris[52:26] Deborah Willis[52:26] Leigh Raiford[52:57] Hal Foster[56:01] Hank Willis Thomas[56:01] Theaster Gates[56:01] Mark Bradford[56:01] Amy Sherald[57:58] Wynton Marsalis[57:58] Charles Black, Jr.[57:58] Louis Armstrong[57:58] Brown v. Board of Education

An 1870s photograph of a performer with a blonde afro leads to a look into the racial perceptions and treatment of the time. The "race" was completely made up by a scientist and capitalized on by none other than P.T. Barnum. A whole mythology of who they were and what they looked like would be born out of the views of the Victorian Age. Please help us out by leaving a comment and sharing our show with others!    Don't forget to Subscribe, Comment & leave us a rating and review. We also have a YouTube Channel "Chasing History" where we take you into the field with the men & women who discover history!

We thought it would be interesting to talk about the Crimean Slave Trade, but we had not known that would, essentially, cover all of written history and all of the Old World. But it was on the schedule, and we found it interesting. So! We'll start with the mother of Carlo de Medici, Maddelena, who was captured in or sold from Circassia (it's over on the northeast shore of the Black Sea), and then sold in Crimea to a Venetian who took her to Venice and sold her to Cosimo de Medici, who took her to Florence. The Crimean slave trade was the major location of international slave trading from the 15th century until the 18th century, though it had existed much earlier. Maddelena was one of millions of people who were forcibly passed through the ports of Crimea. We distill a giant topic! But we mention Cervantes. He was one of the millions. Oh, and Captain John Smith.  Pocahontas gets a mention. She wasn't one of the slaves. She just got stuck with one of the stories. 

Florian and Esther discuss the language industry news of the week, with Head of Research Anna Wyndham joining to give a breakdown of the 2024 Slator Language AI 50 Under 50, a list highlighting 50 of the newest and most notable language AI companies.The list focuses on 50 language AI companies under 50 months old, showcasing their innovations in speech-to-text, machine translation, speech synthesis, and more.Esther talks about Disney's Accelerator Program, which invested in two language AI startups: ElevenLabs and AudioShake. AudioShake uses AI to parse audio tracks for mixing or dubbing and ElevenLabs, a multilingual AI voice startup, recently raised USD 80m.Florian mentions AnthropicAI's new language model, Claude 3 Opus, and shared a user's experience testing it for translating a low-resource language (Circassian) with impressive results. (note: a few hours after the podcast production was finished, the user gave an update that the model was trained on Circassian).Florian briefly touches on Elon Musk's lawsuit against OpenAI, with translation getting a shoutout as a key early use case for large language models.Esther provides an overview of Honyaku Center's financial results for Q3 2024, where overall revenues saw a 3% growth and translation remained the primary revenue driver.Esther shares news about recent layoffs at Sega of America, affecting 61 temp workers from quality assurance and localization.

In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Vladimir Hamed-Troyansky about North Caucasian Muslims in the late Ottoman period. They discuss the landscape of the Caucasus, the Ottoman Empire, and the Russian Empire in the late 19th century. They talk about the diversity of ethnic groups in the Caucasus, the Ottoman Empire as a land of refugees, and why Russian troops perpetrated an ethnic cleansing. They discuss the term muhajir, four major migrations from the Caucasus, the Ottoman Empire as a refugee regime, 1857 immigration law, 1858 land laws, 1860 refugee commission, what happened to Circassian refugees in the Balkans, and Ottoman slavery. They discuss Circassians moving to the levant, the importance of Amman, resettlement in central Anatolia, return migration to Russia, and many other topics. Vladimir Hamed-Troyansky is Assistant Professor of Global Studies at the University of California, Santa Barbara. He has his Ph.D. in History from Stanford University and was a postdoctoral fellow at Columbia University. His main interest areas are in global migration and forced displacement, with expertise in the Ottoman and Russian empires and their successor states. He is the author of Empire of Refugees: North Caucasian Muslims and the Late Ottoman State. Website: https://www.vladimirhamedtroyansky.com/ Get full access to Converging Dialogues at convergingdialogues.substack.com/subscribe

In this episode, we're tuning in to the music making of early colonial New Zealand. We meet music librarian and curator Marilyn Portman to look at a collection of early music albums which were brought amongst personal possessions to Aotearoa, to become the soundtrack of life in the colony. To bring the soundtrack to life, we meet up with musician Polly Sussex who demonstrates music making on a square piano by playing from the Auckland Libraries musical manuscript collection. See a list of references for this episode below or get in touch with us by emailing libraryresearch@aucklandcouncil.govt.nz and we'll make sure you can find the collection items of your interest. This podcast is part of a wider series of short films Ngako: The Collections Talk, available to view via aucklandlibraries.govt.nz/Ngako This episode was written and produced by Sue Berman, was recorded and produced by Benjamin Brooking and edited and engineered by Juliana Machado. This has been Ngako: The Collections Podcast - Musical Manuscripts Subscribe to check out the next episode! REFERENCES MANUSCRIPTS: Arthur Guyon Purchas. Williams Family albums of music. Book 1. 1852. MusMS-058-1. https://kura.aucklandlibraries.govt.nz/digital/collection/manuscripts/id/13983#.YZQg-QJ0H64.link Williams family. Williams Family albums of music. Book 4. 1850s. MusMS-058-4. https://kura.aucklandlibraries.govt.nz/digital/collection/manuscripts/id/14189#.YZQhBzXo3cU.link Arthur Guyon Purchas. Williams Family albums of music. Book 2. 1871. MusMS-058-2. https://kura.aucklandlibraries.govt.nz/digital/collection/manuscripts/id/14054#.YZQhBH3bZDE.link Williams family. Williams Family albums of music. Book 3. 1850s. MusMS-058-3. https://kura.aucklandlibraries.govt.nz/digital/collection/manuscripts/id/14079#.YZQi0u2J-fw.link PRINTED MUSIC: Henry R Bishop. I love thee Duetto, sung by Mrs. Bishop and Mr Braham, at the late Theatre Royal Drury Lane, in the opera of the Circassian bride. London: Goulding, D'Almaine, Potter & Co., 1810. https://discover.aucklandlibraries.govt.nz/search/card?id=44105b58-4f27-4915-905b-584f27c91597&entityType=FormatGroup BOOKS: Kirstine Moffat. Piano forte: stories and soundscapes from colonial New Zealand. Dunedin: Otago University Press, 2011. https://discover.aucklandlibraries.govt.nz/search/card?id=a2071fc3-60ff-5d93-81f5-502a7a46752c&entityType=FormatGroup Tessa Dudder. Sarah Mathew: explorer, journalist, and Auckland's ‘First Lady.' Auckland: David Ling Publishing Limited, 2015. https://discover.aucklandlibraries.govt.nz/search/card?id=5c7a3794-eab3-5941-803f-cf1800ecb72e&entityType=FormatGroup RECORDING Polly Sussex. My devoted piano. 7 Nov 2019. https://soundcloud.com/auckland-libraries/my-devoted-piano-november-7-2019?si=067ea631a6b94afc812032ca9dbe3a1d&utm_source=clipboard&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=social_sharing BLOG: Polly Sussex. Recreational music in 1840s Auckland. 17 Nov 2021. https://heritageetal.blogspot.com/2021/11/recreational-music-in-1840s-auckland.html Image credit: Williams Family albums of music. Book 1. 1852. MusMS-058-1. Pg 68 https://kura.aucklandlibraries.govt.nz/digital/collection/manuscripts/id/13970

Since its conquest by Russia in the 19th century, the North Caucasus has been the scene of genocides, forced deportations, wars for independence, and insurgency. The dozens of nations indigenous to the region continue to be repressed socially and culturally by the Russian Federation. However, Russia's brutal invasion of Ukraine has once again raised the imperial nature of the Russian state and has shone a light on how this imperialism extends to the North Caucasus, as several organisations led by North Caucasian natives and diaspora members call for the independence of their nations. On this week's episode of the Caucasus Digest, OC Media co-director Dominik Cagara talks about the colonial legacy of the Caucasus conquest and its lingering effects on the region. Magomed Torijev, a journalist and representative of the Ingush Independence Committee, talks about the committee's aim of securing independence for Ingushetia. Harold Chambers, a North Caucasus analyst, breaks down the current situation in the North Caucasus and talks about the challenges faced by these organisations. Read more: ‘We have only one enemy — this is Russia': the Chechens taking up arms for Ukraine Opinion | The Ingush are leaving Russia Opinion | Russia's death train rolls through Chechnya and Ingushetia Opinion | The world has woken up to the Russian terror that the Chechens know only too well Opinion | In Russia, calling yourself a Circassian is always a political stance Become a supporter at oc-media.org/support_us, or on Patreon.

In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Celine Kasem about the various ways she culturally identifies, her work in Syria, and activism in our current age. They begin by discussing how she became involved in activism and political work in Syria, and Gen Z's use of digital media tools to spread awareness about issues. They also talk about the various places she has lived, concept of home, ethnic and cultural identities, Circassians, and the various ethnic groups in Syria. They discuss the history of the Syrian conflict and the Arab Spring, how the conflict escalated and failed attempts at peace, the recent Assad Anti-normalization bill, and refugees. They mention the recent Turkish election, activism in the 21st century, and many more topics. Celine Kasem is a human rights activist and public speaker. Currently, she is the Director of media at the Syrian Emergency Task Force. She has her Bachelors in Political Science and will continue her education in Qatar for her Masters in Intercultural Communication. She has Syrian, Circassian, Canadian, and Armenian backgrounds and has a deep passion for Syrians around the world. Website: https://setf.ngo/Twitter: @celinekasemInstagram: @celinekasem This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit convergingdialogues.substack.com

Episode 136: This week on the “Dan's Talks” podcast, Dan speaks with Peter Walsh, the historian, lecturer and author of Ocean Road: The Story … Read More

Elizaveta Chukahrova, an independent journalist from the North Caucasus, phones in to talk about the impact of Russia's invasion of Ukraine on the North Caucasus and how Russian authorities attempt to hide the number of dead. Read more: Coffins from Ukraine in the North Caucasus OC Media editor Yousef Bardouka talks about the commemoration of the Circassian Genocide in Nalchik and the state of Circassian activism in the diaspora. Read more: Activists commemorate Circassian Genocide in Nalchik despite event ban Become a supporter at oc-media.org/support_us, or on Patreon.

Botox affects your understanding of emotions https://pca.st/s11l6kqq O arco e o cesto – Pierre Clastres https://edisciplinas.usp.br/mod/resource/view.php?id=173287 Did a Pagan Goddess Inspire Easter? https://youtu.be/QW06pWHTeNk Navalhas do pensamento https://revistaquestaodeciencia.com.br/apocalipse-now/2023/03/26/navalhas-do-pensamento Médicos negacionistas vendem ‘reversão' e ‘detox vacinal' pelo WhatsApp https://tab.uol.com.br/noticias/redacao/2023/03/27/medicos-negacionistas-vendem-detox-e-reversao-vacinal-pelo-whatapp.htm Circassian beauties https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Circassian_beauty Leonardo da Vinci's mother might have been a slave: here's what the discovery reveals about ... Read more

Three Israeli villages have been selected by the Ministry of Tourism to present their candidacies for the UN's World Tourism Organization's “Best Tourism Villages.” These are the Circassian village of Kfar Kama, the exotic Neot Smadar in the Negev and the historic village of Zippori in the Galilee. The selection will help develop tourism and safeguard the unique rural villages. Mitch Pilcer, the manager of Zippori Village Country Cottages and activist in the tourism industry there said his village's optimal location was behind its continuous human presence for over 10,000 years and who have all left their mark. (photo: Daniel Fleisch/flash90)See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Global Child Prodigy Awards presents #ProdigyTalks with Emanne Beasha. Emanne Beasha is an American-Jordanian singer of Circassian descent. She is the winner of the fifth season of the program Arabs Got Talent and she is also Finalist of fourteenth Season of America's Got Talent. Being a recipient of the Global Child Prodigy Awards 2020, she is recognized amongst the TOP 100 Child Prodigies of the World. or More details: Website: https://www.gcpawards.com/ Follow us on : Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCgkHIzGHYq2o_wu7ELIYMoA Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GCPAwards Twitter: https://twitter.com/gcpawards Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/global_chil... Linkedin: https://in.linkedin.com/company/globa...

We dig into Russian and Circassian cuisine with Emily Efraimov, the chef & owner of Little Dacha, one of LA's best new pop ups. We talk about her Grandma's inspiration on her culinary senses at a young age, her time in the New York Night Life scene and her journey to opening up her khachapuri carrying sensation. She also created a playlist for us as an ode to her time in NYC. Then we dip into the archives with the Brooklyn pop dance duo, Crush Club, with a funky, fun live performance. Snacky Tunes: Music is the Main Ingredient, Chefs and Their Music (Phaidon), is now on shelves at bookstores around the world. It features 77 of the world's top chefs who share personal stories of how music has been an important, integral force in their lives. The chefs also give personal recipes and curated playlists too. It's an anthology of memories, meals and mixtapes. Pick up your copy by ordering directly from Phaidon, or by visiting your local independent bookstore. Visit our site, www.snackytunes.com for more info.Heritage Radio Network is a listener supported nonprofit podcast network. Support Snacky Tunes by becoming a member!Snacky Tunes is Powered by Simplecast.

Dighaghaza, the return of the sun, is an ancient Circassian celebration of the Winter Solstice observed between December 21st-23rd.

Dance plays a vital role in preserving Circassian culture and customs, as this indigenous people from the North Caucasus have been scattered abroad due to genocide and war in the 19th century. The Highlanders, the dance troupe of the International Circassian Cultural Academy of Amman, Jordan, aims to do just this: preserve its people's rich folklore through fancy footwork.

“Ket Buqa Noyan kept attacking left and right with all zeal. Some encouraged him to flee, but he refused to listen and said, “Death is inevitable. It is better to die with a good name than to flee in disgrace. In the end, someone from this army, old or young, will reach the court and report that Ket Buqa, not wanting to return in shame, gave his life in battle. The padishah should not grieve over lost Mongol soldiers. Let him imagine that his soldiers' wives have not been pregnant for a year and the mares of their herds have not folded. [...]The life or death of servants like us is irrelevant.” Although the soldiers left him, he continued to struggle in battle like a thousand men. In the end his horse faltered, and he was captured. [...] After that, Ket Buqa was taken before Quduz with his hands bound. “Despicable man,” said Quduz, “you have shed so much blood wrongfully, ended the lives of champions and dignitaries with false assurances, and overthrown ancient dynasties with broken promises. Now you have finally fallen into a snare yourself.”[...]     “If I am killed by your hand,” said Ket Buqa, “I consider it to be God's act, not yours. Be not deceived by this event for one moment, for when the news of my death reaches Hülägü Khan, the ocean of his wrath will boil over, and from Azerbaijan to the gates of Egypt will quake with the hooves of Mongol horses. They will take the sands of Egypt from there in their horses' nose bags. Hülägü Khan has three hundred thousand renowned horsemen like Ket Buqa. You may take one of them away.”       So the great Ilkhanid vizier and historian Rashid al-Din records the heroic, and certainly greatly dramatized, account of Kitbuqa Noyan's final stand at the battle of Ayn Jalut in September 1260. This was the famous Mongol defeat at the newly established, and rather fragile, Mamluk Sultanate of Egypt. The Mongols however, did not see it as an irreversible cataclysm, but the defeat of a small force which would soon be avenged, for Heaven demanded nothing less. The  defeat of the Mongols at Ayn Jalut in 1260 was not the end of the war between the Mongols and the Mamluks, and over the next 50 years Hulegu's successors, the Ilkhans, tried repeatedly to avenge their losses only to be halted by the Mamluks' valiant resistance.  Here, we will look at the efforts by the Mongol Ilkhanate to bring their horses to the Nile. I'm your host David, and this is Kings and Generals: Ages of Conquest.       First, we should note that for anyone wishing to read more about the war between the Mongols and the Mamluks, the most detailed work on the subject can be found in Reuven Amitai-Preiss' Mongols and Mamluks: The Mamluk-Ilkhanid War, released in 1995. No other work details the entire conflict and its sources so fully, and is an absolute must read for anyone desiring the most effective overview on the subject possible.       With the death of Grand Khan Mongke in 1259, the Mongol Empire was irrevocably broken: while Hulegu and his successors stayed on good terms with his brother Khubilai, the nominal Great Khan, Hulegu was independent, ruler of  vast domain stretching from Anatolia to the Amu Darya, known as the Ilkhanate. Hulegu's cousins in the neighbouring Golden Horde, Chagatai Khanate and the Neguderis were almost immediately antagonistic to the Ilkhans, who found themselves defending their distant frontiers from all three, in addition to internal revolts. For the Ilkhans, the Mamluks were but one frontier amongst several, one they could turn to only when the threat from the other Khanates was low. More often than not, this simple fact prevented any great Ilkhanid invasion of the Mamluk state.   For the Mamluks though, their border with the Ilkhanate along the Euphrates river was of utmost importance. In the aftermath of Ayn Jalut, the Mamluk Sultan Qutuz was assassinated by the energetic Baybars, who had fought alongside Qutuz against Kitbuqa. We introduced Baybars back in episode 30 of this podcast. While much credit can be given to Qutuz and the quality of the Mamluk soldiery for the victory at Ayn Jalut, the reason for continued Mamluk successes against the Mongols can be attributed to Baybars. A Qipchaq from the great Eurasian steppe, as a young boy Baybars had been sold into slavery to the Ayybuid Sultan of Egypt. There, Baybars was converted to Islam and received extensive training in all matter of military affairs. An excellent soldier, coupled with  immense ambition, endurance and drive, Baybars understood clearly the danger the Mongols posed, and set up his entire kingdom to defend against them.    The new Sultan greatly expanded the Mamluk regiments, encouraging good relations with the Golden Horde, Genoese and Byzantine Empire to keep up the flow of Turkic slave soldiers from the Eurasian steppe, over the Mediterranean to the ports of Egypt. He established a sophisticated intelligence network to inform him on the Ilkhanate and spread misinformation within it, supported by a system of signal towers, messenger pigeons, improved roads, bridges and relay stations to rapidly send messages. This was the barid, which served as the Mamluks' answer to the Mongol yam system. Its riders reported directly to the Mamluk Sultan.  Frontier fortifications along the Euphrates River like al-Bira and al-Rahba were strengthened, and they served as the first line of defence when the armies of the Ilkhanate advanced. When messengers raced down from Syria to Egypt with news of a Mongol assault,  Baybars would immediately march with an army from Cairo to meet them head on. More often than not, the Mongol attack party would return to the Ilkhanate rather than face Baybars head on. His swift reaction kept border officials loyal, feeling their Sultan would soon be there to assist them, or to punish defections. Rather than face the Mongols in battle, garrisons of cities in Syria past the Euphrates border were ordered to withdraw and regrouped at designated locations during invasions, facing the Mongols with united forces or awaiting the Sultan.  Baybars would not allow the Mongols to overrun his empire piecemeal, as they had the Khwarezmian Empire some forty years prior.   Baybars cultivated relations with bedouin nomads across Syria, who provided valuable auxiliaries, intelligence and also to keep them from allying with the Mongols.  Finally, he strengthed his position domestically, controlling the economy and  appointing his own Caliphs to legitimize himself, presenting himself as the defender of Islam. Baybars prepared his entire kingdom for Mongol attacks, a highly effective system the Ilkhanate struggled against. For the Ilkhans, the theater with the Mamluks was a sideshow, one to attack only when other frontiers were secured. The Mamluk Sultanate itself had no hope of conquering the Ilkhanate or seriously threatening it, so the various Ilkhans felt no great rush to overwhelm the Mamluks. In contrast, for the Mamluks the Ilkhanid border was of utmost importance: Baybars had to levy almost entirety of the Mamluk army to repel the Mongols, and thus not even a single defeat could be afforded for it would allow the Mongols to overrun Egypt, and the remainder of the Islamic west. Thus did Baybars finetune a system that proved remarkably successful at defending against the house of Hulegu, although it demanded great personal ability on the part of the monarch, and Baybars' successors struggled to compare to his vision.    Soon after Ayn Jalut in September 1260, a Mongol force of about 6,000 returned to Syria that December. Commanded by Baydar, an officer of Kitbuqa who had escaped Qutuz and Baybars' great advance earlier that year, it was a serious threat. At that time Sultan Baybars had not tightened his hold over Syria, attacks by the Crusader states had wrought further confusion, and some of Qutuz's loyalists had rebelled against Baybars' rule, one of whom even declared himself sultan. There is implication in the Mamluk sources that the attack was not launched on Hulegu's order, but Baydar's own initiative to avenge Kitbuqa. As his army marched, they found that the garrisons of Syria had retreated before them. Placing a governor in Aleppo and other major cities, as the Mongols neared Homs they found the combined garrisons of Homs, Hama and Aleppo had retreated there and rallied before them. Greatly outnumbering the Syrian forces, perhaps 6,000 troops under Baydar to 1,400 under the Syrians, Baydar was ultimately defeated in battle, the Syrians aided by thick fog and the timely flanking of local Bedouin. Coincidentally, it was fought near the grave of Khalid ibn al-Walid, the great commander of the early Islamic conquests and victor at Yarmouk, which earned it double the symbolic value. This first battle of Homs, as it was to become known, strengthened the feeling that the Mongols were not invincible. The Mongol army outnumbered the Mamluk garrisons, and keenly demonstrated the importance of unified defense rather than each garrison hiding behind city walls. For many Mamluk writers, it was the first battle of Homs that stood as the great victory over the Mongols, rather than Ayn Jalut. It was also the last major Mongol offensive into Syria in the 1260s.    Hulegu spent the next years fighting with Berke Khan of the Golden Horde over the valuable territory of Azerbaijan, which Berke believed belonged to the house of Jochi. With Hulegu's death in February 1265, he was succeeded by his son Abaqa, who was distracted by Jochid attacks and the efforts of setting up a new empire. By then, the most entrenched Sultan Baybars could solidify his defences, and turn to the isolated Crusader strongholds. By this time, little remained of the former Crusader Kingdoms, baring some coastal cities like Antioch, Tripoli and Acre and a few inland fortresses like Krak des Chevaliers and Montfort. The Crusader States had shown neutrality to the Mongols, or even joined them such as the County of Tripoli in 1260 after the Mongols entered Syria. Their neutrality or allegiance to the Mongols, in addition to the possibility of them acting as a foothold to further European troops, meant that the Mamluks would unleash bloody vengeance on them whenever the opportunity arose. From February to April 1265 in the immediate aftermath of Hulegu's  death, Baybars conquered Caesarea, Haifa, Arsuf, Galilee and raided Cilician Armenia, the vassals of the Ilkhanate. In 1268 Baybars took Antioch, and in 1270-71 when Abaqa was fighting with Chagatayid and Neguderi armies in the far east, Baybars took the fortresses of Krak des Chevaliers and Montfort, and planned to attack Tripoli, another Ilkhanid vassal. Though it remains popular in some circles to portray the Mamluk conquest of the Crusader holdouts as titanic clashes, they were side affairs, undertaken by the Mamluks whenever the Ilkhans were occupied.  Such was the slow and humiliating coup de grace which ended the Crusader states.   The Mamluks' ending of the Crusader kingdoms certainly served them strategically, for it was the most effective way to prevent any link up between European and Mongol forces. Hulegu and his successors sent letters to the Kings and Popes of Europe, encouraging them to take up crusade against the Mamluks and together defeat them, offering to return Jerusalem and other holy sites back into Christian hands, but this almost always fell on deaf ears or were greeted with empty promises. Louis IX's highly organized crusades had resulted in utter debacles at Mansura in 1250 and Tunis in 1270, which dampened whatever minor enthusiasm for crusade was left in Europe. Few European monarchs ever seriously took up Mongol offers at military alliances, with two exceptions. King James I of Aragon found himself the most motivated by the Il-Khan Abaqa's requests, encouraged by the promises of the Ilkhanate's logistical and military support once they reached the mainland. James made his preparations, and launched a fleet in September 1269. An unexpected storm scattered the fleet, and only two of James' bastard children made it to Acre, who stayed only briefly, accomplishing little there before departing. This was soon followed by the arrival of prince Edward of England, the future King Edward I, at Acre in May 1271 with a small force, and Abaqa sent an army under Samaghar, the Mongol commander in Rum, to assist him: but Samaghar's force withdrew with the arrival of Baybars. Edward's troops performed poorly on their own minor raids, and set sail for England in September 1272.    One of the commanders who took part in Samaghar's raid was Mu'in al-Din Sulaiman, better known as the Pervane, from sahib pervana, the keeper of the seals, though it literally means “butterfly.” The Pervane was the dominant figure of the rump state of the Seljuqs of Rum: when the previous Mongol installed Seljuq Sultan, Kilij Arlan IV, had challenged the Pervane, he succeeded in getting Abaqa to execute the Sultan and instate Arslan's young son, a toddler enthroned as Ghiyath al-Din Kaykhusraw III. Thus did the Pervane, in coordination with Samaghar Noyan, act as the master of Anatolia. Essentially co-governors, Samaghar and the Pervane had a stable relationship, enriching themselves along the way. But when Abaqa appointed his younger brother Ejei to oversee the Pervana and Samaghar. The Pervane chafed under the increased financial burden and supervision, and asked Abaqa to recall his brother, claiming Ejei was in cooperation with Baybars. Abaqa promised to recall him, but delayed. In his frustration, the Pervane himself  reached out to Baybars. The Sultan's curiosity was piqued, but didn't commit; by the time his response reached the Pervane in 1274, Ejei and Samaghar had been replaced by Toqa Noyan, and the Pervane didn't respond. Under Toqa Noyan, Mongol pressure was even greater in Anatolia, and the Pervane's powers were more limited than ever.    What followed was a terrible mess of political machinations. The Pervane got Toqa Noyan removed, Ejei was reinstated, the Pervane's efforts to remove Ejei again frustrated Abaqa, who removed Ejei, killed some of his followers and reinstated the Pervane and Toqa Noyan. In November 1275, the Mongols besieged al-Bira, but Baybars had learned of it in advance allegedly due to contacts with the Pervane. After this, the Pervane was careful to rebuild trust with Abaqa, bringing him the Seljuq Sultan's sister to wed. At the same time, with or without the Pervane's support a group of Rumi amirs met with Baybars in July 1276, urging him to attack. Judging there was enough support in Rum for him he agreed, and Baybars mobilized his army over winter 1276, setting out in February 1277.   As Baybars sped up the Levantine coast, the Pervane rapidly lost control of Rum as various Turkmen rebelled and a new Mongol army under Tudawan cracked down on the amirs who had contacted Baybars. In Syria, Baybars sent a diversionary force from Aleppo over the Euphrates, while his main army entered Anatolia in early April. After pushing off a Mongol advance force of 3,000 in the Taurus Mountains, news reaches Baybars that Tudawun was camped close by on a plain near the town of Abulustayn (Elbistan) and set out for them, the armies meeting on the 15th of April 1277.   Tudawan's army was about 14,000 Mongols, Turk and heavily armoured Georgian cavalry was joined by an army of Rumi troops similar size under the Pervane, but Tudawan distrusted them, and kept them away from his lines. Tudawan's scouts had failed to judge the size of the Mamluk army, which he believed to be smaller and lacking Baybars. In reality, the Mamluks outnumbered the Mongols by a few thousand. As the Mamluks entered the plain at the narrow end they were unable to properly form up, and their centre was positioned before their left wing.  The Mongol left flank began the battle, sending arrows into the Mamluk standard bearers in the centre before charging them. The Mamluk centre buckled under the charge, and the more exposed Mamluk left wing was similarly pounded by the Mongol right.   The situation was critical for the Mamluks: likely at this stage, their bedouin irregulars fled. Baybars sent in his reserve, the garrison of Hama, to reinforce his left, and succeeded in forcing back the Mongols. A brief respite allowed the Mamluks to better deploy their lines, and counterattack. The Mongols fought fiercely, but the greater number of the Mamluks made the difference. Gradually forced back over the course of the day, their horses exhausted and unable to access remounts, the Mongols dismounted, signalling they were fighting to the death. With great struggle, the Mamluks defeated them and killed their commanders. The Rumi army took little part in the battle and dispersed, the Pervane escaping, with one of his sons captured by Baybars. The next day the Mamluk Sultan marched for Kayseri, reaching it on April 20th.   Baybars ordered the Pervane and the Seljuq Sultan to him, but the Pervane held out in his own castle. Both realized that Baybars would not be able to hold this position, deep in enemy territory, supplies low and the rest of his kingdom unprotected while a furious Abaqa rallied his army. 5 days after entering Kayseri, Baybars was en route back to Syria and though his vanguard deserted to the Mongols, by June he was in Damascus. Abaqa arrived in Rum too late to catch Baybars, and in his fury was only narrowly persuaded out of massacring everything between Kayseri and Erzerum, while the summer heat kept him from invading Syria. He was able to catch the Pervane though, and put him to death: allegedly, his flesh was eaten by Abaqa and the senior Mongols.   Thus ended one of Baybars' most skillfully executed campaigns: lightning quick and devastating, creating a terrible mess for the Ilkhanate, though in itself brought no strategic gain or shift in the status quo. It was a great shock when the Lion of Egypt suddenly died at the beginning of July 1277 soon after his return. Baybars had hoped to establish a dynasty: he was seamlessly succeeded by his older son, named al-Sa'id Berke. The new Sultan quickly antagonized the Mamluk emirs through his efforts to limit their powers, and was forced to abdicate in favour of his younger brother, the 7 year old Sulamish. The boy was nothing but a puppet, and his guardian, one of the late Baybars' Mamluks named Qalawun, soon forced the boy out and took power himself in November 1279.  Like Berke, Qalawun had been taken from the Qipchap steppe and sold as a Mamluk. He had loyally served Baybars and proven himself an able commander, though something of a schemer. Though Qalawun's line came to dominate the Mamluk Sultanate for essentially the next century, initially Qalawun faced stiff opposition in attempting to assert his authority.    This disruption in the Sultanate was a golden opportunity for Abaqa, who decided it was time to press the Mamluk frontier. To this, he decided to put his younger brother Mongke-Temur to the task. Prince Mongke-Temur first  raided Syria in November 1280 with King Lewon III of Armenian Cilicia, Bohemond VII of Tripoli and a contingent of Knights Hospitaller. In September 1281, Mongke-Temur returned again, a large force of perhaps 40-50,000 Mongols, Armenians under Lewon III, Georgians, Franks and troops from Seljuq Rum. Abaqa initially followed with another army, but may have been forced to hold due to rumours of an attack by the Golden Horde at Derbent.   The Mongol invasion provided a common enemy to unite the Mamluk factions fighting for power, and under Qalawun they advanced, reinforced by Syrian garrisons and bedouins. They reached Homs a few days before the Mongols in late October, giving Qalawun's troops a chance to dig in and rest on the plain north of the city. Their preparations were improved as a Mongol defector informed them of Mongke-Temur's battle plan. Most of the Mongol army was to be placed in the center with the right wing also strong, intending to overpower the Mamluk left and centre where the Sultan's banners would be. Qalawun thus reinforced his left wing, and positioned himself on a hill behind the vanguard to oversee the battle and act as reserve.    Marching through the night, the Mongols arrived early on the 29th of October, 1281. It was a massive front, over 24 kilometres in length due to the size of both armies. The wings of both forces, so far apart, had little knowledge of what was occurring on the other side. While tired from the night march, the Mongols were eager: the battle was initiated when the Mongol right under Alinaq charged forth. The Mamluk left and part of their centre crumpled  and routed under the onslaught. Alinaq continued his pursuit, and here Mongke-Temur's inexperience and the scale of the battlefield began to tell. Proper communication with the command seemingly absent, Alinaq pursued the fleeing Mamluks off the battlefield, as far as the Lake of Homs where they dismounted to rest, evidently anticipating the rest of the army would soon arrive.   A similar charge by the Mongol left wing lacked the numbers of the Mongol right, so the Mamluk right and centre were able to hold and counterattack. Qalawun's actual role in this counterattack isn't clear: some sources have him personally lead the attack, while in others he kept his position hidden, not even raising his banners so as to avoid Mongol arrows. The Mamluks pushed back the Mongol right and the bedouin came around to hit the Mongol flank. The Mongol right fell back to the centre, which under Mongke-Temur was being held in reserve. In the resulting confusion, perhaps thrown by his horse, Mongke-Temur was injured and unable to command. Most of the Mongols then dismounted to make a final stand around the prince, and ultimately routed under the Mamluk assault.    The Mamluks chased the fleeing Mongols right to the border with the Ilkhanate, many drowning in the Euphrates or dying in the desert: so deadly was this rout that  Mamluk authors said more Mongols were killed in flight than in the actual battle. Qalawun and a small guard remained on the battlefield: they were forced to hide their banners and stay silent when the Mongol right wing finally returned to the battlefield, too late to turn the tide. It seems it was able to take an orderly retreat back into the Ilkhanate.       Abaqa was furious at this loss, and intended to return the next year, but died in April 1282. As we have covered in our previous episodes, Abaqa's successors were not blessed with his same longevity or stability, and until 1295 the Ilkhanate saw a succession of short lived monarchs and infighting, internal revolts and renewed attacks by the Golden Horde. Though the succeeding Ilkhans continued to demand Mamluk submission, send threatening letters and continue to attempt an alliance with European powers, nothing materialized beyond border raids and skirmishes in both directions. For the time being, the immediate Mongol threat to the Mamluks had ended, and Sultan Qalawun turned to the remaining Frankish strongholds, all possible beachheads for European armies coming to assist the Ilkhans. Armenian Cilicia was pillaged, remaining inland Crusader strongholds were taken, and in April 1289 the Mongols' vassal Tripoli fell. After the death of Abaqa's son Arghun Il-Khan in March 1291, the Mamluks used the resulting distraction in the Ilkhanate to take the final major Frankish city in the Holy Land, Acre, leaving them with but miniscule holdings which fell in the following years. So ended 200 years of Crusader Kingdoms.       Following Qalawun's death in 1290, he was succeeded by his son al-Ashraf Khalil. A fearsome military commander, it was he who led the push to seize Acre and the final Crusader holdings of note. Yet he did not long to enjoy the throne, and was assassinated in the last days of 1293 due to his efforts to curb the power of the existing Mamluk emirs. With his assassination, the Mamluks entered a period of political instability over the Sultanate. Initially his younger brother al-Nasir Muhammad was placed on the throne, still a child and without any real power. After a year as Sultan he was forced out by his guardian and regent, a Mamluk named, of all things, Kitbuqa. Apparently of Mongol origin, he had been taken captive by the Mamluks at the first battle of Homs in 1260, and made in turn a Mamluk, that is, a slave soldier. Kitbuqa's reign as Sultan was not particularly notable, mostly marked by intense political infighting and machinations. There was, however, a large body of Oirats who deserted the Ilkhanate to join the Mamluks Sultanate. Kitbuqa's generous treatment of this body of nomadic troops, with whom it appeared he shared kinship, angered a number of the other Mamluk emirs and undermined his power. He was soon forced to flee as one of al-Ashraf Khalil's assassins, the Emir Lajin, seized power. When Lajin was murdered in 1299, al-Ashraf Khalil's young brother al-Nasir Muhammad was recalled to take the throne. Only 14 years old, al-Nasir Muhammad had no real power and was still a puppet for the emirs competing for power.   In comparison, 1295 saw the beginning of the reign of the powerful Ghazan Khan, son of Arghun. Ghazan, as we have covered, was not the first Muslim Ilkhan but by his reign a majority of the Mongols within the Ilkhanate had converted, and made the Ilkhanate an Islamic state. Ghazan consolidated his position early on, executing a number of potential challengers to the throne and restabilizing the  Ilkhanid economy, though you can listen to our episode dedicated to Ghazan for more on the internal matters of his reign. While Ghazan was a Muslim, this did not change Ilkhanid policy to the Mamluk. He continued to send letters to western Europe urging them to land an army behind enemy lines. In late 1298, while Mamluk armies ravaged the Ilkhan's vassal Cilician Armenia, the na'ib of Damascus, Sayf al-Din Qibjaq and a few other top Mamluks deserted to the Ilkhanate during a particularly violent stretch within the Sultanate. Fearing for their lives, they inform Ghazan of Sultan Lajin and his vice-Sultan Manketamur's purges and unstable positions. Then in summer 1299 a Mamluk raid into the Ilkhanate sacked Mardin, violating Muslim women and descretating a mosque during Ramadan. Ghazan was thus able to easily obtain a fatwa against the Mamluks for this, presenting himself not as an invader, but a holy warrior coming to avenge atrocities against Islam to encourage dissent among Mamluk ranks. Indeed, the ruler of Hama, a top Mamluk ally, believed the accusations.        By December 1299, Ghazan and his army of Mongols, Georgians and Armenians under their King Het'um II, had crossed the Euphrates. By then, Sultan Lajin had been replaced by a al-Nasir Muhammad who was nearly toppled by the Oirat refugees to the Sultanate. Ghazan bypassed Aleppo and Hama, and hunted for the Mamluk army. While encamped on the edge of the Syrian desert, Ghazan learned the Mamluks were gathering at Homs, where they had defeated Mongke-Temur 18 years prior. Rather than fall into their trap, Ghazan chose to outflank them, crossing the Syrian desert and coming out onto a stream some 16 kilometres north of Homs on the 22nd of December. To the Mamluks, it appeared that Ghazan was retreating, and advanced out of their favourable position to pursue. In a reverse of the 2nd Battle of Homs, now the Mamluks were forced to cross the desert, exhausting themselves to reach Ghazan early the next morning, while his own troops rested, quenched their thirst and formed up. Crucially, the Ilkhanid army was under the firm control of Ghazan and his commander Qutlugh-Shah, while the young al-Nasir Muhammad could not control his senior emirs.        On the morning of December 23rd, 1299, the Mamluks found Ghazan's army was drawn up. Ghazan commanded the centre, while his general Qutlugh-Shah commanded the right.  Qutlugh-Shah's beating of  war drums made the Mamluks believe Ghazan to be located there, and to him they charged, forcing the Mongol right back. Ghazan led the counterattack against them, and Qutlugh-Shah rallied what forces he could and rejoined the Il-Khan. From 11 a.m until nightfall, the battle raged, but finally the Mamluks broke and fled.  Ghazan pursued them past Homs before encamping, not wishing to be drawn into a false retreat in the dark. Homs surrendered without a fight and Ghazan took the Sultan's treasure, distributing it among his nokod, keeping for himself a sword, the title deeds to the Mamluk Sultanate and the muster roll of its army. Next Ghazan marched onto Damascus, which also surrendered without a fight, though its citadel held out. It seems almost the entire Mamluk garrison of Syria had retreated, perhaps recalled to defend the capital. Mongol raiding parties were making it as far as Gaza, with one source reporting they even entered Jerusalem, and the Sultanate seemed poised to fall.       But on February 5th, 1300, Ghazan withdrew from Damascus, returning to the Ilkhanate. Qutlugh-Shah had been left to take the Citadel of Damascus, but he soon followed the Il-Khan. By the end of May, the Mamluks had retaken Syria. Exactly why Ghazan withdrew is unclear: possibly reports of a Neguderi invasion in the east of his realm demanded his attention, or he feared there would not be sufficient pasturage for his large army to make the trip to Egypt: the Mamluks were known to burn grassland and destroy supply depots on the routes they suspected the Mongols to take.  Likely he was unaware of how dire the situation really was for the Mamluks, and suspected further armed resistance along the route would make the already treacherous crossing over the Sinai even harder on his army. Whatever the reason, Ghazan had lost the greatest chance to destroy the Mamluks. Ghazan did cross the Euphrates at the end of December 1300, reaching as far as Aleppo, but heavy rains rendered military operations untenable. In 1303 Ghazan ordered Qutlugh-Shah back into Syria, but he was defeated at Marj al-Suffar near Damascus in April. Ghazan's death the next year, only 34 years old, prevented his next assault. His brother and successor, Oljeitu, ordered the final Ilkhanid attack on the Sultanate, an embarrassing effort in winter 1312 which saw the army retreat not from the Royal Mamluks, but the stiff resistance of ordinary townsfolk. Oljeitu's son, Abu Sa'id, ultimately organized peace with the Mamluks in the early 1320s, ending the sixty years of warfare between the Mongols and the Mamluks. The Ilkhanate did not long outlive this treaty. Abu Sa'id death in 1335 without an heir saw the Ilkhanate torn apart by regional commanders -the Jalayirids, Chobanids, Muzaffarids and Injuids, among others- who appointed their own puppet Khans or abandoned the pretense entirely.       For the Mamluks, they were unable to take advantage of the Ilkhanate's disintegration as when al-Nasir Muhammad died in 1341, they entered their own period of anarchy: 8 of al-Nasir's children and 4 of his grandsons would in turn become Sultan between 1341 and 1382, a period which culminated in the rise of the Circassian Burji Mamluk Dynasty. Whereas the Sultans from Qutuz, Baybars through Qalawun and his descendants were men of Qipchaq-Cuman or even Mongol origin,  over the late thirteenth and first half of the fourteenth century a growing number of the Mamluks were sourced no longer from the Qipchaq steppe, but Circassia, a region along the Black Sea's northeastern coastline. With the end of the Qalawunid Dynasty, Mamluks of Circassian origin took power and established their own dynasty. The Bahri and Burji distinction refers to the parts of Cairo each Mamluk garrison had been based. It was this Mamluk dynasty who would face the wrath of Temur-i-lang at the beginning of the fifteenth century.       These post-Ilkhanid events will be the topic for a forthcoming episode, so be sure to subscribe to the Kings and Generals podcast to follow for that. If you enjoyed this and would like to help us continue bringing you great content, please consider supporting us on patreon at www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. This episode was researched and written by our series historian, Jack Wilson.  I'm your host David, and we'll catch you on the next one. 

with Şölen Şanlı Vasquez hosted by Brittany White | Over the course its final decades, millions of Muslim immigrants, many of them refugees of war and Russian conquest, settled in the Ottoman Empire. Between a quarter and a third of people in Turkey today have ancestors who arrived with those migrations. Yet their history often stops short of capturing the personal experiences of such people, what was erased, and what they have sought to preserve. In this episode, we speak with sociologist Şölen Şanlı Vasquez about how to write a more empathetic history of migration in Turkey through the lens of the Circassian diaspora. For her, this history is not just the story of how people from the North Caucasus were expelled from one empire and settled in an another. It is also a personal story about continuity, rupture, and recovery within the families of immigrants across generations and continents. Through a conversation about her ongoing research project called "The Home Within," we explore the themes of family, gender, ethnicity, race, and erasure --- not only in Turkey --- but across contexts of migration and displacement in the US and elsewhere. And we also reflect on the importance of public history that makes these issues relevant and relatable to a wider audience. « Click for More »

with Şölen Şanlı Vasquez hosted by Brittany White | Over the course its final decades, millions of Muslim immigrants, many of them refugees of war and Russian conquest, settled in the Ottoman Empire. Between a quarter and a third of people in Turkey today have ancestors who arrived with those migrations. Yet their history often stops short of capturing the personal experiences of such people, what was erased, and what they have sought to preserve. In this episode, we speak with sociologist Şölen Şanlı Vasquez about how to write a more empathetic history of migration in Turkey through the lens of the Circassian diaspora. For her, this history is not just the story of how people from the North Caucasus were expelled from one empire and settled in an another. It is also a personal story about continuity, rupture, and recovery within the families of immigrants across generations and continents. Through a conversation about her ongoing research project called "The Home Within," we explore the themes of family, gender, ethnicity, race, and erasure --- not only in Turkey --- but across contexts of migration and displacement in the US and elsewhere. And we also reflect on the importance of public history that makes these issues relevant and relatable to a wider audience. « Click for More »

It's got awful nice wood for a Fox B I said to my dad. There is always a gun that he has, or one that I have, that the other wants. In this case we were hashing out the finer details of a swap that involved a Winchester 101 and a Savage Fox B(16ga, single trigger) with awful nice wood to boot. I wont get into the nitty-gritty of who came out on top in this particular trade, rather, I'd like to address my own almost involuntary comment regarding the character of the wood on the gun. This is 10 Minutes on gunstock wood. Wood has long been one of the best ‘strength to weight ratio' materials at human disposal and so has been and is still used preferentially for building of all kinds. It makes perfect sense that wood was chosen to be the buffer between man and metal where guns were concerned. Above all things the gun stock needs to be functional and in the parlance of gun stock speak, functional means strong enough to endure the beating regular use implies. In the most basic terms, trees grow by adding layers upon layers, building out from within and up from the ground. This is why fences stapled to living trees don't end up, well, UP. If a tree grew up, the fence would be carried with it and away from the ground. This is the best example I can think of to illustrate the nature of tree growth and one that helps with the perception of grain in wood. Each year, the tree adds a layer. These stacked layers become the grain in the wood. Layers are added sequentially on top of one another until our tree is selected to become a gun stock. If only it were that simple. Layers are added each year, but trees do not add layers equally. We have all seen a tree bend to grow toward a light source, twist, arc, fall and then curl back up again. Layers are added based on chemical changes in its response to (primarily) light or lack thereof. Additionally, trees do not all grow in the same locations; trees that grow on the sides of mountains have it ‘harder' than trees that grow in a lowland along a river. From a tree-centric perspective, deep nutrient-rich soil is better than the rocky hillside of a mountain with its shallow soil and minimal nutrients. Location-specific issues on a smaller scale are not the same as regional variation. If you have ever planted a garden, you know that your seed catalog splits all crops regionally, based on climate segments. This is why when you bird hunt in northern Montana crops are wheat and beans, and as you go south there is more corn or canola. These crops, just like trees, ‘prefer' a specific set of conditions, growing season, rainfall, etc. to experience optimal growth and production.  So how does this factor into a gun stock? All of the above is to illustrate that not all trees are created equally, and even within a species of tree, each tree has been grown in a specific region and location. Each of these elements(and more) dictate the grain of the wood and as a result the outward physical appearance. Gun stocks are typically made of walnut (with the most notable other option being maple). Walnut is a hardwood, broad leaf tree, that exhibits exceptional strength and typically dense grain. The latin family name, juglans, has 21 species (according to Wiki) with black walnut(J. nigra) and english walnut(J. regia) being the most commonly used for gun stocks. There are many names for the varieties of walnut used in stocks like French, English, Turkish, Circassian, Claro, Bastogne, California and Black. To cut through the haze in nomenclature would require more words than this article allows, but know that these names either refer to a specific species or a physical location where a specific species of juglans was grown. An example being that English Walnut is J. Regia. French Walnut is also J. Regia but grown in France.  With location and species sorted out, gunmakers need a way to describe gun stocks from the perspective of aesthetics. We can pick out pieces of Turkish Walnut that have appropriate grain patterns to produce strong functional gun stocks, but within our subset of Turkish walnut with good grain, there must be a way to differentiate the aesthetic qualities of a stock blank. Enter the myriad of stock grading systems that have been developed to attempt to put a quantitative measure on something that I would argue is rather qualitative/subjective.  The features in gunstocks regarded as aesthetically pleasing are similar to those in other schools of woodworking. Fiddleback, a phenomenon where closely grown layers of curly grain reflect light in waves, is revered in furniture and instruments as well as gun stocks. The collective term for these ‘imperfections' in gunstock blanks is figure. Figure is described in many ways such as curly, ribbon, wavey, ropey, swirly, or wild. In gun stocks, the amount of mineral lines(dark lines caused by differences in soil mineral content), the waviness or curl of grain, and presence of burl all affect the appearance of the wood. Highly figured stocks receive higher grade values. Grading systems use letters, numbers, or nomenclature to attempt to describe the percentage of a stock that contains figure. Standard, semi-fancy, fancy, extra fancy, and exhibition is one such set of delineations. Typically there is a standard grade, and 4 types of grade above that represent 25, 50, 75 and 100% figure respectively. Grades that use numbers(or roman numerals) would run as Grade 1 or I for standard, increasing in number up to Grade 5 or V (and up). Letters might start with A and run up to AAA or X to XXX, (and up). Additional terms like Royal, Crown, Presentation or Best are all thrown in for additional spice. The take-home is no single system is in place that unifies all stock quality grades. Stocks are placed on subjective scales that vary from company to company. It is worth noting that stock grades may or may not account for the actual STRENGTH of the stock - IE the wood grain that runs through the grip area. This is arguably the most critical portion of the stock as it will experience the most stress and is also typically the thinnest area of the stock. Grain that runs along the grip, curving to match the natural shape of a pistol or round knob, or that flows straight through the length of an english stock is imperative. This is why looking beyond the ‘pretty' aspects of figure is so important.  So what does this all mean? Without trying to be cliche, beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Some folks might love burl wood and ‘birds eyes' in their stocks while others prefer the buttery look of French Walnut, still others want the classic American Walnut feathering found in so many Winchesters. My suggestion is to always take a look at the grain of the stock in addition to its outward beauty. When selecting a blank, ensure that you look at both flat sides of the blank as well as the top and bottom. Getting a look at the grain on all sides is the best way to ensure you have a strong stock blank to start which will yield the best-finished gun stock. Some of the most figured and unique blanks I have seen have only been fit to stock a boxlock shotgun simply because the boxlock stock design is inherently more sturdy than a sidelock and those pretty blanks would simply have cracked or broken otherwise.   For my own experience, I should have slowed down and looked at the grain on the Fox B stock, but like so many others, I find it easy to be seduced by the beauty found in the wood. Lucky for me, the stock looks pretty AND has good grain through the grip. My biggest suggestion; don't rely on luck like I did and check the grain the next time you consider a shotgun or stock blank.

Jonty Yamisha is an American Circassian, third-generation refugee, and accidental polyglot. He's fluent in four languages and dabbles in six. Jonty's love of travel and languages is the result of his unusual upbringing. With relatives all over the world, Jonty was exposed to a number of cultures, languages and lands. In his professional life, Jonty earned a bachelor's degree in International Studies with a concentration in economics, political science, and German literature from Vassar College. He went on to earn a Master of Business Administration (MBA) from New York University. Today, Jonty is the founder and Chief Executive Officer of @OptiLingo – a language learning mobile app that teaches over 20 languages, including Circassian. Learn More About Our Guest: Website: https://www.optilingo.com/ (https://www.optilingo.com/) YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCA0n4uWa21qN7hpRP2BZ2AA (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCA0n4uWa21qN7hpRP2BZ2AA) Twitter: https://twitter.com/optilingoapp (https://twitter.com/optilingoapp) Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/optilingoapp/ (https://www.instagram.com/optilingoapp/) LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/16275066/ (https://www.linkedin.com/company/16275066/) The Travelers Blueprint is more than just a podcast with consulting services that allow you to Become Your Own Travel Agent! Take a moment to rate us! Screenshot your review, email us the screenshot with your name and address and we will send you a FREE travel sticker! TheTravelersBlueprint@gmail.com FREE Travel Cheat Sheet! Just sign up for all the latest TTB news and guest information at http://www.thetravelersblueprint@gmail.com (www.thetravelersblueprint.com) For Travel Consulting Services w/ Bob: https://thetravelersblueprint.com/travel-consulting (https://thetravelersblueprint.com/travel-consulting) Our Private Community on Facebook is a great way to have your travel questions be heard and speak directly to us. Join here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/260677938112800 (The Travelers Blueprint Community) For less than a cup of coffee you can be a major supporter of our time and efforts in producing this podcast. Please consider becoming a Patron by signing up here: https://www.patreon.com/join/thetravelersblueprint (https://www.patreon.com/join/thetravelersblueprint) Follow Us on Social Media: https://www.instagram.com/the_travelers_blueprint/ (Instagram) - https://www.facebook.com/TheTravelersBlueprint18/ (Facebook) - https://twitter.com/ttblueprint?lang=en (Twitter) - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCyB8gPEriEPYP92Q1DHHkbg (YouTube) This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis: Podcorn - https://podcorn.com/privacy Chartable - https://chartable.com/privacy Support this podcast

A fascinating exploration of the wonderful ancient sagas of the peoples of the Black Sea region and the powerful women that their stories extol. Join us as we talk with John Colarusso, linguistic professor and translator of the Nart Sagas. The "Nart Sagas" are a collection of heroic tales from the Caucasus which are notable for their stories of warrior women and mystical matriarchs.  In the Classical World, Caucasia was known as the land of the fearsome female fighters whose name would pass into history as "Amazons."  The history of these people, their languages, their stories and their powerful women will amaze.Sean Marlon Newcombe and Dawn "Sam" Alden co-host.

Meet the warrior whose life and times inspired Frank Herbert's DUNE! Ruthless, courageous and charismatic, the Imam Shamil brought the pain to Russian soldiers in the Russian-Circassian war. But in Circassia's darkest hour, did Shamil have its back? Baroness Von Sketch Show’s Aurora Browne is here for a tale of conquest and vengeance in the Caucasus. Brought to you By: The Sonar Network

Today's double episode [re-release of episode 27A & 27B] is truly a tour de force. In this our second installment of “In Their Own Words,” our good friends Tembulat & Zalina take us on a deep dive into the very heart of Circassian / Kabardian culture. Not only musicians, this couple also hand makes instruments … Continue reading "CT103 – Kabardians: In Their Own Words! | Tembulat & Zalina Champion Circassian Culture & Language |

What is the role of women in the Circassian culture?

LINKS to MUSIC BELOW!!

Nawal Tsay was not your average Circassian woman when first arriving to the United States in 1970. Being the first female vice-president of the Circassian Benevolent Association, she overcame many obstacles and was determined to help build a greater community.  Podcast logo graphic by: Yara Abaza Circassian Music by: Tamer Mamkej & Amer Bazoqa

What is Circassian New Year? Why is it celebrated in March? Podcast logo graphic by: Yara Abaza Circassian Music by: Tamer Mamkej & Amer Bazoqa

In this episode, we'll hear from Lena Khumush, the daughter of Obaid Molamusa, one of the founding members of the current Circassian Benevolent Association. Lena will take us back in time to the early years within the Circassian community. Podcast logo graphic by: Yara Abaza Circassian Music by: Tamer Mamkej & Amer Bazoqa

Kadir Natho, a distinguished author, Circassian activist and one of the founders of the Circassian Benevolent Association, takes us back in time to when the first Circassians arrived to the United States in 1923. This episode was recorded in his Manhattan apartment just 8 days before his passing. We would like to thank Amo Kadir for his tireless efforts of encouraging all generations to continue preserving the Circassian culture. Check out "Circassian History" for additional information on our past and "Memoirs," an autobiography by Kadir Natho. Podcast logo graphic by: Yara Abaza Circassian Music by: Tamer Mamkej & Amer Bazoqa

A podcast created by two Circassian women capturing stories from the past, discussing present day challenges and what the future holds.

Tell This in my Memory : Stories of Enslavement from Egypt, Sudan, and the Ottoman Empire (Stanford University Press) is a study of slavery, liberation, and remembrance between the nineteenth and twenty-first centuries. Examines the mechanisms of enslavement and emancipation through narratives told by captive and their descendants as well as European missionaries. The power of the narrative Eve Troutt-Powell puts forward is further strengthened by the fact that she looks at slavery through a global lense integrating histories of Europe and the Atlantic with African, Egyptian, Circassian, and Ottoman history by not imposing upon it geographical limits imposed by a specific field of study, The author brings forth a fresh and integrated perspective on the slave trade. The framework of racial identity constructed through these stories proves instrumental in explaining how countries in a post 19th century middle east confronted or didn't the legacy of the slave trade. Today, these imprinted memories of slavery live on for contemporary refugees whose forced migrations often replicate the journeys and stigmas faced by slaves in the nineteenth century. The book presents an interesting easy read, where key ideas are not lost in academic jargon.It speaks to an audience beyond those studying middle east history and culture . The author asks probing questions about the lives and stories of slaves through perceptive readings of chronicles, memoirs, photographs, and other sources.It explores the geographic, spiritual and personal stories of enslaved people. Furthermore the book, acts as living memory as it not only explores the stories of slaves but also the memories of people who owned or were slaves. By exploring these narratives as such Troutt-Powell has chosen to show readers the choices her subjects made, the lives they were forced to lead, and the ways in which they came to accept their fate. The book aims to humanize the experiences of silenced people and stories that would not have otherwise been heard and these narrative are only brought alive by not limiting the narrative to the enslaved but also using the voices of those who enslaved. In doing so she offers valuable insights into how slaves interpret foreigners and how foreigners understand or misunderstand them. Troutt- Powell uses several other “fragments of autobiography” to illustrate the point that narratives, where they do exist, are subject to the filters and prejudices of the translator, the interviewer, or the intended reader. Often they do not help and, on occasion, they can even degrade the person telling the story. Eve M. Troutt Powell is associate professor of history at the University of Pennsylvania. She is a contributor to Race and Slavery in the Middle East: Histories of Trans-Saharan Africans in Nineteenth-Century Egypt, Sudan, and the Ottoman Mediterranean Yasmine Al Bastaki is a Masters Student at the Emirates Diplomatic Academy studying International Affairs and Diplomacy. She has a general interest in M.E.N.A studies and issues of Identity. She can be reached at yasminebastaki@yahoo.com. Listener's feedback, questions and book suggestions are most welcome. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/middle-eastern-studies

Tell This in my Memory : Stories of Enslavement from Egypt, Sudan, and the Ottoman Empire (Stanford University Press) is a study of slavery, liberation, and remembrance between the nineteenth and twenty-first centuries. Examines the mechanisms of enslavement and emancipation through narratives told by captive and their descendants as well as European missionaries. The power of the narrative Eve Troutt-Powell puts forward is further strengthened by the fact that she looks at slavery through a global lense integrating histories of Europe and the Atlantic with African, Egyptian, Circassian, and Ottoman history by not imposing upon it geographical limits imposed by a specific field of study, The author brings forth a fresh and integrated perspective on the slave trade. The framework of racial identity constructed through these stories proves instrumental in explaining how countries in a post 19th century middle east confronted or didn’t the legacy of the slave trade. Today, these imprinted memories of slavery live on for contemporary refugees whose forced migrations often replicate the journeys and stigmas faced by slaves in the nineteenth century. The book presents an interesting easy read, where key ideas are not lost in academic jargon.It speaks to an audience beyond those studying middle east history and culture . The author asks probing questions about the lives and stories of slaves through perceptive readings of chronicles, memoirs, photographs, and other sources.It explores the geographic, spiritual and personal stories of enslaved people. Furthermore the book, acts as living memory as it not only explores the stories of slaves but also the memories of people who owned or were slaves. By exploring these narratives as such Troutt-Powell has chosen to show readers the choices her subjects made, the lives they were forced to lead, and the ways in which they came to accept their fate. The book aims to humanize the experiences of silenced people and stories that would not have otherwise been heard and these narrative are only brought alive by not limiting the narrative to the enslaved but also using the voices of those who enslaved. In doing so she offers valuable insights into how slaves interpret foreigners and how foreigners understand or misunderstand them. Troutt- Powell uses several other “fragments of autobiography” to illustrate the point that narratives, where they do exist, are subject to the filters and prejudices of the translator, the interviewer, or the intended reader. Often they do not help and, on occasion, they can even degrade the person telling the story. Eve M. Troutt Powell is associate professor of history at the University of Pennsylvania. She is a contributor to Race and Slavery in the Middle East: Histories of Trans-Saharan Africans in Nineteenth-Century Egypt, Sudan, and the Ottoman Mediterranean Yasmine Al Bastaki is a Masters Student at the Emirates Diplomatic Academy studying International Affairs and Diplomacy. She has a general interest in M.E.N.A studies and issues of Identity. She can be reached at yasminebastaki@yahoo.com. Listener’s feedback, questions and book suggestions are most welcome.

Tell This in my Memory : Stories of Enslavement from Egypt, Sudan, and the Ottoman Empire (Stanford University Press) is a study of slavery, liberation, and remembrance between the nineteenth and twenty-first centuries. Examines the mechanisms of enslavement and emancipation through narratives told by captive and their descendants as well as European missionaries. The power of the narrative Eve Troutt-Powell puts forward is further strengthened by the fact that she looks at slavery through a global lense integrating histories of Europe and the Atlantic with African, Egyptian, Circassian, and Ottoman history by not imposing upon it geographical limits imposed by a specific field of study, The author brings forth a fresh and integrated perspective on the slave trade. The framework of racial identity constructed through these stories proves instrumental in explaining how countries in a post 19th century middle east confronted or didn’t the legacy of the slave trade. Today, these imprinted memories of slavery live on for contemporary refugees whose forced migrations often replicate the journeys and stigmas faced by slaves in the nineteenth century. The book presents an interesting easy read, where key ideas are not lost in academic jargon.It speaks to an audience beyond those studying middle east history and culture . The author asks probing questions about the lives and stories of slaves through perceptive readings of chronicles, memoirs, photographs, and other sources.It explores the geographic, spiritual and personal stories of enslaved people. Furthermore the book, acts as living memory as it not only explores the stories of slaves but also the memories of people who owned or were slaves. By exploring these narratives as such Troutt-Powell has chosen to show readers the choices her subjects made, the lives they were forced to lead, and the ways in which they came to accept their fate. The book aims to humanize the experiences of silenced people and stories that would not have otherwise been heard and these narrative are only brought alive by not limiting the narrative to the enslaved but also using the voices of those who enslaved. In doing so she offers valuable insights into how slaves interpret foreigners and how foreigners understand or misunderstand them. Troutt- Powell uses several other “fragments of autobiography” to illustrate the point that narratives, where they do exist, are subject to the filters and prejudices of the translator, the interviewer, or the intended reader. Often they do not help and, on occasion, they can even degrade the person telling the story. Eve M. Troutt Powell is associate professor of history at the University of Pennsylvania. She is a contributor to Race and Slavery in the Middle East: Histories of Trans-Saharan Africans in Nineteenth-Century Egypt, Sudan, and the Ottoman Mediterranean Yasmine Al Bastaki is a Masters Student at the Emirates Diplomatic Academy studying International Affairs and Diplomacy. She has a general interest in M.E.N.A studies and issues of Identity. She can be reached at yasminebastaki@yahoo.com. Listener’s feedback, questions and book suggestions are most welcome. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Hatred Is Baggage / Hatred being a poison …. SO, LET'S GET RID OF IT In the King James Version of the Bible the text reads: But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you; Matthew 5:44 Hatred have taken place around the world for decades but now it has taken a great hold on us here in America in the form of BLM and Antifa:  There has been too much exposure of such accounts hatred on the news and online for people not to be aware of it. As a result, it has led to many deaths some extremely horrible: You killed a child': Armed protesters in Georgia fire into car, striking 8-year-old girl Secoriea Turner: Hate crime, laws are not being enforced especially when it comes to these groups. Black Lives Matter (BLM) really should be re-named to Only Certain Black Lives Matter (OCBLM) because the only time that OCBLM demonstrates, extorts, burns, loots, assaults, and murders is when a white police officer kills an unarmed black man during an arrest since that is when OCBLM can leverage money and publicity from these deaths. , 'Enough!' When video footage was released Friday of a white Mesa, Ariz., police officer shooting dead a white man after the victim begged for his life while crawling on the floor, it was Black Lives Matter activists who called his death an outrage. The All Lives Matter crowd said nothing about Daniel Shaver's violent demise because All Lives Matter is not a thing. It is just cynical opposition to the thing that is Black Lives Matter. The biggest memory of hatred around the world stems from Germany under the direction of Adolf Hitler. His goal was to remove all the Jews from the world, and he succeeded in eliminating large numbers of them. Native Americans found themselves the victims of hate crimes as the white people began settling on the land in America as well. However, no one want to discuss this because everyone thinks blacks were the only victims of hate and racism and slavery. Is BLM and Antifa now the new Hitler? This terrorist act on America soil will now be if not already is the biggest organized group of haters around the world. Some forms of hate take place under the direction of organized groups. The Kul Klux Klan is well known for their intimidation and threats against blacks in the Southern region of the United States. They have been known to burn down Churches and homes belonging to black people as well to send them a direct message. Do we now have a new form of the KKK known as BLM and Antifa? No, they are being influence by the evilness and darkness of Satan Do not Be Deceived [The devil] is a liar and the father of lies.John 8:44.  We are not born hating people, hate is taught, hate is often the result of misinformation and from fear. Blacks were not the only slaves Christian slaves under roman rule The Galilee, where Jesus grew up, was dominated by Rome in the first century. Slavery existed in Galilee, just as it existed throughout the Roman Empire.  Barbary slave trade Christian slavery in Muslim Spain Ottoman slave trade, When Europeans Were Slaves: Research Suggests White Slavery Was Much More Common Than Previously Believed. The human cargo that arrived in Virginia in 1619 had come from the port city of Luanda, now the capital of present-day Angola. Back then, it was a Portuguese colony, and most of the enslaved are believed to have been captured during an ongoing war between Portugal and the kingdom of Ndonga. The people who came in August 1619 have been described as “the first Africans to set foot on the North American continent,” but that is incorrect. For example, as historian Henry Louis Gates Jr. has pointed out, Juan Garrido became the first documented black person to arrive in what would become the U.S. when he accompanied Juan Ponce de León in search of the Fountain of Youth in 1513, and they ended up in present-day Florida, around St. Augustine. Circassian slave Slavic Slaves Barbary slave trade Slavery under Islamic rule Arab slave trade What is Modern Slavery? Sex Trafficking. Child Sex Trafficking. Forced Labor. Bonded Labor or Debt Bondage. Domestic Servitude. Forced Child Labor. Unlawful Recruitment and Use of Child Soldiers.  The fact that society is so torn against each other means that more must be done to get people to accept such differences. Hatred tends to further separate our nation rather than bringing it together.   "What does the Bible say about hate?"  Biblically speaking, there are positive and negative aspects to hatred. It is acceptable to hate those things that God hates; indeed, this is very much a proof of a right standing with God. “Let those who love the Lord hate evil” (Psalm 97:10a). Indeed, the closer our walk with the Lord and the more we fellowship with Him, the more conscious we will be of sin, both within and without. Do we not grieve and burn with anger when God's name is maligned, when we see spiritual hypocrisy, when we see blatant unbelief and godless behavior? The more we understand God's attributes and love His character, the more we will be like Him and the more we will hate those things that are contrary to His Word and nature. However, the hatred that is negative surely must be that which is directed against others. The Lord mentions hatred in the Sermon on the Mount: “But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to judgment” (Matthew 5:22). The Lord commands that not only should we be reconciled with our brother before we go before the Lord, but also that we do it quickly (Matthew 5:23-26). The act of murder itself was certainly condemned, but hatred is a “heart” sin, and any hateful thought or act is an act of murder in God's eyes for which justice will be demanded, possibly not in this life but at the judgment. So heinous is the position of hate before God that a man who hates is said to be walking in darkness, as opposed to the light (1 John 2:9, 11). The worst situation is that of a man who continues professing religion but remains at enmity with his brother. The Scriptures declare that such a person is a liar (1 John 4:20), and he may fool men, but not God. How many believers live for years pretending that all is well, putting on a front, only to be found finally wanting because they have harbored enmity (hatred) against a fellow believer? Hatred is a poison that destroys us from within, producing bitterness that eats away at our hearts and minds. Therefore, the Scriptures tell us not to let a “root of bitterness” spring up in our hearts (Hebrews 12:15). Hatred also destroys the personal witness of a Christian because it removes him from fellowship with the Lord and other believers. Let us be careful to do as the Lord advised and keep short accounts with everyone about everything, no matter how small, and the Lord will be faithful to forgive, as He has promised (1 John 1:9; 2:1).   Yes, ENOUGH already, we cannot change the past it is part of America History, but we can work towards a better future for our children:  Question: "Is forgetting the past biblical? Does the Bible instruct us to forget the past The apostle Paul ends a section in Philippians 3 by saying, “One thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus” (verses 13–14). Is Paul instructing us to forget everything that ever happened before we met Christ? Is this a command to purge our minds of all memories? It is important to consider the passage that precedes these words. Paul had just listed all his religious qualifications that, to the Jewish mind, were of supreme importance. He then states, “I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord” (verse 8). Paul is making the point that no fleshly accomplishment matters in comparison with knowing Christ and trusting in His righteousness alone for salvation (Ephesians 2:8–9). Regardless of how good or how bad we may have been, we must all come to Christ the same way: humble, repentant, and undeserving of His forgiveness (Romans 5:8; Titus 3:5). The word forgetting in this passage means “no longer caring for, neglecting, refusing to focus on.” Our memories store millions of pieces of information gained through our senses since birth. Some experiences are impossible to forget, and any effort to forget them only makes them more prominent. Paul is not advising a memory wipe; he is telling us to focus on the present and the future, rather than the past.   It is easy to “live in the past.” Whether it is a past victory that our minds continually replay or a past defeat that hangs over us like a shroud, it needs to be left in the past. Nothing hinders present service quite like being mired in another time. Modeling Paul's forgetfulness means we count the past as nothing. We cut the strings that tie us to that bygone moment. We refuse to allow past successes to inflate our pride. We refuse to allow past failures to deflate our self-worth. We leave it behind and instead adopt our new identity in Christ (2 Corinthians 5:17). We are not to forget everything, however, in the sense of being oblivious to it. In fact, there are many times God instructs us to remember. In Deuteronomy 9:7, Moses tells the Israelites to “remember this and never forget how you aroused the anger of the Lord your God in the wilderness. From the day you left Egypt until you arrived here, you have been rebellious against the Lord.” We are encouraged to remember all God has done for us (Psalm 77:11; 103:2), others who are suffering for Christ's sake (Hebrews 13:3; Colossians 4:18), and what we were before Jesus saved us (Ephesians 2:11–12; 1 Corinthians 6:9–11). But the remembering should be to the glory of God and for our spiritual benefit. If we are cleansed by the blood of Christ, then no judgment remains for past failures (Romans 8:1). If God chooses not to remember our past sins (Hebrews 8:12), we can choose to set them aside as well and embrace the future He promises to those who love Him (Romans 8:28; Ephesians 2:10). Reality hate will be around until Jesus comes back: however, we can do our best to love one another and listen to the word of God:       Research done by: Willie T Ayers Veteran for Christ I'm Truly Blessed: (I'm just a nobody trying to tell everybody about somebody that can save anybody ….do you know him …his name is JESUS) I'm not ashamed of the Gospel: : I pray to never begin my day without thinking that perhaps he may interrupt my daily routine and begin His own. I am not looking for death. I am looking for Him. Today might be the last day when Jesus returns. : I Would rather stand with GOD and be judged by the world, Than to stand with the world and be judged by GOD (GOD'S judgement is eternal) The Joy I have the world did not give it to me……And the world cannot take it away. Have a God-day God is good all the time…and all the time God is good https://wakeupcastlerockandamerica.podbean.com/ or https://it-is-not-about-me-it-isabout-him.support/

Last week, I shared briefly on the plight of the Ethiopian People. I will continue to share their narrative along with the Bedouins of Shibli. I'll also introduce you to the Circassians who came to our rescue. These are all peoples who make up an integral part of Israel’s Mosaic. Music: The Cinematic Middle EasternPhoto: The Circassian Heritage Center in Kfar Kama, Israel by T.Terroade

Emre Basok is a Turkish-born Circassian pursuing his PhD in Ohio.  He studies how language supports identity and heritage and has recently turned his interests to his roots. He comes in as the third of our Circassian guest this summer and brings even more depth to the textured and colorful history of the Circassian diaspora. … Continue reading "CT78 – Interview with Emre Basok, PhD. | Circassian Language Identity & Maintenance in Turkey | Bi-Literacy | Circassian Benevolent Association | UNESCO"

David Shawgen is a research fellow and guide at Circassiologia, a museum devoted to the culture, history, and future of the Circassian people. What you might not expect is that this museum is located in Israel. In fact, it is the only museum in the Circassian diaspora. David shares how his people came to exist … Continue reading "CT77 – Circassian Diaspora in Israel | Interview with David Shawgen | Research Fellow at Circassiologia | The NC’s Newest McDonalds"

Here is the continuation and conclusion of our interview with Circassian cultural champion, YouTube creator, and founder of ELAJ skincare products, Suhein Beck. ——————-Once in a while, you run across a true cultural champion. For the Circassian nation, today’s interview guest Suhein Beck is such a champion. Her nearly nomadic upbringing has produced in her … Continue reading "CT75 – Interview with Suhein Beck, Circassian Cultural Champion PART II | ELAJ Skin Care | Lezginka in the USA"

Once in a while, you run across a true cultural champion. For the Circassian nation, today’s interview guest Suhein Beck is such a champion. Her nearly nomadic past produced in her an eclectic present. From media production to skin care products, Beck brings her heritage to bear on life today, remixing ancient traditions with current … Continue reading "CT74 – Interview with Mover and Shaker Suhein Beck PART I | Circassian Cultural Champion | Migration from Syria to Turkey to USA"

“And from thence they proceeded to the land of the Rus and conquered that country as far as the city of Magas, in the inhabitants of which were as numerous as ants or locusts, while its environs were entangled with woods and forests, such that even a serpent could not penetrate them. The princes all halted on the outskirts of the town, and on every side they built roads wide enough for three or four wagons to pass abreast. And they set up catapults opposite the walls, and after a space of several days left nothing of the city but its name, and took great booty. And they gave orders to cut off the right ears of the people, and two thousand seven hundred ears were counted. And from thence the princes returned homewards.”   So the Persian writer Juvaini describes the siege of the Alanian capital of Magas in winter 1239, a lesser known corner of the famous Mongol western campaign. In our previous episode, we covered the years 1236-1238, the first years of the great campaign wherein Batu and Subutai wrecked havoc across the northern Rus’ principalities and Volga Bulghars. When we left off, Batu and Subutai were withdrawing from the ashes of the northern Rus’ in spring 1238 to spend the summer resting men and horses and preparing their next moves. In today’s episode, we follow their continued movements, securing the remainder of the Volga and south Russian steppes, down to Crimea and the Northern Caucasus, to the resumption of hostilities against the southern Rus’ and the fall of Kiev, mother of cities, at the end of 1240. I’m your host David, and this is….   As we’ve stated already, Batu and Subutai pulled their forces back from the northern Rus’ to rest their men, fattening their horses on the grasslands of the steppe over summer 1238. The campaign had so far been a great success, marred by only a few difficult sieges and the loss of a son of Chinggis Khan, Kolgen. The northern Rus’ principalities had been subjugated, leaving only a collection of Rus’ states in the west still independent. For a time though, the Rus’ would have a respite. The Mongols were loathe to advance too far without securing their rear, and Subutai knew well from his own experience how tough the steppe’s inhabitants could be. Were you to place the conquests at that point onto a map of modern Russia, you would have seen a huge strip of land from the northernmost point of the Caspian Sea to where Moscow sits today as under Mongol rule. The steppes of southern Russia, Ukraine, Crimea and between the Black and Caspians seas north of the Caucasus were still unconquered, where several nomadic, semi-nomadic and other independent powers continued to reside. Many Cuman-Qipchaq tribes had fled deeper into that region, having avoided the initial Mongol advance. Leaving them unattended would allow them to move back into their original territory once the Mongols moved on, or even strike their rear while the Mongols focused on the Rus’ settlements. So the decision was made, once man and horse was rested by the end of summer 1238, to subdue these peoples.   You may recall our episode covering Chormaqun Noyan’s conquest of the Caucasus and Georgian Kingdom. That was happening essentially at the same time as this. As the Qipchaqs and Georgians were known to have had contacts and alliances in the past, it may have been a conscious decision to coordinate these offenses, ensuring no help would come from the steppe to the Caucasus while ensuring the Caucasus could not be a haven for fleeing nomads. Securing the region also provided another lane of contact for Mongol forces, rather than all messages being forced to circumnavigate the vast Caspian Sea. An interesting thing to note in regards to the scale of the Mongol Conquests, which often happened simultaneously: it’s easy to forget, since by necessity most discussions have to pick only a narrow window to discuss.    In autumn 1238, several Mongol armies shot across the southern steppe, beginning at the Black Sea coastline and moving east. Batu’s brother Shiban, Chagatai’s grandson Buri and Tolui’s son Bojek marched into the Crimean Peninsula, defeating the Cuman tribes who inhabited the peninsula’s fertile steppe, and its Armenian, Greek and even Gothic population. On December 26th 1238, the famed Crimean trade port of Sudak, also called Soldaia, fell to the Mongols, leaving them the masters of this great trade entrepot. Another of Batu’s brothers, Berke, later to be the famous Muslim ruler of the Golden Horde, at the same time campaigned against the Cuman-Qipchaqs north of the Black Sea. Those not subjugated by Berke were dislodged and likely among their number, or soon to be at least, was an important Cuman leader called Kuthen in Latin sources, though more commonly known as Kotjen or Kötöny. We’ve met him before, as he was present at the battle of the Kalka River back in 1223. With a marriage alliance to the Rus’ prince Mstislav the Bold, it was on Kotjen’s urging that the Rus’ came to assist him against Jebe and Subutai. Kotjen escaped the battle, remaining in the steppe north of the Black Sea until the return of the Mongols. With 40,000 warriors and their families, he fled before the Mongol advance, making his way to Hungary in 1239, where we will pick up with him in our next episode. Many Cumans were also sold into slavery. The slave trade was a big deal in the Black Sea, with captured nomadic Turks prized goods alongside the furs collected from the Finno-Ugric peoples to the north. Defeat in steppe warfare often resulted in the victors capturing the vanquished and taking them to the cities of the Crimea to be sold across the Meditteranean and Islamic world. The Mongol incursions caused a glut of slaves on the market- nomadic Turkics for their hardiness and horsemanship, not to mention skill with a bow even at a young age, made ideal soldiers once they received the training and funds of a state. The dying Ayyubid state in Egypt bought up a number of these, forming an important body of slave soldiers- Mamluks, who would soon overthrow their heirs of Saladin and establish their own dynasty, to the Mongols’ later chagrin. Slaves were sold further afield, as far as India, where Qipchaq slaves such as Balban eventually rose through the ranks to become Sultans of Delhi- again, to the Mongols’ later chagrin. Everything has consequences in Eurasia!   While Crimea was secured and the Cuman-Qipchaqs subdued, Mongol forces marched towards the Caucasus. The first group to feel their wrath were the Circassians along the eastern Black Sea, where the Olympic destination of Sochi stands today, attacked by Tolui’s son Mongke, the later Great Khan, and Ogedai’s son Qadan. We are told only that a Circassian King, ‘Buqan,’ was killed in the process. The Circassians, called Cherkes by the Russians, are a member of the northwestern Caucasian peoples, who like the Qipchaqs, also found themselves sold into slavery extensively and transported across the Mongol Empire and Meditteranean. In the late 14th century, the Qipchaq Mamluk dynasty in Egypt was succeeded by a Circassian one, commonly called the Burji dynasty.   With much of the central steppe and Black Sea coast secured by the end of 1238- though the northern Caucasus still untaken- Batu and Subutai recalled their forces. It was time to look to the Rus’ again, this time the mostly hitherto untouched southern principalities. On March 3rd, 1239 Pereyaslavl, downstream along the Dnieper from Kiev, fell to Mongol forces. It seems to have been something of a test to see the mettle of these southern principalities, especially that of Kiev. Kiev had been the great capital of the unified Rus’, and still must have held something of a reputation as the Mongols approached it cautiously. The reality of Kiev’s strength by this point was quite different. Despite the proximity of the Mongols and devastation of the northern principalities, fighting over Kiev had continued unabated by the Rus’ themselves. Kiev’s Prince Vladimir Riurukiovch was ousted by Prince Mikhail Vsevolodovich of Chernigov basically as the Mongols arrived on the doorstep of the principalities.    For summer 1239 the Mongols rested men and horses, once again picking up the sword in the fall. In October, the struck Chernigov, northeast of Kiev. An attempt was made by Prince Mstislav Glebovich, cousin to Mikhail of Chernigov, with his army to repulse the Mongols in the field. The army was crushed and Msitslav disappears from the sources. Stones so large four men could barely lift them were hurled by catapults into Chernigov’s walls, and by October 18th the city had fallen, its population like so many others subjected to fire, rapine and massacre.  From Chernigov, envoys were sent to demand Kiev’s submission, and Mongke, who in about a decade would become Great Khan of the Mongols, traveled to see the city himself, having heard of its splendour. He stood on the opposite bank of the Dnieper, and though his personal thoughts on the city are not recorded, Rus’ sources insist he marvelled at its beauty. Prince Mikhail refused to surrender, though he soon abandoned Kiev and fled to Hungary. Mongke’s presence was only reconnaissance and he to departed. Perhaps he had wished to gleam if Kiev had any offensive potential, and deeming this not the case, it was decided the city could sit for the time being. Mongke travelled back east across the steppe, joining with forces which were securing the remaining independent territory of the north Caucasus and steppe.   Here, the notable remaining independent force, other than those few Qipchaq and other Turkic tribes which had escaped Mongol armies, was the Alans and their ‘kingdom’ in the valleys of the north side of the Caucasus. The Alans were an Iranic people -ancestors of today's Ossetians- who had inhabited the steppe since the time of Attila the Hun. Their polity in 1239, insomuch as we can call it that, had emerged after the collapse of the Khazar Khaganate in the 9th and 10th century.  Sometimes called ‘Alania,’ its kings were notable for converting to Christianity and at times acting as a formidable military force, though by the start of the 13th century the Alans were a collection of local powers rather than a unified state, and sadly we are lacking much information on this kingdom. Back in the 1220s they had, alongside the Qipchaqs, fought Jebe and Subutai upon their exit from the Caucasus mountains, and as I’m sure you know by now, the Mongols were rather slow to forget such grievances. Their continued independence posed the final threat, no matter how slight, to the Mongol rear.   As a result of this decentralization, it seems the local Alanian leaders made their own decisions on how to respond to the Mongol advance. We are told of one individual, Ajis, who led a resistance against them until his capture and execution, while another, Arslan, quickly submitted and was made overlord of the Alans only to be replaced soon after by another Alan prince who provided his troops to the Mongols. The capital of the Alanian Kings was Magas, a strongly fortified site which remained influential among them, perhaps a symbolic capital as much as anything, and therefore a prime target. The Mongols arrived outside the fortress in November 1239, where they met their most difficult battle of the campaign yet. The very name of the settlement was disputed until recent decades, when it was finally reconstructed as Magas, the Persian word for ‘flies,’ as in the insects. This conclusion was reached in part as it explained why so many Medieval Muslim writers made puns involving these bugs when discussing it. The location of the settlement is also a long subject of debate, but an exciting possibility has been identified by Dr. John Latham-Sprinkle, who has proposed the massive hillfort Il’ichevsk gorodischche on the borders of Russia’s Krasnodar Krai and Karachai-Cherkess Republic, in the valley of the River Urup. Our medieval sources indicate that Magas was highly fortified and in a strong position, surrounded by dense forests, taking the Mongols months to subdue to. Few of the possibilities have matched the basic facts we know about Magas, but Latham-Sprinkle has found Il’ichevsk to meet the criteria,: for the time it was inhabited, for being a royal residence of the Alans, a strong fortress and destroyed in the mid 13th century.    Il’ichevsk is a long, high ridge, approachable only from the south, it;s other sides protected by cliffs and rivers. Seven lines of defenses, thick walls, wide ditches and embankments, protected the city and its inner layers- a veritable Minas Tirith, if you will. The site was massive: the whole fortified area from north to south was 15 kilometres, covering some 600 hectares. That’s larger than 14th century London or Milan! The outermost walls covered fields and small, scattered villages, becoming more densely populated as one proceeded up the ridge to the royal residence. With evidence of imported craftsmen to construct the walls, of stone 4 metre thick held with a lime mortar, it’s clear this was the home of  powerful lords, and thus a very reasonable choice to identify as the Alan capital.   For the Mongols, it was a difficult siege. Arriving outside the walls in November or December 1239, it was not until February 1240 when the city fell. Roads had to be cut through the forest around the fortress to even approach it. The length of the fortifications made it impossible for the Alans, well past their prime, to man the full distance, thinning their defense. We are told from the Yuan Shih, compiled from the Mongols’ successors in China in the 1370s, that the Mongols relied heavily on allied and subject forces for this assault. A Tangut officer is mentioned leading squads, and it seems many Alans fought for the Mongols against their capital. When it fell, it was destroyed. Archaeological evidence indicates the city was abandoned immediately afterwards: a church’s roof which collapsed from fire was never cleared from the floor. A child’s body was found unburied outside the church where it had fallen, a Mongol arrowhead embedded in the church’s walls.   While Magas fell, Mongol contingents ranged across the northern Caucasus, taking settlements and forts: by November 1239, when the siege of Magas began, Mongol forces were already within kilometres of the great fortress of Derband, which fell to them in spring 1240.  Lacking an existing overarching political structure to incorporate, the Mongols found it difficult to impose their rule on the ground outside of periodic military actions. The fact that sites in Dagestan began rebuilding their fortifications within a few years of the Mongol invasion was telling. In China, for instance, many cities taken in the early 13th century had their walls unrepaired until the 1350s and 60s.  The many valleys of the region made it a nightmare to bring every local tribe to heel. Perhaps because of this, the Mongols saw fit to transport thousands of Alans and others across the empire, as slaves and military units. From the Balkans to China we have Alans showing up in entire regiments over the 13th century, indicating their useful military prowess, and perhaps the frustration the Mongol governors felt dealing with them in the Caucasus.    In summer 1240 the princes were called back, holding a quriltai to celebrate the gains and decide the next steps. During this feasting we are provided an interesting episode from the Secret History of the Mongols. In this account, Batu sends a messenger to Great Khan Ogedai, informing him that during the feast Batu drank from the ceremonial wine first, which angered Ogedai’s son Guyuk and Chagatai’s grandson Buri who took offense at Batu taking this ceremonial position ahead of them. In the Secret History’s account, Guyuk and Buri leave the tent, calling Batu an old woman with a beard  and shouting insults. When Batu’s message reached Ogedai with the news, he sobered up long enough to become furious at his son and recall him. The whole episode has been torn over by historians repeatedly. It seems to have been the climax of long simmering tensions among the princes ,having until then been kept at bay by continually separating them over the campaign. There were likely several factors at play: Guyuk was haughty, being the son of the Great Khan though not his heir; likely a few continued the slander of Jochi not being Chinggis’ son, and hence Batu, the senior prince, not really a Chinggisid. Other concerns were more material. Historian Stephen Pow has noted that some regions were left to members of one branch of the family to attack, in theory making those conquests their territory. However, since the majority of the vast territory seemed destined for the Jochids, many of the princes grumbled as to what they were getting for their efforts. The timing is suspect as well, as the time needed for Batu’s messengers to reach Ogedai, and then Ogedai’s messengers to return to recall Guyuk, is too great for this is have occurred after the fall of Magas but before the fall of Kiev in December, which we know Guyuk to have been absent for.   Perhaps this was a compression of a series of events, or coordinated ahead of time, their troops required for the front with Song Dynasty, with later editing to the Secret History of the Mongols using this as an opportunity to discredit Guyuk, but multiple sources indicate the departure of both Guyuk and Mongke, along with their troops, around late summer 1240. So Batu and Subutai’s army lost as many as 20,000 men, on top of casualties they had already suffered and those stationed behind to keep their rear secure and prevent uprisings. This was not an end to the campaigning by any means, and Batu turned his sights to Kiev and the western Rus’ principalities. Once the Dnieper had frozen in November 1240, Batu marched onto Kiev, investing it on November 28th.  Batu set up his catapults in a great line and fired upon the city walls day and night until they crumpled before them. Kievan efforts to defend the breaches were met with hails of arrows, and the Mongols mounted the walls, forcing back the Keivans. Retreating to the Church of the Blessed Virgin, the Rus’ fortified it’s approaches. As the Mongols began to overcome the impromptu defenses, frightened townsfolk and defenders climbed with their possessions on top of the church, only to have to collapse under their weight. By the 6th of December 1240, Kiev was in Mongol hands.    Though Halych of Galicia-Volhynia soon fell as well, on the whole the campaign in southern Rus’ was considerably less destructive. In northern Rus’, essentially all major and many secondary cities had been sacked in quick succession, but we see in the south sieges of only major settlements, capitals like Chernigov, Kiev, and Halych, or undefended settlements without walls. At secondary cities which showed stiff resistance like Kremenents and Danilov, the Mongols moved past. Much of Galicia-Volhynia, the westernmost extent of the Rus’, was left untouched, it’s ruler Danilo not submitting to Batu until 1245, and even then, retained enough strength to declare his independence until a Mongol campaign at the end of the 1250s.  What was the cause of this comparative reduction of Mongol devastation? One factor is certainly the departure of Mongke and Guyuk with their troops, perhaps causing a loss in morale alongside the numbers of available men. Another aspect is that while the many sieges in Rus’ were successful and relatively quick, it does not mean they did not result in Mongol casualties. Indeed, evidence suggests the western campaign was a bloody affair for the Mongols, resulting in the losses of many elites and commanders- Chinggis Khan’s son Kolgen most notably. We are told of a large cemetery in Mongolia built for prominent Mongols killed in the campaign, and we learn from Chinese references to rich rewards for those who shipped the bodies of Mongols back to their homeland, something which apparently happened with some regularity.    While in field battles, Mongol commanders stayed behind the lines in order to properly assess the situation and give orders for troops movements, generally staying out of the battle itself, this was not the case for sieges. Rather, it seems officers, captains and even generals had to command from the front to help encourage the men over the walls. Sons of the elite aspiring to build their reputation as brave warriors, fought from the front as well. In the confined spaces and narrow streets of a city and fortress, the Mongols could not rely on their mobility, and it seems losses ran high. The Rus’ cities fell in quick succession but not without taking Mongols with them; we may likewise assume the difficult siege of Magas and other Caucasian fortresses had brought losses as well. By the time Batu and Subutai reached southwestern Rus’, Mongol casualties, both those killed and those injured in the many battles, were beginning to become an issue. In addition, units were left across the region to hold it and stop the newly conquered tribes from rising up and keep contact routes open with the rest of the empire.  Coupled with the departure of Guyuk and Mongke’s armies, it’s possible that Batu and Subutai’s army was as much as half its original size, maybe down to 50-60,000 men. Mongol actions thus were limited to major settlements where they could bring their full force or locations where defense was weak and a prolonged siege could be avoided. If not, the settlement was bypassed, preferring soft targets or to hit enemy field armies.    Still, Batu and Subutai controlled an experienced and battle hardened army, and had effectively conquered the principalities of the Rus’. As 1240 turned to 1241, they now sat on the borders of Europe, having conquered up to the edge of what is now western Ukraine. Many Cumans, and the odd Rus’ prince, had fled to the Kingdom of Hungary. The housing of Mongol enemies was an act of waragainst the Mongol Empire, and Batu was determined to punish the Hungarian Monarch for this. Europe was about to hear the hoofbeats of Mongol horses. Our next episode will take us to the famous battles of Liegnitz and Mohi, so be sure to subscribe to the Kings and Generals podcast and to continue helping us bring you more outstanding content, please visit our patreon at www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. Thank you for listening, I am your host David and we will catch you on the next one!

Two boys. One genocide. Zero survivors. This one almost broke our brains while the prince broke bread. No thanks, giving. --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/justice-time-machine/support

Jonty Yamisha is a language activist, an "accidental polyglot" in his own words, a "third-generation Circassian refugee," and the founder of OptiLingo, an audio-based language app that uses "guided immersion" to help people reach fluency in foreign languages more quickly. We discuss the Circassian language and cultural history, how he's raising his children bilingually, and how he "steals back" time for language learning amid his busy professional and family life.

On this episode I chat to Jonty Yamisha, who took it upon himself to learn his heritage language of Circassian as an adult. He shares a lot of great stories about his family, and practical tips and advice for how he managed to learn a language with such limited resources available. Perfect if you have a heritage language you've been meaning to learn! Show Links: OptiLingo (Jonty's language learning software) - https://optilingo.com Circassian Culture Non-profit - http://nassip.org ==============

In the second episode of our series on genocide, Again and Again, we discuss the Circassian and Bangladeshi genocides of the 19th and 20th centuries, where nearly 3.5 million people were collectively murdered. Despite the large numbers of people murdered, we question why these genocides are lost into obscurity. Though cultural proximity and impact to... The post Lesser-Known Genocides appeared first on Matters of State - International Relations Podcast.

An episode dedicated to our favorite MMA fighter of all time Khabib The Eagle Nurmagomedov of the UFC.Music by the exceptionally talented Circassian musician Aslan Tlebzu. His work is available on iTunes itunes.apple.com/tr/artist/aslan-tlebzu/691992660This show is brought to you by Talk 4 Radio (http://www.talk4radio.com/) on the Talk 4 Media Network (http://www.talk4media.com/).

An episode dedicated to our favorite MMA fighter of all time Khabib The Eagle Nurmagomedov of the UFC. Music by the exceptionally talented Circassian musician Aslan Tlebzu. His work is available on iTunes https://itunes.apple.com/tr/artist/aslan-tlebzu/691992660

Today’s double episode is truly a tour de force. In this our second installment of “In Their Own Words,” our good friends Tembulat & Zalina take us on a deep dive into the very heart of Circassian culture. Not only musicians, this couple also hand makes instruments and knives. They provided so much rich content … Continue reading "CT27B – Kabardians: In Their Own Words! PART B"

Today’s double episode is truly a tour de force. In this our second installment of “In Their Own Words,” our good friends Tembulat & Zalina take us on a deep dive into the very heart of Circassian culture. Not only musicians, this couple also hand makes instruments and knives. They provided so much rich content … Continue reading "CT27A – Kabardians: In Their Own Words! PART A"

Two famous Circassian musicians.Aslan Tlebzu is a well-known accordionist who graduated from the Art Insitute of the Adyghe State University in Maykop. After graduating, he performed as an accordionist with the Adygean State Folk Song Ensemble – Islamey. He is is one of today’s best-known Circassian folk musicians.Astemir Apanasov is a talented singer and actor with many years of success. Internationally acclaimed and played Charlie Chaplin on Broadway in St. Petersburg.This show is brought to you by Talk 4 Radio (http://www.talk4radio.com/) on the Talk 4 Media Network (http://www.talk4media.com/).

Aslan Tlebzu and Astemir Apanas are two famous Circassian musicians who have mastered their craft. Aslan Tlebzu is a well-known accordionist who graduated from the Art Insitute of the Adyghe State University in Maykop. After graduating, he performed as an accordionist with the Adygean State Folk Song Ensemble – Islamey. He is currently working on a successful solo career and is one of today’s best-known Circassian folk musicians. Astemir Apanasov is a talented singer and actor with many years of success. His fame has reached many countries, and he even played Charlie Chaplin on Broadway in St. Petersburg. These two stars share their vast experiences and discuss future plans for their famed careers. Read our post highlighting their DISHA Performance and 12 Starz concert on September 10.

Jonty Yamisha brings 15 years of experience working in corporate development, strategic planning and global business development to Coverdell. In his role as CMO, Mr. Yamisha oversees the design and implementation of growth and innovation strategies for Coverdell.H worked with FTI Consulting, and Marsh, Inc., the world’s largest risk advisory and insurance brokerage business.Mr. Yamisha holds a degree in International Studies from Vassar College, and an MBA from NYU Stern.This show is brought to you by Talk 4 Radio (http://www.talk4radio.com/) on the Talk 4 Media Network (http://www.talk4media.com/).

Good Deeds Radio presents International Author Tina Hassan. She shares wisdom that was passed down to her. Sharing with others help to nuture the world.Tina resides Paterson, NJ. At the age of 9 months I made front cover of Hollywood SpotLite Magazine. I'm a single mother with a 10 year old son, Adam. he is my pride and joy.  I am an author of two books: 1st book a tribute to my dad (R.I.P) "A Great Man Who Once Lived & Will Always Be remembered by Many" and my 2nd book is a cookbook: "Middle Eastern Cookbook" by Tina Hassan. the reason I like to be aired is because there are alot of cookbooks out there especially middle eastern ones but this is the first middle eastern cookbook that has a variety of all nationalities from circassian which is what Iam, Circassian are people from Russia, we are muslims but non-Arab however, most Circassians do understand and speak Arabic as well as can read and write in Arabic. We pray same way 5 times a day and fast month of Ramadan, believe there is only 1 God. So getting back to my cookbook, all other middle easterns cookbook also may have varieties from other nationalities but none of them have any recipe of Circassian food or even desserts. For example: Ships Wa Basta Circassian food, or Haliva Circassian dessert/snack just as an example. So my middle eastern cookbook is a little different and even tho have different varieties of other middle eastern foods but we all make it our way and thats what makes it uique. For example I love adding herbs and spices and while some places like it plain or simple. Everyone has their own way but again noone has made a middle eastern cookbook with circassian food in it especially the ships wa basta that's famous food and special and well known for Circassians.

The Annual Harrell-Bond Lecture, given by Her Royal Highness Princess Basma bint Talal on 5 November 2014 at the University of Oxford Examination Schools. The communities comprising the modern Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan have a long history as refugee hosts. Currently, 20 per cent of the residents of Jordan are refugees and asylum seekers from all over the world. Her Royal Highness Princess Basma bint Talal examines the ways in which earlier refugee communities' experience of displacement itself contributed to their integration within the developing Jordanian state. Princess Basma discusses the ways in which Jordan's Circassian, Chechen and Armenian communities have negotiated different aspects of their specific identities and integrated in Jordan, considering the role of forced migration itself in creating identities. Jordan's own experience demonstrates how policies that engage and include refugee communities can have positive outcomes for both sides, creating peaceful and productive coexistence.

Good Deeds Radio presents International Author Tina Hassan. She shares wisdom that was passed down to her. Sharing with others help to nuture the world.Tina resides Paterson, NJ. At the age of 9 months I made front cover of Hollywood SpotLite Magazine. I'm a single mother with a 10 year old son, Adam. he is my pride and joy.  I am an author of two books: 1st book a tribute to my dad (R.I.P) "A Great Man Who Once Lived & Will Always Be remembered by Many" and my 2nd book is a cookbook: "Middle Eastern Cookbook" by Tina Hassan. the reason I like to be aired is because there are alot of cookbooks out there especially middle eastern ones but this is the first middle eastern cookbook that has a variety of all nationalities from circassian which is what Iam, Circassian are people from Russia, we are muslims but non-Arab however, most Circassians do understand and speak Arabic as well as can read and write in Arabic. We pray same way 5 times a day and fast month of Ramadan, believe there is only 1 God. So getting back to my cookbook, all other middle easterns cookbook also may have varieties from other nationalities but none of them have any recipe of Circassian food or even desserts. For example: Ships Wa Basta Circassian food, or Haliva Circassian dessert/snack just as an example. So my middle eastern cookbook is a little different and even tho have different varieties of other middle eastern foods but we all make it our way and thats what makes it uique. For example I love adding herbs and spices and while some places like it plain or simple. Everyone has their own way but again noone has made a middle eastern cookbook with circassian food in it especially the ships wa basta that's famous food and special and well known for Circassians.  

Mehtap Çelik112.    Mersin Atlılar Köyü Eski Çerkez Göçmen Evi, Atlılar Köyü (2010)Osmanlının 19. yy’da karşılaştığı en büyük sosyal ve politik meselelerden biri şüphesiz ki muhacir sorunudur. Rus devleti, eski Osmanlı toprakları olan Kafkasya ve Kırım’a yerleşmeye yönelik bir siyaseti benimseyip bölgedeyayıldıkça, yerli Müslüman nüfusa kaçmaktan başka bir çare kalmamıştı. Osmanlı, devlet nüfuzunun sınırlı olduğu seyrek nüfuslu bölgelere, yeni gelenleri yerleştirmek için yoğun çaba sarfetti. Ciddi sıkıntılara girerek, Anadolu ve Suriye boyunca sayısız muhacir yerleşimi kuruldu. Bu yerleşimlerin bir çoğu zamanın getirdiklerine dayanamadı ama Adana-Mersin bölgesinden bir örnek olan Atlılar köyünde Muhacirler kuşaklar boyunca varlıklarını sürdürebildiler. Bu bölümümüzde Mehtap Çelik, Atlılar Köyü ile ilgili yaptığı araştırmadan bahsetmektedir.During the nineteenth century, one of the major social and political issues faced by the Ottoman Empire was Muslim immigration from the Russian sphere. As the Russian Empire expanded into Crimea and the Caucasus, hundreds of thousands of individuals flocked to the Ottoman lands. The Ottoman state sought to settle these newcomers in sparsely populated regions where state power was limited. Not without serious hardship, numerous settlements were founded throughout Anatolia and Syria. Many did not withstand the test of time, but in this episode, Mehtap Çelik tells the story of one such settlement, the Circassian village of Atlılar near Mersin (podcast is in Turkish).Mehtap Çelik Mersin Üniversitesi Tarih Bölümü'nde ders vermektedir. Harika Zöhre Mersin Üniversitesi Türk Dili ve Edebiyatı Anabilim Dalı araştırma görevlisidir. (bkz. academia.edu)Yakınçağ Orta Doğu Tarihi çalışan Chris Gratien Georgetown Üniversitesi'nde doktora yapmaktadır.   (bkz. academia.edu)SEÇME KAYNAKÇAMersin İskelesi (19. yüzyılın sonları)Sözlü tarih bilgileri özellikle Mehtep Çelik ve Tülin Selvi Ünlü'nün tarafında 2010'da Habibe Şahin ile yapılan görüşmeden kaynaklanmaktadırBaşbakanlık Osmanlı Arşivi (Istanbul)Tarsus Şeriyye Sicilleri (Milli Kütüphanesi, Ankara)Bala, Mirza, “Çerkesler”, İslam Ansiklopedisi, C. 3 (1986).Barker, William Burckhardt, Cilicia and its Governers, Ingram, London: Cooke and Co.,1853.Bice, Hayati, Kafkaslar’dan Anadoluya Göçler, Türkiye Diyanet Vakfı Yayınları, Ankara, 1991.Çavdar, Tevfik. Bir Örgüt Ustasının Yaşam Öyküsü, Ankara 1984.Develi, Şinasi, Dünden Bugüne Mersin, 1836-1990, MTSO Yayınları, Mersin, 2001.Habiçoğlu, Bedri, Kafkaslardan Anadolu’ya Göçler, Nart Yayıncılık, İstanbul, 1993.Bozkurt, İbrahim, Salnamelerde Mersin, Yayımlanmamış Yüksek Lisans Tezi, Mersin Üniversitesi Sosyal Bilimler Enstitüsü, Mersin, 2001.Karayandı, Fatih, Ceyhan ve Yöresindeki Kırım Tatarları ve Nogaylar, Ceyhan Belediyesi Kültür Hizmetleri, Adana, 2006.Tavkul, Ufuk, Karaçay-Malkar Destanları, Türk Dil kurumu Yayınları, Ankara, 2004.Tuna, Rahmi, “Çerkeslerin Kafkasya’dan Göçü”, İstanbul Kafkas Kültür Derneği Konferansları No: 3 (1977).Saydam, Abdullah, Kırım ve Kafkas Göçleri, Ankara, 1997.Selvi Ünlü, Tülin, 19. Yüzyılda Mersin’in Kentsel Gelişimi, Yayımlanmamış Yüksek Lisans Tezi, Mersin Üniversitesi Sosyal Bilimler Enstitüsü, Mersin, 2004.W.E.D. Allen-Paul Muratoff, Kafkas Harekatı: 1828-1921 Türk-Kafkas Sınırındaki Harplerin Tarihi, Genelkurmay Basımevi, Ankara, 1966.Zoroğlu, Levent, Tarsus Tarihi ve Tarihsel Anıtları, Kemal Matbaası, Adana 1975.MÜZİK Myaskovsky - Symphony 23 (on Kabardian themes)Abida Omar'ın Ürdün'de yaptığı performansıGÖRSELLERWomen in Dagestan (Prokudin-Gorskii, c1910)Pyotr Nikolayevich Gruzinsky, The Mountaineers Leave the Aul (1872)Circassian Village, Wadi Seer, Jordan (c1920)Group portrait of eight Circassian men in uniform, with another man, possibly an Ottoman officialAbdullah Frères, c1880-1900 Circassians (Oswald Madet c1920) from Pierre Redan, La Cilicie et leprobleme ottoman

Wafaa Elzaby special needs educator, Zaid Saleh Egyptian Americans, Circassian protestors

Episode 6: We tell the true story of P.T. Barnum's Fiji Cannibals. After being taken from Fiji and exhibited in sideshows and dime museums around the United States, one of these men died in York, Pennsylvania. Newspapers reported that two other "cannibals" attempted to eat his corpse. What really happened?...and where is the Fiji Cannibal's body? We visit Potter's Fields, and discuss sideshows, circuses, Circassian women, and more. Our guest is Alison Renner.   If you would like to help us continue to make Strange Familiars, get bonus content, t-shirts, stickers, and more rewards, you can become a patron: http://www.patreon.com/StrangeFamiliars Episode 6 notes and links: Alison: https://www.etsy.com/shop/odpeacock Sarada: http://www.etsy.com/shop/ArtBySarada Matt Deterior: http://mattdeterior.bigcartel.com instagram: @MattDeterior Contact us via email at: strangefamiliarspodcast@gmail.com http://www.facebook.com/strangefamiliars instagram: @strangefamiliars http://www.strangefamiliars.com Strange Familiars is a production of Dark Holler Arts, LLC. Music, art, podcasts, books, and more. http://www.darkhollerarts.com Intro and background music by Stone Breath - which is our band. You can find more at http://stonebreath.bandcamp.com The song at the end of this episode is "Song to the Folding Leaves" from the Stone Breath album “Children of Hum“.Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/strange-familiars/donationsWant to advertise on this podcast? Go to https://redcircle.com/brands and sign up.