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{{Short description|843–1353 Uyghur kingdom in modern Xinjiang, China}}{{About|the Old Uyghur-ruled kingdom|the earlier kingdom in the same area|Gaochang}}{{Use mdy dates|date = February 2019}}{{Use American English|date = February 2019}}

factoids

| government_type = Monarchy| capital = Gaochang (Qocho), Beshbalik (Beiting/Tingzhou)Manichaeism (official; 843–965),ÉRIC FIRST2=ÉTIENNE TITLE=LES SOGDIENS EN CHINE YEAR=2005 ISBN=978-2-85539-653-8 CHAPTER=THE IMPACT OF THE SILK ROAD TRADE ON A LOCAL COMMUNITY: THE TURFAN OASIS, 500–800 LAST=HANSEN, Buddhism,STEPHEN F. >LAST=TEISER TITLE=THE SCRIPTURE ON THE TEN KINGS: AND THE MAKING OF PURGATORY IN MEDIEVAL CHINESE BUDDHISM DATE=1 APRIL 2003 ISBN=978-0-8248-2776-2 Church of the East in China>Church of the East| year_start = 843| year_end = 14th centuryOld Uyghur language>Old Uyghur, Chinese language; also Tocharian languages>Tocharian and Sogdian in early years| p1 = Uyghur Khaganate| p2 = Tibetan Empire| s1 = Western Liao| s2 = Chagatai Khanate| image_map = Qocho Uyghurs.png| image_map_caption = Territory of Qocho c. 1000.| image_map2_size = 300| image_flag = | title_leader = Idiqut| leader1 = Pan Tekin| leader2 = SanggeChinaKazakhstan>Kyrgyzstan}}}}{{Early Turkic Khaganates}}File:Man of Gaochang (高昌國, Turfan) in 番客入朝圖 (937-976 CE).jpg|thumb|Man of Gaochang (, Turfan) in Entrance of the foreign visitors (, 937–976 CE)]]Qocho or Kara-Khoja ({{zh|t=高昌回鶻|p=Gāochāng Huíhú|l=Gaochang Uyghurs|c=|s=}}),BOOK, Jin, Yijiu, Islam, 9 January 2017, Brill, 978-90-474-2800-8, 105,weblink en, also known as Idiqut,BOOK, Joint Centre for Asia Pacific Studies, Cultural contact, history and ethnicity in inner Asia: papers presented at the Central and Inner Asian Seminar, University of Toronto, March 4, 1994 and March 3, 1995,weblink 1996, Joint Centre for Asia Pacific Studies, 137, 9781895296228, BOOK, Sir Charles Eliot, Hinduism and Buddhism: An Historical Sketch,weblink 4 January 2016, Sai, 1075ff, GGKEY:4TQAY7XLN48, BOOK, Baij Nath Puri, Buddhism in Central Asia,weblink 1987, Motilal Banarsidass, 978-81-208-0372-5, 77ff, BOOK, Charles, Eliot, Hinduism and Buddhism: An Historical Sketch,weblink 1998, Psychology Press, 978-0-7007-0679-2, 205ff, ("holy wealth"; "glory"; "lord of fortune"{{sfn|Zhao|2008|p=163}}) was a Uyghur kingdom created in 843, with strong Chinese Buddhist and Tocharian influences. It was founded by refugees fleeing the destruction of the Uyghur Khaganate after being driven out by the Yenisei Kirghiz. They made their winter capital in Qocho (also called Gaochang or Qara-Khoja, near modern Turpan) and summer capital in Beshbalik (modern Jimsar County, also known as Tingzhou).{{sfn|Millward|2007|p=46}} Its population is referred to as the "Xizhou Uyghurs" after the old Tang Chinese name for Gaochang, the "Qocho Uyghurs" after their capital, the "Kucha Uyghurs" after another city they controlled, or the "Arslan ("Lion") Uyghurs" after their king's title.

History

{{Central Asia 1000 CE|right|Qocho Kingdom and main neighbouring polities {{circa|1000}}||Map of Qocho Uyghurs Kingdom.png}}In 843, a group of Uyghurs migrated southward under the leadership of Pangtele, and occupied Karasahr and Kucha, taking them from the Tibetan Empire.WEB,weblink Huihe 回紇, Huihu 回鶻, Weiwur 維吾爾, Uyghurs (www.chinaknowledge.de), In 856, this group of Uyghurs received royal recognition from the Tang dynasty.{{sfn|Drompp|2005|p=198}} At this time, their capital was in Karasahr (Yanqi).{{sfn|Baumer|2012|p=313}}{{quotation|The land of the Uighurs is very large, so large that to the west it appears boundless. In the fourth and fifth months, all vegetation dries up as if it were winter. The mountains are snow-covered even in summer. When the sun rises it becomes hot, but as soon as it sets, it grows cold. Even in the sixth lunar month (i.e., the peak of summer), people must use wadded coverlets to sleep. It does not rain in summer. The rain only starts to fall in autumn, and then the vegetation begins to sprout. Come winter, the rivers and plains are like our spring, with flowers in full bloom.WEB,weblink Story Map Journal, |Wugusun Zhongduan}}In 866, Pugu Jun declared himself khan and adopted the title of idiqut. The Kingdom of Qocho captured Xizhou (Gaochang), Tingzhou (Beshbalik, or Beiting), Changbaliq (near Ürümqi) and Luntai (Bugur) from the Guiyi Circuit. The Uyghur capital was moved to Xizhou, which the Uyghurs called Idiqutshari. Beshbalik became their summer residence.{{sfn|Baumer|2012|p=314}}{{quotation|On the southern end of the Altai Mountains is a city of the Uighurs, called Bieshiba (Beshbaliq). There is a Tang-era stele there that identifies it as the former Vast Sea (Hanhai) Military Prefecture. The Vast Sea is several hundred li northwest of this city. In that sea is a small island covered with feathers shed by birds. Over two hundred li west of this city is the county of Luntai, which also has a Tang-era stele. Five hundred li south of this city (Beshbaliq) is Hezhou (Qocho), known as Gaochang in the Tang. It is also known as Yizhou. Three to four thousand li west of Gaochang is the city of Wuduan (Khotan), which was known as the kingdom of Yutian in the Tang. The two rivers that produce black and white jade are located there.|Yelü Chucai}}In 869 and 870 the Kingdom of Qocho attacked the Guiyi Circuit but was repelled.{{sfn|Rong|2013|p=42}} In 876 the Kingdom of Qocho seized Yizhou from the Guiyi Circuit.{{sfn|Rong|2013|p=42}} In 880, Qocho attacked Shazhou (Dunhuang) but was repelled.{{sfn|Baumer|2012|p=314}} By 887, they were settled under an agrarian lifestyle in Qocho.In 904, Zhang Chengfeng of the Guiyi Circuit (later renamed Jinshan Kingdom) attacked Qocho and seized Yizhou (Hami/Kumul) and Xizhou (Gaochang).{{sfn|Baumer|2012|p=312}} This occupation ended after the Jinshan Kingdom's loss to the Ganzhou Uyghur Kingdom in 911.{{sfn|Baumer|2012|p=314}} In 954, Ilig Bilgä Tengri rose to power. In 981, Arslan Bilgä Tengri ilig rose to power. From 981, the Idiqut of Qocho sent tribute missions to the Song dynasty under the title "Nephew Lion King Arslan Khan of the West Prefecture." The addition of the title "Nephew" () was intended as a show of sincerity to the Han people of the Central Plains, as "nephew" referred to the traditional relationship between the Uyghur Khans and the previous Tang dynasty, who referred to each other as uncle and nephew. Meanwhile, West Prefecture () referred to Qocho's designation under Tang administration.JOURNAL, Hua Tao, THE RELATIONS BETWEEN THE QOCHO UYGHURS AND THE QITAY-LIAO DYNASTY, Eurasian Studies, 2015, III, 440–454, In 984, Arslan Bilgä Tengri ilig became Süngülüg Khagan. In the same year, a Song Chinese envoy reached Qocho and gave an account of the city:{{Blockquote|There is no rain or snow here and it is extremely hot. Each year at the hottest time, the inhabitants dig holes in the ground to live in ... The earth here produces all the five grains except buckwheat. The nobility eat horseflesh, while the rest eat mutton, wild ducks and geese. Their music is largely played on the pipa and harp. They produce sables, fine white cotton cloth, and an embroidered cloth made from flower stamens. By custom they enjoy horseback riding and archery ... They use the [Tang] calendar produced in the seventh year of the Kaiyuan reign (719). They fashion pipes of silver or brass and channel flowing water to shoot at each other; or they sprinkle water on each other as a game, which they call pressing out the sun's heat to chase off sickness. They like to take walks, and the strollers always carry a musical instrument with them. There are over fifty Buddhist temples here, the names inscribed over their gates all presented by the Tang court. The temples house copies of the Buddhist scriptures (da zang jing) and the dictionaries Tang yun, Yupian and Jingyun. On spring nights the locals pass the time milling about between the temples. There's an "Imperial Writings Tower' which houses edicts written by the Tang emperor Taizong kept carefully secured. There's also a Manichaean temple, with Persian monks who keep their own religious law and call the Buddhist scriptures the 'foreign Way' ... In this land there are no poor people; anyone short of food is given public aid. People live to an advanced age, generally over one hundred years. No one dies young.{{sfn|Millward|2007|p=48-49}}}}In 996, Bügü Bilgä Tengri ilig succeeded Süngülüg Khagan.File:Conversion of Bögü Qaghan (759-780 CE) to Manicheism in 762 (detailed of Bögü Qaghan in a suit of armour, kneeling to a Manichean high priest).jpg|thumb|Bögü Qaghan, third khagan of the Uyghur Khaganate, converting to Manichaeism in 762. Detail of Bögü Qaghan in a suit of armour, kneeling to a Manichean high priest. Eighth-century Manichean manuscript (MIK III 4979).BOOK, Rong, Xinjian, The Silk Road and Cultural Exchanges between East and West, 24 October 2022, Brill, 978-90-04-51259-7, 577–578,weblink en, Gaochang in the Second Half of the 5th Century and Its Relations with the Rouran Qaghanate and the Kingdoms of the Western Regions, 10.1163/9789004512597_006, ]]File:回湖騎士.png|thumb|Mural of Turkic cavalry from BeshbalikBeshbalikIn 1007, Alp Arsla Qutlugh Kül Bilgä Tengri Khan succeeded Bügü Bilgä Tengri ilig. In 1008, Manichaean temples were converted to Buddhist temples.{{sfn|Baumer|2012|p=315-316}} In 1024, Kül Bilgä Tengri Khan succeeded Alp Arsla Qutlugh Kül Bilgä Tengri Khan. In 1068, Tengri Bügü il Bilgä Arslan Tengri Uighur Tärkän succeeded Kül Bilgä Tengri Khan. By 1096, Qocho had lost Aksu, Tumshuk, and Kucha to the Kara-Khanid Khanate.{{sfn|Baumer|2012|p=314}}In 1123, Bilgä rose to power. He was succeeded by Yur Temur at some point. In 1128, the Kingdom of Qocho became a vassal of the Qara Khitai.{{sfn|Zhao|2008|p=166}}{{quotation|In 1128, during the reign of Bilge Tekin, the Uighur Kingdom became a vassal state of the Western Liao established by the Khitan. Originally the Western Liao exercised only a loose control over the Uighur state, but soon started to extort excessive taxes and levies in the Uighur lands. In 1209, the Uighur Iduq-qut ( " Lord of happiness ") Barchuk Art Tegin ordered the death of the Khitan magistrate (shangjian) in an attempt to free his people from the rule of the Western Liao. It just so happened that Chinggis Khan's envoys arrived at this juncture, and fearing retaliation from the Liao, he immediately sent envoys to Mongolia to express his willingness to acknowledge allegiance to Chinggis in exchange from protection.{{sfn|Zhao|2008|p=166}}|George Qingzhi Zhao}}In 1209, the Kingdom of Qocho became a vassal of the Mongol Empire.{{sfn|Zhao|2008|p=163}}{{quotation|I must, however, point out that, although Chinggis Khan adopted the ruler of the Uighur state Barchukh Art Tegin as his "fifth son", the Uighur state never became the "fifth khanate", as has been suggested by some scholars. The Uighur state was not independent, but was part of the Mongol empire. During the early Yuan dynasty, at least before the Princes' rebellions, the Yuan central government exercised a tight control over the Uighur state. Although the Mongol royal family maintained a marriage relationship with the Uighur Idu-qut family for almost a century, the women who were married into Uighurstan were not the daughters of the Yuan emperors, but were mostly descendants of Ogedei Khan who had lost the throne to the descendants of Tolui, his younger brother. At the same time, although the Mongol royal family continued to marry their Princesses to the Uighur Iduqut, not a single one of the Mongol Khans or Yuan Emperors married a Uighur Princess.{{sfn|Zhao|2008|p=164-165}}|George Qingzhi Zhao}}In 1229, Barčuq Art iduq-qut succeeded Yur Temur. In, 1242 Kesmez iduq-qut succeeded Barčuq Art iduq-qut. In 1246, Salïndï Tigin iduq-qut succeeded Kesmez iduq-qut. In 1253, Ögrünch Tigin iduq-qut succeeded Salïndï Tigin iduq-qut. In, 1257 Mamuraq Tigin iduq-qut succeeded Ögrünch Tigin iduq-qut, who was executed for supporting the Ogodeid branch of the Genghisid family. In 1266, Qosqar Tigin iduq-qut succeeded Mamuraq Tigin iduq-qut. In 1280, Negüril Tigin iduq-qut succeeded Qosqar Tigin iduq-qut.In 1318, Negüril Tigin iduq-qut died. Later, the Kingdom of Qocho became part of the Chagatai Khanate. In 1322, Tämir Buqa iduq-qut rose to power. In 1330, Senggi iduq-qut succeeded Tämir Buqa iduq-qut. In 1332, Taipindu iduq-qut succeeded Senggi iduq-qut. In 1352, Ching Timür iduq-qut succeeded Taipindu iduq-qut and was the last known ruler governor of the kingdom. By the 1370s, the Kingdom of Qocho ceased to exist.

Religion

File:Fragment of a Turpan Manichaen Wall Painting (MIK III 6918).jpg|thumb|10th century Manichaean Electae in GaochangGaochangFile:An epitaph of a Nestorian Christian.jpg|thumb|A Church of the East epitaph with two lines of Syriac at the top and four lines of Old Uyghur script on either side at the bottom]]Mainly Turkic and Tocharian, but also Chinese and Iranian peoples such as the Sogdians were assimilated into the Uyghur Kingdom of Qocho.{{sfn|Millward|2007|pp=47ff}} Chinese were among the population of Qocho.{{sfn|Millward|2007|pp=53ff}} Peter B. Golden writes that the Uyghurs not only adopted the writing system and religious faiths of the Sogdians, such as Manichaeism, Buddhism, and Christianity, but also looked to the Sogdians as "mentors" while gradually replacing them in their roles as Silk Road traders and purveyors of culture.BOOK, Peter B., Golden, 2011, Central Asia in World History, Oxford, Oxford University Press, 47, 978-0-19-515947-9, During the rule of the Qocho Kingdom, some of their subjects also began adopting Islam, as evident when the Idiqut threatened to retaliate against the Muslims of his lands and "destroy the mosques" if Manichaeans were persecuted in neighbouring Khorasan. He emphasized that Muslims in Qocho were "more numerous" than Manichaeans under Islamic rule, and he was ultimately successful in staying the persecutions in Khorasan. This episode was recorded by Arab bibliographer Ibn Al-Nadim, although he referred to the Qocho Idiqut as the "King of China".

Manichaeism

The Uyghur ruling family of Qocho were mainly practitioners of Manichaeism until the early 11th century, although by the 960s, they also supported Buddhism. When Al-Muqtadir (r. 908–932) of the Abbasid Caliphate began persecuting Manichaeans in what is now Iraq, the ruler of Qocho sent a letter to Nasr II of the Samanid Empire threatening to retaliate against Muslims in his realm.BOOK, Michal Biran, The Empire of the Qara Khitai in Eurasian History Between China and the Islamic World, 2005, Cambridge University Press, 9780521842266, 177, BOOK, BeDuhn, J, New Light on Manichaeism, 2009, BRILL, 9789004172852, 143, Manichaean monks accompanied Uyghur embassies from 934–951 while between 965 and 1022, the accompanying monks were Buddhists. Manichaeism in Qocho probably reached its peak in 866 and was gradually replaced by Buddhism afterward. This shift was noticeable by 1008 when Manichaean temples were converted to Buddhist temples. Part of the reason for Manichaeism's decline may have been the lifestyle of the Manichaean clergy. A decree discovered in Turpan reports that Manichaean clerics lived in great comfort, possessed estates with serfs and slaves, ate fine food, and wore expensive garments.{{sfn|Baumer|2012|p=315–316}} One of the most important medieval Uyghur documents is a 9th century decree to a Manichaean monastery affixed with eleven seals in Chinese characters saying: "Seal of the cabinet minister and of the Il Ugasi ministers of the great, fortunate Uyghur government." The document details a dramatized dialogue between Mani and a prince, and testifies to the rich cultural life of the Qocho kingdom.JOURNAL, Kamberi, Dolkun, A survey of Uyghur documents from Turpan and their importance for Asian and Central Eurasian history, Central Asian Survey, 1999, 18, 3, 276–401, 10.1080/02634939995588,

Chinese Buddhism

Tang rule over Qocho and Turfan left a lasting Chinese Buddhist influence on the area. Tang names remained on more than 50 Buddhist temples with Emperor Taizong of Tang's edicts stored in the "Imperial Writings Tower" and Chinese dictionaries like Jingyun, Yupian, Tang yun, and da zang jing (Buddhist scriptures) stored inside the Buddhist temples. Uyghur Buddhists studied the Chinese language and used Chinese books like the Thousand Character Classic and the Qieyun. It was written that "In Qocho city were more than fifty monasteries, all titles of which are granted by the emperors of the Tang dynasty, which keep many Buddhist texts as the Tripiṭaka, Tangyun, Yupuan, Jingyin etc."BOOK, Abdurishid Yakup, The Turfan Dialect of Uyghur,weblink 2005, Otto Harrassowitz, 978-3-447-05233-7, 180ff, The Uyghurs of Qocho continued to produce the Chinese Qieyun rime dictionary and developed their own pronunciations of Chinese characters.WEB, Takata, Tokio, The Chinese Language in Turfan with a special focus on the Qieyun fragments,weblink Institute for Research in Humanities, Kyoto University, 7–9, 15 September 2015, {{better source needed|reason=Is this published anywhere? Better to cite peer reviewed version if possible|date=April 2023}} They viewed the Chinese script as "very prestigious" so when they developed the Old Uyghur alphabet, based on the Syriac script, they deliberately switched it to vertical like Chinese writing from its original horizontal position in Syriac.BOOK, Gorelova, Liliya, Liliya Gorelova, Manchu Grammar,weblink 2002, Brill, 978-90-04-12307-6, 49, While Persian monks still maintained a Manichaean temple in the kingdom, there was continued respect for Tang dynasty legacies and Buddhism. There were over fifty Buddhist temples, the name inscriptions on their gates all presented by the Tang court. The edicts of Emperor Taizong of Tang were carefully stored in an "Imperial Writings Tower." Indeed, the 10th century Persian geography book Hudud al-'Alam called Qocho, the capital city, "Chinese town".{{sfn|Millward|2007|pp=49ff}}

Ethnicity

{{expand section|date=July 2018}}James A. Millward claimed that the Uyghurs were generally "Mongoloid" (a term meaning "appearing ethnically Eastern or Inner Asian"), giving as an example the images of Uyghur patrons of Buddhism in Bezeklik, temple 9, until they began to mix with the Tarim Basin's original, Indo-European-speaking "Caucasoid" inhabitants,{{sfn|Millward|2007|p=43}} such as the so-called Tocharians. Buddhist Uyghurs created the Bezeklik murals.BOOK, Modern Chinese Religion I (2 vol.set): Song-Liao-Jin-Yuan (960-1368 AD),weblink 8 December 2014, BRILL, 978-90-04-27164-7, 895–,

Religious conflict

{{multiple image|perrow=2|total_width=400|caption_align=center| align = right| direction =horizontal| header=| image1 = Painted silk fragment from a Manichaean Temple near Koço, Turkish, Sinkiang 8th century or 9th century. Museum für Asiatische Kunst, Berlin (detail).jpg| image2 = Painted silk fragment from a Manichaean Temple near Koço, Turkish, Sinkiang 8th century or 9th century. Museum für Asiatische Kunst, Berlin (man in full armour, detail).jpgTITLE=CROWNS, HATS, TURBANS AND HELMETS.THE HEADGEAR IN IRANIAN HISTORY VOLUME I: PRE-ISLAMIC PERIODPUBLISHER=K. MAKSYMIUK & G. KARAMIAN PAGE=253 URL=HTTPS://WWW.RESEARCHGATE.NET/PUBLICATION/323545452, }}File:Leaf from a Manichaean Book (MIK III 4974 recto).jpg|thumb|Leaf from ManicheanManicheanFile:Manichaean Bema Scene.jpg|thumb|Manichean Bema Scene, 8th–9th centuries (Leaf from a Manichaean book MIK III 4979Leaf from a Manichaean book MIK III 4979

Kara-Khanid Khanate

The Uyghurs of Qocho were Buddhists whose religious identity were intertwined with their religion. Qocho was a Buddhist state with both state-sponsored Mahayana Buddhism and Manichaeism. The Uyghurs sponsored the construction of many of the temple-caves in what is now called the Bezeklik Caves. Although they retained some of their culture, they were heavily influenced by the indigenous peoples of western China and abandoned the Old Turkic alphabet in favor of a modified Sogdian alphabet, which later came to be known as the Old Uyghur alphabet.{{sfn|Souček|2000|pp=49, 79}} The Idiquts (the title of the Qocho rulers) ruled independently until they become a vassal state of the Qara Khitai (Chinese: "Western Liao").The Buddhist Uyghurs frequently came into conflict with their western Muslim neighbors.BOOK, Devin DeWeese, Islamization and Native Religion in the Golden Horde: Baba TŸkles and Conversion to Islam in Historical and Epic Tradition,weblink 1 November 2010, Penn State Press, 978-0-271-04445-3, 152–, Muslim Turks described the Uyghurs in a number of derogatory ways. For example, the "Compendium of the Turkic Dialects" by Mahmud al-Kashgari states that "just as the thorn should be cut at its root, so the Uighur should be struck on the eye".BOOK, Edmund, Herzig, The Age of the Seljuqs,weblink 30 November 2014, I.B.Tauris, 978-1-78076-947-9, 26, They also used the derogatory word "Tat" to describe the Buddhist Uyghurs, which means "infidels". Uyghurs were also called dogs.BOOK, Edmund Herzig, The Age of the Seljuqs,weblink 30 November 2014, I.B.Tauris, 978-1-78076-947-9, 13ff, weblink" title="web.archive.org/web/20151118063834weblink">Essays harvard.edu p. 160.BOOK, Harvard Ukrainian studies,weblink 1980, Harvard Ukrainian Research Institute, 160, While al-Kashgari displayed a different attitude towards the Turk diviners beliefs and "national customs", he expressed towards Buddhism a hatred in his Diwan where he wrote the verse cycle on the war against Uyghur Buddhists. Buddhist origin words like toyin (a cleric or priest) and Burxān or FurxanBOOK, Giovanni Stary, Proceedings of the 38th Permanent International Altaistic Conference (PIAC): Kawasaki, Japan, August 7–12, 1995,weblink 1996, Harrassowitz Verlag in Kommission, 978-3-447-03801-0, 17, 27, BOOK, James Russell, Hamilton, Conte bouddhique du bon et du mauvais prince,weblink 1971, Éditions du Centre national de la recherche scientifique, 114, (meaning Buddha,BOOK, Linguistica Brunensia,weblink 2009, Masaryk University, 66, BOOK, Egidius, Schmalzriedt, Hans Wilhelm, Haussig, Die Mythologie der mongolischen Volksreligion,weblink 2004, Klett-Cotta, 978-3-12-909814-1, 956, acquiring the generic meaning of "idol" in the Turkic language of Kashgari) had negative connotations to Muslim Turks.JOURNAL, Robert Dankoff, Dankoff, Robert, January–March 1975, Kāšġarī on the Beliefs and Superstitions of the Turks, 599159, Journal of the American Oriental Society, American Oriental Society, 95, 1, 69, 10.2307/599159, BOOK, Robert, Dankoff, From Mahmud Kaşgari to Evliya Çelebi,weblink 2008, Isis Press, 978-975-428-366-2, 79, The Uyghurs were subjected to attacks by Muslim Turks, according to Kashgari's work.BOOK, Harvard Ukrainian studies,weblink 1980, Harvard Ukrainian Research Instituteb, 159, The Kara-Khanid Khanate's ruler Sultan Satuq Bughra Khan razed Qocho's Buddhist temples in the Minglaq province across the Ili region.BOOK, Dust in the Wind: Retracing Dharma Master Xuanzang's Western Pilgrimage,weblink 2006, Rhythms Monthly, 978-986-81419-8-8, 479, BOOK, Robert, Dankoff, From Mahmud Kaşgari to Evliya Çelebi,weblink 2008, Isis Press, 978-975-428-366-2, 35, BOOK, Robert, Dankoff, From Mahmud Kaşgari to Evliya Çelebi,weblink 2008, Isis Press, 978-975-428-366-2, 35, BOOK, Harvard Ukrainian studies,weblink 1980, Harvard Ukrainian Research Institute, 160, Buddhist murals at the Bezeklik Thousand Buddha Caves were damaged by local Muslim population whose religion proscribed figurative images of sentient beings, the eyes and mouths in particular were often gouged out. Pieces of murals were also broken off for use as fertilizer by the locals.BOOK, Conservation of ancient sites on the Silk Road: proceedings of the second International Conference on the Conservation of Grotto Sites, Mogao Grottoes, Dunhuang, People's Republic of China, Neville, Agnew, Getty, 2010, 978-1-60606-013-1, A place of safekeeping? The vicissitudes of the Bezeklik murals, Susan, Whitfield, Susan Whitfield, 95–106,weblink dead,weblink" title="web.archive.org/web/20121030073844weblink">weblink 2012-10-30, The Islamic–Buddhist conflict from the 11th to 12th centuries is still recalled in the forms of the Khotan Imam Asim Sufi shrine celebration and other Sufi holy site celebrations. Bezeklik's Thousand Buddha Caves are an example of the religiously motivated vandalism against portraits of religious and human figures.BOOK, Michael, Dillon, Xinjiang and the Expansion of Chinese Communist Power: Kashgar in the Early Twentieth Century,weblink 1 August 2014, Routledge, 978-1-317-64721-8, 17ff, According to Kashgari's Three Turkic Verse Cycles, the "infidel tribes" suffered three defeats, one at the hands of the Karakhanids in the Irtysh Valley, one by unspecified Muslim Turks, and one inflicted upon "a city between the Tangut and China", Qatun Sini, at the hands of the Tangut Khan.BOOK, Robert, Dankoff, From Mahmud Kaşgari to Evliya Çelebi,weblink 2008, Isis Press, 978-975-428-366-2, 27, BOOK, Harvard Ukrainian studies,weblink 1980, Harvard Ukrainian Research Institute, 151, The war against Buddhist, shamanist, and Manichaean Uyghurs was considered a jihad by the Kara-Khanids.BOOK, Jiangping Wang, Glossary of Chinese Islamic Terms,weblink 12 October 2012, Routledge, 978-1-136-10658-3, xvi, BOOK, Jianping Wang, zh:中国伊斯兰教词汇表, Chinese Islamic Glossary,weblink 2001, Psychology Press, 978-0-7007-0620-4, xvi, {{harvtxt|Millward|2007}}, p. 43. Imams and soldiers who died in the battles against the Uyghur Buddhists and Khotan are revered as saints.BOOK, David, Brophy,weblink Uyghur Nation: Reform and Revolution on the Russia–China Frontier, 4 April 2016, Harvard University Press, 978-0-674-97046-5, 29ff, David Brophy (historian), It is possible the Muslims drove some Uyghur Buddhist monks towards taking asylum in the Tangut Western Xia dynasty.BOOK, Ruth W., Dunnell, The Great State of White and High: Buddhism and State Formation in Eleventh-Century Xia,weblink January 1996, University of Hawaii Press, 978-0-8248-1719-0, 54,

Mongol rule

(File:Pranidhi Scene, Replica, Turpan, 10th-12th Century.jpg|thumb|Pranidhi scene, Turpan, 10th–12th centuries.)In 1209, the Kara-Khoja ruler Baurchuk Art Tekin declared his allegiance to the Mongols under Genghis Khan and the kingdom existed as a vassal state until 1335. After submitting to the Mongols, the Uyghurs served the Mongol rulers as bureaucrats, providing the expertise that the initially illiterate nomads lacked.{{sfn|Souček|2000|p=105}} Qocho continued exist as a vassal to the Mongols of the Yuan dynasty, and were allied to the Yuan against the Chagatai Khanate. Eventually the Chagatai khan Ghiyas-ud-din Baraq eliminated Yuan influence over Qocho. When the Mongols placed the Uyghurs in control of the Koreans at court, the Korean king objected. Emperor Kublai Khan rebuked the Korean king, saying that the Uyghur king ranked higher than the Karluk Kara-Khanid ruler, who in turn was ranked higher than the Korean King, who was ranked last, because the Uyghurs surrendered to the Mongols first, the Karluks surrendered after the Uyghurs, and the Koreans surrendered last, and that the Uyghurs surrendered peacefully without violently resisting.BOOK, Morris, Rossabi, China Among Equals: The Middle Kingdom and Its Neighbors, 10th–14th Centuries,weblink 1983, University of California Press, 978-0-520-04562-0, 247ff, Yuan Empire Haw 2014p. 4. A hybrid court was used when Han Chinese and Uyghurs were in involved in legal issues.BOOK, Denis C., Twitchett, Herbert, Franke, John, King Fairbank, The Cambridge History of China, 6: Alien Regimes and Border States, 907–1368,weblink 1994, Cambridge University Press, 978-0-521-24331-5, 29, Alans were recruited into the Mongol forces with one unit called the Asud or "Right Alan Guard", which was combined with "recently surrendered" soldiers, Mongols, and Chinese soldiers stationed in the area of the former kingdom of Qocho. In Beshbalik (now Jimsar County), the Mongols established a Chinese military colony led by Chinese general Qi Kongzhi.BOOK, Morris, Rossabi, China Among Equals: The Middle Kingdom and Its Neighbors, 10th–14th Centuries,weblink 1983, University of California Press, 978-0-520-04562-0, 255ff,

Conquest by Muslim Chagatais

The last Buddhist Uyghurs of Qocho and Turpan were converted to Islam by force during a Jihad (holy war) at the hands of the Chagatai Khanate ruler Khizr Khoja (r. 1389–1399).{{sfn|Millward|2007|pp=69ff}} Mirza Haidar Dughlat's Tarikh-i-Rashidi (c. 1540, in Persian) wrote, "(Khizr Khoja) undertook a campaign against Karakhodja [Qocho] and Turfan, two very important towns in China, and forced their inhabitants to become Muslims".BOOK, The Encyclopaedia of Islam, new, X: T–U, 2000, Brill, Peri, Bearman, Peri Bearman, Priscilia P., Soucek, 677,weblink The Chagatai Khanate also conquered Hami, where the Buddhist religion was also purged and replaced with Islam.BOOK, Dust in the Wind: Retracing Dharma Master Xuanzang's Western Pilgrimage,weblink 2006, Rhythms Monthly, 978-986-81419-8-8, 480ff, Ironically after being converted to Islam, the descendants of the Uyghurs in Turpan failed to retain memory of their Buddhist legacy and were led believe that the "infidel Kalmuks" (Dzungar people) were the ones who built Buddhist monuments in their area. The Encyclopaedia of Islam wrote "By then the Turks of the Turfan ... forgetting all the other highlights of their past, they attributed the Buddhist and other monuments to the 'infidel Kalmuks'."BOOK, The Encyclopaedia of Islam, new, X: T–U, 2000, Brill, Peri, Bearman, Peri Bearman, Priscilia P., Soucek, 677,weblink WEB,weblink^entralasiens+%28Xinjiang%29,+Leiden+1987,+118-42;+Emel+Esin,+IA+art., The Encyclopaedia of Islam, 2009-12-08, 2022-07-18, {{fcn|date=April 2023}}WEB,weblink The Encyclopaedia of Islam, 2009-12-08, 2022-07-18, {{fcn|date=April 2023}}WEB,weblink The Encyclopaedia of Islam, 2009-12-08, 2022-07-18, {{fcn|date=April 2023}} The Islamic conversion forced on the Buddhist city of Hami was the final blow to Uyghur Buddhism,BOOK, Jiangping Wang, Glossary of Chinese Islamic Terms, zh:中国伊斯兰教词汇表, Chinese Islamic Glossary,weblink 12 October 2012, Routledge, 978-1-136-10650-7, xvi ff, BOOK, Jiangping Wang, Glossary of Chinese Islamic Terms,weblink 12 October 2012, Routledge, 978-1-136-10658-3, xvi ff, BOOK, Jianping Wang, zh:中国伊斯兰教词汇表, Chinese Islamic Glossary,weblink 2001, Psychology Press, 978-0-7007-0620-4, xvi–, although some Buddhist influence in the names of Turpan Muslims still remained.WEB,weblink Viticulture and Viniculture in the Turfan Region, Silkroad Foundation, Adela C. Y., Lee, June 22, 2016,weblink" title="web.archive.org/web/20180807171731weblink">weblink August 7, 2018, dead, Since Islam reached them much after other cities in the Tarim Basin, personal names of pre-Islamic Old Uyghur origin are still used in Hami and Turpan while Uyghurs to the west use mostly Islamic names of Arabic origin.BOOK, Ildikó, Bellér-Hann, Situating the Uyghurs Between China and Central Asia,weblink 2007, Ashgate, 978-0-7546-7041-4, 113ff, Cherrypicking of history of Xinjiang with the intention of projecting an image of either irreligiousity or piousness of Islam in Uyghur culture has been done for various reasons.BOOK, Michael, Dillon, Xinjiang and the Expansion of Chinese Communist Power: Kashgar in the Early Twentieth Century,weblink 1 August 2014, Routledge, 978-1-317-64721-8, 4ff, After the conversion to Islam by Uyghurs, the term "Uyghur" fell out of use until it was revived in 1921.{{sfn|Gladney|2004|p=213}}{{sfn|Bellér-Hann|2008|p=50-51}}

List of kings (idiquts)

{{History of the Turkic peoples}}{{History of Xinjiang}}The Kingdom of Qocho's rulers trace their lineage to Qutlugh of the Ediz dynasty of the Uyghur Khaganate. There are numerous gaps in our knowledge of the Uyghur rulers of Qocho prior to the thirteenth century. The title of the ruler of Qocho was idiqut or iduq qut. In 1308, Nolen Tekin was granted the title Prince of Gaochang by the Yuan Emperor Ayurbarwada. The following list of rulers is drawn mostly from Turghun Almas, Uyghurlar (Almaty, 1992), vol. 1, pp. 180–85.BOOK,weblink Marriage as Political Strategy and Cultural Expression: Mongolian Royal Marriages from World Empire to Yuan Dynasty, Asian thought and culture, 60, George Qingzhi Zhao, Peter Lang (publisher), Peter Lang, June 2008, 165–66, 174–76, 192134589, 978-1433102752, Named rulers based on various sources of other languages are also included.西州回鶻統治者稱號研究 ihp.sinica.edu.tw

• 850–866: Pan Tekin (Pangtele)
• 866–871: Boko Tekin...
• 940–948: Irdimin Khan
• 948–985: Arslan (Zhihai) Khan...
• 954: Ilig Bilgä T[e]ngri
• 981: Arslan Bilgä T[e]ngri ilig
• 996-1007: Bügü Bilgä T[e]ngri ilig
• 1007-1024: Alp Arsla Qutlugh Kül Bilgä T[e]ngri Qan
• 1024: Kül Bilgä T[e]ngri Qan
• 1068: T[e]ngri Bügü il Bilgä Arslan Tngri Uighur Tärkän
• 1123: Bilgä
• 1126–????: Bilge (Biliege/Bilgä) Tekin...
• ????–????: Isen Tomur...
• 1208/1229–1235/1241: Baurchuq (Barchukh) Art Tekin
• 1229: Yue-er Tie-mu-er
• 1235/1242–1245/1246: Qusmayin (Kesmez)
• 1246–1253/1255: Salun (Salindi) Tekin
• 1253/1255–1257/1265: Oghrunzh (Ogrunch) Tekin
• 1257/1265–1265/1266: Mamuraq Tekin
• 1266–1276/1280: Qozhighar (Qosqar) Tekin
• 1276/1280–1318: Nolen (Neguril) Tekin
• 1309/1318: Kiräsiz iduq-qut
• 1309/1318-1326/1334: Köncök iduq-qut
• 1318/1322–1327/1330: Tomur (Tamir) Buqa
• 1327/1330–1331/1332: Sunggi (Senggi) Tekin
• 1331/1332–1335/1352: Taypan (Taipingnu)
• 1335–1353: Yuelutiemur
• 1352-1360: Ching Timür iduq-qut
• 1353–????: Sangge

Image gallery

File:Dunhuang Uighur king.jpg|Uyghur king from TurfanFile:Uigure-bezeklik-17.jpg|Uyghur Prince from the Bezeklik muralsFile:Uigure-bezeklik-19.jpg|Uyghur noble from the Bezeklik muralsFile:Manichaean Temple Banner (MIK III 6283).jpg|Uyghur Manichaean Elect depicted on a temple banner from QochoFile:Museum für Indische Kunst Dahlem Berlin Mai 2006 064.jpg|Uyghur Princesses from the Bezeklik muralsFile:Museum für Indische Kunst Dahlem Berlin Mai 2006 063.jpg|Uyghur Princes from the Bezeklik muralsFile:Museum für Indische Kunst Dahlem Berlin Mai 2006 067.jpg|Uyghur donor from the Bezeklik muralsFile:ManichaeanElectaeKocho10thCentury.jpg|Uyghur Manichaean Electae from QochoFile:Museum für Indische Kunst Dahlem Berlin Mai 2006 066.jpg|Uyghur Manichaean clergymen from QochoFile:Manicheans.jpg|Manicheans from QochoFile:Museum für Indische Kunst Dahlem Berlin Mai 2006 061.jpg|Mural from a Christian temple in Qocho

See also

• Bezeklik Thousand Buddha Caves
• Kara Del
• Ming–Turpan conflict
• Ganzhou Uyghur Kingdom
• Islamization and Turkification of Xinjiang
• History of the Uyghur people
• History of Xinjiang
• Silk Road transmission of Buddhism

References

Citations

{{reflist|colwidth=30em}}

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Further reading

• BOOK,weblink Chotscho : vol.1,
• JOURNAL,weblink Moriyasu Takao, The Sha-Chou &91;Dunhuang&93; Uighurs and the West Uighur Kingdo', Acta Asiatica, 2004, 78, 9780813535333,

{{Historical polities in Xinjiang}}{{Xinjiang topics}}{{Authority control}}