Chuvash History             

       Bulgarian, Suvar and Barsili people who emigrated from the Central Asia to the Northern Caucasus in the century III D.C. shared the same geography with Samat-Alat groups that spoke in Farsi language. They had developed their feudal structures and state orders in the Northern Caucasus. We have observed that several groups that separated from Bulgarian and Suvar people were forced to new immigrations between the centuries III and VI D.C. Sabir Turks advanced towards the north of the Caucasus in the Gregorian year of 305. It was recorded in the historical reference books that Suvar people came to Anatolia in the years of 515-527 D.C and then advanced towards Kastamonu.

       Gökturk State expanded its borders and included the field of Caucasus. As a result of this expansion, Bulgar and Suvar people remained under the dominion of this state. The Great Bulgarian State that had been founded upon the interregnum period of Gokturk Khanate could not live long enough and the neighbouring Khazar Khanate dissolved it after the year of 665. A group that got separated from the Great Bulgarian State which was dissolved advanced towards the banks of Tuna and entered into the Balkans under the leadership of Asparuh. Then, they founded Tuna Bulgarians State in the year of 681. Tuna Bulgars joined in the Slavs in due time. Upon the official adoption of Christianity by Boris Han in 864, they gradually become assimilated and then they were wiped off from the stage of history.

       Upon the dissolution of the Great Bulgarian State, Bulgar and Suvar people came to the central banks of Idyll at the end of the century VII and in the beginning of the century VIII. This situation caused a great change of population in the region. As a matter of fact, it is recorded in the historical resources that they settled in the banks of Idyll and Kama in the century I D.C. At the end of the century VII., the structure of population on the banks of Idyll is as follows: the eastern Finno groups that lived in this region for five thousand years BC (the ancestors of today's Mari, Mordva and Udmut people), Ugor people that came from the southern regions of the west Siberia and settled in the central banks of Idyll in the centuries of V-IV BC, Imenkovets people that settled in the lower region of Kama River and the place around today's Ulyanovsk and the eastern Slavs that advanced towards the central region of Dinyeper (These Slav groups must have mixed with Finno-Ugrian tribes), the Hungarian remainders that stayed in the region after the Hun migrations, some of Burtas people, Başkırt people who spoke Oguz language and Khazars on the south.

       The Bulgar-Suvar groups that led nomadic life in the years before settled down in the central banks of Idyll. Most of the Bulgar and Suvar groups settled on the left side of Idyll. Towards the century X, Esegel and Temtuz Bulgarians settled on the right side of Idyll. First of all, the Bulgar-Suvar union was established in the region. We observe that the Bulgar-Suvar people established dominion over Finno-Ugrian people and the other tribes in the region at the end of the century IX and in the beginning of the century X and then, they founded Idyll Bulgarians State.

       The centre of the Bulgarian people was the River Kuban that was the centre of population in the Caucasus and the steppes in the neighbourhood of the Sea of Azov. Some of the Bulgarian people remained in their old centre of population. This Bulgarian homeland was named as Black Bulgaria in the Byzantine and Russian resources. But these groups were lost among the waves of Hungarian, Pecenek and Kuman people. Islam religion started to get widespread in the Bulgarian lands as a result of the relations of Bulgarian merchants with the Muslim merchants in Harizm country and Samani country and the activities of Harizm merchants in the Bulgarian geographies. It was recorded in the historical resources that most of the Bulgarians adopted the religion of Islam in the years of 900. The religion of the state pertaining to the Idyll Bulgarians was recognised as Islam pursuant to the adoption of Islam religion by Yiltavar Almış (İlteber Almuş), son of Şelkey.

       Almis Han had applied to the Abbasi Caliph, Muktedir Billah to send them scholars of religion and architects who would teach them the Islam. He then changed his name as Emir Cafer Bin Abdullah. Upon this application, the Caliph, Muktedir Billah sent a committee composed of religious scholars and architects in the year of 921. This group reached to the Bulgarian country in May of 922. İbn Fadlan, under the capacity of a clerk among the envoys of the Abbasi Caliph who came to the Bulgarian county wrote down some notes that described this voyage. As it can be understood from the coins, pursuant to Emir Cafer, his son, Mikail ascended the throne and Tâlib Bin Ahmet, Mümin Bin Ahmet and Mümin Bim El-Hasan followed him.

       Bulgarians were subject to this state until Khazar Khanate was abolished in the year 0f 965 and they paid taxes to Khazars for a long time. However, when the Khazar Khanate was abolished, they attained the identity of an independent state. Pursuant to their independence, the Russian Kiev Princedom started to disturb them. Kiev Princedom invaded the Bulgarian Country in the years of 964 and 985. The relations between the Bulgarians and Russians improved upon the conclusion of a trade agreement in 1006. But in the second half of the century XI., the fur trade in the north caused continuous wars and fights between the Russians and Bulgarians. As a result, the Russian Vsevolod organised some military campaigns to the region in order to seize the commercial passageways from the Caspian Sea and to establish dominion over various tribes. Vsevolod's armies advanced towards Bulgar (Pilhar), the big city of the Bulgarians in 1183. He sent some troops against the Idyll and Kama Bulgarians in 1205.

       The struggles with Russians continued until the appearance of the Mongolians. Mongols defeated the Russians in the river of Kalka in 1224. While they were returning to the west after this victory, they were trapped by the Bulgarians and lost a lot of casualties. In order to take its revenge, the Mongolian army in the command of Batı Han attacked to the Bulgarians in the year of 1236. The Bulgarians suffered casualties in this attack. This defeat was the beginning point of their end. Pursuant to the Mongolian devastation, Bulgarians maintained their independence in the period of Altin-Orda (Golden Army) State founded in Dest-i Kıpcak.

       The Bulgarians paid obligatory fees to the State of Altin-Orda for a long time. There were some frequent conflicts in the relations with Altin-Orda. As a result of these conflicts, Pulat Timur, Khan of Altin-Orda State moved towards the Bulgarians and destroyed the Bulgarian city again in 1361. In the military campaign of Timur against Toktamış, Altin-Orda Khan (1376-1395) carried out in 1361, the Bulgarian country was devastated again. As a result, Toktamış Khan who was defeated by Timur had to leave the Bulgaria with his forces. We have observed that the Bulgarian City was destroyed by Russians in 1399. The Bulgarians could not recover and get collected together after 1399 and they got dispersed. Some of the people settled at full length over the Kazan River on the north of Kama River and they made this region to be come Turkish. The major population of the Kazan Khanate founded in 1435 was composed of Bulgarians, Mongolian-Kipchaks and the other native people.

to be continued       

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