This Ideku, With The Khan, All The
Nobility, And The Whole People, Wandered Continually Up And Down The
Country, With
Their wives and children, their cattle, and whole property,
to the number of about 100,000 people, having no fixed
Abodes, but dwelling
in moveable huts, at all seasons of the year. At this time there was a king
in Tartary, named Schudicho chey or Kom, or Schadibeck-knan, the son of
Timur-Utluck, grandson of Timur-melik-aglen, and great-grandson of Urus-
Khan, This Schadibeck reigned from 1401 to 1406. Immediately on hearing
that Ideku was approaching, he took to flight; but was pursued, and killed
in a skirmish. Ideku appointed Polat or Pulad-khan, the son[12] of
Schadibeck, to be his successor, who reigned a year and a half, between
1406 and 1408. After him Segel-Aladie, or Zedy-khan, the son of
Tokatmysch or Toktemysch-khan, got possession of the throne; but he was
soon expelled by Timur-Khan, the son of Timur-Uduck, and brother of Pulad-
Khan, who reified fourteen months. Thebak, the brother of Pulad-khan, took
the field against Timur-khan, and killed him, but was unable to attain the
sovereignty, as his brother Kerunhardin ascended the throne, which he only
held for five months. Thebak again endeavoured to dispossess his brother
Kerunhardin, but was unable to effectuate his purpose; for at this
juncture, Ideku interposed, and conferred the sovereignty on Zegra, in the
room of both. Zegra, however, continued khan only for nine months, when
Mohammed-khan, son of the before-mentioned Timur-khan, and grandson of
Timur Utluck, gained a pitched battle against Ideku and Zegra, in which
Ideku was made prisoner, and Zegra fled into a country called
Descht-Kiptscha. Mohammed was in his turn driven from the throne by Waroch;
from whom Mohammed soon after retook his dominions. He was again driven out
by Doblaberd, who only kept possession for three days, when he was in his
turn dethroned by Waroch. He again was soon afterwards slain by Mohammed,
who a third time attained the sovereign power. After these repeated
revolutions, Zegra made ah unsuccessful attempt to recover the throne, in
which enterprize he lost his life.
On the death of Zegra, Schildtberger, and the other four Christians who had
been in his service, attached themselves to Manustzusch, who had been
counsellor to that prince. This person went upon a journey to Kaffa in the
Crimea, where six different religions are professed among the mixed
inhabitants of that peninsula, a part of whom are Christians; After a
residence there of five months, Manustzusch crossed the straits of Zabake
in the country called Zeckchas or Zikchia, where he sojourned for six
months. But the sultan of Turkey sent a message to the sovereign of that
country, requesting that Manustzusch might not be allowed to remain there
any longer; and upon this he removed into the land of Magrill[13].
Schildtberger and his Christian companions, reflecting that they were now
only three days journey from the Black Sea, formed a resolution to
endeavour to return into their own country. With this view, having taken
leave of Manustzusch, they went, to the capital of the country of
Bathan[14] whence they requested to be conveyed across into Christendom,
but were refused. Upon this they rode four days journey along the coast,
when at length they espied a ship at about eight Italian miles from the
shore. They made signals to the people on board by means of fire, and a
boat was sent to inquire their purpose; and having convinced the boats crew
that they, were Christians, by rehearsing the Lords prayer, Ave Maria, and
creed, and these people having reported an account of them to the captain,
of the ship, boats were sent back to bring them, on board. Having escaped
many dangers, they landed at Constantinople, where they were well received
by John Palaeologus, the Grecian emperor, who: sent them by sea to the
castle of Kilia, at the mouth of the Danube. Schildtberger here parted from
his companions, and went with some merchants to Akkerman[15] in Wallachia.
From thence he went to Sedhof Sutschawa the capital of Moldavia, or the
lesser Walachia. Hence to Lubick called otherwise Lwow or Lemberg, the
capital of White Russia, where he was detained by illness for three months.
From that place he went to Cracow, the capital of Poland; and by Breslau in
Silesia, Misnia, Eger, Ratisbon, and Freysingen, back to Munich, having
been absent for more than thirty-two years.
[1] Forster, Voy. and Disc. in the North, p. 158.
[2] About this period, many abuses subsisted among the Golden Tribe on the
Wolga. Mamay and Ideku, or Yedeghey-khan, called Edigi by
Schildtberger, had not the title of great khan of the Golden Tribe in
Kiptschak, but held in fact the supreme power in their hands, and set
up khans from among the royal family, or deposed them at their
pleasure. - Forst
[3] The names are much disfigured, and the commencement of the journey is
not mentioned; but, from the course afterwards, this may be some
corruption for Armenia, or one of its districts. - E.
[4] Perhaps a corruption for Daghistan. - E.
[5] Perhaps Kahira, or Cairo. - E.
[6] Schildtberger, or his transcriber, calls this the town of Bursa, by
mistake for the mountain of Al-Burs. - Forst.
[7] Probably Agrachan; as both Astracan and Saray had been demolished by
Timur. As to his saying that it stood in the middle of the Edil,
Etilia, or Wolga, that may be a mistake; but at any rate, Edil
signifies any river whatever. - Forst.
[8] Bissibur or Issibur, is the ancient Russian town of Isborsk. - Forst. It
would appear that the present expedition was into Siber, or Siberia
- E.
[9] This appears to refer to the Uralian chain, and the frozen regions of
the north of Russia. - E.
[10] A mistake, by confounding close-made dresses of fur with the notion of
naked men, covered all over with shaggy hair.
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