Chagatai Khanate

In this episode, we explore the rise and transformation of the Chagatai Khanate, the Mongol “Middle Empire” that emerged after Genghis Khan’s death and stretched across key Silk Road territories from the Tarim Basin to Transoxiana. We trace how the khanate evolved from a Mongol-ruled polity into a Turkicized Central Asian state, shaped by rivalries with the Yuan Dynasty and Ilkhanate, shifting loyalties to the Great Khan, and internal struggles involving figures like Kaidu. The episode also examines the khanate’s gradual transition from Tengrism to Islam, its fragmentation into western and eastern regions, and its lasting influence through successor states such as Moghulistan, the Timurid Empire, and the Yarkent Khanate.