Sultan Mohammed Öz-Beg, better known as
Uzbeg or
Ozbeg (1282–1341, reign 1313–1341), was the longest-reigning
khan of the
Golden Horde, under whose rule the state reached its zenith.
[1] He was succeeded by his son
Jani Beg.
He was the son of Toghrilcha and grandson of Mengu-Timur, who had been khan of the Golden Horde from 1267–1280.
Ozbeg's father Togrilcha was one of Genghisid princes that overthrew Tode-Mengu (r.1280–1287). Later, he was executed by Tokhta (1291–1312). Tokhta took Togrilcha's wife and sent his son Ozbeg to exile on a distant region of the Golden Horde Khorazm or the country of Circassians.
Converted to Islam by Ibn Abdul Hamid, a Bukharan sayyid and sheikh of the Yasavi order, Öz-Beg assumed the throne upon the death of his uncle Tokhta in January 1313 with the help of former khan's muslim vizier Temur Qutlugh and Bulaghan (or Bayalun) khatun. At first, Mongol nobles were against him and organized the plot to kill new khan. Uzbeg found out the plot and crushed rebels[2]. His adoption of Islam as a state religion led to a conspiracy of Shamanist and Buddhist princes, which was severely subdued. Ozbeg determindely spread Islam amongst Gorde Horde he allowed missionary activities to expand in the surrounding regions. Ozbeg found out that his competitor was backed by the envoys of the Great Khan Ayurbarwada Buyantu and deteriorated his relationship with Yuan Dynasty.[3] Last of his rebel relatives was shamanist khan Ilbasan of White Horde and he was murdered in 1320. Uzbeg installed Mubarak Khwaja who was a muslim in throne of White Horde but he discouraged. In the long run, Islam enabled the khan to eliminate interfactional struggles in the Horde and to stabilize state institutions. Russian scholar Lev Gumilev wrote that the Khanate turned into Sultanate[4].
