Inal the Great

Inal Nekhu (Adyghe: Инал Нэф, romanized: Yinal Nəf, lit. 'Inal the Radiant'; Kabardian: Инал Нэху, romanized: Yinal Nəxw, lit. 'Inal the Radiant'; also known as Inal the Great in Georgian sources) was the Supreme Prince (King) of Circassia from 1427 to 1453 who unified all Circassians (then divided into several princedoms) into one state.^[b][1][2] He led campaigns into several countries and expanded borders on all directions.^[1] He was the founder of princely families within Circassian tribes, mainly Kabardia, Besleney, Temirgoy, Zhaney, and Hatuqway.^[3]

Inal the Great Inal the Radiant
King of Circassia Prince of Princes
Circassia during the reign of Inal
Grand Prince of All Circassia
Reign	1427 – 1453
Predecessor	Office established
Successor	Various princes self-proclaim themselves
Born	Taman, Zichia
Died	c. 1458 Grand Principality of Circassia
Burial	Unknown, allegedly Inal-Quba, Abkhazia or the Ispravnaya region, Karachay-Cherkessia
Spouse	Two wives, an unnamed Abkhaz Anchabadze princess & an unnamed Circassian noblewoman
Issue	Тэбылду (Tabulda) Беслъэн (Beslan) КIэмрыгу/Темырыгу (Chemrug/Temrug) Зан/Жанэ[a] (Zan/Zhané)
Names Full name: Абдун-хан икъуэ Къэс икъуэ Аду-хан икъуэ Хъурыфэлъей икъуэ Инал Нэху (Abdun-xan yiqwə Qəs yiqwə Adu-xan yiqwə Xhurıfətley yiqwə Yinal Nəxw)
Dynasty	Inalid
Father	ХъурыфэлӀ (Xhurıfəl')
Religion	Eastern Orthodox Christianity syncretised with Khabzeism

Inal's title in Circassian was пщым я пщыж meaning "prince of princes."^[4][c] Inal’s nickname was an Adyghe word Нэф meaning "radiant."^[5] According to another view, Нэф is Kabardian and therefore means blind.^[6] Inal also had another nickname: "Akabgu". According to one theory, this nickname is of Turkic origin, derived from ak-yabgu, meaning "western ruler," and was possibly given to him by the Turks.^[7][8] Another theory suggests that Akabgu is actually a Circassian nickname. In Kabardian, акӏэ means "topknot" (a hair tuft left on the shaved head), and бгъуэ means "wide"; together, акӀабгъуэ refers to a "wide topknot."^[d][6] Although some accounts^[7][6] list Inal’s nicknames as Kess and Khurfatal, the widely accepted view is that these terms do not refer to nicknames but to Inal’s ancestors.^[9][10]

The name "Inal" is pronounced as "Yinal" in Circassian languages; if a word begins with the letter "i", it is pronounced with a "yi" sound.

Biography

Before the rise of Inal, the established lords in Circassia had separate territorial administration and an organized structure was not developed. Although the Circassians resisted Timurid forces in the Timur-Circassian wars,^[11] the Circassian region suffered great destruction as a result of this war.^[11]

Early life

The crown of Inal^[12]

He was born in the Taman Peninsula near modern-day Crimea and was raised among the princely caste. As a young boy, he was well-trained, proficient in martial arts, and educated about the vast land of the Circassian country and the numerous clans that controlled land and power throughout the homeland.

Rise to power

Inal initially owned land in the Taman peninsula.^[13] A skilled strategist, in the early 1400s, he gathered a force mainly consisting of the Khegayk clan and set out to complete his goal of creating a unified Circassian kingdom under fealty. While Circassian lordships fell into Inal's hands one by one,^[14] he fought and defeated warlords and clan chieftains. Despite the many attempts to divide and weaken his army, he used political intrigue to ward off any assassinations and divisions in his military.^[10]

Inal's rise disturbed established Circassian lords, and a confederation of 30 Circassian clans opposing Inal formed an alliance to fight him. In a battle near the Mzymta River, the coalition of thirty Circassian lords was defeated by Inal and his supporters. Ten of them were executed, while the remaining twenty lords declared allegiance and joined the forces of Inal's new state.^[15]

Afterwards, a prince named Wozdemir rebelled and gathered a large force, with which he defeated the Khegayk. Upon learning that Inal had raised an army and was marching against them, they withdrew to Abkhazia. Inal pursued them into Abkhazia, and in the ensuing battle Wozdemir was killed.^[10]

Conquests

Conquest of Kuban and Eastern Circassia

The coat of Arms of the Cherkassky dynasty, used by the successors of Inal.

Inal emerged by taking advantage of the power vacuum created during the disintegration of the Golden Horde and became a widely recognized leader in the Caucasus.^[16]

Inal, who then ruled Western Circassia, organized a campaign to Eastern Circassia in 1434 and established the Kabardia province. According to a rumour, the province was named after the local ruler, Kabard Tambiy, who became a first-degree nobleman after the Inalid princes settled in Kabardia.^[6] However, it is assumed that the Kabardian ethnonym emerged before this account. Inal organized a new campaign to the north in 1438 and drove out the Turkic nomads near the Circassian settlements north of the Kuban River along the Ten River and expanded his borders to modern-day Azov.^[11][17][18]

John III describes that at the turn of the XIV and XV centuries, Circassia expanded its borders to the north to the mouth of the Don, and he notes that "the city and port of Tana is located in the same country in Upper Circassia, on the Don River, which separates Europe from Asia."^[19] His description matches with Inal's expansions.

At the time, Abkhazia was ruled by Mingrelian princes who sought to assimilate the Abkhaz people. After unifying Circassia, Inal turned his attention to Abkhazia, where the Abkhaz clans Anchabadze and Sharvashidze pledged allegiance to him. Together, they defeated the opposing Mingrelian forces and united Northern Abkhazia with Circassia. The Abkhaz people recognized Inal’s rule, and he consolidated his authority in the region.^[20][15][21] According to Georgian chronicles, after a campaign carried out by Inal, the Gurian and Mingrelian forces launched a retaliatory campaign. The attack was repelled by Inal, and many Imeretian princes and nobles were either killed or taken prisoner. The Patriarch of Abkhazia, Malakiy, went to Inal’s camp to negotiate ransom and secured the release of the captured aristocrats. In some Georgian sources, Inal is referred to with a nickname meaning "the hated one."^[22]

Reforms

Administrative reforms

When his conquests subsided, Inal began to take measures to develop the Circassian nation by introducing reforms, organizing tribes and instituting courts of elders to govern the concerns of the Circassian provinces. He divided his possessions into four counties: Kabardia, Beslan, Chemirgoy, and Zhaney-Hatuqway.^[e] He introduced the institution of 40 judges. However, Circassia was split up again after his death into separate feudal principalities.^[23][15][24] Inalid princes ruled most of Circassia: Kabardia by descendants of his son Tabulda; Besleney by descendants of his son Beslan; Chemguy, Zhaney and Hatuqway by descendants of his oldest^[f][25][4] son Chemrug; among others.^{[3][26][27][28]} His sons were trained by the noblemen.^[10]

According to Circassian legends, Inal was regarded among the Circassians as a prudent, just, wise, and capable leader. He was declared a saint, and the saying "May God grant Inal’s day(s)" became widespread among the people.^[10]

The city of Shanjir

After taking over the entire Circassian land with effective expansions, Inal declared the Grand Principality of Circassia, taking the title of the Grand Prince/King and the Leader of the Circassian Highlanders.^[29][30][31] The capital of this new Circassian state became the city of Shanjir also known as Jansher, founded in the Taman region where Inal was born and raised. According to the legends, Shanjir was founded by Inal's ancestor Abdun-Khan.^[22]

Peter Simon Pallas and Julius von Klaproth were the first researchers to draw attention to the city of Shanjir in history, they both described the city of Shanjir similarly.^[32] According to them, Shanjir was very "cleverly designed", had the shape of a rectangle surrounded by walls and moats, and had four gates, thus reminiscent of Roman strategic architecture.^[33] In the north, fake hills were built to gain an advantage over the enemy.^[34] Klaproth visited the ruins of the city of Shanjir, met the Circassian elders and gathered detailed information about the city.^[35] According to the information he learned, Shanjir was in an area close to Anapa.^[36][37]

Between Psif and Nefil there is a quadrilateral with four exits, lined with ramparts and moats, reminiscent of a Roman camp. Remains of the walls and ditches are still visible and stretches eastward about half a German mile (3 km) in diameter. According to what I heard, this place was formerly the residence of the king and was called Shanjir. Circassians express that their ancestors lived here.

— Julius von Klaproth

Although the city's exact location is unknown, the general opinion is that the Krasnaya Batareya region fits the descriptions by Klarapoth and Pallas.^[36][38][39]

Death and burial

Inal stepped down from power in 1453 due his old age and died in 1458. According to Shora Nogmov, Inal’s sons lacked the qualities necessary to govern the newly established state and were engaged in conflicts among themselves, which led to a failure in governance. After disputes, the territory was divided into three parts: Tabulda and Beslan settled in Kabardia, the eastern region; Chemrug took the area between the Kuban River and coastal regions as the oldest son of Inal, where he founded the Principality of Chemguy; while other relatives remained in the Khegayk region of Taman.^[10] In some versions,^[6] Zan is considered to be the son of Inal; however, according to Shora Nogmov, Zan was the youngest son of Inal's son Chemrug.^[10]

According to the Abkhaz claim, Inal died in Northern Abkhazia. This place is known today as Inal-Quba and is located in the Pskhu region.^[40] Although most sources used to accept this theory, recent researches and excavations in the region show that Inal's tomb is not here.^[5]

According to Russian explorer and archaeologist Evgeniy Dimitrievich Felitsin, Inal's tomb is not in Abkhazia. In a map published in 1882, Felitsin attached great importance to Inal but placed his grave in the Ispravnaya region in Karachay-Cherkessia, not Abkhazia. He added that this area has ancient sculptures, mounds, tombs, churches, castles and ramparts, which would be an ideal tomb for someone like Inal.^[5][41]

Ancestors

Princes Of East Circassia (Kabardia)

Abdun-Khan

Kess

Adu-Khan

Khurfatal

Inal

^[42][9]

Legacy

Abkhazian nationalists claim Inal-Quba in Pskhu is the burial site of Inal the Great

The Circassian and Abkhazian princes in following centuries claimed to be descendants of Inal and regarded him as their progenitor. Inal's name is also present in many geographical names in the Caucasus, as many places were named after him following his death. Place names associated with the name of Inal are found in Adygea, Krasnodar Krai, Kabardino-Balkaria, Karachay-Cherkessia and Abkhazia. On the Black Sea coast of Circassia, there is the Inal Bay. In the Zolsk region of the Republic of Kabardino-Balkaria, not far from Mount Kanzhal, there is mount Inal (2990 m) between Baksan River and Tyzyl valleys.^[43] Variations of Inal (Yinal, Inal, Yanal, etc.) are common names among Circassians and Abkhazians. There are many statues of Inal, especially in Abkhazia.

Some Circassian clans preserved certain objects belonging to Inal up until the Circassian Genocide. A golden cross believed to have belonged to Inal was kept until the 19th century.^[6]

Notes

1. In different narratives, he is referred to as his grandson.
2. The exact years of Inal's reign are unknown and the suggested years have not been confirmed.
3. (Adyghe: Пщыхэм япщ; Kabardian: пщым я пщыж)
4. This nickname was recorded in Russian sources which was transmitted by Kabardian princes in the 17th century.
5. Since the names of the regions came from the sons of Inal, who later founded principalities in those regions with their names, these names were not used at that time (excluding Kabardia).
6. For this reason, the title of the prince ruling the Chemguy Principality meant "Prince of Princes," and this title was passed down from Inal. In Central Circassia, the Chemguy Principality held extensive territory and was the most powerful Circassian principality of the time. Due to Chemrug being Inal’s eldest and the direct transmission of the title, Chemguy was the principality most closely positioned to be Inal’s successors.