Devlet-Girei

(Devlet-Girai). The name of Crimean khans.

Devlet-Girei I. Devlet-Girei I became khan in 1551 and died in 1577. He was a protege and vassal of the Turkish sultan. Devlet-Girei I organized raids on Poland and Russia, and in 1552 he unsuccessfully attempted to impede the march of Russian troops on Kazan. During the Livonian War (1558-83), in alliance with the Polish king, he carried out several raids on Russia. Devlet-Girei I took part in the unsuccessful Turkish campaign against Astrakhan in 1569. In the spring of 1571 he carried out a devastating raid against the Russian state with a 120,000-man force, in May setting fire to Moscow. In 1572, however, during a new campaign, his troops were beaten by the Russian forces, led by M. I. Vorotynskii, in a battle near Molodi. The numerous incursions of the Crimeans within the borders of Russia and the threat to the Volga region had a considerable influence on the course of the Livonian War and its unsuccessful outcome for the Russian state.

Devlet-Girei II. Devlet-Girei II occupied the throne from 1699, with several interruptions, until his death in 1724. His position was insecure because of internal disorder in the Crimean khanate (revolts of the Nogai and strife with his brothers Gazi-Girei and Kaplan-Girei).