Ulugh II's Reign : Part 6
So thanks to it's own greed the Golden Horde was alone in the world again. Ulugh still saw no nation of real interest as an alliance partner. A Christian nation was out of the question so the only option left were the few states on the Persian-Indian border that were free of existing alliances. But what did they have to offer the mighty Horde? Nothing.
Others apparently saw the Horde as a good catch though. In November the Sultan of Aden asked Ulugh to join him and Aden in an alliance. Ulugh managed to keep a straight face before the diplomat as he politely turned it down. Why on earth would the mighty Tatars join with two minor nations at the end of the remote Arabian peninsula?
A great festival was held in Astrakhan in 1539. People came from far and wide for the three day long celebration. All of it was put up at the personal expense of Ulugh
Parades of the Golden Hooves ceremonial guard are a big part of the event
So too is a good ol tournament of Buzkashi, goats everywhere mourn
Everyone gets into the spirit of things, here is town elder Kantamarkorum shortly after finishing off a beer bong
The reason for the festivities was two fold. First Kairwan was promoted to become full chief of the army.
A welcome new leader
But more importantly the date marked the ten year anniversary since Ulugh's triumphant rise to the throne. This made him one of the Horde's longer lived rulers. To mark the occasion a statue of him was unveiled.
The statue of Ulugh depicting him on his horse during the Crimean campaign, he is pointing at a cloud which he though looked liked a fluffy duck
As the hangovers from the celebration continued Ulugh became taken suddenly with religious fervour. First he sent missionaries to convert the pagans of Sadrinsk for the favour of Allah.
Converting in the cold
Seeking even more favour he then set his sights on removing the hated Shia's from the world. This would mean a campaign against the Safavid Empire.
The Safavid Empire (Blue) and their substantial army
Preparations for the war began in 1540 as the army was enlarged. Something big would be needed to deal with an army of that size.
Ulugh was happy to learn that the Ottomans were having trouble keeping hold of their new lands as the Crimeans rose in revolt against their new owners.
But perhaps the revolt put Suleyman in a bad mood. Certainly something did because he had to take his anger out on someone. That someone he chose was the Golden Horde. War was declared in March 1540. Ulugh would show them this time that the Horde were not to be messed with. This time the Ottomans would pay, they gotten away too cheaply last time.