Far From Zion: A Jewish Khaganate

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The Eurasia steppe has seen many peoples, from the Maygars to the Rus', but none have stood out more than the Khazars. The tale of the Khazars is one full of hope and death. In the mid-700s the Khazars ruled most of the Eurasia steppe and had many client nations paying them vast sums of tribute, and around the mid-800s the Khazars declared their religion to be, of all things, Judiaism, briefly creating a strong, Jewish state.
But it wasn't fated to last. The Maygars, a tribe that the Khazars forced to pay tribute, rose up in civil war. Though theyt were eventually defeated and forced to migrate from their home lands of Etelkuzu by the Khazars, the temporary vaccum opened up the the lost of the Maygars allowed the Pechenegs to move in. After a series of border clashes, along with some aid from the Kiev Rus', the Pechenegs were able to seriously wound the Khazar state. Fast forward to the 960s, where a crumbling Khazar Khanate takes its last breaths, before falling to a mix of Cuman and Rus' forces. It is here, our version of history changes.
It is a time honored tradition of the steppe people to absorb the cultures of those they have conquered, though usually in varying degrees. What if, the conquering Cumans had been just a tad more receptive of the Khazar culture? What if, the Cumans had converted to Judiaism?

Welcome to the wonderful world of Far From Zion: A Jewish Khaganate! This is part one of what I hope will be a game that spans from CK to HOI2 Armageddon. I'll be playing on Normal difficulty with AI agressivness set to normal. I'll be playing as the Cumans, whose religion I have changed to Jewish, instead of their normal pagan. I've also got the latest DVIP files and have added two events that will allow the spread of Judiaism. I've also gone ahead and gave Sharu-khan (the current king of the Cumans) some Khazar court members, so that he has a little something more to work with than his under aged brother and sister.

FULL DISCLOSURE: This is my first AAR, so don't yell (too much) if I don't do it to your satisfaction. One thousand apologize in advance and all that.

 

[phargle]

Sick.

 

[crusaderknight]

Fascinating concept! I will try to follow this is my spare time. And welcome to AARland! Good luck and God speed on your first AAR. I know it can feel a little intimidating to start your first AAR, especially if it will be following the History Book or Narrative formats. But don't worry about it. Just have fun doing your thing. Write what comes to you and don't worry too much about it all.

 

[Specialist290]

Certainly sounds like an interesting concept. I'll try to follow this

 

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CHAPTER ONE: The Reign of Khagan Sharu-khan I, also called Sharu-khan the Conqueror

Meet Sharu-khan, who's just inherited the throne of the Cumans at the tender age of sixteen. He's also inherited a land that still follows the pagan rites instead of the proper, Jewish ones and one that is surrounded by foes. To the north, a mix of pagans tribes, Orthodox principalities, and Muslim emirates. To the west, the hostile Catholics sharpen their swords, waiting for the chance to destroy the only Jewish power in the known world. To the south lies yet more Muslims and the extremely Orthodox Byzantium.

Though Sharu-khan is far better at the art of war, he understands that with out heirs, everything his father has built will fall to ruin, and makes it his top priority to marry. He chooses a crafty and frugal wench from the neighboring county of Sarpa by the name of Gunduz, and within a few years, he has her with child. Nine months later, Sharu-khan has a healthy baby boy, whom he names Etrek. Sharu-khan and Gunduz will go on to have three more boys and two more daughters, whose names have fallen from the histories of the Cumans.

Being the only Jewish nation in the known world is hard, trying business, especially when they all see you as weak. Sharu-khan learns this quickly, when the Tribe of Pechenegs declares war on the Cumans, with Volga Bulgaria and the Emirate of Turkmens following suit within a year. But Cuman is strong, and Sharu-khan is able to hold off the the Volga Bulgars and the Turkmen while successfully breaking the Pechenegs and routing them. After several battles the Pechenegs ask for peace, giving up several border provinces and a sizable amount of money.

The war with the Volga Bulgaria-Turkmens alliance goes even better than the one with the Pechenegs. After less than a few months, the Emirate of Turkmens is annexed and the land partitioned off to loyal court members, and not too long after the Volga Bulgars offer nearly 1,000 gold in tribute. As the Cuman's coffers are in the negative, Sharu-khan is happy to accept.

Sharu-khan, learning his lesson from the last three wars, begins to plan for war against Georgia. Georgia, taking advantage of the crumbling Byzantium, had recently aquired several shiny, new provinces and the Georgian king, now over confident with his forces, has recently started to eye Cuman lands.

Sharu-khan's supicions are confirmed when the king of Georgia declares war on the Principality of Alania, and in the ensuing war, completely annexes the principality, now giving Georgia a border with Cuman.

The worse happens in 1078, when Georgia declares war on the Duchy of Azov, but Sharu-khan is ready for them. Quickly mobilizing his personal troops, Sharu-khan marches off to battle.

The war does not start off well for Sharu-khan, who is forced to make a tactical retreat from Kasogs in the face of a superior Georgian numbers. A month later, though, the tables have turned, as Sharu-khan marches back into Kasogs, this time with nearly 7,000 troops. In the ensuing battle, it is said that Sharu-khan, upon a horse of pure night, found and engaged Giorgi, the king of the Georgians, and engaged him in combat. It was here, Sharu-khan I, also called Sharu-khan the Conqueror, died most gloriously. His troops, though saddened by his loss, took heart that he died as a man would, engaging his sworn foe in single combat. On July 21st, 1078 Sharu-khan died at the age of 28. His son, Etrek, at the age of eight, was crowned Khagan Etrek I of Cumans.

 

[General_BT]

Awesome concept... though losing the Khagan so early was unfortunate. Hopefully Etrek will be up to the task...

 

[crusaderknight]

And so passes Sharu-Khan the Conqueror. I echo BT's sentiments. Hopefully Etrek I will survive his minority. If he does, I am certain he will turn out to be a great Khan, if he takes after his father, ofcourse.

 

[phargle]

That's an ill start.

 

[LlywelynII]

First, welcome!

Second, great idea If you wanted any Khazary names, General Dayan wrote some up here. Just save your current name list as 'oldnames' as backup and paste those new 'Cuman' names into the file.

I'm not sure if the dynasty IDs would involve conflicts now, but you can solve the problem by adding a few zeros to the numbers if there's any problem.

Finally, any plans? There's always Israel and the still-extant exilarch in the huge Baghdadi Jewish commmunity; or revenge against the pogroms in Andalucia.

 

[Hannibal X]

L'chaim! Shalom aleichem, dude. Wonderful idea- how about, when Mongols come, Jeiwsh Mongol superhorde! Converting one goyim city at a time!:rofl:

 

[Terrifying Effigies]

Really cool concept, looking forward to future updates!

 

[kadvael56]

Are you the only Jewish nation? I thought there was the duke of the Khazars in Itil, and Crimea and Kuma were Jewish provinces (though ruled by pagans and orthodox respectively). Good luck .

 

[Enewald]

Etrek shall rule the ocean of grass from Danube to Urals I expect.

 

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Great concept

 

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Thanks for all the support, everyone! It's made me feel alot less nervous about posting my first AAR.

Now for some specifics:

Llywelyn: Thanks for the links! I'll probably mix the new names with the old Cuman names, since I don't want the Cumans to loose their identity completely.

As for plans, I haven't made any past surviving the Mongols and making it to EU3. Hopefully the Pope won't call a crusade on me...

Hannibal X: I was thinking about adjusting the Mongol events, to allow for the Mongols to convert to Judiaism. I'm gonna wait until they actually invade to see how strong the Jewish faith is.

kadvael56: I really am the only Jewish nation. The Duchy of Khazars were added to the Cumans, making me the only Jewish nation anywhere in the known world. It's so very lonely. Hopefully, that will change.

Enewald: I've set some limits to what I can and can't do. One of them is, not to completely annex all of east Europe. I've got a basic idea for what I'd like to be the borders by the end of CK, and once I get them, I'm not going to be expanding beyond them.

Once again, thanks for the support.

 

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CHAPTER TWO: Part One: The Reign of Khagan Etrek I, also called Etrek the Pious, Etrek the Old, Etrek the Just, Etrek the Wise, Etrek the Conqueror, Etrek the Good, Etrek the Architect, Etrek the Patron, and Etrek the Great

EXPLANATION: Etrek lived to be 78 and is probably the best khagan I'll ever get, thus all the extra titles. Also, I'm splitting up his reign into about four parts, do to his longevity.

Etrek couldn't have taken the throne at a worse time. The war with Georgia has just started to heat up, and his father, renown for his fighting abilities, lies dead. The war, which Sharu-khan had meant to be an offensive one, is quickly turned into a war of attrition and defense. Troops are mobilized from nearby provinces and rushed to stabilize the front.

The Georgians, angered at the loss of Kasogs, capture and put to death the duke of Khazars, and kidnap his son. Etrek pays for the return of the son, but swears revenge. Orders are issued and the war plans change once again, going from defensive to offensive once again. Cuman troops push into what use to be the Duchy of Alania. The Georgians make a poor showing, and retreat after heavy casualties, regrouping in Abkhazia.

After successfully occupying Alania, Cuman troops regroup and reinforce, before attempting to crack the nut that is Abkhazia. During the ensuing battle, king Giorgi is hit by a stray arrow. The wound is quick to fester, and Giorgi dies in his bed while the battle rages around him. Cuman troops take heart in the death of Giorgi, taking it as a sign that God truly is on their side. In the ensuing months, Abkhazia falls, and the new Georgian king is forced to give up Alania and pay nearly five hundred gold in tribute.

To celebrate the end of the war with the heathen Georgians, a great feast is held in Desht-i-Kipchak, with all of Etrek's vassals invited. Etrek taps into the royal coffers to pay for the feast, refusing to make his vassals or the lower classes pay for it. After all, with the royal coffers already in the red, what's a few hundred more gold? The feast is a great success, and Etrek's vassals take heart that the young khagan seems to know what he's doing.

Even loosing his father hardly stops young Etrek, who takes away several grains of wisdom from the loss of his father. Etrek also gains a Solomon-like sense of justice and enacts feudal contract to please his vassals, and creates a series of laws ensuring that no man or woman will be born into serfdom. Over the next eight years, Etrek works to refill the royal coffers, becomes a patron to several young scholars who wish to write the history of the Cuman dynasty, and goes on a building spree, creating schools, new synagogues, and inviting the moneylenders in. By the time Etrek has reached his majority, he has not only won over the loyalty of his numerous vassals, but also of the pagan people, prompting several key provinces to convert to Judaism, much to Etrek's pleasure.

 

[crusaderknight]

My prediction came true! Etrek survived his minority and shall indeed make a great Khan! I wonder if there's any money in this prophet business? Perhaps I should move to the Cuman realms and serve Etrek?

Very good job winning the war against the Georgians. And hosting a royal feast while in the red? Etrek is one gutsy fellow. I like him. And he's quite the dashing young fellow isn't he? He is wise as Solomon it seems, I wonder if he will be as much of a ladies man, too? And three more chapters of his reign you say? I am looking forward to it!

 

[timetogetaway]

Poor Georgians tend to be shafted by everyone, eh? If it is not the Emirate of Derbent down below it has to be some kingdom of Jewish Cumans! How big is the kingdom, btw?

 

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Heh!

Jews+Cumans=Steppe Win!

Watching, grinning. Please go on.

 

[Specialist290]

Lucky break there with the death of the Georgian king!

Incidentally, what's the trait on the far right? I'm not familiar w/ the DV traits all that much...