19 November 2020. A lecture on “The cities of Kazan khanate”.

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On 19 November 2020, Muhametshin I. D. held a lecture on “The cities of Kazan khanate” for the staff members of Bolgar Museum-Reserve. Volga Bulgaria was the country with rich urban traditions. Kazan khanate as a successor of Volga Bulgaria adopted its developed urban culture.
The largest city of Kazan khanate was Kazan, which appeared in the early 11th century. Among the causes of strengthening and rise of Kazan, there were the decline of Bolgar and the transport of trade relations to a quieter northern region. Kazan had strong fortifications made of stone and oak. There was a trading center near the kremlin, and merchants from many countries gathered there. Approximately 30 thousand residents lived in the city. Kazan had numerous settlements: Kuraishova sloboda, Bish-Balta, Armenian sloboda and others.
There is little information about other cities and fortresses. On the territory of the khanate, there were extensive settlements where crafts and trade flourished. Undoubtedly, it was human settlements on the waterway banks – Alabuga, Simbir, Tetyush, Layesh and others. Most of them traditionally developed from the towns of Volga Bulgaria.
The main territory of Kazan khanate was divided into several darugas equated in Russian sources with roads, which led from Kazan to Galich, Alat, Arsk, Zyuri and the Nogai land. The centers of the three of these darugas were the towns Alat, Arsk and Zyuri. On a mountain side, such center was Alatyr.
There were more cities in Kazan khanate than identified now. On the place of many modern settlements, cities and fortified villages once existed. They were open, that is, they had not defensive fortifications. Cities played an important role in the consolidation of Tatars, in their cultural and historical development.

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