Hayder of Crimea

Hayder Khan Girai, Hayder (Crimean Tatar: Hayder, حيدر‎‎) (lived ?–1487, reigned 1456?, 1475) was either once or twice briefly a Khan of Crimea.

"Hayder" redirects here. For the name, see Haydar.

Hayder Giray
Khan of the Tatar Crimean Khanate (1st reign)
Reign	1456
Predecessor	Hacı I Giray
Successor	Hacı I Giray
Khan of the Tatar Crimean Khanate (2nd reign)
Reign	1475
Predecessor	Meñli I Giray
Successor	Nur Devlet
Born	unknown
Died	1487 Muscovy
Dynasty	Giray dynasty
Religion	Islam

He was one of the sons of the dynasty's founder Hacı I Giray (c. 1441–1466). It is reported that in 1456 he rebelled against his father and briefly occupied the throne, but this is not certain. [1]

After his father's death, for twelve years (1466–1478), the throne alternated between Hayder's brothers Nur Devlet and Meñli I Giray. During one of Mengli's reigns Hayder was held in honorable confinement at the Genoese fortress of Sudak.

In March 1475 the nobles replaced Mengli with Hayder. He and the Shirin Bey Eminek raided the Lithuanian border. In May–December 1475 the Turks captured the Genoese ports on the south shore. They released Nur Devlet from prison in Sudak and made him khan. Hayder yielded to Nur Devlet but their relations were not good. Nur Devlet proved unpopular and in the spring of 1478 the Turks released their prisoner Mengli and placed him on the throne.

Hayder and Nur Devlet fled to Kiev in the Polish Kingdom. About 1479 they moved to Muscovy under protection of the grand duke Ivan III, who later banished Hayder to Northern Muscovy for reasons that remain unknown[2]. He died about 1487 in Beloozero, Vologda oblast.

Preceded by Hacı I Giray	Khan of Crimea 1456	Succeeded by Hacı I Giray

Preceded by Meñli I Giray	Khan of Crimea 1475	Succeeded by Nur Devlet

See also

• Crimean Khanate
• History of Crimea
• List of Crimean khans

Sources

• Oleksa Gaivoronsky. Poveliteli Dvukh Materikov, second edition, Kiev 2010, volume I, pp. 58, 63, 65, 67, 74.

1. This claim appears in several Wikipedia articles, but does not seem to be in the usual printed sources.
2. Gaivoronsky, p74 says that there were rumors that the Poles were planning to use him and Ivan decided to be safe, but his only source is Velyaminov-Zernov, which is very old.

History of Crimea