# Siege of Sygnak

Siege of Sygnak — In the 1490s, Burunduk Khan, led by Kazakhs and Nogais, besieged Sygnak.

## Background

In the 1470s, the Kazakh khans Janibek and Kerei, and later Burunduk, actively sought to subjugate Eastern Desht-i-Kipchak. They focused their efforts on strengthening their influence, particularly in the southern regions of Kazakhstan. Using their territories in Western Zhetysu as a stronghold, they became a significant political force in the steppes of Central Kazakhstan. Despite facing a powerful alliance of opponents, including the Shaybanids and Manghit leaders, they managed to consolidate their position.

## Reason

In the 1480s, the influence of Kazakh rulers expanded both in the steppe regions and the southern oases of Kazakhstan. During this period and in the early 1490s, military conflicts between Muhammad Shaybani and the Kazakhs were marked by persistence and uncompromising hostility, with both the Timurids and the Moghul khans becoming involved in their struggles.
After reappearing in the Turkestan vilayet, Muhammad Shaybani once again captured the fortress of Arkuk. The cities of Suzak and Sygnak remained under Kazakh control. However, whenever the khans or sultans left these cities with their troops for the steppe, they were left virtually defenseless and easily became targets for attacks by other claimants.

## Siege

Muhammad Shaybani managed to capture the city of Sygnak when Burunduk Khan arrived from the steppe with an army supported by allied Manghits. After this, the Kazakh forces began the siege of Sygnak, which lasted for three months. However, Muhammad Shaybani skillfully organized the city's defense, and according to sources, the siege ended in failure for the Kazakhs. Despite his success in defending the city, Shaybani was unable to advance further into the steppe. He left a garrison in Sygnak and headed to Otrar.
After his departure, Burunduk Khan returned and laid siege to Sygnak once again. The city's inhabitants, remembering that it had previously belonged to Burunduk Khan, decided to surrender without further resistance. It is likely that the urban elites supported the descendants of the former rulers of Sygnak and other cities along the Syr Darya, who were associated with the Ak Orda Khanate.
Meanwhile, Muhammad Shaybani, seeking to establish his authority in the Desht-i-Kipchak, launched a new campaign towards Sygnak after besieging Yassy, where his brother Sultan Mahmud was located. The Kazakhs, continuing their offensive actions, besieged Arkuk after crossing the Syr Darya. In response, Shaybani rushed back to defend the fortress but suffered defeat, losing control over this strategically important stronghold.

## Consequences

The Shaybanids managed to hold the defense in Arkuk for 40 days against the combined forces of the Kazakhs and the Timurid governor. The unexpected alliance of Muhammad-Mazid Tarkhan with the Kazakhs was likely driven by Sultan Ahmad Mirza of Samarkand's desire to prevent Muhammad Shaybani's Uzbeks from seizing Timurid territories in Turkestan.
Previously, the Timurid governor in Turkestan had supported Muhammad Shaybani, believing that his primary goal was merely to seize power in the steppe regions of the former state of Abu'l-Khayr Khan. He assumed that the conflict with the Kazakhs in Eastern Desht-i-Kipchak would divert attention away from the cities of Turkestan.

## Meaning

Muhammad Shaybani's defeats during nearly three years of continuous struggle against the Kazakhs and their allies forced him to leave Turkestan around 1486 and seek military fortune in Khorezm.