Overview
Baga Tarqan, the Türgesh commander usually identified with Kül Chor (Chinese sources record his title as Mohe Dagan), murdered the great qaghan Sulu in 738 and spent the next six years fighting to hold the power he had seized. He won the civil war that followed, briefly submitted to Tang China, then broke with it, and was finally captured and executed by the Tang in 744. His career turned the strongest Turkic power in Central Asia into a battleground for others.
Rise to Power
Sulu's defeat by the Umayyads at Kharistan in 737 weakened his authority. In 738 Kül Chor, his relative and one of his senior commanders, murdered him. A rival faction raised Sulu's son, Tuhuoxian, as qaghan, and the khaganate split into civil war between its Black and Yellow factions.
Rule and Achievements
- Seized power by murdering Sulu in 738, ending the khaganate's period of unified leadership
- Allied with Tang China against the faction that had raised Tuhuoxian, who was overthrown in 739
- Submitted to the Tang in 740, then killed the Tang-backed puppet qaghan installed over the Türgesh
- Was captured and executed by the Tang in 744
Legacy
Baga Tarqan won power but destroyed what made it valuable. The Türgesh under Sulu had held the Umayyads at bay and dealt with the Tang as an equal; after six years of his struggle, Tang generals were deciding who ruled the Türgesh, and the khaganate never recovered. In 766 the Karluks conquered its heartland in Zhetysu.
The lesson is about the difference between taking control and keeping an organisation worth controlling. A leader who wins by breaking the institution's unity inherits a weaker institution, and outside powers are quick to exploit the split.