Jahangir Khoja

Jahanghir Khoja, Jāhangīr Khwāja, or Jihangir Khoja (جهانگیر خوجا, ) was a member of the influential East Turkestan Āfāqī khoja clan, who managed to wrest Kashgaria from the Qing Empire's power for a few years in the 1820s.

Career
Burhan ad-Din, a Khoja of the White Mountain faction, was the grandfather of Jahangir. Before a rebellion had broken out in May, 1826, Jahangir Khoja managed to flee to Kashgar from Kokand (where he had been held in prison in accordance with a secret agreement, concluded between the Khanate of Kokand and Qing dynasty China, concerning descendants of Appak khoja), taking the opportunity offered by an earthquake that destroyed most towns in the Ferghana Valley. Among Jahangir's followers were Kirghiz, Tajiks, and White Mountain fighters. After appearing in Kashgar with only several hundreds of his followers he then quickly increased his force by volunteers, and within several months he collected under his banner about 200,000 troops, with which he had overthrown Qing power in Kashgar, Yarkand, Khotan, and Yangihissar, having Qing garrisons annihilated in these cities. This led to an increase in Slavery in China due to Jahangir enslaving captives. Jahangir's forces captured several hundred Chinese Muslims (tungan or hui) who were taken to Kokand. Tajiks bought two Chinese slaves from Shaanxi, they enslaved for a year before being returned by the Tajik Beg Ku-bu-te to China. All Chinese captured, both merchants and the 300 soldiers Janhangir captured in Kashgar had their queues cut off when brought to Kokand and Central Asia as prisoners. It was reported that many of the Chinese Muslim merchant captives became slaves, accounts of Chinese Muslim slaves in Central Asia increased. The queues were removed from Chinese Muslim prisoners and then sold or given to various owners, one of them, Nian, ended up as a slave to Prince Batur Khan of Bukhara, Omar Khan ended up possessing Liu Qifeng and Wu Erqi, the others, Zhu, Tian Li, and Ma Tianxi ended up in various owners but plotted an escape. The Russians record an incident where they rescued these Chinese muslimmerchants who escaped, after they were sold by Jahangir's Army in Central Asia, and sent them back to China.

Nevertheless, Qing China managed to mobilize "all forces of Empire, that were put into motion" and by September, 1827, collected in Aksu an army of 70,000, under command of military governor of Ili Chang Ling, that in January, 1828, moved against Jahangir Khoja. Other sources say that the Chinese Governor lead 80,000 Chinese Muslim troops against Jahangir. His forces were defeated within one month, decisive battle occurred on the shore of Tuman river north of Kashgar where Jahangir was defeated. Jahangir troops on this battle were more numerous than Qing troops, but the latter was much better organized being a regular state Army, while Jahangir didn't create a regular Army and disbanded his voluntary Army after gaining control of power in Western Kashgaria and taking Gulbagh Qing Fortress in Kashgar in the beginning of 1827 and slaughtering of all its defenders (about 12,000 Manchu and Chinese troops and members of their families). After receiving messages of approaching of Qing Army to Kashgar he again collected voluntary troops, but they didn't have any artillery units, even 6 big cannons standing on Gulbagh fortress, previously captured from Qings, were not brought and used in the battle, contrary Qing troops applied well-organized intense cannon fire across Tuman River on positions of Jahangir troops, bringing them into confusion. Mercenaries from Badakhshan, Kokand, Kunduz fled first, then Kashgarians lost ground, Qing troops rushed to Kashgar and upon entering the city performed the whole-scale massacre of local population, about 20,000 civilians had been slaughtered. Jahangir himself managed to escape and hide in mountainous Alai valley among Kyrgyz, it happened on January 29, 1828. Qing Emperor was dissatisfied with such outcome and wrote to Chang Ling: I sent Army to eliminate the Evil, you were at the lair of the beast, but let him to escape, now all previous victories have no any values, because he is still alive, the germ of the future rebellions. Jahangir's capture was affair of the former Hakim of Kashgar Ishak Khoja, who sent false Letter to Jahangir, notifying him of departure of main body of Qing troops and inviting him to Kashgar to regain power. When Jahangir heard this good message, he hurried back to Kashgar, but was attacked by Qing troops from ambush, captured and delivered to Beijing. There he was exposed to the attention of China's capital's population, being carried for several weeks in a mobile iron cage through the main streets of Beijing. Finally he was brought to the Daoguang Emperor for interrogation, but, having gone mad due to bad treatment, he couldn't answer any questions. Immediately after the interrogation was completed he was executed. Jahangir Khoja's body was cut into numerous pieces and his bones were thrown to dogs. His portrait was buried in the hill near Beijing. He was forty years old at the time of his death.

Literature

 * Kim Hodong, Holy War in China: The Muslim Rebellion and State in Chinese Central Asia, 1864-1877. Stanford University Press (March 2004). ISBN 0-8047-4884-5. (Searchable text available on Amazon.com)
 * G. Grum-Grzimajlo, Eastern Turkestan in Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary