Sensational findings link Cantemir family to Golden Horde

The Cantemir dynasty, which gave Moldavia three princes in the late 17th and early 18th centuries, was descended from Golden Horde rulers and even had an infusion of Chinese blood early in the lineage, according to findings made by Dr. Fedor Angeli in researching for his yet unpublished book “Epoch and Genealogy of the Cantemir Family – A Different Perspective”. The findings, based on Turkish, Austrian and Nogai people's archives, refute previous theories that the Cantemir genealogy could had European roots, as well as beliefs that Tamerlane was one of the famed ancestors, a theory which Dimitrie Cantemir, the most famous representative of the Cantemir House, himself was inclined to believe in. A popular belief is that Dimitrie Cantemir even forged his ancestry to prove his Tatar roots in order to enhance his status. Other impressive discoveries include the conclusion that Dimitrie Cantemir's grandfather was killed by the sultan because he was an inconvenient figure, and that Dimitrie's father, Constantine, received the throne of Moldavia in reward for saving the sultan's harem. [Nomad origins] Dr. Angeli – a former MP and ambassador to Turkey, and currently a writer and researcher – says he was able to reconstitute the parental line of the Cantemirs until the early 15th century, up to the times of the Golden Horde, or more exactly the downhill of it. The earliest ancestor found on the line was the emir Edigey (also known as Idegay or Edigu), who himself founded a confederation of nomad peoples, called the Nogai Hoard, on the remains of the disintegrating, more famous Golden Horde. Edigey's mother was reportedly Chinese. And although Tamerlane was also a fierce ruler of nomad hordes, he couldn't be a direct antecedent of the Cantemirs, argues Dr. Angeli, since Tamerlane ruled in Central Asia, while the roots of the Cantemirs were in the Caspian-Pontic Steppe. The Mongolian and Turkic origins of the family explain the name Cantemir, derived from the words “khan” and “demir”, which in combination mean “khan of steel”, or “powerful ruler”. [Ottoman episode] There is a theory that the forefathers of the Moldavian princely family came to Moldavia, or more exactly to its southern part (which was later given the Turkic toponym Budjak), with Sultan Bayazid the Second's invasion of Akkerman and Kilia in 1484. But Dr. Angely says it is more likely that they settled here after Suleiman the Magnificent's campaign against Tighina (renamed to Bender) in 1538. After this victory, the Porte placed thousands of Nogai Tatars at the mouths of the rivers Dniester and Dnieper. In the 16th century a group separated from the Nogai masses and formed the Budjak Horde, among which the name Cantemir would surface from later. In 1622-1637, Cantemir Araslanoglu (Dimitrie's grandfather) was the governor of the vast province of Silistria. He earned the governor's seat along with the title of vizier in Osman the Second's campaign against the Poles in 1621. A hardcore anti-Polish statesman, Araslanoglu had to disappear when the Ottoman Empire needed a truce with the Poles before engaging in a war against Iran. Additionally, the fierce rivalry between the governor or Silistria and the khan of Crimea had been a permanent headache for the Sultan, who found a formal excuse to execute Cantemir Araslanoglu. [A throne for a harem] It was quite common for Ottoman statesmen to have Christian women among their wives and concubines, and Cantemir Araslanoglu wasn't an exception. Constantine, the father of Dimitrie and the first member of the Cantemir family to ascend Moldavia's throne, was presumably the son of one of Araslanoglu's Christian wives. According to Dr. Angeli, on 15 August 1672, Constantine Cantemir and his Moldavian troops saved the life of Sultan Mehmet the Fourth's harem from a Polish attack. In reward, on 15 July 1685, Constantine was offered the reigns (1685-1693) of the principality of Moldavia, which was under Ottoman overlordship. Although illiterate, Constantine made sure that his sons, Dimitrie and Antioh, the future princes of Moldavia, receive princely education. As a result, Dimitrie became a renowned man of letters, whose multiple talents included philosophy, literature, linguistics, geography, music, and ethnography. The Cantemir dynasty, which existed for 117 years, became extinct in 1820, with the death of Dimitrie's grandson Dmitri Constantinovich in 1820. [Not yet published] The manuscript of the book “Epoch and Genealogy of the Cantemir Family – A Different Perspective” was presented to the publishing house “Stiinta” and to Academician Andrei Esanu for consideration. -- {Born on 24 October 1935 in Gaidar village, Ceadar-Lunga district, Fiodor Angheli graduated from the “M. Lomonosov” University and the Superior Party School in Moscow. He was a correspondent for the newspapers “Novosti” (1967-1972) and “Pravda” (1974-1979) in Bucharest. He worked in the foreign relations department of the Communist Party in Chisinau (1972-1974). He was the general director of the state news agency “Moldpress” (1983-1990) and later the head of the “Itar-Tass” bureau in Moldova (1990-1994). He was a Member of Parliament from 1994 to 1998 and Moldova’s ambassador to Turkey, and concurrently Egypt and Kuwait (1998-2001).}