The Kabardian Civil War (1562âÂÂ1567) was a internal feudal conflict between the Pro-Muscovite Idarey Faction led by the famous Kabardian prince Temryuk Idar and the Pro-Ottoman/Crimean Pshiapshoqo Faction led by Pshiapshoqo Qeytuqo allied with the Karachay-Balkar Biyarslan clan.
By 1562, rival political factions had emerged in Circassia, particularly over the question of foreign alliances. In 1563, several Circassian princes proposed to the Ottoman sultan joint military action against Astrakhan, with the aim of restoring it to Ottoman control. In 1565, envoys from the so-called âÂÂMountain Circassiansâ arrived in Bakhchisarai and repeated the same proposal.
Nevertheless, when the Crimean Khanate and the Ottoman Empire launched a campaign against Astrakhan, the western Circassians refused to take part in it. In response, the Crimean Khanate sent a punitive expedition against the Circassians. However, according to a report sent to Moscow by A. Nagoy, âÂÂthe Circassians defeated the sons of the Tatar tsar,â and the Tatars paid a heavy price for the campaign.
Between 1563 and 1567, Kabardia was torn by armed conflict between the pro-Muscovite faction of Temryuk Idar and an anti-Muscovite coalition led by Pshiapshoqo supported by the Crimean Khanate and the Lesser Nogai Horde.
In the years 1562 to 1563, Temryuk Idar, relying on the assistance of Russian military units, carried out a series of major campaigns against Kabardian princes aligned with the Crimean Khanate, led by Pshiapshoqo Qeytuqo. These campaigns helped secure unobstructed connections between Kabardia and the Russian state with Georgia.
In 1562âÂÂ1563, a joint military campaign was launched by Temryuk of Kabardia and the Tsardom of Russia, led by voivode Grigory Pleshcheyev. The campaign targeted territories in the North Caucasus, including the lands of the Biyarslan noble family, who were seen as political opponents to TemryukâÂÂs growing influence.
In 1563, Temryuk's opponents launched a large-scale offensive that forced him and his sons to flee to Astrakhan, but soon Ivan IV of Russia dispatched a Muscovite force of about a thousand men â Streltsy and Cossacks under Prince Ivan Dashkov â to restore him. With their help, Temryuk defeated his rivals and reclaimed his lands, forcing the anti-Muscovite princes to retreat.
Continued skirmishes through 1566âÂÂ1567 followed, as Temryuk's enemies sought Crimean and Nogai assistance to counterbalance his growing strength, while he secured permanent Russian support through the construction of the Terek Fortress on the Terek River. Despite Crimean attempts under Devlet I Giray to intervene, their raids failed to dislodge Muscovite or Kabardian forces. By the end of 1567, Temryuk stood victorious â his alliance with Muscovy firmly established him as the dominant power in Kabardia and marked the beginning of enduring Russo-Circassian influence in the North Caucasus.