Horde refers to a large yurt ( tent ) that served as the center of government and military command for the nomadic empires of Central Eurasia. The word was first used around 209 B.C. during the Xiongnu empire in what is now Mongolia . The term comes from the Mongolian word ordo and the Turkic word ordu. Hordes typically had a wood framework with felt coverings for insulation. Unlike later yurts, however, hordes were kept permanently on carts so they could be easily moved. The term horde is also used to describe an entire ancient Turkic or Mongolian camp. In the past, it was also sometimes used to describe a group of nomads.
The Mongol Empire (1206-1368) was the largest land empire in history. The empress, or khatun (also spelled qatun), had her own horde to which her husband, the khan, the Mongol leader, had access. The empress brought to her marriage as dowry a large group of personal servants. These servants staffed her horde. A dowry is money or property that a woman brings to her marriage.
Khans also had a personal bodyguard, which numbered about 10,000 men. These guards consisted of hostages recruited from the sons, brothers, or nephews of officials within the empire. This bodyguard served as the staff of the khan’s administration. Members of the bodyguard also trained to become military and administrative officials of the empire.
In 1237, Batu, a grandson of the conqueror Genghis Khan , led Mongol troops into Russia . After conquering the Russian princes, Batu moved his horde and his army to the steppes (grasslands) of southern Russia. Batu’s horde, like that of other khans, had its framework covered with gold leaf. It was from this gold-covered horde that the Mongol state in Russia acquired the name “Golden Horde.”
When a Mongol empress died, her horde could be assigned to another empress. Upon the death of emperors, hordes were often left vacant. Unassigned to a new emperor, the bodyguard of a deceased emperor could become an independent political organization and even the seed of a new ethnic group. As the Mongol Empire declined, the horde as a palacelike structure was no longer necessary. The imperial bodyguards also fell into disuse and eventually disappeared.
