This beautiful series tells the little-known story of the Russian princes attempting to throw off the Mongol yoke in Russia.
Berke Khan ruled the Golden Horde when he received word that Hulegu Khan was riding against him. The story opens as civil war broke out between him and Hulegu, the Il-khan of Persia.
Berke was the first of the Mongol Khans convert to Islam, and declared war on his cousin for riding against the Caliph of Baghdad, executing him and destroying the city of Baghdad, a center or art, commerce and culture.
The female screenwriter for the sixteen hour-long episodes wrote a very fine palace drama, not intended as straight history. The costumes and sets have won awards, the casting and acting are brilliant. The screenwriter has imagined the love lives and the power plays of the main characters. Great viewing for a binge. Streaming on Amazon Prime.
Before Berke Khan, there was Batu Khan, who founded the Russian Khanate. For this story, how the Mongol Army brought Kievan Russia under its yoke for two centuries, you need my new book Batu, Khan of the Golden Horde: The Mongol Khans Conquer Russia.
The story has been lost to the West for seven centuries. It is available from Amazon and other booksellers, and on this website. My story is the prequel to the events in the series, two generations before, in the generation of the conquest.