The Battle of Samara Bend (1223)

In 1221-1223 Genghis Khan's generals Subutai and Jebe crossed the Caucasus into the Kipchak steppe. In May 1223 they defeated the combined army of the Rus princes and the Kipchaks on the Kalka river, then turned east along the Volga to rejoin Genghis Khan.

In the autumn of 1223 the Mongols reached the southern border of Volga Bulgaria at the Samara Bend. The Bulgars turned the Mongols' own tactic against them: one detachment feigned retreat and drew them into an ambush, then the hidden forces attacked.

According to the Arab historian Ibn al-Athir most of the Mongols were killed and the rest turned back. Some historians think the scale of the battle has been exaggerated. The victory did not last: in 1236 Batu Khan's army brought Volga Bulgaria to an end.