Dedyakov *

Also Tetyakov, Dedyakov, Dudakov, Tatar-tup, Dzhulat.

It is known about the city, that its population was mainly alans, but other peoples lived there, including the greeks, kasogs and slavs, who were engaged in various crafts, agriculture and animal husbandry. There was a lot of trade in the city. This suggests that the city was at the intersection of trade routes.

The city had three parts, among which there was a Citadel with the castle of the head of the city, then there was a fortress, and behind it a posad with residential buildings.

According to indirect information, Dedyakov was standing somewhere at the intersection of mountain and plain roads. This enabled the city to unite the people of the mountains and the people of the plains.

According to the chronicle, the city was located near Endirei in present-day Dagestan.

According to other versions, Dedyakov stood either in Ossetia, or in Chechnya on the Sulak river.

The Russian chronicle calls the city of yassky, alansky Dedyakov rich, and places it in the eastern part of Alanya, beyond the Terek, on the Sunzha, which the chronicle calls Sevenets.

Posted Dedyakov in Moldavia, where live the yasses.

According to one version Dedyakov was in Kurtain gorge on the river Fiagdon. There is a village of Dalagkao.

Not far from Vladikavkaz there is a settlement on the hills of the right bank of the Terek. This ancient settlement is synonymized with Dedyakov by most researchers of the Caucasus antiquities.

In one of the Russian chronicles of the 13th century, Tatar-tup is identified with Dedyakov, where it is called the city of yassky.

Some archaeologists have located Dedyakov in Tartapul, bringing as evidence Plano Carpini's information that the mongols long besieged the main city of alan on the hill.

In the Nikon chronicle, Tatar-tup is located behind the Terek river under the great Yassky and Cherkassky mountains on the Sivinets river near the Iron gate, which can be understood as the Daryal pass. And under the Yassky and Cherkassky mountains, you can understand the Caucasus Range.

Today, most researchers of the North Caucasus antiquities tend to believe that Dedyakov corresponds to the Upper Julat settlement near the village of Znamenskaya. There is a rich burial ground, which scientists date back to the 10th century.

According to archaeological data, the city appears here at the beginning of the 10th century. The alans lived here, but the fortress was founded by the khazars, who needed a fortified point in this strategic place, called the Elkhot gate, from the Ossetian language the Gorge of Args. Here a passage led through the Darial in the Caucasus.

After the death of the Khazaria, the city lost its significance for some time. It was owned by either Byzantium, Persia, or Georgia. By the end of the 12th century, it was a fairly large local trade and craft center of Alanya.

In 1238, the mongols came here, but the alans refused to pay them tribute and retreated to the mountain gorges, hoping that the tatars would not be able to use the fortifications on their own. After some time, the tatars and the alanian kings were able to agree on how to use the city. The Golden Horde ensured the movement of caravans through the Iron Gates, and the alans paid tribute to the treasury of the Horde. The tatars left, and the alans, returning, quickly restored the destroyed settlement around the fortress.

In 1277, Russian Princes went to the North Caucasus under the leadership of Prince Gleb Vasilkovich of Rostov. The tatar king Mengu-Temir was also with them. They took the main city of yassky Dedyakov, in which the treasury was large, the city was burned, and its people were dispersed over the mountains.

At the same time, Yaroslavl Prince Fyodor Rostislavovich Cherny took out of Dedyakov the alan icon «Virgin of Tolga», which researchers call «Throne» or «Big» and which was a shrine more Georgian than Russian. One way or another, but the city of Dedyakov at that time was the main yass spiritual city.

In 1253, Rubruk wrote that the alans by faith are christians according to the greek rite. They have greek priests.

By the end of the 13th century, the joint ordyn-alanian rule over Tatar-tup and Daryal led to the city becoming a significant commercial and cultural center of the North Caucasus.

In 1318, Prince Mikhail of Tver was executed in Dedyakov.

In the 14th century, during the reign of Khan Uzbek, the reports of the Golden Horde scribes referred to the city as Upper Julat, being an outpost of the Horde in the North Caucasus. The trade route of Saray was through the Lower Dzhulat and Madjars.

Here was a large tatar garrison with preachers of islamism. Several mosques are being built here, including the Cathedral mosque.

Tatar scribes in their reports to the khans in the capital of the Golden Horde Sarai called the city of Tatartup, which is translated from the turkic language as the Tartar Camp.

In the 15th century, it was visited by Schiltberger, who calls this city already as Julat. He also notes the presence of a large italian diaspora in the city, which has established its trading post here. In addition, this German traveler noted a large number of christians, as well as the presence of a Bishopric in the city.

Apparently, the influence of Italian merchants here did not last long, by the end of the 15th century, history does not report them, and there are no signs of catholic churches.

In the 17th century, turkish travelers note that the city is gradually turning into ruins. The houses are not well maintained, mostly empty. The turks call this city Iran-I-Dadian. It feels like people have left, but now they will return, because the names of the building owners are written on the doors and walls.

Researchers believe that at the end of the 17th century Tatar-tup became the capital of the Shamkhal State of the Kumyks.

As for the origin of the name of the city, the Iron gate is often mentioned in connection with Dedyakov, which leads researchers to believe that this city is located near Derbent. There are settlements with synonymous names in southern Dagestan: Deduch and Diven.

If we take the greek language, which could be used by Dedyakov priests, then the root word means something instructive, a clergyman, an expert in writing, a mentor to the king or prince. In a word, it was a city of Spiritual Teachers.

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