 The rise of the Shamkhalate of Kazi-Kumukh following the disintegration of the Golden Horde in the 15th century was at once a symptom and a cause of the khans' diminished influence during the 15th and 16th centuries.The khanate was a loosely structured state, sometimes forced to seek the Tsar's protection against its powerful enemies, while many mountainous communities ("djamaats") obtained a considerable degree of autonomy from the khan.In the 16th century the region was the center of a fierce struggle for control by the Ottomans and the Safavids.