Source: TW The Kalmyks are Oirat Mongols. They once had powerful Khagnates that on a smaller scale reenacted the Chingizid heydays under Esen Taiji who reunified the Mongols in 1449 CE and took the Chinese emperor prisoner. The Kalmyks are a remnant of the western branch of this old Khaghanate. Later, the Oirat Dzungar Khaghanate in their heartland was subject to a genocide by the Manchus and wiped out. A few of their cousins however still survive in Western Mongolia.