Kaidu
Encyclopedia
Kaidu (1230–1301) was the leader of the House of Ogedei
and the de facto
khan
of the Chagatai Khanate
. He ruled part of modern-day Xinjiang
and Central Asia
during the 13th century, and actively opposed his uncle, Kublai Khan, who established the Yuan Dynasty
in China
until his death in 1301. Medieval chroniclers often mistranslated Kadan
as Kaidu, mistakenly placing Kaidu at the Battle of Legnica
. Kadan was the brother of Güyük, and Kaidu's uncle.
Kaidu was the son of Kashin a grandson of Ögedei Khan
and a great-grandson of Genghis Khan
and Börte
. His mother's name was Shabkana Khatun from the Bekrin tribe in Uighurstan.
In 1260, Marco Polo
described Yarkand, part of the area under Kaidu as "five days' journey in extent"; that its inhabitants were mostly Muslim
although there were also some Nestorian
and Jacobite Assyrians
; and that it had plenty of food and other necessities, "especially cotton
." Since about 1260, when Kublai Khan
was warring with his own brother Ariq Böke
, who was proclaimed Great Khan at Karakorum, Kaidu began to have major conflicts with Kublai and his ally, the Ilkhanate
.
Meanwhile, Kublai's supporter and Chagatayid Khan Alghu
ravaged the lands of Kaidu, forcing him to make an alliance with Berke
, khan of the Golden Horde
.
After the defeat of Ariq Böke in 1264, Kublai summoned him at his court, possibly discuss the future of the empire and give his share from Ogedeid appanage
in China. But Kaidu avoided appearing at his court and said that his horses were too thin to bear long distance. In 1266 Baraq (Chagatai Khan) was dispatched to Central Asia to take the throne of Chagatai. Kublai instigated Baraq to attack him in 1268. At first Baraq defeated Kaidu, however, the former was defeated by the latter with the assistance of Mongke-Temur, successor of Berke. When Barak advanced towards Kaidu, the latter set a trap for the invader's troops on the bank of the Jaxartes, and defeated his forces. Transoxiana
was then ravaged by Kaidu. Baraq fled to Samarkand
, then Bukhara
, plundering the cities along the way in an attempt to rebuild his army. These actions alarmed Kaidu, who did not want the region to be further devastated. Kaidu also needed to free up his army for a potential conflict with Kublai. Peace was therefore proposed, and Baraq was pressured by the governors of the sedentary areas of the khanate, Mas'ud Beg and Daifu, to accept. He did, and peace was declared, although sources conflict on the time and location. Rashid al-Din claims that the meeting took place in the spring of 1269 in Talas
, while Wassaf
writes that it took place around 1267 to the south of Samarkand. In any case, two-thirds of Transoxiana were granted to Baraq, while the other third went to Kaidu and Mengu-Timur. Kaidu also gained control of the region around Bukhara. Neither side gained control of the cities; the administration of these instead devolved to Mas'ud Beg, while Baraq and Kaidu agreed to reside only in the deserts and mountains.
Kaidu convinced Baraq to attack Persia under the Ilkhanids. Baraq suffered a large defeat at Herat
on July 22, 1270 against Abagha. Baraq died enroute to meet Kaidu who had been waiting for his weakness. The Chagatayid princes including Mubarak Shah
submitted to Kaidu and proclaimed him as their overlord. Sons of Baraq rebelled against Kaidu but they were defeated. Many of the Chagatayid princes fled to the Ilkhanate. Kaidu's early attempt to rule the Chagatayids faced a serious resistance. The Mongol princes such as Negübei
, whom he appointed khan of the House of Chagatai revolted several times. Stable control came when Duwa
was made khan who became his number two in 1282.
In 1275 Kaidu invaded Urumqi
and demanded its submission, but the Uyghur Idiqut resisted. Kublai sent a relief force to expel him. Kublai's son Nomukhan and generals occupied Almaliq from 1266–76, to prevent Kaidu's invasion. In 1277, a group of Genghisid princes under Mongke's son Shiregi rebelled, kidnapping Kublai's two sons and his general Antong. The rebels handed Antong to Kaidu and the princes to Mongke-Temur. Great Khan's armies suppressed the rebellion and strengthened the Yuan garrisons in Mongolia and Uighurstan. However, Kaidu took control over Almaliq.
Kaidu had waged almost continuous warfare for more than 30 years against Kublai and his successor Temür, though he eventually fell in 1301, when he was defeated and wounded during a battle near Karakorum and died shortly afterwards.
House of Ogedei
The House of Ogedei, sometimes called the Ogedeids were an influential family of Mongol Borjigin from the 12th to 14th centuries. They were descended from Ogedei Khan , a son of Genghis Khan who had become his father's successor, second Great Khan of the Mongol Empire. Ogedei continued the...
and the de facto
De facto
De facto is a Latin expression that means "concerning fact." In law, it often means "in practice but not necessarily ordained by law" or "in practice or actuality, but not officially established." It is commonly used in contrast to de jure when referring to matters of law, governance, or...
khan
Khan (title)
Khan is an originally Altaic and subsequently Central Asian title for a sovereign or military ruler, widely used by medieval nomadic Turko-Mongol tribes living to the north of China. 'Khan' is also seen as a title in the Xianbei confederation for their chief between 283 and 289...
of the Chagatai Khanate
Chagatai Khanate
The Chagatai Khanate was a Turko-Mongol khanate that comprised the lands ruled by Chagatai Khan , second son of the Great Khan Genghis Khan, and his descendents and successors...
. He ruled part of modern-day Xinjiang
Xinjiang
Xinjiang is an autonomous region of the People's Republic of China. It is the largest Chinese administrative division and spans over 1.6 million km2...
and Central Asia
Central Asia
Central Asia is a core region of the Asian continent from the Caspian Sea in the west, China in the east, Afghanistan in the south, and Russia in the north...
during the 13th century, and actively opposed his uncle, Kublai Khan, who established the Yuan Dynasty
Yuan Dynasty
The Yuan Dynasty , or Great Yuan Empire was a ruling dynasty founded by the Mongol leader Kublai Khan, who ruled most of present-day China, all of modern Mongolia and its surrounding areas, lasting officially from 1271 to 1368. It is considered both as a division of the Mongol Empire and as an...
in China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
until his death in 1301. Medieval chroniclers often mistranslated Kadan
Kadan
Kadaň , is a city in the Ústí nad Labem Region of the Czech Republic.The city lies on the banks of the river Ohře. Although it is situated in an industrial part of the Czech Republic there is no major industry within the city and people usually work in offices or have to commute. There are two...
as Kaidu, mistakenly placing Kaidu at the Battle of Legnica
Battle of Legnica
The Battle of Legnica , also known as the Battle of Liegnitz or Battle of Wahlstatt , was a battle between the Mongol Empire and the combined defending forces of European fighters that took place at Legnickie Pole near the city of Legnica in Silesia on 9 April 1241.A combined force of Poles,...
. Kadan was the brother of Güyük, and Kaidu's uncle.
Kaidu was the son of Kashin a grandson of Ögedei Khan
Ögedei Khan
Ögedei Khan, born Ögedei was the third son of Genghis Khan and second Great Khan of the Mongol Empire by succeeding his father...
and a great-grandson of Genghis Khan
Genghis Khan
Genghis Khan , born Temujin and occasionally known by his temple name Taizu , was the founder and Great Khan of the Mongol Empire, which became the largest contiguous empire in history after his death....
and Börte
Börte
Börte was the first wife of Genghis Khan, the founder of the Mongol Empire. Börte became the head of the first Court of Genghis Khan, and Grand Empress of his Empire. Little is known about the details of her early life, but she was betrothed to him at a young age, married at 17, and then...
. His mother's name was Shabkana Khatun from the Bekrin tribe in Uighurstan.
In 1260, Marco Polo
Marco Polo
Marco Polo was a Venetian merchant traveler from the Venetian Republic whose travels are recorded in Il Milione, a book which did much to introduce Europeans to Central Asia and China. He learned about trading whilst his father and uncle, Niccolò and Maffeo, travelled through Asia and apparently...
described Yarkand, part of the area under Kaidu as "five days' journey in extent"; that its inhabitants were mostly Muslim
Muslim
A Muslim, also spelled Moslem, is an adherent of Islam, a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion based on the Quran, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God as revealed to prophet Muhammad. "Muslim" is the Arabic term for "submitter" .Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable...
although there were also some Nestorian
Assyrian Church of the East
The Assyrian Church of the East, officially the Holy Apostolic Catholic Assyrian Church of the East ʻIttā Qaddishtā w-Shlikhāitā Qattoliqi d-Madnĕkhā d-Āturāyē), is a Syriac Church historically centered in Mesopotamia. It is one of the churches that claim continuity with the historical...
and Jacobite Assyrians
Assyrian people
The Assyrian people are a distinct ethnic group whose origins lie in ancient Mesopotamia...
; and that it had plenty of food and other necessities, "especially cotton
Cotton
Cotton is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective capsule, around the seeds of cotton plants of the genus Gossypium. The fiber is almost pure cellulose. The botanical purpose of cotton fiber is to aid in seed dispersal....
." Since about 1260, when Kublai Khan
Kublai Khan
Kublai Khan , born Kublai and also known by the temple name Shizu , was the fifth Great Khan of the Mongol Empire from 1260 to 1294 and the founder of the Yuan Dynasty in China...
was warring with his own brother Ariq Böke
Ariq Boke
Ariq Böke , the components of his name also spelled Arigh, Arik, Bukha, Buka , was the youngest son of Tolui , a son of Genghis Khan. After the death of his brother the Great Khan Mongke, Ariq Boke briefly took power while his brothers Kublai and Hulagu were absent...
, who was proclaimed Great Khan at Karakorum, Kaidu began to have major conflicts with Kublai and his ally, the Ilkhanate
Ilkhanate
The Ilkhanate, also spelled Il-khanate , was a Mongol khanate established in Azerbaijan and Persia in the 13th century, considered a part of the Mongol Empire...
.
Meanwhile, Kublai's supporter and Chagatayid Khan Alghu
Alghu
Alghu was a khan of the Chagatai Khanate . He was the son of Baidar and the grandson of Chagatai Khan.In 1260 he was appointed as head of the ulus of the Chagatai Khanate by the Great Khan claimant Ariq Böke, in opposition to the child khan Mubarak Shah and his mother Orghina...
ravaged the lands of Kaidu, forcing him to make an alliance with Berke
Berke
Berke Khan was the ruler of the Golden Horde who effectively consolidated the power of the Blue Horde and White Hordes from 1257 to 1266. He succeeded his brother Batu Khan of the Blue Horde and was responsible for the first official establishment of Islam in a khanate of the Mongol Empire...
, khan of the Golden Horde
Golden Horde
The Golden Horde was a Mongol and later Turkicized khanate that formed the north-western sector of the Mongol Empire...
.
After the defeat of Ariq Böke in 1264, Kublai summoned him at his court, possibly discuss the future of the empire and give his share from Ogedeid appanage
Appanage
An apanage or appanage or is the grant of an estate, titles, offices, or other things of value to the younger male children of a sovereign, who would otherwise have no inheritance under the system of primogeniture...
in China. But Kaidu avoided appearing at his court and said that his horses were too thin to bear long distance. In 1266 Baraq (Chagatai Khan) was dispatched to Central Asia to take the throne of Chagatai. Kublai instigated Baraq to attack him in 1268. At first Baraq defeated Kaidu, however, the former was defeated by the latter with the assistance of Mongke-Temur, successor of Berke. When Barak advanced towards Kaidu, the latter set a trap for the invader's troops on the bank of the Jaxartes, and defeated his forces. Transoxiana
Transoxiana
Transoxiana is the ancient name used for the portion of Central Asia corresponding approximately with modern-day Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, southern Kyrgystan and southwest Kazakhstan. Geographically, it is the region between the Amu Darya and Syr Darya rivers...
was then ravaged by Kaidu. Baraq fled to Samarkand
Samarkand
Although a Persian-speaking region, it was not united politically with Iran most of the times between the disintegration of the Seleucid Empire and the Arab conquest . In the 6th century it was within the domain of the Turkic kingdom of the Göktürks.At the start of the 8th century Samarkand came...
, then Bukhara
Bukhara
Bukhara , from the Soghdian βuxārak , is the capital of the Bukhara Province of Uzbekistan. The nation's fifth-largest city, it has a population of 263,400 . The region around Bukhara has been inhabited for at least five millennia, and the city has existed for half that time...
, plundering the cities along the way in an attempt to rebuild his army. These actions alarmed Kaidu, who did not want the region to be further devastated. Kaidu also needed to free up his army for a potential conflict with Kublai. Peace was therefore proposed, and Baraq was pressured by the governors of the sedentary areas of the khanate, Mas'ud Beg and Daifu, to accept. He did, and peace was declared, although sources conflict on the time and location. Rashid al-Din claims that the meeting took place in the spring of 1269 in Talas
Taraz
Taraz , is a city and a center of the Jambyl Province in Kazakhstan. It is located in the south of Kazakhstan, near the border with Kyrgyzstan, on the Talas River...
, while Wassaf
Wassaf
Wassaf or Vassaf or Toghril Beg Abdallah ibn Faḍlallah Sharaf al-Din Shīrāzī was a 14th-century Persian historian of the Ilkhanate...
writes that it took place around 1267 to the south of Samarkand. In any case, two-thirds of Transoxiana were granted to Baraq, while the other third went to Kaidu and Mengu-Timur. Kaidu also gained control of the region around Bukhara. Neither side gained control of the cities; the administration of these instead devolved to Mas'ud Beg, while Baraq and Kaidu agreed to reside only in the deserts and mountains.
Kaidu convinced Baraq to attack Persia under the Ilkhanids. Baraq suffered a large defeat at Herat
Herat
Herāt is the capital of Herat province in Afghanistan. It is the third largest city of Afghanistan, with a population of about 397,456 as of 2006. It is situated in the valley of the Hari River, which flows from the mountains of central Afghanistan to the Karakum Desert in Turkmenistan...
on July 22, 1270 against Abagha. Baraq died enroute to meet Kaidu who had been waiting for his weakness. The Chagatayid princes including Mubarak Shah
Mubarak Shah
Mubarak Shah was head of the Chagatai Khanate . He was the son of Qara Hülëgü and Ergene Khatun, of the Mongol empire....
submitted to Kaidu and proclaimed him as their overlord. Sons of Baraq rebelled against Kaidu but they were defeated. Many of the Chagatayid princes fled to the Ilkhanate. Kaidu's early attempt to rule the Chagatayids faced a serious resistance. The Mongol princes such as Negübei
Negübei
Negübei was a khan of the Chagatai Khanate . He was the son of Sarban.In 1271 Negübei was appointed by Kaidu as head of the Chagatai Khanate. A year after his enthronement, however, he rebelled against his master, possibly in conjunction with the revolts launched by the sons of Alghu and Baraq...
, whom he appointed khan of the House of Chagatai revolted several times. Stable control came when Duwa
Duwa
Duwa , also known as Du'a, was khan of the Chagatai Khanate . He was the second son of Baraq. He was the longest reigning monarch of the Chagatayid Khanate and accepted the Great Khan's supremacy...
was made khan who became his number two in 1282.
In 1275 Kaidu invaded Urumqi
Ürümqi
Ürümqi , formerly Tihwa , is the capital of Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of the People's Republic of China, in the northwest of the country....
and demanded its submission, but the Uyghur Idiqut resisted. Kublai sent a relief force to expel him. Kublai's son Nomukhan and generals occupied Almaliq from 1266–76, to prevent Kaidu's invasion. In 1277, a group of Genghisid princes under Mongke's son Shiregi rebelled, kidnapping Kublai's two sons and his general Antong. The rebels handed Antong to Kaidu and the princes to Mongke-Temur. Great Khan's armies suppressed the rebellion and strengthened the Yuan garrisons in Mongolia and Uighurstan. However, Kaidu took control over Almaliq.
Kaidu had waged almost continuous warfare for more than 30 years against Kublai and his successor Temür, though he eventually fell in 1301, when he was defeated and wounded during a battle near Karakorum and died shortly afterwards.
External links
- Hill, John E. The Western Regions according to the Hou Hanshu, Second Edition, 2003. (Based on 2004 edition, not yet online)