Yuan dynasty
People's Republic of China, 1271–1368. Draft, not yet reviewed
The Yuan dynasty was a Mongol-led imperial dynasty of China that lasted from 1271 to 1368. The conquest was not complete until 1279 when the Southern Song dynasty was defeated in the Battle of Yamen. It was the first dynasty founded by a non-Han ethnicity that ruled all of China proper. In 1368, following the defeat of the Yuan forces by the Ming dynasty, the Genghisid rulers retreated to the Mongolian Plateau.
Seat of power: Khanbaliq
Rulers
Kublai Khan
Emperor of China, 1271–1294
He proclaimed the dynastic name Great Yuan in 1271, and ruled Yuan China until his death in 1294. By 1279, the Yuan conquest of the Song dynasty was completed and Kublai became the first non-Han emperor to rule all of China proper. As emperor, he ordered invasions of Japan, Vietnam, Burma, and Java.
Portrait of Kublai Khan: Araniko, Public domain, file
Temür Khan
Emperor of China, 1294–1307
Temür Khan was the second emperor of the Yuan dynasty of China, ruling from 10 May 1294 to 10 February 1307. He showed respect for Confucianism, and called off invasions of Burma, Đại Việt, and Japan. His reign was beset by corruption and administrative inefficiencies.
Portrait of Temür Khan: AnonymousUnknown author, Public domain, file
Külüg Khan
Emperor of China, 1307–1311
Külüg Khan was an emperor of the Yuan dynasty of China. His regnal name Külüg Khan means warrior Khan or fine horse Khan in the Mongolian language. He was sent to Mongolia to assume an army that defended the western front of the Yuan against Kaidu.
Portrait of Külüg Khan: AnonymousUnknown author, Public domain, file
Ayurbarwada Buyantu Khan
Emperor of China, 1311–1320
Ayurbarwada was the first Yuan emperor who actively supported the adoption of Confucian principles into the administration system. Ayurbarwada reinstituted the civil service examination system for the Yuan dynasty.
Portrait of Ayurbarwada Buyantu Khan: AnonymousUnknown author, Public domain, file
Gegeen Khan
Emperor of China, 1320–1323
Gegeen Khan was an emperor of the Yuan dynasty. Despite the Emperor's aim to reform the government based on the Confucian principles, Temuder's faction linked up with the Alan guard and assassinated the emperor in 1323.
Yesün Temür Khan
Emperor of China, 1323–1328
Yesün Temür was an emperor of the Yuan dynasty from 1323 to 1328. Yesün Temür was very fond of the traditional ways of the Mongols. He was probably the emperor visited by the Franciscan friar Odoric, who left an excellent record of his travels.
Jayaatu Khan
Emperor of China, 1328–1332
Jayaatu Khan was an emperor of the Yuan dynasty. He first ruled from 16 October 1328 to 26 February 1329 before abdicating in favour of his brother Kusala, and again ruled from 8 September 1329 to 2 September 1332 after Kusala's death. Tugh Temür sponsored many cultural activities, wrote poetry, painted, and read Chinese classical texts.
Portrait of Jayaatu Khan: AnonymousUnknown author, Public domain, file
Ragibagh Khan
Emperor of China, 1328–1328
Ragibagh was a son of Yesün Temür who was briefly installed to the throne of the Yuan dynasty in Shangdu in 1328. He was the shortest-reigning Yuan emperor.
Khutughtu Khan
Emperor of China, 1329–1329
Khutughtu Khan seized the throne of the Yuan dynasty of China in 1329, but died in suspicious circumstances six months later.
Portrait of Khutughtu Khan: 唐吉訶德的侍從, CC BY-SA 4.0, file
Rinchinbal Khan
Emperor of China, 1332–1332
Rinchinbal was briefly installed to the throne of the Yuan dynasty, but as a young boy he died within two months after being installed to the throne.
Portrait of Rinchinbal Khan: AnonymousUnknown author, Public domain, file
Toghon Temür
Emperor of China, 1333–1368
Toghon Temür was the last emperor of the Yuan dynasty and the first emperor of the Northern Yuan dynasty. His early reign was dominated by powerful ministers, first El Temür and then Bayan, until he engineered Bayan's removal in 1340 with the help of Toqto'a. During the latter part of his reign, widespread natural disasters and fiscal crises fuelled popular unrest, culminating in the Red Turban Rebellion of 1351.
Portrait of Toghon Temür: 松照庵, Public domain, file
Culture
- Some of the Yuan emperors mastered the Chinese language, while others only used their native Mongolian language, written with the ʼPhags-pa script.
- In official Chinese histories, the Yuan dynasty bore the Mandate of Heaven.
- The Yuan dynasty came to rule over most of present-day China, Mongolia, Korea, southern Siberia, and other adjacent areas.
Picture
Kublai Khan was the founder and first emperor of the Mongol-led Yuan dynasty of China.
Image: Araniko, Public domain, file
Sources
Text adapted from the Wikipedia articles listed as sources, CC BY-SA 4.0.