December 18 1271 – Kublai Khan Institutes the Yuan Dynasty with a Name Change

431

*Image Credit: Wikimedia Commons A decade after becoming the leader of a portion of his grandfather Genghis Khan’s tribe of warriors, Kublai Khan started the Yuan Dynasty in the isolated territory of eastern China on December 18, 1271. Five years later, he would reign over land from southern Russia to the borders of modern Vietnam, seizing all of the Chinese mainland and modern Korea — the first king to do so — paving the way for the rise of Imperial China. When Guyuk Khan died in 1251, Kublai’s older brother Mongke took over as Great Khan of the Mongol Empire. Though the wide swath conquered by Genghis had begun to fracture, Mongke still needed people he could trust in positions of power in order to manage the different regions of the eastern half of his territory. Appointing Kublai as the Viceroy of North China, Mongke knew what he was getting: an effective governor and strong military commander that could be counted on in times of need. Over the next ten years, Kublai pacified rival clans to the south, using capable generals to secure Yunnan in southwestern China and heavy-handed diplomacy — if not outright force — to flip Taoist monks to Buddhist practices. Shortly before Mongke’s death, Kublai shrewdly agreed to a peace treaty with Jia Sidao of the Song Dynasty, establishing the Yangtze River as the border between them. Believing he would take over from his dead older brother in 1259, Kublai soon faced a challenge from his younger brother Ariq Boke, who had beaten Kublai to the punch by ordering a council to declare him Great Khan. In April 1260, attempting to supersede Ariq Boke’s claim, Kublai held a kurultai of his own and received the title, as well. Civil war would be the only answer. For more than four years, the two sides engaged in battle all over Mongolia and northern China. Finally, in August 1264, Ariq Boke gave up in the eastern city of Xanadu, accepting Kublai’s bid for the throne. Now officially the leader of the Mongol Empire, Kublai absolved his younger brother of guilt and put Ariq Boke’s treacherous supporters to death to prevent a second rebellion. Relishing his new role, Kublai acted as if he was at the head of a vast, unified kingdom by tapping the resources of the west for his military campaigns — perhaps the last time one could say those in the Middle East were willing to submit to the will of the Great Khan. Working diligently to create an image that would appeal to all the different districts in the land that makes up what is now China, he studied the philosophy and history of his potential subjects, shifting the capital of his empire to Dadu (known today as Beijing) in 1266. To solidify his perceived right to the whole of the mainland, he issued a Mandate of Heaven on December 18, 1271. Borrowing from traditional Chinese beliefs that dated to the Han Dynasty a millennium before, he named the dynasty Da Yuan (“Great Yuan”). For the next eight years, Kublai’s armies marched through South China, capturing the final Song stronghold of Yamen in 1279. Not since the Tang Dynasty disintegrated in 705 had the countryside been under the control of one ruler. Working to modernize the country, he instituted reforms designed to push the concept of paper currency and allow science and religion to blossom. Encouraging trade with all comers before his death on February 18, 1294, Kublai had connected China with Europe and sought expansion of the Silk Road after meeting Marco Polo in 1271. Also On This Day: 218 BCE – Hannibal leads the armies of Carthage to victory over the Romans at the Battle of the Trebia 1642 – Abel Tasman becomes the first European to set foot on New Zealand 1916 – The Battle of Verdun ends with a French victory over the Germans 1989 – The Soviet Union and European Community sign a trade agreement just months after the fall of the Berlin Wall 2006 – Floods in Malaysia kill 118 and leave 400,000 homeless