Humanities Module 5

Kublai Khan was a ruler during the thirteenth century. He was a Mongol dreamer, visionary, and had the desire to unite different nationalities, religions, and cultures together under the Yuan Empire. Kublai Khan was a great sympathizer for the Chinese people, even though he was Mongolian by birth. He didn’t necessarily always trust the Chinese people, but he was fascinated with their traditions, culture, and arts. Conservative Mongolians would get offended and would repeatedly cause Kublai Khan problems because conformed so well to the Chinese ways. Kublai’s grandfather was the infamous Genghis (Chinggus) and the fourth son of Toluia and Sorghagtani. From the day he was born on 1215, his mother, Sorghagtani, raised him because his father was away on military campaigns. Kublai’s mother had one ambition for all of her sons, and that was for someone to regain the throne that had been taken by her husband’s brother. Consequently, she groomed Kublai and his brothers for the throne. She was a fervent Nestorian Christian and saw that plundering a nations resources would soon backlash, and she knew it would not be helpful to anyone. She obviously had a great effect on Kublai. When Kublai Khan’s eldest brother, Mongke (Mangu) gained the throne, his mother’s life dream was fulfilled. She never lived to see Kublai become khan as she died a year after his brother ascended the throne. While demonstrating his military brilliance during several battles he caught his brother’s attention. His brother recruited and gave him a job in his empire. Same years later Mongke died during a battle between the Buddhists and the Taoist. At the time there was a bloody power struggle between Kublai and his younger brother Arigboge that lasted for two years. Arigboge was defeated in 1264 and Kublai became khan shortly thereafter. Kublai Khan did some amazing things during his reign including extending the Grand Canal all the way to his new capital in Ta-tu, what is now modern day Beijing.