Hulegu was the grandson of Chinggis Khan, son of Tolui, and established the Il-Khanate of Persia (also known as the Il-Khan, or Ilkhan). His bothers included Mongke (r. 1251-1259), Qubilai (r. 1260-1294), Arigh Boke (r. 1260-1264), and Bochek. Three of his brothers Mongke, Qubilai, and Arigh Boke were appointed as Great Khans and served in […]
Author: Sarah Nemeth
Batu
Batu was the founder of the Golden Horde. Batu was the grandson of Chinggis Khan and the son of Jochi. Chinggis Khan died in 1227 and his land was divided up among his four sons. Although Chinggis had other offspring, only the four born to his chief wife Borte were given a land inheritance. These […]
Crimea
The Crimea is located on the northern coast of the Black Sea; which almost completely surrounds the peninsula. The smaller Sea of Azov to the northeast also contributes to the coastline of the peninsula. The peninsula’s name originated from the Golden Horde’s provincial capital that was established after the Mongols took control of the territory. […]
Sarai
Located in present-day Russia, roughly 194 miles outside of Moscow, Sarai was founded as the capital of the Golden Horde. Batu, son of Jochi and grandson of Chinggis Khan, during the thirteenth century had been engaged in a two-pronged assault across Eastern Europe. Batu’s forces defeated the Polish troops in Liegnitz in April 1241 and […]
Merv
Located near the Murghab River delta, interlaced by a system of canals and dams, the ruins of the once magnificent city of Merv still remain. In a northeastern lying region of Khurasan, some claim Merv, was founded by Alexander the Great. Further, some suggested that Merv was once the largest city in the world and was were […]
Transoxania
Transoxania describes the portion of Central Asia that corresponds approximately to modern-day Uzbekistan. The people that originally lived on Transoxania territory were sedentary, meaning that the settlers erected permanent dwellings. These inhabitants long were affiliated with the Islamic traditions. In the 1120s, a semi-nomadic people, possibly from Mongolian lineage and originally from northern China, established a […]
Golden Horde
The Golden Horde, based primarily in Russia, but additionally encompassed the lands of Ukraine and Eastern Europe. The territories that comprised the Golden Horde were originally conquered and then loosely organized by Chinggis Khan. After Chinggis Khan’s death in c. 1227, the territories that would make up the Golden Horde were supposed to be inherited […]
Maragheh (Maragha)
Hulegu Khan, the grandson of Chinggis Khan and son of Tolui, set up his first capital at Khariyat-i-Maragheh in c. 1258. Translated Khariyat-i-Maragheh means “the village of the pastures.” Maragheh was and is still located close to Lake Urumiyeh in Iran; relatively close to the Iranian and Turkish border. Maragheh is located in the region […]
Vienna
The invasion into Eastern Europe c. 1241 was a two-pronged attack. One regiment headed towards Poland and the other marched on to Germany. One of the regiments took Silesia, part of Poland at the time, and the other moved on to Hungary. The regiment that attacked Hungary took the Hungarian territory in the Battle of […]
Riazan
In c. 1236-7 the Mongols, led by Batu Khan crossed the Volga and went after the present-day Russian Ukrainian territories, as they had two decades previous. The peoples that inhabited this area were known as the Rus. The Mongols campaigned to gain an alliance from the city-state or demand a surrender. This campaigning initiative was […]
Hangzhou (Sung Capital)
Hangzhou located in southern China, was a very large city approximately one hundred miles around. An estimated one million people lived in Hangzhou. It was considered one of the greatest cities in the world by the 13th century because it was a center of trade. Although there are full accounts of Hangzhou when it was […]
