Yuan dynasty: Difference between revisions

| image_map_caption = Yuan dynasty ({{circa|1290}}){{NoteTag|name=goryeo|The precise status of [[Goryeo under Mongol rule]] is unclear. While Goryeo was a vassal of the Yuan dynasty, many scholars, such as [[Tan Qixiang]], regard it as an autonomous state outside the Yuan territory;<ref name=tan>{{cite book |language=zh-Hans |script-title = zh:《中国历史地图集》 |trans-title = The Historical Atlas of China |title-link = The Historical Atlas of China |publisher=[[SinoMaps Press]] |volumeat=[http://www.guoxue123.com/other/map/zgmap/013.htm Vol. 7] |author1-link = Tan Qixiang |author1=Tan Qixiang |display-authors = etal |isbn=978-7-5031-1844-9 |year=1987}}</ref>{{sfn|Rossabi|1994|pp=436–437}}{{sfn|Rossabi|1988|p=77}} others regard it as an integral part of the Yuan territory.}}

The '''Yuan dynasty''' ({{zh |c={{linktext|元|朝}} |p=Yuáncháo }}), officially the '''Great Yuan'''<ref name="CivilSociety" /> ({{zh |c={{linktext|大|元}} |p=Dà Yuán }}; [[Mongolian language|Mongolian]]: {{MongolUnicode|ᠶᠡᠬᠡ<br />ᠶᠤᠸᠠᠨ<br />ᠤᠯᠤᠰ}}, {{lang|mn-Latn|Yeke Yuwan Ulus}}, literally "Great Yuan State"),{{NoteTag|Modern [[Mongolian language|Mongolian]] form commonly used by Chinese and Mongolian academics: {{lang-xng|{{MongolUnicode|ᠳᠠᠢ<br />ᠦᠨ<br />ᠶᠡᠬᠡ<br />ᠮᠣᠩᠭᠣᠯ<br />ᠤᠯᠤᠰ}}}}, {{lang|mn-Latn|Dai Ön Yeke Mongghul Ulus}} or {{lang|mn|Их Юань улс}} in Modern [[Mongolian Cyrillic]], ''{{transliteration|mn|Ikh Yuan Üls/Yekhe Yuan Ulus}}''.<ref>{{cite web |title=ᠮᠣᠩᠭᠣᠯ ᠤᠨ ᠶᠡᠬᠡ ᠶᠤᠸᠠᠨ ᠤᠯᠤᠰ |url=https://mongoltoli.mn/history/h/418 |publisher=Монголын түүхийн тайлбар толь |year=2016 | language=mn}}</ref>}}), was a [[Mongols|Mongol]]-led [[Dynasties of China|imperial dynasty of China]] and a [[successor state]] to the [[Mongol Empire]] after [[Division of the Mongol Empire|its ''de facto'' division]].{{NoteTag|name=GreatYuan|As per modern historiographical norm, the "Yuan dynasty" in this article refers exclusively to the realm based in [[Khanbaliq|Dadu]] (present-day [[Beijing]]). However, the [[Han Chinese|Han]]-style dynastic name "Great Yuan" ({{lang|zh-Hant|大元}}) as proclaimed by Kublai in 1271, as well as the claim to Chinese political orthodoxy were meant to be applied to the entire [[Mongol Empire]].<ref name="Proclamation1271" /><ref name="GreatYuan1" /> In spite of this, "Yuan dynasty" is rarely used in the broad sense of the definition by modern scholars due to the [[Division of the Mongol Empire|disintegrated nature]] of the Mongol Empire.}} It was established by [[Kublai Khan|Kublai]] (Emperor Shizu or Setsen Khan), the fifth khagan-emperor of the Mongol Empire from the [[Borjigin]] clan, and lasted from 1271 to 1368. In [[History of China|Chinese history]], the Yuan dynasty followed the [[Song dynasty]] and preceded the [[Ming dynasty]].

Although [[Genghis Khan]]'s enthronement as [[Khagan]] in 1206 was described in [[Chinese language|Chinese]] as the [[Han Chinese|Han]]-style title of [[Emperor of China|Emperor]] {{NoteTag|name=Emperor}}<ref name="Enthronement1206" /> and the [[Mongol Empire]] had ruled territories including modern-day [[Northern and southern China|northern China]] for decades, it was not until 1271 that Kublai Khan officially proclaimed the dynasty in the traditional Han style,{{sfn|Mote|1994|p=624}} and the conquest was not complete until 1279 when the Southern [[Song dynasty]] was defeated in the [[Battle of Yamen]]. His realm was, by this point, isolated from the other Mongol-led khanates and controlled most of modern-day [[China]] and its surrounding areas, including modern-day [[Mongolia]].<ref name="Mongol Empire p.611">{{cite book |last=Atwood |first=Christopher Pratt |title=Encyclopedia of Mongolia and the Mongol Empire |url=https://archive.org/details/encyclopediaofmo0000atwo |url-access=registration |year=2004 |publisher=[[Facts On File]] |isbn=978-0-8160-4671-3}}</ref> It was the first dynasty founded by a non-Han ethnicity that ruled all of [[China proper]].<ref name="San" />{{rp|312}}<ref>{{cite book |last1=Eberhard |first1=Wolfram |title=A History of China |date=1971 |publisher=University of California Press |location=Berkeley, California |isbn=0-520-01518-5 |page=232 |edition=3rd}}{{pn|date=July 2023}}</ref> In 1368, following the defeat of the Yuan forces by the Ming dynasty, the Genghisid rulers retreated to the [[Mongolian Plateau]] and continued to rule until 1635 when they surrendered to the [[Later Jin (1616–1636)|Later Jin dynasty]] (which later evolved into the [[Qing dynasty]]). The rump state is known in [[Chinese historiography|historiography]] as the [[Northern Yuan|Northern Yuan dynasty]].

After the ''de facto'' division of the Mongol Empire, the Yuan dynasty was the khanate ruled by the successors of [[Möngke Khan|Möngke]]. In official Chinese histories, the Yuan dynasty bore the [[Mandate of Heaven]]. The dynasty was established by Kublai Khan, yet he placed his grandfather Genghis Khan on the imperial records as the official founder of the dynasty and accorded him the [[temple name]] Taizu.{{NoteTag|name=Emperor}} In the edict titled ''Proclamation of the Dynastic Name'' issued in 1271,<ref name="Proclamation1271" /> Kublai announced the name of the new dynasty as Great Yuan and claimed the succession of former Chinese dynasties from the [[Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors]] to the [[Tang dynasty]].<ref name="Proclamation1271" /> AsSome a multiethnic and multicultural empire there was significant discrimination against the majority [[Han Chinese]] and preference for [[Mongols]] during the dynasty, butof the Yuan dynasty accepted some Chinese elements throughout the entire dynasty even though these were not large. Yuan rulers like [[Ayurbarwada Buyantu Khan|Buyantu Khan]], [[Gegeen Khan]] and [[Jayaatu Khan Tugh Temür|Jayaatu Khan]] admired and were well versed in Chinese culture. These emperors also mastered the [[Old Mandarin|Chinese language]], while others only used their native [[Middle Mongol|Mongolian language]], andwritten with the [['Phags-pa script]].<ref>{{cite journal |last=Franke |first=Herbert |title=Could the Mongol emperors read and write Chinese? | pages = 28–41 | url = https://www2.ihp.sinica.edu.tw/file/1665DFfIcjI.pdf | journal= Asia Major | date= 1953 | series= Second series | volume= 3 | issue= 1 | publisher= Academica Sinica }}</ref>

| picsize = 145px145

In 1271, [[Kublai Khan]] imposed the name '''Great Yuan''' ({{zh|c=大元|p=Dà Yuán}}), establishing the Yuan dynasty.<ref name="CivilSociety">{{cite book |last=Simon |first=Karla W. |title=Civil Society in China: The Legal Framework from Ancient Times to the 'New Reform Era' |date=26 April 2013 |publisher=Oxford University Press | isbn = 9780190297640 |page=39 {{nowrap|n. 69}} |doi=10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199765898.003.0002}}</ref> "Dà Yuán" ({{lang|zh|大元}}) is from a clause "{{lang|zh|大哉乾元}}" ({{zhi|p=dà zāi Qián Yuán |l=Great is Qián, the Primal }}) in the ''[[Ten Wings|Commentaries]] on the [[I Ching]]'' section<ref>{{cite book |language=zh-Hant |script-title=zh:《易傳》 |trans-title=[[Ten Wings|Commentaries]] on the I Ching |section=[[s:zh:周易/乾|周易·乾卦·彖傳]] |quote=《彖》曰：{{nowrap|{{strong|{{serif|大哉乾元}}}}}}，萬物資始，乃統天。}}</ref> regarding the [[Qian (hexagram)|first hexagram]] ({{lang|zh|乾}}).<ref name="Proclamation1271">{{citation |author=Kublai Emperor |author-link=Kublai Khan |date=18 December 1271 |language=zh-Classical |script-title=zh:《建國號詔》 |trans-title=Edict to Establish the Name of the State |series=《元典章》[''Statutes of Yuan''] |url=http://zh.wikisource.org/wiki/建國號詔}}</ref> The [[Mongolian-language]] counterpart was {{transl|mn|Dai Ön Ulus}}, also rendered as {{transl|mn|Ikh Yuan Üls}} or {{transl|mn|Yekhe Yuan Ulus}}. In Mongolian, {{transl|mn|Dai Ön}} a borrowing from Chinese, was often used in conjunction with the "Yeke Mongghul Ulus" ({{lang|zh-Hant|大蒙古國}}; 'Great Mongol State'), which resulted in the form {{MongolUnicode|ᠳᠠᠢ<br />ᠥᠨ<br />ᠶᠡᠬᠡ<br />ᠮᠣᠩᠭᠣᠯ<br />ᠤᠯᠤᠰ}} ({{lang|zh-Hant|大元大蒙古國}}; {{lang|mn-Latn|Dai Ön Yeqe Mongɣul Ulus}}, lit. "Great Yuan {{en dash}} Great Mongol State")<ref name="mname">{{ cite book | title= The Early Mongols Language, Culture and History | series= Studies in Honor of Igor de Rachewiltz on the Occasion of his 80th Birthday

| publisher= Indiana University Press | date=2009 | page=116}}</ref> or {{MongolUnicode|ᠳᠠᠢ ᠦᠨ<br /> ᠺᠡᠮᠡᠺᠦ<br /> ᠶᠡᠬᠡ<br /> ᠮᠣᠩᠭᠣᠯ<br /> ᠤᠯᠤᠰ}} ({{lang|mn-Latn|Dai Ön qemeqü Yeqe Mongɣol Ulus}}, lit. "Great Mongol State called Great Yuan").<ref>{{cite journal |author=陈得芝 |date=2009 |title=关于元朝的国号、年代与疆域问题 |journal=北方民族大学学报 |volume=87 |issue=3}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |author=Hodong Kim |date=2015 |title=Was 'da Yuan' a Chinese Dynasty? |journal=Journal of Song-Yuan Studies |volume=45 |page=288}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |author= Francis Woodman Cleaves |date=1949 |title=The Sino-Mongolian Inscription of 1362 in Memory of Prince Hindu |journal=Harvard Journal of Asiatic Studies |volume=12 |page=8}}</ref>

Möngke Khan commenced a military campaign against the Chinese [[Song dynasty]] in southern China.{{sfn|Allsen|1994|p=410}} The Mongol force that invaded southern China was far greater than the force they sent to invade the Middle East in 1256.<ref>{{cite journal |jstor=606298 |title=Nomads on Ponies vs. Slaves on Horses. Reviewed Work: ''Mongols and Mamluks: The Mamluk-Īlkhānid War, 1260–1281'' by Reuven Amitai-Preiss |author=John Masson Smith Jr. |journal=[[Journal of the American Oriental Society]] |volume=118 |issue=1 |year=1998 |pages=54–62}}</ref> He died in 1259 without a successor at the [[Siege of Diaoyucheng]].{{sfn|Allsen|1994|p=411}} Kublai returned from fighting the Song in 1260 when he learned that his brother, [[Ariq Böke]], was challenging his claim to the throne.{{sfn|Rossabi|1994|p=422}} Kublai convened a kurultai in Kaiping that elected him Great Khan.{{sfn|Rossabi|1988|p=51}} A rival kurultai in Mongolia proclaimed Ariq Böke Great Khan, beginning a civil war.{{sfn|Rossabi|1988|p=53}} Kublai depended on the cooperation of his Chinese subjects to ensure that his army received ample resources. He bolstered his popularity among his subjects by modeling his government on the bureaucracy of traditional Chinese dynasties and adopting the Chinese era name of Zhongtong.{{sfn|Rossabi|1994|p=423–424}} [[Ariq Böke]] was hampered by inadequate supplies and surrendered in 1264.{{sfn|Morgan|2007|p=104}} All of the three western khanates ([[Golden Horde]], [[Chagatai Khanate]] and [[Ilkhanate]]) became functionally autonomous, and only the Ilkhans truly recognized Kublai as Great Khan.{{sfn|Rossabi|1988|p=62}}{{sfn|Allsen|1994|p=413}} Civil strife had [[Division of the Mongol Empire|permanently divided the Mongol Empire]].{{sfn|Allsen|2001|p=24}}

Instability troubled the early years of Kublai Khan's reign. Ögedei's grandson [[Kaidu]]（开都） refused to submit to Kublai and threatened the western frontier of Kublai's domain.{{sfn|Rossabi|1988|p=77}}{{sfn|Morgan|2007|p=105}} The hostile but weakened Song dynasty remained an obstacle in the south.{{sfn|Rossabi|1988|p=77}} Kublai secured the northeast border in 1259 by installing the hostage prince [[Wonjong of Goryeo|Wonjong]] as the ruler of the [[Goryeo|Kingdom of Goryeo]] (Korea), making it a Mongol tributary state.{{sfn|Rossabi|1994|pp=436–437}}{{sfn|Rossabi|1988|p=77}} Kublai betrothed one of his daughters to the prince to solidify the relationship between the two houses.{{sfn|Rossabi|1994|pp=438}} Korean women were sent to the Yuan court as tribute and one concubine became the [[Empress Gi|empress]] of the Yuan dynasty.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Lorge |first1=Peter |title=Review of David M. Robinson, ''Empire's Twilight: Northeast Asia under the Mongols''. Harvard-Yenching Institute Monograph Series |journal=China Review International |date=2010 |volume=17 |issue=3 |pages=377–379 |issn=1069-5834 |jstor=23733178}}</ref> Kublai was also threatened by domestic unrest. Li Tan, the son-in-law of a powerful official, instigated a revolt against Mongol rule in 1262. After successfully suppressing the revolt, Kublai curbed the influence of the Han advisers in his court.{{sfn|Rossabi|1994|p=426}} He feared that his dependence on Chinese officials left him vulnerable to future revolts and defections to the Song.{{sfn|Rossabi|1988|p=66}}

After strengthening his government in northern China, Kublai pursued an expansionist policy in line with the tradition of Mongol and Chinese imperialism. He renewed a massive drive against the Song dynasty to the south.{{sfn|Rossabi|1994|p=429}} Kublai besieged [[Xiangyang District, Xiangfan|Xiangyang]] (襄阳）between) between 1268 and 1273,{{sfn|Rossabi|2012|p=77}} the last obstacle in his way to capture the rich Yangtze River basin.{{sfn|Ebrey|2010|p=172}} An unsuccessful naval expedition was undertaken [[Mongol invasions of Japan#First invasion (1274)|against Japan]] in 1274.{{sfn|Morgan|2007|p=107}} The Duan family ruling the [[Kingdom of Dali]] （(大理）in) in Yunnan submitted to the Yuan dynasty as vassals and were allowed to keep their throne, militarily assisting the Yuan dynasty against the Song dynasty in southern China.

|editor1-last=Anderson |editor1-first=James A. |editor2-last=Whitmore |editor2-first=John K. |title=China's Encounters on the South and Southwest: Reforging the Fiery Frontier Over Two Millennia |date=2014 |publisher=Brill |isbn=978-90-04-28248-3 |series = Handbook of Oriental Studies. Section 3 Southeast Asia, Volume: 22 |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=YV1hBQAAQBAJ&pg=PA146}}</ref>{{rp|146}} The [[Tusi]] chieftains and local tribe leaders and kingdoms in Yunnan, Guizhou and Sichuan submitted to Yuan rule and were allowed to keep their titles. The Han Chinese Yang family ruling the [[Chiefdom of Bozhou]], which was recognized by both the Song and Tang dynasty, also received recognition by the Mongols in the Yuan dynasty, and later by the [[Ming dynasty]]. The Luo clan in Shuixi led by Ahua were recognized by the Yuan emperors, as they were by the Song emperors when led by Pugui and Tang emperors when led by Apei. They descended from the [[Three Kingdoms]] era king Huoji who legendarily helped [[Zhuge Liang]] 诸葛亮against [[Meng Huo]].<ref>{{cite book |last1=Herman |first1=John. E. |editor1-last=Di Cosmo |editor1-first=Nicola |editor2-last=Wyatt |editor2-first=Don J |title=Political Frontiers, Ethnic Boundaries and Human Geographies in Chinese History |date=2005 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-1-135-79095-0 |pages=245–285 | chapter = The Mu'ege kingdom: A brief history of a frontier empire in Southwest China

In 1276 Kublai captured the Song capital of [[Hangzhou]]（ (杭州）), the wealthiest city of China,{{sfn|Rossabi|1994|p=430}} after the surrender of the Southern Song Han Chinese [[Emperor Gong of Song]].{{sfn|Morgan|2007|p=106}} Emperor Gong was married off to a Mongol princess of the royal [[Borjigin]] family of the Yuan dynasty.<ref>{{cite book |last=Hua | first=Kaiqi |editor1-last=Heirman |editor1-first=Ann |editor2-last=Meinert |editor2-first=Carmen |editor3-last=Anderl |editor3-first=Christoph |title=Buddhist Encounters and Identities Across East Asia |date=2018 |publisher=Brill |location=Leiden |isbn=978-90-04-36615-2 |doi=10.1163/9789004366152_008 |pages=196–226 |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=bGdjDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA213 |chapter= The Journey of Zhao Xian and the Exile of Royal Descendants in the Yuan Dynasty (1271–1358)}}</ref>{{rp|213}} Song loyalists escaped from the capital and enthroned a young child as [[Emperor Bing of Song]], who was Emperor Gong's younger brother. The Yuan forces commanded by Han Chinese General [[Zhang Hongjiang|Zhang Hongfan]] （张弘范）ledled a predominantly Han navy to defeat the Song loyalists at the [[battle of Yamen]] in 1279. The last Song emperor drowned, bringing an end to the Song dynasty.{{sfn|Rossabi|2012|pp=77–78}} The conquest of the Song reunited northern and southern China for the first time in three hundred years.{{sfn|Morgan|2007|p=113}}

The fourth Yuan emperor, [[Ayurbarwada Buyantu Khan|Buyantu Khan]] (born Ayurbarwada), was a competent emperor. He was the first Yuan emperor to actively support and adopt mainstream [[Culture of China|Chinese culture]] after the reign of Kublai, to the discontent of some Mongol elite.<ref name=":0">{{cite encyclopedia | chapter=Yuan Dynasty |title=Historical Dictionary of Tibet |last1=Powers |first1=John |last2=Templeman |first2=David |year=2012 |publisher=Scarecrow Press |isbn=978-0-8108-7984-3 |location=Lanham, MD |page=742 |oclc=801440529 | chapter-url= https://books.google.com/books?id=LVlyX6iSDEQC&pg=PA742}}</ref> He had been mentored by [[Li Meng (Yuan dynasty)|Li Meng]] ({{zhi|[[:zh:李孟|李孟]]}}), a [[Confucian]] academic. He made many reforms, including the liquidation of the [[Department of State Affairs]] ({{zh |t=尚書省 |labels=no }}), which resulted in the execution of five of the highest-ranking officials.<ref name=":0" /> Starting in 1313 the traditional [[imperial examination]]s were reintroduced for prospective officials, testing their knowledge on significant historical works. Also, he codified much of the law, as well as publishing or translating a number of Chinese books and works.

Since its invention in 1269, the [['Phags-pa script]], a unified script for spelling [[Mongolian language|Mongolian]], [[Standard Tibetan|Tibetan]], and [[Chinese language|Chinese]] languages, was preserved in the court until the end of the dynasty. Most of the Emperors could not master [[written Chinese]], but some of themthey could generally converse well in the language. The Mongol custom of long standing ''quda'' marriage alliance with other Mongol clans – the [[Onggirat]] and the Ikeres – kept the imperial blood purely Mongol until the reign of [[Tugh Temur]] (Emperor Wenzong), whose mother was a [[Tangut people|Tangut]] concubine. The Mongol Emperors had built large palaces and pavilions, but some still continued to live as nomads at times. Tugh Temür was an example of a Yuan emperor who actively sponsored cultural activities; including in his imperial capacity and in his personal activities such as writing [[Yuan poetry|poetry]], painting, reading [[Chinese classics|Chinese classical texts]], and ordering the compilation of books.{{sfn|Mote|1999|p=471}}

<gallery mode="packed" heights="160px160">

*{{cite book |editor-first=Hok-lam |editor-last=Chan|editor-link =Chan Hok-lam |editor-first2=W.T. |editor-last2=de Bary |title=Yuan Thought: Chinese Thought and Religion Under the Mongols |year=1982 |publisher=Columbia University Press |location=New York |isbn=978-0-231-05324-2}}

*{{cite book |first=John |last=Dardess |editor1=Denis C. Twitchett|editor1-link =Denis Twitchett |editor2-link=Herbert Franke (sinologist) |editor2=Herbert Franke |editor3=John King Fairbank| editor3-link=John King Fairbank |chapter=Shun-ti and the end of Yuan rule in China |title=The Cambridge History of China: Volume 6, Alien Regimes and Border States, 710–1368 |year=1994 |pages=561–586 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-0-521-24331-5}}

*{{cite book |last=Ebrey |first=Patricia Buckley|author-link =Patricia Buckley Ebrey |title=Chinese Civilization: A Sourcebook |edition=2nd |publisher=Simon and Schuster |isbn=978-1-4391-8839-2 |date=2009-11-24}}

*{{Cite book |editor-link=Stephen Owen (sinologist)|last= Owen,|first= Stephen, "|chapter=The Yuan and Ming Dynasties," in| editor=Stephen Owen,| ed. ''title=An Anthology of Chinese Literature: Beginnings to 1911''.|place= New York:|publisher =[[W. W. Norton]],|date= 1997. [http://courses.washington.edu/chin463/OwenSanqu.pdf pp. 723&nbsp;743]. (|pages=[https://web.archive.org/web/20160303173356/http://courses.washington.edu/chin463/OwenSanqu.pdf Archive723–743]). }}<!-- Revealed on two pages: http://courses.washington.edu/chin463/Schedule.html https://www.webcitation.org/6PmyPFX5I, and http://courses.washington.edu/chin463/ https://www.webcitation.org/6PmyNNugV?url=http://courses.washington.edu/chin463/ -->