Kaidu

Kaidu or Qaidu, (1230 - 1301) was the son of KashinMarco Polo and Rustichello of Pisa. "The Travels of Marco Polo", Volume 2, Book 4, Chapter 1. Edited and annotated by Henry Yule and revised by Henri Cordier, 3rd Ed. 1903.] a grandson of Ögedei Khan and a great-grandson of Genghis Khan and Börte. He ruled part of Eastern Turkestan (modern Xinjiang) and Central Asia during the 13th century, and actively opposed his uncle, Kublai Khan, who established the Yuan Dynasty in China.

In 1260, Marco Polo described Yarkand, part of the area under Kaidu as "five days' journey in extent"; that its inhabitants were mostly Muslim although there were also some Nestorian and Jacobite Assyrians; and that it had plenty of food and other necessities, "especially cotton."Marco Polo and Rustichello of Pisa. "The Travels of Marco Polo", Volume 1, Book 1, Chapter 35. Edited and annotated by Henry Yule and revised by Henri Cordier, 3rd Ed. 1903.]

Kaidu controlled most of Central Asia and, for a time, much of present-day Mongolia, including Karakorum, the former capital of the Mongol Empire. Since about 1263, when Kublai Khan was warring with his own brother Ariq Böke, who was proclaimed Great Khan at Karakorum, Kaidu would be waging almost continuous warfare for more than 30 years against Kublai and his successor Temür, without ever managing to overthrow their might. By 1269 he had himself been recognized by some Mongol tribes and chieftains as their rightful Khan, but eventually fell in 1301, when defeated near Karakorum and killed during a desperate flight.

Medieval chroniclers often mistranslated Kadan as Kaidu, mistakenly placing Kaidu at the Battle of Legnica. Kadan was the brother of Güyük, and Kaidu's uncle.Chambers, James. "The Devil's Horsemen: The Mongol Invasion of Europe". Atheneum. New York. 1979. ISBN 0-689-10942-3]

References

External links

*Hill, John E. " [http://depts.washington.edu/uwch/silkroad/texts/hhshu/hou_han_shu.html The Western Regions according to the Hou Hanshu] ", Second Edition, 2003. (Based on 2004 edition, not yet online)