Dayan Khan ( mn, Даян Хаан;
Mongol script: ; ), born Batumöngke ( mn, Батмөнх; ), (1472–1517) was a khagan of the
Northern Yuan dynasty
The Northern Yuan () was a dynastic regime ruled by the Mongol Borjigin clan based in the Mongolian Plateau. It existed as a rump state after the collapse of the Yuan dynasty in 1368 and lasted until its conquest by the Jurchen-led Later ...
, reigning from 1479 to 1517. During his rule, he reunited the Mongols under
Chinggisid supremacy. His reigning title, "Dayan", means "the whole" or "Long lasting" in Mongolian language as he was the longest reigning khaan of the unified Mongols.
Dayan Khan and his queen,
Mandukhai, eliminated
Oirat power and abolished the taishi system used by both local and foreign warlords. Dayan Khan's victory at Dalan Tergin reunified the Mongols and solidified their identity as Chinggisid people. His decision to divide the Six tumens of Eastern Mongolia as fiefs for his sons created decentralized but stable
Borjigin rule over the
Mongolian Plateau
The Mongolian Plateau is the part of the Central Asian Plateau lying between 37°46′-53°08′N and 87°40′-122°15′E and having an area of approximately . It is bounded by the Greater Hinggan Mountains in the east, the Yin Mountains to ...
for a century.
Childhood
It is claimed that Batumongke was the son of Bayanmongke (Bayanmunh) (
fl.
''Floruit'' (; abbreviated fl. or occasionally flor.; from Latin for "they flourished") denotes a date or period during which a person was known to have been alive or active. In English, the unabbreviated word may also be used as a noun indicatin ...
1470–1479) the Bolkhu
jinong
Jinong () was a title of the Mongols. It was derived from Chinese ''Jinwang'' (, a title for crown prince, similar to Prince of Wales) although some historians have suggested it originates from ''Qinwang'' (). Whatever its relation with the Chine ...
(or
crown prince
A crown prince or hereditary prince is the heir apparent to the throne in a royal or imperial monarchy. The female form of the title is crown princess, which may refer either to an heiress apparent or, especially in earlier times, to the wife ...
/
viceroy
A viceroy () is an official who reigns over a polity in the name of and as the representative of the monarch of the territory. The term derives from the Latin prefix ''vice-'', meaning "in the place of" and the French word ''roy'', meaning "k ...
) of the
Borjigin clan and Shiker Taiko (Shihir Taihu) of the
Uriyangkhai in Mongolia. His
paternal grandmother, Sechen, was a daughter of
Esen Tayshi
Esen ( mn, Эсэн; Mongol script: ; ), (?–1454) was a powerful Oirat taishi and the ''de facto'' ruler of the Northern Yuan dynasty between 12 September 1453 and 1454. He is best known for capturing the Emperor Yingzong of Ming in 1450 i ...
of the
Oirats
Oirats ( mn, Ойрад, ''Oirad'', or , Oird; xal-RU, Өөрд; zh, 瓦剌; in the past, also Eleuths) are the westernmost group of the Mongols whose ancestral home is in the Altai Mountains, Altai region of Siberia, Xinjiang and western M ...
. Although Bolkhu and his family suffered through life's darkest hours during the reign of Esen and the internal conflict of the
Northern Yuan dynasty
The Northern Yuan () was a dynastic regime ruled by the Mongol Borjigin clan based in the Mongolian Plateau. It existed as a rump state after the collapse of the Yuan dynasty in 1368 and lasted until its conquest by the Jurchen-led Later ...
, they were welcomed by his uncle (brother)
Manduul Khan (r. 1465–1467) soon after his coronation.
Batumongke's father and his uncle Manduul had come to blows due to warlords' convictions, and Bayanmongke had fled and been murdered. Manduul's taishi
Ismayil (also known as Isama) then took his wife Shikher and properties. In order to save Batumongke's life Shiker gave her child to the Bakhay family to nurse him. However, Temur-Qadag of the
Tangud (already Mongolicized) took the child from Bakhay. Because of his Borjigin blood, Batumongke was well taken care by the Mongol commoners and minor nobles.
At the sudden death of Manduul Khan in 1467, Batumongke was five years old. Later he was adopted by
Mandukhai Khatun, the widow of Manduul Khan. When Mandukhai's loyalists brought back Batumongke, he was suffering
echinococcosis
Echinococcosis is a parasitic disease of tapeworms of the ''Echinococcus'' type. The two main types of the disease are ''cystic echinococcosis'' and '' alveolar echinococcosis''. Less common forms include ''polycystic echinococcosis'' and ''un ...
. Mandukhai had him treated and the boy recovered soon.
Reign
As a direct descendant of
Kublai Khan
Kublai ; Mongolian script: ; (23 September 1215 – 18 February 1294), also known by his temple name as the Emperor Shizu of Yuan and his regnal name Setsen Khan, was the founder of the Yuan dynasty of China and the fifth khagan-emperor of the ...
(r. 1260–1294), Mandukhai had him ascend to the throne at the Royal
shrine
A shrine ( la, scrinium "case or chest for books or papers"; Old French: ''escrin'' "box or case") is a sacred or holy space dedicated to a specific deity, ancestor, hero, martyr, saint, daemon, or similar figure of respect, wherein they ...
kept by the Chakhar and he became known by the title "Dayan Khan". When he was aged nineteen, she married him, and retained great influence over court and military. They reunified the Mongol retainers of the former eastern region of the
Mongol Empire
The Mongol Empire of the 13th and 14th centuries was the largest contiguous land empire in history. Originating in present-day Mongolia in East Asia, the Mongol Empire at its height stretched from the Sea of Japan to parts of Eastern Europe ...
. The
Oirats
Oirats ( mn, Ойрад, ''Oirad'', or , Oird; xal-RU, Өөрд; zh, 瓦剌; in the past, also Eleuths) are the westernmost group of the Mongols whose ancestral home is in the Altai Mountains, Altai region of Siberia, Xinjiang and western M ...
were defeated by the military skill of Mandukhai and control reclaimed over the Eastern Mongols. Batumongke and his queen Mandukhai led Mongol armies in 1483 against Ismayil Taishi who fled after the imperial victory over him to
Hami where he was killed by other
Muslims and the
Turco-Mongol
The Turco-Mongol or Turko-Mongol tradition was an ethnocultural synthesis that arose in Asia during the 14th century, among the ruling elites of the Golden Horde and the Chagatai Khanate. The ruling Mongolian nobility, Mongol elites of these Kh ...
s. Dayan Khan's mother Shiker was brought back and given the title taikhu (
empress dowager). However, she did not live long enough after that. The imperial power was supported by Unubold (Naybolad), the descendant of
Hasar who was the brother of
Genghis Khan
''Chinggis Khaan'' ͡ʃʰiŋɡɪs xaːŋbr /> Mongol script: ''Chinggis Qa(gh)an/ Chinggis Khagan''
, birth_name = Temüjin
, successor = Tolui (as regent) Ögedei Khan
, spouse =
, issue =
, house = Borjigin ...
, and the tribes ruled by descendants of Genghis Khan's brothers were allied. Most of the Four Oirats remaining in Mongolia surrendered and provided troops. Only Khoosai of the
Tumed rejected Dayan Khan's supremacy but was defeated in turn.
The most important achievement of the couple was their defeat of the war-like
Oirats
Oirats ( mn, Ойрад, ''Oirad'', or , Oird; xal-RU, Өөрд; zh, 瓦剌; in the past, also Eleuths) are the westernmost group of the Mongols whose ancestral home is in the Altai Mountains, Altai region of Siberia, Xinjiang and western M ...
who had previously revolted against the rule of the
Borjigin Emperors since the 14th century. By 1495, Batumongke won the Three Guards (
Doyin Uriankhai
The Kharchin (, ; ), or Kharachin, is a subgroup of the Mongols residing mainly (and originally) in North-western Liaoning and Chifeng, Inner Mongolia. There are Khalkha-Kharchin Mongols in Dorno-Gobi Province (Kharchin Örtöö was part of ...
, Ujiyed and Fuyu guard), tributaries of the
Ming dynasty
The Ming dynasty (), officially the Great Ming, was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China, ruling from 1368 to 1644 following the collapse of the Mongol Empire, Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming dynasty was the last ort ...
, and had them incorporated into his Six tumens.
Early conflicts with Ming dynasty
While the
Golden Horde
The Golden Horde, self-designated as Ulug Ulus, 'Great State' in Turkic, was originally a Mongol and later Turkicized khanate established in the 13th century and originating as the northwestern sector of the Mongol Empire. With the fragment ...
lost its power in 1480, Mongol raids on Ming borderlands became virtually constant. Under Dayan Khan they reached a new level of organization. Dayan Khan intended to maintain good relations with Ming dynasty at first. His envoys were sent to sign open-trade contract with gifts, but one of them was killed by the Ming court, so he launched military expeditions into the Ming China. Dayan Khan as a mature ruler had no interest in joining the Ming's
tribute system.
Dayan Khan allied with the
Monggoljins under Toloogen and Khooshai of
Ordos. With Dayan Khan and Mandukhai's movement to the Eight white yurts in Ordos in 1500, they launched a massive attack on
Ningxia
Ningxia (,; , ; alternately romanized as Ninghsia), officially the Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region (NHAR), is an autonomous region in the northwest of the People's Republic of China. Formerly a province, Ningxia was incorporated into Gansu in ...
and conquered some lands. At first their invasion caused trouble to the Ming Chinese but Yu, the officer of the Ming Dynasty, and his commander Wang ambushed the Mongols and organized an unexpectedly vigorous
counter attack in an attempt to capture Dayan Khan the next year. Barely escaping the Ming attack, Dayan Khan relocated to the
Kherlen River, yet large-scale raids all along the frontier continued through 1507.
The unrest of the Right Wing
A delegation from the Three Right Wing
Tumens (
Ordos,
Tümed and
Yöngshiyebü) invited Dayan Khan to rule them. Because Iburai Taishi (also known as
Ibrahim), an
Uighur adventurer or an Oirat/
Kharchin warlord
A warlord is a person who exercises military, economic, and political control over a region in a country without a strong national government; largely because of coercive control over the armed forces. Warlords have existed throughout much of h ...
and Mandulai dominated the area, the three Tumens were seeking a more agreeable arrangement. In a skirmish raid on one of the rebel groups, the imperial army killed Ibrahim’s younger brother. Dayan Khan dispatched to the Tumens his sons Ulusbaikh (Ulusbold) and Barsubolad Sainalag. As Ulusbold was being enthroned as jinong, he was killed in a riot and Barsubolad escaped. In revenge, Dayan Khan attacked the Three Right Wing Tumens with his three Left Wing Tumens (
Chakhar,
Khalkha and
Uriankhai), the
Khorchin and the Abagha. Because a large group of the Uriankhai Tumen defected to Iburai, Dayan Khan was first defeated at Turgen Stream at present-day Tumed territory.
In 1510, he crushed the Three Right Wing Tumens and killed Mandulai, the Ordos elder. Iburai fled to Kokenuur (
Qinghai
Qinghai (; alternately romanized as Tsinghai, Ch'inghai), also known as Kokonor, is a landlocked province in the northwest of the People's Republic of China. It is the fourth largest province of China by area and has the third smallest po ...
) where he remained active to 1533. Dayan Khan dispersed the rebel Uriankhais among other 5 tumens. Instead of enslaving the Right Wing Tumens, Dayan Khan had Barsubolad enthroned as jinong (晉王) in 1513, abolishing old titles like taishi (太師) and chingsang (丞相) of the
Yuan dynasty
The Yuan dynasty (), officially the Great Yuan (; xng, , , literally "Great Yuan State"), was a Mongols, Mongol-led Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China and a successor state to the Mongol Empire after Division of the M ...
. He exempted his soldiers from imposts and made them
Darqan. According to an ancient Mongolian source, the Mongols were again peaceful thereafter thanks to the policy of Dayan Khan and his
khatun
Khatun ( Mongolian: хатан; otk, 𐰴𐰍𐰣, katun; ota, خاتون, hatun or قادین ''kadın''; fa, خاتون ''khātūn''; ; hi, ख़ातून ') is a female title of nobility and counterpart to "khan" or "Khagan" prominent ...
Maudukhai.
With defeats of Iburai and Ismayil, Dayan and Mandukhai could remove the power of descendants of the
Alans
The Alans (Latin: ''Alani'') were an ancient and medieval Iranian nomadic pastoral people of the North Caucasus – generally regarded as part of the Sarmatians, and possibly related to the Massagetae. Modern historians have connected the ...
, the
Kypchaks and the
Hami Muslim warlords from the Northern Yuan court in the
Mongolian Plateau
The Mongolian Plateau is the part of the Central Asian Plateau lying between 37°46′-53°08′N and 87°40′-122°15′E and having an area of approximately . It is bounded by the Greater Hinggan Mountains in the east, the Yin Mountains to ...
.
Later conflicts with the Ming dynasty
From 1513, Mongol invasions of the Ming Empire recommenced. Dayan Khan built
fort
A fortification is a military construction or building designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is also used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Latin ''fortis'' ("strong") and ''facere'' ...
s in
Xuanhua
Xuanhua may refer to:
*Xuanhua District (宣化区), Zhangjiakou, Hebei, China
* Xuanhua, Gansu (宣化镇), town in Gaotai County, Gansu, China
* Xuanhua, Henan (宣化镇), town in Dengfeng
Dengfeng (; postal: Tengfeng) is a county-level city ...
and
Datong. He also stationed 30,000 cavalry on Ming territory. His Mongols numbering up to 175,000 invaded the Ming Empire in 1514 and 1517. His sons established a series of permanent bases along the Ming border where the Mongols could keep watch on the Ming troops. Batumongke Dayan Khan repeatedly sought trade relation with the Ming, but rejection turned him more and more to outright warfare.
The high point of Mongol power came in 1517, when Dayan Khan moved on
Beijing
}
Beijing ( ; ; ), alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the capital of the People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's most populous national capital city, with over 21 ...
itself. Although the Ming dynasty held the Mongols off in a major battle, Dayan Khan and his successors continued to threaten China until 1526. The Mongol armies raided the Ming dynasty not only in the north, but also in the hitherto quiet west. The
Zhengde Emperor of the Ming dynasty lost his
protectorate
A protectorate, in the context of international relations, is a state that is under protection by another state for defence against aggression and other violations of law. It is a dependent territory that enjoys autonomy over most of its inte ...
Hami to the
Turpan
Turpan (also known as Turfan or Tulufan, , ug, تۇرپان) is a prefecture-level city located in the east of the autonomous region of Xinjiang, China. It has an area of and a population of 632,000 (2015).
Geonyms
The original name of the c ...
s at the same time. In 1542, Dayan Khan defeated Ming troops just before his death.
Dayan Khan and Mandukhai's nation now stretched from the
Siberia
Siberia ( ; rus, Сибирь, r=Sibir', p=sʲɪˈbʲirʲ, a=Ru-Сибирь.ogg) is an extensive geographical region, constituting all of North Asia, from the Ural Mountains in the west to the Pacific Ocean in the east. It has been a part o ...
n
tundra
In physical geography, tundra () is a type of biome where tree growth is hindered by frigid temperatures and short growing seasons. The term ''tundra'' comes through Russian (') from the Kildin Sámi word (') meaning "uplands", "treeless mo ...
and
Lake Baikal
Lake Baikal (, russian: Oзеро Байкал, Ozero Baykal ); mn, Байгал нуур, Baigal nuur) is a rift lake in Russia. It is situated in southern Siberia, between the Federal subjects of Russia, federal subjects of Irkutsk Oblast, I ...
in the north, across the
Gobi, to the edge of the
Yellow River
The Yellow River or Huang He (Chinese: , Mandarin: ''Huáng hé'' ) is the second-longest river in China, after the Yangtze River, and the sixth-longest river system in the world at the estimated length of . Originating in the Bayan ...
and south of it into the Ordos. The lands extended from the forests of
Manchuria
Manchuria is an exonym (derived from the endo demonym "Manchu") for a historical and geographic region in Northeast Asia encompassing the entirety of present-day Northeast China (Inner Manchuria) and parts of the Russian Far East ( Outer ...
in the East past the
Altai Mountains and out onto the steppes of
Central Asia
Central Asia, also known as Middle Asia, is a region of Asia that stretches from the Caspian Sea in the west to western China and Mongolia in the east, and from Afghanistan and Iran in the south to Russia in the north. It includes the former ...
.
Reform
He reorganized the Eastern Mongols into 6
tumens (literally "ten thousand") as follows:
*Left Wing:
Khalkha,
Chahar and
Uriankhai
*Right Wing: Ordos, Tümed and
Yöngshiyebü (including
Asud and Kharchin)
They functioned both as military units and as tribal administrative bodies. Northern Khalkha people and Uriyankhan were attached to the South Khalkha of eastern Inner Mongolia and Doyin Uriyangkhan of the Three Guards, respectively. After the failed rebellion of the northern Uriankhai people, they were divided in 1538 and mostly annexed by the northern Khalkha. Under Dayan Khan or his successors, the Eastern Mongols compelled the
Barga to surrender. However, his decision to divide the Six tumens to his sons, or taijis, and local tabunangs, sons-in-law of the taijis, created a decentralized system of Borjigin rule that secured domestic peace and outward expansion for a century. Despite this decentralization there was a remarkable concord within the Dayan Khanid aristocracy and intra-Chinggisid civil war remained unknown until the reign of
Ligden Khan (1604–34).
In Fiction
Dayan's early life is also fictionalized in books three and four of the historical fiction ''Fractured Empire Saga'', by Starr Z. Davies, published 2021-2022,
[Fractured Empire Saga, by Starr Z. Davies, published 2021-2022] a four-book series: ''Daughter of the Yellow Dragon'', ''Lords of the Black Banner'', ''Mother of the Blue Wolf'', ''Empress of the Jade Realm''.
Dayan Khan is an important background character in the historical novel "Manduchai", written by German Author Tanja Kinkel in 2014.
Dayan Khan appeared as a background character in the historical drama "Marco Polo" on Season 2 Episode 11, written John Fusco and Lorenzo Richelmy in 2016.
Family
Dayan Khan married
Mandukhai the Wise, Guushi and Jimsgene.
* Parents:
** Bayanmunh
** Shihir Taihu
*Wives and children:
#
Mandukhai
##Turbolad
##Ulusbold
##Arsubolad
##
Barsubolad
##Töröltu
##Ochirbolad
##Alchubolad
##Albolad
# Jimsgene
##
Gersenji
Gersenji (1513-1549) ( Mongolian: Гэрсэнз жалайр хунтайж) (also known as Gersenji Jalair Khongtaiji) - alternately Geressandsa (Geressandsa Jelair Khuntaidshi) - was the 11th and youngest son of Dayan Khan and the second son w ...
##Gerbolad
#Guushi
##Gert
##Chintaiji
His sons were made tribal chiefs. Many princes in the Mongolian Plateau were his descendants such as
Altan Khan and
Ligden Khan. Dayan Khan and his successor Khagans led the Chahar tumen directly. The Chinese chroniclers of the Ming dynasty considered him a Holy Emperor who restored former glory of the Mongol Empire. There is much that is uncertain about Dayan Khan's life after the death of Mandukhai. The dates of death range from 1517 until 1543.
Ancestors
See also
*
List of khans of the Northern Yuan dynasty
*
Yuan dynasty
The Yuan dynasty (), officially the Great Yuan (; xng, , , literally "Great Yuan State"), was a Mongols, Mongol-led Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China and a successor state to the Mongol Empire after Division of the M ...
References
Citations
Sources
*
Jack Weatherford - ''
The Secret History of the Mongol Queens
''The Secret History of the Mongol Queens: How the Daughters of Genghis Khan Rescued His Empire'' is a 2010 book by Jack Weatherford, about the impact and legacy of Genghis Khan's daughters and Mongol queens such as Mandukhai the Wise and Khut ...
: How the Daughters of Genghis Khan Rescued His Empire'' - Crown, 2010.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Khan, Dayan
1472 births
1517 deaths
Mongol khans
Northern Yuan rulers
15th-century Mongol rulers
16th-century Mongol rulers
15th-century Chinese monarchs
16th-century Chinese monarchs