Orghana (Orakina or Ergene

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" prominen ...

) was an Oirat princess 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, ...

and

Empress An emperor (from la, imperator, via fro, empereor) is a monarch, and usually the sovereignty, sovereign ruler of an empire or another type of imperial realm. Empress, the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife (empress consort), ...

of the

Chagatai Khanate The Chagatai Khanate, or Chagatai Ulus ( xng, , translit=Čaɣatay-yin Ulus; mn, Цагаадайн улс, translit=Tsagaadain Uls; chg, , translit=Čağatāy Ulusi; fa, , translit=Xânât-e Joghatây) was a Mongol and later Turkicized kha ...

. She was a daughter of Torolchi, chief 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 region of Siberia, Xinjiang and western Mongolia. Histor ...

and

Checheyikhen Checheikhen was a daughter of Genghis Khan and his first wife Börte. Marriage When, in 1207, Genghis Khan sent his son Jochi to subdue the northern tribes, the Oirats were the first to offer an alliance to Genghis Khan. As part of this allianc ...

, daughter 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 , ...

. She served as regent in the name of her infant son from 1252 to 1261.

Early life

She married

Qara Hülëgü Qara may refer to: Places *Al Qara, a governorate in Al Bahah Region, Saudi Arabia *Qara, Syria, a Syrian city *Qara Oasis, Egypt Persons *Qara Iskander, ruled the Kara Koyunlu or Black Sheep Turcoman tribe from 1420 to 1436 *Qara Mahammad Töremi ...

, a grandson of

Chagatai Khan Chagatai Khan ( Mongolian: ''; Čaɣatay''; mn, Цагадай, translit=Tsagadai; chg, , ''Čaġatāy''; ug, چاغاتاي خان, ''Chaghatay-Xan''; zh, 察合台, ''Chágětái''; fa, , ''Joghatây''; 22 December 1183 – 1 July 1242) ...

. Her husband was enthroned as

Chagatayid Khan The Chagatai Khans were the monarchs of the Chagatai Khanate from Chagatai Khan's inheritance of the state in 1227 to their removal from power by the Dzungars and their vassals in 1687. The power of the Chagatai Khans varied; from its beginning, ...

in 1242 after deaths of both Ögedei and Chagatai. However,

Güyük Khan Güyük (also Güyug;; ''c''. March 19, 1206 – April 20, 1248) was the third Khagan-Emperor of the Mongol Empire, the eldest son of Ögedei Khan and a grandson of Genghis Khan. He reigned from 1246 to 1248. Appearance According to Giovanni ...

replaced Qara Hulagu with his uncle

Yesü Möngke Yesü Möngke (, died 1252) was head of the ''ulus'' of the Chagatai Khanate (1246 or 1247-1252). Biography He was the fifth son of Chagatai Khan and Yesülün Khatun. In or around 1246, he was appointed as khan of the Chagatai Khanate by his ...

in 1246.

Regent

When the

Tolui Tolui (also Toluy, Tului; , meaning: "the mirror"; – 1232) was a Mongol khan, the fourth son of Genghis Khan by his chief khatun, Börte. At his father's death in 1227, his ''Orda (organization), ulus'', or territorial inheritance, was the ...

d family overthrew the Ögedeids, Qara Hulagu supported

Möngke Khan Möngke ( mn, ' / Мөнх '; ; 11 January 1209 – 11 August 1259) was the fourth khagan-emperor of the Mongol Empire, ruling from 1 July 1251, to 11 August 1259. He was the first Khagan from the Toluid line, and made significant reforms ...

in 1251. Möngke reappointed Qara Hulagu khan of the Chagatai Khanate and executed Yesü Möngke. However, he died on the way and Möngke permitted his widow Orghana to serve as

regent A regent (from Latin : ruling, governing) is a person appointed to govern a state '' pro tempore'' (Latin: 'for the time being') because the monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge the powers and duties of the monarchy ...

in the name of her infant son. She ruled the Khanate from 1252 to 1261, nine years. According to Rashid al-Din, she organized a banquet for

Hulagu Hulagu Khan, also known as Hülegü or Hulegu ( mn, Хүлэгү/ , lit=Surplus, translit=Hu’legu’/Qülegü; chg, ; Arabic: fa, هولاکو خان, ''Holâku Khân;'' ; 8 February 1265), was a Mongol ruler who conquered much of West ...

when his army was marching through

Central Asia Central Asia, also known as Middle Asia, is a subregion, 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 t ...

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...

in 1255.

Civil war

In 1260, the

Toluid Civil War The Toluid Civil War was a war of succession fought between Kublai Khan and his younger brother, Ariq Böke, from 1260 to 1264. Möngke Khan died in 1259 with no declared successor, precipitating infighting between members of the Tolui family ...

broke out in the Mongol Empire with the death of Möngke, and his brother

Ariq Böke Ariq Böke (after 1219–1266), the components of his name also spelled Arigh, Arik and Bukha, Buka ( mn, Аригбөх, Arigböh, ; ), was the seventh and youngest son of Tolui and a grandson of Genghis Khan. After the death of his brother the ...

dispatched

Alghu Alghu (d. 1265 or 1266) was a khan of the Chagatai Khanate (1260–1265/6). He was the son of Baidar and the grandson of Chagatai Khan. Biography In 1260 he was appointed as head of the ''ulus'' of the Chagatai Khanate by the Great Khan claimant ...

Beshbalik Beshbalik () is an ancient archaeological site, now located in Jimsar County, Changji Hui Autonomous Prefecture, Xinjiang, China. The ancient city was initially called Beiting () or Ting Prefecture (), and was the headquarters of the Beiting Protec ...

to consolidate his power. Alghu removed Orghana from power whereupon she fled to

Mongolia Mongolia; Mongolian script: , , ; lit. "Mongol Nation" or "State of Mongolia" () is a landlocked country in East Asia, bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south. It covers an area of , with a population of just 3.3 million, ...

. Taking advantage of the struggle between Ariq Böke and the older brother

Kublai 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 ...

, Alghu acted as an

autonomous In developmental psychology and moral, political, and bioethical philosophy, autonomy, from , ''autonomos'', from αὐτο- ''auto-'' "self" and νόμος ''nomos'', "law", hence when combined understood to mean "one who gives oneself one's ow ...

khan who sided with Kublai and killed Ariq Böke's officials. After several battles, Ariq Böke sent

Masud Beg Masud (, ) is a given name and a surname, commonly found in the Middle East and Asia. It has a variety of spellings including Masoud, Massoud, Massoude, Massudeh, Masood, Masʽud, Masud, Mashud, Messaoud, Mesut, Mesud, or Mosād. People with the na ...

and Orghana to Alghu to negotiate peace. Alghu married the beautiful, wise and discerning princess Orghana, and appointed Masud

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 ...

in Central Asia. After the death of Alghu in 1266, Orghana nominated her son Mubarak Shah by her first husband, Qara Hulagu as khan of the Chagatai Khanate. The

Great Khan Khagan or Qaghan (Mongolian:; or ''Khagan''; otk, 𐰴𐰍𐰣 ), or , tr, Kağan or ; ug, قاغان, Qaghan, Mongolian Script: ; or ; fa, خاقان ''Khāqān'', alternatively spelled Kağan, Kagan, Khaghan, Kaghan, Khakan, Khakhan ...

Kublai was furious at this and sent

Baraq Barak (Hebrew: בָּרָק, bārāq, "lightning"), is a masculine name of Hebrew origin. It appears in the biblical Book of Judges as the name of the Israelite general Barak, who alongside Deborah led an attack against the forces of King Jabin o ...

to take power in the Chagatai Khanate. After few months, he usurped the throne from Mubarak Shah with the assistance of the

Mongol The Mongols ( mn, Монголчууд, , , ; ; russian: Монголы) are an East Asian ethnic group native to Mongolia, Inner Mongolia in China and the Buryatia Republic of the Russian Federation. The Mongols are the principal member of ...

noblemen.René Grousset, ''The Empire of the Steppes'', New Brunswick 1970, p. 329ff However, Orghana had apparently died by that time.

Notes

{{Authority control 13th-century births Oirats Women of the Mongol Empire 13th-century viceregal rulers 13th-century women rulers 1260s deaths 13th-century Mongolian women