Qara Hülegü (died 1252) was head of the ''ulus'' of the

Chagatai Khanate The Chagatai Khanate, also known as the Chagatai Ulus, was a Mongol and later Turkification, Turkicized khanate that comprised the lands ruled by Chagatai Khan, second son of Genghis Khan, and his descendants and successors. At its height in the l ...

(1242–1246, 1252). He was the son of

Mutukan Mutukan also spelled as Mö'etüken (died 1221), was the eldest son of Chagatai Khan and a grandson of the founding Mongol khagan Genghis Khan. Mutukan was killed during the siege of Bamyan in 1221 by an arrow from the besieged walls. His son wa ...

(killed during the

siege of Bamyan The siege of Bamyan () took place in the spring of 1221 A.D. during the Mongol conquest of the Khwarazmian Empire. An army under the leadership of Genghis Khan, ruler of the Mongol Empire, who was in pursuit of Sultan Jalal al-Din Mangburni, ...

), who was the favored son of

Chagatai Khan Chagatai Khan (; – 1242) was a son of Genghis Khan and a prominent figure in the early Mongol Empire. The second son of Genghis's wife Börte, Chagatai was renowned for his masterful knowledge of Mongol custom and law, which he scrupulously ...

. He was nominated by Chagatai Khan, as well as

Ögedei Khan Ögedei Khan (also Ögedei Khagan or Ogodei; 11 December 1241) was the second Khan (title), khan of the Mongol Empire. The third son of Genghis Khan, he continued the expansion of the empire that his father had begun. Born in 1186 AD, Öged ...

, to become khan. Since he was still young, his mother

Ebuskun Ebuskun served as regent for the Chagatai Khanate from 1242 until 1246 during the minority of her son Qara Hülëgü. She was the spouse of Mö'etüken, the eldest son of Chagatai Khan and grandson of Genghis Khan. She became a widow in 1221 when ...

acted as regent for him. In order to ensure his power, however, the Grand Khan

Güyük Khan Güyük Khan or Güyüg Khagan, mononymously Güyüg ( 19 March 1206 – 20 April 1248), was the third Khagan of the Mongol Empire, the eldest son of Ögedei Khan and a grandson of Genghis Khan. He reigned from 1246 to 1248. He started his mili ...

deposed him in 1246 and replaced him with one of Qara Hülegü's uncles,

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 ...

. However, following the ascension of Güyük's successor,

Möngke Khan Möngke Khan (also Möngke Khagan or Möngke; 11 January 120911 August 1259) was the fourth khagan 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 to im ...

, Qara Hülegü gained the Great Khan's favor by supporting him in his purges of the family of Ögedei. He was restored to his position of Chagatai Khan, but died before returning to his realm. Mongke permitted his wife

Orghana Orghana (Orakina or Ergene Khatun) was an Oirat princess of the Mongol Empire and Empress of the Chagatai Khanate. She was a daughter of Torolchi, chief of the Oirats and Checheyikhen, daughter of Genghis Khan. She served as regent in the name o ...

Khatun (daughter of Toralchi Küregen, granddaughter of

Qutuqa Beki Qutuqa Beki (; ) — was a 13th century chief of the Oirats who played a major role in the formation of the Mongol Empire. Biography The first mentions of Qutuqa Beki in ''The Secret History of the Mongols'' date back to 1201, when a number of ...

) to serve as

regent In a monarchy, a regent () is a person appointed to govern a state because the actual monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge their powers and duties, or the throne is vacant and a new monarch has not yet been dete ...

. Qara Hülegü was later succeeded by his son Mubarak Shah.

References

1252 deaths Chagatai khans 13th-century monarchs in Asia Year of birth unknown {{Mongol-royal-stub