Yesugen was one of the wives 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 , ...

, the founder 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, ...

. She was of

Tatar The Tatars ()Tatar
in the Collins English Dictionary is an umbrella term for different

ancestry. Her sister

Yesui Yesui was one of the wives of Genghis Khan, the founder of the Mongol Empire. She was of Tatar ancestry. Like the other wives of Genghis Khan, she had her own ''ordo'', or court and to her was assigned the Tuul River. Her sister Yesugen was al ...

was also a wife of Genghis Khan. During his military campaign against the Tatars, Genghis Khan fell in love with Yesugen and took her in as a wife. She was, along with Yesui, the daughter of Yeke Cheren, a Tatar leader executed by the Mongol forces.

“Being loved by him, Yisügen Qatun said, ‘If it pleases the Qa’an, he will take care of me, regarding me as a human being and a person worth keeping. But my elder sister, who is called Yisüi, is superior to me: she is indeed fit for a ruler.’ ” ''-The Secret History of The Mongols''

Despite her willingness to be married to Genghis Khan, Yesugen declared that her older sister, Yesui, was “superior” to her. Genghis Khan searched for and found Yesui, and Yesugen yielded her position to her sister. To Yesugen were assigned the

Khangai Mountains The Khangai Mountains ( mn, Хангайн нуруу, Hangain nuruu, ); form a mountain range, range in central Mongolia, some west of Ulaanbaatar. Name Two provinces of Mongolia are named after the Khangai mountains: Arkhangai (North Khangai) ...

as territory. Like his other wives, Yesugen had her own ''ordo'', or court. However, she did not wield the same power or influence as his first wife

Börte Börte (simply Borte, also Börte Üjin; Mongolian: ; Cyrillic: Бөртэ үжин; c. 1161–1230) was the first wife of Temüjin, who became Genghis Khan, the founder of the Mongol Empire. Börte became the head of the first Court of Genghis ...

. She birthed at least one child for Genghis Khan, a son named Cha'ur. Cha'ur, however, did not live to adulthood.Broadbridge, 2018, 133.

Notes

Sources

* {{Authority control Women of the Mongol Empire Genghis Khan Tatar people 13th-century Mongolian women 12th-century Mongolian women 13th-century deaths Year of birth unknown Wives of Genghis Khan