Öljeyitü Khan (
Mongolian: Өлзийт;
Mongolian script: '; zh, t=完澤篤汗), born Temür ( ; zh , t = 鐵穆耳 ; 15 October 1265 – 10 February 1307), also known by his
temple name as the Emperor Chengzong of Yuan ( zh , c = 元成宗 , p = Yuán Chéngzōng , w = Yüan
2 Ch'eng
2-tsung
1), was the second emperor of the
Yuan dynasty
The Yuan dynasty ( ; zh, c=元朝, p=Yuáncháo), officially the Great Yuan (; Mongolian language, Mongolian: , , literally 'Great Yuan State'), was a Mongol-led imperial dynasty of China and a successor state to the Mongol Empire after Div ...
of China, ruling from 10 May 1294 to 10 February 1307. Apart from being the
Emperor of China, he is considered as the sixth
Great Khan of the
Mongol Empire
The Mongol Empire was the List of largest empires, largest contiguous empire in human history, 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 Euro ...
, although it was only nominal due to the
division of the empire. He was an able ruler of the Yuan dynasty, and his reign established the patterns of power for the next few decades.
Temür was the third son of the
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, crown princess, is held by a woman who is heir apparent or is married to the heir apparent.
''Crown prince ...
Zhenjin and a grandson of the Yuan Dynasty founder
Kublai Khan. During his rule, he achieved the nominal suzerainty of all Mongol states of the time. He showed respect for
Confucianism
Confucianism, also known as Ruism or Ru classicism, is a system of thought and behavior originating in ancient China, and is variously described as a tradition, philosophy, Religious Confucianism, religion, theory of government, or way of li ...
, and called off invasions of
Burma,
Đại Việt and
Japan
Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...
. However, his reign was beset by corruption and administrative inefficiencies.
Early life
Named Öljeyitü Khan ("Blessed Khan") in the Mongolian language, Temür ("iron") was born the third son of
Zhenjin of the
Borjigin clan and Kökejin (Bairam-Egechi) of the
Khunggirad clan on 15 October 1265. Because
Kublai's first son Dorji died early, the second-born Zhenjin became the
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, crown princess, is held by a woman who is heir apparent or is married to the heir apparent.
''Crown prince ...
. Zhenjin died in 1286 when Temür was 21 years old. Kublai remained close to Zhenjin's widow Kökejin, who was high in his favor. Like his grandfather Kublai, Temür was a follower of
Tibetan Buddhism
Tibetan Buddhism is a form of Buddhism practiced in Tibet, Bhutan and Mongolia. It also has a sizable number of adherents in the areas surrounding the Himalayas, including the Indian regions of Ladakh, Gorkhaland Territorial Administration, D ...
.
Temür followed his grandfather Kublai to suppress the rebellion of
Nayan (Naiyan) and other rival relatives in 1287. Then he and Kublai's official, Oz-Temür, came to guard the
Liao River area and
Liaodong in the east from Nayan's ally, Qadaan, and defeated him. Kublai appointed Temür the princely overseer of
Karakorum and surrounding areas in July 1293. Three Chagatai princes submitted to him while he was defending
Mongolia
Mongolia is a landlocked country in East Asia, bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south and southeast. It covers an area of , with a population of 3.5 million, making it the world's List of countries and dependencies by po ...
, fleeing to
Chagatai Khanate and returning to the Yuan dynasty again during the reign of Temür.
After Kublai Khan died in 1294, Kublai's old officials urged the court to summon a
kurultai in
Shangdu. Because Zhenjin's second son
Darmabala had already died in 1292, there were only two potential successors: Zhenjin's other sons, Gammala and Temür. It was proposed that they hold a competition over who had better knowledge of Genghis Khan's sayings. Temür won and was declared the emperor.
Reign
Following in the policies of his grandfather Kublai, Temür was finally able to achieve nominal suzerainty of the entire Mongol realm. However, he failed to improve the corruption and administrative inefficiencies that were endemic during his rule of the empire.

Ideologically, Temür's administration showed respect for
Confucianism
Confucianism, also known as Ruism or Ru classicism, is a system of thought and behavior originating in ancient China, and is variously described as a tradition, philosophy, Religious Confucianism, religion, theory of government, or way of li ...
and Confucian scholars. Shortly after his accession, Temür issued an edict to revere Confucius. Temür appointed Harghasun, who was particularly close to the Confucian scholars, right grand chancellor in the
secretariat. Nevertheless, the Mongol court did not accept every principle of Confucianism. Temür bestowed new guards and assets on his mother and renamed her
ordo (great palace-tent or camp) Longfugong palace, which became a center of Khunggirad power for the next few decades. Mongol and westerner statesmen were assisted by an array of Chinese administrators and Muslim financiers. The most prominent Muslim statesman was Bayan (Баян), great-grandson of
Saiyid Ajall Shams al-Din, who was in charge of the Ministry of Finance. Under Mongol administrators Oljei and Harghasun, the Yuan court adopted policies that were designed to ensure political and social stability. Orders were given that portraits be painted of the khagans and khatuns during the reign of Temür.
The number of the
Tibetans in the administration gradually increased. The Khon family of
Tibet was honored, and one of them became an imperial son-in law in 1296. Temür reversed his grandfather's anti-Taoist policy and made
Taoist Zhang Liusun co-chair of the Academy of Scholarly Worthies. In 1304, Temür appointed the Celestial master of Dragon and
Tiger Mountain as head of the Orthodox Unity School. He banned sales and distillation of
alcohol in Mongolia in 1297, and the French historian
René Grousset applauded his activity in the book, ''
The Empire of the Steppes''.
Temür was opposed to imposing any additional fiscal burden on the people. Exemptions from levies and taxes were granted several times for part or all of the Yuan. After his enthronement, Temür exempted
Khanbaliq (Dadu, modern
Beijing
Beijing, Chinese postal romanization, previously romanized as Peking, is the capital city of China. With more than 22 million residents, it is the world's List of national capitals by population, most populous national capital city as well as ...
) and Shangdu from taxes for a year. He also exempted the Mongol commoners from taxation for two years. In 1302 he prohibited the collection of anything beyond the established tax quotas. The financial state of the government deteriorated, however, and the draining of monetary reserves greatly weakened the credibility of the
paper currency system. Corruption among officials of the Yuan became a problem.
In his 1303 decree, Temür noted that low salaries for officials hinder honesty and suggested adding "salary rice". The Central Secretariat decided to increase salaries for clerks by providing one sheng of rice for each liang of salary notes. Officials earning ten to twenty-five liang would receive one dan of rice, with additional sheng given for higher amounts. In non-rice producing areas, officials received an extra twenty-five liang of
Zhongtong notes for each dan of rice due.
During the last years of Temür, a peace among the Yuan dynasty and the western Mongol khanates (
Golden Horde,
Chagatai Khanate,
Ilkhanate
The Ilkhanate or Il-khanate was a Mongol khanate founded in the southwestern territories of the Mongol Empire. It was ruled by the Il-Khans or Ilkhanids (), and known to the Mongols as ''Hülegü Ulus'' (). The Ilkhanid realm was officially known ...
) was achieved around 1304 after the
Kaidu–Kublai war that had lasted for more than 30 years and caused the permanent
division of the Mongol Empire. Temür Khan was recognized as their nominal suzerain. While the peace itself was short-lived and the war soon resumed, this established the nominal supremacy of the Yuan dynasty over the western khanates that lasted for a few decades.
Foreign Policy: Southeast Asia

Soon after his enthronement in 1294, Temür called off all preparations for further expansions to
Japan
Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...
and the
Đại Việt, whose new ruler ignored his grandfather's envoy in 1291. Temür sent his messengers to Japan and
Champa to demand submissions. Champa accepted the terms, but the
Kamakura shogunate declined, and the Japanese
Wokou
''Wokou'' ( zh, c=, p=Wōkòu; ; Hepburn romanization, Hepburn: ; ; literal Chinese translation: "dwarf bandits"), which translates to "Japanese pirates", were pirates who raided the coastlines of China and Korea from the 13th century to the 17 ...
attacked
Ningbo late in his reign. The rulers of Đại Việt, Burma, and
Sukhotai visited Khanbaliq to greet him as their overlord in 1295, 1297, and 1300. In response to the visit from the prince of
Burma, he aborted the Burmese campaign and said to all his ministers: "They are our friendly subjects. Do not attack their people". Temür also released envoys of Đại Việt to show his goodwill, and the
Tran court began to send tributary missions. But Temür's government had to quell rebellions in the southwestern mountainous area, led by tribal chieftains like Song Longji and female leader Shejie in 1296. It took long months for the generals Liu Shen and Liu Guojie to suppress these rebellions.
By the request of the
Burmese prince, Tribhuvanaditya, Temür dispatched a detachment of the Yuan army to Burma in 1297. They successfully repelled the
Shans from
Myanmar
Myanmar, officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar; and also referred to as Burma (the official English name until 1989), is a country in northwest Southeast Asia. It is the largest country by area in Mainland Southeast Asia and has ...
. Temür also received envoys from
Siam and
Cambodia. He dispatched
Zhou Daguan to
Khmer Cambodia in 1296, and Zhou wrote an account about his journey. In 1299 Athinkaya murdered his brother Tribhuvanaditya, who submitted to Temür in 1297. In 1300, a
punitive expedition was launched as the
Second Mongol invasion of Burma for dethroning Temür's protectorate, Tribhuvanaditya. The Shan
warlord
Warlords are individuals who exercise military, Economy, economic, and Politics, political control over a region, often one State collapse, without a strong central or national government, typically through informal control over Militia, local ...
s of Babai-Xifu, who were quarreling over the royal succession of
Pagan, also raided the Yuan realms. Temür sent his
Yunnan
Yunnan; is an inland Provinces of China, province in Southwestern China. The province spans approximately and has a population of 47.2 million (as of 2020). The capital of the province is Kunming. The province borders the Chinese provinces ...
-based force in turn to halt the advance of Babaixifu (
Lanna Kingdom of
Chiangmai) in 1301–1303. Although those campaigns were fruitless, Athinkaya and the Shan lords offered their submission. The costly expedition spurred rebellions of a
Yunnan
Yunnan; is an inland Provinces of China, province in Southwestern China. The province spans approximately and has a population of 47.2 million (as of 2020). The capital of the province is Kunming. The province borders the Chinese provinces ...
official, Song Longji, and the Gold-Tooths (ancestors of the
Dai people) in 1301–03. The revolts were eventually suppressed. After Temür Khan ordered to withdraw his army from Burma, Central and southern Burma soon came under the
Thai rulers who paid nominal tribute to the Yuan dynasty.
Death
Because his only son Deshou died a year earlier (January 1306), Temür died without a male heir, in the capital Khanbaliq on 10 February 1307. While he did not use a Chinese regnal name as Emperor during his two eras of Yuánzhēn (元貞) 1295–1297 then Dàdé (大德), 1297–1307, while Kublai had done so before him, posthumously he became Emperor Qinming Guangxiao (欽明廣孝皇帝) with temple name Emperor Chengzong of Yuan. He was succeeded by
Khayishan, a son of his deceased elder brother Darmabala, who ruled as Külüg Khan and Emperor Tongtian Jisheng Qinwen Yingwu Dazhang Xiao (統天繼聖欽文英武大章孝皇帝) with later temple name Emperor Wuzong of Yuan and who made a pact before his coronation for his younger brother
Ayurbarwada to be crown prince before any progeny of Khayishan, and then for their descendants to alternate rule; though this pact was broken and Khayishan's descendants persecuted by Ayurbarwada's mother after Ayurbarwada succeeded as Buyantu Khan with later temple name Emperor Renzong of Yuan. A bit downstream, the Khan and Emperor title would pass out of both Temür and Darmabala's descendants to one from their brother Gammala who had been older than Temür but lost out as successor in the competition devised to choose between them.
Family
*
Empress Shiriandali, of the Hongjila clan (怜答里皇后弘吉剌氏) from
Onggirat, daughter of Oločin Küregen
**Deshöu, ''Crown Prince'' ( 太子德壽; d. 3 January 1306)
*
Empress Bulugan, of the
Baya'ut clan (卜鲁罕皇后 巴牙惕氏)
*Empress Huteni, of the Huteni clan (乞里吉忽帖尼)
*
Empress Dagi (Dākġarī Khatun), of the Hongjila clan (怜答里皇后弘吉剌氏) from
Onggirat
*Unspecified partners produced the following children:
**Prince Güyüg (Qūyik Tāyšī)
**Prince Ong Temür (ʿŪng Tīmūr)
**Prince Maqabalin (Muqābīlān)
[Vohidov 2006: 73.]
**Princess Chang, personal name Yilihaiya (昌国公主; 益里海雅), first daughter
**Princess Zhao, personal name Aiyashili (赵国公主; 爱牙失里), second daughter
**Princess Lu, personal name Puna (鲁国公主普纳), third daughter
Ancestry
See also
*
List of emperors of the Yuan dynasty
*
List of Mongol rulers
*
List of rulers of China
*
Yuan dynasty in Inner Asia
References
Citations
Sources
*
* Цэен-ойдов ''Чингис Богдоос Лигдэн Хутаг хүртэл 36 хаад''
*
* Thackston, W. M. (transl.), ''Rashiduddin Fazlullah's Jamiʻuʼt-tawarikh (Compendium of Chronicles): A History of the Mongols.'' Part Two. Harvard, 1999.
* Vohidov, Š. H. (transl.), ''Istorija Kazahstana v persidskih istočnikah'' 3: ''Muʻizz al-ansāb (Proslavljajuščee genealogii''), Almaty, 2006.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Temur Khan
Great Khans of the Mongol Empire
Chengzong
Yuan dynasty Buddhists
Chinese Buddhist monarchs
13th-century Chinese monarchs
13th-century Mongol khans
14th-century Chinese monarchs
14th-century Mongol khans
1265 births
1307 deaths
Mongolian Buddhist monarchs