Hulagu Khan

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Hulagu Khan : biography

1218 – 8 February 1265

The invasion effectively destroyed the Ayyubid Dynasty, theretofore powerful ruler of large parts of the Levant, Egypt, and Arabia. The last Ayyubid king An-Nasir Yusuf was killed by Hulagu in 1260.Atlas des Croisades, p.108 With the Islamic power center of Baghdad gone and Damascus weakened, the center of Islamic power transferred to the Egyptian Mamluks in Cairo.

Hulagu’s intent was to continue south through Palestine towards Cairo to engage the Mamluks. However, Great Khan Möngke had died in late 1259, requiring Hulagu to return Karakorum to engage in choosing the next Great Khan. He departed with the bulk of his forces, leaving only about 10,000 Mongol horsemen in Syria under Kitbuqa to occupy the conquered territory.Runciman, p.310 Kitbuqa’s forces engaged in raids southward towards Egypt, reaching as far as Ascalon and Jerusalem, and a Mongol garrison of about 1,000 was placed in Gaza,Jean Richard, p.428Amin Maalouf, p.264Tyerman, p.806 with another garrison located in Nablus.Amin Maalouf, p.262

Battle of Ayn Jalut (1260)

The Mamluks took advantage of the weakened state of Kitbuqa’s forces. The Crusaders, traditional enemies of the Mamluks, regarded the Mongols as the greater threat. These Muslims and Christians debated joining forces against the Mongols, but the Muslims decided not to do so. Instead the Crusaders allowed the Egyptian forces to come north through Crusader territory, and resupply near the Crusaders’ base of Acre, Palestine. The Mamluks then engaged the remnants of the Mongol army in Galilee, at the Battle of Ayn Jalut. The Mamluks achieved a decisive victory, Kitbuqa was executed, and the location established a high-water mark for the Mongol conquest. In previous defeats the Mongols had returned to re-take the territory, but they never did so at Ayn Jalut. For the rest of the century the Mongols attempted invasions of Syria but were never able to hold territory for more than a few months. The border of the Mongol Ilkhanate remained at the Euphrates River for the duration of Hulagu’s dynasty.

Legacy

Constantine and Helen", in a Syriac Bible."In May 1260, a Syrian painter gave a new twist to the iconography of the Exaltation of the Cross by showing Constantine and Helena with the features of Hulagu and his Christian wife Doquz Khatun" in Cambridge History of Christianity Vol. 5 Michael Angold p.387 Cambridge University Press ISBN 0-521-81113-9Le Monde de la Bible N.184 July–August 2008, p.43]] Hulagu Khan laid the foundations of the Ilkhanate State, and by doing so paved the way for the later Safavid dynastic state, and ultimately the modern country of Iran. Hulagu’s conquests also opened Iran to both European influence from the west and Chinese influence from the east. This, combined with patronage from his successors, would develop Iran’s distinctive excellence in architecture. Under Hulagu’s dynasty, Iranian historians also moved from writing in Arabic, to writing in Persian.Francis Robinson, The Mughal Emperors And The Islamic Dynasties of India, Iran and Central Asia, pages 19 and 36

Death

Alan J.K. Sanders, Historical dictionary of Mongolia, Scarecrow Pr, 1996.Obv: Arabic inscription ﻢﻠﺳﻭﻪﻴﻠﻋ ﻪﻠﻟﺍﻰﻠﺻ ﻪﻠﻟﺍﻝﻮﺳﺭ ﺪﻤﺤﻣ ﻪﻠﻟﺍﻻﺍﻪﻟﺍﻻ/ La ilahe illallah Muhammed resulullah salallahü aleyhe vesellem: "There is no God but Allah, Muhammad is His Prophet", bordered by a Uyghur inscription.Rev: Arabic inscription: ﻥﺎﺧ ﻮﻛﻻﻮﻫ ﻥﺁﺎﻗ ﺎﻜﻜﻧﻮﻣ ﻢﻈﻋﻻﺍ ﻥﺁﺎﻗ/ Kaan’ül azam Mengü kaan Hülagu han, bordered by a Uyghur inscription.]]–>Hulagu Khan died in 1265 and was buried in the Shahi Island in Lake Urmia. His funeral was the only Ilkhanid funeral to feature human sacrifice.Morgan, p. 139 He was succeeded by his son Abaqa, thus establishing his line.

Later campaigns

Hulagu returned to his lands by 1262, after the succession was finally settled with his brother Kublai Khan established as Great Khan. But when Hulagu massed his armies to attack the Mamluks and avenge the defeat at Ain Jalut, he was instead drawn into civil war with Batu Khan’s brother Berke. Berke Khan, a Muslim convert, had promised retribution in his rage after Hulagu’s sack of Baghdad, and allied himself with the Mamluks. He initiated a series of raids on Hulagu’s territories, led by Nogai Khan. Hulagu suffered a severe defeat in an attempted invasion north of the Caucasus in 1263. This was the first open war between Mongols, and signaled the end of the unified empire.