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Kublai Khan, born into the family of Genghis Khan, became China’s emperor in 1260 after a power struggle with his brother. He unified China and improved its economy, infrastructure, and arts. He also built Xanadu and developed an irrigation system. He died in 1294, likely from complications of gout.
Kublai (or Khubilai) Khan, also known as “the last of the Great Khans”, was born on September 23, 1215 into the family of the legendary Genghis Khan, the man who founded the Mongol empire. Being born into a powerful family paved the way for Kublai Khan and his brothers Möngke, a famous warrior, and Hulagu, who conquered Persia.
Kublai Khan crowned himself Khan, China’s equivalent of emperor, in 1260. Miles away, his brother Möngke did the same, confident that his military background would make him a more likely candidate to rule the empire. Kublai did not take the news well, and the brothers fought for years before finally gaining the right to hold the title and consequently creating China’s Yuan Dynasty.
Kublai Khan is credited with unifying China by destroying the remnants of previous dynasties. Though his tactics were often bloody, the result was an empire with great economic and scientific growth, better buildings, and a network of public highways far superior to anything the country had ever seen before. He was also the first emperor to use paper money for all official business; and a believer in the importance of the arts in developing an empire. Kublai Khan was less successful in his efforts to conquer Asian countries, including Japan and Vietnam, and thus had to endure inflation problems and large losses in his army.
Kublai personally oversaw the design and construction of Xanadu, his legendary summer residence in Shangdu province. Xanadu served as the setting for the development of an advanced water irrigation system, later used in different parts of the country to advance agriculture and repair the damage done during the Mongol War.
Kublai Khan died on February 18, 18, at the age of 1294. His death is shrouded in mystery, as some ancient texts claim different causes. The most likely scenario is that he died of complications from gout, which he developed due to his passion for eating offal. Khan’s favorite wife and heir also died of gout, years before him.
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