Kublai Khan Finds His Own Spot in History

Forward-Thinking Khan Immortalized in Writings

Greg Turner
Greg Turner, Yahoo! Contributor Network
Jul 1, 2010 "Share your voice on Yahoo! websites. Start Here."
The grandson of Genghis Khan, Kublai Khan has become a legend in his own right. He was the last of the khans to expand the Mongol Empire, he welcomed European adventurer Marco Polo, and he was immortalized in a famous poem.

Kublai Khan extended the Mongol Empire through Northern and Western China; thus, he became the Emperor of China. Though Mongolian, he took a Chinese name and wore Chinese clothing. He adopted Chinese rituals and also had Chinese style portraits of his ancestors painted for veneration.

Strangely, Kublai Khan and the royal family required translators because they refused to learn Chinese. He commissioned a Tibetan monk to invent an alphabet to unify his massive kingdom. This alphabet is known as Phagspa.

The khan and his family lived behind the walls of the Forbidden City, which originally had no buildings. One of the reasons the city was forbidden was because the family didn't want the Chinese people to see that they were still very Mongolian, preferring to live in yurts.

Animals were let loose and Mongolian-style hunts took place behind the walls, on horseback with arrows. Because of his importance in China, Kublai Khan was given elephants; four elephants would carry a small pavilion used to hunt from. If an animal went in the brush, a single elephant carrying a smaller shelter would allow the hunters to follow.

Also to thank for the khan's legacy is the Venetian explorer Marco Polo. In II Milione, Polo wrote about his father's travels to meet Kublai Khan. Khan asked Polo's father and uncle to be ambassadors and communicate with the pope. This led to Polo's own quests through the Mongol Empire on behalf of the khan.

In 1816, Samuel Taylor Coleridge published "Kubla Khan," further solidifying Kublai Khan's legacy. In the poem, Coleridge credits the khan with building the pleasure dome, Xanadu. The poem is considered one of Coleridge's finest, and it has been reprinted countless times, in part because of Coleridge's claim that he wrote it after an opium-induced dream.

Though maybe not quite as famous (infamous?) as his grandfather, Kublai Khan definitely carved out his own place in history. This is in no small part due to the writings of Polo and Coleridge. But it has even more to do with the khan's own forward-thinking ways, blending cultures and unifying people through the alphabet he commissioned.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kublai_khan

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marco_Polo

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kubla_Khan

Published by Greg Turner

Work Experience: Teacher of English through ACT English Academy in Korea from 2003-2004. Teacher of English through Ehwa English Academy in Korea from 2001-2003 Owner Craft Export business in Bali, Indone...  View profile

  • Kublai Khan commissioned a Tibetan monk to invent an alphabet to unify his massive kingdom
  • to thank for the khan's legacy is the Venetian explorer Marco Polo
  • Coleridge credits the khan with building the pleasure dome, Xanadu
The khan and his family lived behind the walls of the Forbidden City. One of the reasons the city was forbidden was because the family didn't want the Chinese people to see that they were still very Mongolian, preferring to live in yurts.

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