Hoelun was the mother of Genghis Khan and one of the most important women in the history of the Mongol Empire. She was the principal wife of Yesugei, the Kiyat chieftain, and she was the mother of Temüjin (Genghis Khan) and of three other sons — Hasar, Hachiun, and Temüge — and a daughter, Temülen. She was kidnapped by the Merkit in her youth, and her rescue by her son Temüjin was one of the formative events of the early years of the Mongol Empire.
Hoelun is one of the most fully developed female characters in the Secret History of the Mongols, and the Secret History portrays her as a strong, determined, and resourceful woman. The Secret History attributes to her a number of major speeches, including a famous speech in which she rallies her sons after the death of Yesugei and a speech in which she urges Temüjin to avenge the kidnapping of his wife Börte. The speeches are among the most striking passages in the Secret History, and they are a reminder of the important role that women played in the political life of the steppe.
The Early Life of Hoelun
Hoelun was born into the Olkhonud clan, a Mongol clan that lived in the forests of the Khentii Mountains. She was married to Yesugei, the Kiyat chieftain, when she was young, and the marriage was a major political alliance, as the Olkhonud were a powerful clan in the eastern steppe. The marriage produced four sons and a daughter, of whom Temüjin was the eldest.
Hoelun was kidnapped by the Merkit in her youth, in retaliation for a raid that the Kiyat had conducted against the Merkit. The kidnapping was a major blow to Yesugei, and he spent several years gathering forces to rescue her. The rescue was eventually accomplished with the help of Toghrul and Jamukha, and Hoelun was returned to Yesugei. The kidnapping of Hoelun was, in effect, a smaller version of the later kidnapping of Börte, and the two events were deeply connected in the consciousness of the steppe.
The Death of Yesugei and the Years of Exile
When Yesugei died, around 1171, Hoelun was left to raise her children in poverty on the steppe. The followers of the dead chieftain, bound to him by personal loyalty, drifted away in the customary way of the steppe; within a few years, Hoelun was left to raise her children in extreme poverty. The years that followed were difficult, and Hoelun is reported to have raised her children on wild plants, roots, and small game.
The most serious threat to the family came in the form of the Tayichiud, a Mongol clan that had once been a part of the Khamag confederation and that now seized the opportunity to take the surviving Kiyat by force. The Tayichiud captured Temüjin at one point and held him for a time in a cangue, a wooden collar used to restrain prisoners; he was eventually rescued by his father’s friend Toghrul and brought back to his family. The episode was formative for the family, and it was a reminder of the dangers of the steppe life.
Hoelun and the Rise of Genghis Khan
Hoelun played an important role in the rise of Temüjin to power. She was the principal wife of the imperial household, and she was an important figure in the political life of the Mongol court. The Secret History attributes to her a number of major speeches, including a famous speech in which she rallies her sons after the death of Yesugei and a speech in which she urges Temüjin to avenge the kidnapping of his wife Börte.
The speech in which Hoelun rallies her sons after the death of Yesugei is one of the most famous passages in the Secret History. In the speech, Hoelun is reported to have said: “Your father, when he was alive, had a quiver of arrows that could not be broken. He broke his quiver. Now you, his quiver, have been scattered by the wind. Be careful, my children, of one another, and do not be broken like the quiver of your father.” The speech is a powerful expression of the maternal solidarity that was one of the most important forces in the early years of the Mongol Empire.
The Later Life of Hoelun
Hoelun outlived her husband Yesugei by many decades, and she was an important figure in the imperial family throughout the reign of Genghis Khan. The Secret History reports that she played an important role in the political life of the imperial court, and she is reported to have advised her son on a number of major decisions. Hoelun is also reported to have been a major figure in the religious life of the Mongol court, and she is said to have been a follower of the traditional Mongol religion.
The date of Hoelun’s death is not known with certainty, but it is generally placed sometime in the late 1210s or early 1220s. The Secret History reports that she was present at the kurultai of 1206, where Temüjin was proclaimed as Genghis Khan, and she may have survived until the early years of the Mongol Empire. Hoelun was an important figure in the early years of the Mongol Empire, and she is remembered as one of the most remarkable women in the history of the Mongol people.
The Legacy of Hoelun
Hoelun is remembered as one of the most important women in the history of the Mongol people. She was the mother of the most powerful man in the history of the steppe, and she played an important role in the rise of her son to power. She was also a strong, determined, and resourceful woman, and the Secret History portrays her as a model of maternal strength and political wisdom.
The legacy of Hoelun is also visible in the political traditions of the Mongol world. The status of women in the Mongol Empire was relatively high by the standards of the medieval world, and Hoelun is one of the most striking examples of the strong women who played important roles in the political life of the Mongol court. The tradition of strong women in the Mongol world is one of the most distinctive features of the Mongol political tradition, and Hoelun is a major figure in that tradition.
Sources
- John Man, Genghis Khan: Life, Death and Legacy (London, 2004).
- Igor de Rachewiltz, ed., The Secret History of the Mongols (2 vols., Brill, 2004–2013).
- Paul Ratchnevsky, Genghis Khan: His Life and Legacy (Oxford, 1991).