The Ilkhanate was founded by Hulagu Khan, the grandson of Genghis Khan and the brother of Kublai Khan. Hulagu was born in 1218, the son of Tolui, the fourth son of Genghis Khan, and Sorghaghtani Beki, a Nestorian Christian of the Onggirat clan. Hulagu was the commander of the Mongol western campaign, and he was sent by his brother Möngke Khan to conquer the Islamic world in 1253.
Hulagu is most famous for his role in the sack of Baghdad in 1258, which marked the end of the Abbasid Caliphate and the establishment of the Ilkhanate. Hulagu was a major military commander, and he led a series of major campaigns that extended Mongol power from the Indus to the Mediterranean.
The Early Life of Hulagu
Hulagu was born in 1218, the son of Tolui, the fourth son of Genghis Khan, and Sorghaghtani Beki, a Nestorian Christian of the Onggirat clan. Hulagu grew up in the imperial court, and he received a traditional Mongol education that included training in horseback riding, archery, and warfare. Hulagu was reportedly a serious, thoughtful, and pious man, with a strong interest in religion and culture.
Hulagu was given several important commands in his early career. He participated in the campaign against the Jin Dynasty in the 1230s, and he was a major commander in the western campaigns of the 1240s and 1250s. Hulagu was reportedly a brilliant military commander, and he was known for his strategic vision and his tactical flexibility.
The Campaign of Hulagu
The campaign of Hulagu was launched in 1253, when Möngke Khan ordered Hulagu to conquer the Islamic world. The campaign was a major military undertaking, and it was carried out by a Mongol army of perhaps 100,000 to 150,000 men. The campaign was directed against the major Islamic states of the Middle East, including the Abbasid Caliphate, the Seljuk Sultanate, and the Ayyubid Sultanate.
The campaign was a major success, and the Mongols quickly conquered most of the Middle East. The campaign culminated in the sack of Baghdad in 1258, which marked the end of the Abbasid Caliphate and the establishment of the Ilkhanate. The campaign was a major factor in the success of the Mongol world, and it was one of the most important events of the thirteenth century.
The Founding of the Ilkhanate
The founding of the Ilkhanate was proclaimed in 1256, when Hulagu was formally recognized as the il-khan of the Mongol Empire in Persia. The title “il-khan” was a recognition of the fact that the Ilkhanate was a subordinate khanate of the central empire, and the title was a major innovation in the Mongol political tradition.
The founding of the Ilkhanate was a major political event, and it marked the formal creation of a major Mongol state in the Middle East. The Ilkhanate was based on a synthesis of Mongol and Persian administrative traditions, and it was a major factor in the political, cultural, and economic life of the Middle East for the next century.
The Legacy of Hulagu
Hulagu is remembered as one of the most important figures in the history of the Mongol world. He was the founder of the Ilkhanate, the conqueror of Baghdad, and the patron of a major cosmopolitan culture that combined Mongol, Persian, and Islamic traditions. Hulagu was also a major figure in the development of the Mongol imperial tradition, and he established a number of important political institutions that became the basis of the Ilkhanate.
The legacy of Hulagu is also visible in the modern world. The most obvious is in the modern Iranian state, where Hulagu is remembered as one of the major conquerors in the history of the country. The other examples include the modern Iraqi state, where the sack of Baghdad is remembered as a central event in the history of the country. Hulagu is also a major figure in the popular culture of the Middle East, and he is the subject of a number of novels, films, and television series.
Sources
- George Lane, Early Mongol Rule in Thirteenth-Century Iran (London, 2003).
- Linda Komaroff, ed., The Legacy of Genghis Khan (New York, 2002).
- Peter Jackson, The Mongols and the West (London, 2005).