U368 Mongol Conquest
Week 8, Monday:  The Succession of Ögedei

 

  1. Empire's significance due to successful succession
    1. Ögedei:  destroys Chin in China, Jalal-ad-Din in Persia, Qipchaqs on steppe
  2. The Succession Question--conflictking principles
    1. Empire as war-band, seeking booty:  tradition of bloody tanistry
      1. Chief role of leader is to be a war-leader?; eldest son has advantage
      2. Best way to chose a warrior-leader?  Let them fight it out!
      3. "State" personal, dies with khan's death, reappears with new khan
      4. Tanistry dominated Turkic sultanates, pre-Chinggisid Mongols
    2. Empire as emperor's herd:  leads to division of empire
      1. Ultimogeniture (youngest son inherits) would give Tolui bulk of empire
      2. Trilateral organization of appanages (SH §269)
        1. Jochids (Batu, Jochi's son), Cha'adai (Ögedei too) on right
        2. Chinggis's brothers on the left
        3. Tolui, daughters, sons-in-law, guards, line officers, in middle
    3. Empire as charismatic gift:  sacred rule of the one man
      1. All must submit to the one Chinggis Qan/Eternal Heaven decreed
    4. Decision at 1228 quriltai:  tanistry, division avoided
      1. Realm held by (non-eligible) regent for year or two:  Tolui
      2. Quriltai participants; merry-making first, decisions after
      3. Chinggis Qan already sacred:  worship begun, only his sons considered
  3. How Ögedei mixes all three ideas, holds empire together
    1. Ögedei's family politics:
      1. Late in Chinggis's life Cha'adai and Ögedei allies (Jochi died early)
      2. Ögedei takes over "people of the middle":  problem with Tolui
        1. Campaigns in China benefit ruling Qa'an and Toluids
        2. Extremely mysterious death of Tolui
      3. Later in reign Ögedei conciliates Batu and Jochids
        1. Western Persia, Qipchaq, Ruthenians becomes Jochid appanage
      4. Ögedei himself retires from war:  leaves booty to the others
    2. Problem of booty:  goods, animals, women, households
      1. Centralizing it and then distributing it >> loyalty to center
        1. Ögedei treats tax money as booty (not bourgeois rationalism!)
        2. But where does balish/yastuq come from?  Efficiently taxing China
      2. Letting warriors seize it themselves >> rivalry
      3. Hereditary appanages >> loyalty in 1st generation, rivalry later
        1. Ögedei limits new appanages to princes of the blood
      4. Like his father, Ögedei used all three