Transcript of History Channel’s show on Kublai Khan
Beijing—capital of China, the country with the largest population on earth.
Beijing is one of the world’s great cities and it was made capital of China by
a great man. That man was Kublai Khan. Kublai declared himself “Great
Khan,” the supreme ruler of the Mongol empire at his palace of Xanadu in
1260. His main interest was in China where he reigned until 1294 and
founded the Yuan Dynasty. This meant he also became a major figure in the
history of China.
“Kublai Khan was an extremely significant figure in the course of Chinese
history, because he was the first significant non-Chinese ruler to rule over
the entire Chinese empire; and, more than that, had aspirations, in effect, to
try to rule the entire world.”
Kublai Khan was the grandson of the legendary Mongol warlord, Genghis
Khan, who carved out a vast empire across Asia and the Middle East at the
beginning of the 13th century. Like his grandfather, Kublai crushed his
enemies with brute force; yet he ruled his own lands peacefully, setting up
governments, creating systems of taxation and promoting culture and
commerce. He made Beijing the capital of the biggest empire the world had
ever seen, stretching from the shores of the China Sea to the river Danube in
Europe and from Siberia to the Indian Ocean. But his greatest achievement
was the unification of China, a unification that survives to this day; and,
although he reigned over 700 years ago, his story is one that still has great
significance.
“The reason why Kublai Khan is of interest today is because Kublai Khan
ruled a great multi-cultural society, a great multi-cultural empire, and he
presided over a global economy. And this was globalization in the—in the
Middle Ages. And, again, his empire incorporated many, many different
cultures and peoples and he was able to unify them, bring them together and
do so successfully.”
So Kublai Khan was clearly a man of vision, but what else do we know
about him? The Venetian traveler Marco Polo, who lived in Kublai’s court
for more than 20 years, described him as a man of middle height with a
figure of just proportion and a face that was somewhat red, which may have
resulted from his love of food and alcohol. But he was also capable of
extreme violence, barbarity and cruelty. He carved out his great empire with
one battle after another; and, even though his military career started quite
late in his life, his skill in combat was second to none. But there was
another, very different side to his character. Throughout his reign, the Wise
Khan—as he was known—courted the most sophisticated, intellectual,
scientific and artistic minds of the day. And he was very practical,
recognizing the benefits that freedom of trade and effective taxation would
bring.
“In terms of practical changes, one of the big things you would have seen if
you lived through his rule was a massive increase in public works. For
instance, China’s canal system was increased during his time through
massive use of forced labor, forcing his enemies and those who opposed him
to build his empires glory. This allowed grain and other important
agricultural goods to be transported up and down the country much more
conveniently without having, for instance, to use the often slightly
dangerous pirate-ridden seas on the Chinese coast. Another innovation of the
period, and one that would have great significance later, was the introduction
of paper currency—banknotes.”
Kublai Kahn is a ruler with a mixed reputation. Some people look at him as
a ruler who stormed his way into China uninvited, a pest or intruder. Others
say he grew China’s power and legacy through incorporating Europeans like
Marco Polo and Africans like Ibn Battuta into his courts. It is not mixed
opinion that his empire was one of the largest the world has ever seen.