With the defeat of Ariq Boke, Khubilai Khan focused on defeating the Song and uniting China under his rule. Conquest would extend Mongol control and improve Khubilai’s image among relatives and princes who still doubted he was the true Great Khan. At the same time, he had to convince his Chinese subjects that he was worthy to rule their great civilization. As a Mongol, Khubilai was considered a barbarian. He tried to soften that image by adopting Chinese habits and customs.
Khubilai’s advance into Song lands had two goals. The southern region had better farmland than the north, so it could provide the empire with food. In addition, it had sea ports that could help boost foreign trade. Khubilai also feared that if he did not unify China under his rule, the Song would eventually raise an army and try to oust their foreign rulers.
Fighting in the south presented problems the Mongol army had not faced before. The climate was hot and wet, covered in jungles, forests, and farmlands, compared to northern China and the steppes, which were cold, dry, and open. The south had few open fields where the Mongols’ horses could graze. The Song were also oriented toward the sea and had a powerful navy. To defeat them, the Mongols had to build their own ships, with help from the Chinese already under their rule and other subjects with experience on the seas.
At first, Khubilai sent diplomats to ask the Song emperor to recognize his authority and avoid a war. The emperor rejected this, and in the early 1260s small battles broke out along the border between the Song and Mongol China. The first major battle took place in 1265, in the province of Sichuan, and the Mongols won. Still, the Song were determined to keep their independence, and the war dragged on for more than a decade. The Mongols staged sieges at several cities, including Xianyang, where the Mongols used thousands of boats to fight on the Yellow River. The siege of Xianyang lasted for two years. In 1276, the Mongols took over the Song capital of Hangzhou, and within three years they established complete control over southern China.
During these years of war,
A New Capital
Soon after Khubilai Khan defeated Ariq Boke, he moved the Mongol capital from Karakorum to the former northern Jin capital of Zhongdu. Khubilai renamed it Daidu, which means "great capital" in Chinese. The Turks called the city Khan-baliq, or "the khan's city." When Marco Polo traveled through China, he heard this Turkish name as Cambaluc, which is how Europeans referred to the city for centuries. In his Travels, Polo described Cambaluc: ". . . up and down the city there are beautiful palaces, and many great and fine [inns], and fine houses in great numbers." Today, Khubilai's capital is the Chinese capital of Beijing, and one shrine and the series of artificial lakes he built there remain.
Khubilai officially proclaimed himself emperor of China. He gave his dynasty a Chinese name-something most foreign rulers of China did to seem less foreign. Khubilai’s dynasty was called the Yuan, meaning “the origin.” His government included a mixture of Chinese, Mongol, and foreign advisors. As emperor, Khu-bilai ruled over perhaps 65 million Chinese, while the Mongol population was only a few million.
The Great Khan made a major change in the Chinese government. In the past, most government functions were handled by civil servants. These government workers got their jobs by passing an exam. This system was designed
To ensure that the most talented people served in the government, no matter who was ruling. The civil service exam mainly tested one’s knowledge of the ideas of Confucius (c. 551-479 B. C.E.), one of China’s greatest thinkers. The Great Khan, however, did not trust the followers of Confucius who dominated Chinese politics. He was more interested in selecting civil servants who were loyal to him. Khubilai turned to foreigners for many upper positions, although Chinese held lower positions in the government.
World History
