Mongke Khan was ruler of the Mongol Empire (1206-1368 CE) from 1251 to 1259 CE. As the third Great Khan or 'universal ruler' of the Mongols, Mongke would oversee administrative reforms that continued to centralise government and ensure he had at his disposal the resources to successfully expand the empire further into China in the east and as far as Syria in the west. His reign was the last of the Mongol khans to oversee a unified empire before its definitive break-up into several khanates ruled by competing descendants of the man who had founded it all, Genghis Khan (r. 1206-1227 CE).
More about: Möngke KhanDefinition
Timeline
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1236 - 1242Multiple Mongol armies attack western Asia, Russia, Poland, and Hungary.
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1251Batu Khan and the Jochid-Toluid kurultai declare Mongke Great Khan of the Mongols.
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1251 - 1259Reign of Mongke Khan, ruler of the Mongol Empire.
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1253 - 1255The Franciscan missionary and chronicler William of Rubruck visits the Mongol Empire, including the capital Karakorum.
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1253 - 1260A Mongol army led by Hulegu invades Persia and the Middle East.
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1256The Mongols defeat the Ismailis (aka the Assassins) in Persia.
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1257The Mongols invade Vietnam.
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1257The Mongols conquer the Dali kingdom in southern China.
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1258An uprising restores the monarchy in Korea and makes peace with the Mongol Empire.
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1258The Mongols conquer the Abbasid Caliphate. During this campaign there is the infamous sacking of Baghdad and murder of the caliph.
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11 Aug 1259Death of Mongke Khan, ruler of the Mongol Empire.
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Dec 1259The Mongols besiege and capture Aleppo in Syria.
