Appearance

According to William of Rubruck, Möngke Khan was a man of medium height.

Early life

Möngke was born on 11 January 1209, as the eldest son of Genghis Khan's teenaged son Tolui and Sorghaghtani Beki. Teb Tengri Khokhcuu, a shaman, claimed to have seen in the stars a great future for the child and bestowed on him the name Möngke, "eternal" in the Mongolian language. His uncle Ögedei Khan's childless queen Angqui raised him at her orda (nomadic palace). Ögedei instructed Persian scholar Idi-dan Muhammed to teach writing to Möngke.

On his way back home after the Mongol conquest of Khwarezmia, Genghis Khan performed a ceremony on his grandsons Möngke and Kublai after their first hunting in 1224 near the Ili River. Möngke was fifteen years old, and with his brother, Kublai, killed a rabbit and an antelope. Their grandfather smeared fat from the killed animals onto their middle fingers following the Mongol tradition.

In 1230, Möngke went to war for the first time, following Ögedei Khan and his father Tolui into battle against the Jin dynasty. Tolui died in 1232, and Ögedei appointed Sorghaghtani head of the Toluid appanage. Following the Mongol custom, Möngke inherited at least one of his father's wives, Oghul-Khoimish of the Oirat clan. Möngke deeply loved her and gave special favor to her elder daughter, Shirin.

Ögedei dispatched him along with his relatives to attack the Kipchaks, Russians, and Bulgars in the west in 1235. When the most formidable Kipchak chief, Bachman, fled to an island in the Volga delta. Möngke crossed the river and captured him. When he ordered Bachman to bend down on his knees, Bachman refused and was executed by Möngke's brother Bujek. Möngke also engaged in hand-to-hand combat during the Mongol invasion of Rus'. While his cousins, Shiban and Büri, went to Crimea, Möngke and Kadan, a son of Ögedei, were ordered to reduce the tribes in the Caucasus. The Mongols captured the Alan capital Maghas and massacred its inhabitants. Many chiefs of the Alans and Circassians surrendered to Möngke. After the invasion of Eastern Europe, Möngke would bring them back to Mongolia. He also participated in the Siege of Kiev (1240). Möngke was apparently taken by the splendour of Kiev and offered the city surrender, but his envoys were killed. After Batu's army joined Möngke's soldiers, they sacked the city. He also fought alongside Batu at the Battle of Mohi. In the summer of 1241, before the premature end of the campaign, Möngke returned home after his uncle Ögedei recalled him in the winter of 1240–41. However, Ögedei died.

In 1246, Temüge, Genghis Khan's sole remaining brother, unsuccessfully tried to seize the throne without confirmation by a kurultai. The new Khagan Güyük entrusted the delicate task of trying the Odchigin ("keeper of the hearth" – a title given to both of Genghiz's younger brothers) to Möngke and Orda Khan, the eldest brother of Batu. Güyük eventually died en route to the west in 1248 and Batu and Möngke emerged as main contenders.

Toluid revolution

Following his mother Sorghaghtani's advice, Möngke went to the Golden Horde to meet Batu, who was afflicted with gout. Batu decided to support his election and called a kurultai at Ala Qamaq. The leader of the families of Genghis Khan's brothers, and several important generals, came to the kurultai. Güyük's sons Naqu and Khoja attended briefly but then left. Despite vehement objections from Bala, Oghul Qaimish's scribe, the kurultai approved Möngke. Given its limited attendance and location, this kurultai was of questionable validity. Batu sent Möngke under the protection of his brothers, Berke and Tuqa-temur, and his son Sartaq to assemble a formal kurultai at Kodoe Aral in Mongolia. When Sorghaghtani and Berke organized a second kurultai on 1 July 1251, the assembled throng proclaimed Möngke the Great Khan of the Mongol Empire, and a few of the Ögedeid and Chagatayid princes, such as his cousin Kadan and the deposed khan Qara Hülegü, acknowledged the decision.

Shortly thereafter, Oghul's son Khoja and Ögedei's favorite grandson came to "pay homage" to Möngke as the new ruler, but they brought the entire army of the Ögedei faction with them. Möngke's Kankali falconer, Kheshig, discovered the preparations for the attack and told his lord. At the end of the investigation under his father's loyal servant Menggesar noyan, he found his relatives guilty but at first wanted to give them mercy as written in the Great Yassa. Möngke's officials opposed it and then he began to punish his relatives. The trials took place in all parts of the empire from Mongolia and China in the east to Afghanistan and Iraq in the west. Möngke and Batu's brother Berke therefore arranged to have Oghul accused of using black magic against Möngke. After she was arrested and questioned by Sorghaghtani, Oghul Qaimish was sewn up into a sack and tossed into a river and drowned, the traditional Mongol punishment for using black magic. Estimates of the deaths of aristocrats, officials, and Mongol commanders include Eljigidei, Yesü Möngke, Büri, and Shiremun and range from 77–300. However, most of the princes descended from Genghis Khan who were involved in the plot were given some form of exile. The anti-Möngke plot of an Uyghur scribe, Bala, and the Idiqut Salindi (the monarch of the Uyghurs) was discovered and they were publicly executed. After his accession to the throne in 1251, Möngke announced that he would follow his ancestors but would not imitate the ways of other countries. To increase his legitimacy, in 1252 he retroactively awarded his father the title of Ikh Khagan. Möngke shared the western part of the empire with his ally Batu Khan, ensuring the unity of the empire. Möngke's mother Sorghaghtani died in 1252.

After the defeat of the Ögedeid and Chagataid families, Möngke eliminated their estates and assigned acquiescent family members new territories either in Turkestan or in northwest China. After the bloody purge, Möngke ordered a general amnesty for prisoners and captives. In another move to consolidate his power, Möngke gave his brothers Kublai and Hulagu supervisory powers in North China and Iran. Rumours spread that his brother Kublai founded a de facto independent ulus (district) and perhaps took for himself some of the tax receipts that should by rights be coming to Karakorum. In 1257 the Emperor sent two tax inspectors to audit Kublai's official. They found fault, listed 142 breaches of regulations, accused Chinese officials, and even had some executed; Kublai's office was abolished. Möngke's authority took over the collection of all taxes in Kublai's estates. As his Confucian and Buddhist advisers pointed out, Kublai first sent his wives to the court of Khagan and then appealed to Möngke in person. They embraced in tears and Möngke forgave his brother.

Mongol imperialism

Möngke drafted his own decrees and kept close watch on their revision. Möngke forbade practices of extravagant costs of the Borjigin and non-Borjigid nobles. He also limited gifts to the princes, converting them into regular salaries, and made the merchants subject to taxes. Möngke limited notorious abuses and sent imperial investigators to supervise the business of the merchants who were sponsored by the Mongols. He prohibited them from using the imperial relay stations, yam (route), and paizas, tablets that gave the bearer authority to demand goods and services from civilian populations. With Güyük dead, many local officials no longer wanted to pay off the paper drafts used by Güyük. Möngke recognized that if he did not meet the financial obligations of Güyük, it would make merchants reluctant to continue business with the Mongols. Möngke paid out all drafts drawn by high ranking Mongol elites to these merchants. Ata-Malik Juvayni stated, "And from what book of history has it been read or heard...that a king paid the debt of another king?" The generals and princes (including his son) who allowed their troops to plunder civilians without authorization were repeatedly punished by Möngke Khan. He used North Chinese, Muslim, and Uyghur officials. The Khagan's chief judge (darughachi) was the Jait-Jalayir official Menggeser, while the chief scribe was the Bulghai of the Keraites, who was a Christian. Nine of the 16 chief provincial officials of Möngke Khan were certainly Muslims. He reappointed Güyük's three officials: Mahmud Yalavach in China, Masud Beg in Turkestan, and Arghun Aqa of the Oirat in Iran. Möngke separated the position of the great judge at court from that of chief scribe.

In 1253, Möngke established the Department of Monetary affairs to control the issuance of paper money in order to eliminate the over-issue of the currency by Mongol and non-Mongol nobles since the reign of Great Khan Ögedei. His authority established united measure based on sukhe or silver ingot, however, the Mongols allowed their foreign subjects to mint coins in the denominations and use weight they traditionally used. During the reigns of Ögedei, Güyük, and Möngke, Mongol coinage increased with gold and silver coinage in Central Asia and copper and silver coins in the Caucasus, Iran, and Bolghar.

In 1252–59, Möngke conducted a census of the Mongol Empire, including Iran, Afghanistan, Georgia, Armenia, Russia, Central Asia, and North China. While the census of China was completed in 1252, Novgorod in the far north-west was not counted until winter 1258–59. There was an uprising in Novgorod against Mongol rule in 1257, but Alexander Nevsky forced the city to submit to the Mongol census and taxation. The new census counted not only households but also the number of men aged 15–60 and the number of fields, livestock, vineyards, and orchards. Within the civilian register craftsmen were listed separately, while in the military registers auxiliary and regular households were distinguished. Clergy of the approved religions were separated and not counted. When the new register was completed, one copy was sent to Karakorum and one copy kept for the local administration. Möngke tried to create a fixed poll tax collected by imperial agents that could be forwarded to the needy units. Initially, the maximum rate was fixed at 10–11 gold dinars in the Middle East and 6–7 taels of silver in China. Protests from the landlord classes reduced this relatively low rate to 6–7 dinars and taels. Some officials raised the top rate on the wealthy of 500 dinars. While the reform did not lighten the tax burden, it made the payments more predictable. Even so, the census and the regressive taxation it facilitated sparked popular riots and resistance in the western districts.

In 1259, the Georgian king, David VI, revolted, unsuccessfully, against the Mongols and then fled to Kutaisi, whence he reigned over Imereti in western Georgia as de facto separate ruler. In 1261, he gave shelter to David VII, who had later attempted to end the Mongol dominance. David Ulu made peace with the Mongols, however, and returned to Tbilisi in 1262. Möngke and Batu's official, Arghun, harshly punished the Georgian and Armenian nobles, plundering their cities and executing their prominent leaders. He divided the Georgians into six tumens. Meanwhile, Baiju crushed the rebellion of the Seljuk Sultan Kaykaus II near Ankara in 1256 and re-established Mongol authority over Eastern Turkey. By that time the Kashmiris had revolted, and Möngke appointed his generals, Sali and Takudar, to replace the court and a Buddhist master, Otochi, as darughachi to Kashmir. However, the Kashmiri king killed Otochi at Srinagar. Sali invaded again, killing the king, and put down the rebellion, after which the country remained subject to the Mongol Empire for many years.

Religious policy

Möngke confirmed Güyük's appointment of Haiyun as chief of all the Buddhists in the Mongol Empire in 1251. In 1253 Namo from Kashmir was made chief of all the Buddhist monks in the empire. During the conquest of Tibet in 1252–53, all Buddhist clergy were exempted from taxation. The Tibetan Karma Pakshi, 2nd Karmapa Lama, received Möngke's patronage. Möngke had been impressed by the aged Taoist monk Qiu Chuji, who met his grandfather Genghis Khan in Afghanistan. Möngke made Li Zhichang chief of the Taoists. However, the Taoists had exploited their wealth and status by seizing Buddhist temples. Möngke demanded that the Taoists cease their denigration of Buddhism. Möngke ordered Kublai to end the clerical strife between the Taoists and Buddhists in his territory. Kublai called a conference of Taoist and Buddhist leaders in early 1258. At the conference, the Taoist claim was officially declared refuted, and Kublai forcibly converted their 237 temples to Buddhism and destroyed all copies of the fraudulent texts.

Despite his conquests of the Abbasid Caliphate and the Isma'ili state, Möngke favoured Muslim perceptions. He and Hulagu made the Twelver community at Najaf an autonomous tax-exempt ecclesiastical polity. Like his predecessors, he exempted clerics, monks, churches, mosques, monasteries, and doctors from taxation.

During Möngke's reign, Louis IX of France sent William of Rubruck as a diplomat seeking an alliance with the Mongols against the Muslims. By that time Möngke's khatun Oghul-Khoimish was already dead. After making the French envoy wait for many months, Möngke officially received William Rubruck on 24 May 1254. Rubruck informed him that he had come to spread the word of Jesus. Then he stayed to help the Christians in Karakorum and attended debates among rival religions organized by the Mongols. Möngke Khan summoned William Rubruck to send him back home in 1255. He told Rubruck:

Ambassadors from the Latin Empire and the Empire of Nicaea came to the Mongol court to negotiate terms with Möngke Khan as well. In 1252 King Hethum I of Lesser Armenia began his journey to Mongolia. He brought many sumptuous presents and met with Möngke at Karakorum. He had an audience with Möngke on 13 September 1254, advised the Khagan on Christian matters in Western Asia, and obtained from Möngke documents guaranteeing the inviolability of his person and his kingdom. Hethum asked the Khagan and his officials to convert to Christianity. In reply, Möngke explained that he wished his subjects to truly worship the Messiah, but he could not force them to change their religion. Möngke also informed Hethum that he was preparing to mount an attack on Baghdad and that he would remit Jerusalem to the Christians if they collaborated with him. Hethum strongly encouraged other Crusaders to follow his example and submit to Mongol overlordship, but he persuaded only his son-in-law Bohemond VI, ruler of the Principality of Antioch and County of Tripoli, who offered his own submission sometime in the 1250s. The armies of the Armenian Kingdom of Cilicia and Bohemond VI would assist Möngke's army in the West soon.

Shamans played an important role in the court and sometimes influenced the war preparation.

Period of conquests

Capitulation of Goryeo

As Khagan, Möngke seemed to take the legacy of world conquest he had inherited much more seriously than had Güyük. His conquests were all directed at East Asia and the Middle East. In his first plans for additional conquests, Möngke chose Korea and the Dali Kingdom in Yunnan in 1252.

Möngke sent envoys to Goryeo, announcing his coronation in October 1251. He also demanded that King Gojong submit before him in person and to move his headquarters from Ganghwa Island to the mainland of Korea. But the Goryeo court refused to send the king because he was elderly and unable to travel so far. Möngke dispatched his envoys with specific tasks again. The envoys were well received by the Goryeo officials, but they criticized the Goryeo officials because their king did not follow his overlord Möngke's orders. Möngke ordered prince Yeku to command the army against Korea. However, a Korean in the court of Möngke convinced them to begin their campaign in July 1253. Yeku, along with Amuqan, demanded that the Goryeo court surrender. The court refused but did not resist the Mongols and gathered the peasantry into mountain fortresses and islands. Working together with the Goryeo commanders who had joined the Mongols, Jalairtai Qorchi ravaged Korea. When one of Yeku's envoys arrived, Gojong personally met him at his new palace. The king Gojong sent his stepson as hostage to Mongolia. The Mongols agreed to a ceasefire in January 1254.

Möngke realized that the hostage was not the blood prince of the Goryeo Dynasty and blamed the Goryeo court for deceiving him. Möngke's commander Jalairtai devastated much of Goryeo and took 206,800 captives in 1254. Famine and despair forced peasants to surrender to the Mongols. They established a chiliarchy office at Yonghung with local officials. Ordering defectors to build ships, the Mongols began attacking the coastal islands from 1255 on. In the Liaodong Peninsula, the Mongols formed Korean defectors into a colony of eventually 5,000 households.

In 1258 the king and the Choe clan retainer Kim Jun staged a counter-coup, assassinated the head of the Choe family, and sued for peace. When the Goryeo court sent the future king Wonjong of Goryeo as hostage to the Mongol court and promised to return to Gaegyeong, the Mongols withdrew from Korea.

Dali, Vietnam and Tibet

Möngke concerned himself more with the war in China, outflanking the Song dynasty through the conquest of the Kingdom of Dali (in modern Yunnan) in 1254 and an invasion of Indochina, which allowed the Mongols to invade from the north, west, and south.

Möngke Khan dispatched Kublai to the Dali Kingdom in 1253. The ruling family, Gao, resisted and murdered the Mongol envoys. The Mongols divided their forces into three. One wing rode eastward into the Sichuan basin. The second column under Uryankhadai took a difficult way into the mountains of western Sichuan. Kublai himself headed south over the grasslands, meeting up with the first column. With Uryankhadai galloping in along the lakeside from the north, Kublai took the capital city of Dali and spared the residents despite the slaying of his ambassadors. The Mongols appointed King Duan Xingzhi as local ruler and stationed a pacification commissioner there. After Kublai's departure, unrest broke out among the Black jang. By 1256, Uryankhadai, the son of Subutai, had completely pacified Dali.

After subjugating the Dali, Kublai sent a column south under Uriyangkhadai, the son of Subutai. Uriyangkhadai sent envoys to ask the Vietnamese for a route to attack the Southern Song, but the Tran Vietnamese imprisoned the Mongol envoys. In 1257, a Mongol column under Uriyangkhadai invaded Vietnam (then known as Đại Việt) along with his son Aju and an army of 3,000 Mongols and 10,000 Yi tribesmen. They routed the Vietnamese army and sacked the capital Thăng Long (renamed Hanoi in 1831). Uriyangkhadai executed its inhabitants for the murder of the envoys. After staying in Thăng Long for a while, the Mongols fell ill due to the unfamiliar climate. Realizing that it was time to drive the Mongols out, the Vietnamese launched a counter-attack and won the decisive battle of Dong Bo Dau. To avoid further war, the Tran accepted Mongol overlordship, and Uriyangkhadai withdrew. The Vietnamese king Trần Thái Tông paid tribute to Uriyangkhadai who had quickly evacuated Vietnam to escape malaria. The Trần Dynasty accepted terms of vassalage and sent tributes to the administration of Möngke.

To strengthen his control over Tibet, Möngke made Qoridai commander of the Mongol and Han troops in Tibet in 1251. In 1252–53 Qoridai invaded Tibet, reaching as far as Damxung. The Central Tibetan monasteries submitted to the Mongols, and the Mongol princes divided them as their appanages.

Conflicts with the Delhi Sultanate

In 1252–53 Sali Noyan of the Tatar clan was sent to the Indian borderlands at the head of fresh troops and was given authority over the Qara'unas. Sali himself was subordinate to Möngke's brother Hulagu. Due to the internal conflicts of the Delhi Sultanate, the Mamluk Sultan Nasiruddin Mahmud's brother, Jalal al-Din Masud, fled into Mongol territory in 1248. When Möngke was crowned as Khagan, Jalal al-Din Masud attended the ceremony and asked help from Möngke, who ordered Sali to assist him to recover his ancestral realm. Sali made successive attacks on Multan and Lahore. Sham al-Din Muhammad Kart, the client malik of Herat, accompanied the Mongols. Jalal al-Din was installed as client ruler of Lahore, Kujah, and Sodra. In 1254 the Delhi official Kushlu Khan offered his submission to Möngke Khan and accepted a Mongol darughachi. When he failed to take Delhi, Kushlu turned to Hulagu. In the winter of 1257–58 Sali Noyan entered Sind in strength and dismantled the fortifications of Multan; his forces may also have invested the island fortress of Bakhkar on the Indus.

Conquest of the Middle East

When Möngke called a kurultai to prepare the next conquest in 1252/53, the Sultanate of Rum and the Lu'lu'id dynasty of Mosul were subject to the Mongol Empire. The Ayyubid ruler of Mayyafariqin, Malik Kamil, and his cousin in Aleppo and future Sultan, Malik Nasir Yusuf, sent envoys to Möngke Khan, who imposed darughachis (overseers) and a census on the Diyarbakır area.

Some sources say the Ismaili-Hashashin's imam Alaud-Din dispatched hundreds of assassins to kill Möngke in his palace. Shams-ud-Din, the chief judge of Qazvin, had denounced the menace of the Ismailis. Hence, Möngke decided to exterminate the sect. Möngke ordered the Jochid and Chagataid families to join Hulagu's expedition to Iran and strengthened the army with 1,000 siege engineers from China. Möngke's armies, led by his brother Hulagu, launched an attack on the Ismailis in Iran, crushing the last major resistance there by the end of 1256. The Hashashin Imam Rukn ad-Din requested permission to travel to Karakorum to meet with the Great Khan Möngke himself. Hulagu sent him on the long journey to Mongolia, but once the Imam arrived there, Möngke criticized his action and dismissed him. Rukn ad-Din was killed in uncertain circumstances.

For the Abbasids, envoys from Baghdad attended the coronation of Möngke in 1251 to come to terms with the Mongols. However, Möngke told Hulagu that if the Caliph Al-Musta'sim refused to meet him in person, then Hulagu was to destroy Baghdad. Hulagu then advanced on Iraq, taking the capital at Baghdad in 1258. Hulagu sent Möngke some of his war booty with the news of his conquest of Baghdad. Möngke dispatched a Chinese messenger to congratulate him for his victory. Outraged by the attack on the caliphate, Malik Kamil revolted, killing his Mongol overseer. Hulagu's son Yoshumut invested Mayyafariqin and executed Malik Kamil. From there they moved into Syria in 1259, took Damascus and Aleppo, and reached the shores of the Mediterranean. Fearing the Mongol advance, the Ayyubid Sultan Malik Nasir Yusuf refused to see Hulagu and fled. However, the Mongols captured him at Gaza.

South China

In 1241 Töregene Khatun had sent an envoy to make peace proposals and discuss with Zhao Yun (posthumously known as Emperor Lizong). The Song court arrested the envoy and imprisoned him in a fortress with his suite of seventy persons. The envoy died, but his suite were detained until 1254. That year the Mongol army attacked to take Hejiu but failed. The Chinese freed the suite of the late envoy to show their desire for peace. Möngke concentrated all his attention on the conquest of the Song dynasty. Taking personal command late in the decade, he captured many of the fortified cities along the northern front.

In 1252, Möngke commissioned his younger brother Kublai and experienced general Uriyangkhadai to conquer the Dali Kingdom. From the summer of 1253 to early 1254, the campaigns were successful in conquering and pacifying the tribes, with Uriyangkhadai's military experience proving invaluable in battle. After Kublai's return to northern China, Uriyangkhadai conquered neighboring tribes in Tibet before turning east towards the Trần dynasty by 1257.

In October 1257 Möngke set out for South China, leaving his administration to his brother, Ariq Böke, in Karakorum with Alamdar as assistant, and fixed his camps near the Liu-pan mountains in May of the following year. He first attacked Song positions in Sichuan and took Paoning (modern-day Langzhong) in 1258. Möngke forbade his army to plunder civilians. When his son accidentally destroyed a crop in the field of the Chinese peasants, Möngke punished him.

Meanwhile, Uriyangkhadai's forces invaded Vietnam with generals Trechecdu and Aju and captured the Trần dynasty capital of Thang Long in 1258. While Chinese source material incorrectly stated that Uriyangkhadai withdrew from Vietnam after nine days due to poor climate, his forces did not leave until 1259.

On 18 February 1259, Tsagaan Sar, the Mongol New Year feast was given by Möngke near the mountain Zhonggui. At this feast his relative, Togan, a chief of the Jalairs, declared that South China was dangerous because of its climate, and that the Great Khagan should go northward for safety. Baritchi of the Erlat tribe called this advice cowardly and advised Möngke to remain with his army. These words pleased Möngke who wished to take the city nearby. The Song commander slew his envoy who had been sent to ask the city's submission.

In 1259, Uriyangkhadai's forces attacked Guangxi from Thang Long as part of a coordinated Mongol attack in 1259 with armies attacking in Sichuan under Möngke and other Mongol armies attacking in modern-day Shandong and Henan.

Wives, concubines, and children

Principal wives:

• Qutuqtai Khatun (d. 1256, posthumously renamed Empress Zhenjie by Kublai) — daughter of Uladai Küregen son of Butu Küregen, from Ikeres clan of Khongirad

• * Baltu (d. 1258)

• ** Töre Tömür (only attested in Jami al-Tawarikh)

• * Ürüng-Tash (d. 1267)

• ** Sarban (died young)

• ** Öljei (died young)

• ** Möngke Temür (only attested in Timurid sources)

• * Princess Bayalun — married to Jaqurchin Küregen (brother of Uladai Küregen)

• Yesü'er Khatun (d. after 1260)

• Oghul Tutmish or Oghul Qaimish (daughter of Qutuqa Beki of Oirats)

• * Princess Shirin — married to Chochimtai Küregen (son of Taiju Küregen of Olkhunut)

• * Princess Bichige — married to Chochimtai Küregen (son of Taiju Küregen of Olkhunut)

• Chübei Khatun (d. 8 September 1259)

Concubines:

• Bayavchin (from Bayaut tribe)

• *Shiregi (d. 1280s)

• Quitani (from Eljigin clan of Khongirad)

• *Asutai — supported the election of Ariq Böke

• **Öljei

• **Hulachu

• **Hantum

• **Öljei Buqa

Death

There is no agreed conclusion amongst modern historians and pundits as to the exact cause of Möngke Khan's untimely death. It is known that his final battle action took place at Diaoyu Fortress in modern-day Chongqing, where it's generally agreed that Möngke died, after which the Mongol-led armies were forced to withdraw from all battlefronts. In Chinese sources, Möngke is reported to have been killed in battle during an assault on Diaoyu Fortress. A contemporary poem by a Southern Song writer describes the "victory in Sichuan" where Möngke is said to be killed by a crossbow arrow at the siege, which is corroborated by the writings of the Syriac monk Bar Hebraeus. The official History of Yuan account, written in the Ming dynasty, however, tells that he died of a wound caused by a stone projectile that was either fired by cannon or launched from a trebuchet. Given the lack of clarity that Mongol historiography tends to describe the deaths of khans, it is possible that Mongols covered up the story by claiming that his death was due to illness, leading to the story in Persian accounts.

Persian accounts largely originating from Rashid al-Din claim that Möngke died of dysentery or cholera near the site of the siege on 11 August 1259 — the Chinese source History of Yuan does not directly corroborate this, but it mentions an outbreak of a fatal disease in the Mongol camp during the campaign. Other less credible accounts include the Armenian historian Hayton of Corycus's claims that Möngke was on a Mongol war ship that sank in the Chinese seas while the Mongols were besieging an island fortress. Hayton's work is noted for its glaring errors and amalgamation of events, so his account of Möngke's death could be a confused reference to Kublai Khan's invasions of Japan.

A month after Möngke's death, his youngest wife Chubei died at the Liupanshan Mountains. Möngke's son Asutai conducted the corpse to Burkhan Khaldun, Mongolia, where the late Khagan was buried near the graves of Genghis and Tolui.

Möngke's death in 1259 led to the four-year Toluid Civil War between his two younger brothers, Kublai Khan and Ariq Böke. Though Kublai Khan eventually won, the succession war and the subsequent Kaidu–Kublai war essentially resulted in the permanent division of the Mongol Empire. It was not until 1304, when all Mongol khans submitted to Kublai's successor, Temür Khan, that the Mongol world again acknowledged a single paramount sovereign, although the authority of the late Khagans rested on nothing like the same foundations as that of Genghis Khan and his first three successors.

When Kublai Khan established the Yuan dynasty in China in 1271, Möngke Khan was placed on the official record of the dynasty as Xianzong (憲宗 Xiànzōng).

Foreign influence in Karakorum

In 1252–53, Flemish missionary and explorer William of Rubruck saw Hungarians, Russians, Germans, and a Parisian goldsmith, Guillaume Boucher, in Karakorum. He even heard of Saxon miners in Dzungaria and other foreigners such as a woman from the Duchy of Lorraine mastered yurt-making.

In 1253, Möngke deported households from China to repair and maintain the imperial ordas. He decorated the capital city of Karakorum with Chinese, European, and Persian architectures. One example of the construction was a large silver tree, with pipes that discharge various drinks and a triumphant angel at its top, made by Guillaume Boucher. Foreign merchants』 quarters, Buddhist monasteries, mosques, and churches were newly built. Markets were in the Muslim sector and outside the four gates. Chinese farmers grew vegetables and grains outside the wall of Karakorum.

Descendants of Möngke

• Möngke qa'an（蒙哥/ménggē,مونگکه/Mūngke）

　• （班禿/bāntū,بالتو/Bāltū）

　　• Töre temür（توراتیمور/Tūlā tīmūr）

　• （玉龍答失/yùlóng dāshī,اورنگتاش/Ūrung tāsh）

　　• （撒里蠻/sālǐmán,ساربان/Sārbān）

　• Sirigi（昔里吉/xīlǐjí,شیرکیShīrkī）

　　• （兀魯思不花/wùlǔsī bùhuā,اولوس بوقا/Ūlūs būqā）

　　　• （晃火帖木兒/huànghuǒ tièmùér,قونان تیمور/Qūnān tīmūr）

　　　　• Čerik temür（徹里帖木兒/chèlǐ tièmùér）

　　　• Tegüs buqa（帖古思不花/tiègǔsī bùhuā）

　　• Töre temür（توراتیمور/Tūlā tīmūr）

　　• （禿満帖木児/tūmǎn tièmùér,تومان تیمور/Tūmān tīmūr）

　• （阿速歹/āsùdǎi,آسوتای/Āsūtāī）

　　• （完澤/wánzé,اولجای/Ūljāī）

　　　• （徹徹禿/chèchètū,چکتو/Chektū）

　　• Hulaču（忽剌出/hūlàchū,هولاچو/Hūlāchū）

　　• Hantom（هنتوم/Hantūm）

　　• Ölǰei buqa（اولجای بوقا/Ūljāī būqā）

潛邸歲月

1209年1月10日（農曆戊辰年十二月三日），蒙哥生于漠北草原，是成吉思汗之孫，拖雷的長子，拖雷正妻唆魯禾帖尼所生的嫡長子（元世祖忽必烈是嫡次子，旭烈兀是嫡三子，阿里不哥是嫡四子）。窩闊台汗即位之前，以蒙哥為養子，讓昂灰皇后撫育蒙哥，並在他長大後，為他娶火魯剌部女子火里差為妃、分給他部民。至1232年拖雷去世後，蒙哥才回去繼承拖雷的封地。蒙哥多次跟隨窩闊台參加征伐，屢立奇功。蒙哥沉默寡言、不好侈靡，喜歡打獵。1235年，蒙哥參加第二次蒙古西征，與拔都、貴由西征歐洲的不里阿耳、欽察、斡羅思等地，屢立戰功，在裏海附近，活捉欽察首領八赤蠻。

拖雷家族爭得大汗之位

1248年農曆三月貴由汗去世後，由皇后斡兀立海迷失臨朝稱制；由於與貴由早年不和，拔都（鐵木真長子朮赤之子）拒絕奔喪。為了對抗窩闊台家族，拔都以長支宗王的身份遣使邀請宗王、大臣到他的駐地（在中亞草原）召開忽里台（蒙古的軍政會議），商議推舉新大汗。窩闊台系和察合台系的宗王們多數拒絕前往，貴由汗的皇后斡兀立海迷失只派大臣八剌為代表與會。托雷之妻唆魯禾帖尼則命長子蒙哥率諸弟及家臣應召前往。

1250年，忽里台大會在拔都的駐地（中亞地區）召開，拔都在會上極力稱讚蒙哥能力出眾，又有西征大功，應當即位，並指出貴由之立違背了窩闊台遺命（窩闊台遺命失烈門即位），窩闊台後人不當有繼承汗位的資格。大會通過了拔都的提議，推舉蒙哥為大汗。窩闊台、察合台兩家拒不承認，唆魯禾帖尼和蒙哥又遣使邀集各支宗王到斡難河畔召開忽里台，拔都派其弟別兒哥率大軍隨同蒙哥前往斡難河畔，但窩闊台、察合台兩家的很多宗王仍不肯應召，大會拖延了很長時間。

由于唆魯禾帖尼威望甚高，並且善于籠絡宗王貴族，最終多數宗王大臣應召前來，1251年農曆六月在蒙古草原斡難河畔舉行忽里台，宗王大臣們于7月1日（農曆六月十一日）共同擁戴蒙哥登基，蒙哥成為大蒙古國大汗；蒙哥即位的當日，尊母親唆魯禾帖尼為皇太后。此後，為了鞏固汗位，皇太后唆魯禾帖尼鎮壓反對者毫不留情，並親自下令處死貴由汗的皇后斡兀立海迷失。

自此「大汗」之位的繼承，便由窩闊台家族轉移到了拖雷家族，為後來大蒙古國分裂埋下伏筆。

在位政績

1251年7月1日，蒙哥即位後，窩闊台系諸宗王拒絕承認，被蒙哥率兵鎮壓；蒙哥又以其弟忽必烈統領漠南漢地軍政事務，同時指揮向南（東亞）、向西（西亞）兩個方向的征服戰爭。

征服大理

1252年農曆六月，命弟忽必烈南征大理國，次月，忽必烈率軍出發。1253年農曆八月，忽必烈軍至陝西，開始進攻位于今雲南等地的大理國。1254年1月2日（元憲宗三年農曆十二月十二日），忽必烈攻克大理城，大理國王段興智投降，大理國滅亡，併入大蒙古國版圖。1256年，段興智前往漠北和林覲見蒙哥汗，被任命為大理總管，子孫世襲。

從1254年大蒙古國忽必烈奉命滅大理國、大理國王戰敗投降，到1382年駐守雲南的元朝梁王把匝剌瓦爾密兵敗自殺、元朝大理總管段世戰敗歸降明軍，蒙古族建立的政權統治雲南地區長達128年。

遠征西亞

元憲宗三年（1253年）六月，蒙哥命弟旭烈兀率大軍十萬西征。旭烈兀的西征軍從漠北草原出發，1256年大軍渡過阿姆河後所向披靡，先攻滅波斯南部的盧爾人政權，1256年攻滅位于波斯西部的木剌夷國（阿薩辛派），1258年滅亡巴格達的阿拔斯王朝，1260年3月1日，滅亡敘利亞的阿尤布王朝，並派兵攻占了小亞細亞大部分地區。

攻占敘利亞後，旭烈兀西征軍兵鋒抵達今天地中海東岸的的巴勒斯坦地區，即將與埃及的馬木留克王朝交戰，此時旭烈兀得到使者帶來的帝國最高統治者蒙哥在四川去世的消息，于是只派先鋒怯的不花率不到一萬軍隊駐守敘利亞，自己率大軍開始東返。1260年9月3日，埃及馬木留克王朝趁著旭烈兀攻率主力東返，攻占敘利亞，殺怯的不花，旭烈兀憤怒至極，本想率軍繼續西征，但此時他和欽察汗國的別兒哥汗因為爭奪阿塞拜疆爆發了戰爭，只好結束西征。

旭烈兀東返途中得到忽必烈和阿里不哥爭位的消息，于是留在西亞，自據一方，並宣布支持忽必烈，後來被忽必烈封為「伊兒汗」，西亞的伊兒汗國從此建立。

征伐南宋

1258年，蒙哥、其弟忽必烈和大將兀良合台分三路大舉進攻南宋。1258年農曆七月，蒙哥親率主力進攻四川，所向披靡，攻克四川北部大部分地區，直到1259年初在合州（今重慶合川區）釣魚城下攻勢受阻，戰事膠著數月，蒙哥死前最終未能完成此次戰役；而蒙哥死後，忽必烈得知忽里台大會選舉阿里不哥即位，匆匆率軍趕回漠北爭奪汗位，對南宋的征伐計劃暫時擱置。

蒙哥之死

蒙哥的去世原因，至今史學界尚無明確結論。主要有以下幾說：

• 戰爭中受傷不治身亡：《合州志》記載，1259年8月11日（農曆七月二十一日），蒙哥在合州釣魚山一役，被南宋軍投石機的巨石打中，六天後傷重而亡。《馬可波羅游記》和明萬歷《合州志》則記載蒙哥在攻打合州時被釣魚城守城武器矢石擊中而重傷後去世。翦伯贊主編的《中國史綱要》採取了這種說法，書：「蒙古軍因軍中痢疾盛行，死傷極多，蒙哥汗又為宋軍的飛矢射中身死」。《古今圖書集成》中的《釣魚城記》則記載：「炮風所震，因成疾。班師至愁軍山，病甚……次過金劍山溫湯峽（今重慶市北碚北溫泉）而歿」，謝士元在《遊釣魚山詩序》亦說蒙哥是「炮風致疾」而死。

• 病逝：《元史》則稱天氣多雨，蒙哥身體不適，于農曆七月癸亥日死在釣魚山。蒙古帝國伊兒汗國宰相拉施特的《史集》也推斷當時正值酷暑季節，軍中痢疾流行，蒙哥亦染病身亡。畢沅在《續資治通鑑》稱蒙哥死於痢疾。

• 其他說法有：黃震的《古今紀要逸編》認為蒙哥因為屢攻合州釣魚城不克，致憂憤死；《海屯紀年》說是落水死。

據傳蒙哥臨終前留下遺言，將來若攻下釣魚城，必屠殺全部軍民百姓；然而此事《元史》、《新元史》、《史集》均無記載（此三本史書記載蒙哥病逝，和釣魚城的戰鬥無關）。後來釣魚城於1279年投降時，忽必烈赦免了所有軍民。

蒙哥的去世，對當時的蒙古帝國政局乃至世界格局都有極大的影響：蒙哥去世導致了旭烈兀統帥的第三次蒙古西征被迫中止；隨後爆發了其弟忽必烈與阿里不哥爭奪汗位之戰，最終導致大蒙古國（蒙古帝國）的分裂。

世界歷史關于蒙哥汗的記載

盧布魯克東遊

法國國王路易九世派遣傳教士盧布魯克前往東方覲見蒙古大汗商討傳教和結盟對抗阿拉伯人事宜。盧布魯克于1253年從地中海東岸阿克拉城（今以色列海法北）出發，于1253年5月7日離開君士坦丁堡，一路東行，渡過黑海，秋天到達伏爾加河畔，謁見拔都汗。拔都認為自己無權准許他在蒙古人中傳教，便派他去東方覲見大汗蒙哥。盧布魯克覲見拔都後，留下了對拔都的生動描述：「拔都坐在一金色的高椅上，或者說坐在像床一樣大小的王位上，須上三級才能登上寶座，他的一個妻子坐在他旁邊。其餘的人坐他的右邊和這位妻子的左邊。」

1253年12月，盧布魯克到達哈拉和林南部蒙哥冬季營地。1254年1月4日覲見蒙哥，並留下了對蒙哥的生動描述：「我們被領入帳殿，當挂在門前的毛氈捲起時，我們走進去，唱起讚美詩。整個帳幕的內壁全都以金布覆蓋著。在帳幕中央，有一個小爐，裡面用樹枝、苦艾草的根和牛糞生著火。大汗坐在一張小床上，穿著一件皮袍，皮袍像海豹皮一樣有光澤。他中等身材，約莫45歲，鼻子扁平。大汗吩咐給我們一些米酒，像白葡萄酒一樣清澈甜潤。然後，他又命拿來許多種獵鷹，把它們放在他的拳頭上，觀賞了好一會。此後他吩咐我們說話。他有一位聶思托里安教（景教）徒作為他的譯員。」

1254年4月5日，隨同蒙哥來到大蒙古國首都哈拉和林。8月18日帶著蒙哥致路易九世的國書西歸，信中寫道：「這是長生天的命令。天上只有一個上帝，地上只有一個君主，即天子成吉思汗。」蒙哥以長生天以及它在地上的代表「大汗」的名義命令法蘭西國王承認是他的屬臣。

他于1255年回到地中海東岸。一年後，他用拉丁文寫成的出使報告交給路易九世，即《東方行記》，又稱《盧布魯克遊記》。

海屯一世東遊

小亞美尼亞國王海屯一世于1244年歸附大蒙古國，成為屬國。1254年春，海屯一世遵從拔都汗之命親自前往蒙古草原覲見大汗蒙哥。他與隨臣一路東行，5月至拔都營帳（伏爾加河下游）謁見，然後繼續東行，9月13日到達蒙哥汗廷（哈拉和林）朝見、獻貢，得到蒙哥頒賜的詔書；「詔書上蓋有蒙哥的御璽，不許人欺凌他及他的國家。還給他一紙敕令，允許各地教堂擁有自治權。」在哈拉和林停留50天後，他離開汗廷西還。

返回途中在中亞河中地區覲見蒙哥汗之弟弟旭烈兀，行程8個月，1255年7月返抵小亞美尼亞。回國後撰寫《海屯行紀》。

家庭

父母

• 父親：拖雷，1227年—1229年帝位空缺時擔任大蒙古國監國，1232年去世。《元史·睿宗本紀》載，蒙哥即位後追尊拖雷為皇帝，為拖雷上廟號睿宗、謚號英武皇帝，1266年忽必烈改謚其為景襄皇帝，1310年元武宗海山加謚為仁聖景襄皇帝。

• 母親：唆魯禾帖尼，是蒙哥，忽必烈，旭烈兀，阿里不哥四人的生母，1251年蒙哥汗即位後尊其為皇太后，1252年去世。1266年元世祖忽必烈為其上謚號莊聖皇后，1310年元武宗海山加謚為顯懿莊聖皇后。她的四個兒子皆曾稱汗稱帝，被後世史學家尊稱為「四帝之母」。

兄弟姐妹

• 二弟：忽睹都

• 三弟失其名。

• 四弟：忽必烈，唆魯禾帖尼所生，元世祖，1260年—1294年為第五位大蒙古國皇帝（蒙古帝國大汗），元朝的實際開創者，1271年將國號「大蒙古國」改為「大元」。

• 五弟失其名。

• 六弟：旭烈兀，唆魯禾帖尼所生，伊兒汗國建立者

• 七弟：阿里不哥，唆魯禾帖尼所生，1260年—1264年和忽必烈爭位，1264年歸降忽必烈

• 八弟：撥綽（不者克）

• 九弟：末哥

• 十弟：歲哥都

• 十一弟：雪別台

• 趙國公主薛不罕下嫁聶古得、察忽

• 魯國公主也速不花下嫁斡陳

• 魯國公主薛只幹下嫁納陳（斡陳的弟弟）

妻妾

根據《元史》卷106后妃表記載，蒙哥有皇后五人，其中正妻忽都台皇后地位最高

• 忽都台大皇后，弘吉剌部德薛禪的孫子忙哥陳的女兒，「忽都台」蒙語的意思是「有福」，1256年去世，1266年元世祖忽必烈為其上謚號貞節皇后。

• 也速兒皇后，忽都台的妹妹，1256年忽都台去世後繼任為皇后

• 出卑三皇后，1258年從憲宗南伐，1259年農曆九月八日去世于六盤山

• 明里忽都魯皇后，1326年尚在，詔守班禿大王營帳

• 火里差皇后，火魯刺思氏，蒙哥未即位時，窩闊台汗為他娶火里差為妃，後亦稱皇后。

而根據《史集》第二卷記載，蒙哥有皇后二人，貴妃二人，忽都台皇后是正妻

• 忽都台大皇后，又稱為「忽禿灰哈敦」

• 斡兀立·禿忒迷二皇后，出自斡亦剌惕部落忽禿合別乞氏族

• 巴牙兀真貴妃，巴牙兀惕部人

• 奎帖尼貴妃，額勒只斤部人

子女

• 長子：班禿，忽都台皇后所生，1258年，卒于吉河之南，無子

• 次子：阿速台，又譯作阿速帶、阿速歹，奎帖尼貴妃所生，《史集》記載有四子，《元史》107卷記載無子

• 三子：玉龍答失，忽都台皇后所生，玉龍答失有二子：撒里蠻和完澤，完澤有二子，徹徹禿和寬徹哥，徹徹禿被封為郯王

• 四子：昔里吉，又譯作失列吉、昔列吉，巴牙兀真貴妃所生，昔里吉有三子：兀魯思不花，並王晃火帖木兒和嘉王火兒忽

• 五子：辯都，早卒無嗣，疑為班禿誤記。

• 昌國大長公主，名伯雅倫（又譯作伯牙魯罕，巴牙倫），忽都台皇后所生，下嫁札忽爾陳子昌忠宣王忽鄰（又譯作忽憐）

• 失鄰公主，斡兀立禿忒迷皇后所生長女，下嫁給娶成吉思汗幼女阿勒塔倫（又譯作按塔倫，又名阿勒塔魯罕，阿兒答魯黑，孛兒帖所生幼女）為妻的泰出（又譯作塔出）駙馬的兒子術真伯（又稱扎兀兒薛禪），他是斡勒忽訥兀惕部人

• 必赤合公主，又名闊兀年，斡兀立禿忒迷皇后所生幼女，在失鄰公主去世後，必赤合公主也下嫁給了術真伯

影視形象

電視劇

• 1995年電視劇《神鵰俠侶》，黃智賢飾

• 2013年由中國中央電視台製作，同年播出中國電視劇《建元風雲》，高發飾

相關史料

• 釋迦院碑記

• 《盧布魯克遊記》：法國傳教士盧布魯克撰寫，又稱《東方行記》。

• 《海屯行紀》：小亞美尼亞國王海屯一世撰寫，又名《小亞美尼亞國王海屯一世出使大汗蒙哥宮廷紀》。

• 《史集》，蒙古帝國伊兒汗國史學家拉施特撰寫。

• 《世界征服者史》，蒙古帝國伊兒汗國史學家志費尼撰寫。

• 《大元聖政國朝典章》，簡稱《元典章》，元英宗在位後期（1322年—1323年）官修政書，收錄1234年—1322年元朝各地地方官吏會抄的有關政治、經濟、軍事、法律等方面的聖旨條畫、律令格例以及司法部門所判案例的匯編，分為前集和新集，史實多為《元史》所不載。

• 《大元通制》，1323年元英宗頒布的元朝第二部法律，現存殘本收錄1234年—1316年元朝官方頒布的關于法律方面的聖旨條畫、律令格例以及司法部門所判案例的匯編，史實多為《元史》所不載。

• 《元史·憲宗本紀》，明朝官修正史

• 《新元史·憲宗本紀》 ，民國官修正史

• 《續資治通鑑》，清朝史學家畢沅撰寫。

• 《元史類編》，清朝史學家邵遠平撰寫。

• 《元史新編》，清朝史學家魏源撰寫。

• 《元書》，清朝史學家曾廉撰寫。

• 《蒙兀兒史記》，清末民初史學家屠寄撰寫。

中國史書對蒙哥的評價

• 元朝重臣郝經在中統元年（1260年）農曆八月給元世祖忽必烈的上書《立政議》中對元憲宗蒙哥的評價是：「先皇帝初踐寶位，皆以為致治之主，不世出也。既而下令鳩括符璽，督察郵傳，遣使四出，究核徭賦，以來民瘼，污吏濫官，黜責殆遍，其願治之心亦切也。惜其授任皆前日害民之尤者，舊弊未去，新弊複生，其為煩擾，又益劇甚，而致治之幾又失也。」

• 明朝官修正史《元史》宋濂等的評價是：「帝剛明雄毅，沉斷而寡言，不樂燕飲，不好侈靡，雖后妃不許之過制。初，太宗朝，群臣擅權，政出多門。至是，凡有詔旨，帝必親起草，更易數四，然後行之。御群臣甚嚴，嘗諭旨曰：『爾輩若得朕獎諭之言，即志氣驕逸，志氣驕逸，而災禍有不隨至者乎？爾輩其戒之。』性喜畋獵，自謂遵祖宗之法，不蹈襲他國所為。然酷信巫覡卜筮之術，凡行事必謹叩之，殆無虛日，終不自厭也。」

• 清朝史學家邵遠平《元史類編》的評價是：「冊曰：天象知祥，眾心戴主；遐闢西南，深入中土；未究厥勳，亦振乃武；友弟因心，終昌時緒。」

• 清朝史學家畢沅《續資治通鑑》的評價是：「憲宗沉斷寡言，不樂宴飲，不好侈靡，雖后妃亦不許之過制。初，定宗朝，群臣擅權，政出多門，帝即位，凡有詔旨，必親起草，更易數四，然後行之。御群臣甚嚴，嘗曰：『爾輩每得朕獎諭之言，即志氣驕逸。志氣驕逸，而災禍有不隨至者乎？爾輩其戒之！』性喜畋獵，自謂遵祖宗之法，不蹈襲他國所為。然酷信巫覡、卜筮之術，凡行事必謹叩之，殆無虛日。」

• 清朝史學家魏源《元史新編》的評價是：「帝早親軍旅，剛明沉斷，威著中外。即位以後，不樂燕飲，不好侈靡，雖后妃不許之過制。初，太宗崩後，曠紀無君，黃裳御統，政出多門，阿柄幾于旁落。至是，凡有詔旨，帝必親起草，更易數四，然後行之。御臣下甚嚴，嘗謂：『臣下獎諭太過，即志氣驕溢，過咎隨之，是害之也。』承開國師武臣力之後，西平印度，南並大理，東取巴蜀，所向無敵。惟遵其國俗，喜田獵，信巫覡卜筮，是其小蔽。使太宗即世，早承大業，則伐宋之役，不俟末年而南北混一矣。天未既宋，暑雨老師，景命不延，故大勳重集于世祖皇帝。」

• 清朝史學家曾廉《元書》的評價是：「論曰：憲宗之立，有遺議焉。前史襲《元史》舊文，未為允也。史又稱憲宗能輯士卒，皇子阿速歹獵騎傷稼，責之，複撻其近侍。卒拔民蔥，即斬以徇。在蒙古治軍可謂肅矣。夫古今稱強漢、弱宋，然王堅以孤城罷卒，抗毳旃之勁族，卒乃師老解退。雖憲宗不晏駕，庸必克乎？蓋自平金以來，中漢人之習，錦衣玉食，肌骨疏懈。故金以是亡，而元人兵勢亦自是遂稍衰矣。歷觀史策，暾欲谷之言，有以哉！」

• 民國史學家屠寄《蒙兀兒史記》的評價是：「汗剛明雄毅，沉斷而寡言，不樂燕飲，不好侈靡，雖后妃不許逾制。嘗有西域商胡獻水晶盆，珍珠傘等物，價值銀三萬餘錠，汗曰：『今百姓疲弊，所急者錢耳。朕獨有此何為？』卻之。賽典赤以為言，乃稍償其值，且禁嗣後勿獻。初，古余克汗朝群臣擅權，政出多門。至是，凡有詔旨，汗必親起草，更易數四，然後行之。御群下甚嚴，嘗諭旨曰：『汝曹若得朕獎諭，即志氣驕逸，志氣驕逸，災禍有不隨至者乎？汝曹戒之。』性喜畋獵，自謂遵祖宗之法，不蹈襲他國所為。然酷信巫覡卜筮之術，凡行事必謹叩之，殆無虛日，終不自厭也。」

• 民國官修正史《新元史》柯劭忞的評價是：「帝沉斷寡言，不喜侈靡。太宗朝群臣擅權，政出多門。至是，凡詔令皆帝手書，更易數四，然後行之。御群臣甚嚴，嘗諭左右曰：「汝輩得朕獎諭，即志氣驕逸，災禍有不立至者乎？汝輩其戒之。」然酷信巫覡卜笨之術，凡行事必謹叩之無虛日，終不自厭也。史臣曰：「憲宗聰明果毅，內修政事，外闢土地，親總六師，壁于堅城之下，雖天未厭宋，齎志而殂，抑亦不世之英主矣。然帝天資涼薄，猜嫌骨肉，失烈門諸王既宥之而複誅之。拉施特有言：蒙古之內亂，自此而萌，隳成吉思汗睦族田本這訓。嗚呼，知言哉！」

紀年

根據《元史·憲宗本紀》整理。

註釋