Some remarks on Kublai and his government by a Chinese author, in a more
rational and discriminative tone, will be found below under ch.
Xxiii.,
note 2.
A curious Low-German MS. at Cologne, giving an account of the East, says
of the "Keyser von Kathagien - syn recht Name is der groisse Hunt!"
(Magnus Canis, the Big Bow-wow as it were. See Orient und Occident, vol.
i. p. 640.)
CHAPTER II.
CONCERNING THE REVOLT OF NAYAN, WHO WAS UNCLE TO THE GREAT KAAN CUBLAY.
Now this Cublay Kaan is of the right Imperial lineage, being descended
from Chinghis Kaan, the first sovereign of all the Tartars. And he is the
sixth Lord in that succession, as I have already told you in this book. He
came to the throne in the year of Christ, 1256, and the Empire fell to him
because of his ability and valour and great worth, as was right and
reason.[NOTE 1] His brothers, indeed, and other kinsmen disputed his
claim, but his it remained, both because maintained by his great valour,
and because it was in law and right his, as being directly sprung of the
imperial line.
Up to the year of Christ now running, to wit 1298, he hath reigned
two-and-forty years, and his age is about eighty-five, so that he must
have been about forty-three years of age when he first came to the
throne.[NOTE 2] Before that time he had often been to the wars, and had
shown himself a gallant soldier and an excellent captain. But after coming
to the throne he never went to the wars in person save once.[NOTE 3]
This befel in the year of Christ, 1286, and I will tell you why he went.
There was a great Tartar Chief, whose name was NAYAN,[NOTE 4] a young man
[of thirty], Lord over many lands and many provinces; and he was Uncle to
the Emperor Cublay Kaan of whom we are speaking. And when he found himself
in authority this Nayan waxed proud in the insolence of his youth and his
great power; for indeed he could bring into the field 300,000 horsemen,
though all the time he was liegeman to his nephew, the Great Kaan Cublay,
as was right and reason. Seeing then what great power he had, he took it
into his head that he would be the Great Kaan's vassal no longer; nay
more, he would fain wrest his empire from him if he could. So this Nayan
sent envoys to another Tartar Prince called CAIDU, also a great and potent
Lord, who was a kinsman of his, and who was a nephew of the Great Kaan and
his lawful liegeman also, though he was in rebellion and at bitter enmity
with his sovereign Lord and Uncle. Now the message that Nayan sent was
this: That he himself was making ready to march against the Great Kaan
with all his forces (which were great), and he begged Caidu to do likewise
from his side, so that by attacking Cublay on two sides at once with such
great forces they would be able to wrest his dominion from him.
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