Yessugai, The Father Of Chinghiz, Had
Been His Staunch Friend, And Had Aided Him Effectually To Recover His
Dominion From Which He Had Been Expelled.
After a reign of many years he
was again ejected, and in the greatest necessity sought the help of
Temujin (afterwards called Chinghiz Khan), by whom he was treated with the
greatest consideration.
This was in 1196. For some years the two chiefs
conducted their forays in alliance, but differences sprang up between
them; the son of Aung Khan entered into a plot to kill Temujin, and in
1202-1203 they were in open war. The result will be related in connection
with the next chapters.
We may observe that the idea which Joinville picked up in the East about
Prester John corresponds pretty closely with that set forth by Marco.
Joinville represents him as one of the princes to whom the Tartars were
tributary in the days of their oppression, and as "their ancient enemy";
one of their first acts, on being organized under a king of their own, was
to attack him and conquer him, slaying all that bore arms, but sparing all
monks and priests. The expression used by Joinville in speaking of the
original land of the Tartars, "une grande berrie de sablon," has not
been elucidated in any edition that I have seen. It is the Arabic [Arabic]
Baeriya, "a Desert." No doubt Joinville learned the word in Palestine.
(See Joinville, p. 143 seqq.; see also Oppert, Der Presb. Johannes in
Sage und Geschichte, and Cathay, etc., pp.
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