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Kublai Khan and Marco Polo: all China under the Mongols.

Use the timeline below to navigate through major events and milestones.

Yuan Dynasty · 1271-1368 AD
元 · Yuan

The Mongol Yuan Dynasty

From Genghis Khan's invasion and Kublai Khan's proclamation of the Yuan through the Pax Mongolica and the travels of Marco Polo, the failed invasions of Japan and a cosmopolitan flowering of drama and porcelain, to the rebellions that swept the Mongols back to the steppe in 1368. Slide across the years to read the major events of China under Mongol rule.

1211 AD
The Mongol Invasions
1 / 6

Genghis Khan invades China

The united Mongols under Genghis Khan storm across the Great Wall into the Jin realm of north China.

1211 AD

The Mongol Invasions
  • Military

    Genghis Khan invades China

    The united Mongols under Genghis Khan storm across the Great Wall into the Jin realm of north China.

6 milestones

Meanwhile

Around 1211 AD

Full Chronicle

The Mongol Yuan Dynasty

From Genghis Khan's invasion and Kublai Khan's proclamation of the Yuan through the Pax Mongolica and the travels of Marco Polo, the failed invasions of Japan and a cosmopolitan flowering of drama and porcelain, to the rebellions that swept the Mongols back to the steppe in 1368. Slide across the years to read the major events of China under Mongol rule.

  1. The Mongol Invasions

    • Genghis Khan invades China

      The united Mongols under Genghis Khan storm across the Great Wall into the Jin realm of north China.

  2. Kublai Khan

    • Kublai Khan proclaims the Yuan

      Genghis's grandson Kublai declares the Yuan dynasty and rules China as a Chinese emperor from his capital at Dadu.

  3. Kublai Khan

    • Marco Polo at the Great Khan's court

      The Venetian Marco Polo reaches Kublai's court, and the Mongol peace opens Eurasia to travellers and trade.

  4. Kublai Khan

    • The kamikaze and the failed invasion of Japan

      A great Yuan armada sent against Japan is destroyed by a typhoon the Japanese hail as the 'divine wind.'

  5. The Yuan Order

    • A cosmopolitan empire and blue-and-white porcelain

      Yuan China blends cultures across Eurasia, and its potters perfect the blue-and-white porcelain prized around the world.

  6. The Fall of the Yuan

    • Rebellion sweeps the Mongols away

      Famine, floods and the Red Turban revolts overwhelm the Yuan; the last emperor flees north as the Ming is proclaimed.