Chaghan Temür

Organized landlord militias in the late Yuan to suppress the Red Turbans; assassinated by surrendered generals.

Life

Scholar turned rebel

Chaghan Temür was a Uyghur whose ancestors had entered the Central Plains with the Mongol army and settled in Henan. He studied from childhood and sat the civil service examinations.

Took Bianliang

In 1352, as the Red Turban Rebellion swept the Central Plains, he organized landlord militias and repeatedly defeated the Red Turbans. In 1359 he took Bianliang, which the Red Turbans had held, and became the Yuan dynasty's chief pillar in the north.

Killed by a surrendered general

In 1361 he attacked Shandong and won over the Red Turban commanders Tian Feng and Wang Shicheng. In 1362, during the siege of Yidu, he went to inspect Tian Feng's camp and was assassinated by Tian Feng and Wang Shicheng.

Legacy

Chaghan Temür was one of the ablest generals of the late Yuan, and his death cost the Yuan dynasty its last hope of recovering the north.

Major works & achievements

• Took Bianliang

Did you know? His adopted son Wang Baobao (Köke Temür) later became the Ming army's most formidable rival; Zhu Yuanzhang called him "the most remarkable man in the realm."

Key dates

• 1352Organized landlord militias
• 1359Took Bianliang
• 1361Attacked Shandong
• 1362Assassinated by Tian Feng