Alghu (died 1265 or 1266) was the khan of the

Chagatai Khanate The Chagatai Khanate, also known as the Chagatai Ulus, was a Mongol and later Turkification, Turkicized khanate that comprised the lands ruled by Chagatai Khan, second son of Genghis Khan, and his descendants and successors. At its height in the l ...

(1260–1265/6). He was the son of

Baidar Baidar Khan, also known as Peta, was the sixth son of Chagatai Khan. He participated in the European campaign ("The elder boys campaign" as it was known in Mongolia) with his nephew Büri from 1235-1241. He commanded the Mongol army assigned to ...

and the grandson of

Chagatai Khan Chagatai Khan (; – 1242) was a son of Genghis Khan and a prominent figure in the early Mongol Empire. The second son of Genghis's wife Börte, Chagatai was renowned for his masterful knowledge of Mongol custom and law, which he scrupulously ...

Biography

In 1260 Alghu was appointed as head of the ''ulus'' of the Chagatai Khanate by the Great Khan claimant

Ariq Böke Ariq Böke (after 1219–1266), the components of his name also spelled Arigh, Arik and Bukha, Buka (, ; ), was the seventh and youngest son of Tolui and a grandson of Genghis Khan. After the death of his brother the Great Khan Möngke, Ariq Bök ...

, in opposition to the child khan Mubarak Shah and his mother Orghana, marrying her. In 1261 he was sent to

Central Asia Central Asia is a region of Asia consisting of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan. The countries as a group are also colloquially referred to as the "-stans" as all have names ending with the Persian language, Pers ...

, where he quickly established control of much of the

, as well as other areas, particularly those that were formerly under the control of the Blue Horde. He also seized control of

Samarkand Samarkand ( ; Uzbek language, Uzbek and Tajik language, Tajik: Самарқанд / Samarqand, ) is a city in southeastern Uzbekistan and among the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest continuously inhabited cities in Central As ...

and

Bukhara Bukhara ( ) is the List of cities in Uzbekistan, seventh-largest city in Uzbekistan by population, with 280,187 residents . It is the capital of Bukhara Region. People have inhabited the region around Bukhara for at least five millennia, and t ...

, which had earlier been ruled jointly by the

and the Great Khan. Alghu supported

in the Toluid Civil War against

Kublai Khan Kublai Khan (23 September 1215 – 18 February 1294), also known by his temple name as the Emperor Shizu of Yuan and his regnal name Setsen Khan, was the founder and first emperor of the Mongol-led Yuan dynasty of China. He proclaimed the ...

, but later deserted him. In 1262 he rebelled against Ariq Boke and commanded 150,000 soldiers against him; the conflict saw a series of violent clashes over the next two years. Alghu gained the support of the Great Khan's governor of

Turkestan Turkestan,; ; ; ; also spelled Turkistan, is a historical region in Central Asia corresponding to the regions of Transoxiana and East Turkestan (Xinjiang). The region is located in the northwest of modern day China and to the northwest of its ...

, Mas'ud Beg, making him his vizier, as well as of Orghana. The revolt severely weakened Ariq Böke's and contributed to his eventual loss to

. In 1263 Alghu declared his allegiance to

Kublai Kublai Khan (23 September 1215 – 18 February 1294), also known by his temple name as the Emperor Shizu of Yuan and his regnal name Setsen Khan, was the founder and first List of emperors of the Yuan dynasty, emperor of the Mongols, Mongol-l ...

, and then attacked Kaidu, whose lands bordered his, under the pretext that the latter had supported

. Kaidu turned to

Berke Berke Khan (died 1266/1267; also Birkai; Turki/ Kypchak: برکه خان, , ) was a grandson of Genghis Khan from his son Jochi and a Mongol military commander and ruler of the Golden Horde, a division of the Mongol Empire, who effectively c ...

, Khan of the Blue Horde, for assistance; the latter provided him with resources and an army. Alghu found his territories invaded, and was defeated by Kaidu in battle. However, Alghu struck back and was victorious in a new battle near Otrar. He was buried in Almaliq.

Family

He was married to Orghana Khatun and several other wives, with whom he had three sons: # Qaban # Chübei — created Prince of Weiwu (威武王) and Prince of Xining (西宁王) in 1304 #* Toqta #* Yasa'ur #* Düküles #* Ejil Buqa #* Nom-Quli — 2nd Prince of Xining (西宁王), became ancestor of Kara Del rulersFranke, Herbert. �
A 14th Century Mongolian Letter Fragment.
�� Asia Major 11 (1965): 120-27. #* Aq Buqa #* Sati #* Da'ud #* Gambo Dorji #* Chigin-Temur #* Jirghudai #* Mingtash #* Könchek Dorji. # Toq-Temür ## Esen Böke ## Oqruqchi

References

1266 deaths Chagatai khans 13th-century monarchs in Asia Year of birth unknown {{CAsia-hist-stub