Bayan Khutugh (1324–1365), also Bayan Qudu (; Pai-yen Hu-tu;
Mongolian script
The traditional Mongolian script, also known as the Hudum Mongol bichig, was the first Mongolian alphabet, writing system created specifically for the Mongolian language, and was the most widespread until the introduction of Cyrillic script, Cy ...
: ᠪᠠᠶᠠᠨᠬᠤᠲᠤᠭ), was an empress consort of the
Yuan dynasty
The Yuan dynasty ( ; zh, c=元朝, p=Yuáncháo), officially the Great Yuan (; Mongolian language, Mongolian: , , literally 'Great Yuan State'), was a Mongol-led imperial dynasty of China and a successor state to the Mongol Empire after Div ...
as the second wife of
Toghon Temür
Toghon Temür (; Mongolian script: ; ; 25 May 1320 – 23 May 1370), also known by his temple name as the Emperor Huizong of Yuan (; ), bestowed by the Northern Yuan, Northern Yuan dynasty, and by his posthumous name as t ...
(Emperor Huizong). Her father was Bolod Temür.
According to the ''
History of Yuan'', Bayan Qudu was known for being "frugal, unjealous, and thoroughly observant of ritual and regulation," which was a sharp contrast to the character and nature of the emperor's favourite concubine,
Lady Ki (later known as Öljei Quduq).
Marriage
In July 1335, Toghon Temür's first empress,
Danashiri, daughter of the prime minister
El Temür, was deposed and later sentenced to death by hanging in
Dadu for her involvement in the failed rebellion led by her brother,
Tanggici (T’ang Chi’i-shih).
It was not until 1337 that Toghon Temür remarried, this time to a girl of the influential
Khongirad tribe, Bayan Qudu. Her enthronement as empress took place on 18 April 1337, when she was just thirteen years of age.
Empress
According to traditional sources, Bayan Qudu was known for being plain and of simple habits, preferring to lead a retiring life, presumably due to the fact that Toghon Temür showed her very little attention.
However, on a journey to
Shangdu
Shangdu (; lit. "Upper Capital"; ), known in the West as Xanadu, was the summer capital of the Yuan dynasty under Kublai Khan. Located in what is now Zhenglan Banner, Inner Mongolia, it was designed by Chinese architect Liu Bingzhong and served as ...
, just north of
Dadu (Beijing), Toghon Temür desired to pay his empress a visit. He sent a eunuch as an emissary to express this wish. The austere empress replied, “The evening is not a time for Your Excellency to be going back and forth.” The eunuch returned to his master and reported the empress's words. Toghon Temür sent him back two more times, only to be turned away again each time. This led the emperor to think more highly of Bayan Qudu's virtue.
At some point, the empress gave birth to a son. This caused much controversy due to the fact that Toghon Temür's favourite concubine,
Lady Ki, had already given birth to a desired heir,
Ayushiridara. The empress's child, however, died at less than two years of age, thus securing Lady Ki's future and the succession of her own son.
Death
On 8 September 1365, Bayan Qudu died, aged only forty-two. Lady Ki is reported to have looked over the late empress's tattered, plain clothing. Laughing, she remarked, “How can an empress and principal wife wear such attire?”
In popular culture
*Portrayed by
Lim Ju-eun in the 2013
MBC TV series ''
Empress Ki''. In the series, she is portrayed as ruthless and manipulative. She is also portrayed as having been the niece of
Bayan of the Merkid, and as sister to Bayan's nephew,
Toghto.
Notes
{{DEFAULTSORT:Khutugh, Bayan
1324 births
1365 deaths
14th-century Mongol women
14th-century Mongols
Yuan dynasty empresses
14th-century Chinese women
14th-century Chinese people