Bogda Khan (, , "Boγda Qaγan"; ) was a title in the

Mongolian language Mongolian is the Prestige (sociolinguistics), principal language of the Mongolic languages, Mongolic language family that originated in the Mongolian Plateau. It is spoken by ethnic Mongols and other closely related Mongolic peoples who are nati ...

used by

emperors The word ''emperor'' (from , via ) can mean the male ruler of an empire. ''Empress'', the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife ( empress consort), mother/grandmother (empress dowager/ grand empress dowager), or a woman who rule ...

of the

Qing dynasty The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing, was a Manchu-led Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China and an early modern empire in East Asia. The last imperial dynasty in Chinese history, the Qing dynasty was preceded by the ...

of China. It combines the title "Khan" or

Khagan Khagan or Qaghan (Middle Mongol:; or ''Khagan''; ) or zh, c=大汗, p=Dàhán; ''Khāqān'', alternatively spelled Kağan, Kagan, Khaghan, Kaghan, Khakan, Khakhan, Khaqan, Xagahn, Qaghan, Chagan, Қан, or Kha'an is a title of empire, im ...

("Qaγan") traditionally used among the Turco-Mongols with the term ''Bogda'' (''Boγda''), meaning "Holy" or "God" in Mongolian. "Bogda Khan" as a whole therefore means "Holy Khan" or "Holy Ruler".

Hong Taiji Hong Taiji (28 November 1592 – 21 September 1643), also rendered as Huang Taiji and sometimes referred to as Abahai in Western literature, also known by his temple name as the Emperor Taizong of Qing, was the second khan of the Later Jin ...

, the second khan of the Later Jin dynasty, conquered the

Northern Yuan dynasty The Northern Yuan was a dynastic state ruled by the Mongol Borjigin clan based in the Mongolian Plateau. It existed as a rump state after the collapse of the Yuan dynasty in 1368 and lasted until its conquest by the Jurchen people, Jurchen-led ...

in 1635. He started to use the Mongolian title "Boγda Sečen Qaγan" (, , ), and he once referred to himself as "Bogda Khan" in letters to upper-class figures in

Mongolia Mongolia is a landlocked country in East Asia, bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south and southeast. It covers an area of , with a population of 3.5 million, making it the world's List of countries and dependencies by po ...

and

Tibet Tibet (; ''Böd''; ), or Greater Tibet, is a region in the western part of East Asia, covering much of the Tibetan Plateau and spanning about . It is the homeland of the Tibetan people. Also resident on the plateau are other ethnic groups s ...

. After the proclamation of the

in 1636, the titles of the all Qing emperors in the Mongolian language contained "Bogda Khan", so it was commonly used by ethnic Mongol subjects to refer to the Qing rulers. During the early Qing period, the

Tsardom of Russia The Tsardom of Russia, also known as the Tsardom of Moscow, was the centralized Russian state from the assumption of the title of tsar by Ivan the Terrible, Ivan IV in 1547 until the foundation of the Russian Empire by Peter the Great in 1721. ...

also used this title to refer to the emperors of Qing China since the Russians had contact with the Mongol subjects of the Qing dynasty before officially communicating with the Qing imperial court. For example, the Qing ruler was referred to as the "Chinese Highness Bogda Khan" () in the Russian version of the 1689

Treaty of Nerchinsk The Treaty of Nerchinsk of 1689 was the first treaty between the Tsardom of Russia and the Qing dynasty of China after the defeat of Russia by Qing China at the Siege of Albazin in 1686. The Russians gave up the area north of the Amur River as ...

. During the

1911 Revolution The 1911 Revolution, also known as the Xinhai Revolution or Hsinhai Revolution, ended China's last imperial dynasty, the Qing dynasty, and led to the establishment of the Republic of China (ROC). The revolution was the culmination of a decade ...

that eventually led to the fall of the Qing dynasty,

Outer Mongolia Outer Mongolia was the name of a territory in the Manchu-led Qing dynasty of China from 1691 to 1911. It corresponds to the modern-day independent state of Mongolia and the Russian republic of Tuva. The historical region gained ''de facto'' ...

declared its independence from the Qing dynasty under the leadership of the 8th

Jebtsundamba Khutuktu The Jebtsundamba Khutuktu; ; "Venerable Excellent incarnate lama" or Khalkha Jetsün Dampa Rinpoche is a title given to the spiritual head of the Gelug lineage of Tibetan Buddhism in Mongolia. They also hold the title of ''Bogd Gegeen'', making ...

, who used the title

Bogd Khan Bogd Khan (13 October 1869 – 20 May 1924) was the khan of the Bogd Khanate of Mongolia from 1911 to 1924, following the state's ''de facto'' independence from the Qing dynasty of China after the Xinhai Revolution. Born in Tibet, he was the ...

(as the successor of Bogda Khan) and established the Bogd Khanate.

References

{{china-royal-stub Chinese royal titles Emperors of the Qing dynasty

See also

References