Yelu Dashi (r. 1134-1143) was the founder of the Qara-Khitai Khanate, and his grandson Yelu Zhilugu (r. 1177-1211) was the final ruler (Gur-khan) of that Khanate. The Qara-Khitai was a fascinating, but little known empire. The Khitan Liao Dynasty (907-1125) was quickly overrun by the Jurchen Jin (1115-1234) in the early 12th century, and Yelu Dashi, a Khitan noble related to the imperial family, fled China, crossing Mongolia and eventually making his way to central Asia, where he established the Qara Khitai. The Qara Khitai went on to control an area from Transoxania to the Tarim Basin, mighty empire combing Chinese-Khitan ruling customs over a largely Muslim population. After Dashi's death in 1143 the empire declined, and the long rule of his grandson Zhilugu marked the final years of the dynasty. Vassals broke away, financial crisis gripped the empire, religious factionalism began to tear it apart and his former vassals, the Khwarezm-Shahs, challenged and fought with him. The appearance of a Naiman prince, Kuchlug, fleeing the wrath of Chinggis Khan in Mongolia and welcomed into the Qara-Khitai, tipped the balance against Zhilugu. Even though he married a daughter of Zhilugu and was given titles and power, he betrayed his step father, raiding the imperial treasury and conspiring with the Khwarezm-Shah, Muhammad bin Tekish. In late 1211, Kuchlug captured Zhilugu while he was on a hunting trip, and kept the former Gur-Khan captive while claiming power for himself. In the end, Kuchlug's ascension brought Chinggis Khan and the Mongol Empire to Central Asia, now bordering the Khwarezmian Empire... To learn more about the Qara Khitai, check out my latest videos: Part One, the Rise: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k22BPOpihhQ Part Two, the Decline: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wj5MzSmo8-I
