Kublai Khan Dies (1294)
by Nicole Owens
![Picture](/uploads/2/5/1/4/25144003/776621.jpg)
Kublai Khan died in 1294 of an illness that is unknown at the age of 79, but some say that he died from obesity and alcoholism. His death made the Yuan dynasty become less and less powerful as time went on. The empire started out powerful; Kublai declared himself ruler, moved the capital, adopted Chinese ways of life, and even created different laws and taxes for people to follow. It did start to become less successful near the end of his reign because of many military defeats and attempts to invade other lands to become more powerful, but to no success. However, when Kublai Khan died, it left his empire with no ideas as to how to keep the empire alive and many power struggles began to erupt over who should take the throne. There was also a series of floods and a rise in taxes, which increased discontent in China. In the 1300’s, many sections of China began to rebel against the empire. A rebel army defeated the Mongols in 1368, which led the Mongols to Manchuria. This flee ended foreign rule in China and marked the end of the Yuan dynasty. The picture below is of Kublai Khan, ruler of the once powerful Yuan dynasty from 1260-1294.