ABSTRACT
Rubruck asserts that the qaghan was elected near Qaraqorum. The assembly (quriltaz) which proclaimed Chinggis Khan himself ruler of 'all the peoples dwelling in felt tents' in 1206 met in the region of the upper Onon: Secret History, § 202, tr. Cleaves, p. 141, and tr. de Rachewiltz, ch. 8, PFEH, XXI (March 1980), 25; Ratchnevsky, Cinggis-Khan, p. 82. Ogodei was enthroned at Kodo'e-aral, apparently situated on the inside of the great bend of the Keriilen (Pelliot, Polo, pp. 321-3), according to the Yuan Shih, ch. 2: Abramowski, 'Die chinesischen Annalen von Ogodei und Giiyiik', p. 124; Rashid al-Din, ll, ed. Blochet, p. 16, and ll, i, ed. Alizade, p. 49 (tr. Boyle, Successors, p. 30), has the location simply as 'Keliiren'. So too Yuan Shih, ch. 3, has Mongke's (second) election at Kodo'e-aral and his enthronement on the Onon: Abramowski, 'Die chinesischen Annalen des Mongke', p. 18: Rashid al-Din, II, ed. Blochet, p. 283 (Successors, p. 205), says that he was enthroned in the neighbourhood of Qaraqorum, though this may well be an error since he has previously stated that Mongke was escorted to the Keriilen region (II, ed. Blochet, p. 278, Successors, p. 202). The only enthronement we can be certain took place near Qaraqorum is that of Giiyiik, which was witnesse~ by Carpini; see also Abramowski, 'Die chinesischen Annalen von Ogodei und .~iiyiik', p. 151 (Ongqin-sumitur, which evidently lay in one of Ogodei's camping-grounds, a day or two's journey from Qaraqorum); Rashid alDin, II, ed. Blochet, p. 241 (Successors, p. 180), with Koke Na'ur, which falls into the same category. In short, there is little to support Rubruck's statement, and he was possibly influenced by Carpini's report.
