Yesügei ba' atour (Mongolian Iesüxeï , derived from ies (in) : ''' 9 ''', figure ostentation) (~ 1134 - 1175), was a Mongolian chief and was the father of Gengis Khan by his principal wife, Hö' elün.

Biography

Yesügei was the downward one of Nomoloun and Qaïdou, small son of Khabul Khan and wire of Bartan-ba' atour. During a war which opposed its tribe to the Djurtchät, Chinese and Tatar, it fought at the sides of his uncle Qoutoula and killed a Tatar chief named Temüdjin.

Later, Yesügei drove out with a falcon and saw a man of the name of Yéké-tchilédu. It was with his wife Hö' elün and Yesügei found it pretty. It went to seek its two frêres, Daritaï-ottchigin and Nékun-taïchi and they returned to remove Hö' elun with her husband. When they charged the couple, Hö' elün, which loved her husband, was sacrificed for Yéké and asked him to flee without it, which he did. According to the Secret History, at this point in time Yesügei took it of force. It put at the world a boy and Yesügei gave him the name Temüdjin in memory of the Tatar chief whom he had killed with the combat. Other children followed: Jöchi Khasar, Khajiun and Temüge. A few years after Temüge, a girl of the name of Temülen was born.

Yesügei was probably the Mongolian chief most important of its time. The Tayitchi' out (with the fairly pledged Djouirat, Bésut and Suldus) and the Qongqotat were its allies. It would have ordered nearly 25.000 men what was the tenth of the population of the time in Eastern Mongolia. It would have had approximately 3000 men being able to assemble a horse. Its tribe was located close to the Onon, even place where Gengis Khan and, later, Kubilai Khan passed their youth.

One day, towards 1171, Toghril, from the tribe of the Kéraït, came to Yesügei. It had took the head of Kéraït but before summer then driven out by his uncle Gourkhan and wanted to take again its position as a chief. Yesügei accepted to help it. He had faced helped Tatar of Kéraït, some time ago, and wished to have an important ally in Toghril when it would be with the orders of his tribe. The battle was easy for Yesügei. Kéraït were surprised by its attack. Gourkhan fuya at the Tangout. Yesügei and Toghril became frêres by oath following this victory.

About the year 1175, Yesügei was accompanied by his/her son and carried out an excursion with horse to go to the Qonggirat. The reason of this excursion (it did several others of them) can be explained by the fact that it probably had like intention to rejoin the Mongolian people under the same command, which his/her son did later. It met one of the chiefs Qonggirat, Däi-setchèn. He discussed with Yesügei, noticed the luminous face of Temüdjin and informed his father that, during the night, he had dreamed with an eagle which held the sun and the moon between its two greenhouses and which that seemed to him a good predicts. He introduced his daughter to Temüdjin. Its name was Börte. Yesügei took the following day Daï-setchèn the hand of Börte for his/her son. It accepted and proposed to keep Temüdjin at the house for some time.

Death

For a few years, Tatar had returned. Approximately fifteen years had passed since the war. A relative peace reignait. Yesügei returned at his place and was hungry and thirst. It went to of Tatar to ask hospitality. The latter remembered him, still hated it, and reflect poison in its drink. After having left them, Yesügei felt sick and, after three painful days with horse, it arrived finally at its campings. It knew that its death approached and then required of Mounglik, which directed Qongqotat, to deal with his/her children and to go to seek Temüdjin. It mourrut shortly after.

The sudden death and unforeseeable of Yesugeï have a devastator effect on his family. His/her oldest son, Temüdjin, were not in age to order the people which hitherto belonged to his father. Targutaï, chief of the Tayitchi' out, took the command of the men of Yesügei. It gave up shortly after Temüdjin with its frêres and its sister like Hö' elün, her mother. It is very probable that it made it to avoid losing its station when Temüdjin would have become older. According to the Secret History, an old Qongqotat chief of the name of Tcharaq Ebugän was transpierced of a lance in the back when he protested against the intrigues of Targutaï. Driven out of their tribe, Hö' elün and his/her children years of wandering lived which forged the character of the future conqueror.

References