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John of Plano Carpini

Type Figure Region Italy Time c. 1182–1252 Also known as John of Plano Carpini (Chinese form)

John of Plano Carpini (c. 1182–1252), an Italian Franciscan friar and missionary, was sent by Pope Innocent IV in 1245 to the court of the Mongol kha…

Timeline

  1. 1182–1241Pian del Carpine · UmbriaBorn in Pian del Carpine in Umbria, he joined the Franciscan Order in his youth, preached in Spain, Germany and elsewhere, and held Church administrative posts, earning a reputation within the order for his learning and diplomatic ability.
  2. 1241–1245Lyon · Auvergne-Rhône-AlpesAfter Ögedei's death in 1241 the threat of the Mongol conquests intensified, and John of Plano Carpini took part in the curia's assessment of eastern affairs; in 1245 Innocent IV decided at the Council of Lyon to send envoys to the Mongols, and John and Brother Ascelin were appointed papal envoys.
  3. 1245–1247Karakorum · Orkhon ValleyDeparting Lyon in April 1245, he travelled via Bohemia, Kiev and the lower Volga across the Kipchak steppe, reaching Karakorum in 1246 after Güyük's accession; he presented Innocent IV's letter to the khagan demanding that the Mongols stop their invasions and convert to Christianity, and returned to Europe in 1247 with Güyük's reply.
  4. 1247–1252Zagreb · ZagrebAfter returning to Europe he presented his embassy report to Innocent IV and wrote the Historia Mongalorum, systematically describing the Mongol Empire's origins, military organization, tactics and political structure, becoming one of the earliest and most detailed European scholarly works on the Mongols; he died in Hungary in 1252.

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