War of Kaidu and Kublai

Timeline

1. 1260–1268Almaliq–Seven Rivers · Central AsiaDuring the struggle between Kublai and Ariq Böke for the great khaganate, Kaidu sided with Ariq Böke and gathered followers in the Ögedei appanage and the Seven Rivers; after Ariq Böke's surrender, Kaidu refused to attend court and rejected Kublai's arrangements for the Chagatai throne, forming an independent military-political bloc in Central Asia.
2. 1268–1276Altai to Uyghur lands · Western RegionsFrom around 1268 the two sides entered sustained warfare: Kublai sent prince Nomukhan and minister Antong to hold Almaliq, while Kaidu allied with Chagatai factions to contest the Tarim and western Khangai; in the 1270s Kaidu forced Yuan forces to pull back, shaking the Yuan's forward base in Central Asia.
3. 1277–1293Khangai–Kherlen steppe · Mongolian PlateauKaidu repeatedly raided the Mongol homeland in coordination with Chagatai khan Duwa; Kublai defended the Karakorum direction with grandsons Ganmala and Kokeču. The war took the form of seasonal expeditions, with neither side able to destroy the other's main force, creating a decades-long strategic stalemate.
4. 1294–1301Altai · Mongolian PlateauKublai's death in 1294 did not end the conflict; Temür continued campaigning against Kaidu and Duwa. Around 1301 Kaidu died of illness (or wounds) after fighting Yuan forces, his followers passing to his son Chabar before soon turning to peace negotiations. The khanates formally re-recognized the great khagan, but political unity was not restored.