Ariq Böke Surrenders to Kublai Khan

Timeline

1. 1259Diaoyu Fortress · ChongqingIn 1259, Mongol Great Khan Möngke died of illness during the siege of the Southern Song's Diaoyu Fortress, leaving the khanship vacant. Both Kublai and his younger brother Ariq Böke coveted the throne, lighting the fuse of civil war within the Mongol Empire.
2. 1260Kaiping (Shangdu) and Karakorum · Mongolian PlateauIn spring 1260, Kublai convened a kurultai at Kaiping proclaiming himself Great Khan; that same year Ariq Böke gathered supporters at Karakorum and also declared himself. The dual khanship sparked a Mongol civil war: homeland nobles mostly supported Ariq Böke, while Chinese and Semu officials mostly supported Kublai, and the two sides formally took up arms against each other.
3. 1261–1263Mongolian Plateau and Central Asia · Mongolian PlateauBetween 1261 and 1263, Kublai and Ariq Böke fought repeatedly on the Mongolian Plateau. Kublai controlled the rich fiscal resources of the Chinese heartland and held the logistical advantage; though Ariq Böke initially received support from some Central Asian khanates, his supplies dwindled daily, his relationship with Kaidu of the Ögedei line broke down, his power weakened, and his front steadily contracted.
4. 1264Dadu (Khanbaliq) · BeijingIn summer 1264, the cornered Ariq Böke led his remaining forces to surrender to Kublai, pleading guilty and submitting. Out of brotherly affection Kublai did not execute him but placed him under house arrest in Dadu. Kublai then changed the era name to "Zhiyuan" to proclaim his achievement of unification, laying the foundation of the Yuan dynasty.
5. 1266Dadu · BeijingIn 1266, Ariq Böke died of illness in Dadu while under house arrest, completely ending any legitimate challenge to Kublai's khanship and formally ending the Mongol civil war. Kublai thereafter focused on governing the Central Plains dynasty, formally adopting the state name "Great Yuan" in 1271. This civil war accelerated the Mongol Empire's division into the four khanates and profoundly reshaped the 13th-century world political order.