Siege of Baghdad
Baghdad
What happened
The Mongol prince Hulagu, grandson of Genghis Khan, besieged Baghdad, the capital of the Abbasid Caliph al-Musta'sim, with the engineer Guo Kan leading a corps of siege engineers. Hulagu demanded that the caliph submit to the Mongols, but the caliph refused. In January 1258 the Mongols surrounded Baghdad, and their siege machines broke through the walls. The caliph surrendered on 10 February, and the Mongols began looting the city three days later.
Why it matters
Result: Mongol victory. Leaders: Hulegu Khan / Baiju against Al-Musta'sim / Muhammad ibn al-Alqami. Why it matters: The fall of Baghdad ended the Abbasid Caliphate, which had ruled from the city for centuries. Power in the region passed to Hulagu's new Mongol state, the Ilkhanate.
What came next
Hulagu went on to found the Ilkhanate in Persia. Later, the Mamluks of Egypt set up a member of the Abbasid family as a caliph in Cairo, with little real power.
Did you know?
A 16th-century writer claimed so many books were thrown into the Tigris that the river turned black, but historian Michal Biran has shown that large libraries in Baghdad reopened within two years.
Timeline
- 17 January 1258 CEThe Mongols rout a Baghdad sortie and surround the city.
- 10 February 1258 CECaliph al-Musta'sim surrenders.
- 1258 CEThe Abbasid Caliphate in Baghdad ends.
- 1265 CEHulagu dies.