![In the westernmost banner of Inner Mongolia, in the middle of the Gobi Desert, there once stood a prosperous kingdom. It was a center of religious learning, of art and a trading hub. [720x472 - 29KB]](https://pic8.co/sh/PPK4mJ.jpg){kind=link}
It looks really cold there. Regardless, interesting history.
It looks really cold there. Regardless, interesting history.
According to one of the many Mongolian legends, the first descendants of the gods built Khara-Khoto, a beautiful and rich city, which housed sages, merchants, brave soldiers and skilled craftsmen. Khara-Khoto means "black city". It was a Medieval Tangut fortress on the Silk Road, built in 1032 near Juyan Lake Basin. The remains show 30 ft-high ramparts and 12 ft-thick outer walls. It became a centre of Western Xia trade in the 11th century.
In The Travels of Marco Polo, Marco Polo described a visit to a city called Etzina or Edzina, which was identified with Khara-Khoto. The walled fortress was first taken by Genghis Khan in 1226. It continued to flourish under the Mongols and during Kublai Khan's time it was expanded.
The Ejin river flowed past the fort, the Chinese besieged the city in 1372 AD and redirected the river that supplied it with water. There are various versions of what happened next, the Chinese records say the ruler of the city surrendered. It doesn't say what happened to the inhabitants but I guess they were enslaved.
After 1372 it was abandoned.
> According to one of the many Mongolian legends, the first descendants of the gods built Khara-Khoto, a beautiful and rich city, which housed sages, merchants, brave soldiers and skilled craftsmen. Khara-Khoto means "black city". It was a Medieval Tangut fortress on the Silk Road, built in 1032 near Juyan Lake Basin. The remains show 30 ft-high ramparts and 12 ft-thick outer walls. It became a centre of Western Xia trade in the 11th century.
> In The Travels of Marco Polo, Marco Polo described a visit to a city called Etzina or Edzina, which was identified with Khara-Khoto. The walled fortress was first taken by Genghis Khan in 1226. It continued to flourish under the Mongols and during Kublai Khan's time it was expanded.
> The Ejin river flowed past the fort, the Chinese besieged the city in 1372 AD and redirected the river that supplied it with water. There are various versions of what happened next, the Chinese records say the ruler of the city surrendered. It doesn't say what happened to the inhabitants but I guess they were enslaved.
> After 1372 it was abandoned.
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