Mongol conquestsWars and battles

Mongol invasion of Java

Kublai’s punitive expedition against the Javanese king Kertanegara found the island in turmoil: the Yuan army defeated the usurper Jayakatwang, but was then attacked by its erstwhile ally Raden Wijaya and left empty-handed.

Date: between December 1292 and January 1293 – August 1293start: exact date unknown: an interval is given; end: month known · duration: ≈ 7 months
Place: Daha (Kediri)approximate locationtoday: Kediri, East Java, Indonesia · Southeast Asia and Oceania
Route: Quanzhou (Zaitun) → South China Sea → Coast of Champa → South of Indochina → Karimata Strait → Karimunjawa Islands → Tuban → Daha (Kediri)
Participants: Yuan dynasty, Kublai Khan, Raden Wijaya, Majapahit
Threads: Mongol conquests, Asia, Africa and the Americas in the 13th century
Also known as: Юаньское вторжение на Яву; Поход Хубилая на Яву

The pretext for the expedition was an insult to a Yuan envoy: in 1289 Kertanegara, the ruler of Singhasari, had the envoy’s face disfigured. A fleet carrying 20,000–30,000 soldiers sailed from Quanzhou at the turn of 1292–1293, but by the time it arrived Kertanegara had already been killed by the rebel prince of Kediri, Jayakatwang. The dead king’s son-in-law, Raden Wijaya, offered the Yuan commanders an alliance; on 26 April 1293 they took Daha, Jayakatwang’s capital, and at the end of May Wijaya suddenly turned on his allies.

Having lost thousands of men, the Yuan army sailed away and returned to China in August. This was Kublai’s last overseas expedition: preparations for a new invasion of Java were abandoned after his death. The fleet’s route is shown approximately on the map.

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