Sorghagtani Beki and Toregene Khatun: Female Power in the Mongolian Empire

The Mongol empire stands in stark contrast to many other empires during its peak for many reasons, one of the most interesting being the freedoms that imperial women were granted in its ruling process. The majority of Western European countries did not allow women to have roles that gave them power because they were seen as inferior and less intelligent than men. In the Mongol administration, however, this was not necessarily the case. Many noble women were able to wield real power, most visibly during interregnum periods, which happened between the death of a Great Khan and the election of a new one at a quiriltai, a gathering of descendants of Chinggis Khan. The men and women at these quriltais would discuss and vote who should succeed next, an important Mongol tradition tied to the rule of Chinggis and the heart of Mongolia. Other women derived power from their familial connections and leveraged this to insert themselves into positions of power and provide counsel to their husbands and sons, who were descended from Chinggis Khan. Through the use of familial connections and interregnum periods, imperial women in Mongolia found great success in their ability to wield social and political power. Women such as Sorghagtani Beki and Toregene Khatun were able to capitalize on these opportunities and changed Mongolian political life by creating impactful legislation and counseling male relations as to what was the best policy to pursue.

Many of the women that could to rise to power were able to so through powerful male relatives. Women like Sorghagtani Beki, who married Tolui, a descendant of Chinggis Khan, often inherited property that they themselves could control upon their male relations’ deaths and derive legitimacy from this if they ever rose to be a regent. When Tolui died, Sorghagtani Beki gained control of his ordo, the court and property that he had. She used this to generate income to educate her sons. She was never nominally regent, but her diplomacy generated significant support for her sons, all of whom would go on to hold high positions in the Mongolian administration. Most notably, she was well connected enough to refuse the Great Khan, Ogodei when he proposed marriage between her and his son, Guyuk. Bruno de Nicola notes, “…it illustrates that Sorghaghtani was strong enough to oppose the wishes of the Great Khan, benefitting from her kinship and marriage connections.”[1] Clearly, who one was related to could provide a lot of stability, and the financial security that she had from inheriting Tolui’s ordo helped tremendously, providing her with the money to educate her sons and promote their political careers. Through refusing marriage, she fundamentally altered the Mongol line of succession, and it allowed her to wield power and impact true change simply because of who she was related to.

Primary sources reveal sincere praise for Beki’s leadership and wisdom. Juvaini, a Persian historian, wrote that, “all were put to shame save only Beki and her sons, who had not swerved a hair’s breadth from the law, and this because of her great wisdom, self-discipline, and consideration of the latter end of things, whereof even men are negligent.”[2] This quote is interesting because it not only compares her in a way that makes her seem more intelligent than most men, but also because it portrays her as inextricably linked to her sons, reflecting the importance of family connections, which could help or hurt a woman’s case in seeking political influence. Her sons were clearly good men and developed leaders, reflecting her positive influence and increasing her political power significantly.

Toregene Khatun also demonstrated strength derived from her relati