The Successors of Genghis Khan - Robert Bedrosian's Armenian ...

THE SUCCESSORS OF GENGHIS KHAN
And by the ambassador from Baghdad be sent threats and menaces
to the Caliph because of a complaint which Shiremiin, the son of
Chormaghun, had made about them. So also he ordered a reply to be
written in the harshest language to the memorandum brought by the
ambassadors from Alamut. As for Chinqai, he showed favor to him
and conferred on him the rank of vizier. And all the great men from
every side returned home. Praise be to God, the Lord of the Worlds !
*! HISTORY OF THE END OF GUYUK KHAN'S
his generosity and liberality; his setting out for the Emil; and his
passing away in the region of Samarqand26
Now Qadaq, who was of the Christian religion, had been, since his
childhood, in attendance on Giiyuk Khan in the capacity of atabeg,
and his nature was impressed with that picture. To this was afterward
added the influence of Chinqai. He therefore always went to great
lengths in honoring priests and Christians, and when this was noised
abroad, priests set their faces toward his Court from the lands of
Syria and Rum and the As and the Orus. And because of the attendance
of Qadaq and Chinqai he was prone to denounce the faith of Islam,
and the cause of Christians flourished during his reign, and no Muslim
dared to raise his voice to them.
Now because Giiyiik Khan wished the fame of his own generosity
to surpass that of his father's, he used to exceed all bounds in his
munificence. He commanded that the goods of merchants who had
come from all sides should be valued in the same way as had been done
in his father's day and their dues paid to them. On one occasion these
dues amounted to 70,000 bdlish, for which drafts had been written
upon every land. The wares of every clime were piled up in heaps
such that it was difficult to transport them. The pillars of state represented
this to him. "It will be a trouble to guard it," he said, "and
it will be of no profit to us. Distribute it amongst the soldiers and all
present." For days they distributed it and sent it to all the subject
peoples; and still much was left. He ordered it to be scrambled for.
26 See above, Section 2, p. 121, note 95.
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