Red Turban Rebellions
Revolt against the Yuan dynasty in China (1351–1368)
The Red Turban Rebellions (Chinese: 紅巾起義; pinyin: Hóngjīn Qǐyì) were uprisings against the Yuan dynasty between 1351 and 1368, eventually leading to its collapse. Remnants of the Yuan imperial court retreated northwards and is thereafter known as the Northern Yuan in historiography.
Background
Factional strife
In the early 1300s, the imperial court of the Mongol-led Yuan dynasty was split between two factions on how best to govern the empire. One faction favored a Mongol-centric policy that favored Mongol and Inner Asian interests while the opposing faction leaned towards a more Han-based "Confucian" governing style. The latter group conducted a coup in 1328 to enthrone Kusala (Emperor Mingzong). Kusala was literate in the Chinese language and made efforts to write Chinese poetry and to produce Chinese calligraphy. He patronized Chinese learning and art with a new academy and office in the inner court. Others at court such as the Merkit Majarday and his son, Toqto'a, also led the way in cultivating Chinese learning by establishing contacts with ethnic Han scholars and hiring them as tutors. Kusala was assassinated by supporters of his half-brother, Tugh Temür (Emperor Wenzong). Tugh Temür died in 1332 and was succeeded by Kusala’s six-year-old child, Rinchinbal (Emperor Ningzong), who died six months later.
The public source identifies “Red Turban Rebellions” as revolt against the Yuan dynasty in China (1351–1368). This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Turban, Rebellions and Revolt.
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Chronology, provenance and viewpoint should be read together before a broad social or political interpretation is accepted. The source revision retrieved here is dated Aug 30, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q112524. None of the 0 selected statements returned an explicit reference. The first chronological checks are 1351, 1368, 1328 and 1332.
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This entry incorporates text from “Red Turban Rebellions” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.