Book
Emperor of the seas: Kublai Khan and the making of China
On the shelf? Just pop in.
Genghis Khan built a formidable land empire, but he never crossed the sea. Yet by the time his grandson Kublai Khan had defeated the last vestiges of the Song empire and established the Yuan dynasty in 1279, the Mongols controlled the most powerful navy in the world. How did a nomad come to conquer China and master the sea? Based on ten years of research and a lifetime of immersion in Mongol culture and tradition, 'Emperor of the Seas' brings this little-known story vibrantly to life. Kublai Khan is one of history's most fascinating characters. He brought Islamic mathematicians to his court, where they invented modern cartography and celestial measurement. He transformed the world's largest land mass into a unified, diverse and economically progressive empire, introducing paper money. And, after bitter early setbacks, he transformed China into an outward looking sea-faring empire.
More like this
The royal insider: my life with the queen, the king and Princess Diana
Paul Burrell · 2026
The countess: seduction, power and the extraordinary life of Emily Cowper
Jehanne Wake · 2026
The escape: the Tour, the cyclist and me
Pippa York · 2026
The people's emperor: the unlikely rise and spectacular fall of Napoleon III
Edward Shawcross · 2026
Alexander: god, king, man
Edmund Richardson · 2026
With my own hand: the secret life of Marie Maitland, Scotland's sixteenth-century Sappho
Ashley Douglas · 2026
The man who walked out of the sun: a lifetime of summers with Garry Sobers
Duncan Hamilton · 2026
The traveller: the revolutionary life of George Forster and his search for humanity
Andrea Wulf · 2026
Stolen revolution: betrayal and hope in modern Iran
Yeganeh Torbati · 2026
The generals: 69 generals, 69 authors, 69 lessons in history
Iain Dale · 2026
A Vast Horizon: Artists and Lovers, Freedom and War
Anna Thomasson · 2026
Betrayal: Power, Deceit and the Fight for the Future of the Royal Family
Tom Bower · 2026