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| Kadan | |
|---|---|
 The Hungarian KingBéla IV on the flight from the Mongols under Qadan | |
| House | House of Ögedei |
| Dynasty | Borjigin |
| Father | Ögedei Khan |
| Mother | Ergene |
Kadan (alsoQadan) was the son of the secondGreat Khan of the MongolsÖgedei and a concubine. He was the grandson ofGenghis Khan and the brother ofGüyük Khan. During theMongol invasion of Europe, Kadan, along with his cousinBaidar (son ofChagatai Khan) andOrda Khan (the eldest brother ofBatu Khan and khan of theWhite Horde), led the Mongoldiversionary force that attacked Poland, while the main Mongol force struck theKingdom of Hungary.
He was born fromErgene, Ögedei Khan's concubine. His only sibling from both his father and mother's side isMelig. In early 1241, Kadan's forces sacked the Polish towns ofLublin,Zawichost andSandomierz. Kadan then attackedMasovia, while Baidar burned the evacuated Polish capital,Kraków and thenBytom, and Orda Khan assaulted the southwestern border ofLithuania. The three leaders were then to attack theSilesian capitalWrocław. Baidar began to besiege the town, but marched north with Kadan and Orda toLegnica to defeat the forces ofHenry II the Pious, Duke of Silesia and High Duke of Poland, before he could join KingWenceslaus I of Bohemia. After defeating some forces ofKonrad I of Masovia, Kadan's forces joined with Baidar's and Orda's at Legnica. The Christian army was crushed in the ensuingBattle of Legnica of 9 April 1241.
Mongol casualties were heavier than expected in the battle, however, and Kadan was reluctant to directly attack Wenceslaus' Bohemian forces. Kadan and Baidar skirmished against the Bohemians and were able to prevent the Bohemian king from helping KingBéla IV of Hungary. After raidingMoravia, the Mongol diversionary force went to Hungary.
During the winter of 1241–42, Kadan sackedBuda on the way toGyőr. While besieging Italian mercenaries defendingSzékesfehérvár, Kadan was forced to withdraw his troops after an early thaw flooded the land around the town. The Mongol prince was then sent south with onetumen to search for Béla inCroatia. Kadan first sought the Hungarian king atZagreb, which he sacked, and then pursued him intoDalmatia. While Béla hid atTrogir, Mongols under the leadership of Kadan, in March 1242 atKlis Fortress in Croatia, experienced their first European military failure, while in pursuit for the head of Béla IV of Hungary.[1] Kadan had his Hungarian prisoners executed as supplies began to run out. To the king's surprise, Kadan headed south past Trogir towardDubrovnik (Ragusa). While he was nearingScutari, Kadan heard of the death of his father, Ögedei Khan. Kadan's raids throughBulgaria on his retreat from Central Europe induced the youngKaliman I of Bulgaria to pay tribute and acceptBatu Khan as his liege.
In 1251 Kadan accepted the election ofMöngke Khan as Khagan. According toRené Grousset, he probably helped the latter to captureEljigidei, the chief general of Güyük. Kadan was loyal toKublai Khan and supported his army againstAriq Böke in theToluid Civil War. He commanded a Mongol army at the first engagement with Ariq Böke and killed his general Alandar.
In many medieval sources, Kadan was mistranslated by chroniclers asKaidu, leading to confusion about who participated in the European campaign.[2] He is also confused with another brother,Köden, who was influential inTibet.[citation needed]
(Ögedei Khan ＞窩闊台,اوگتاى قاآن/Ūgtāī Qā'ān)