André de Longjumeau
André de Longjumeau (Eng. Andrew of Longjumeau, † after 1253 ) was a Dominican and traveler Mongols in the 13th century.
Life
Longjumeau apparently belonged to the court administration of King Louis IX. of to France, for which he in 1238 the crown of thorns that was the Latin Emperor Baldwin II bought from Konstantin Opel transported together with the brother Jacob to France.
At the Council of Lyons Longjumeau was entrusted to the seat of power of the Great Khan of the Mongols in the spring of 1245 by Pope Innocent IV will lead a delegation trip to Asia. He traveled through Acre, Antioch and Aleppo to Mesopotamia and came seventeen days traveling east of Nineveh - Mosul, near Tabriz, on a Mongolian army. Twenty days he was there, hosted by Nestorian monks. Longjumeau moving one of them, a certain Simeon, to write a letter to the pope in which Simeon " Rabban Ata " (Monk 's father) was called and awarded a papal primacy over the Eastern Church. Approximately one and a half years Longjumeau remained in Persia, where he learned the local language, among other things and did not return until the spring of 1247 returned to Lyon.
Because of his knowledge of the local customs of the Orient Longjumeau was on the part of King Louis IX. asked to participate in the sixth crusade. During the wintering of the crusade army in Cyprus for the year 1249 were two envoys of a Mongolian military leader in King Louis IX in December 1248. representations, which suggested to him a benevolent courtesy of the Great Khan Güyük towards Christianity. Thus, they confirmed a few months earlier arrivals letter of the Armenian nobles Sempad. Now it has been entrusted by the King of Longjumeau with a trip to the court of the Great Khan, advance with the order, the conversion of the Great Khan and to negotiate an alliance between Christians and Mongols to the common struggle against the Saracens. For this purpose, a piece of the " True Cross " and a red tent chapel was given to him as a gift for the Great Khan along for the ride.
In the company of two royal officers, two secular priest and two Dominican friars Longjumeau departed on December 25, 1249 by Cyprus. Again about Antioch, he traveled to Persia, where he met the generals Iltschikadai, he already knew from his first voyage. From its bearing from Longjumeau reimbursed by means of a letter no longer extant a first report to King Louis. After a largely trouble-free journey across the Talas northeast of Tashkent, where he met, among others, German prisoners of Mongols, he finally reached the big yurt camp of the Mongols, who are just at the Alakol Lake, on the border of present-day Russian-Chinese Altai, gathered. There Longjumeau but could only hear the death of Güyük, who now held kuriltai to elect a new Great Khan was ruled by the ruler widow Ogul Qaimish. This was from an alliance between Christians and Mongols do not know anything and was instead on Longjumeau, King Louis IX. invite them to submission and to pay tribute to the Mongols. In case of disobedience, the regent threatened with the destruction of the reign of Louis and his people.
Longjumeau reached the court of King Louis IX in April 1251. in Caesarea, who had very regretted the failed mission in the words of Joinville. However Lonjumeau could the king also report on the choice of the new Great Khan Mongke, who was inclined towards Christianity and connected family with the Prester John. He also reported that the nomadic community of the Mongols would have about eight hundred chapels on wheels. King Louis IX. therefore sent the Franciscan William of Rubruk to a recent mission in the vast expanses of Asia in the hope of still being able to reach an alliance with the Mongols.
André de Lonjumeau himself died probably shortly after 1253 in Palestine in mission activities. King Louis IX. returned in 1254 to France. The mission Rubruks was as much a political as well as religious failure. Rubruk but could clean up Christianity tolerant open-minded Mongol power in his report to the prompt in the West tale of a.