Atlas of Battles

battle, major, medieval

Tumu Crisis

Tumu Crisis was a battle fought on 1 September 1449 at Huailai County, in what is now China. The recorded result: Mongol victory. Recorded strength: 20,000 against Unknown, but often estimated to be around 500,000.

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Tumu Fortress Crisis of Ming Dynasty
Tumu Fortress Crisis of Ming Dynasty. SY, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
Fought1 September 1449
WhereHuailai County, China40.383N, 115.600E
OutcomeMongol victory
BelligerentsOirat Mongols; Eastern Mongols; UriankhaiagainstMing dynasty

Record

Date1 September 1449
PlaceHuailai County, China
40.383N, 115.600E
KindBattle, medieval
Strength20,000Unknown, but often estimated to be around 500,000
Commanders
  • Esen Taishi
  • Taisun Khan
  • Emperor Yingzong of Ming
  • Wang Zhen (eunuch)
Tumu CrisisTumu CrisisMarco Polo Bridge incidentSiege of ZhongduSiege of the International LegationsBattle of PekingBattle of Gaoliang RiverMarco Polo Bridge incidentSiege of ZhongduZhangjiakouLangfangChangpingZhuozhouXuanhuaShangdu100 km40.383N, 115.600E
The recorded site, with the nearest other engagements in the atlas. Present-day coastlines, rivers and borders; towns from Natural Earth.

The ground today

Relief of the ground around the site of Tumu Crisis
Relief within about 10.0 km of the site, contours every 50 m. Copernicus DEM GLO-30, ESA.
Satellite view of the site of Tumu Crisis today
The same ground from Sentinel-2 on 2024-10-08. Contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data 2024.

The recorded site stands at about 585 m; within 10.0 km the ground runs from 474 to 1,378 m, 904 m of relief, mountainous country and today it is 55% grassland, 26% cropland, 14% built-up.

grassland: 55%cropland: 26%built-up: 14%bare ground: 2%tree cover: 2%grassland 55%cropland 26%built-up 14%bare ground 2%tree cover 2%
west to east, 10.0 km523 to 654 mnorth to south, 10.0 km507 to 873 m
Elevation from the Copernicus DEM GLO-30 (ESA, Airbus); land cover from ESA WorldCover 2021 (CC BY 4.0), within about 5 km of the recorded site. Computed, not recorded.

Nearest engagements

Elsewhere in 1449

Tumu Crisis is one of 720 engagements of the 15th century in the atlas and one of 339 in present-day People's Republic of China.

Sources

Identity, coordinates, dates and the war from Wikidata Q1196236, released under CC0. Result, belligerents, commanders, strength and casualties from the infobox of the English Wikipedia article Tumu Crisis, revision 1374653708, read 2026-11-14, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0; the article's text is not reproduced here. Present-day country and state from Natural Earth. Dates before 1582 follow the Julian calendar as recorded.