Life:
- Family: Not much is known about Kublai's family, besides the fact that he had multiple wives, children, and his grandfather was the world renown Genghis Khan. It is also known that while he was dying, but this favorite wife and son were killed. Kublai's father had died when he was just 17, he had been his father's favorite as well as his grandfather's. Kublai had three brothers, Ariq, Mongke, and Hulegu.
- Lifestyle: Kublai lived in an extravagant palace. He ate and drank freely, causing him to become obese by the end of his life when he died at the age of 80 from gout. His palace still stands in Beijing today, but is now a museum.
"You
must
know
that
it
is
the
greatest
palace
that
ever
was.
...
The
roof
is
very
lofty,
and
the
walls
of
the
Palace
are
all
covered
with
gold
and
silver.
They
are
also
adorned
with
representations
of
dragons
[sculptured
and
gilt],
beasts
and
birds,
knights
and
idols,
and
sundry
other
subjects.
And
on
the
ceiling
too
you
see
nothing
but
gold
and
silver
and
painting.
[On
each
of
the
four
sides
there
is
a
great
marble
staircase
leading
to
the
top
of
the
marble
wall,
and
forming
the
approach
to
the
palace.]"
-The Book of Ser Marco Polo