Marco Polo in Western China

Course Site—Static

Bangala

Is Marco Polo’s Account of Bangala Reliable?

 

How Is Bangala Described

The “Bangala” in Marco Polo’s text is the ancient Bengal. His description of Bangala is short and vague, about less than one page in The Description of The World. He mainly says that in 1290, the Great Khan hadn’t conquered the province of Bangala even though he was trying to conquer it. Although it was “within the borders of India”, Indians went there and bought products from the Bangala people. From this sentence, we understand that Marco Polo thinks Bangala is an Indo-China country.1 Last but not least, he lists the resources that Bangala had in general like big oxens and spices. He summarizes the province of Bangala as not worth mentioning without introducing specific places.2

 

Arguments From Different Scholars 

Due to his insufficient description and the errors he made, the description of Bangala is what Marco Polo heard from Yun-nan. However, different scholars have different opinions on where he really means by talking about “Bangala.” Henry Yule, in his book The Book of Ser Marco Polo, suggests that Marco Polo mixed up what he heard about Pegu in Yun-nan from someone who had “gone there by sea”.3 Charignon is even more extreme in denying Marco Polo’s credibility on Bangala. He “derives all mentions of <Bangala> in Polo <Pagan> or from <Mangala> are valueless.” 4  On the other hand, some scholars, like Prof. Benedetto and Pelliot, believe that the content Marco Polo describes in <Bangala> is truly Bengal instead of Pegu.5

 

Errors in Marco Polo’s Description

Here I would like to start my discussion on some obvious errors in Marco Polo’s description. In the chapter <Mien>, Marco Polo introduces Bangala as well. He says the king of Mien was also the king of Bangala, and Qubilai took both the Kingdom of Mien and Bangala away. However, in the chapter <Bangala> later, Marco Polo doesn’t mention the Kingdom of Mien and how the Bangala king also owns the territory of Mien. Furthermore, in this context, he says Qubilai hadn’t conquered Bangala yet, even though he heard the plan about the conquest of Bangala. However, Henry Yule points out that there is “no notice of an attempt by Kubilai to conquer Bengal” in history.6 The only attempt of the Mongol is that the king of Dahli tried against Bangala in 1244, but it was finally defeated by the local officers in Bangala.7 On the other hand, the explanation of the contradiction of the description of the Bangala king and the war between Mongol and Bangala can be somehow explained by the assumption that Marco Polo confounded Bangala with Pegu. 

 

Did Marco Polo Confound Bangala With Pegu?

Now I would like to discuss the criticism that Marco Polo confounded the province of Bangala with the city Pegu. Here is what chapter of the military relationship between the Mien and Bangala’s king and the Great Khan says. The Great Khan sent forces to protect Vochan (Uncian), which is Baoshan in southwestern Dali now. Before the Great Khan took the kingdom of Mien and Bangala, the king of Bangala wanted to counter the Khan with the greatest army, so the Khan would be very sorry to send an army again. Then, the king marched all the way to Vochan in the territory of Zarzardan without any encounter that was worth mentioning. Yule, the translator of this text, argues that this story was actually subject to “Burmese monarchy.” 

Besides the contradiction of this marching event, Marco Polo described, there is more evidence proving the Bangala he described is actually Pegu. First, Yule points out that the relationship between Bangala and Yule is very close. There had been or would have been marriages between those two kingdoms. Besides the tolerable relationship between Burma and Bengal, the “dynasty then reigning in Burma was descended from a Bangal stock.” Sir Aruthur Phayre explains the reason why the King of Burma (where Pegu is located) is misunderstood. He says that after “the conquest of Bangala by Mehomedans in the 13th century,” the king of Burma would be supposed to have the title of “kings of Bengal.” Even though there are no historical documents that record such a title, we can infer such an account of the king from the events. Phayre suggests the evidence that “The claim to Bengal was asserted by the kings of Burma long after years,” trying to address the argument that Burma’s king also being Bangala’s king.8 Now knowing that Burma king might arrogate the title “the king of Bangala”, it is understandable that Marco Polo treated Bangala as Pegu because the relationship between those countries is close. Even though the subject of Marco Polo’s description is probably wrong, the marching event is basically accurate. 

 

Is Bangala Bengal?

Pelliot, on the other hand, believes that the place “Bangala” Marco Polo described is, indeed, Bengal. He suggests we can assume the Bangala described in the chapter <the battle between the Great Khan and the Kingdom of the Mien and Bangala> might have been altered from other names since the battle is a “separate narrative somewhat clumsily inserted in the original dictation of the following chapters.”9 It is very likely that Marco Polo heard the war from others and confounded the subject of the war. However, despite the description of this war, Pelliot defends that Marco Polo’s description in the chapter <Bangala> is accurate and talking about Bengal exactly. In fact, regarding <Bangala> alone, Yule also indicates that the description actually applies to Bengal instead of Pegu. 

 

Did Marco Polo Went To Bangala?

There has been a land route between Bangala and Yun-nan (through Burma) since the Christian era, so it is very common for Marco Polo to hear about Bangala in Yun-nan. Therefore, Marco Polo is more actually more likely to hear the description of Bangala from land travelers rather than what Yule suggests, sea travelers. Regarding the connection between the Kingdom of Bangala and Yun-nan, we can notice another mistake Marco Polo made. He knows that the route to Bangala is toward India, but he still classifies Bangala as an Indo-China country, like Zardandan and Caugigu. In fact, from such a mistake Marco Polo made, we can infer that Marco Polo didn’t reach any port of Bangala. It is very unlikely for him to go to the Indian sea due to a mission according to the Prologue, and it is certainly impossible for him to reach Bangala from the Yun-nan side since he is wrong about the basic location of Bangala.  

 

The Scanty Description of Bangala is Mostly Accurate

At the end of <Bangala>, Marco Polo briefly mentions the resources of Bangala, including military forces, natural resources, and human resources. The description is short and general, without specific terms, places, or numbers being explained. From such a general description, we can also infer that Marco Polo didn’t go to Bangala, or he would at least elaborate on something, rather than saying that “nothing is worth mentioning.” For example, he could introduce what specific spices they have instead of saying that “they have expensive spices.” We should realize that Bangala is an Indian country, so lots of practices and aspects could differ from China greatly. However, he failed to mention a single point. Admittedly, what he mentions, though being scanty, is accurate. Yule compares different historical descriptions of oxen to examine the accountability of Marco Polo’s description of oxen being as “big as elephants.” He acknowledges that Marco Polo’s description might be true back in that time, even though animals in that height are rarely seen in Bengal nowadays.10

 

Conclusion

Marco Polo’s description of <Bangala> is generally right. However, his description is what he heard from land travelers in Yun-nan since he didn’t even know the exact location of Bangala. He regarded Bangala as an Indo-China region while it is actually a part of India. Regarding the war between <the Great Khan and the Kingdom of Bangala and Mien>, Marco Polo might confound Bangala with Pegu, since the subject of the marching event in this chapter is subjected to Burma, where Pegu is located. Marco Polo might mix this event up with what he heard about Bangala since it is probable that the king of Burma arrogated the title of “the king of Bangala.” 

 

 

Footnotes

  1. Here are some Indo-Chinese regions like Zarzardan, Mien, Caugigu. They are also considered as the border of China.
  2. This is the summary of the chapter <Bangala> in The Description of The World.
  3. Yule, Vol. 2, 99. 
  4. Charignon, Vol. 2, 260.
  5. Benedetto, 438.
  6. Yule, Vol. 2, chapter 55. 
  7. See a note in Mr. Thomas’s Pathan Kings of Dehli, p. 121.
  8. Note by Sir Arthur Phayre; see also his paper in J.A.S.B. vol. XXXVII. part I.
  9. Pelliot, Notes on Marco Polo, vol I. 73-74.
  10. J.A.S.B., XVI. 710.

 

 

Works Cited

  1. Polo, Marco. The Description of the World, Hackett Publishing Company, Incorporated, 2016. ProQuest Ebook Central, https://ebookcentral-proquest-com.proxy.library.nyu.edu/lib/nyulibrary-ebooks/detail.action?docID=4426656. 
  2. Yule, Henry, The Book of Ser Marco Polo (ed. Cordier), London, 1921, 2 vol. 
  3. Charignon, A.J.H., Le Livie de Marco Polo, Pekin, 1924-1926, 3 vol.
  4. Benedetto, L.F., Il Libro di Messer Macro Polo, cittadino di Venezia detto Millione ecc., Milano-Roma, 1932.
  5. Thomas, Edward. “The Pathan Kings of Dehli, Edward Thomas.” The Pathan Kings of Dehli, mail.ketabton.com/book/829. 
  6. Paul Pelliot , Notes on Marco Polo , Vol.2. pp. 169-181. Paris : Impri merie nationale, 1963. 2 Vol.