By the middle of the 14th century, the Yuan dynasty, run by the Mongols was in decline. Like all Chinese dynasties, it was coming to an end and the evidence that the rulers had lost the Mandate of Heaven was everywhere. The government was corrupt, spent too much money on wars, and they could not collect enough taxes from the population to provide them with the services to keep them content. In addition, many Chinese leaders grew tired of being ruled by the foreign Mongols. They wanted a return to China run by Chinese. In 1368, a rebel leader named Zhu Yuanzhang (1328-1398) who led a group of bandits against the Yuan military and other rivals who wanted power, captured the capital city and declared the start of the Ming dynasty (1369-1644).