1. Nomadic Empires and Eurasian Integration
Chapter 17
Nomadic Empires and Eurasian Integration

2. Nomadic Economy and Society
Rainfall in central Asia too little to support large-scale agriculture
Pastoralists-kept herds of animals: horses, sheep, goats, cattle and camels
Animal herding
Food
Clothing
Shelter (yurts)
Migratory patterns to follow pastureland
Frequent movement necessary to keep animals fed
Small-scale farming, rudimentary artisanry
Few concentrations of people-oases

3. Nomads in Turkmenistan

4. Nomadic Economy
Trade links between nomadic and settled peoples begin during the classical era
Nomads needed agricultural products and manufactured goods from settled societies
Nomads engage in long-distance travel
Experts on caravan routes-knowledge of vast expanses of central Asian steppe
Turkish people especially involved during postclassical period trade

5. Nomadic Society Governance clan-based
Charismatic individuals become nobles, occasionally assert authority
Unusually fluid status for nobility
Hereditary, but could be lost through incompetence
Advancement for meritorious non-nobles

6. Gender Relations
Male dominated, but with more respect afforded to women as compared to permanent agricultural societies
Women wielded considerable influence
Advisors
Cultivators and herders when men were away
Combat Skills: Horse Riding and Archery
Occasionally regents or rulers

7. Nomadic Religion Shamans center of pagan worship for Turkish people
When trading, Turkish peoples develop interests in and convert to Buddhism, Nestorian Christianity, Islam and Manichaeism from sixth century C.E.
Turkish script developed, partially to record religious teachings
Over the longer term most Turks converted to Islam (starting in tenth century) due to Abbasid influence
First major conversion-Saljuq Turks
Ally with Abbasids and eventually control the caliphate

8. Military Organization
Large confederations of nomadic peoples led under a khan
Authority extended through tribal elders
Exceptionally strong cavalries
Mobility
Speed

9. Turkish Empires and Their Neighbors, ca. 1210 C.E.

10. Saljuq Turks and the Abbasid Empire
Eighth to tenth centuries, Turkish peoples on border of Abbasid empire
Service in Abbasid armies
Eventually came to dominate Abbasid caliphs
1055, caliph recognized Saljuq leader, Tughril Beg as sultan
Tughril consolidated his hold on Baghdad, then extended rule to other parts of the empire
Abbasid caliphs served as figureheads of authority; real power rested in the hands of the Turkish sultans

11. Saljuq Turks and the Byzantine Empire
1071, Saljuq Turks defeat Byzantine army at Manzikert, take emperor captive
Large-scale invasion of Anatolia
Byzantine peasants welcome invasion; view Turks as liberators
Many conversions to Islam
Instituted policies to curtail influence of Byzantine Church
Ottoman Turks conquer Constantinople in 1453

12. Ghaznavid Turks and the Sultanate of Delhi
Mahmud of Ghazni, Afghanistan, invades northern India
At first for plunder, later to rule
Northern India completely dominated by thirteenth century, Turkish Sultanate of Delhi controls region
Persecution of Buddhists, Hindus
Turkish conquests prelude to massive empire building campaign of the Mongols

13. Chinggis Khan (1167-1227) and the Making of the Mongol Empire
Temüjin, b. 1167
Father prominent warrior, poisoned ca. 1177, forced into poverty
Mastered steppe diplomacy, elimination of enemies
Brought all Mongol tribes into one confederation
1206, proclaimed Chinggis Khan (“universal ruler”)

14. Mongol Political Organization
Broke up tribal organization
Formed military units from men of different tribes
Promoted officials on basis of merit and loyalty
Established capital at Karakorum

15. Mongol Arms
Mongol population only one million (less than 1% of Chinese population)
Army numbered 100, ,000
Strengths:
Cavalry
Short bows
Rewarded enemies who surrendered, cruel to enemies who fought
Special accommodations made for those captured who were skilled

16. Mongol Conquests First unified the Mongol clans
Conquered northern China-dominated by the Jurchen
Captured Jurchen capital; renamed Khanbaliq-1215
Effectively defeated Jurchen by 1220
Conquest of Afghanistan and Persia
Khan attempts to open trade relations with the Khwarazm Shahdom (successor to the Saljuq Turks) in 1218
Representatives of Khan killed
Invaded and ravaged lands to prevent future rebellions
Large-scale, long-term devastation (qanat system destroyed)
Genghis Khan died in 1227

17. Genghis Khan as Administrator
Know for conquering ability, not for ability to govern
Ruled through military power, not through a central government
Divided conquered territories into regions that were ruled by overlords
Overlords took tribute from regions they controlled to support Mongols

18. The Spread of Mongol Power

19. The Mongol Empires, ca. 1300 C.E.

20. Khubilai Khan (r. 1264-1294) Grandson of Chinggis Khan
Khanate of the Great Kahn-China
Ruthless warrior
From Khanbaliq-launched frequent attacks against the Song Dynasty
Captured Song capital, Hangzhou in 1276
Established Yuan dynasty in 1279 (to 1368)
Religiously tolerant-supported Buddhism
Hosted Marco Polo
Unsuccessful forays into Vietnam, Cambodia, Burma, Java
Two attempted invasions of Japan (1274, 1281) turned back by typhoons (kamikaze: “divine winds”)

21. The Golden Horde Conquest of Russia, 1237-1241
Established tributary relationship
Raids into Poland, Hungary, Germany
Drawn to steppe region north of the Black Sea because of pastureland for horses-maintained large military presence there for raids into Russia
Not interested in occupying Russia because it was heavily forested
Eventually pushed out by alliance of Russian princes from Moscow in the mid-1500s

22. The Ilkhanate of Persia
Hulegu (brother of Kublai Kahn) overthrows Saljuq Turk- dominated Abbasid Caliphate
Baghdad sacked, 1258
Caliph executed
City looted
200,000 massacred
Expansion into Syria checked by Egyptian forces

23. Mongol Rule in Persia
Nomadic conquerors had to learn to rule sedentary societies
Inexperienced, lost control of most lands within a century
Persia: dependence on existing administration to deliver tax revenues
Left matters of governance to bureaucracy
Mongols and allies served in highest ranking administrative roles
Persian served in lower capacities-did the actual ruling of the ilkhanate
Eventually assimilated into Islamic lifestyle
Early Mongol leaders observed shamanism; tolerated other faiths as well
In 1295 Ilkhan Ghazan converted to Islam; most Mongols in Persia followed
Conversion instigated widespread attacks against Christians and Jews

24. Mongol Rule in China Strove to maintain strict separation from Chinese
Intermarriage forbidden
Chinese forbidden to study Mongol language
Imported administrators from other areas (especially Arabs, Persians)
Ended privilege enjoyed by Confucian scholars
Ended the Confucian educational and examination system
Yet tolerated religious freedoms
Allowed construction of: churches, temples and shrines

25. The Mongols and Buddhism
Shamanism remains popular
Lamaist school of Buddhism (Tibet) gains strength among Mongols
Large element of magic, similar to shamanism
Ingratiating attitude to Mongols: khans as incarnations of Buddha
Greatly supported in the Khanate of the Great Khan

26. The Mongols and Western Integration
Experience with long-distance trade
Protection of traveling merchants
Volume of trade across central Asia increases
Diplomatic missions and merchants protected
the great khan and other khans remained in communication with each other through diplomatic embassies
Also dealt with: Korea, Vietnam, India and western Europe
Missionary activity increases
Sufi Muslims in Central Asia
Lamaist Buddhists attract Mongol interest
Nestorian Christians in oasis towns in Central Asia and in China
Catholics in China as well
Mongol resettlement policies
Conquered people or allies of Mongols frequently removed from homes and transported to areas of need like Karakorum
Needed people with governing experience, skilled labor
Indirectly promoted Eurasian integration through putting people of diverse backgrounds in contact with one another

27. Decline of the Mongol Empire in Persia
Overspending, poor tax returns from overburdened peasantry
Ilkhan attempts to replace precious metal currency with paper in 1290s
Failure, forced to rescind
Factional fighting among Mongol leadership
Last ilkhan dies without heir in 1335, Mongol rule collapses

28. Decline of the Yuan Dynasty in China
Mongols continue Tang and Song practice of paper currency
Do not have enough bullion in reserves to back up paper currency
Public loses confidence in paper money, prices rise because of belief in lowered value of money
From 1320s, major power struggles
Bubonic plague (Black Death) spreads s
Spread through lines of trade and communication
Begins during 1330s in SW China; spread to SW Asian in Europe by 1340s
Kills half or more of infected populations
Caused depopulation and labor shortages
1368 Khanbaliq captured by rebel peasants, Mongols flee peasant rebellion

29. Surviving Mongol Khanates
Khanate of Chaghatai in central Asia
Continued threat to China
Golden Horde in Caucasus and steppes to mid-sixteenth century
Continued threat to Russia

30. Tamerlane the Conqueror (ca. 1336-1405)
As the Mongols fell from power, the Turkish people resumed their imperial conquests
In the wake of the Mongol states, power vacuums were left in Persia and China
Native Ming Dynasty is founded in China
Turkish conqueror, Timur moved into Persia
Timur the Lame: Tamerlane
United Turkish nomads in khanate of Chaghatai
Major military campaigns between Persia and Afghanistan
Established authority in wealthy cities for tax revenue
Attacked and weakened the Golden Horde
Attacked India but never incorporated it into empire
Planned to invade China but died

31. Tamerlane’s Empire, ca. 1405 C.E.

32. Tamerlane’s Heirs
Poor organization of governing structure-like Genghis Khan, a conqueror, not a governor
Appointed overlords and tribal leaders to administer conquered territories
Power struggles among sons and grandsons divide empire
Yet heavily influenced several empires:
Mughal
Safavid
Ottoman

33. The Ottoman Empire
Osman, charismatic leader who dominates part of Anatolia
Declares independence from Saljuq sultan, 1299
Attacks Byzantine empire
Followers known as Osmanlis (Ottomans)

34. Ottoman Conquests 1350s conquests in the Balkans
Local support for Ottoman invasion
Peasants unhappy with fragmented, ineffective Byzantine rule
Tamerlane defeats Ottoman forces in 1402, but Ottomans recover by 1440s
Re-launched efforts and conquering the Byzantine empire

35. The Capture of Constantinople, 1453
Sultan Mehmed II (“Mehmed the Conqueror”)
Mehmed II attacks and captures Constantinople in 1453
Renamed city Istanbul, capital of Ottoman empire
Remaining Byzantine empire falls
By 1480 the Ottomans controlled all of Greece and the Balkan region