1. Chapter 14 Introduction
The Last Great Nomadic Challenge: From Chinggis Khan to Timur
The Mongols were the most formidable nomadic challenge to the sedentary civilizations since the 1st century, and returned to center stage during the 13th century
Mongols are portrayed as destructive conquerors, but generally people lived in peace, enjoyed religious tolerance, and had a unified law code.
Mongol territory was a bridge between civilization of the East, and ideas moving west.
Although the empire was divided between Chinggis Khan’s son’s after his death, the four khanates or kingdoms which emerged dominated Asia for the next 150 years.

2. The Mongol Empire of Chinggis Khan
The basic unit of social organization was the tribe, divided into kin-related clans
The Mongols were nomadic herders of goats and sheep who lived off the products of their animals
Boys and girls learned how to ride as soon as they could walk
Leaders were elected free men, and men held dominant position in leadership, and gained position through showing courage
Women held considerable influence within family

3. The Making of a Great Warrior: The Early Career of Chinggis Khan
Mongol people had established kingdoms in north China(4th and 10th centuries)
Kabul Khan defeated Qin army but Mongol organization declined after his death
His great grandson, Chinggis Khan (Temujin) disputed Mongol leadership at the end of the 12th century, and gained strength through alliances with more powerful groups.
After defeating his rivals, in a meeting of all the Mongol chieftains, or kuriltai, he was elected supreme ruler (Khagan) of all Mongol tribes in 1206

4. b) Building the Mongol War Machine
Mongol males were trained from youth to ride, hunt, and fight, their powerful short bows fired from horseback were devastating weapons.
The Mongol forces were divided into armies made up of basic fighting units called tumens, each consisting of 10,000 warriors.
The speed and mobility of the Mongol armies made them the worlds best, included both heavy and light cavalry
Harsh discipline, brought punishment and rewards for conduct.
Spies were employed which secured accurate information for campaigns , and new weapons included gunpowder and cannons, were used.
Mongol values were buttressed by a formal code that dictated execution of a warrior that deserted his unit, but Chinggis Khan’s generosity to brave foes was also legendary.

5. c) Conquest: The Mongol Empire under Chinggis Khan
Chinggis Khan set out to conquer the known world
They defeated China’s Tangut kingdom of Xia Xi, then next attacked the Jin Empire.
The Mongols developed new tactics for capturing urban centers, cities that resisted were destroyed and their in habitants were killed or made slaves
Cities that submitted were required to pay tribute, ensuring safety

6. d) First Assault on the Islamic World: Conquest in China
After China the Mongols moved westward. Chinggis Khan dispatched an envoy to demand submission of Muhammad Shah II, the Turkic ruler of the Khwarazam Empire to the west. Outraged by the audacity of the still little known Mongol commander, Muhammad had some of his envoy killed and others sent back with their head shaved. These insults meant war, and the Khwarazam were overwhelmed by the siege tactics and weapons of the Mongols.
Victory over Khwarazam brought many Turkish horseman into Chinggis Khan’s army
Next he defeated the Xi Xia and Jin empire in China, where he spent the rest of his life until he died (1227)
At the time of his death the Mongol empire stretched from Persia to the North China Sea.

7. e) Life Under the Mongol Imperium
The Mongols were both fearsome warriors and tolerant rulers. Once a conquered people had been subdued, Chinggis took a keen interest in their arts and learning, and he established a new capital city at Karakorum where he summoned the wise and cleaver from all parts of his empire.
Chinggis Khan was open to new ideas and wanted a peaceful empire, hiring talented individuals from all over the empire
Chinggis followed shamistic Mongol beliefs but tolerated all other religions, borrowing from his knowledge of Muslim and Chinese bureaucrats to shape his administrative structure
A script was devised for the Mongolian language, and a legal code helped settle disputes
Mongol conquests brought peace to much of Asia, and in urban centers artisans and scholars worked freely

8. f) The Death of Chinggis Khan and the Division of the Empire
In 1226 Chinggis turned east to complete his conquest of China, after routed the much larger Tangut army and overrunning the kingdom of Xi Xia, he fell ill from an injury.
Before he died in 1227, he divided the vast territories among his three sons and Batu, a grandson, warning them about the dangers of quarreling among themselves over the spoils of the empire.
His third son (Ogedei), a talented diplomat, was chosen as grand khan.
He presided over further Mongol conquests for the next decade

9. II) The Mongol Drive to the West
Russia and Europe were added to the Mongols’ agenda for world conquest, and subjugating these regions became the project of the armies of the Golden Horde, which drove westward .
Kiev was in decline by the 13th century, and Russia was unable to unite before the Mongols (called Tatars by Russians)
Chinggis Khan’s grandson, Batu, defeated the Russian armies one by one, resisting armies were razed
Kiev was taken by 1240 and the conquest of Russia was complete, and Novgorod was spared when its ruler, Alexander Nevskii, peacefully submitted

10. a) Russia in Bondage
The Russians became vassals of the khan of the Golden Horde, a domination which lasted for 250 years
Peasants had to meet the demands from both their own princes and the Mongols, and many sought protection by becoming serfs, changing the Russian social structure until the 19th century
Some cities like Moscow benefited from Mongol rule by increased trade, but when the Golden Hordes power weakened, it led the resistance
The Mongols were defeated at the Battle of Kulikova (1380) and later attacks by Timur broke their hold on Russia
Although Mongols remained active in the region through much of the 15th century, Moscow became the center of political power in Russia
The Mongols influenced Russian military and political organization, but most significantly isolated them from developments in Western Europe

11. b) Mongol Incursions and the Retreat from Europe
Christians in western Europe were initially pleased with Mongol success against Islam many thinking the Mongol khan was Prester John, a mythical Christian monarch.
As Mongols continued moving westward, they became more concerned
With the death of Ogedei and the resulting struggle for power, Batu was forced to withdraw
The Mongols did not return to Europe, satisfied with their rich conquests in Asia and the Middle East

12. c) The Mongol Assault on the Islamic Heartland
The Mongols moved westward under Hulegu, Chinggis’ grandson in 1258 to take Bagdad, Mesopotamia and North Africa
With the fall of the Abbasid dynasty, Islam lost its central authority and much of its civilization was devastated
A major victory over the Seljuk Turks (1243) opened up Asia Minor to conquest by the Ottoman Turks
The Mamluks of Egypt and their commander Baibars, finally defeated the Mongols (1260). Ironically Baibars had been enslaved earlier by the Mongols but was sold into Egypt where he rose to power through military service and getting the Christians to cooperate in defeating the Mongols. Hulegu, threatened by his cousin Berke, the new khan of the Golden Horde who had converted to Islam, did not resume his campaign and settle for the kingdom he already ruled.

13. III) The Mongol Interlude in Chinese History
Kubilai Khan, another grandson, moved against the Song in China and by 1279 the conquest of China had been completed and his dynasty became the Yuan.
Kubilai forbid the Chinese from learning Mongol script, intermarriage was forbidden, and he refused to reestablish exams for civil service.
Despite restrictions, Kubilai was fascinated with Chinese civilization and adopted much of their culture into his court. He built his capital at Tatu in the north, a site occupied by previous dynasties, put the empire on the Chinese calendar, and introduced Chinese rituals and music into his own court.
A new social structure emerged, Mongols at the top, nomadic and Islamic allies were next, then north Chinese, finally ethnic Chinese and peoples of the south.

14. a) Gender Roles and the Convergence of Mongol and Chinese Culture
Mongol women remained aloof from Confucian Chinese culture, refusing to accept foot binding and retaining property rights and control of the household, as well as freedom of movement.
Some Mongol women hunted and went to war.
Chabi, wife of Kubilai, was especially influential; convincing him that harsh treatment of survivors was counter productive and promoting Buddhists interest in government.
The Mongol period in China was too brief and their numbers too small to change Confucian patterns and freedom of women declined after Kubilai

15. b) Mongol Tolerance and Foreign Cultural Influence
The Mongol rulers were open to outside ideas and drew scholars, artists, and office seekers from many regions
Muslims were among the most favored and they brought much new knowledge into the Chinese world
Kubilai welcomed foreign visitors, the most famous was the Venetian Marco Polo
He was interested in all religions, and Buddhists, Nestorian and Latin Christians, Daoists and Muslims were all present at court

16. c) Social Policies and Scholar-Gentry Resistance
The scholar-gentry resented the Mongols refusal to reinstate the examination system, and regarded them as uncouth barbarians
Artisans and merchants prospered under Mongol rule, and their patronage stimulated urban life including popular entertainment, especially musical dramas. Perhaps the most famous Chinese dramatic work, The Romance of the West Chambers, was written in the Yuan period. Actors and actresses, who had long been relegated to the despised status of “mean people” by the scholar-gentry, achieved celebrity and social esteem.
Peasantry land was protected and their tax and labor burdens lessened, and plans for establishing elementary education at the village level were formulated

17. d) The Fall of the House of Yuan
The Yuan dynasty was weakening by the time of Kubilai death, as Song loyalists revolted in the south and Mongol forces were defeated in Vietnam and Java
Kubilai’s successors were weak and their administration was corrupt. Secret religious sects, claiming to have magical powers, such as the White Lotus Society, were dedicated to overthrowing the dynasty.
The scholar-gentry called on the peasants, suffering from famines, to drive out the barbarians and the dynasty was too weak to control (1350)
Many Mongols returned to central Asia as a peasant leader, Ju Yuanzhang, triumphed and founded the Ming dynasty

18. e) In depth: The Eclipse of the Nomadic War Machine
The incursions of small numbers of militarily skilled nomads into civilized cores had a major effect on world history
They caused social upheavals as civilizations were destroyed and populations moved, and the Mongol and Timurid invasions were the high point of nomadic success
The Black Death gave sedentary people numerical superiority, and with the Industrial Revolution they became better able to centralize political power and mobilize resources for developing superior military organization

19. f) Aftershock: The Brief Ride of Timur
Just when the people of Eurasia began to recover from the effects of the Mongol expansion, a new leader, Turk Timur-i-Lang brought new nomadic expansion
Timur, a highly cultured individual from a noble clan, moved to conquest Persia, the Fertile Crescent, India, and southern Russia
Timur outdid the Mongols in their ferocity for barbaric destruction of conquered land.
Unlike the Mongols, his rule did not increase trade, and after his death in 1405, the empire fell apart

20. g) Global Connections: The Mongol Linkages
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The legacy of the Mongols is both complex and durable
They brought the Muslim and European worlds new military knowledge, especially in the use of gunpowder
Trade and cultural contact became much easier, as the trading empires by Venetians and Genoese provided experience useful for later European expansion
An unintended consequence was the transmitting of the fleas carrying the bubonic plague (black death) from China to central Asia to the Middle East to Europe
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