Chapter 14
The Last Great Nomadic
Challenges: From Chinggis Khan
to Timur
Ms. Ford
University High School
AP World History
The Mongol Empire of Chinggis
Khan
• Mongols were a nomadic society
– Drove herds of goats and sheep
– Ate meat and milk from herded animals
– Traded hides and dairy products for jewelry,
weapons and cloth
• Mongol society divided into tribes
– Divided into kin-related clans
– Clans and tribes combined during war
• Leaders were elected by free men
The Mongol Empire of Chinggis
Khan
• 12th Century- Kabul Khan led alliance that
defended Mongols against the Qin in China
• Timujin (Chinggis Khan) led Mongols after his
father was poisoned by rival nomadic group
• Timujin was taken prisoner by a rival tribe in
1182 CE but escaped
• Joined the camp of a Mongol chieftan
• Won reputation of being a warrior and military
leader
• In 1206 CE, was elected khagan, leader of the
Mongol tribes
The Mongol Empire of Chinggis
Khan
• Warriors in Mongol Tribes
– Calvary only, short bows
• Forces were divided into tumens, or
fighting units of 10,000 men
• Used messenger force to carry urgent
messages
• Bravery- a must
• Used spies and informants to create maps
of areas they were going to invade
The Mongol Empire of Chinggis
Khan
• 1207 CE- first military campaign and
defeated Tangut kingdom of Xi Xia
– Xi Xia ruler submitted to Khan
– Attacked Jin Empire
– Was difficult to overtake, but used captured
Chinese to create new weapons
• Captured artisans, scholars
• Killed or sold others into slavery
• Devastated towns they conquered
Map on page 304
The Mongol Empire of Chinggis
Khan
• Attacked and took over the Kara Khitai
Empire by 1219 CE
• Conquered Khwarazm Empire in 1219 CE
– Modern day Iran, Turkimenistan, Afghanistan
The Mongol Empire of Chinggis
Khan
• Established capital at Karakorum
• All religions tolerated by Mongols
• Script was devised for Mongolian
language
• Mongol conquests brought peace to some
regions
• Secure trade routes
The Mongol Empire of Chinggis
Khan
• 1226 CE- Khan took an army of 180,000
to complete conquest of China
• Conquered Xi Xia, but Chinggis Khan dies
in battle in August 1227 CE
• Chinggis Khan’s body was taken back to
Karakorum for burial
• Elected Ogedei to succeed Chinggis
• Ogedei directed troops for more
conquests
The Mongol Drive to the West
• After Chinggis Khan’s death, the Mongol empire was
divided into four khanates
– Golden Horde Empire, Djagatai Empire, Ilkhan Empire, Empire
of Kubilai Khan
• The Golden Horde was led by Chinggis Khan’s
grandson Batu
– Led invasion of Russia, wanted to press into Europe
• Russia was divided into many little kingdoms and they
couldn’t defend against invaders
• From 1237-1238 CE, Mongol forces invaded Russia and
took many Russian cities
• Returned in 1240 CE and took Kiev
The Mongol Drive to the West
• Moscow was gradually rebuilt
• As Moscow grew in strength, the Golden
Horde declined
• Religious toleration for Orthodox church
• 1380 CE- Battle of Kulikova, Russian
forces defeat Golden Horde
• Russia was cut off from European
influence, but were protected from attacks
The Mongol Drive to the West
• Conquest of Europe was interrupted by
the death of khagan Ogedei
• Hulegu, ruler of the Ilkhan Empire,
captured Baghdad in 1258 CE
– Killed Abbasid caliph
• Mongols defeated by Mamluks of Egypt in
1260 CE
• Hulegu was forced to reconsider his plan
to conquer the entire Muslim world
The Mongol Interlude in Chinese
History
• Conquered the Xi Xia and Jin Empires, turned
toward the Song Dynasty
• Kubilai Khan led forces against Song
• 1235-1279 CE- Mongols fought against the
Chinese
• Kubilai ruled most of China by 1271 CE
• Set up Yuan Dynasty in 1279 CE
• Kubilai passed many laws to make distinction
between Mongol and Chinese
• Built capital at Tatu (present day Beijing)
The Mongol Interlude in Chinese
History
• Mongol women did not practice Chinese
customs
• Social Standing in Yuan Dynasty
– Mongols
– Muslim and Asian nomadic allies
– north Chinese
– Ethnic Chinese from north and south
– Minority Chinese from the south
The Mongol Interlude in Chinese
History
• Kubilai Khan welcomed the Polo’s from Venice
• Marco Polo lived and served as an administrator
for 17 years
• Most Chinese (ethnic Chinese) thought Kubilai
Khan was a barbarian and did not reconcile to
Mongol rule
• Merchants prospered
• Developed a navy
• Kubilai sought to reduce peasant tax, forced
labor
• Sought to establish elementary schools in
villages
The Mongol Interlude in Chinese
History
• The fall of Yuan China
–
–
–
–
Song loyalists revolted in the South
Successors lacked capacity for leadership
Famine
Corruption
• Rising taxes for peasants, forced labor
• White Lotus Society- secret religious sect,
dedicated to overthrowing government
• Fighting, chaos
• Mongols escaped to central Asia
• Ju Yuanzhang- founded the Ming Dynasty
The Mongol Interlude in Chinese
History
• Timur-i Lang
(Timur the Lame)
was a nomadic
Turk
• Moved armies from
Samarkand to
Persia,
Mesopotamia,
India and S.
Russia
• Barbaric
destruction
• Timurid Empire
• Ended in 1405