Bellringer: 3/3 and 3/4
• 1. Pick up the papers by the door.
• 2. Make the following ToC updates:
– Page:
• 3. Write down your HW:
– Read
1. BACKGROUND ON THE
MONGOLS
Background on the Mongols:
• Declared themselves
descendants of Huns who
founded the 1st steppe
empire in late Classical
era.
• Said to be called “Tartars”
especially by Westerners
(“people from hell”), though
a misnomer: The Mongols
actually conquered a tribe
called the Tartars
Background on the Mongols:
• Nomads
• Need for water leads to
conquest - Central Asia
lacked rain for agriculture
– Reasons why they
move westward
towards Europe
• Greatest Opportunity was
trade – horses!
2. IMPORTANT LEADERS OF
THE MONGOLS:
Genghis Khan
• Valued individual merit & loyalty
• Fighting wasn’t honorable; winning was.
So, used any means necessary to win
(trickery, etc.)
• Conscripted peasants
– Had a negative opinion of peasants
– Yaks = peasants
• Refugees would flee to the cities in fear,
but the cities were conquered, too
• LOVED negative PR
– Allowed & encouraged true or false
stories to be circulated in order instill
fear.
• Fought on the move: didn’t care if
chased or fled (unlike sedentary soldierfarmer), just wanted to kill the enemy.
• In 25 years, subjugated more land &
people than the Romans did in 400 years.
Genghis Khan (innovations)
• Relied on speed & surprise
• Perfected siege warfare (not
relied on defensive fortifications)
• Allocated fallen soldiers’ share of
loot to widow/children (ensured
support)
• Reorganized army so each unit
had a mix of tribal/ethnic peoples
and they had to live & fight
together
– GOAL: transcend kinship, ethnicity,
& religion.
• Religious tolerance 
• Instituted postal system for
communication
• Ordered writing system created
• Abolished torture & insisted on
rule of law (to which even the
khan was accountable)
3. TACTICS AND STRATEGIES
OF MONGOL WARFARE
Strong Equestrians and Archers
• The Mongols were oriented
around extreme mobility. They
carried their houses with them,
drank their own horse's blood
to stay alive, and could travel
up to 62 miles per day.
• They had an elaborate prioritymail-system which allowed
orders to be transmitted
rapidly across Eurasia.
• Mongol archers were deadly
and accurate
– Their arrows could kill enemies
at 200 meters (656 feet)
Mongol War Equipment
• The warrior carried a
protective shield made of light
leather armor
– which was laced with a lacquerlike substance in order to make it
more impervious to penetration
by arrows, swords and knives,
and also to protect it against
humid weather
• The Mongol warrior used to
wear Chinese silk underwear,
if it could be obtained,
because it was a very tough
substance
– If arrows are shot from a long
distance, it would not penetrate
the silk
– It would also prevent poison from
entering the bloodstream
•
•
•
During winter they wore several
layers of wool as well as heavy
leather boots with felt socks on
their feet.
The legs were often protected by
overlapping iron plates resembling
fish scales, which were sewn into
the boots.
Each warrior carried a battle axe, a
curved sword known as scimitar; a
lance, and two versions of their
most famous weapon: the Mongol
re-curved bow.
– One of the bows was light and
could be fired rapidly from
horseback, the other one was
heavier and designed for longrange use from a ground
position
Psychological Warfare
• Genghis Khan combined fake retreats with accurate archers to
pick off his European enemies.
• Genghis Khan slaughtered a few cities, in an attempt to scare
all other cities to surrender without a fight. He, being a
practical leader, also valued smarts more than bravery
– If enemies surrendered without resistance, the Mongols usually spared
their lives, and they provided generous treatment for artisans, craft
workers, and those with military skills
– In the event of resistance, the Mongols ruthlessly slaughtered whole
populations, sparing only a few, whom they sometimes drove ahead of
their armies as human shields during future conflicts
4. THE MONGOL
EMPIRE
What do the Mongols conquer?
• SHORT ANSWER: EVERYTHING
• 1206-1227
Reign of Genghis Khan
• 1211-1234
Conquest of northern China (Kublai
Khan)
• 1219-1221
Conquest of Persia
• 1237-1241
Conquest of Russia
• 1258
Capture of Baghdad
• 1264-1279
Conquest of southern China
How did the Mongols conquer so much
territory?
 Ruthless annihilation of resistance (terror
tactics).
 General benevolence when no resistance.
 Cities generally left under native governors.
 Religious tolerance important in
consolidating rule, gain support of minorities
oppressed by Muslims.
• Administration commonly more benign, less
corrupt than pre-Mongol government.
1. War with Persia 1218-1222
 War started after Persians put Mongol
emissaries to death.
 War of annihilation on both sides.
 Mongol detachment sent to pursue
Shah across his own empire.
 Following conquest of Persia, Mongol
troop circled Caspian.
 Results in Mongol victory (of course)
2. Mongols vs. Islam
 End of Abbasid caliphate control and world
dominance.
 Eventually sack Baghdad, the heart of Islamic
society/culture
 Opened path for political division within Islam
between the Ottomans and the Mamluks.
3. Invasions of Eastern Europe
3. The Mongol Drive to the West
- Russia and Europe conquered by Mongols
- Russia  now called 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)
- Genghis Khan’s grandson, Batu, defeated
the Russian armies one by one, resisting
armies were razed
- Kiev (Russia) was taken by 1240 …very few
towns survived (only Novgorod and Moscow
because they submitted)
4. Mongols in Russia
- The Russians became vassals of the khan of the Golden
Horde, a domination which lasted for 250 years
- Russian peasants had to meet demands from 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 Horde’s power
weakened, it led the resistance
- 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  did not experience the
Renaissance or Reformation
Russia under the “Golden Horde”
• Destroyed most cities & demanded high tribute.
• However, the Mongols left Russia largely alone & few Mongol
officials were there (INDIRECT rule).
– Russia had lots of independent principalities, each required to send tribute
…or else.
• Moscow (Muscovy) benefits from Mongol presence
– Grows due to postal system, financial structures, & census. Moscow became
a cultural & economic center.
• Armenians, Georgians, & Russians thought Mongols were a
punishment from God who “fetched the Tartars against us for our
sins.”
• Limited Russia’s interaction with Western Europe (e.g. Russia
was isolated from the cultural effects of the Renaissance) --a
period of cultural decay except in northern Russia.
• Lasted the longest of the all the khanates (until 1480)
Mongols in Russia
Good:
•Centralization politically
•Protected Russia from attacks
(Teutonic Knights)
Bad:
•Russia cut off from political,
economic, and intellectual
development
5. Mongols in Europe
• Mongols defeated Germans, Poles, Bulgars, &
Hungarians (whose land was most desired
because of grassy plains).
• Eastern Europe was poor compared to Chinese
& Muslim areas, so the Mongols turned away
from several areas leaving Europe to suffer the
least from the Mongol attacks
• Europe gained SO much from the advantages
of the contact through merchants & exchange
of diplomatic & religious envoys.
More Effects on Europe
• Disappointed with loot from European
invasions, Mongols allowed Italian
merchants in Crimea to take many of
their European prisoners to sell as
slaves (esp. to Egypt) in exchange for
large amounts of trade goods.
• This began a long & profitable
relationship between Mongols &
merchants of Venice & Genoa who
set up trading posts in Black Sea:
Italians supplied Mongols with
manufactured goods in return for the
right to sell the Slavs as slaves in the
Mediterranean market …slaves who
would ultimately defeat the Mongols
as the Mamluks in Egypt.
• Silk routes opened … & then spread
PLAGUE to Europe.
6. Mongols in China
Mongols in China:
• Start the Yuan Dynasty
under Kublai Khan
• A new social structure
emerged:
– 1. Mongols at the top
– 2. Nomadic and
Islamic allies
– 3. Ethnic Chinese
5. IMPACT OF THE MONGOLS
Impact of the Mongols
– Military:
• New methods of warfare
• New technologies (arrow styles, armor,
etc.)
– Introduced new military techniques &
organization to Turks & Europeans – such as
small organized units, the use of cavalry & the
effective use of gunpowder
• Military was massive, helped to create
large empire
The Impact of the Mongols: POLITICAL
• Mongol conquest left Russia more divided
culturally & less developed than Western
Europe
• Descendants of Genghis Khan & Timur
established the Mughal Empire in India
• Mongol defeat of the Seljuk Turks in 1243 CE
allowed for the later rise of the Ottoman
Turks in the Middle East
The Impact of the Mongols: SOCIAL
• Mongols practiced religious toleration in the Middle
East & Europe
• Often converted to local religions
– Allowed Islam & Orthodox Christianity to continue to thrive
• Russia became isolated from European trends like
the Renaissance
• Practiced Orthodoxy
– Continued the split between Eastern & Western Europe
started w/ the Byzantine Empire
• The Black Plague devastated Europe in the 14th C
• Mongol expansion & control of the Silk Road allowed
for cultural diffusion & exploration on an
unprecedented scale – including the journey of
Marco Polo
The Impact of the Mongols: ECONOMICS
• Global trade expanded dramatically under Mongol
control
– EX: Italians were the primary beneficiaries in Europe;
security, use of paper currency, control & management of
Silk Road all increased trade in the Eastern Hemisphere
• Europeans  exposed to a much greater number of
Chinese goods on a large scale
– Gunpowder & printing being among the most influential
• The global trade network became more intertwined
• Mongol decline made land travel more dangerous &
a shift to seafaring occurred in Europe & China after
1400 CE
How did Mongol trade and conquest allow for exchange
between cultures?
• Mongols brought the Muslim and European worlds new military knowledge,
especially the use of gunpowder
• Trade and cultural contact between different civilizations throughout Eurasia
became much easier
• Trading empires established in their dominions by Venetians and Genoese
provided experiences 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
Exchanges During the Mongol Era
From
Europe
From
Southwest Asia
From
South Asia
From
East Asia
Honey
Horses
Glassware
Slaves
Textiles
Rugs
Incense
Finished iron products
Finished gold products
Spices
Gems
Perfumes
Textiles
Gunpowder
Firearms
Rockets
Magnetic compass
Porcelain
Silk
Maritime Technology
Paper Making
Printing
Tea
Christian missionaries
Italian merchants
European diplomats
Muslim merchants
Nestorian merchants
Muslim diplomats
Indian merchants
Indian diplomats
Buddhist religious objects
Chinese bureaucrats
Chinese artists, artisans
East Asian diplomats
Sugar cane
Black Death
Intellectual Exchanges of Ideas, Art, Architecture, Knowledge was constant
The Mongols
The Good, the Bad & the Ugly
THE GOOD (accomplishments & contributions)
• Military Strategy &
Innovation – Cavalry,
Horse Archers, surprise
attacks, sieges - Genghis
first needed to disband
tribal loyalties
• Religious Tolerance
(converted to all faiths in
region except Hinduism)
• Common Legal Code
• Utilized skills of
conquered peoples –
artisans, soldiers
THE GOOD (accomplishments & contributions)
 Discipline, obedience to own laws
 Sense of honor and loyalty,(even in one’s
enemies)
 High status of women
• TRADE – source of diffusion – goods,
ideas & people - under Mongol rule it was
less risky  Pax Mongolica
The Mongol Empire at its height
THE BAD – (failures & struggles)
• Constant in-fighting for
power – “Khan”
• Genghis never set up
centralized rule, Kublai
struggled with it (Yuan
Dynasty)
• Kublai failed to conquer
Vietnam, Burma,
Cambodia & Japan
• Inability to control China
without considerable
force
• Over-spending
Shortly after Chinggis Khan’s death, his empire split
into four Khanates
THE BAD, cont…
• THE PLAGUE!!!
• Over-extension – loss of control in Persia
– Just like in Rome, Byzantine Empires
• nomadic lifestyle vs. need to settle
(centralized government)
THE UGLY – (What!?! Those Mongols
were CRAZY!!)
• Surrender or Die
• Looting & Destruction of
Cities
• Massacres (1.6 Million in
1 Afghan city, as many as
18.4 Million total killed)
• Use of organized tactical
terror
• All exemplified by the
Ilkhanate’s conquering of
Middle East (Persia)
THE UGLY, cont…
• Lots of Babies - as many as
.5% of the Earth’s current
male population can trace
genetic lineage back to
Genghis (500 wives &
concubines)
• Plague catapults – biological
warfare?
• Strange diet, hairstyles and
odor
• Cannibalism?
• Genghis’ funeral parade of
death?
Question:
How did the Mongol conquests
impact/bring an end to the postclassical civilizations in Eastern
Europe, Western Europe, and Islam?
1. Russia
2. Byzantine Empire
3. Western Europe
Answer:
•Russia – end of Kievan dominance
 power shifts to Moscow
•Byzantium – Ottoman dominance
and fall of Constantinople (1453).
•Western Europe – limited direct
impact but Black Death has later
effect. Trade increases with East.