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03b_Ch.12: The Mongol Empire- The LegacyTimeline:14th- 16thCenturyFQ:Where did all the Mongol Conquerors Go?Main Idea:The unique circumstances of the birth and growth of the Mongol Empire did not preclude itfrom suffering age-old afflictions. Local Mongol leaders increasingly reflected the culture and values of the

peoples they ruled. Therefore, distinctions between Mongol controlled regions contributed to divisionswithin the empire. Like the Greco-Macedonian and Roman Empires, the Mongol Empire suffered from

political intrigue, corruption and challenges to its central authority. Like its predecessors, the MongolEmpire shattered into smaller, independent Khanates.

CCSS...I. Why didn't the EmpireLast Long?

A.Political bonds were personal and not legalistic/ bureaucratic. Loyalty was aimed at one

charismatic leader. Where ever that leader went or whatever that leader did, he was followed bysoldiers who swore loyalty to him [refer to document 'Temujin becomes Ghengis Khan'].B.No orderly transition of power. There were conflicting traditions of inheritance. At various timesand under certain conditions- Youngest son, brother, or fittest may inherit. In any case, there was

always a division of property among inheritors [Case Study: 10th C. Western Europe-Charlemagne's grandchildren]. In addition, the traditional Khuriltai (grand council) that selectedthe next Grand Khan created a chaotic condition especially upon the death of the Grand Khan.

Field commanders would return with the bulk of their forces to the Khuriltai leaving behind a smallforce that may embolden the conquered to rebel.C.Khanates

1. Local Mongol leaders were given the title as Khan, but were subject to the overallauthority of the Grand (Supreme) Khan. By the Mid to late 13th C., the mantle of Grand

Khan fell upon the shoulders of Chinggis Khan's grandson- Kubilai. He becomes the 5thGrand Khan (1260-1294), but ruled from the Mongol capital founded on the site of current

day Beijing, China. He epitomized the Mongol transformation from a nomadic to asedentary lifestyle. Culturally, politically and socially he and his subordinate khans were

reflecting the values of the local population.2. Kubilai's failure to conquer Japan on two occasions weakened him militarily andtarnished his reputation in the eyes of his subordinates. Traditionally, leaders who losemany men in combat are disgraced. Remember, there were never many Mongol soldiers

to begin with. It became increasingly difficult to keep the Khans in the farthest reaches ofthe empire from acting independently. Often, these independent-minded Khans (all

relatives of Kubilai and descended from Chinggis) would embroil themselves in conflictingalliances with Europeans. Crusading Europeans become the 'pawns' in the Mongol

power struggle.

3. Several Khanates became economicallyand politically powerful enough to exert theirindependence. Two of these were the Golden Horde Khanate ofCentral Asia (Russia)1 2and the Persian Khanate.

Later (14th -16th C.),Timur the Lame expands the area formerly known as the3

Persian Khanate into Saudi Arabia and the Indian subcontinent. The capital city of his

growing empire becomes Samarkand. Later still, and after the collapse of Timur's CentralAsian empire, Babur reintroduces Mongol rule to the Indian subcontinent- this time his4descendent's will become the Mughals of India.5

II. Mongol Impact6A.Global in breadth; 'Ushered in global history'.

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B.East met West with a lasting impact socially, economically, politically on both sides. Knowledge

spanning the sciences, philosophy, and technology traversed the empire.

III. Summary:Why it matters today.From the violence of the invasions to the stability of the Pax Mongolica, the Mongols contribute mightily toa new era of achievement in Asia and Europe.Materials/Sources:Refer to the course calendar for additional materials, assignments and pertinent due dates.

Map of Eurasia World History: Patterns of Interaction Film: CNN's Millennium Series- The 13th C.: Century of the Stirrup Lecture by Prof. Morris Rossabi, Columbia Univ. 28 Sept. '00 (Stuyvesant H.S.), Author of Khubilai Khan: His Life and

Times

Trade route activity, plunder, and political alliances contributed to this.1

Largely what is now Russia. Note that Mongol assimilation on a biological level paralleled the cultural. There may have been a2

genetic legacy left by the Mongols in the populations of Russia and Eastern Europe=> the Absence of an alcohol metabolizing gene.

Europeans corrupt this to Tamerlane3

Another Mongol descendant.4

Corruption of the name5

The impact stretches into the field of biology. Genetic impact=Absence of alcohol metabolizing gene in Mongols and their offspring6

in conquered areas (Ex. Portions of Russian and Eastern European populations carry this genetic mark).