Genghis Khan and the Rise of the Mongols

Chapter 12 (pp. 295 – 302)

GeographyO Central Asian SteppeO Dry high plainsO Lack of resources

Origins

O Pastoral nomadsO Life determined by scarcity of resourcesO Contact could result in alliances or warfareO Hatred for cities and all that they

represented

Rise of the MongolsO Belief system based on

ShamanismO Beliefs and practices concerned

with communication with the spirit world

O Believed the tribal leader, khan, and his shamans spoke for the god of the universe

O Power families had influence with the khanO This leads to intermarriage and

alliances tied together via marriage

O Women played an important role in negotiating these alliances

Genghis KhanO Rose to power through

alliances & warfareO 1206, became the

supreme leader of the Mongols “Genghis Khan”O Set out to conquer other

kingdoms to force them to pay tribute

O Conquered northern China, but not the Song Dynasty

O Turned west…

Greatest Conquerors of All Time

OConquerors Square MilesO1. Genghis Khan 4,860,000O2. Alexander the Great

2,180,000O3. Timur 2,145,000O4. Cyrus the Great 2,090,000O5. Attila 1,450,000O6. Adolf Hitler 1,370,000O7. Napoleon Bonaparte 720,000

Genghis KhanO “Man’s greatest

joy is to crush his enemies and have them flee before him, to seize his possessions, hear the wailing of his women, and embrace his wives and daughters.”

Reasons for Mongol SuccessO Excelled in warfare

O Horse riding abilityO Properties of their bows: smaller and could

shoot fartherO TacticsO Fear and terror

O AdaptabilityO Adapted new weapons to suit their need

O Ex. Iron & siege weaponsO Inclusiveness

O Would offer protection for surrendersO Would use local religions to suit the needs of

their conquestsO Ex. Buddhism & Islam

Continued Mongol Conquests

O Genghis’ son Ogodei continued the conquest of Eurasian landmass including:O Song ChinaO The Middle EastO But not Europe…

O Ogodei died

Results of Mongol ConquestO The empire created by

terror ultimately created a region that allowed for:O TravelO TradeO Exchange of ideasO Spread of disease

What happened to Mongol Culture?

Compare them to the Romans… two large empires based on conquest… did the people they conquer become them or did they become the

people they conquered?

Pax MongolicaO Pax Mongolica

O “Commerce prospered, and cosmopolitanism flourished under Pax Mongolica, the name historians give to the continual political stability brought about by the stable and harsh Mongol rule which created unprecedented commercial integration of Eurasia”

O Directly connected East Asia & Europe

Division of the Empire

O Mongols assimilated to cultures & religions they conqueredO Realms now saw themselves as autonomous of the Great KhanO Mongol empire broke into different realms of Khanates (a new

form of governmental organization)

Il-KhanO Located in the Middle EastO Sacked Baghdad & killed last

Abbasid CaliphO Eventually converted to IslamO Acted as a doorway to the West

Golden HordeO Located in RussiaO Russian cooperation allowed them to avoid direct

subjugation

JagadaiO Located in Central AsiaO Led by Timur (Tamerlame) 1370-

1405O Wanted to be the next Genghis KhanO Attacked the Delhi Sultanate in

northern IndiaO Acted as a central piece in Silk Road

tradeO The capital of Samarkand had many

scholars and artistsO Helped preserve Greek/Islamic

achievementsO The descendants of the Timurids

would later become the last Indian empire (the Mughals)

The Yuan DynastyO Located in ChinaO Originally, Mongols ruled as foreigners – plundered the ChineseO Kublai Khan changed this by becoming an absolute Chinese emperor

Kublai KhanO Understood and assimilated into

Chinese cultureO Chose not to impose Mongol

pastoral lifestyle, social structure, or religion on the Chinese

O Embraced all things ChineseO Centralized governmentO Chinese customsO “Conquerors grow soft…”

O Kublai declares himself the next great khan – only the Il Khan recognized thisO Symbolized the break between all

the khanates

Yuan PhilosophyO This period acted as

one of vital cultural transmission between China and the rest of the worldO Europe formally met

with China during the reign of Kublai Khan with the arrival of Marco Polo

Yuan ExpansionO One of the largest

(but also shortest) Chinese empires

O Kublai tried to extend through conquest

O Failed invasion of Japan

End of the YuanO As with all Chinese dynasties, nature conspired in the downfall

O Floods & famine plagued ChinaO Rebellion finally forced the Yuan emperor back to Mongolia

O Allowed for the succession of another Chinese dynasty