SECRETS OF THE MONGOL EMPIRE

• Why was the Mongol Empire important?

  • The Mongol Empire was important for several reasons. Firstly, it was one of the largest empires in history, stretching from Eastern Europe to Asia. It facilitated cultural exchange and trade along the Silk Road, connecting the East and West. Additionally, it had a significant impact on world history, influencing political structures, warfare tactics, and cultural developments in the regions it conquered
• What factors contributed to the Mongol Empire’s success?

  • climate change
  • historians believe that an intense drought in the late twelfth century destroyed the pasturelands that the mongols’ herds relied on. this drove mongols to move southwest into agricultural societies 
  • ghengis khan
  • amazing military leader 
  • got allies
  • united tribes
  • led a successful campaign conquest all over the world
  • the mongols were mastery of horse warfare
• How did Mongol rule help increase trade in Afro-Eurasia?

  • they maintained order in the Silk Road. in doing so, they repressed bandits and facilitated the growth of new trading centers
  • the mongols reduced the cost and dangers of overland travel. this made northern silk roads perferable to the southern indian ocean routes, which had dominated trade for centuries 
  • guranteed safety for the merchants 
• Role of scholars in the Mongol Empire

  • Served as advisors to the rulers, providing expertise in governance, administration, and diplomacy
  • Contributed to the empire's cultural and intellectual development, facilitating the exchange of knowledge and ideas across the vast territories
• Role of technology in the Mongol Empire

  • Innovative military tactics, including the effective use of siege warfare techniques and the integration of different military technologies from conquered regions
  • Promoted the exchange of technological advancements through their extensive trade networks, contributing to the diffusion of knowledge across Eurasia
  • Benefited from advancements in agricultural technology, which helped sustain its large population and support its military campaigns
• Mongol Empire

  • Decentralized structure
  • Reliance on nomadic military tactics
  • Emphasis on meritocracy rather than hereditary rulership
• Mongol Empire

  Significant change from other empires
• Continuities between Mongol Empire and other empires

  • Use of imperial bureaucracy to govern vast territories
  • Promotion of trade and cultural exchange
  • Assimilation of conquered peoples into the empire's administrative and military apparatus
• Mongol Empire

  Faced challenges of maintaining control over its vast territories and diverse populations, similar to other empires
• How does the story of the Mongol Empire support, extend, challenge the narratives you've encountered so far?

  • It supports the narrative of empires as agents of cultural exchange and economic integration, as the Mongols facilitated trade and communication along the Silk Road, connecting East and West. However, it challenges narratives of imperial governance, as the Mongols employed a decentralized system of rule and often relied on local administrators from conquered regions rather than imposing direct control
• The Mongol Empire brought stability and facilitated trade

  Led to economic prosperity in some regions
• The Mongols promoted religious tolerance and cultural exchange

  Allowed diverse cultures to flourish under their rule
• The Mongol conquests were marked by widespread destruction and loss of life

  Particularly during military campaigns
• Some societies faced devastation and depopulation

  As a result of Mongol conquests
• While the Mongols promoted religious tolerance

  They also imposed heavy taxes and tribute on conquered peoples
• The Mongols were both a positive and negative force for the societies they encountered
• • mongol rule got big so they divided it into 4 sections after ghengis died
  • khanate of the great Khan, centered in Mongolia and China (Yuan Dynasty)
  • Chagatai khanate, in central asia
  • ilkhanate, in persia
  • khanate of the golden Horde, in the northwest
• • Genghis and Ögedei Khan conquered the northern Jin dynasty of China
• • Kublai Khan completed the Mongol conquest of China by defeating the Song dynasty in 1279
• • Control of China made the Mongol khans rulers of crucial manufacturing centers
  • This control expanded networks connecting east and west Eurasia
  • Goods traveling east to west increased significantly as a result
• • New ideas traveled across the Silk Road in the 13th century
• • Islamic knowledge of math and medicine made its way to europe during this period
• • italian city-states adopted the arabic numeric system