The Mongols were said to be strong and conquering warriors. They covered most of Asia, the Middle East, and Eastern Europe. The Mongols lived a different life than the neighboring civilizations, they didn’t care much about farming and they mostly lived off of the meat, milk, hide of horses and sheep. They had to battle many clan rivals to get themselves to that expansion around Europe and to keep their civilization safe from invaders. The result of all their conquering lead to others to believe that the Mongols were nothing more than barbarians, it is arguable to say if they were or if they weren't.
In battle the Mongols were well organized and strategized their every move, but they also had many rules regarding battle. In every battle they had the army organize themselves in over a hundred groups of ten men. There is a man in every group that is recognized as the captain. When the Mongols are in battle and one or three soldiers take off or run away from the battle they are caught and put to death, this rule goes along with the whole groups as well. In document 2 of the “ The Mongols: How Barbaric Were They?” article states “...if one or two or three
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All these civilizations knew how barbaric these Mongols were, they feared them so much that on every side of a wall they had hundreds of men with crossbows ready for battle. When the Mongols did come they showed no mercy, they climbed and descended over the walls and slayed all the soldiers. They took all the other civilians out of their homes and sliced of their heads. In document 4, this is proved, “ The Mongols now descended from the walls and began to slay and plunder… they then drove all the survivors ,men and women, out onto the plain; and … (other sentence) … they severed the heads of the slain from their bodies and heaped them up in piles...” This is the reason why all civilizations feared the
The people that the Mongol Empire overthrew were the only ones to suffer under Genghis Khan’s homicidal ways. Khan’s army was forcibly traumatized under maniacal methods as well: “Genghis Khan ordained that the army should be organized in such a way that over ten men should beset one man and he is what we call a captain of ten. [...] When they are in battle, if one or two or even more out of a group of ten run away, all are put to death; and if a whole group of ten flees, the rest of the group of a hundred are all put to death, if they do not flee too. [...] Likewise if one or two or more go forward boldly to the fight, then the rest of the ten are put to death if they do not follow and, if one or more of the ten are captured, their companions are put to death if they do not rescue them.” (doc B) Every group of ten was expected to perform at a homog...
Many people ask “How Barbaric were the Barbarians”. The truth be told, the mongols were more barbaric than they were peaceful. They were able to conquer more than 4,800,000 miles of land using brutal and strategic military tactics, destroy and conquer cities, along with using extremely harsh punishments for their prisoners. Because of this, the mongols were able to stay in power for about 300 years. Many people believe that they mongols were more peaceful than they were barbaric because of how economically stable they were. However the mongols killed thousands and left millions terrified across Asia.
Despite the fact that Mongolians were prejudiced against other cultures, they were, in fact, not barbaric but rather civilized because of their gender equality of people and how advanced their cities were. In The Book of Ser Marco Polo, Polo tells us how beautiful and well protected the city was like. For instance, the text explains how the city was protected by two great powerful walls surrounding the entire city. Only well advanced and civilized people can do such a thing such as creating an enormous wall. If the Mongolians were barbaric they wouldn’t have even thought of protection.. In Addition, the way the city looked also proved that they were civilized and not barbaric.
The Mongols, or as the Western Europeans called them, the Tartars, were a nomadic, militant people that dominated the battlefield during the pre-industrial time period (“Tartars” 7). Over the span of the 13th century, from the Central Asian steppes in the east to the Arabian lands to the west, the Tartars subdued the unfortunate inhabitants and expanded their empire vastly. To the fear and dismay of the Western Europeans, the Tartars desired to triumph over all of Eurasia; therefore, the Western Europeans were to be conquered next. News of the imminent Tartarian attack rapidly spread through West Europe like a wildfire, and the powerful Holy Roman Church contended to prepare a strategy against the onslaught. In the year 1245, Pope Innocent IV, the head of the Church at the time, sent a group of Friars led by Giovanni da Pian del Carpini to gather some knowledge about the Tartars. It was a dreaded mission, one that would probably end in a terrible death, since the Tartars were a cruel people towards outsiders. Nevertheless, Carpini valiantly ventured into the unknown darkness, and returned to his homeland with valuable information about the Tartars. Through the insight he gained during his travels, he wrote his account of the Tartars in a report called the “Historia Mongalorum” (“Tartars” 19), which is known today as “The Story of the Mongols Whom We Call the Tartars”.
Mongol empire was the largest land empire of the world has ever seen. First began as a nomadic group of tribes. Mongols were united and emerged into an empire that conquered lands stretching from Europe to Central Asia under the rule of Genghis Khan. The Mongol empire was able to succeed in expanding, and conquering was due to their ability to adapt to any living conditions, their sheer brutality force, and their strong military organization.
When the word “Mongol” is said I automatically think negative thoughts about uncultured, barbaric people who are horribly cruel and violent. That is only because I have only heard the word used to describe such a person. I have never really registered any initial information I have been taught about the subject pass the point of needing and having to know it. I felt quite incompetent on the subject and once I was given an assignment on the book, Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern Age, I was very perplexed for two reasons. One I have to read an outside book for a class that already requires a substantial amount of time reading the text, and secondly I have to write a research paper in History. I got over it and read the book, which surprisingly enough interested me a great deal and allow me to see the Moguls for more than just a barbaric group of Neanderthals, but rather a group of purpose driven warriors with a common goal of unity and progression. Jack Weatherford’s work has given me insight on and swayed my opinion of the Mongols.
The Mongols; a vicious and destructive military force, feared throughout its empire and under the rule of one man, Chinggis Khan. This picture of the Mongols and their empire is one often painted by our modern society. However, much of what we think we know about the Mongols has been exaggerated and biased from the point of view of the people that were conquered. In reality, the Mongols, although at times violent and destructive, bore many similarities in tactics and practices to the classical empires that had preceded them. They were not just simple barbaric savages looking to destroy whatever they could. They were a people united for a common purpose, trying to achieve it the same way that prior civilizations had done so: military force. Even though a Western perspective may find the actions of the Mongols objectionable, it must be understood that this was not a Western society, nor did it house the same values as one. The Mongols were not the destructive barbarians they are often made out to be, but rather an effective military force working for unification.
Barbarian military duties really where powerful and has a lot of impact in position. They operated with horses and sometimes using giant siege weapons.All men over the age of fourteen were expected to undertake military duties but the physicians and undertakers and priest were exempt. Furthermore,the mongols had to make many sacrifices and risk such as leaving their flocks behind, get on a horse and travel to wherever their unit happened to be based and their wives and children were expected to follow. Also, soldiers were never unprepared for traveling and to fight, soldiers were equipped with clothing , cooking instruments , dried meat , water bottles , files for sharpening arrow and much more. As could be seen, the barbarians were very advanced in a way that it really contributed and made the military duties faster such as their saddle bags where made out of cow stomachs
When Westerners such as ourselves and people native to Europe are asked what they know of the Mongols the answer is usually ruthless barbarians intent upon world domination. After all these years you would expect that the educational points presented to the different generations in school would have given a different view of the Mongol civilization. Leaving this vision instilled upon generation after generation is detrimental to learning the different positive aspects left behind by such a powerful empire. The nomadic lifestyle that the Mongols endured empowered them to become hardy warriors. The Mongols began their conquests in response to Ghengis Khans personal missions as well as a disruption in trade and the ecology of the land upon which they inhabited.
Over the years there have been many great nomadic groups, such as the Vikings and the Kievan, but no nomadic group has been more successful than the Mongols. The Mongols have had many lasting influences on Russia, China, and even Europe. The Mongols have left a mark on the European trading systems in technologies as well as in their trading systems trade routes. One thing that stayed the same throughout Europe was their many religion.
... were positive, one may argue that these individuals only saw the tolerant and fair-minded side of the Mongols, and not the relentless warrior part of the society who was known for its “dirty” tactics of war, which went as far as launching diseased-ridden corpses over the walls of castles during sieges. Alternatively, one may argue that the scholars who provided negative documentation of the Mongols only saw the destructive side, not the open-minded side of the society who were known for their cultural acceptance. Although these accounts allowed for an adequate idea of the nature of the Mongols, a record from a peasant who was not a member of the upper class in their society, as all reports presented were from historians, scholars, and political leaders. This would allow for a different perspective on the issue and would produce a better understanding of the topic.
They struck fear into their enemies eyes with their gruesome affect and fierce actions. They showed no mercy. The Mongols were also known for their surprise attack which spread to other armies making it a keen warfare used all around the world. This battle tactic consisted of a group of men who are fighting out on the battlefield and they begin to retreat only to draw the enemy into a trap. The enemy runs into a rain of arrows as the rest of the men are hiding off to the side with loaded weapons, and fierce ground fighters ready for combat. This is one key that the Mongols had to help them conquer
The Mongols are known for their barbaric and terrifying battle tactics as well as humiliating and enslaving communities with varying religions. They relied heavily on shock tactics using weaponry that not only could greatly harm an enemy, but also be used as a scare tactic. Hostage taking and human shields were all classic Mongol moves, they were experts at siege technology and were deliberately brutal to people who didn't submit to their rules this bloodthirsty and chaotic combination made them the premier fighting force of their era.
The Mongols, headed by Genghis Khan, were one of the most influential groups in the old world, conquering the vast lands of Asia, much of Europe, and large areas of land spanning across Asia, Africa, and the Middle East. A rather daunting task, Genghis Khan was able to successfully dominate and conquer these regions with the use of his battle prowess and tactics, which would later be adopted my foreign armies and future conquerors. The Khan was able to achieve this assimilation of land and create an empire all with the use of his trusty horses. Together, Man and Horse, the Mongolian “Hordes” quickly rounded up warring tribes and took over the known world. The tight relationship between the steed and its owner held a since of
This story can be summarized by dividing the story into three major sections that represent a genealogy of the Genghis Khan ancestors, the lifestyle of Genghis Khan and the story of Genghis son and Ogodei his successor. This piece of early time’s literature was translated and edited by Jack Weatherford and it was not released until 16th February, 2010. The piece of work restores early history’s most prominent figures to the positions they rightfully deserves. It clears the picture of the nomadic lifestyle of the Mongols and it is rich with information regarding the society of the Mongols in the 12th and the 13th centuries” (Kahn, 2005).