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The impact of the Mongol conquest
The impact of the Mongol conquest
Three positive impacts of the mongol empire
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Trade and interaction between empires in the early 1200s was limited and extremely dangerous. Asia was mostly made up of small clans and nomadic tribes. These tribes constantly fought and had little communication with the west. There was little unification and interaction. In the 13th century, a Mongol leader named Genghis Khan began to unite the nomadic tribes and clans, thus beginning the short, but great, Mongol Empire. Khan was a ruthless invader who was able to bring together the clans and put together one of the most successful empires in world history. At its height, the Mongol empire spanned from the Pacific Ocean to Baghdad and up to modern day Hungary (Mongol Empire, 1294). Many believe that the Mongols had mostly negative impacts …show more content…
on world history because of the bloodshed their invasions caused; however, their positive impacts on trade throughout Eurasia greatly outweighs the negatives. Although their rule was short and bloody, the Mongols drastically improved trade through their use of unification, toleration, and centralized currency, which outweighs the amount of death they caused. The Mongols conquered much of Asia, causing trade routes to be safer and more reliable. They used smart and innovative forms of strategies, as well as having an extremely well-trained military. Their military “was one of the most efficient military machines in history. Well organized and well trained, the army was a professional fighting force, from its highest-ranking general to its lowest-ranking cavalryman” (“Mongol Conquests.”). After having massacred and plundered many cities, the Mongols had a terrifying reputation. They also sent spies into cities that would talk about how the Mongol army was invincible, further scaring the people who lived there. By using this form of psychological warfare, many cities surrendered to the Mongols rather than putting up a fight. If the city did not surrender, they used many tactics to defeat the city. For example, the Mongols would catapult dead bodies of people who had died of the plague over city walls. This would infect the city and eventually wipe out the much of the city’s population. Also, the Mongol’s would send a small troop to attack the enemy city. When the city saw the small, easily defeatable army, they would follow the retreating group and be faced with the much larger Mongol army. Although their methods of conquering could be seen as ruthless and barbaric, it was using these methods that allowed for the Mongols to conquer so much land in under fifty years. This unification that was created allowed for much safer passages of travel. Historically, trade routes usually went through many different empires and territories. This meant that there were little security systems and the merchants could be taxed a lot by many different rulers. This discouraged people to trade and travel along the routes.Because they were only one empire that was ruling the trade routes, “the Mongols were able to guarantee the safety of the merchants in their territory. One European trader observed that the Silk Road was safe by day and night, and another stated that a virgin riding a mule loaded with gold could travel the length of it unmolested” (Zeldovich). This period of peace and safety caused trade to reignite and began a new age of learning and exploration. The Mongols also built buildings called “yams” were merchants could show off and sell the different goods they had: “a building in Baghdad erected in 1359 is described in its inscription as a ‘yam with shops.’ It has a central vaulted hall surrounded by two stories of rooms and appears to have functioned as a market” (Soucek). The Mongols not only made trade routes safer, but they also made it easier to sell goods and make a profit by trading. Because they unified Eurasia, the Mongols made trade routes safer and easier to travel. While they controlled much of Eurasia, the Mongols were extremely tolerant of other religions and cultures, causing more foreign merchants to use the trade routes.
As previously mentioned, the Mongol Empire covered a lot of land. Because of this, there were people of many different cultures and religions that lived in the empire. Unlike other large empires, the Mongols tolerated and even encouraged trade with foreigners and people of other religions and cultures. This tolerance encouraged more foreign merchants and travelers to come to the Mongol Empire, further increasing the amount of trade and interaction between Europe and Asia. The Mongols “were some of the most open-minded people of the Middle Ages [...] This in turn made possible a degree of communication and trade between East and West that had not existed since the glory days of Rome” (Knight). The Mongols were extremely open-minded and this is seen by the accounts in Marco Polo’s Travels of Marco Polo. Polo was a Venetian merchant and explorer who traveled across Eurasia and documented these travels in his travel narrative, Travels of Marco Polo (Maraini). He spent a lot of time in Mongol-ruled China and wrote about the culture and lives of the Mongols. Polo said in his travel narrative that the Mongols “treat the foreigners who visit them for the sake of trade with great cordiality, and entertain them in the most winning manner, affording them every help and advice on their business” (“Marco Polo”). The Mongols knew that treating foreigners with respect and helping them would boost trade and therefore allow them to gain money. This way of thinking is what interested foreign merchants and made people start traveling again. The tolerant attitude of the Mongols also encouraged people of different religions to begin trade around Eurasia. This attitude “allowed merchants of all religions and ethnicities to use the trading routes of the Silk Road. As a result, many Jewish, Muslim, and Christian trade
communities developed in Mongol lands, further increasing trade and cultural and religious exchanges” (Zeldovich). Being tolerant of other religions and cultures brought more foreign merchants, which expanded trade, spread ideas, and increased cultural interaction. As well as being tolerant, the Mongols also developed a light, centralized currency throughout the empire. Before the Mongols united Eurasia, currency was different along trade routes and was usually in the form of heavy coins. This made it difficult for merchants to use their money and carry lots of it, deterring the use of money in trade. The Mongols implemented a new system of paper money that was usable throughout all the empire. Marco Polo, who spent 17 years in Mongol-ruled China wrote about the money system used by them: “The money had a lot of value once it was implemented into the empire. “All these pieces of paper are issued with as much solemnity and authority as, if they were of pure gold or silver; and on every piece a variety of officials, whose duty it is, have to write their names, and to put their seals” (Polo). It can be inferred that because this paper-money had so much value, that it was extremely useful throughout the Mongol Empire. This system of using a lighter, standardized currency made trade more desirable as merchants could use one system of money throughout a large expanse of land. Also, “with this paper‑money [merchants] can buy what they like anywhere over the Empire, whilstitis also vastly lighter to carry about on their journeys” (Polo). The merchants are able to carry the money more easily and can use it anywhere in the empire. This spurred a new, easier form of trade that began an era of learning and communication in Eurasia. These methods of implementing light and centralized forms of currency allowed for trade to become easier and more efficient. The Mongols changed trade and interaction throughout Eurasia for the better. The slaughter they caused can be easily balanced by the amount of learning and interaction they allowed. They were able to bring Eurasia out of the Middle Ages through their conquest and bring it into a new age of learning. By using many methods of making trade easier, the Mongols allowed for more trade and interaction in Eurasia. First, they created a period of safety by unifying Eurasia. Their superior military skills allowed them to conquer lots of land. This unification made trade routes safer because there was only one empire ruling the land that the routes traversed so merchants could travel through unharmed. Not only was the land they conquered safe, but it was also open to foreigners. The Mongols were some of the most tolerant people of the 11th century. People of all religions were allowed, increasing the amount of interaction around Eurasia. Finally, they developed an easy to carry and centralized currency. Unlike previous forms of currency that were different in every territory and in the form of heavy coins, Mongolian money was light and could be used throughout the entire empire. This made it easier to trade as merchants could carry a lot more money and did not have to worry about switching currencies. The Mongols and their great empire drastically changed trade and interaction between cultures. Although the Mongol conquests caused lots of deaths, they completely renewed trade and began a new age in Eurasian history. This outweighs the negative effects they had as the positive effects are still relevant today. Many people argue that the bloodshed they caused was not worth it, but would the world be the same if the Mongols had not brought Eurasia out of the Middle Ages?
Between the early 1200's and the mid 1300's the Mongol Empire, led by Genghis Khan, took control of around 9,300,000 square miles of Eurasia. Genghis Khan first started conquering neighboring clans before setting his sight on the rest of the world. When they would conquer a city, the Mongols would give the city a chance to surrender and if they declined and the Mongols succeeded in conquering them, then all of the citizens would be slaughtered. Under Genghis Khan, the Mongol Empire grew to encompass Central Asia, parts of the Middle East, and east to the borders of the Korean Peninsula. In 1227, Genghis Khan died, which led to the empire being divided into four khanates that would be ruled by his sons and grandsons. Genghis Khan's descendants
The Mongols were a group of nomadic people who were known for not only their ferocity in battle but also their tolerance of other cultures. Over the course of their many empires, the Mongols conquered lands from as far as the Korean peninsula to the Islamic civilizations of the Middle East. The movement of the Mongol people into these areas was met with mixed opinions, as members of some societies respected the braveness of the Mongols while others saw them as destructive. According to Ala-ad-Din Ata-Malik Juvaini, 15th century Korean scholars, and Rashid al-Din, the Mongols were a group of tolerant people who attempted to eradicate injustice and corruptness (1,3,4). However, members of other societies viewed the Mongols as coldhearted and merciless because of the damage they dealt in the conquest of Russian cities and the taxes they forced upon their conquered societies (1,2). Nonetheless, some scholars and historians recognized the Mongols power and braveness, but were indifferent with their views of the Mongol civilization.
China and Russia fell into the rule of the Mongol empire both politically and economically. The Mongol's rule between them contrasted greatly. The Mongol's ruled China through direct rule of it. The Mongols were also able to take control of the Silk Road. On the other hand, rule over Russia was indirect and economically, taxes were harsh.
The Mongol and Spanish Empires had some similarities when considering their road to successful empire building. Trade was very important for both the Mongols and Spanish Empires. Because geography restricted access to resources, trade was the ideal mechanism to overt that problem. Both empires flourished because of trade networks that they created. The Mongols and Spanish Empires relied heavily on trade in order to gain access to resources that they did not have in their own locations. The Mongol Empire valued and encouraged trade because of their lack of resources. The Silk Roads were the primary trade network that was linked to the Mongol Empire. Trade was important to the Mongols because they were able tax it. Secure trade routes were a result of the Mongols which allowed for cities to flourish and prosper with the spre...
To begin, one factor that supported Mongols in their conquests was their capacity for foraging, allowing them to survive under harsh living conditions. According to Marco Polo, a Venetian traveler that journeyed to Asia stated "They are capable of supporting every kind of privation, and when there is
The Mongols were a group of barbarians led by Genghis Khan. They were ruthless and destroyed everything in their path, but they also led to many positive things in the world. The Mongolians of the Asian Steppe had a positive impact on the world during their rule of the Asian continent from 1206 to 1368 by influencing laws, uniting China, and spreading messages and inventions. Many people liked the Mongols despite their destructive ways.
Mongolia was the largest contiguous land empire in human history. It existed in the 13th and 14th centuries, however its traditions and influences can be found all throughout the world today. The Mongolian Empire was due to the unification of the Mongol and Turkic tribes under the rule of Genghis Khan in 1206. This paramount empire connected the east and west using Pax Mongolica which allowed trade all throughout Eurasia. However, the Mongolian Empire’s importance did not die with the fall of the Empire in 1368, but the vital influences remain significant even today.
grew and lasted for about 108 years until they failed by trying to conquer India and were weak the Ming Dynasty overthrew the rulers. The Mongols were not afraid to kill. If one person refuses to do something for them their whole clan will pay, they would leave no survivors. That's what helped make them so successful, many had heard about their gruesome approach and surrendered and accepted submissions. The Mongolians of the Asian Steppe had a positive impact on the world during their rule of the Asian continent from 1206 to 1368 by influencing trade, warfare and uniting China.
The Mongols were nomadic people that lived in tribes in Asia during the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries. The joining of numerous tribes would eventually form one of the biggest empires in history. With the lack of rain though the region, the Mongols did not have wide spread agriculture, instead they would herd sheep, cattle, goats, horses, and camels that thrived on the grasses and shrubs of the steppe lands where they lived. The Mongol tribes would travel with their herds to lands with copious amounts of grasses so their animals could graze. When their herds exhausted the vegetation, they would migrate to a new area. The tribes were self-sufficient, they not only lived off the meat, milk, and hides provided by their animals, but also used them for trade purposes.
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.
Throughout history, there have been many empires that have shaped the outcome of all life on this world that we live on. Some of the greatest empires in the world, the Roman Empire, the greatest militaristic regime in history, or perhaps we can look towards northern Europe and the British Empire, those who had the capability to control the greatest amount of land mass in history. However there is one thing that even those famed Brits never accomplished. Something only one group in history has managed to do, a group that stands out among a crowd of the greatest people to represent planet earth. The men to strike fear Into the most battle hardened soldiers, the barbarians, the moguls. So what did the Mongols accomplish that was special. They managed to conquer the largest contiguous land mass in the worlds an area that stretched from Egypt to Russia and also to encompass all of China. Doing this they managed to shape the lives of millions of people. from Russia to China and everywhere in between. However most historians agree that China was affected more than any other country by the reign of the Mongols. The effects the Mongolian Empire had on China were large and diverse, and included but not limited to the economic influx due to the increased amount of trade routes and the utilization of the peasant class, the social impact, as all people part of the Mongolian empire flew under one one banner, and finally the technological impact as ideas flourished under the watchful eye of the Mongols.
The Mongol Empire was a very powerful which conquered more land in two years than the Romans did in 400 years. Also, they controlled more than eleven million square miles. The Mongols were very important because they created nations like Russia and Korea, smashed the feudal system and created international law, and created the first free trade zone. In the beginning of the Mongol Empire, they mostly lived in foothills bordering the Siberian forests mixing heroing and hunting. They also became really good at archery and riding horses. The main reason the Mongols came to be so powerful was all because of a man named Genghis Kahn. Genghis was born around 1162 with the name Temujin. Due to the death of his father, Temujin was left under the control of his older brothers. Soon enough, he was married to a woman named Borte. Borte was later kidnapped, in which Temujin proved his military skills when saving her. Not to long after this, Temujin became the leader of his tribe. Yet, to unite the Mongol confederations it required a civil war, which Temijun ended up winning. After proving his skills and loyalty, Temijun was declared the Gr...
Many nomadic tribes were uneducated and illiterate, much like the Mongols, because the Mongols were so uneducated this made it harder for them to navigate along the oversea trade routes of Europe. The Mongols were a nomadic group known for their skills of horse riding and their ability and skill to shoot a crossbow over amazing distances. Since the Mongols were so great by horse back, the trade in Europe went from to the majority of people trading by land.
The Mongol Empire appeared in Central Asia through the 13th and 14th centuries as the biggest land empire in history. A consequence of the union of Mongol and Turkic tribes, the empire took form under the control of the legendary Genghis Khan, also known as Great Khan, which means emperor. All through his period, Genghis Khan started a series of invasions called as the Mongol invasions, frequently accompanied by the major-scale slaughter of civilian populations. This led in the conquest of the majority of Eurasia. By the end of Genghis Khan's life, the Mongol Empire occupied a considerable segment of Central Asia and China. The empire began to divide as a consequence of battles between succession heirs, especially regarding Kublai Khan and Ariq Boke.
Both the glorious empires, the Mali established in 1230 by the founder Sundiata and Mongol founded by Genghis Khan in 1206 contain much more differences than similarities. When the rise of the Mali and Mongol Empires began to arise they had significant effects towards the areas in which they were located. Some similarities include religious tolerance and cultural growth by trade. Some differences include violence methods and religion. Even though both of these superlative empires arose in difference regions they shared some common views as well.