peoples embarked on new campaigns of expansion that eventually brought most of 1055 Tughril Beg named India, much of central Asia, all of Anato- 1071 Battle of Manzikert |: lia, and a good portion of eastern Europe 1206-1227 Reign of Chinggis I under their domination.

1211-1234 Mongol conquest of northern China The military campaigns of nomadic I peoples were sometimes exceedingly de- 1219-1221 Mongol conquest of Persia ! structive. Nomadic warriors demolished 1237-1241 Mongol conquest of Russia cities, slaughtered urban populations, and 1258 Mongol capture of ravaged surrounding agricultural lands.

1264-1279 Mongol conquest of southern China Yet those same forces also encouraged systematic peaceful interaction between 1264-1294 Reign of Khubilai Khan peoples of different societies. Between 1279-1368 the eleventh and fifteenth centuries, the 1295 Conversion of llkhan to Islam imperial campaigns of Turkish and Mon­ gol peoples forged closer links than ever 1336-1405 Life of Tamerlane before between Eurasian lands. By fos- 1453 Ottoman capture of Constantinople i tering cross-cultural communication and exchange on an unprecedented scale, the Chinese dynasty replaced the Mongol state in China, the Mon­ nomadic empires integrated the lives of peoples throughout gols continued to threaten its central Asian frontier. Moreover, much of the eastern hemisphere. from the fourteenth through the seventeenth century, Turkish

Jerry H. Bentley, Herbert, F. Ziegler, Heather E. Streets-Salter, Tradition and Encounters: A Brief Global History, Vol. 1 (3rd ed. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2014).

TURKISH MIGRATIONS AND Nomadic Peoples and Their Animals Nomadic peo­ ples drove their herds and flocks to lands with abundant IMPERIAL EXPANSION grass and then moved them along as the animals thinned Turkish peoples never formed a single, homogeneous group the vegetation. They carefully followed migratory cycles but, rather, organized themselves into clans and tribes that that took account of the seasons and local climatic con­ often fought bitterly with one another. All Turkish peoples ditions and lived mostly off the meat, milk, and hides of spoke related languages, and all were nomads or descen­ their animals. They used animal bones for tools and ani­ dants of nomads. From modest beginnings they expanded mal dung as fuel. They made shoes and clothes out of wool their influence until they dominated not only the steppes from their sheep and skins from their other animals. Their of central Asia but also settled societies in Persia, Anatolia, dwellings—large tents called yurts—were fashioned with and India. felt made from the wool of their sheep. They even prepared an alcoholic drink from their animals by fermenting mare’s Nomadic Economy and Society milk into a potent concoction known as kumiss. Nomadic societies in central Asia developed by adapting Nomadic and Settled Peoples The aridity of the cli­ to the ecological conditions of arid lands. Central Asia mate and the nomadic lifestyle limited the development of does not receive enough rain to support large-scale agricul­ human societies in central Asia. Intensive agriculture was ture. Oases permit cultivation of limited regions, but for impossible except in oases, and the need to regularly follow the most part only grasses and shrubs grow on the central the herds made large-scale craft production impractical. Asian steppe lands, and there are no large rivers or other As a result, nomads avidly sought opportunities to trade sources of water to support large-scale irrigation systems. with settled peoples. Much of that commerce took place Yet grazing animals thrive on grasses and shrubs, and the on a small scale as nomads sought agricultural products peoples of central Asia took advantage of this by herding and manufactured goods to satisfy their immediate needs. sheep, horses, cattle, goats, and camels. Often, however, nomads also participated in long-distance trade networks. Because of their mobility and their famil­ yurts (yuhrts) iarity with large regions of central Asia, nomadic peoples Chapter 14 ■ Nomadic Empires and Eurasian Integration 255

Nomadic life. A painting from the late fourteenth century by the central Aslan artist Mehmed Siyah Qalem suggests the physical hardships of nomadic life. In this scene from a nomadic camp, two men wash clothes (upper left), while another blows on a fire, and a companion tends to a saddle. Bows, arrows, and other weapons are readily available (top right).

were ideally suited to organize and lead the caravans that Nomadic Religion The earliest religion of the Turkish crossed central Asia and linked settled societies from China peoples revolved around shamans—religious specialists who to the Mediterranean basin. During the postclassical eta possessed supernatural powers, communicated with the gods and later, Turkish peoples were especially prominent on the and natute spirits, and invoked divine aid on behalf of theit catavan routes of central Asia. communities. Yet many Turkish peoples became attracted to the religious and cultural traditions they encountered Nomadic Society Nomadic society generated two social when trading with peoples of settled societies, and by the classes: nobles and commoners. Charismatic leadets won sixth century c.E . many Turks had converted to Buddhism, recognition as nobles and thereby acquired the prestige Nestorian Christianity, or Manichaeism. Partly because of needed to organize clans and tribes into alliances. Nor­ theit newly adopted religious traditions and partly because mally, nobles did little governing, since clans and tribes of their prominence in Eurasian trade networks, Turkish looked after their own affairs and resented interfetence. peoples also developed a written script. During times of war, however, nobles wielded absolute au­ thority over the forces within their alliances. Turkish Conversion to Islam Between the tenth and The nobility was a fluid class. Leaders passed noble sta­ the fourteenth centuries, most Turkish clans on the steppes tus along to their heirs, but the heirs could lose their status of central Asia converted to Islam. Their conversion had great if they did not continue to provide appropriate leadetship significance. When Tutkish peoples began to migrate into for their clans and tribes. Over the coutse of a few gen­ settled societies in large numbers, they helped spread Islam erations, nobles could return to the status of commoners. to new lands, particularly Anatolia and notthern India. The Meanwhile, commoners could win recognition as nobles boundaries of the Islamic world thus expanded along with by outstanding conduct, particularly by courageous behav­ the political and military influence of Turkish peoples. ior during war. Then, if they were clever diplomats, they could attange alliances between clans and tribes and gain Nestorian (neh-STOHR-eeuhn) enough support to displace established leaders. Manichaeism (MAN-ih-kee-ism) 256 PART 4 ■ An Age of Cross-Cultural Interaction, 1000 to 1500 c. e.

Homeland of Turkish peoples \ Turkish empires and their neighbors, ca. 1210 c .e. After about 1000 C.E., nomadic Turkish peoples conquered and ruled settled agricultural societies in several regions of Eurasia and north Africa. Turkish Empires in Persia, How were Turkish peoples able to venture so far from their Anatolia, and India central Asian homeland? Saljuq Turks and the Abbasid Empire Turkish peo­ ples entered Persia, Anatolia, and India at different times and for different purposes. They approached Abbasid Per­ Military Organization This expansion took place when sia much as Germanic peoples had earlier approached the nomadic leaders organized vast confederations of peoples Roman empire. From about the mid-eighth to the mid­ under the leadership of a khan (“ruler”). In fact, khans rarely tenth century, Turkish peoples lived mostly on the borders ruled directly, instead ruling through the leaders of allied of the Abbasid realm. By the mid— to late tenth century, tribes. Yet when organized on a large scale, nomadic peo­ large numbers of Saljuq Turks served in Abbasid armies ples wielded enormous military power due mostly to their and lived in the Abbasid realm itself By the mid-eleventh outstanding forces. Nomadic warriors had superior century the Saljuqs overshadowed the Abbasid caliphs so equestrian skills. Their arrows flew with deadly accuracy much that in 1055 the caliph recognized the Saljuq leader even when launched from the backs of galloping horses. Tughril Beg as sultan (“chieftain”). Tughril first consoli­ Moreover, units of warriors coordinated their movements to dated his hold on the Abbasid capital at Baghdad, then he outmaneuver and overwhelm their opponents. Indeed, few and his successors extended Turkish rule to Syria, Palestine, armies were able to resist the mobility and discipline of well- and other parts of the realm. For the last two centuries of organized nomadic warriors. With such military capabili­ the Abbasid state, the caliphs served only as figureheads: ties, several groups of Turkish nomads began in the tenth actual governance lay in the hands of the Turkish . century c .e . to seize the wealth of settled societies and build imperial states in the regions surrounding central Asia. Saljuq Turks and the Byzantine Empire Some Saljuq Turks began to turn their attention to the rich land of Ana­ tolia, and in the early eleventh century they began migrat­ Abbasid (ah-BAH-sih) ing there in large numbers. In 1071 Saljuq forces inflicted Saljuqs (sahl-JYOOKS) a devastating defeat on the Byzantine army at Manzikert in Chapter 14 ■ Nomadic Empires and Eurasian Integration 257

Ghazni’s forces repressed Buddhism and Thinking about TRADITIONS Hinduism, they encouraged conversion to Islam and enabled their faith to establish a The Relationship Between Culture and the Environment secure presence in northern India. Though undertaken by different groups The nomadic peoples of central Asia developed particular social and for different reasons, the Turkish con­ and cultural traditions—such as superior equestrian skills and quests of Persia, Anatolia, and India repre­ merit-based leadership—in accordance with the ecological sented patt of a larger expansive movement conditions of their arid homelands, in what ways did these by nomadic peoples. In all three cases the traditions aid nomadic peoples in their various quests for expansion formidable military prowess of Turkish between WOO and 1500 c.e.? peoples enabled them to dominate settled societies. By the thirteenth century, the influence of nomadic peoples was greater eastern Anatolia and took the Byzantine emperor captive. than ever before in Eurasian history. Yet the Tutkish con­ Following that victory Saljuqs and other Turkish groups en­ quests represented only a prelude to an astonishing round tered Anatolia almost at will. The peasants of Anatolia, who of empire building launched by the during the mostly resented theit Byzantine ovetlotds, tended to look on thitteenth and fourteenth centuries. the Saljuqs as liberators rather than as conquerots. The migtants thoroughly transformed Anatolia. Turk­ ish groups displaced Byzantine authorities and set up their THE MONGOL EMPIRES own political and social institutions. They levied taxes on For most of histoty the nomadic Mongols lived on the high the Byzantine church, restricted its activities, and some­ steppe lands of eastern central Asia. Like other nomadic times confiscated church property. Meanwhile, they wel­ peoples, they displayed deep loyalty to kin groups organized comed converts to Islam and made political, social, and into families, clans, and tribes. They frequently allied with economic opportunities available to them. By 1453, when Turkish peoples who built empires on the steppes, but they Ottoman Turks captured the Byzantine capital at Con­ tarely played a leading role in the organization of states stantinople, Byzantine and Chtistian Anatolia had become before the thirteenth century. Strong loyalties to kinship largely a Turkish and Islamic land. groups made it difficult for the Mongols to organize a stable society on a latge scale. Duting the eatly thitteenth cen­ Ghaznavid Turks and the Sultanate of Delhi While tury, however, Ghinggis Khan (sometimes spelled “Genghis the Saljuqs spearheaded Turkish migrations in Abbasid Khan”) forged the various Mongol tribes into a powerful Persia and Byzantine Anatolia, in the early eleventh cen­ alliance that built the largest empire the world has ever seen. tury Mahmud of Ghazni led the Turkish Ghaznavids of Although the vast Mongol realm soon dissolved into a seties Afghanistan in raids on lucrative sites in northern India. of smaller empires—most of which disappeared within a Although theit original goal was plunder, they gradually century—the Mongols’ impetial venture brought the soci­ became more interested in permanent rule. They asserted eties of Eutasia into closer contact than ever before. their authority first over the Punjab and then over Gujarat and Bengal. By the thirteenth century the Turkish sultan­ ate of Delhi claimed authority over all of northern India. Chinggis Khan and the Making Several of the Delhi sultans conceived plans to conquer of the southern India, but none was able to realize those ambi­ The unifier of the Mongols was Temiijin, born about 1167 tions. Indeed, the sultans faced constant challenges from into a noble family. His father was a prominent warrior Hindu princes in neighboring lands, and they periodically who forged an alliance between several Mongol clans and had to defend their northern frontiers from new Turkish seemed likely to become a powerful leader. When Temiijin or Mongol invaders. They maintained an enormous army was about ten years old, however, rivals poisoned his father with a large elephant corps, but those forces only enabled and destroyed the alliance. Abandoned by his father’s allies, them to hold on to tetritories they already had. Temiijin led a precarious existence for some years. He lived Turkish rule had great social and cultutal implica­ in poverty, since rivals seized the family’s animals, and sev­ tions in India, as it did in Anatolia. Mahmud of Ghazni eral times eluded enemies seeking to eliminate him. A rival was a zealous foe of Buddhism and Hinduism alike, and his forces stripped Buddhist and Hindu establishments of their wealth, destroyed their buildings, and often slaugh­ Chinggis Khan (CHIHN-gihs Kahn) tered their residents and attendants as well. As Mahmud of Temujin (TEM-oo-chin) 258 PART 4 ■ An Age of Cross-Cultural Interaction, 1000 to 1500 c.E . once captured him and imprisoned him in a wooden cage, but Temiijin made a daring midnight escape and regained his freedom.

Chinggis Khan's Rise to Power During the late twelfth century, Temiijin made an alliance with a promi­ nent Mongol clan leader. He also mastered the art of steppe diplomacy, which called for displays of personal courage in battle, combined with intense loyalty to allies, a will­ ingness to betray others to improve one’s position, and the ability to entice other tribes into cooperative relationships. Temiijin gradually strengthened his position, sometimes by forging useful alliances, often by conquering rival contend­ ers for power, and occasionally by turning suddenly against a troublesome ally. He eventually brought all the Mongol tribes into a single confederation, and in 1206 an assembly of Mongol leaders recognized Temiijin’s supremacy by pro­ claiming him Chinggis Khan (“universal ruler”).

Mongol Political Organization Chinggis Khan’s poli­ cies greatly strengthened the Mongol people. Earlier no­ madic state builders had ruled largely through the leaders of Chinggis Khan. allied tribes. But Chinggis Khan mistrusted the Mongols’ This painting by a Chinese artist depicts Chinggis Khan at about tribal organization, so he broke up the tribes and forced age sixty. Though most of his conquests were behind him, men of fighting age to join new military units with no tribal Chinggis Khan's focus and determination are readily apparent in affiliations. He chose high military and political officials not this portrait. on the basis of kinship or tribal status but because of their talents or their loyalty to him. Although he spent most of his life on horseback, Chinggis Khan also established a capi­ tal at —present-day Har Horin, located about forces of the premodern world, sometimes traveling more 300 kilometers (186 miles) west of the modern Mongolian than 100 kilometers (62 miles) per day to surprise an enemy. capital of Ulaanbaatar—where he built a luxurious palace. Furthermore, the Mongols understood the psychological di­ As command center of Chinggis Khan’s empire, Karako­ mensions of warfare and used them to their advantage. If rum symbolized a source of Mongol authority superior to enemies surrendered without resistance, the Mongols usu­ the clan or tribe. Chinggis Khan’s policies created a Mongol ally spared their lives, and they provided generous treatment state that was not only much stronger than any earlier no­ for artisans, crafts workers, and those with military skills. madic confederation but also less troubled by conflicts be­ In the event of resistance, however, the Mongols ruthlessly tween clans and tribes. slaughtered whole populations, sparing only a few, whom The most important institution of the Mongol state they sometimes drove before their armies as human shields was the army, which magnified the power of the small pop­ during future conflicts. ulation. In the thirteenth century the Mongol population Once he had united the Mongols, Chinggis Khan stood at about one million people—less than 1 percent of turned his army and his attention to other parts of central China’s numbers. During Chinggis Khan’s life, his army Asia, particularly to nearby settled societies. He attacked numbered only 100,000 to 125,000 Mongols, although al­ the various Turkish peoples ruling in Tibet, northern lied peoples also contributed forces. How was it possible for China, Persia, and the central Asian steppes. Those con­ so few people to conquer the better part of Eurasia? quests were important because they protected him against the possibility that other nomadic leaders might challenge Mongol Arms Like earlier nomadic armies, Mongol his rule. But the Mongol campaigns in China and Persia forces relied on outstanding equestrian skills. In addi­ had especially far-reaching consequences. tion, their bows were short enough for archers to use while The conquest of China was important even in terms of riding, and their arrows could fell enemies at 200 meters the development of Mongol arms. Indeed, Mongol invad­ (656 feet). Mongol horsemen were among the most mobile ers learned about from Chinese military engi­ neers in the early thirteenth century, and soon incorporated Ulaanbaatar (OOLAHN-bah-tahr) gunpowder-based weapons into their arsenal. During the Chapter 14 ■ Nomadic Empires and Eurasian Integration 259

1250s, as they campaigned in Persia and southwest Asia, the recovered. The Mongols also destroyed the delicate qanat Mongols used catapults and trebuchets to lob gunpowder irrigation systems that sustained agriculture in the arid re­ bombs into cities under . Muslim armies soon devel­ gion, resulting in severely reduced agricultural production. oped similar weapons in response. These weapons quickly For centuries after the Mongol conquest, Persian chroni­ spread to Europe in the mid-thirteenth century, and thus clers cursed the invaders and The devastation they visited Mongols were critical not only for efficiently using gunpow­ on the land. der weapons in military campaigns, but also for diffusing a By the time of his death in 1227, Chinggis Khan had technology that forever changed the nature of warfare. laid the foundation of a vast and mighty empire. He had united the Mongols, established Mongol supremacy in cen­ Mongol Conquest of Northern China Chinggis Khan tral Asia, and extended Mongol control to northern China himself extended Mongol rule to northern China, domi­ in the east and Persia in the west. But Chinggis Khan was nated since 1127 c .e . by the nomadic , while a conqueror, not an administrator. He ruled the Mongols the continued to rule in southern China. themselves through his control over the army, but he did In 1211 C.E. Mongol raiding parties invaded the Jurchen not establish a central government for the lands that he realm, and by 1215 the Mongols had captured the capi­ conquered. Instead, he assigned Mongol overlords to super­ tal near modern Beijing. This city, under the new name of vise local administrators and to extract a generous tribute (“city of the khan”), also served as the Mongol for the Mongols’ own uses. Chinggis Khan’s heirs con­ capital in China. By 1220 the Mongols had largely estab­ tinued his conquests, but they also undertook the task of lished control over northern China. designing a more permanent administration to guide the fortunes of the Mongol empire. Mongol Conquest of Persia Next, Chinggis Khan led another force to Afghanistan and Persia, ruled at that time by a successor to the Saljuqs known as the Khwarazm shah. The Mongol Empires The mission was one of revenge, for in 1218 the Khwarazm after Chinggis Khan shah had spurned a diplomatic envoy sent by Chinggis Chinggis Khan’s death touched off a struggle for power Khan by murdering the whole group. In response, the fol­ among his sons and grandsons. Eventually, his heirs divided lowing year Chinggis Khan took his army west, pursued the Chinggis Khan’s vast realm into four regional empires. The Khwarazm shah to an island in the Caspian Sea (where he great khans ruled China, the wealthiest of Mongol lands. died), shattered his army, and seized control of his realm. Descendants of Chaghatai, one of Chinggis Khan’s sons, To ensure that the shah’s state would never constitute ruled the khanate of Chaghatai in central Asia. Persia fell a challenge to his own empire, Chinggis Khan wreaked under the authority of rulers known as the ilkhans, and the destruction on the conquered land. The Mongols ravaged khans of the dominated Russia. The great one city after another, demolishing buildings and massa­ khans were nominally superior to the others, but they were cring hundreds of thousands of people. Some cities never rarely able to enforce their claims to authority. In fact, for as long as the Mongol empires survived, ambition fueled constant tension and occasional conflict among the four khans.

Khubilai Khan The consolidation of Mongol rule in China came during the reign of Khubi­ lai (sometimes spelled Qubilai), one of Ching­ gis Khan’s grandsons. Khubilai was perhaps the most talented of the great conqueror’s descen­ dants. He unleashed ruthless attacks against his enemies, but he also took an interest in cultural matters and worked to improve the welfare of his subjects. He actively promoted Buddhism, and he provided support also for Daoists, Mus­ lims, and Christians in his realm. The famous

Chinggis Khan at war. Jurchen (JUHR-chehn) A Persian manuscript illustration depicts Chinggis Khan and his cavalry in hot Song (SOHNG) pursuit of retreating forces. Khubilai (KOO-bih-lie) Buddhism (BOO-diz'm) 260 PART 4 ■ An Age of Cross-Cultural Interaction, 1000 to 1500 c . e .

Marco Polo on Mongol Military Tactics

The Venetian Marco Polo traveled extensively through ally riding round and shooting into the enemy. And as central Asia and China in the late thirteenth century, they do not count it any shame to run away in battle, when Mongol empires dominated Asia. His book they will sometimes pretend to do so, and in running o f travel writings is an especially valuable source of away they turn in the saddle and shoot hard and strong information about the Mongol age. Among other at the foe, and in this way make great havoc. Their horses things, he described the Mongol way of making war. are trained so perfectly that they will double hither and thither, just like a dog, in a way that is quite astonishing. Their arms are bows and arrows, sword and mace; but Thus th ey fig h t to as good purpose in running away as if above all the bow, for they are capital archers, indeed the they stood and faced the enemy because of the vast vol­ best that are known.... leys of arrows that they shoot in this way, turning round When a Mongol prince goes forth to war, he takes upon their pursuers, who are fancying that they have with him, say, 100,000 men. Well, he appoints an officer won the battle. But when the Mongols see that they to every ten men, one to every hundred, one to every have killed and wounded a good many horses and men, thousand, and one to every ten thousand, so that his they wheel round bodily and return to the charge in per­ own orders have to be given to ten persons only, and fect order and with loud cries, and in a very short time each of these ten persons has to pass the orders only to the enemy are routed. In truth they are stout and valiant another ten, and so on, no one having to give orders to soldiers, and inured to war. And you perceive that it is more than ten. And every one in turn is responsible only just when the enemy sees them run, and imagines that to the officer immediately over him; and the discipline he has gained the battle, that he has in reality lost it, for and order that comes of this method is marvellous, for the Mongols wheel round in a moment when they judge they are a people very obedient to their chiefs. . . . the right time has come. And after this fashion they have When they are going on a distant expedition they won many a fight. take no gear with them except two leather bottles for milk, a little earthenware pot to cook their meat in, and a For Further Reflection little tent to shelter them from rain. And in case of great ■ In what ways do the military practices described by urgency they will ride ten days on end without lighting a Marco Polo reflect the influence of the steppe en­ fire or takin g a m eal. On such an occasion th ey w ill sus­ vironment on the Mongols? Why might a merchant tain themselves on the blood of their horses, opening a and traveler like Marco Polo have been interested in vein and letting the blood jet into their mouths, drinking Mongol military practices in the first place? till they have had enough, and then staunching it. ... When they come to an engagement with the enemy, Source: Marco Polo. The Book of Ser Marco Polo, 3rd ed. they will gain the victory in this fashion. They never let Trans, and ed. by Henry Yule and Henri Cordier. London: John themselves get into a regular medley, but keep perpetu- Murray, 1921, pp. 260-63. (Translation slightly modified.)

Venetian traveler Marco Polo, who lived almost two decades resistance throughout China. In 1279 he proclaimed him­ at Khubilai’s court, praised him for his generosity toward self emperor and established the Yuan dynasty, which ruled the poor and his efforts to build roads. From 1264 until his China until its collapse in 1368. death in 1294, Khubilai Khan presided over the Mongol Beyond China, Khubilai had little success as a con­ empire at its height. queror. During the 1270s and 1280s, he launched several unsuccessful invasions of Vietnam, Cambodia, and Burma Mongol Conquest of Southern China Khubilai ex­ as well as a failed naval expedition against Java involving tended Mongol rule to all of China. From his base at Khan- 500 to 1,000 ships and twenty thousand troops. In 1274 baliq, he relentlessly attacked the Song dynasty in southern and again in 1281, Khubilai also attempted seaborne inva­ China. The Song capital at FFangzhou fell to Mongol forces sions of Japan, but on both occasions typhoons thwarted in 1276, and within three years Khubilai had eliminated his plans. The storm of 1281 was especially vicious: it de­ stroyed about 4,500 Mongol vessels carrying more than Khanbaliq (Kahn-bah-LEEK) one hundred thousand armed troops— the largest seaborne Yuan (yoo-AHN) expedition before World War II. Chapter 14 ■ Nomadic Empires and Eurasian Integration 261

MAP 14.2 The Mongol empires, ca. 1300 c .e. The Mongol empires stretched from Manchuria and China to Russia and eastern Europe. In what ways did Mongol empires and Mongol policies facilitate The Golden Horde As Khubilai consolidated his hold trade, travel, and communication throughout Eurasia? on east Asia, his cousins and brothers tightened Mongol control on lands to the west. Mongols of the group known as the Golden Horde overran Russia between 1237 and 1241 and then mounted exploratory expeditions into Po­ in Persia. In 1258 he captured the Abbasid cap­ land, Hungary, and eastern Germany in 1241 and 1242. ital of Baghdad after a brief siege. His rroops looted the Mongols of the Golden Horde prized the steppes north of city, executed the caliph, and massacred more than two the Black Sea as prime pastureland for their horses, and hundred thousand residents. From Persia, Hiilegii’s army they used them to maintain a large army. They did not oc­ ventured into Syria, but Muslim forces from Egypt soon cupy Russia, which they regarded as an unattractive land expelled them and placed a limit on Mongol expansion to of forests, but they extracted tribute from the Russian cities the southwest. and agricultural provinces. The Golden Horde maintained When the Mongols crushed ruling regimes in large set­ its hegemony in Russia until the mid-fifteenth century, tled societies, they discovered that they needed to become when the princes of Moscow built a powerful Russian state. governors as well as conquerors. The Mongols had no ex­ By the mid-sixteenth century Russian conquerors had perience administering complex societies, where successful extended their control to the steppes, but Mongol khans governance required talents beyond the equestrian and mili­ descended from the Golden Horde continued to rule the tary skills esteemed on the steppes. They had a difficult time Crimea until the late eighteenth century. adjusting to their role as administrators, and in fact most of their conquests fell out of their hands within a century. The Ilkhanate of Persia While the Golden Horde es------tablished its authority in Russia, Khubilai’s brother Hiilegii Hiilegii (Hoo-LAY-goo) toppled the Abbasid empire and established the Mongol ilkhanate (EEL-kahn-ate) 262 PART 4 ■ An Age of Cross-Cultural Interaction, 1000 to 1500 c.E .

as much revenue as possible from their Chinese s,ybjects. Unlike their counter­ parts in Persia, the Mongols in China did not make much use of native admin­ istrative talent. Instead, they brought for­ eign administrators— including , Persians, and even Europeans—into China and placed them in charge. The Mongols also resisted assimi­ lation to Chinese cultural traditions. They ended the ptivileges enjoyed by the Confucian scholars, and they dis­ mantled the Confucian educational and examination system, which had pro­ duced generations of civil servants for the Chinese bureaucracy. They did not persecute Confucians, but they allowed the Confucian tradition to wither in the absence of official support. Meanwhile, The siege of Baghdad. although the Mongols mostly contin­ ! A Persian manuscript illustration depicts Mongol forces camped outside the city walls ued to follow their native shamanist while residents huddle within. Note that the Mongols killed about 200,000 residents cults, they tolerated all cultutal and re­ once the city fell. ligious traditions in China, including Confucianism, Daoism, Buddhism, and Christianity. O f Khubilai Khan’s four Mongol Rule in Persia The Mongols adopted differ­ wives, his favorite was Chabi, a Nestorian Christian. ent tactics in the different lands they ruled. In Persia they made important concessions to local interests. Although The Mongols and Mongols and their allies occupied the highest administra­ tive positions, they basically allowed the Persians to run the Eurasian Integration ilkhanate as long as they delivered tax receipts and main­ In building their vast empire, the Mongols brought tremen­ tained order. dous destruction to lands throughout much of the Eurasian Over time, the Mongols even assimilated to Persian landmass. Yet they also sponsored interaction among peo­ cultural traditions. The early Mongol rulers of Persia mostly ples of different societies and linked Eurasian lands more observed their native shamanism, but they tolerated all directly than ever before. Indeed, Mongol rulers positively religions— including Islam, Nestorian Christianity, Bud­ encouraged travel and communication over long distances. dhism, and Judaism. Gradually, however, the Mongols Recognizing the value of regular communications for their gravitated toward Islam. In 1295 Ilkhan Ghazan publicly vast empire, Chinggis Khan and his successors maintained converted to Islam, and most of the Mongols in Persia fol­ a courier network that rapidly relayed news, information, lowed his example. Ghazan’s conversion sparked large-scale and government orders. The network included relay stations massacres of Christians and Jews, and it signaled the ab­ with fresh horses and riders so that messages could travel al­ sorption of the Mongols into Muslim Persian society. most nonstop throughout Mongol territories. The Mongols’ encouragement of travel and communication facilitated Mongol Rule in China In China, in contrast, the Mon­ trade, diplomatic travel, missionary efforts, and movements gol overlords stood aloof from their subjects, whom they of peoples to new lands. scorned as mere cultivators. They outlawed intermarriage between Mongols and Chinese and forbade the Chinese The Mongols and Trade As a nomadic people depen­ to learn the Mongol language. Some of the victors went so dent on commerce with settled agricultural societies, the far as to suggest that the Mongols exterminate the Chinese Mongols worked to secure trade routes and ensute the safety people and convert China itself into pastureland for their of merchants passing through their territories. The Mongol horses. In the end, the Mongols decided simply to extract khans frequently fought among themselves, but they main­ tained reasonably good order within their realms and allowed shamanism (SHAH-mah-niz'm) merchants to travel unmolested through their empires. As a Daoism (DOW-iz'm) result, long-distance travel and trade became much less risky Chapter 14 ■ Nomadic Empires and Eurasian Integration 263

conquered, and they often moved people Thinking about ENCOUNTERS far from their homelands to sites where they could best make use of their ser­ vices. Among the most important of the ? Mongols’ allies were the Uighur Turks, In the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries, the Mongols who lived mostly in oasis cities along the conquered vast portions of the Eurasian landmass, creating silk roads. The Uighurs were literate and the largest empire in history. Why, despite the extreme violence often highly educated, and they provided of Mongol conquest in many areas, did Mongol rule lead to greater not only many of the clerks, secretaries, cultural interaction among the peoples of Eurasia than ever before? and administrators who ran the Mongol empires but also units of soldiers who bol­ stered Mongol garrisons. Arab and Persian than in earlier times. Merchants increased their commercial Muslims were also prominent among those who adminis­ investments, and the volume of long-distance trade across tered the Mongols’ affairs far from their homelands. central Asia dwarfed that of earlier eras. Lands as distant as Conquered peoples also supplied the Mongols with China and western Europe became directly linked for the talent. When they overcame a city, Mongol forces surveyed first time because of the ability of individuals to travel across the captured population, separated out those with special­ the entire Eurasian landmass. ized skills, and sent them where there was demand for their services. After the 1230s the Mongols often took censuses Diplomatic Missions Like trade, diplomatic commu­ of lands they conquered, partly to levy taxes and conscript nication was essential to the Mongols, and their protec­ military forces and partly to locate talented individuals. tion of roads and travelers benefited ambassadors as well The Parisian goldsmith Guillaume Boucher was only one as merchants. Throughout the Mongol era the great khans among thousands of foreign-born individuals who became in China, the ilkhans in Persia, and the other khans main­ permanent residents of the Mongol capital at Karakorum tained close communications by means of diplomatic em­ because of their special talents. Like their protection of bassies. They also had diplomatic dealings with rulers in trade and diplomacy, the Mongols’ policy of resettling al­ Korea, Vietnam, India, and western Europe, and in other lies and conquered peoples promoted Eurasian integration lands as well. Some diplomatic travelers crossed the entire by increasing communication and exchange between peo­ Eurasian landmass. Several European ambassadors traveled ples of different societies. to Mongolia and China to deliver messages from authori­ ties seeking to ally with the Mongols against Muslim states Decline of the Mongols in southwest Asia. Diplomats also traveled west: Rabban Sauma, a Nestorian Christian monk born in Khanbaliq, vis­ in Persia and China ited Italy and Erance as a representative of the Persian ilkhan. Collapse of the llkhanate Soon after the long and prosperous reign of Khubilai Khan, the Mongols encoun­ Missionary Efforts Like the silk roads in earlier times, tered serious difficulties governing Persia and China. In Eurasian routes during the era of the Mongol empires Persia excessive spending strained the treasury, and over- served as highways for missionaries as well as merchants exploitation of the peasantry led to reduced revenues. and diplomats. Sufi missionaries helped popularize Islam When the ilkhan tried to resolve his financial difficulties among Turkish peoples in central Asia, and Nestorian by ordering the use of paper money in the 1290s, mer­ Christians found new opportunities to win converts when chants refused to accept paper they regarded as worthless. they went to China to serve as administrators for Mongol Commerce ground to a halt until the ilkhan rescinded his rulers. Roman Catholic Christians also mounted mission­ order. Meanwhile, factional struggles plagued the Mongol ary campaigns in China. (See chapter 18 for further discus­ leadership. When the last of the Mongol rulers died with­ sion of travel during the Mongol era.) out an heir in 1335, the ilkhanate itself simply collapsed. Government in Persia devolved to local levels until late in Resettlement Another Mongol policy that encouraged the fourteenth century, when Turkish peoples reintroduced Eurasian integration was the practice of resettling peoples effective central government. in new lands. As a nomadic people, the Mongols had lim­ ited numbers of skilled artisans and educated individuals, Decline of the Yuan Dynasty Mongol decline in but the more their empire expanded, the more they needed China was a more complicated affair. As in Persia, it had the services of specialized crafts workers and literate admin­ an economic dimension. The Mongols continued to use the istrators. Mongol overlords recruited the talent they needed largely from the ranks of their allies and the peoples they Uighurs (WEE-goors)