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GREAT EMPIRES OF THE PAST Empire of the Mongols MICHAEL BURGAN Great Empires of the Past: EMPIRE OF THE MONGOLS Copyright © 2005 Michael Burgan History Consultant: Christopher P. Atwood, professor of Mongolian History, Indiana University; editor of Journal of the Mongolia Society All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or used in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage or retrieval systems, without permission in writing from the publisher. For information, contact: Facts On File, Inc. 132 West 31st Street New York NY 10001 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Burgan, Michael. Empire of the Mongols / Michael Burgan. p. cm. — (Great empires of the past) Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 0-8160-5563-7 (alk. paper) 1. Mongols—History—Juvenile literature. I. Title. II. Series. 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CONTENTS Introduction 5 PART I H ISTORY CHAPTER 1 The Rise of the Mongol Empire 15 CHAPTER 2 Completing the Mongol Empire 31 CHAPTER 3 Final Years of the Khanates 47 PART II SOCIETY AND CULTURE CHAPTER 4 Mongol Government and Society 63 CHAPTER 5 Daily Life in the Mongol Empire 79 CHAPTER 6 Art, Science, and Culture in Mongol Lands 95 Epilogue 111 Time Line 120 Resources 121 Bibliography 123 Index 124 5 FOR SEVERAL THOUSAND YEARS WARRIORS ON HORSEBACK rode across central Asia, conquering nearby towns and cities. These horsemen lived on the steppes, a flat, grassy region that extends from Asia into central Europe. The riders were nomads, moving from one grazing spot to another with their herds of horses, sheep, camels, goats, and cattle. Over the centuries these nomads battled such people as the ancient Greeks, the Romans, the Persians, the Chinese, and the Arabs. Of all the nomadic warriors of central Asia, the fiercest were the Mongols. In the 13th century, starting in their homeland of Mongolia, just north of China, the Mongols spread out to the south and west. Under the leadership of Chinggis Khan (c. 1162–1227) and his descendants, the Mon- gols quickly built an empire that stretched from Korea to eastern Europe— the largest continuous area of land ever controlled by one ruling family. This empire soon split into four mini-empires. The last major rulers with ties to the old Mongol empire were the Mughals of northern India, who first governed in the 16th century. They traced family ties to Chinggis Khan and the later Turko-Mongol ruler Timur (1336–1405), more commonly known in English as Tamerlane. By the time of the Mughals, the old Mongol culture had virtually dis- appeared in most of the lands that once formed their empire. The Mongols had adopted the ways of the people they conquered and blended into their societies. Only in their homeland of Mongolia and a few other pockets of the eastern steppes did the traditional ways endure. This willingness to learn from conquered people and take on their culture was one of the Mongols’ greatest strengths. They borrowed the best of what their former enemies had to offer in politics, art, and social structure. The Mongols’ Introduction opposite The Great Khan Under the leadership of Chinggis Khan and his descendants, the Mongols built the largest empire ever controlled by one family. This 16th-century Persian miniature, painted 300 years after Chinggis Khan died, attests to the lasting impact he had. TURKS AND MONGOLS Throughout this book, Mongol is used to de- scribe the people of Mon- golia during the time of the Mongol Empire. Mon- golian, when it is used, refers to the modern-day people of Mongolia. In a similar way, Turkic or Turk refers to past peoples, not the current inhabitants of modern Turkey. other major strength was their military might. They had great skills on horseback and showed tremendous discipline on the battlefield. As they conquered one land, they recruited new soldiers, then kept their ever-in- creasing army moving into new territories. The World of the 12th Century For several centuries before the rise of Chinggis Khan, the Mongols were just one of many nomadic tribes that lived on the Central Asian steppes. Different Turkic peoples ruled the steppes for a time, and the Chinese also influenced the region. The tribes of Mongolia blended with the Turks, cre- ating what is sometimes called a Turko-Mongol culture. By the 12th cen- tury, the tribes of Mongolia included the Tatars, the Mongols, the Kereyids, the Naimans, and the Merkits. These Mongolian tribal peoples lived on the landmass called Eura- sia. This continuous stretch of land includes the greater part of two conti- nents: Europe and Asia. At its height in the second century, Rome dominated the western half of Eurasia. At about the same time, the Han Dynasty of China was the major power in the east. By the 12th century, both these empires were long gone, and a number of smaller empires and kingdoms competed for influence in the region. Rome’s empire had split in two even before its fall in the fifth cen- tury. Western Europe then broke into many different kingdoms and prin- cipalities. The Byzantine Empire, which traced its political roots to the Romans, ruled parts of Eastern Europe. In the Middle East, a single great Islamic Empire had arisen in the seventh century. It then broke up into smaller dynastic empires. In South Asia, India had developed a great culture that was more than 3,000 years old. But by the 12th century, native Indian dynasties were losing power to outsiders. The northern part of the country eventually came under the control of Turks, who had embraced Islam. Farther east in Eurasia, two competing Chinese dynasties had de- veloped after the fall of the Han: the Song and the Jin. A number of smaller empires, some Turkic, also competed for influence on the edges of China. Throughout the world at this time, religion played a greater role in politics and daily life than it usually does today. Religion inspired great art. It could also fuel bloody wars. But to believers it was most important for bringing release from the suffering of this world. The two halves of Europe were divided by their religion, as each region claimed that its type of Chris- tianity was the one true faith. Islam was dominant in the Arab world and in Persia, which had once been the home of great empires. The Islamic in- 6 EMPIRE OF THE MONGOLS WHAT ARE CONNECTIONS? Throughout this book, and all the books in the Great Empires of the Past series, you will find Connections boxes. They point out ideas, inven- tions, art, food, customs, and more from this empire that are still part of our world today. Nations and cultures in remote history can seem far removed from our world, but these connec- tions demonstrate how our everyday lives have been shaped by the peoples of the past. INTRODUCTION fluence spread into Central Asia, where Turkic tribes lived. In India, Hinduism and Buddhism (both na- tive to India) were the main reli- gions until the Moslem conquests began, while in China, Buddhism competed with Taoism (a native Chinese religion) as the main faith. The Mongols had their own faith, but they often accepted the beliefs of the people they conquered. The empires that dominated Eurasia in the 12th century were mostly sedentary—they were built around permanent towns and cities that focused on farming and trade. They had great wealth compared to the Mongols. But in most cases they could not match the military skill of the nomadic warriors. They also had political and religious differences that kept them from working together to fight the Mongols. Those differences made it easier for the Mongols to expand their empire. The Conquests Begin The first Mongol khan emerged toward the end of the 11th century. A lit- tle later, the Mongols battled the Tatars. The Mongol chieftain Yesugei (d. c. 1175), a relative of the first khan, killed a Tatar leader named Temüjin (d. c. 1167). Yesugei then named his newborn son after the fallen Tatar, a com- mon practice of the day. This Mongolian boy became one of the greatest generals and leaders the world has ever known—Chinggis Khan. As nomads, the Mongols and their neighbors often raided sedentary communities. The tribes of Mongolia also raided each other. An individual warrior in one tribe often used his family connections and a strong per- sonality to convince other warriors to join his raiding party. Temüjin fol- lowed this path to power, and his growing army fought and defeated larger tribes. By 1206, Temüjin had united almost all the Turko-Mongol tribes of Mongolia, and he received the title of Chinggis Khan. There is some debate about what this title really means: Some scholars say it means “hard or tough ruler,” others believe it means “oceanic (universal) ruler,” and there are still more theories. In English, Chinggis Khan, and 7 The historians of the Mongols’ day wrote in a variety of lan- guages, including Persian, Chinese, Arabic, and Turkic. Mod- ern European historians using these Asian sources translate some of the Mongol names in different ways. Chinggis Khan, for example, also appears as Jingiz, Chingiz, Cinggis, and Genghis. His grandson Khubilai Khan (1215–1294) also turns up as Kubilai, Qubilai, and Kubla, and Khan is some- times written Qa’an or Qan. The same problem emerges with geographic names. The Mongol capital of Karakorum, for example, is also spelled Qaraqorum. Sometimes, it can make for confusing history. Names of a Conqueror each of his successors at the head of the Mongol Empire, was sometimes called the Great Khan. The Mongols under Chinggis had one of the most powerful armies in central Asia. As the “uni- versal” ruler, he brought the re- maining tribes under his control and then began to look beyond Mon- golia’s borders. This time, however, the Mongols would not merely raid the sedentary civilizations that sur- rounded them. Chinggis wanted to conquer and dominate all the na- tions around him. Almost constant attacks kept the Mongol forces strong and prevented other nations from gaining enough strength to threaten the Mongols. These wars also brought great riches to Chinggis and his family. After Chinggis In 1223 Chinggis returned to Mongolia, and he died there in 1227. Two years later the Mongol chieftains elected Chinggis’s third son, Ögedei (1186–1241), the new Great Khan. By Mongol tradition, Chinggis’s empire was divided among his four sons, though the other brothers recognized Ögedei as the Great Khan of the empire. He set up his capital at Karako- rum, north of today’s Arvayheer, and focused his military attention on the Jin. The ultimate Mongol victory in 1234 meant that half of East Asia’s greatest civilization was under the control of nomads who historically had no use for formal education, structured government, and fine arts—all trade- marks of Chinese civilization. A few years later, Korea and Tibet were added to the Mongol Empire, and Ögedei also launched the first Mongol attacks on the territory controlled by the southern Chinese Song Dynasty. Ögedei also turned his sights to the west. His generals conquered what is today Azerbaijan, Georgia, and Armenia, then forced the rulers in what is today Turkey and Iraq to pay tribute to them. Eventually, Mongol forces took control of the western steppes that stretched beyond Russia’s Volga River into Hungary. The Mongols were prepared to stay in Hungary 8 EMPIRE OF THE MONGOLS The Turkic title khan (or variations of the word) means “prince” or “king.” It was used throughout Central Asia for centuries. It is commonly used today in English when talking about the great Mongol rulers Chinggis and Khu- bilai, but one modern ruler also uses the name. The Aga Khan (b. 1936) is the religious leader of the Shia Imami Is- maili branch of Islam. The current Aga Khan is the 49th leader with that title. A charitable organization called the Aga Khan Development Network operates in many coun- tries with large Islamic populations, and Pakistan is the home of Aga Khan University. Khan has also become a comon surname in Pakistan and India. An Enduring Title CONNECTIONS INTRODUCTION and make it a base for further expansion into Europe, but the death of Ögedei late in 1241 changed their plans. The khan’s relatives and other im- portant leaders had to return to Karakorum to choose the next Great Khan. Just as suddenly as the Mongols had swept into Europe, they left, al- though a large force remained in Russia. The Russians later called the Mon- gols’ mini-empire the Golden Horde. The Rise of Khubilai Khan After Ögedei’s death, three of Chinggis’s grandsons ruled in succession as the Great Khan. The second of these rulers, Möngke (d. 1259), strength- ened Mongol rule in southwest Asia, in what is now Iran and Iraq. He also prepared for a major war with the Song, and he sent his brother Khubilai to fight in lands bordering Song Dynasty territory. Khubilai’s military campaign began in 1252, and he and Möngke led the Mongol armies that invaded southern China in 1258. By this time, Khubilai ruled most of northern China for his family. After Möngke died at the front in 1259, Khubilai was chose