1. MONGOLS!!!!!!!!!! Significance of Pastoral Societies
Conditions of Nomadic Life
Impact of Mongol Empire on world history
How trade sponsored by Mongols changed the world

2. MONGOL WARRIORS

3. The Long History of Pastoral Nomads
Who pastoralists are. What connections do they have to their neighbors?
What pastoralist societies other than the Mongols have had major impacts on civilizations and in what ways?

4. When did pastoralist societies emerge?
Around 4000 BCE
Dependent on a variety of domesticated animals: horses, camels, goats, sheep, cattle, yaks, reindeer. Which animals would depend on what geographic area the pastoralists inhabited
Developed in these areas of the world:
Grasslands of Eurasia and sub-Saharan Africa
Arabian and Saharan Deserts
Subartic Regions (tundra and taiga)
Tibetan Plateau
NO PASTORALISTS IN AMERICA PRIOR TO 1650 OR SO. WHY?

5. Yak
Camel and Horse
Cow
Sheep and Goat
Reindeer also known as Caribou

6. Pastoral Worlds Less productive Large grazing areas needed
Populations much smaller
Related kin, usually male ancestral lines
Clans might make a tribe, also absorb unrelated peoples
More egalitarian in many ways than agriculturalists, but some groups have nobilities and commoners. Not many slaves
Women: higher status and greater freedoms than in most agricultural societies, but this should not be read backwards from today
Mobility

7. Connections Deeply affiliated with neighboring agricultural societies
Sometimes created large nomadic states of power; almost all males became warriors
Held states together as long as the money was coming in
Culturally, nomads adopted different religions from sedentary societies at various times and changed them as well as suited them
Horses: life after horses much more far ranging (1000BCE). Enable nomads to interact over broad areas with many more peoples

8. STEPPE NOMAD WARRIORS

9. MONGOLIAN PONIES

10. Nomads before the Mongols
Huns (Xiongnu) in Mongolia c. 150BCE; forced Chinese empire to deal with them; centralized rule; clan and social divisions became more important; tribute state
In Europe: Huns, Avars, Magyars, Goths all moved through the area with varying results. Huns and Avars remained nomadic and eventually moved on and ?, while others settled and became Europeans or Asians in sedentary societies
Arabs and Turks

11. Nomads Greatest world impact 500-1500CE Arabs, Berbers, Turks, Mongols
Islam from nomadic Arabs, spread by Islamic Turks
Byzantium, Persia, and China were all controlled by nomads at one time or another
Bedouin nomads became great fighters and developed camel cavalry with the new “camel” saddle
These were the blitzkrieg forces of Arabic/Islamic expansion

12. Turks Turkic speaking nomads came from Mongolia and Southern Siberia
Gradually spread southward and southwest creating series of short lived nomadic empires to 1000CE
Spread Turkic language and culture over much of interior Asia
Turkic peoples converted to Islam around CE
Seljuk Empire in Turkey, began to claim the Muslim title of Sultan
Berber societies of northern Africa/Sahara emerged as nomadic with intro of camel into Africa
Adopted Islam c.800CE

13. THE MONGOLS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Greatest land based empire in world history
Linked nomads from inner steppes with surrounding agricultural civilizations
Created much greater contact between regions in Eurasia: with Europe, the Islamic world, and even Africa
Mongols only numbered around ¾ of a million
Left little cultural impact: did not spread their religion, interested in exploiting wealth of conquered peoples, so today their culture is confined to Mongolia
Last great nomadic state in world history

14. From Temujin to Chinggis Khan (Genghis Khan)
Lived CE and created Mongol Empire
Prior to him, Mongols were a collection of feuding tribes and clans
How did he do it?
Father was a minor clan leader and murdered when Genghis was a child
When he grew up, he organized a small following and allied himself with more powerful leaders
Shifted his allegiance when necessary, betrayed allies, won many military victories. Reputation as a great leader followed

15. CHINGGIS KHAN

16. Chinggis Khan
1206 CE the Mongol tribal assembly recognized Temujin as Chinggis Khan (Great Leader)
Expansion of Mongol rule began:
Attacked China in 1209 starting a long 50 year war of conquest
Along with his sons and grandsons (Ogodei,Mongke, and Kubilai) created an empire that covered China, Korea, Central Asia, Russia, the Middle East, and parts of eastern Europe
The limits of the Mongol Empire were established at places where they were NOT victorious in battle

17. How and why did the Mongol Empire exist?
No great plan of conquest: it sort of just happened
Chinggis Khan saw it as his mission to unite the whole world
Mongols were always outnumbered by their enemies but almost always won
Good luck, maybe? China was divided into rival Song empires, the Islamic Abbassid Empire was declining, Russia was disunited
Key to Mongol success: their army.

18. Mongol Army
As Chinggis conquered other Mongol clans these men were scattered throughout his army defusing rebellion
An imperial guard and a mentality of unity was fostered
If any soldier deserted in battle his entire unit was killed
Leaders shared the same life as warriors with no luxuries or status
Created good tactical plans: encirclement, deception, retreat
Incorporated many conquered peoples into the army

19. Reputation and Street Cred
Mongols always allowed for surrender before besieging a city or attacking an enemy
If this occurred things remained peaceful
Any resistance would result in the total destruction of the enemy
Strategies:
Systematic taxation and accounting
Communication and relay stations to move news and info along
Began a centralization of Mongol government

20. Reputation
Encouraged commerce along overland routes in Eurasia as beneficial to Mongol needs, primarily through taxation
Gave lower spots in administration to Muslim and Chinese officials across the empire
Practiced religious toleration: Mongols were pretty casual about religion for the most part except in the Middle East where they converted to Islam

21. MONGOL EMPIRE AT ITS GREATEST EXTENT C.1300

22. Mongols and China
By 1279 China had been completely conquered by the Mongols after a long and difficult struggle
In the north this struggle was destructive, but in the south the fall of the Song dynasty was less violent
In the south, Mongols had learned to accommodate the local people; landowners were guaranteed possession for support
Unification under the Mongols gave them the Mandate of Heaven in many Chinese eyes

23. Mongols and China
Since Mongols did not know how to run a civilization they had to use Chinese practices and techniques
Kubilai gave himself a dynastic name: Yuan (Great Beginnings)
Established a new capital- Khanbalik (now Beijing)
Kubilai made himself a patron of the people (in a sense) and adopted many policies and values that made him look like a good Chinese emperor

24. KUBILAI KHAN

26. Mongols and China
But, Mongols did not become Chinese. Their rule was harsh and exploitative and foreign
Relied on foreigners FOR administration, bypassing the traditional Confucian bureaucracy
Most Mongols did not learn to speak Chinese
Mongol law discriminated against Chinese
Chinese were shocked by the freedoms and actions of Mongol women
In 1368, a rebellion forced the Mongols out of China

27. Mongols and Persia
Persia was attacked twice, once in 1220, and successfully in 1250’s
Mass destruction of cities, infrastructure, and commerce
Abbasid Empire ended with the destruction of Baghdad in 1258
Destroyed the ancient qanat irrigation system which still has not been repaired to this day
Shook many Persians faith in Islam; how could these infidels have been successful?

28. Mongols and Persia
Unlike in China, the Mongols in Persia soon began to take up Persian ways of doing things
Used the Persian bureaucracy
Many Mongol elites learned to speak Persian
Many Mongols converted to Islam
Persian laws were still enforced
Some Mongols even took up farming
Mongol ruled ended in 1330’s

30. Mongols and Russia
Russia was composed of independent city states like Novgorod and small kingdoms like Moscow. They were disunited and unable to respond to the Mongol challenge in the mid 1200’s
Much destruction, slaughter, and deportation of Russian workers
Russia was integrated into the Mongol Empire as the Khanate of Kipchak or the Golden Horde
Mongols did not occupy Russia; collected tribute and taxes and remained on the steppes outside Russia proper; from here they continued to raid and pillage the Russians

31. Mongols and Russia Some Russian rulers prospered under Mongol rule
The Russian Orthodox Church also flourished
Moscow and its prince became the primary tribute collectors for the Mongols, giving its ruler more and more power, eventually Moscow became the core area of a new Russian state
Russians copied some Mongol ways particularly visual forms of government
Russia broke free of the Golden Horde by the late 15th century

33. Mongols and the wider world
Although Mongol rule was brief in most places, it also stimulated change across the face of Eurasia
Promoted trade and production even though they did not do either
Kept the trade routes open and even improved them as well as protecting merchants along the routes
This trading “circuit” was crucial to the economy of much of Eurasia/Africa. Even after the end of Mongol rule, Europe and the Middle East were eager for trade with other regions of the continent

34. Mongols and the wider world
Culture and exchange in the Mongol world:
Many artisans and educated people were forcibly relocated by the Mongol rulers
Mongol religious tolerance and support for trade attracted thousands of foreigners to their realm
Much exchange of ideas and technology: westward flow of Chinese technology and art (painting, printing, gunpowder, weapons, compass, furnaces for metal working, medical techniques)
Muslim astronomy spread to China, crops and plants were exchanged and found new homes; Europe was the biggest gainer from these exchanges

35. Mongols and the wider world: THE PLAGUE
Spread along Mongol trade routes
Plague broke out in China in 1331 and reached Middle East and Europe by 1347
By 1409 reached East Africa
Many died: perhaps ½ of Europe’s population and 1/3 of the population of the Middle East. The death toll in China is unrecorded but was probably on the same scale
India and Sub Saharan Africa were much less impacted by plague

36. Mongols and the wider world: THE PLAGUE
Effects:
In Europe: undermined serfdom and the feudal system; perhaps encouraged technological innovation as an attempt to compensate for the loss of people; created more employment opportunities for women and lower class persons
Plague was the primary reason for the destruction of the greater Mongol Empire

37. Mongols and the wider world:
Population fell and trade was reduced for this reason as well as a fall in production
The Mongol Empire relied on taxation from trade and as this fell so did the various regions of the Empire
By 1450 Mongols had lost control of most of what they had conquered a century before

38. Consequences
With trade routes no longer safe or open Europeans (who had become used to the goods from trade) set out to find sea routes to reestablish trade with Asia
European naval technology, much improved by contact with the Middle East and China, gave them an advantage
Europeans were much like Mongols: they were peripheral people to the great civilizations, less economically developed, and who learned to loot and plunder wealthier, if less ruthless, civilizations.

39. EUROPE HEADS OUT INTO THE WORLD