1. Do Now – Correct your 7.4 Assessment 1a. Genghis Khan was the leader of the Mongols who conquered a large part of Asia. 1b. The Mongols gained control of China by attacking and terrorizing Chinese towns and ruining farmland. 1c. Opinion + Evidence = Point –The statement the “The Mongols should never have tried to invade Japan” is valid because attacking Japan contributed to the Yan dynasty’s failure as they overextended their army. 2a. Zheng He was the greatest sailor of the Ming dynasty. He led voyages of exploration to Asia and Africa. 3a. Isolationism is the act of removing, or isolating, a country from contract with other countries. 3b. The Ming changed China by expanding the imperial government’s power and instituting isolationism.

2. Topic: The Yuan Dynasty 1279-1368 CE How did the Mongols come to rule China? What factors caused the end of their rule?

3. I. Nomads of the Asian Steppe Geography of the Steppe –Steppe—dry grassland of Eurasia (Europe and Asia —provides home for nomads. –Dry arid climate with extreme temperatures. –Steppe nomads are pastoralists—herd domesticated animals. –Way of life teaches Asian nomads to be skilled horse riders.

4. Visual 1 of Asian steppes

5. Visual 2 nomadic tents

6. II. Role of the Horse Mongols have a reputation for being the best horsemen on Earth. Mongols could travel up to 80 miles a day Invention of the stirrup allowed riders to stand and shoot arrows at a full gallop. –Mongol archers were very deadly and accurate Their arrows could kill enemies at 200 meters (656 feet) The Mongols were oriented around extreme mobility. They carried their houses with them, drank their own horse's blood to stay alive, and could travel up to 80 miles per day. The administration and consolidation of the vast Mongol empire was closely tied to the use of the horse. –They had an elaborate priority-mail-system which allowed orders to be transmitted rapidly across Eurasia

7. III. Genghis Khan: “The Universal Ruler” Genghis Khan Unites the Mongols –About 1200, Genghis Khan (universal ruler) unites Mongols. –A brilliant organizer and strategist, uses brutality to terrorize his enemies. – By 1225, Genghis Khan controls central Asia. –Genghis Khan dies in 1227 and his successors continue conquests for 50 years. –The Mongols conquer territory from China to Eastern Europe

8. IV. The Khanates A.Mongols ruled a huge empire and divided them into 4 areas: –Khanate of the Great Khan (Mongolia & China) –Khanate of the Golden Horde (Russia) –Chagatai Khanate (Central Asia) –Ilkhanate (Persia)

9. B. Kublai Khan A New Emperor –Kublai Khan, grandson of Genghis, conquers China by 1279. –Kublai established the Yuan Dynasty (1279- 1368), a period of peace and relative prosperity. –Kublai adopts Chinese ways, and builds capital at Beijing.

10. C. Mongol Rule C. Mongol Rule –Mongol rulers are tolerant of other peoples and their cultures. Kublai is tolerant and does not force the Chinese to adopt Mongol ways. –Some Mongols adopt local ways, leading to a split among khanates. Some Mongols adopt aspects of Chinese culture, like Confucianism. –Still, Chinese are resentful of rule by foreigners, whom they saw as rude and uncivilized.

11. Mongol Rule in China  Mongols live separately from Chinese and follow own laws.  Mongols keep control by preventing scholar officials from gaining too much power and levying heavy taxes.  Taxes used to expand public works projects  Kublai extends Grand Canal to Beijing, and builds a highway.

12. D. Growth of Trade  The Yuan dynasty favored a policy of non- isolationism  Mongol soldier presence, kept overland trade routes (Silk Road) safe for Merchants, increasing overland trade  Mongol Emperors welcome foreign traders at Chinese ports, increasing overseas trade.

13. E. Marco Polo at the Mongol Court –Venetian trader, Marco Polo, visits China in 1275. –Polo returns to Venice in 1292; tells stories of what he saw in China. Fabulous cities, fantastic wealth Burning “black stones (coal) to heat Chinese homes Kublai Khan’s government and trade in Beijing –These stories were gathered in a book, but most readers doubt its truth

14. V. Factors of the Fall of the Yuan Dynasty 1.Chinese resentment of foreign rule and heavy taxes. 2.Extensive public works projects weakened the economy. 3.Two failed invasions of Japan weaken the Mongol Military.  Bent on conquest, Kublai tries and fails to Conquer Japan in 1274 and 1281.  In 1368, Zhu Yuanzhang leads a rebellion and reunifies China under the Ming Dynasty.

15. 4. Decline of the Mongol Empire –Mongol rule collapses in Persia in the 1330s; in Central Asia in the 1370s. –By the end of the 1300s, only Mongol rule in Russia remains, the Golden Horde.