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Mongol Conquests and Connections The border area of the steppes, between China and western Eurasia, hosted peoples that had a huge impact on adjacent cultural communities. Nomads, living out of tents (or yurts) and subsisting on their herds, struggled to eke out an existence under harsh conditions. Most excelled at horsemanship and archery, two skills vital for survival on the steppes and necessary to carry out successful raids against sedentary communities.
The Mongols engineered the most successful string of raids in history. They began in 1206 under the leadership of Chinggis Khan, who, after years of warfare, unified the Mongol tribes and struck south into China and west into Persia. Later Mongol rulers extended Mongol control from the Pacific Ocean to the Adriatic Sea. Mongols hunted and herded for their livelihood. They moved with the seasons in search of pasturage for their animals. Skilled horsemen and archers, Mongol men were expected to fight to support the tribe. Men took many wives, indeed as many as they could afford. Women cared for the livestock, and children but could also ride into battle and fight with the men. Mongols employed many tactics in war, including spying, bribery, and propaganda. Most nomads fought each other for the right to prime grazing lands or against established communities to restore depleted supplies of iron, salt, and other goods. Mongol raids under Chinggis, however, involved something longer lasting. Mongols absorbed people they conquered to augment their ranks. Chinggis also established his house as permanent head of the Mongols. The Mongols did not rely on any large cities but lived off the countryside. Nevertheless, since all men fought, their army boasted over 200,000 fighting men, more men than all but the largest of the world’s cities. To help govern their new conquests, particularly China, Mongols employed other conquered peoples from Central Asia and further west. Playing peoples off each other, the Mongols created elites loyal to the Mongol overlords. They also established a system of communication, like the U.S. pony express system much later, and conducted massive censuses to support their tax system. In spite of these efforts, however, the Mongol empire spanned more territory than could be governed by one regime. As a result, it was divided into four parts, or khanates. Under Kubilai Khan, who headed the khanate in China, the Southern Song empire and Korea were overrun. Attacks on Japan, however, were thwarted by typhoons that sank his armadas.
The Mongols, although powerful, did not hold their empire long. Nevertheless, they left an extraordinary legacy. Many societies were extinguished by the edge of the Mongol sword. However, the Mongols also greatly stimulated trade between east and west as well as the movement of peoples all over the Eurasian continent. In China, the Mongols greatly repressed the Chinese yet also introduced Western architectural structures, medicine, and religion into China. They also stimulated the growth of Tibetan Buddhism and Daoism. In the west, the Mongol conquests opened the way for gunpowder and printing to arrive from China. Mongol invitations also gave Europeans, such as Marco Polo, their first experience with the grandeur and splendor of the east. The Mongols stimulated trade by breaking down barriers between cultural centers and eliminating middlemen, thus reducing transportation costs and making trade safer. In short, the drive to trade and the systems supporting it remained long after the Mongols retreated back to Mongolia.
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