Chapter 15: Nomadic Empires and Eurasian Integration
1. How did the geography of central Asia affect the development of the nomadic cultures? How did these
people adapt to their environment? What advantages did their adaptations give them?
2. Discuss the military organization, techniques, and strategies of these Asian nomads. How did these abilities
make their military so formidable? In what ways do the military practices described reflect the influence of
the steppe environment on the Mongols? To help you answer this question, read Marco Polo’s account of
Mongol military tactics on 274.
3. What does the book mean when it states that most of the Mongol leaders were better conquerors than
administrators? How was this evident in the various Mongol states? Were there exceptions to that rule? For
this response, compare and contrast the general rule and collapse of the Yuan Dynasty, Golden Horde, and
Persian Ilkhanate. Use a table with bullet points to help organize your ideas, if you wish, but you must also
write out a response based on the info in the chart.
4. Through what means did the Mongols integrate Eurasian cultures? List and explain at least three ways they
did this.
5. Why do you think the nomadic peoples of Asia were so successful and influential during this period? What
were the limits of their success? What happened in the wake of their rapid collapse?
A fully developed response to the questions above will include reference to many of the following terms, but it is
not limited only to these terms. Consider adding in information covered in class through lecture, media, and
activities as a further supplement to what’s found in the text, including your own study and experience. Bold or
underline your use of these terms, concepts, ideas in your responses:
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Nomadic Economy and Society: role of animals, yurts, kumiss, social mobility and status of nobles and
commoners, nomadic religion (shamanism), role of khan (1)
Mongols Leaders, Politics, and Military: Chinggis Khan (Temujin), political organization (Karakorum and
power succession), Mongol arms and tactics, early conquests (Northern China and Persia) (1, 2)
Post Chinggis Mongol Empire: Khubilai Khan (Yuan Dynasty), Golden Horde, Ilkhanate of Persia (Hulagu,
Baghad) (3, 4)
Mongols and Eurasian Integration: courier network, trade, diplomatic missions, missionary efforts,
resettlement (4)
Post Mongol Eurasia: Tamerlane (Samarkand), rise of Ottoman Turks (Osman, Istanbul) (4, 5)
Review / Study Resources:
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Chapter 15 Practice Multiple Choice Quiz
Chapter 15 Mongol Empires Map Review
Crash Course World History Video: Wait for it …The Mongols!
The Mongols in World History
Grading Rubric:
4
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Excellent
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90-100%
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Proficient
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80-89%
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3
2
Basic
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Addresses all parts of the questions and prompts completely.
Includes in responses all of the terms from the word bank AND outside information covered in class through lecture,
media, activities, possibly including some from the student’s own study and/or experience.
Explains thoroughly how or why the word bank terms help answer the question(s) AND makes connections, where
relevant and appropriate, to other societies and cultures, possibly including connections to recent and/or modern day
current events or trends.
Uses proper formatting conventions throughout the entire assignment: bolds key terms in body of work, numbers
responses, organizes responses with a clear beginning, middle, and end, and displays sound grammar/mechanics, etc.
Addresses all parts of the questions and prompts.
Includes in responses most if not all of the terms from the word bank.
Explains how or why the word bank terms help answer the question(s) AND possibly makes connections, where relevant
and appropriate, to other societies and cultures.
Uses proper formatting conventions throughout most of the assignment: bolds key terms in body of work, numbers
responses, organizes responses with a clear beginning, middle, and end, and displays sound grammar/mechanics, etc.
Addresses most parts of the questions and prompts, but some parts may be missing.
Includes in responses some of the terms from the word bank, but some may be missing.
Explains how or why the word bank terms help answer the question(s), but some of the key analysis or connections may
be missing or not done at all.
70-79%
1
Developing
50-69%
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Uses some of the proper formatting conventions of the assignment, but consistency is lacking: bolds key terms in body
of work, numbers responses, organizes responses with a clear beginning, middle, and end, and displays sound
grammar/mechanics, etc.
Addresses few parts of the questions and prompts, but it’s mostly incomplete and undeveloped.
Includes in responses only a few of the terms from the word bank, but most are missing.
Explains very little of how the word bank terms help answer the question(s), but most of the key analysis is missing or not
done at all with few if any relevant connections made.
Uses none or very few of the proper formatting conventions of the assignment: bolds key terms in body of work,
numbers responses, organizes responses with a clear beginning, middle, and end, and displays sound
grammar/mechanics, etc.