• Unit 5: The Mongol Empire
The Mongols—nomads of central Asia—dominated world history during the
thirteenth century. The Mongols invaded many postclassical empires and built an
extensive cultural and commercial network. Led by Chinggis Khan and his
successors, the Mongols brought China, Persia, Tibet, Asia Minor, and southern
Russia under their control. Often portrayed as barbarians and destructive warriors,
most of the peoples conquered by the Mongols lived in relative peace, enjoyed
religious tolerance, and had a unified law code. The Mongol empire also opened
trade routes and communication between different regions in Asia. As will see in this
unit, the Mongols presented a formidable nomadic challenge to sedentary, civilized
societies throughout Asia.
In this unit, we will begin by examining who the nomadic Mongols were and what
motivated their ambitious expansion. We will then turn our attention to specific
Mongol rulers, the Mongol military machine, and the nature of the Mongol imperial
system. We will also examine Mongol rule in China, called the Yuan Dynasty, and its
impact on Chinese culture. Finally, we will study outsiders’ perceptions of Mongol
rule and conquest.
Unit 5 Time Advisory close
This unit will take you 9 hours to complete.
☐
Subunit 5.1: 2 hours
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Subunit 5.2: 2 hours
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Subunit 5.3: 2 hours
☐ Subunit 5.4: 3 hours
Unit 5 Learning Outcomes close
Upon successful completion of this unit, students will be able to:
• Define key milestones in the rise of the Mongol Empire and the sources of its
power.
• Describe some of the results of the cultural interactions that the spread of Mongol
rule helped to promote.
• Identify some of the key factors that are used to explain the decline of Mongol
power in Asia and Europe.
• 5.1 The Mongols
•
Lecture: Harvard Extension School Distance Education: “China: Traditions and
Transformations”: “Lecture 17: The World Empire of the Mongols”
Link: Harvard Extension School Distance Education: “China: Traditions and
Transformations”: “Lecture 17: The World Empire of the Mongols” (Adobe Flash)
Instructions: Please watch the entirety of this lecture by Harvard University
Professor Peter Bol for an introduction to the rise of the Mongol Empire. Consider
how the Mongol Empire compares to others that have been studied to date as well as
the manner in which this material illustrates some of the processes of globalization
cited in earlier resources.
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webpage above.
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• 5.1.1 Reasons for Conquest
•
Reading: Columbia University’s “The Mongols in World History: The Mongol
Conquests”: “What Led to the Conquests?”
Link: Columbia University’s “The Mongols in World History: The Mongol
Conquests”: “What Led to the Conquests?” (HTML)
Also available in:
PDF (p. 7-8) (At the bottom of the right column, select link "Transcript (PDF)" and
scroll down to page 7)
Instructions: Please read the entirety of this section to get a sense of what motivated
the Mongol conquest of Asia.
Note on the Text: This text was created by the Asia for Educators Program at
Columbia University under the direction of Professor Morris Rossabi, who teaches
Chinese History at both CUNY and Columbia University. This project was funded
by The Freeman Foundation.
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webpage above.
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• 5.1.2 Chinggis Khan
•
Reading: Selections from Columbia University’s “The Mongols in World History: The
Mongol Conquests”
Link: Columbia University’s “The Mongols in World History: The Mongol
Conquests”:
Tribal Group vs. Mongol Identity under Chinggis Khan (HTML)
Chinggis’s Mastery of Organization and Military Tactics (HTML)
Three Invasions Led by Chinggis (HTML)
Chinggis’s Successor and Further Expansion of the Empire (HTML)
Also available in:
PDF (p.8-10) (At the bottom of the right column, select link "Transcript (PDF)" and
scroll down to page 8)
Instructions: Please read the entirety of these four sections in order to get a sense of
Chinggis Khan’s vision of Mongol identity, his military strategy, the many battles he
fought, and those Mongol leaders who succeeded him.
Note on the Text: This text was created by the Asia for Educators Program at
Columbia University under the direction of Professor Morris Rossabi, who teaches
Chinese History at both CUNY and Columbia University. This project was funded
by The Freeman Foundation.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the
webpage above.
See a broken link? Please let us know!
• 5.1.3 Conquering a Vast Territory
•
Reading: Columbia University’s “The Mongols in World History: The Mongol
Conquest”: “How a Small Group of Mongols Conquered Such a Vast Domain”
Link: Columbia University’s “The Mongols in World History: The Mongol
Conquest”: “How a Small Group of Mongols Conquered Such a Vast Domain”
(HTML)
Also available in:
PDF (p.10-11) (At the bottom of the right column, select link "Transcript (PDF)" and
scroll down to page 10)
Instructions: Please read the entirety of this section to learn of how and why the
Mongols were able to bring so much territory under their control.
Note on the Text: This text was created by the Asia for Educators Program at
Columbia University under the direction of Professor Morris Rossabi, who teaches
Chinese History at both CUNY and Columbia University. This project was funded
by The Freeman Foundation.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the
webpage above.
See a broken link? Please let us know!
• 5.1.4 The Pax Mongolica
•
Reading: Silkroad Foundation: Professor Daniel C. Waugh’s “The Pax Mongolica”
Link: Silkroad Foundation: Professor Daniel C. Waugh’s The Pax
Mongolica (HTML)
Instructions: Please read the entirety of this webpage, which discusses Waugh’s
contention that relative peace characterized the Mongol Empire in the wake of their
military conquests.
Note on the Text: Author, Daniel C. Waugh, is a professor at the University of
Washington, Seattle.
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webpage above
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• 5.1.5 Empire’s Collapse
•
Reading: Columbia University: “The Mongols in World History: The Mongol
Conquests”: “The Collapse of the Empire”
Link: Columbia University’s “The Mongols in World History: The Mongol
Conquest”: “The Collapse of the Empire” (HTML)
Also available in:
PDF (p.11-12) (At the bottom of the right column, select link "Transcript (PDF)" and
scroll down to page 11)
Instructions: Please read the entirety of this section in order to get a sense of how the
struggles among Mongol leaders led to a breakdown in power in the empire.
Note on the Text: This text was created by the Asia for Educators Program at
Columbia University under the direction of Professor Morris Rossabi, who teaches
Chinese History at both CUNY and Columbia University. This project was funded
by The Freeman Foundation.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the
webpage above.
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• Subunit 5.1 Assessment
•
Assessment: The Saylor Foundation's "Reading Questions for Subunit 5.1"
Link: The Saylor Foundation's "Reading Questions for Subunit 5.1" (PDF)
Instructions: Once you have worked through all of the assigned resources in the
subunit above, please open the linked PDF and respond to all questions. When you
are done--or if you are stuck--please check your work against The Saylor
Foundation's "Guide to Responding to Reading Questions for Subunit 5.1" (PDF).
See a broken link? Please let us know!
• 5.2 The Mongols in China
• 5.2.1 The Mongols’ Influence on China
•
Reading: Columbia University’s “The Mongols in World History: The Mongol
Conquest”: “What was the Mongols’ Influence on China?”
Link: Columbia University’s “The Mongols in World History: The Mongol
Conquest”: “What was the Mongols’ Influence on China?” (HTML)
Also available in:
PDF (p. 12-13) (At the bottom of the right column, select link "Transcript (PDF)" and
scroll down to page 12)
Instructions: Please read the entirety of this section, which questions whether the
Mongols’ influence on imperial China was destructive or beneficial.
Note on the Text: This text was created by the Asia for Educators Program at
Columbia University under the direction of Professor Morris Rossabi, who teaches
Chinese History at both CUNY and Columbia University. This project was funded
by The Freeman Foundation.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the
webpage above.
See a broken link? Please let us know!
• 5.2.2 Kubilai Khan in China
•
Reading: Columbia University’s “The Mongols in World History: The Mongol
Conquest”: “Kubilai Khan in China”
Link: Columbia University’s “The Mongols in World History: The Mongol
Conquest”: “Kubilai Khan in China”(HTML)
Also available in:
PDF (p. 13) (At the bottom of the right column, select link "Transcript (PDF)" and
scroll down to page 13)
Instructions: Please read the entirety of this section on Kubilai Khan’s rule in China.
Note on the Text: This text was created by the Asia for Educators Program at
Columbia University under the direction of Professor Morris Rossabi, who teaches
Chinese History at both CUNY and Columbia University. This project was funded
by The Freeman Foundation.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the
webpage above.
See a broken link? Please let us know!
• 5.2.3 Life in China under Mongol Rule
•
Reading: Columbia University’s “The Mongols in World History: The Mongol
Conquest”: Selections from “Life in China under Mongol Rule”
Link: Columbia University’s “The Mongols in World History: The Mongol
Conquest”: Selections from “Life in China under Mongol Rule”:
For Peasants (HTML)
For Artisans (HTML)
For Merchants (HTML)
Legal Codes (HTML)
Civilian Life (HTML)
Religion (HTML)
Culture(HTML)
Also available in:
PDF (p. 13-18) (At the bottom of the right column, select link "Transcript (PDF)" and
scroll down to page 13)
Instructions: Please read all of these links to get a sense of the way of life in China
during Mongol rule.
Note on the Text: This text was created by the Asia for Educators Program at
Columbia University under the direction of Professor Morris Rossabi, who teaches
Chinese History at both CUNY and Columbia University. This project was funded
by The Freeman Foundation.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the
webpage above.
See a broken link? Please let us know!
• 5.2.4 Beginnings of Mongol Collapse
•
Reading: Columbia University’s “The Mongols in World History: The Mongol
Conquest”: Selections from “Beginnings of Mongol Collapse”
Link: Columbia University’s “The Mongols in World History: The Mongol
Conquest”: Selections from “Beginnings of Mongol Collapse”:
Military Successes and Failures (HTML)
Public Works Failures (HTML)
Also available in:
PDF (p. 18-19) (At the bottom of the right column, select link "Transcript (PDF)" and
scroll down to page 18)
Instructions: Please read both of these links to learn about the internal and external
pressures that drove the Mongol Empire toward collapse.
Note on the Text: This text was created by the Asia for Educators Program at
Columbia University under the direction of Professor Morris Rossabi, who teaches
Chinese History at both CUNY and Columbia University. This project was funded
by The Freeman Foundation.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the
webpage above.
See a broken link? Please let us know!
• 5.3 The Pastoral-Nomadic Life of the Mongols
• 5.3.1 Nomads
•
Reading: Selections from Columbia University’s “The Mongols in World History: The
Pastoral-Nomadic Life”; John Masson Smith, Jr.’s “Dietary Decadence and Dynastic
Decline in the Mongol Empire”; and Morris Rossabi, “All the Khan’s Horses”
Link: Selections from Columbia University’s “The Mongols in World History: The
Pastoral Nomadic Life”
Introduction (HTML)
Sheep: A Source of Bounty (HTML)
Goats (HTML)
Survival of the Flocks (HTML)
Yaks and Oxen (HTML)
Camels (HTML)
Horses (HTML)
Mare’s Milk (HTML)
Traditional Clothing and Jewelry (HTML)
The Portable Home: The Ger (HTML)
Also available in:
PDF (p. 25-29) (At the bottom of the right column, select link "Transcript (PDF)" and
scroll down to page 18)
John Masson Smith, Jr., “Dietary Decadence and Dynastic Decline in the Mongol
Empire,”Journal of Asian History, vol. 34, no. 1, 2000 (PDF)
Also available in:
HTML
Morris Rossabi, “All the Khan’s Horses,”Natural History, 1994 (PDF)
Also available in:
HTML
Instructions: Please read all of these links to get a sense of the features that defined
Mongol nomadic life. You will need to download the PDFs of the two articles by
John Masson Smith, Jr. and Morris Rossabi, respectively. Click the link on the title of
each article to download these. Please read these articles, one about the Mongol diet
and one about the importance of the horse in Mongol culture.
Note on the Text: This text was created by the Asia for Educators Program at
Columbia University under the direction of Professor Morris Rossabi, who teaches
Chinese History at both CUNY and Columbia University. This project was funded
by The Freeman Foundation.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the
webpage above.
See a broken link? Please let us know!
• 5.4 Perceptions of the Mongols
• 5.4.1 Persian Views
•
Reading: Michigan State University: David Morgan’s "Persian Perceptions of Mongols
and Europeans”
Link: Michigan State University: David Morgan’s “Persian Perceptions of Mongols
and Europeans” (HTML)
Also available in:
Google Books
Instructions: Please read this entire text for information on how the Persians
perceived Mongol invaders.
Note on the Text: This excerpt is from Chapter VI of Stuart B. Schwartz’
(ed) Implicit Understandings: Observing, Reporting, and Reflecting on the
Encounters Between Europeans and Other Peoples in the Early Modern Era, which
is published by Cambridge University Press (1994).
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webpage above.
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• 5.4.2 The Mongols and Christian Europe
•
Reading: Michigan State University: Robert Marshall’s Selections from Storm from the
East: from Genghis Khan to Khubilai Khan
Link: Michigan State University: Robert Marshall’s Selections from Storm from the
East: from Genghis Khan to Khubilai Khan (HTML)
Instructions: Please read the entire webpage to get a sense of how medieval
European Christians perceived the Mongol conquests of Asia and the Middle East.
Note on the Text: These selections from “Chapter 5: From Prester John to Cultural
Strangers” comes from Marshall’s textbook Storm from the East: from Genghis Khan
to Khubilai Khan, which is published by University of California Press (1993).
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webpage above.
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•
Reading: Stetson University: “Correspondence between Roman Pope and Great Khan”
Link: Stetson University: “Correspondence between Roman Pope and Great Khan”
(HTML)
Instructions: By the middle of the Thirteenth Century Mongol armies had penetrated
into Central Europe. These events inspired a response from Pope Innocent IV who
dispatched emissaries to the Great Khan in 1245. As you will find in the subsequent
exchange of letters included on this page, Pope and Khan appeared to have very
different views on how one should interpret the“commands of Heaven.”
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webpage above.
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•
Assessment: Pearson Education’s World Civilizations: AP Edition: “Chapter 14, Multiple
Choice Quiz”
Link: Pearson Education’s World Civilizations: AP Edition: “Chapter 14, Multiple
Choice Quiz” (HTML)
Instructions: Please take the assigned multiple choice quiz on this webpage in order
to assess your understanding of the empire built by the Mongols. Click the “Submit
Answers for Grading” at the bottom of the webpage to link to the answer key.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the
webpage above.