PRIHIS202016-V011700

Summary

The script delves into the Mongol Empire's significant impact on global history, focusing on their unique nomadic lifestyle, military tactics, and predatory system. It highlights how Genghis Khan's conquests connected vast regions, from Southern Russia to China, creating a vast empire that spanned Afro-Eurasia. The Mongols utilized fear, surprise, and strategic alliances to maintain control, integrating conquered peoples into their empire rather than destroying them. Their influence on trade, culture, and politics contributed to an early form of globalization, though the empire eventually fragmented after Genghis Khan's successors.

Takeaways

• 🌍 Not all societies were sedentary; many, like the Mongols, led nomadic lifestyles, relying on migration and predation.
• 🏇 The Mongols, under Genghis Khan, built a massive empire through highly organized equestrian warfare, covering vast distances and relying on surprise attacks.
• ⚔️ The Mongols effectively used terror as a tactic in warfare, instilling fear with public spectacles and atrocities.
• 🛡️ Mongol conquests were not aimed at extermination, but at subjugation and extracting tribute from conquered peoples to sustain themselves.
• 🌐 Genghis Khan's empire connected vast regions from Southern Russia and Poland to China, creating political and economic integration across Afro-Eurasia.
• 🎎 Mongol rulers often married into local elites, blending conquest with diplomacy, trade, and kinship alliances to maintain control over conquered regions.
• 🧠 Despite their reputation for destruction, the Mongols facilitated cultural exchange, such as bringing German miners to China and spreading Chinese doctors, Persian carpets, and other goods along the Silk Road.
• 📉 The Mongol Empire was short-lived, collapsing after the second generation of Genghis Khan’s successors due to its ephemeral nature.
• 📜 The Mongols integrated their empire into pre-existing commercial and religious networks, expanding globalization by linking distant cultures.
• 🔄 Although their empire disintegrated, the Mongol conquests brought a brief period of political unity, enhancing economic and cultural interactions across a vast territory.

Q & A

What made the Mongol peoples' way of life distinct from other populations in the world?

The Mongol peoples combined migratory and settled lifestyles, relying on predation due to the harsh environment they inhabited, unlike more sedentary populations in villages or global trading hubs.

Why are the Mongols used as an example in the transcript?

The Mongols are used as an example to illustrate how peoples from remote areas could have decisive effects on global history, specifically through their expansion and the integration of the Silk Road economies.

How did Genghis Khan's conquests compare to the Roman Empire's expansion?

Genghis Khan conquered more land in 25 years than Rome did over 400 years, connecting vast parts of the world, including Southern Russia, Poland, and China.

Why was the Mongol Empire unable to conquer certain regions like South Asia and Japan?

The Mongol Empire was impeded by geographical barriers like the Himalayas and Afghanistan in South Asia, while Japan was difficult to invade due to its island geography.

How did the Mongols use terror and psychological warfare in their conquests?

The Mongols used terror strategically by publicly desecrating enemies, hanging skulls from their horses, and deploying surprise attacks to subdue opponents quickly.

How did the Mongol armies sustain themselves while on the move during conquests?

The Mongol armies traveled light and relied on predation, living off the land and the people they conquered for supplies, including food and livestock.

How did the Mongols adapt to the cultures they conquered?

Rather than eradicating local populations, the Mongols sought subordination and tribute. They borrowed and adapted from the cultures they conquered, integrating them into their empire.

What role did marriage and kinship play in the Mongol Empire?

Marriage and kinship were crucial in maintaining the Mongol Empire. Elite women were often married into Mongol families, creating alliances that helped sustain the empire's cohesion.

What was the impact of the Mongol Empire on global trade and cultural exchange?

The Mongol Empire facilitated global trade by connecting Afro-Eurasian trade routes, bringing innovations like carpets, lemons, noodles, and playing cards to new regions.

Why is the Mongol Empire described as ephemeral despite its vast conquests?

The Mongol Empire was short-lived because it fragmented soon after the second generation of Genghis Khan’s successors, despite briefly integrating economic and political systems across vast regions.

Outlines

00:00

🏞️ The Nomadic World and the Mongol Peoples

This paragraph introduces the nomadic lifestyle, emphasizing that not everyone in history lived in villages or trade hubs like Samarkand. Many groups, like the Mongols, combined migration with settled lives and survived through predation due to the harsh environments they inhabited. The Mongols, for instance, could not rely solely on local resources. The paragraph also highlights the immense impact of the Mongol expansion under Genghis Khan, whose conquests were instrumental in connecting various parts of the world, rivaling Rome's achievements in a fraction of the time. His empire spanned from Southern Russia and Poland to China, except for regions like South Asia and Japan.

05:02

⚔️ Mongol Military Tactics and Psychological Warfare

This section delves into the Mongol people's transformation into a military force, noting their integration of Chinese doctors, Turkic allies, and forced soldiers from subject peoples. The Mongols strategically used terror, often desecrating the aristocracy and employing tactics like skull displays to instill fear. Their military approach relied heavily on the element of surprise and atrocities to subdue enemies. The paragraph also touches on reciprocal violence, with examples of brutal Mongol prisoner executions by Persian forces. As the Mongols couldn’t carry supplies, they lived off the land and adapted to local populations, creating cycles of economic dependence between conquerors and conquered.

10:05

🤝 Mongol Conquests and Cultural Assimilation

This paragraph explores the Mongols’ integration of local populations and cultures during their conquests. Instead of wiping out civilizations, they sought subordination and tribute from those they conquered. Their reliance on local goods and surpluses necessitated cooperation with conquered peoples, leading to a mix of trading, marrying, and fighting. The Mongols' strategy also included alliances through intermarriage with local elites, blending conquest with diplomacy and familial ties. This system helped the Mongols maintain control despite their small population and created a 'brotherly empire' that relied on kinship ties.

Keywords

💡Mongol Empire

The Mongol Empire, created by Genghis Khan and his successors, was one of the largest empires in history, stretching from China to Europe in the 13th century. It is central to the video's theme of nomadic expansion and conquest. The Mongols used predation, tribute, and plunder to sustain their empire and brought significant political, economic, and cultural integration to Afro-Eurasia.

💡Nomadic lifestyle

Nomads were people who did not settle in one place but moved frequently to find resources. The Mongols exemplified this way of life, relying on local resources, plunder, and tribute to survive. Their nomadic culture, particularly their equestrian skills, played a crucial role in their military success and expansion.

💡Predation

Predation refers to the practice of living by plundering or taking resources from others, which was a key strategy for the Mongols. Their ability to survive in harsh environments made them dependent on conquering other regions for resources, contributing to their military expansion and the building of their empire.

💡Silk Roads

The Silk Roads were a network of trade routes connecting China, the Middle East, and Europe. The Mongols' expansion increased opportunities for trade along these routes, which integrated various cultures and economies. This commercial connectivity was intensified by the Mongol Empire, contributing to the Afro-Eurasian system's economic and cultural exchange.

💡Genghis Khan

Genghis Khan was the founder of the Mongol Empire and led a series of conquests that connected much of Eurasia. His military campaigns were rapid and brutal, but they also contributed to global integration by bringing together disparate cultures and regions under Mongol rule. His legacy is central to the discussion of the Mongol Empire's impact on global history.

💡Equestrian culture

Equestrian culture refers to the Mongols' expertise in horseback riding and warfare, which was essential to their military success. Their ability to travel long distances quickly and strike enemies by surprise was a major factor in their conquests. This culture shaped the way the Mongols fought and interacted with other civilizations.

💡Tribute system

The tribute system was a key part of Mongol rule, where conquered peoples were required to provide wealth and resources to the Mongols. Rather than seeking to destroy the regions they conquered, the Mongols aimed to integrate them into a system of tribute, which allowed them to sustain their empire economically.

💡Cultural integration

Cultural integration under the Mongol Empire refers to the blending of diverse cultures across the regions they controlled. The Mongols facilitated exchanges of goods, technologies, and ideas between East and West, including Chinese doctors moving to Persia and Persian goods arriving in China. This interconnectedness under Mongol rule is an early form of globalization.

💡First World War

The term 'First World War' is used metaphorically in the video to describe the scale and intensity of the Mongol conquests. Just as modern world wars had global repercussions, the Mongol conquests connected and affected multiple regions, making this period a critical moment in global history.

💡Globalization

Globalization in the context of the video refers to the process of increased interconnectedness between different parts of the world. The Mongol conquests are presented as a catalyst for globalization, as they fostered trade, cultural exchanges, and political integration across Afro-Eurasia, linking distant regions and creating a more interconnected world.

Highlights

The world was full of nomads, hunters, and predators, many of whom combined migratory and settled lives.

The Mongol peoples could not rely solely on local resources for survival and often had to engage in predation.

The expansion of Mongol peoples intensified divisions and interactions, especially as Silk Roads and commercial routes grew.

Genghis Khan’s conquests in 25 years exceeded the territory conquered by Rome in 400 years, covering Southern Russia, Poland, and China.

Despite a small population of one million, the Mongols created the largest empire through a predatory and nomadic lifestyle.

The Mongols developed an equestrian culture, shaping their warfare strategy by using horses to cover long distances and surprise enemies.

Mongol armies, at their peak, could be massive, as seen during the capture of Khwarezm in 1219, with 125,000 horsemen.

The Mongols used terror as a tactic, such as displaying skulls on horses to strike fear into their enemies.

The Mongols often relied on predation during conquests, as they traveled light and lived off the lands they conquered.

Mongol warfare was not about wiping out civilizations but subordinating them to extract tribute and resources for survival.

The Mongol Empire relied on local populations and allies, absorbing many of the cultural practices of those they conquered.

Intermarriage between Mongol warriors and elite local women was a key strategy for maintaining alliances and keeping the empire intact.

The Mongol Empire contributed to global integration by facilitating the transfer of knowledge and goods, such as noodles from China to Europe.

Despite its vast scale, the Mongol Empire was short-lived, collapsing after the second generation of Genghis Khan’s successors.

The Mongol conquests created political integration that layered onto the pre-existing economic and cultural networks of Afro-Eurasia, possibly marking an early form of globalization.

Transcripts

Not everyone lived in villages. Not everyone lived in global

trading hubs like Samarkand or Malacca. Not everybody was so sedentary.

In fact, the world was full of nomads, hunters and predators.

Many who combined migratory as well as settled lives.

One important

example of this way of living, were the Mongol peoples, who could

not rely exclusively on local resources to get past

that level of basic self sufficiency that we talked about in the world of villages.

And in many cases, had to survive

given the ecosystem that they inhabited by predation.

The interactions and divisions that were produced by the

expansion of Mongol peoples, and they were not the only people who lived this way

by, by any means, but we're going to use them for, we're going to

invoke their example for reasons that will become clear in just a minute.

But the interactions of divisions provoked by the expansion of Mongol

peoples will intensify after the 13th century, in part because of the

booming. Silk roads and commercial byways of that

Afro-Eurasian system that we talked about in the last few segments.

That is that they were greater and greater opportunities for predation itself,

kicked off by above all, this man. Genghis Khan.

He's an example of the ways in which sometimes peoples from the backlands,

from the remote areas of the world, can have decisive effects on global history.

By the time Genghis Khan's conquests were over, more than any other

man, he had connected up the world's parts.

In 25 years of conquering, he had laid claim

to more than what Rome had been able to conquer over 400 years.

By the early 13th century. Southern Russia,

Poland, to China, Genghis Khan and his family members spread

out, fanned out, something called the Mongol

Empire. The size of Africa, larger than

North America. The only major exception for his conquest

was the heartland of south Asia, in part because the Himalayas and

Afghanistan were impediments. Another major impediment though, there was

an effort to try to invade this island, was Japan.

But some of the great regimes of the world would be toppled by Genghis Khan and his

family members, the Caliphate in Baghdad, the Song dynasty in China.

In some senses, and I'm going to refer to this metaphor

over and over again in the course, Genghis Khan's conquests

were the first world war. What was most astonishing

was that the Mongol peoples comprised a tribe of only about a million

people. Living in an arduous environment.

Dry, cold.

And therefore, dependent on neighboring peoples for their sustenance, through

tribute.

Through trade, and of course through plunder.

The Mongols, organized, effective fighting machines.

To plunder the wealth, the surpluses, of their neighbors.

And it was from this that they developed a very particular equestrian culture

able to cover very long distances. Indeed, this equestrian

culture shaped of the very logic Of Mongol warfare.

They would sweep into towns on horseback or on chariots

often using an element of surprise to strike a blow.

Often at powerful wealthier neighboring peoples.

In fact these armies

could be huge. When Mongol cavalries

and chariots took the city of Khwarez, Khwarezm in the year

1219 from the Sultan of Baghdad, there

were fully 125,000 horsemen involved in that battle.

It was a huge army. In many ways,

the Mongol people were constituted as an army itself.

Along with Chinese doctors, and Turkic allies who would

join in the Mongol armies themselves, as their allies.

Or sometimes subject peoples, forced to do the fighting alongside them.

Mongols also relied on the use of terror to strike fear in

the hearts of their enemies with skulls hanging off ropes from the

saddles of their horses to frighten their foe into submission.

What was decisive though was the use of the element of surprise to

quickly submit a an enemy or threaten to destroy it.

When the Mongols took a new target. they

deployed, very strategically, specific kinds of atrocities.

To use the element of fear to subdue their enemy.

Usually taking men from the aristocratic ranks.

Relying on public desecration. Use of horror and spectacle as

a way to subordinate the enemy.

the violence was of course also, I should say reciprocated as a result.

when 400 Mongol prisoners were taken at the Battle of

Jalal al-Din in the year 1228,

they were dragged around the city streets behind

horses until nothing was left at the ends of the ropes.

Persian armies put nails into the heads this is where it was

believed that the Mongol spirits lived, according to Mongol

belief. So the result was often very

destructive kinds of warfare in this first world war.

The Baghdad Royal Library was destroyed. And it was said that the Tigris

River ran blue for weeks, because of the ink that was dissolved into the waters.

But in order to cover so much ground, Mongol armies had to travel light.

Which is one of the reasons they had

to rely on predation as they went along conquering.

They couldn't carry the supplies with them.

It meant that they had to live off the land that they themselves were conquering.

They had to live off the very conquered people themselves.

And one of the long-term effects of this pattern of conquering, was in fact, the

Mongol people often borrowed and adapted to the very same people that they

subordinated and oppressed. In other words, the Mongols did not

sweep in to a new city or civilization in

order to wipe it out or to kill their neighbors.

But rather, what they were looking for was

subordination, fealty, and transfers of wealth through tribute up

to the conquering peoples, not to be wiped out,

the Mongols did not want to clean the slate.

After all, the Mongols relied on local populations to deliver their surpluses

to them to keep them going. Livestock, food, precious goods.

So here we see something that is cyclical.

A form of economic dependency of the conquerors on the conquered themselves.

And so this kind of warfare was not

for revenge or for hatred, for ethnic animosity.

And in fact the captives and

the captors often wound up adopting each other and in fact it became in some

senses and in many places very hard to distinguish, the

between trading from marrying and from fighting.

Right?

As Mongol warriors often picked up wives along the way.

So we have to think about these practices

of warfare and of conquest in cultural context.

And I say this now, because it's going to become very

important for you to understand how other kinds of conquests function.

So just a warning why this is so relevant for us.

Ultimately, in the end, the Mongols created an empire of

this sort with a very small population by ruling through proxies.

They had to rely on allies and kinship members and adopting families

into the ruling household, adopting family members into the

ruling households in order to keep the empire together.

And inter marriage was crucial to it all.

In a sense the alliance was of men who married into local,

elite women members of, women members of elite families.

This was a brotherly empire. Weddings and diplomacy, gifts, trade and

conquest all in a sense blended together, living off the bounty that was being

produced by the silk roads and the trading routes that we

talked about in the earlier segments.

And Genghis Khan would put his sons on the thrones

around the world that he had conquered.

So when the Mongols went conquering, they often followed the very same routes that

the merchant caravans and Buddhist monks had

been following earlier in creating that networked system.

That pulled the Afro-Eurasian system together and

they did not seek to destroy it.

We have this image of the Mongol empire being this plunder machine

that destroyed everything it ran into. That is wrong.

Rather, what they wanted to do was

to absorb it into their tributary and predatory

system and even to the extent that

they integrated into what they had defeated militarily.

The Mongol Empire was also important because it

took these commercially and religiously interconnected worlds and

gave it more political integration now. They brought German miners to China.

They took Chinese doctors to Persia. They introduced carpets everywhere.

Lemons and carrots from Persia traded to China.

Noodles and playing cards transported to Europe.

But the very

nature of this kind of empire.

Of this model of conquest and expansion, did make it ephemeral.

For, not long after the second generation of

Genghis Khan's sons, and the successions that would ensue.

The empire soon collapsed. And broke apart.

But for a moment,

at least, under the Mongols, there was a political form of integration that layered

onto the economic and cultural integration that we talked about earlier.

So we could ask ourselves, were the Mongol conquests the

events that kicked off what we might now call globalization?