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chapter_18.docx

Nomadic herders populated the steppes of Asia for centuries during the classical and postclassical eras and periodically came into contact and conflict with the established states and empires of the Eurasian landmass. It was not until the eleventh century, however, that the nomadic peoples like the Turks and Mongols began to raid, conquer, rule, and trade with the urban-based cultures in a systematic and far-reaching manner. While these resourceful and warlike nomads often left a path of destruction in their wake, they also built vast trans regional empires that laid the foundations for the increasing communication and exchange that would characterize the period from 1000 to 1500 in the eastern hemisphere. The success of these nomadic empires in this era can be attributed to. In spite of these successes and the enormous influence of these nomadic peoples, their leaders were, in general, better at warfare than administration. With the exception of the later Ottoman empire, most of these states were relatively short-lived, brought down by both internal and external pressures.

Nomads have been a distinct element within and carriers of civilizations within the old world dry belts for thousands of years, from Morocco in the west to northern China in the east. They have, however, not always been perceived as such. Academics have only learned within the past few decades to view nomads not as a separate societal phenomenon, or as a fascinating particular form of human lifestyle, but, rather, to perceive them as an intertwined, broad societal structure. Thus, the importance of nomads is now seen in a new light. Within the wide expanse of history nomadic peoples – also, indeed, not necessarily small in number - have formed their own distinct forms of lifestyle, yet also remained in close contact with settled societies and have helped to mould institutions, social structures and moral concepts. Nomadic mobility has also shaped nomadic lifestyles and living forms. Continuous cyclical wandering, usually in tribal or familial groupings, has helped to create spatial and cultural distance to settled communities. This is to be observed within the Roma and other traveling peoples in Europe. Economic practices, social organization, laws, norms, language and the material culture of nomads have, usually, distinguished them greatly from their social surroundings.

The Mongol Empire was the largest contiguous land empire in history. The Mongol Empire was founded by Genghis Khan in 1206, and at its height, encompassed the majority of territories from southeast Asia to central Europe. After unifying the Mongol –Turkic tribes, the Empire expanded via numerous conquests over continental Eurasia, beginning with the conquests of Western Xia in north China and the Khwarezmid Empire in Iran . Modern estimates suggest that 30 million or more people died during the Mongol conquests. During its existence, the Pax Mongolica facilitated cultural exchange and trade between the East, West, and the Middle East in the period of the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries. The Mongol Empire had a lasting impact, unifying large regions, some of which (such as eastern and western Russia and the western parts of China) remain unified today, albeit under different leadership. The Mongols themselves were assimilated into local populations after the fall of the empire, and many of these descendants adopted local religions —for example, the western Khanates adopted Islam , largely under Sufi influence.

The first military target was Xixia which was located in the middle and western areas of China and in 1205, 1207 and 1209, the Mongolian army launched three massive invasions. Under such military threat, the helpless Xixia was forced to pay tributes to the Mongol and sue for peace. In 1211, attacks were made on the Jin Dynasty (1115 - 1234) and four years later, the Mongolian army captured one of the major cities of Jin, Zhongdu. After that, most areas in the north of the Yellow River fell under Mongol control. Following the last wish of Genghis Khan on his deathbed, Xixia was defeated in 1227. Wo Kuotai, third son of Genghis Khan, ascended the throne seven years later and defeated the Jin Dynasty. From then on, the Mongolian army continued to march westward and Mongol troops even advanced into the European continent. As the military strength of the Mongols became stronger and stronger, the territory of the great Mongolian Empire became larger and larger. Gradually, grandsons of Genghis Khan established four grand khanates respectively in Eastern Europe, North Asia, Central Asia, the Arab region and the vast Central Plain regions of China. Among them, Kublai Khan, one of Genghis Khan's grandsons, unified the vast land of the northern areas of China and founded a new dynasty in 1271- the Yuan Dynasty, with Yuandadu as its capital.