Mongol Invasion Dbq

Under Khan the Mongols were a greater threat, they were able to launch more conquest in to the south, west and even east (p 369). Mongolian presence in these areas allowed them to influence those worlds, politically and socially.In China, the Mongols were able to become the elite ruling class under the Yuan dynasty (p 372). Being in this position allowed the Mongols to take political advantage in the form of collective taxes and other resources that would benefit them.This had global implications because the Mongols could use those taxes to fund expeditions conquer other parts of the world. They were also able to add to their arsenals and get transportation to these other

Genghis Khan and the Mongols were very violent. According to document 2, Genghis organized his army in rows of ten, in which one man would be a leader. Over ten groups of ten, there would be one man in charge of all of them, over that 10 there would be one man in charge. There would be one man in charge of a thousand, then another in charge of 10 groups of a thousand. The Mongols used the word “tumin” to describe this number. Over every army there was two to three commanders, but in some way one held the overall command. While the Mongols were in battle if more than one man fled, the whole group of ten would be put to death, which caused a lot of acts of unnecessary violence. Also, if an entire group of ten fled, if the whole group of one hundred didn’t flee they would all be put to death, even though technically they did nothing wrong. Another rule present

The Mongols used well planned military tactics that undoubtedly lead them to victory time and time again. The soldiers were very obedient and listened to the appointed chiefs well. One tactic they used to beat there enemy and expand their empire was this; the prince appoints an officer to every ten men, one to every hundred, one to every thousand, and one to every ten thousand, as stated in the book, and document 1 and 4. Another tactic used by the Mongols was as follows; the Mongol army would pretend to retreat, therefore making the rival believe they had won, when in reality that was just the start. The Mongols would then turn and fire arrows at there opponents, killing them and conquering there land that strengthened as well as add growth to their empire.

Their armor did a poor job of protecting them from samurai archers. In some sense, the samurai were more protected than their Mongolian counterparts. When it came to hand to hand combat, the Japanese reigned supreme over the Mongolian invaders. One can understand the reason behind the samurai’s success at defeating the Mongols: the samurai had better quality weapons (naginata and bow and arrow) than the Mongols. As for the first weapon’s case, the naginata was a very “effective weapon the samurai used when they engaged Mongol foot soldiers” (Winchester 30-31). In close hand-to-hand combat situations, Mongol combatants would attempt to attack samurai warriors, but the samurai would “use the naginata to counter every strike” (Winchester 32). With the naginata’s considerably long width, samurai forces would use the naginata to quickly “slash at the enemy’s armor and render the enemy incapable of fighting” (Winchester

The magnitude of the Mongol empire from the beginning to its greatest heights is an amazing story. Weatherford states “he smashed the feudal system of aristocratic privilege and birth, he built a new unique system based on individual merit, loyalty, and achievement” (xix). All of these newly presented ideas assist Khan in his conquest of unity and progression. In the battle against the Bukhara, he had many of the local people either assist him in his mission or be punished brutally. This old, but newly used concept of divide and conquer worked in Khan’s favor. It not only caused the surrender of the Bukhara, but when word spread it assisted in the surrender of the capital of Samarka (9). He realized the power of psychological warfare and used it to his advantage. In a campaign against Jamuka, the displaying of the Spirit Banner was used to make it difficult for the opposing side viewing these Banners to fight if the kinsmen had used ancestors’ Spirit Banner. This was used as “tantamount” to attacking

Also, politically wise, the Mongols were not respected in their high position of the Chinese governments. Despite their power in the world, they were looked down upon by the Chinese as they did not instate the examination requirement to be in office, thus preventing many Chinese scholars from holding positions in the government.

First off, the Mongols overruled Asia. Document one in the DBQ shows that Genghis Khan ruled over double the amount of land that Alexander the Great did, who is second on the list. When you look at the map, it shows most of the land ruled is by Genghis Khan. Because he overruled Asia, he was able to threaten more people with death. According to document 1, Khan ruled 4, 860, 000 square miles of Asia. Located on the bottom of the document, it states that the continental United States (which means not including Hawaii or Alaska) is 3, 036, 885 square miles. If Genghis Khan did this in the United States, he would have ruled the whole country! This shows that Genghis Khan and the Mongols overruled Asia by way too much.

The next topic in a few of the documents(4,8, and 9) directly relate to the previous paragraph. The warfare techniques used by the Mongolians and devised by the Khans and the commanders. In doc.4 Juvaini, a former historian for the Mongols and later governor of Baghdad, wrote about how the army was arranged. It is arranged in such a manner that there are groups of ten with one of them being commander of the other nine. Ten groups of ten equal a larger squad with one of the hundred being the leader. Then 1,000 and the last rank 10,000 is called a tümen. Documents 8 and 9 are simply a letter from the Pope Innocent IV to Genghis Khan and a reply. The Pope basically saying that he has invaded many countries and does not spare anyone. His reply is to use Eternal Heaven as his excuse for killing. These two documents show that Genghis Khan was infamous and believed in a God, making him religious. He is like the Islamic people that fight for Allah. Pope Innocent IV believes that Genghis Khan is being irrational with all his killings and rages because he does not spare anyone. He is a reliable source due to his being a Pope and how influential a Pope is.

The Mongols were constantly conquering new lands of insanely large sizes. They acquired land masses as big as 4,860,000 square miles all around. (document one) They were like terrorists to another persons home and another mans land with their crude actions and constant killing. Genghis Kahn alone conquered the largest amount of land, in fact being 4,860,000 square miles. Thats bigger than the body of the United States alone, and there’s no way that this man acquired all this land just by marching in and asking if he could take over. He just took over with the complex army he’d formed. Their army was just as hardcore and serious as they were. The faults of one man could result in the death of ten. The act of ten men could result in the death of 100

Understanding the Mongol’s culture is the key to comprehending their strength in numbers. Their leader was Chinggis Khan, a man who was obsessed with combining empires into one world ruled with his power. In order to do it, he needed a loyal army that would follow his commands into battle. Eventually he found men who believed in him and his mission. The dedication of his soldiers became exactly the right kind of army he needed to conquer other empires. “If we disobey your command during battle, take away our possessions, our children, and wives” (489). He treated his soldiers with respect. Happy soldiers meant a dedicated army to follow command and succeed in battle. He understood the importance of his soldiers and said, “I consider the people my children, and take an interest in talented men as if they

The Mongols had a very skilled and strong arming and never lost battles outnumbered. They would travel by horse and split into small groups to surround the enemy to trap them. They were also falsely retreat the attack. To have a skilled and strong army they must have a great which was Genghis Khan. [From The Mongols Movie Worksheet and Document 2]

And lastly, another reason why the Mongols were not barbaric, even though they did commit acts of violence and conquered many people they still were able to live civilized and contribute to the community. In document eight Marco polo records that the Mongols created a “pony express” which horses were used to deliver messages throughout the kingdom. Marco polo states “ One of the great concert messengers sets out along of any of these roads he has only to go 25 miles and there he finds a posting station… at each of these post the messengers fine three or four hundred horses in readiness awaiting their command, and power little lodgings.” He also states that the neighboring cities kept boats ready for Messenger is passing over rivers and lakes and when a messenger has to ride for a long time like 200 miles he signals the nearby post so they can prepare a horse for him to switch on to immediately so no time is wasted. This shows that the Mongols were not barbaric at all and had intelligence to set up a system to relay messages in a more effective and fast manner in

Reuven Amitai mentions that the Mongols saw themselves as carrying out a divine mission to conquer the world. However, Amitai also questions whether that idea was universal among the Mongol army or whether only the officers of high rank had it. In any case this idea could have provided the Mongols with higher motivation and lesser amount of fear. George Lane, on the other hand, argues that the concept of divine Mongolian mission was not only believed in among the Mongols but also among the enemies. David Morgan argues that “it seems unlikely that in the beginning of the career of conquest the Mongols had seen themselves as having a divine commission to conquer the world. But they certainly

The Mongols launched their fleet of 1,000 ships and landed in Hakata Bay in 1274 in what would be their first of two attempts to invade Japan. This would be known as the “Battle of Bun’ei” or as the “First Battle of Hakata Bay”. The Mongols would conquer the settlements on the islands of Tsushima and Iki while on route to Hakata Bay. However after landing at Hakata Bay the Mongols were pushed back by the Samurai as they were prepared and expected the invasion. Historians theorize that the Japanese were forewarned by Koryo Korea. The reasons as to why Koryo Korea would give the Japanese this knowledge is because they were tired of being under the Mongol rule and because Japan had shown good will to Koryo Korea by suppressing Japanese Piracy along the coastline of Korea. The advanced warning allowed for Japan to gauge the incoming Mongol forces as they ravaged the islands of Tsushima and Iki. The initial landing success of the Mongols can be attributed to their superior weapons, tactics, and fighting experience. However, as time wore on the numbers began to favor the Japanese and they were able to repel the Mongols back towards their ships. As a severe storm approached Hakata Bay the Mongols decided to board their ships once again to avoid being isolated on Japanese soil. The severe storm system was a typhoon and by the morning a large portion of the ships and one

The rise of the Mongol Empire can be attributed to a famous emperor, Genghis Khan. He led his armies through the Great Wall of China and crushed the Jin Dynasty. “In the twelfth and thirteenth centuries the Mongols were far from more barbarous than their neighboring tribes. For this reason Genghis Khan, as the cultivated Chinese put it, was nothing more nor less than a barbarian. However, this barbarian possessed a number of qualities that enabled him to become one of the greatest conquerors in the history of the word” (Hartog p.139). Unfortunately, he has a sudden death in 1227 while in the war against the Xia Dynasty. Before his passing Genghis ordered his second son, Ogedei Khan, as his inheritor to split his empire into four khanates between his children and grandchildren to complete his invasion. Many years pass after Genghis Khan died, and several Mongol leaders attempted to continue the mission of the Great Khan. It isn’t until his grandson Kublai Khan, succeeded in creating a more powerful domain during his establishment of the Yuan Dynasty