Mongol Empire Abby Harper

Journal entry 1

          As I plan for my travels into the East with my father and uncle, I have researched what Asia will be like. The stories I have read have claimed that the Mongols are harsh and ruthless killers. I have heard of no other than Genghis Khan. He has expanded the Mongolian empire, along with his brother Ogedei Khan from the Korean peninsula to Persia. They have begun to dominate the entire content of Asia. I pray to God that the trip goes well. I fear I will not be able to carry all of the necessary merchandise to trade.

          As I have researched the Mongols and there harsh beliefs, I have begun to worry. I fear that I will not be safe around them, and that they could take me as prisoner. The essays I have observed have shown just how horrible these people actually seem to be. If I choose to trade with them as I embark on this journey, I am worried if they do not like what I have to offer, they will kill me. I have heard tales of them burning and killing entire cities if they do not agree to their terms. If this is the case, who knows what they would do to just one man.

Journal entry 2

          I have finished my long journey into China. I am writing this from jail, for I returned home only to be caught into a war. Venice has gone to war with Genoa, and I have been captured by Genoa on my way out to sea. My 24 year trip into Mongolia. Throughout those long 24 years, I did come home once. During my first trip, after 3 years of travelling, I reached the Mongol leader Kublai Khan’s palace. He was not cruel as I had believed before I began this mission, but he seemed to like us.

          Kublai Khan was interested in the Christian faith, and it seemed hard to believe to him. He wanted me and my brother to return home to collect artifacts of the Christian belief. He gave us a gold tablet, protecting us so we could have a safe route home. After we visited our home church and collected many artifacts, we began to travel back to the palace. Along the route there, a war had broken out, and we had to travel far around the fighting. We eventually got to the palace. Kublai Khan was very impressed with everything we had brought back from the church. He was so impressed he gave me a Chinese city to rule for 3 years. Overall, the Mongols are not as bloodthirsty as people say, but they are fair traders and are welcoming to any religion, including Christianity.

Journal entry 3

          People have many different views on the Mongols today because the way Marco Polo claimed to have seen the Mongols act like contradicts from what other historians wrote during this time. People believe the Mongols were cruel because they expanded there empire rapidly by forcing people to join them, but haven’t many leaders done this throughout history? For example, Alexander the Great may have been harsh in military ruling, but he was good for the people. Like Genghis Khan, he believed that education was important into building the empire, and believed that all people needed it. Like Genghis Khan, he allowed the places he conquered to keep their religion, a main reason that so many cities surrendered without a fight. Overall, the Mongols and Alexander the Great had a lot in common.

         

 Bibliography

 Dowling, Mike. "Marco Polo at mrdowling.com". www.mrdowling.com. Updated June 17, 2013. Web. Jan. 15, 2014. http://www.mrdowling.com/613-marcopolo.html

Paludan, Ann. Chronicle of the Chinese emperors: the reign-by-reign record of the rulers of Imperial China. New York: Thames and Hudson, 1998. Print.

Gentzel, Micah. "The Mongol Empire." The Mongol Empire. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Jan. 2014. < http://www.personal.psu.edu/mcg5015/mongol.html>

"Marco Polo and His Travels." Marco Polo and His Travels. SilkRoad Foundation, n.d. Web. 15 Jan. 2014. <http://www.silk-road.com/artl/marcopolo.shtml>.

Stiner, Amber. “Marco Polo Travels in China.” Marco Polo in China: 1275-1292. WebChron, 2 Dec. 1997. Web. 16 Jan. 2014. http://www.thenagain.info/webchron/china/marcopolo.html.

Pettinger, Tejvan. "Alexander The Great Biography." Biography Online. Biography Online, 1 Jan. 2009. Web. 17 Jan. 2014. <http://www.biographyonline.net/military/alexander-the-great.html>.

Mongols: Bloodthirsty Plunderers or Promoters of Trade and Cultural Exchange? by Mallika Yedla

          I have heard that the Mongols are ruthless, bloodthirsty plunderers of Central Asia. As nomads, they don't not always have the all supplies that they needed, so trade is important. They have the ability to trade peacefully and had successfully done so before, but they became greedy and started taking materials by force from their southern neighbors. They stop for no man and mow down anything in the way of what they wanted. Their powerful, organized military and skilled cavalry razed entire villages to the ground. This makes me really nervous about my upcoming trip. Apparently, word spreads from village to village about the terror-inspiring Mongols, and eventually, to avoid death, people just hand the Mongols the key to the village and whatever supplies they want. According to Holt McDougal Online, "the military was organized into 10,000 man armies, 1,000 man brigades, 100 man companies, and 10 man squads." The cavalry is extremely powerful, because as nomads, the Mongols spend a great amount of time on horseback, and so are very skilled in riding. They even developed a saddle so that they would be able to turn around in their seat and fire arrows behind them. To me that seems both innovative and terrifying. The Mongols use new technology from the Muslims and Chinese, like gunpowder, to help them in their conquests. The old leader, Genghis Khan, was known for his brilliant battle strategy, and some of his tactics are still used today. For example, according to History.com, when the Mongols were conquering Yinchuan, China they employed one of their most famous strategies: they only sent a small part of their cavalry to fight in the battle, then the cavalry made it look like they were turning around and fleeing, so the Chinese chased after them, but it would turn out that the small part of the cavalry was actually leading them to a spot further on where the rest of the Mongols would be waiting to attack. It seems to me that the Mongols are extremely intelligent, but also overly harsh and fierce. One gruesome and horrifying thing that I have heard that is that, if they are running low on food, the cavalry will cut into their horse's neck and drink the blood. I hope Kublai Khan has a good side and doesn't kill my father, uncle, and me when we travel there later this year!

           I cannot believe how misinformed I was before traveling to the Mongol Empire seventeen years ago! Now, after experiencing the culture in the Mongol Empire and working on government missions in China, I know that, at heart, the Mongols really are promoters of trade and cultural exchange. In fact, under the rule of Kublai Khan, trade has never been better! Here is an excerpt from the book I am writing about my travels, called The Travels of Marco Polo: "More precious and costly wares are imported into Khan-balik [Beijing] than into any other city in the world... All the treasures that come from India precious stones pearls, and other rarities are brought here. So too are the choicest and costliest products of Cathay [China] itself and every other province." Trade really has been flourishing in the Mongol Empire of late. According to Holt McDougal Online, Khublai even built a system of paved roads that are around 1,100 miles long connecting the East and West in order to facilitate trade and safe travel! He has been inviting traders, travelers, and missionaries from Persia, Central Asia, and India to visit his vast empire so that he can learn about their cultures and promote cultural exchange. Whenever the Mongols take over a land, they are culturally tolerant. They benevolently allow the people of that land to keep most aspects of their religion, government, and tradition. The Mongol government is very practical. I experienced this while on government missions for Kublai Khan. Also, in my travels I have seen a great amount of absurd things. I would have to say that one of the most strange things I have seen was in China. They burned coal in their homes for fuel! We don't do anything like that in Europe.

           As a 21st century historian, I believe that there are two sides to every great story. Each side believes what suits them best. The reason history has such different views of the Mongols is that they were both great and terrible. They affected some people in great ways and terrorized others. For example, when Kublai Khan finally became emperor of China, he did great things for them, like restoring and expanding the Grand Canal by over one hundred miles. And, under his rule, trade flourished. Also, he was religiously and culturally tolerant of the people. However, he was also conquering new lands all the time, and I am sure some of the people he conquered strongly disliked him for forcibly taking their land and killing their people. And, people share their opinions all the time. The Chinese probably shared  some good opinions of the Mongols with their children, the terrorized people probably shared horrible opinions, and the two starkly different views were just passed down the generations. The Mongol Empire is comparable to the Islamic Empire in terms of how benevolently they treat their conquered people. The Mongols were very religiously tolerant and allowed conquered people to keep their own faith. It was rare that they would change parts of the cultures of the people they conquered. The Islamic Empire was also religiously tolerant, allowing Christians and Jews to keep their faith, but only because the Qur'an, their holy text, forbade forced conversion to Islam. Still, the two empires were astoundingly similar in that regard.

Works Cited

Atwood, Charles Pratt. Encyclopedia of Mongolia and the Mongol Empire. New York: Facts on File, 2004. Print.

Buenning, Steve, The Trial of Chinggis Khan: A Classroom Simulation. World History Connected 9.1 (2012): 48 pars. 16 Jan. 2014 <http://worldhistoryconnected.press.illinois.edu/9.1/buenning.html>.

 History. A&E Television Networks, n.d. Web. 17 Jan. 2014. <http://www.history.com/topics/genghis-khan>.

Holt McDougal Online. N.p.: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, n.d. Holt McDougal Online. Web. 17 Jan. 2014. <http://my.hrw.com/tabnav/controller.jsp?isbn=9780547521084>.

 Marco Polo in China (1271-1295). Columbia University, East Asian Curriculum Project, n.d. Web. 16 Jan. 2014. <http://afe.easia.columbia.edu/mongols/pop/menu/class_marco.htm#travels>.

"Mongol." Britannica School. Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., 2014. Web. 16 Jan. 2014. <http://school.eb.com/levels/high/article/53354#284623.toc>.

 The Mongols in World History. Asia for Educators, Columbia University, 2004. Web. 16 Jan. 2014. <http://afe.easia.columbia.edu/mongols/figures/figu_polo.htm>.

Polo, Marco, and Milton Rugoff. The Travels of Marco Polo. New York: Signet Classics, 2004. Print.

Reinhartz, Dennis. "Genghis Khan." Great Lives from History: The Middle Ages. Ed. Wolbrink Shelley. 2 vols. Salem Press, 2005. Salem History Web. 16 Jan. 2014.

 Trade and Cultural Interaction through Central Asia, ca. 500-ca. 1500. Daniel C. Waugh, n.d. Web. 16 Jan. 2014. <http://faculty.washington.edu/dwaugh/publications/waughcentralasiatrade500_1500.pdf>.

Marco Polo's Mongol Journal

Journal Entry 1:

As I am about to embark on my journey to fulfill unanswered questions about the Mongols, I worry about what will come when I arrive there. From information i’ve gathered from other travelers and people of Eurasia, i’ve come to see that the mongols are slayers of innocents, and destroyers. The mongols brought violence, destruction, and devistation to China’s civilization. Along with causing violence to china’s civilization, they are insensitive to China’s values. The mongols were involved in many wars such as the Mongol-sol war, Battle of Homs, the succession war with kublia Khan and Ariq Boke. Being in many wars shows the large amount of violence that the Mongols caused. Showing no mercy, the Mongols invaded many places such as korea, Bulgaria, Vietnam, and Japan. I hope my travels there are safe, and I can learn as much as I can about the Mongols.

Mongol Military

Journal Entry 2:

         I've just returned from the Mongol empire, and what I learned and experienced on my trip was not what I expected. The Mongols were not all violence and destroyers like I thought they would be when I went on my trip. The Mongols nomadic way of life made them recognize the importance of trade, unlike the Chinese. The Mongols had a positive attitude towards merchants and traders, unlike the Chinese who were not very fond of merchants. Over time as I was on my trip there, the Mongols were able to alter the attitude of the Chinese toward trade. The Mongols built many roads connecting the East and West to promote trade. These roads were also used to help the Mongols rule over China, but mostly to help trade throughout the entire empire. The empire is so big that trade goes all throughout the empire from East to West. The roads helped for culture from all around the empire to spread and share new ideas.


Journal Entry 3:
          In todays history we look at the Mongols as a destructive group, because of how much land they conquered and how they did it. Most people now look at how they conquered land and got into wars, not that they helped trade and culture spread. Some saw the good side of the Mongols with there help with trade, but for the most part, people look at how they were violent land conquerors. For example when looking at the Romans I think they are similar, in the since of land control. The Romans, like the Mongols, took control over large amounts of land. The would go through conquering land, while at the same time keeping control of the land they already had. Looking at what people think of the Mongols today, I think just take assumptions for what they here without going to research more about them. 

Works Cited

-Major, John S. The Land and People of China. New York:Lippincott, 1989. Print.

-"The Mongols in World History | Asia Topics in World History." The Mongols in World History | Asia Topics in World History. Columbia University, n.d. Web. 16 Jan. 2014.

-"Marco Polo and His Travels." Marco Polo and His Travels. Silk Road Foundation, n.d. Web. 15 Jan. 2014.

-"War and Battle Directory." History Curriculum Homeschool. Heritage History Academy, n.d. Web. 15 Jan. 2014.

Ella McCary

Blake Thurman

Mongol Project

In my preparation for my journey I have done some research and in that research I’ve found that the Mongol Empire is filled with viscous, bloodthirsty, barbarians. Which slightly worries me considering that I’ve heard that they’re not the best at constructing a government either. I believe what I’ve researched considering I’ve heard stories of how they use different types of warfare, like siege warfare. In the siege of Bukhara, the army, which was composed of Turkish soldiers led by Turkish generals, of about 20,000, attempted to break the siege on the third day and was decimated in battle. Artisans and craftsmen were sent back to Mongolia, young men were sent off to be trained for the Mongolian army, and the remainder of the population was sent into slavery. As the soldiers were looting the city, the city caught fire and a majority of the city burned to the ground.

After nearly 8 years of my life spent in the Mongol Empire my opinion of the Mongols have completely changed. I used to believe them to be decimators of cities, which they have done in the past, but they are truly masters of trade. The Mongol’s nomadic way forced them to recognize the true importance of trade from the beginning, the Chinese did not think like they did, the Chinese did not have a favorable attitude towards merchants and the activity of buying and selling between people. The Mongols were also very tolerant of other religions.

Why does history have such different views of the Mongols? History has several different views of the Mongols because there are multiple sides to everything. Most people, who haven’t dug into the history of the Mongols, believe that the Mongols were just a bunch of bloodthirsty barbarians, which is true to a certain extent. That brings me to the other viewpoint of the Mongols, although the Mongols were destroyers of cities and decimators of thousands they also had a different side to them. They openly accepted all religions and they were promoters of trade. In the Mongol Empire it was said that you could walk across their entire empire carrying valuables and be completely safe the entire time.

Cites:

"World History Connected | Vol. 9 No. 1 | Steve Buenning: The Trial of Chinggis Khan: A Classroom Simulation." World History Connected | Vol. 9 No. 1 | Steve Buenning: The Trial of Chinggis Khan: A Classroom Simulation. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Jan. 2014.

"World History Connected | Vol. 9 No. 1 | Steve Buenning: The Trial of Chinggis Khan: A Classroom Simulation." World History Connected | Vol. 9 No. 1 | Steve Buenning: The Trial of Chinggis Khan: A Classroom Simulation. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Jan. 2014.

"Mongol Invasion of Khwarezmia and Eastern Iran." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 01 Dec. 2014. Web. 17 Jan. 2014.

"The Mongols in World History | Asia Topics in World History." The Mongols in World History | Asia Topics in World History. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Jan. 2014.

N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Jan. 2014.

Mongol Journal

It’s the year 1275, and as my brother and I draw closer to the Great Khan’s empire, I am nearly immobilized with fear at the thought of the Mongols. While traveling here, I was able to hear many stories from all across Eurasia of how brutal and barbarous the Mongols are. In Persia, I heard a tale about the Great Khan and his army of at least ten thousand warriors, strategically placed in squads of a thousand and a hundred each. The story was that ten of these squads invaded part of Russia and completely demolished the cities of Moscow and Kiev. I heard that they killed all the men, women, children and even the animals in both these cities without shedding a single tear. Many people in Persia warned me of the Great Khan's savage-like ways and military strategies, as did people in China and even traders along the way who came from Russia. Some even warned me that whenever the Great Khan’s army would become hungry or thirsty, they would drink the blood of their horses if they were on the brink of starvation by opening a vein in the horses neck and letting the blood spew into their mouths. I was petrified by the idea that my brother and I would be living under the same roof as one Kublai Khan who employed such cannibalistic beasts, but hopefully the Great Khan will spare us as we learn about the Mongolian culture.

Seventeen years later, I am a new man. The Marco Polo I once was, one filled with terror at the thought of the Great Khan, is no more. I've come to my senses and realized that the Mongols are very intelligent and cunning in everything they do. When my brother and I first met the Great Khan, he greeted us with gifts and hospitality. He asked us lots of questions about Venice and genuinely seemed to care about our well being and our culture. While traveling through his empire, we noticed people of many different personalities, cultures and religions, all feeling just as welcomed as we felt. People of different religions could pray and go about their rituals without scorn or judgement. During our time in Khan’s territory, we were able to go on many missions and taste different foods, witness things we’d never seen, and experience advanced weaponry. Kublai Khan was able to teach us various aspects of his own culture, and I feel as if I've grown as a person because of it. Without a doubt, I've made a friend in Kublai Khan. I can easily say that this is the most diverse and unrestricted but well kept empire I've ever seen.

Mongols' good and bad traits are very controversial. Like the Mongols, the Roman Empire in the third century A.D. prompts similar controversy over its good and bad traits. Although the Mongol Empire only reigned for 185 years and the Roman Empire lasted for much longer, both empires conquered a vast amount of territory. Mongolian territory expanded from the Black Sea to the Pacific Ocean, while the Roman empire expanded from the Black Sea to the Atlantic Ocean. Multiple rulers in both the Mongolian empire and Roman empires were power hungry, feared nothing, and had no remorse as to the number of murders that went on each day. Such rulers include Kublai Khan of the Mongols and Diocletian, an emperor of Rome in 305 A.D. Although these empires seemed great because they ruled such expansive amounts of land, in reality, the people who were ruled by these empires did not think highly of them at all because the empires conquered and oppressed or slaughtered many people. After many years of famine and disease, many wanted to revolt. Despite the way the civilians of these civilizations viewed their rulers, there were inventions of things such as paper and the compass. More people converted to Christianity or Buddhism, and military strategy vastly improved during this time. All of these helped shape many parts in today’s daily lifestyles in modern day Rome and China, both the good and the bad.





Works Cited:

Waugh, Daniel C. "Wednesday University Lecture 4." Wednesday University Lecture 4. University Lecture 4, 2002. Web. 16 Jan. 2014. <http://depts.washington.edu/silkroad/lectures/wulec4a.html>.

Rossabi, Morris. "The Mongols in World History | Asia Topics in World History." The Mongols in World History | Asia Topics in World History. Columbia University, 2004. Web. 14 Jan. 2014. <http://afe.easia.columbia.edu/mongols/history/history.htm>.

May, Timothy. "World History Connected | Vol. 5 No. 2 | Timothy May: The Mongol Empire in World History." The Mongol Empire in World History. North Georgia College and State University, 2008. Web. 16 Jan. 2014. <http://worldhistoryconnected.press.illinois.edu/5.2/may.html>.

Plano Carpini, John Of. "JOHN OF PLANO History of Mongols." JOHN OF PLANO History of Mongols. Alamo Community College and the Society for Medieval Military History, n.d. Web. 16 Jan. 2014. <https://www2.stetson.edu/secure/history/hy10302/johnofplano.html>.

May, Timothy. "Genghis Khan: secrets of success: widely feared for extreme brutality, the Mongols also mastered more subtle and sophisticated tactics." Military History July-Aug. 2007: 42+. General OneFile. Web. 16 Jan. 2014. <http://go.galegroup.com/ps/retrieve.do?sgHitCountType=None&sort=DA-SORT&inPS=true&prodId=GPS&userGroupName=avlr&tabID=T003&searchId=R1&resultListType=RESULT_LIST&contentSegment=&searchType=BasicSearchForm&currentPosition=5&contentSet=GALE%7CA213403151&&docId=GALE|A213403151&docType=GALE&role=ITOF>.

London, Murray J. "Travels of Marco Polo." Redirecting. Trans. Henry Yule. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Jan. 2014. <http://www.shsu.edu/~his_ncp/Polo.html>.

"The Travels of Marco Polo." Redirecting. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Jan. 2014. <http://www.nauticus.org/sites/default/files/TheTravelsofMarcoPoloVolume1.pdf>.

Rugoff, Milton. Marco Polo's Adventures in China. New York: American Heritage Pub.; Book Trade and Institutional Distribution by Harper & Row, 1964. Print.

"The Historical Mongol Empire." The Historical Mongol Empire. Geocities, Oct. 2009. Web. 16 Jan. 2014. <http://www.oocities.org/athens/forum/2532/page5.html>.

Mongol Journal- Sarah Margaret

I, Marco Polo have researched about who the Mongols were before I embark on my journey. People describe the Mongols as bloodthirsty and cruel people, they say this for many reasons based on what they have accomplished. The Mongols were very strategic people and believed in using cruelty as a weapon to defeat their enemy and they also liked to get the other army to surrender. These methods clearly worked for Genghis Khan and his army so why would they stop using them. The army was able to conquer and expand land so fast. The Mongols also believed in mass murders, they would kill thousands of people and only leave a few alive so they could stay back and say what happened. When invading the Mongols would often cut off water supply, block food supplies and burn farmland, and kill most of the people. They had very cruel tactics but they all worked! Between the 1200s and 1400s the Mongols killed around 40 million people. One of the reasons the Mongol army was so strong was because of the horses. Most armies maybe had 25% of their army on horseback, but the Mongols were all on horseback. They also all used the same bow called the Mongol Bow and it could hit targets farther than any other bow could. Mongolian soldiers trained in archery, horseback combat, hand to hand combat, formation attacks, and military strategy. They were well trained in every area needed to be the successful army that they were. The technology was very  important to how their warfare worked and they were experts in laying siege. The first real defeat for the Mongols was in 1260 and it took place in modern day Israel against Mamluks. The Mongols usually faced armies larger than their own but that didn’t scare them one bit. The mongols were the first ever to conquer southeast asisa and they established the first Asian empre. They accomplished so much and conquered so much land in such little time period because of the way they did it. I am very impressed by them but feel like they didn’t have to be so cruel in the way they did things.

I have just left the Mongol Empire and realized that the Mongols aren’t only bloodthirsty and violent people, but that they are also promoters of trade, supporters of cultural exchange, and connectors of East and West. They are nicer and more caring than I expected, not completely self centered.  The Mongols nomadic way of living caused them to see the value in trade and the steppe served as a trade route connecting the east and west. The Mongols actually had to rely on trade for many things so they increased trade. The merchants were treated as high class and were given tax exemptions in the empire.  During Kublai Khans rule, the Mongols began contact and trade with unconquered lands such as France. Also the size of the Mongol Empire encouraged the larger spread of goods and ideas throughout Eurasia. For a while merchants weren’t allowed to travel but thanks to the Pax Mongolica they could. The Pax Mongolica allowed merchants to travel from one end of the empire to another. Its amazing how fast ideas and goods can spread. For example, mechanical printing, gunpowder, and the blast furnace all came from China. Things like history, geography, and sciences traveled east to west and then returned back. Its interesting how you hear facts about them and assume so much and then are surprised to see a different side of them. I believe that they were very harsh people while conquering land to become the biggest and greatest ever, and then when they weren’t in combat they liked to be friendly and trade. It’s a very good tactic.

            History has such different views on the Mongols because some believe they were good and some believe they weren’t. It will always be an argument because peoples opinions don’t change. Every great man is going to have his downfalls. This compares to the Byzantine Empire because Justinian started several new things that were a success just how Khan conquered many new places. He started and built new things that are still known today and will always trace back to his name. The same thing is true with Khan. People are known for good and bad, but for these people, the good override the bad making them memorable and important to history. 

Bibliography-

May, T.. N.p.. Web. 16 Jan 2014. <http://worldhistoryconnected.press.illinois.edu/5.2/may.html>.

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Stern, Fred. "Marco Polo And The Great Khan's World." World & I 26.1 (2011): 4. History Reference Center. Web. 16 Jan. 2014. http://web.ebscohost.com/hrc/detail?vid=4&sid=828dc16f-2584-4f1e-aa11-ac71b1d81346%40sessionmgr4002&hid=4107&bdata=JnNpdGU9aHJjLWxpdmU%3d#db=khh&AN=58777495

Edwards, Mike. "The Adventures Of Marco Polo." National Geographic 199.5 (2001): 2.History Reference Center. Web. 16 Jan. 2014. http://web.ebscohost.com/hrc/detail?sid=b7d55190-82b6-4445-ac47-d9852340a605%40sessionmgr114&vid=1&hid=124&bdata=JnNpdGU9aHJjLWxpdmU%3d#db=khh&AN=4358193

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