The Mongols currently live in Mongolia, Russia and China, particularly in northern Mongolia (the region of Lake Baikal) annexed by Russia and in Inner Mongolia. The two Mongolian ethnic groups in Russia are the Buryats, east of Lake Baikal, and the Kalmyks, north of the Caspian Sea. They are currently around 10 million, including 5 million in China, and they speak different languages of the Altaic family (Chakar, Khalkha, Oyrate, Kalmyk, Buryat, etc.)
History
In the first millennium AD, the Mongols probably lived in Eastern Siberia, on the upper course of the Amur River. This very eccentric position, away from the great civilizations of Asia, explains why their culture was little evolved, unlike that of the Turks. They moved to what would become Mongolia at the start of the second millennium.
Although relatively few in number (about 200,000 at the height of their empire), the Mongols played an important role in world history. Gathering at first under the command of Genghis Khan, the Mongols created the largest empire of all time, encompassing 35.7 million square kilometers and over 100 million people under their rule. At their height, they controlled most of China, Korea, parts of Siberia, Indochina, Burma, Iran, Iraq, Asia Minor, Russia, Poland, Hungary, and part of the Balkans.
The Mongolian people
The Mongols were a nomadic people. States in Asia, Russia and the Middle East were declining or very small. Taking the initiative, the Mongols exploited this power vacuum and joined all these areas into a united trade network. They were completely dependent on trade with the townspeople. Being nomads, they did not accumulate a surplus for difficult times. The beginning of the conquest, in 1200, was provoked by the reduction in trade from northern China. They attacked to survive.
Conquest, from the Khan's initial point of view, was not about subjugating competing cultures to the nomadic way of life, but rather about destroying them. Because he was nomadic, it is assumed that Genghis Khan did not understand or pay attention to the benefits of city life. This is a stark contrast to the obvious reality of their reliance on trading with these people. It has been said that Genghis Khan's original plan was to destroy the conquered territories, destroy all traces of the enemy civilization and convert the lands into pastures for his herds. However, Sorghagtani Beki (see the Philosophy of the Empire below) pointed to a hidden benefit of keeping the status quo . If city dwellers were allowed to continue their lifestyle, they could produce a surplus of food and produce, a portion of which could be paid to the Khan as tax. Given the extraordinary success of the Khan's conquests, these riches could also be extraordinary. After weighing this idea, Khan accepted it and levied taxes. Countless lives and cultures were saved by this method.
Genghis Khan never intended to create a global empire. Each of his conquests was due to a specific dispute over the development of the trade network (the treatment of the Mongols, or disadvantageous terms for trade). An example is the capture of Yanjing in 1215. He refused to exploit the capture of the capital of all of northern China. After his success, he simply returned to the steppes (with loot). The same pattern was applied in the conquest of West Asia, taken in just six years. It was a simple formula, overcome resistance, establish advantageous commercial contracts and start again.
Military innovations
The Mongol empire expanded very successfully to the west. The Mongols fought in a very methodical way, contrary to the image of a savage horde that we have of them, and their organization and discipline earned them many victories.
The philosophy of the Empire
The most notable Mongol of the 13th century (much more than Genghis Khan himself) was Kublai Khan's mother and Genghis Khan's daughter-in-law, Sorghagtani Beki. She is mentioned by many 13th century writers, such as Persians, European missionaries and Arab scholars as the most renowned of the Mongols. A physicist from the Middle East commented:"If I saw among the race of women another as remarkable as this, I would say that the race of women is superior to the race of men."
Beki's greatest feat was realizing the serious problems the Mongols would encounter in ruling an intercontinental empire. Although illiterate herself, in raising her four sons (all destined to be Khan) to rule, she had them each learn one of the languages used by one of their peoples. Additionally, she educated court servants and nobles on the religions of their subjects and sent them to become clergy in each region. Religious tolerance was prescribed by law, and all religions were equally supported throughout the Empire. This eliminated a source of conflict on which resistance to the Mongols could have been based.
His greatest contribution to the Mongol government was to realize that purely economic exploitation of the ruled peoples would be counterproductive. So rather than turning China into Mongolian pasture, it maintained Chinese society. The increase in production achieved through the enlightened rule of the Mongols caused an increase in taxes and tributes. Each of his sons followed the same philosophy, ensuring continuity and stability. Religious tolerance, economic support and the degree of literacy were the innovations that led a small people of nomads to rule everything they could see.
Timeline of the Conquest
The Mongols attempted two failed invasions of Japan. The first was completely destroyed by a typhoon (Kamikaze, or wind of the gods , the origin of the common name). The Mongol ships survived the typhoon the second time but all supplies were destroyed and the starving soldiers were annihilated by Japanese infantry and samurai.
1200:North China - Death toll unknown
1215:Yanjing, China - Death toll unknown
1221:Nishapur, Persian Empire - 1.7 million killed in battle
1221:Merv, Persian Empire - 1.3 million killed in battle
1221:Meru Shahjan, Persian Empire - 1.3 million killed in battle
1221:Rayy, Persian Empire - 1.6 million killed in battle
1226:Campaign Against the Tanguts - Genghis Khan waged war against the Tangut people of northern China .
1258:Baghdad - 800,000 people. Caused the destruction of the Abbasid dynasty
1260:first Mongol defeat at the Battle of Ain Djalout
1226-1266:- 18 million deaths reported in the conquest of Northern China. This number was estimated by Kublai Khan himself.