In return the Mongols supported the growth of some of their native cities, such as Moscow. The Eastern Orthodox Church also was preserved during this time period. The Mongols received assistance from the Eastern Orthodox Church, and in return, the Mongols provided protection. This took place in other places such as China. China’s government received legitimacy from the Buddhists, and in return the Buddhists received tax cuts.
In many ways, both states were extremely similar in the way Mongols ruled them. For instance, both empires made great use of the Silk Road. The “Pax Mongolica” refers to the peace under Mongol rule and the commerce through the routes as religions, ideas, and technologies were spread. However with this increase in trade, both states suffered from a drop in their economies. The Mongols mainly focused on collecting taxes, and when they conquered the areas, they destroyed a lot of farmland in each.
The rule of the Mongol people in Asia affected both Russia and China in many ways both economically and politically, however, because the Mongols directly ruled China, they had a greater impact on the country of China. One economic similarity the Chinese and Russians shared under Mongol rule was that using the rule of the Mongols, the reinventing of the Silk Road helped both countries economically by increasing safe trade between countries, trading mainly silk from China and fur from Russia. The Mongols also affected China and Russia in the new types of political system or the trade of power that occurred: the Chinese created a bureaucracy while the Russians ruled their people with feudalistic tactics such as princes/vassals of the Mongols. The Mongols also created sufism in Russia. The political impact from the Mongols was much more centralized and uncompromising in China rather than in Russia, where political impact was didn’t have as much effect.
Essay Question 1 The Mongols were brilliant strategists and tacticians. The Mongols by nature were extremely resilient and tough people since they weren't softened by the wealthy and comfortable city life of China and other nations. They were nomadic and tribal. This means that there was much rivalry between them. However, during the High Middle Ages, a man named Temujin was able to break old traditions and unite all the Mongols.
Therefore, it was easier for the empires to rise in power quickly and not deal with the rebels. In addition, both empires had similar class structures. In the Mongol empire, they were put at the top and the Han Chinese at the bottom - after they invaded the Song dynasty in the late 1270s. In the Aztec empire, the nobles were put at the top and the prisoners of war at the bottom, along with slaves. With prisoners of war at the very bottom, both empires were safe from getting their power taken away from them.
Some areas ruled by the Mongols outnumbered the Mongols almost 1000 to 1. They only tolerated them because of the steady flow of trade goods (Weatherford 247). With trade and the strength of their army disappeared, the Royal Families of the Mongols were left their selves. Some of the Mongols used the tactics of Khubilai Khan, which was unification with the cultures of the subjects, to remain in control. The Royal Family in China actually opposed them and distinguished from them as much as they could.
While life was extremely brutal under Mongol rule in both Russia and the Middle East, the extent of the brutality was different in each region due to the way the conquest of that region occurred. Mongol takeover of Russia was fast and relatively easy just like in the Middle East. However Russia was composed of independent kingdoms that refused to ban together to stand against the Golden Horde which lead to a quick and deadly downfall unlike in the Middle East where Islamic kingdoms combined to fight the Mongol onslaught. The Golden Horde took over Russia by going from kingdom to kingdom and killing everyone that stands and opposes them. If a kingdom was to fight and lose to the Mongol cavalry then the entire city would be looted and then
They were theocratic. Mongol khanates were secular and religion was mostly pagan. The religious leadership they had was seperate from military leadership, where as Islamic States believe the two should be combined. However, the Islamic States and Mongol khanates were similar in their battles of who would become ruler. After the death of Caliph Harun-al-Rashid, his two sons began to fight for the throne.
Some important rulers were Genghis Khan and Kublai Khan. Other rulers included Ogedei, Guyuk, and Mongke Khan. These rulers expanded their kingdom into northern India, central Asia, China, Persia and some parts of Europe. One good thing that came out of this vast empire is that many people could trade more safely on the Silk Road since it was now in one big empire. A bad thing is that the Mongols killed many people and devastated towns as they conquered new lands.
The Mongols united under Temujin and expanded to control the area from Poland to Siberia. A Great Khan is a supreme ruler. After Gengis Khan’s death, his empire was divided among his sons and grandsons. The territories were Domain of the Great Khan, Khanate of Jagadai, Il-Khans, and Khanate of the Golden Horde. War Tactics: The Mongols were very strategic, used various tricks on enemies to confuse them.