The Mongol Empire (Mongolian: Их Монгол Улс, literally meaning "Great Mongol Nation"; 1206–1405) was the largest contiguous land empire in history, covering over 33 million km² [1] (12 million square miles) at its peak, with an estimated population of over 100 million people. It was also the second largest empire in history, after the British Empire. The Mongol Empire was founded by Genghis Khan in 1206, and at its height, it encompassed the majority of the territories from East Asia to Central Europe.
It started out as a Mongol Nation of unified Central Asian confederations such as Mongols, Naimans, Uighurs, Merkits under Genghis Khan, but got territorially expanded after numerous outward conquests such as against China, Middle East and European regions under multiple Khans and Khagans. After unifying the Mongol and Turkic tribes, the Empire expanded through numerous conquests throughout continental Eurasia starting with the conquests of the Western Xia in north China and the Khwarezmid Empire in Iran.
During its existence, the Pax Mongolica facilitated cultural exchange and trade between the East, West, and the Middle East in the period of the 13th and 14th centuries. The Mongol Empire established commercial and political connections between the Eastern and Western areas of the world that have remained to the present day.
The Mongol Empire was ruled by the Khagan. After the death of Möngke Khan, it split into four parts (the Yuan Dynasty, Il-Khans, Chagatai Khanate and Golden Horde), each of which was ruled by its own Khan.One of the more successful tactics employed by the Mongols was to wipe out urban populations that had refused to surrender; in the invasion of Kievan Rus', almost all major cities were destroyed; but if they chose to submit, the people were spared and treated leniently. In addition to intimidation tactics, the rapid expansion of the Empire was facilitated by military hardiness (especially during bitterly cold winters), military skill, meritocracy, and discipline. Subotai, in particular, among the Mongol Commanders, viewed winter as the best time for war — while less hardy people hid from the elements, the Mongols were able to use frozen lakes and rivers as highways for their horsemen, a strategy he used with great effect in Russia.
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 rulership. 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 eastern Khanates largely adopted Buddhism, and the western Khanates adopted Islam, largely under Sufi influence. The last Khan who was the ruler of India, Bahadur Shah Zafar was deposed by the British after the collapse of the 1857 uprising and exiled to Rangoon where he lies buried. His sons were killed by the British in Humayuns tomb, the burial place of their ancestor in Delhi.
The influence of the Mongol Empire may prove to be even more direct — Zerjal et al [2003][2] identify a Y-chromosomal lineage present in about 8% of the men in a large region of Asia (or about 0.5% of the men in the world). The paper suggests that the pattern of variation within the lineage is consistent with a hypothesis that it originated in Mongolia about 1,000 years ago. Such a spread would be too rapid to have occurred by diffusion, and must therefore be the result of selection. The authors propose that the lineage is carried by likely male line descendants of Genghis Khan, and that it has spread through social selection. In addition to the Khanates and other descendants, the Mughal royal family of India are also descended from Genghis Khan: Babur's mother was a descendant — whereas his father was directly descended from Timur (Tamerlane). At the time of Genghis Khan's death in 1227, the empire was divided among his four sons, with his third son as the supreme Khan, and by the 1350s, the khanates were in a state of fracture and had lost the order brought to them by Genghis Khan. Eventually the separate khanates drifted away from each other, becoming the Il-Khans Dynasty based in Iran, the Chagatai Khanate in Central Asia, the Yuan Dynasty in China, and what would become the Golden Horde in present day Russia.
[edit] Formation
Genghis Khan, through political manipulation and military might, united the nomadic, previously ever-rivaling Mongol-Turkic tribes under his rule by 1206. He quickly came into conflict with the Jin Dynasty empire of the Jurchen and the Western Xia in northern China. Under the provocation of the Muslim Khwarezmid Empire, he moved into Central Asia as well, devastating Transoxiana and eastern Persia, then raiding into Kievan Rus' (a predecessor state of Russia, Belarus and Ukraine) and the Caucasus. While engaged in a final war against the Western Xia, Genghis fell ill and died. Before dying, Genghis Khan divided his empire among his sons and immediate family, but as custom made clear, it remained the joint property of the entire imperial family who, along with the Mongol aristocracy, constituted the ruling class.
[edit] Major events in the Early Mongol Empire
Eurasia on the eve of the Mongol invasions, c. 1200.
Mongol Empire in 1227 at Genghis' death1206: By this year, Temujin from the Orkhon Valley dominated Mongolia and received the title Genghis Khan, thought to mean Oceanic Ruler or Firm, Resolute Ruler
1207: The Mongols began operations against the Western Xia, which comprised much of northwestern China and parts of Tibet. This campaign lasted until 1210 with the Western Xia ruler submitting to Genghis Khan. During this period, the Uyghur Turks also submitted peacefully to the Mongols and became valued administrators throughout the empire.
1211: After a great quriltai or meeting, Genghis Khan led his armies against the Jin Dynasty that ruled northern China.
1218: The Mongols capture Semirechye and the Tarim Basin, occupying Kashgar.
1218: The execution of Mongol envoys by the Khwarezmian Shah Muhammad sets in motion the first Mongol westward thrust.
1219: The Mongols cross the Jaxartes (Syr Darya) and begin their invasion of Transoxiana.
1219–1221: While the campaign in northern China was still in progress, the Mongols waged a war in central Asia and destroyed the Khwarezmid Empire. One notable feature was that the campaign was launched from several directions at once. In addition, it was notable for special units assigned by Genghis Khan personally to find and kill Ala al-Din Muhammad II, the Khwarazmshah who fled from them, and ultimately ended up hiding on an island in the Caspian Sea.
1223: The Mongols gain a decisive victory at the Battle of the Kalka River, the first engagement between the Mongols and the East Slavic warriors.
1226: Invasion of the Western Xia, being the second battle with the Western Xia.
1237: Under the leadership of Batu Khan, the Mongols return to the West and begin their campaign to subjugat Kievan Rus'
[edit] Organization
[edit] Military setup
Main article: Military advances of Genghis Khan
The Mongol-Turkic military organization was simple, but effective. It was based on an old tradition of the steppe, which was a decimal system known in Iranian cultures since Achaemenid Persia, and later: the army was built up from squads of ten men each, called an arban; ten arbans constituted a company of a hundred, called a jaghun; ten jaghuns made a regiment of a thousand called mingghan and ten mingghans would then constitute a regiment of ten thousand (tumen), which is the equivalent of a modern division.
Unlike other mobile fighters, such as the Huns or the Vikings, the Mongols were very comfortable in the art of the siege. They were very careful to recruit artisans from the cities they plundered, and along with a group of experienced Chinese engineers, they were experts in building the trebuchet and other siege machines. These were mostly built on the spot using nearby trees.
Within a battle Mongol forces used extensive coordination of combined arms forces. Though they were famous for their horse archers, their lance forces were equally skilled and just as essential to their success. Mongol forces also used their engineers in battle. They used siege engines and rockets to disrupt enemy formations, confused enemy forces with smoke, and used smoke to isolate portions of an enemy force while destroying that force to prevent their allies from sending aid.
The army's discipline distinguished Mongol soldiers from their peers. The forces under the command of the Mongol Empire were generally trained, organized, and equipped for mobility and speed. To maximize mobility, Mongol soldiers were relatively lightly armored compared to many of the armies they faced. In addition, soldiers of the Mongol army functioned independently of supply lines, considerably speeding up army movement. Skillful use of couriers enabled these armies to maintain contact with each other and with their higher leaders. Discipline was inculcated in nerge (traditional hunts), as reported by Juvayni. These hunts were distinct from hunts in other cultures which were the equivalent to small unit actions. Mongol forces would spread out on line, surrounding an entire region and drive all of the game within that area together. The goal was to let none of the animals escape and to slaughter them all.
All military campaigns were preceded by careful planning, reconnaissance and gathering of sensitive information relating to the enemy territories and forces. The success, organization and mobility of the Mongol armies permitted them to fight on several fronts at once. All males aged from 15 to 60 and capable of undergoing rigorous training were eligible for conscription into the army, the source of honor in the tribal warrior tradition.
Another advantage of the Mongols was their ability to traverse large distances even in debilitatingly cold winters; in particular, frozen rivers led them like highways to large urban conurbations on their banks. In addition to siege engineering, the Mongols were also adept at river-work, crossing the river Sajó in spring flood conditions with thirty thousand cavalry in a single night during the battle of Mohi (April, 1241), defeating the Hungarian king Bela IV. Similarly, in the attack against the Muslim Khwarezmshah, a flotilla of barges was used to prevent escape on the river.
[edit] Law and governance
See also: Organization of state under Genghis Khan.
The Mongol Empire was governed by a code of law devised by Genghis, called Yassa, meaning "order" or "decree". A particular canon of this code was that the nobility shared much of the same hardship as the common man. It also imposed severe penalties, e.g. the death penalty was decreed if the mounted soldier following another did not pick up something dropped from the mount in front. At the same time, meritocracy prevailed, and Subutai, one of the most successful Mongol generals, started life as a blacksmith's son. On the whole, the tight discipline made the Mongol Empire extremely safe and well-run; European travelers were amazed by the organization and strict discipline of the people within the Mongol Empire.
Under Yassa, chiefs and generals were selected based on merit, religious tolerance was guaranteed, and thievery and vandalizing of civilian property was strictly forbidden. According to legend, a woman carrying a sack of gold could travel safely from one end of the Empire to another.
The empire was governed by a non-democratic parliamentary-style central assembly, called Kurultai, in which the Mongol chiefs met with the Great Khan to discuss domestic and foreign policies.
Genghis also demonstrated a rather liberal and tolerant attitude to the beliefs of others, and never persecuted people on religious grounds. This proved to be good military strategy, as when he was at war with Sultan Muhammad of Khwarezm, other Islamic leaders did not join the fight against Genghis — it was instead seen as a non-holy war between two individuals.
Throughout the empire, trade routes and an extensive postal system (yam) were created. Many merchants, messengers and travelers from China, the Middle East and Europe used the system. Genghis Khan also created a national seal, encouraged the use of a written alphabet in Mongolia, and exempted teachers, lawyers, and artists from taxes, although taxes were heavy on all other subjects of the empire.
At the same time, any resistance to Mongol rule was met with massive collective punishment. Cities were destroyed and their inhabitants slaughtered if they defied Mongol orders.
[edit] Accomplishments
The Mongol Empire was an empire with many amazing accomplishments that the world will never forget. During the reign of the Mongol Empire they established religious freedom, abolished slavery, created a free trade economy, created a code of laws, all men were held equal under law including the Khan, united China, created the borders of all mainland Asian countries, and created a time of peace, prosperity, and knowledge that had been unheard of for centuries.
[edit] Trade networks
Mongols prized their commercial and trade relationships with neighboring economies and this policy they continued during the process of their conquests and during the expansion of their empire. All merchants and ambassadors, having proper documentation and authorization, traveling through their realms were protected. This greatly increased overland trade.
During the thirteenth and early fourteenth centuries, European merchants, numbering hundreds, perhaps thousands, made their way from Europe to the distant land of China — Marco Polo is only one of the best known of these. Well-traveled and relatively well-maintained roads linked lands from the Mediterranean basin to China. The Mongol Empire had negligible influence on seaborne trade.
[edit] Mail System
The Mongol Empire had an ingenious and efficient mail system for the time. There were posts set up all over the Mongol Empire. A messenger would travel from post to post and at each post he would receive a new, rested horse to ensure the speediest delivery of the mail he was carrying.
[edit] After Genghis Khan
Ögedei Khan, Genghis Khan's son and successor
Kublai Khan, Genghis Khan's grandson and founder of the Yuan Dynasty
Hulagu, Genghis Khan's grandson and founder of the il-KhanAt first, the Mongol Empire was ruled by Ogedei Khan, Genghis Khan's third son and designated heir, but after his death in 1241, the fractures which would ultimately crack the Empire began to show. Enmity between the grandchildren of Genghis Khan resulted in a five year regency by Ogedei's widow until she finally got her son Guyuk Khan confirmed as Great Khan. But he only ruled two years, and following his death --he was on his way to confront his cousin Batu Khan, who had never accepted his authority-- another regency followed, until finally a period of stability came with the reign of Monke Khan, from 1251-1259. The last universally accepted Great Khan was his brother Kublai Khan, from 1260-1294. Despite his recognition as Great Khan, he was unable to keep his brother Hulagu and their cousin Berke from open warfare in 1263, and after Kublai's death, there was not an accepted Great Khan, so the Mongol Empire was fragmented for good.
Genghis Khan divided his realm into four Khanates, subdivisions of a single empire under the Great Khan (Khan of Khans). The following Khanates emerged after the regency following Ogedei Khan's death, and became formally independent after Kublai Khan's death:
Blue Horde (under Batu Khan) and White Horde (under Orda Khan) would soon be combined into the Golden Horde, with Batu Khan emerging as Khan.
Il-Khanate - Hulegu Khan
Empire of the Great Khan (China) - Kublai Khan
Mongol homeland (present day Mongolia, including Kharakhorum) - Tolui Khan
Chagadai Khanate - Chagatai Khan
The Mongol Empire and its successor khanatesThe empire's expansion continued for a generation or more after Genghis's death in 1227. Under Genghis's successor Ögedei Khan, the speed of expansion reached its peak. Mongol armies pushed into Persia, finished off the Xia and the remnants of the Khwarezmids, and came into conflict with the Song Dynasty of China, starting a war that concluded in 1279 with the conquest of populous China, which then constituted the majority of the world's economic production.
In the late 1230s, the Mongols under Batu Khan invaded Russia and Volga Bulgaria, reducing most of its principalities to vassalage, and pressed on into Eastern Europe. In 1241 the Mongols may have been ready to invade Western Europe as well, having defeated the last Polish-German and Hungarian armies at the Battle of Legnica and the Battle of Mohi. Batu Khan and Subutai were preparing to start with a winter campaign against Austria and Germany, and finish with Italy. However news of Ögedei's death spared Western Europe as Batu had to turn his attentions to the election of the next Great Khan. It is often speculated that this was one of the great turning points in history and that Europe may well have fallen to the Mongols had the invasion gone ahead. During the 1250s, Genghis's grandson Hulegu Khan, operating from the Mongol base in Persia, destroyed the Abbasid Caliphate in Baghdad and destroyed the cult of the Assassins, moving into Palestine towards Egypt. The Great Khan Möngke having died, however, he hastened to return for the election, and the force that remained in Palestine was destroyed by the Mamluks under Baibars in 1261 at Ayn Jalut.
[edit] Disintegration
The four successor Khanates of the Mongol Empire: Empire of the Great Khan (Yuan Dynasty), Golden Horde, Il-Khanate and Chagatai KhanateWhen Genghis Khan died, a major potential weakness of the system he had set up manifested itself. It took many months to summon the kurultai, as many of its most important members were leading military campaigns thousands of miles from the Mongol heartland. And then it took months more for the kurultai to come to the decision that had been almost inevitable from the start — that Genghis's choice as successor, his third son Ögedei, should become Great Khan. Ögedei was a rather passive ruler and personally self-indulgent, but he was intelligent, charming and a good decision-maker whose authority was respected throughout his reign by apparently stronger-willed relatives and generals whom he had inherited from Genghis.
On Ögedei's death in 1241, however, the system started falling apart. Pending a kurultai to elect Ögedei's successor, his widow Toregene Khatun assumed power and proceeded to ensure the election of her son Guyuk by the kurultai. Batu was unwilling to accept Guyuk as Great Khan, but lacked the influence in the kurultai to procure his own election. Therefore, while moving no further west, he simultaneously insisted that the situation in Europe was too precarious for him to come east and that he could not accept the result of any kurultai held in his absence. The resulting stalemate lasted four years. In 1246 Batu eventually agreed to send a representative to the kurultai but never acknowledged the resulting election of Guyuk as Great Khan.
Guyuk died in 1248, only two years after his election, on his way west, apparently to force Batu to acknowledge his authority, and his widow Oghul Ghaymish assumed the regency pending the meeting of the kurultai; unfortunately for her, she could not keep the power. Batu remained in the west but this time gave his support to his and Guyuk's cousin, Möngke, who was duly elected Great Khan in 1251.
Möngke Khan unwittingly provided his brother Kublai, or Qubilai, with a chance to become Khan in 1260, assigning Kublai to a province in North China. Kublai expanded the Mongol empire and became a favorite of Möngke. Kublai's conquest of China is estimated by Holworth, based on census figures, to have killed over 18 million people. [1]
Later, though, when Kublai began to adopt many Chinese laws and customs, his brother was persuaded by his advisors that Kublai was becoming too Chinese and would become treasonous. Möngke kept a closer watch on Kublai from then on but died campaigning in the west. After his older brother's death, Kublai placed himself in the running for a new khan against his younger brother, and, although his younger brother won the election, Kublai defeated him in battle, and Kublai became the last true Great Khan.
He proved to be a strong warrior, but his critics still accused him of being too closely tied to Chinese culture. When he moved his headquarters to Beijing, there was an uprising in the old capital that he barely staunched. He focused mostly on foreign alliances, and opened trade routes. He dined with a large court every day, and met with many ambassadors, foreign merchants, and even offered to convert to Christianity if this religion was proved to be correct by 100 priests.
By the reign of Kublai Khan, the empire was already in the process of splitting into a number of smaller khanates. After Kublai died in 1294, his heirs failed to maintain the Pax Mongolica and the Silk Road closed. Inter-family rivalry compounded by the complicated politics of succession, which twice paralyzed military operations as far off as Hungary and the borders of Egypt (crippling their chances of success), and the tendencies of some of the khans to drink themselves to death fairly young (causing the aforementioned succession crises), hastened the disintegration of the empire.
Another factor which contributed to the disintegration was the decline of morale when the capital was moved from Karakorum to modern day Beijing by Kublai Khan, because Kublai Khan associated more with Chinese culture. Kublai concentrated on the war with the Song Dynasty, assuming the mantle of ruler of China, while the more Western khanates gradually drifted away.
The four descendant empires were the Mongol-founded Yuan Dynasty in China, the Chagatai Khanate, the Golden Horde that controlled Central Asia and Russia, and the Ilkhans who ruled Persia from 1256 to 1353. Of the latter, their ruler Ilkhan Ghazan was converted to Islam in 1295 and actively supported the expansion of this religion in his empire.
[edit] Silk Road
Marco Polo at the court of Kublai Khan, c. 1280.The Mongol expansion throughout the Asian continent from around 1215 to 1360 helped bring political stability and re-establish the Silk Road vis-à-vis Karakorum. With rare exceptions such as Marco Polo or Christian missionaries such as William of Rubruck, few Europeans traveled the entire length of the Silk Road. Instead traders moved products much like a bucket brigade, with luxury goods being traded from one middleman to another, from China to the West, and resulting in extravagant prices for the trade goods.
The disintegration of the Mongol Empire led to the collapse of the Silk Road's political unity. Also falling victim were the cultural and economic aspects of its unity. Turkic tribes seized the western end of the Silk Road from the decaying Byzantine Empire, and sowed the seeds of a Turkic culture that would later crystallize into the Ottoman Empire under the Sunni faith. Turkic-Mongol military bands in Iran, after some years of chaos were united under the Saffavid tribe, under whom the modern Iranian nation took shape under the Shiite faith. Meanwhile Mongol princes in Central Asia were content with Sunni orthodoxy with decentralized princedoms of the Chagatay, Timurid and Uzbek houses. In the Kypchak-Tatar zone, Mongol khanates all but crumbled under the assaults of the Black Death and the rising power of Muscovy. In the east end, the Chinese Ming Dynasty overthrew the Mongol yoke and pursued a policy of economic isolationism. Yet another force, the Kalmyk-Oyrats pushed out of the Baikal area in central Siberia, but failed to deliver much impact beyond Turkestan. Some Kalmyk tribes did manage to migrate into the Volga-North Caucasus region, but their impact was limited.
After the Mongol Empire, the great political powers along the Silk Road became economically and culturally separated. Accompanying the crystallization of regional states was the decline of nomad power, partly due to the devastation of the Black Death and partly due to the encroachment of sedentary civilizations equipped with gunpowder.
Ironically, as a footnote, the effect of gunpowder and early modernity on Europe was the integration of territorial states and increasing mercantilism. Whereas along the Silk Road, it was quite the opposite: failure to maintain the level of integration of the Mongol Empire and decline in trade, partly due to European maritime trade. The Silk Road stopped serving as a shipping route for silk around 1400.
[edit] Legacy
Mongolia todayThe Mongol Empire was the largest contiguous empire in human history. The 13th and 14th century, when the empire came to power, is often called the "Age of the Mongols". The Mongol armies during that time were extremely well organized. The death toll (by battle, massacre, flooding, and famine) of the Mongol wars of conquest is placed at about 40 million according to some sources. [2]
Non-military achievements of the Mongol Empire include the introduction of a writing system, based on the Uyghur script, that is still used in Inner Mongolia. The Empire unified all the tribes of Mongolia, which made possible the emergence of a Mongol nation and culture. Modern Mongolians are generally proud of the empire and the sense of identity that it gave to them.
Some of the long-term consequences of the Mongol Empire include:
The Mongol empire is traditionally given credit for reuniting China and expanding its frontiers.
The language Chagatai, widely spoken among a group of Turks, is named after a son of Genghis Khan. It was once widely spoken, and had a literature, but was since eliminated in Russia.
Moscow rose to prominence during the Mongol-Tatar yoke, some time after Russian rulers were accorded the status of tax collectors for Mongols (which meant that the Mongols themselves would rarely visit the lands that they owned). The Russian ruler Ivan III overthrew the Mongols completely to form the Russian Tsardom, after the Great stand on the Ugra river proved the Mongols vulnerable, and led to the independence of the Grand Duke of Moscow. It is worth noting, however, that Russian historians have for centuries viewed the Mongol occupation as a period of arrested development for Russia, and the primary reason for its backwardness in the following centuries compared to the rest of Europe.
Europe’s knowledge of the known world was immensely expanded by the information brought back by ambassadors and merchants. When Columbus sailed in 1492, his missions were to reach Cathay, the land of the Genghis Khan. Some research studies indicate that the Black Death, which devastated Europe in the late 1340s, may have reached from China to Europe along the trade routes of the Mongol Empire.
Among the Western accounts, historian R. J. Rummel estimated that 30 million people were killed under the rule of the Mongol Empire, and the population of China fell by half in fifty years of Mongol rule. David Nicole states in The Mongol Warlords, "terror and mass extermination of anyone opposing them was a well tested Mongol tactic." invasions of Japan (元寇, Genkō?) of 1274 and 1281 were major military operations undertaken by Kublai Khan to invade the Japanese islands after conquering Korea. Despite their ultimate failure, the invasion attempts are of macrohistorical importance, setting a limit on Mongol expansion, and ranking as nation-defining events in Japanese history. They are referred to in many works of fiction, and are the earliest events for which the word kamikaze, or "divine wind", is widely used. In addition, with the arguable exception of the Occupation at the end of World War II, these failed invasion attempts are the closest Japan has ever come to being invaded within the last 1500 years. 1231 the Mongols conquered Korea, and after nearly three decades of war, Korea signed a treaty in favor of the Yuan Dynasty and became a Mongolian dependency. The Mongolian Kublai Khan became Emperor of China in 1260 and established his capital at Beijing in 1264. Two years later, the Mongolians dispatched emissaries to Japan, commanding the Japanese to submit to Mongol rule, or face invasion. A second set of emissaries were sent in 1268, returning empty-handed, like their predecessors. Both sets of emissaries met with the Chinzei Bugyō, or Defense Commissioner for the West, who passed on the message to the Shogun in Kamakura, and the Emperor in Kyoto. A number of messages were sent after that, some through Korean emissaries, and some by Mongol ambassadors. The Kamakura shogunate (Bakufu) ordered all those who held fiefs in Kyūshū (the area closest to Korea, and thus most likely to be attacked) to return to their lands, and forces in Kyūshū moved west, further securing the most likely landing points. In addition, great prayer services were organized, and much government business was put off to deal with this crisis.
[edit] First invasion
The Khan was willing to go to war as early as 1268, but found that the Mongol empire did not have the resources to provide him with a sufficient army or navy at that time. He sent a force to Korea in 1273, to act as the advance guard, but they were unable to support themselves off the Korean countryside, and were forced to return to China for supplies. Finally, in 1274, the Mongol fleet set out, with roughly 15,000 Mongol & Chinese soldiers and 8,000 Korean warriors, in 300 large vessels and 400-500 smaller craft. They captured the islands of Tsushima and Iki easily, and landed on November 19th in Hakata Bay, a short distance from Dazaifu, the ancient administrative capital of Kyūshū. The following day brought the Battle of Bun'ei (文永の役), also known as the "Battle of Hakata Bay". The Japanese were inexperienced in managing such a large force (all of Kyūshū had been mobilized), and the Mongols made significant initial progress. However, heavy casualties, lack of supplies, and rebellion brewing among the Korean and Chinese auxiliaries that made the majority of the army forced a swift end to the invasion; some claim a storm dealt the decisive blow, destroying much of the Mongol fleet.
[edit] Second invasion
Starting in 1275, the Bakufu made increased efforts to defend against the second invasion which they thought was sure to come. In addition to better organizing the samurai of Kyūshū, they ordered the construction of forts and other defensive structures at many potential landing points, including Hakata.
In the spring of 1281, the Mongols' Chinese fleet was delayed by difficulties in provisioning and manning the large number of ships they had. Their Korean fleet set sail, suffered heavy losses at Tsushima, and turned back. In the summer, the combined Korean/Chinese fleet took Iki-shima, and moved on to Kyūshū, landing at a number of separate positions. In a number of individual skirmishes, known collectively as the Battle of Kōan (弘安の役), or the Second Battle of Hakata Bay, the Mongol forces were driven back to their ships. The Japanese army was again heavily outnumbered, but had fortified the coastal line and was easily able to repulse the auxiliaries that were launched against it. The now-famous kamikaze, a massive typhoon, assaulted the shores of Kyūshū for two days straight, and destroyed much of the Mongol fleet.
However, many scholars now believe that the destruction of the Mongol fleet was greatly facilitated by two additional factors. Most of the invasion force was composed of hastily-acquired flat-bottomed Chinese riverboats. Such ships (unlike ocean-going ships, which have a curved keel to prevent capsizing) cannot deal with the high seas, let alone a massive typhoon. In addition, the true ocean-going ships in Kublai's fleet had been constructed by Chinese slave labourers, who had deliberately introduced fatal flaws into many of the ships.
[edit] Mongol invasions in modern culture
In the Mongol Invasion supplement for the PC game Shogun: Total War, the campaign included postulates an invasion which was not cut short by the typhoons.
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Vietnam under the Tran Dynasty repelled three Mongol invasions in 1257, 1285 and 1287 AD.
beginning of the 13th century, Genghis Khan, having unified Mongolia, started a war of conquest against China. In 1253, Kublai Khan conquered the Dai Ly kingdom (now Yunnan province), thus reaching the Vietnamese frontier. The Mongols demanded passage through Dai Viet (Đại Việt) in order to attack the Song from the south, but the Tran refused. A Mongol army invaded Vietnam, smashing its defences, and seized the capital Thang Long (modern day Hanoi), which was burned to the ground. The Tran king left the capital and abandoned its inhabitants. Led by Tran Thai Tong, a Vietnamese counter-offensive drove the Mongols out of the capital. In retreat the enemy was attacked by local partisans from an ethnic minority group living in the Phu Tho region.
[edit] Second Mongol defeat (1284-1285)
Once they had become the overlords of China, the Mongols grew more and more demanding towards Vietnam. Despite concessions by the Tran, the Mongol court remained intransigent, dreaming of conquering both Vietnam and Champa.
In 1284, Kublai started a powerful expedition against Vietnam and Champa. Under the command of his son Toghan, 500,000 cavalrymen and infantrymen were to rush southward to push the frontiers of the Mongol empire to the southernmost part of the Indochina peninsula.
Emperor Tran Nhan Tong was aware of the enemy's strategy. As early as 1282 he had assembled and consulted all the princes and dignitaries on the action to be taken; their unanimous response was to fight. Prince Quoc Toan, only 16 years old, recruited 1,000 men to go to the front. By 1283, all princes and dignitaries were ordered to put their troops under the command of General Tran Hung Dao (Trần Hưng Đạo). A congress of village elders from all over the country was convened, and the following question put to them: "Should we capitulate or fight?" A great cry rose from the assembly: "Fight!"
At the close of 1284, the Mongols crossed the frontier. The Vietnamese force, totalling a mere 200,000 men, was unable to withstand the first onslaught. General Tran Hung Dao ordered the evacuation of the capital and was asked by the Emperor: "The enemy is so strong that a protracted war might bring terrible destruction down upon the people. Wouldn't it be better to lay down our arms to save the population?" The general answered: "I understand Your Majesty's humane feelings perfectly, but what would become of our country ancestors' land, and of our forefather's temples? If you want to surrender, please have my head cut off first". The Emperor decided not to surrender.
The Vietnamese retreated to the south after burning off most of their crops and facilities, using scorched earth tactics. Tran Hung Dao and other generals escorted the Royal Court, staying just ahead of the Mongol army in hot pursuit. When the Mongol army had been worn down with tropical diseases and lack of supplies, Tran Hung Dao launched a counter-offensive. Most of the battles were on the waterfronts, where the Mongols could not use their cavalry strength. Mongol commander Sogetu of the southern front was killed in the battle. In their withdrawal from Dai Viet, the Mongols were also attacked by the Hmong and Yao minorities in the northern regions.
[edit] Third Mongol defeat (1287-1288)
In 1287, Kublai Khan again sent Prince Toghan to lead another army into Dai Viet. The Mongol forces consisted of infantry, cavalry and a full fleet with the total strength estimated between 300,000 to 500,000 men according to the original Vietnamese history.
During the first stage, the Mongols quickly defeated most of the Dai Viet troops, stationed along the border. Prince Toghan's fleet devastated most of the force of General Tran Khanh Du in Van Don. Right before that, Prince Ariq-Qaya had led his cavalry to attack and capture Phu Luong and Dai Than, two important border stations in the north of Dai Viet. This ground force later met up with Prince Toghan's fleet in Van Don. Emperor Tran Nhan Tong called back General Tran Khanh Du for court-martial, but this general delayed his return and regrouped his force in Van Don. The cavalry and fleet of Prince Toghan continue to advance to Thang Long. Unfortunately, the trailing supply fleet of Prince Toghan, arriving at Van Do right after that, was ambushed and captured by the remaining forces of General Tran Khanh Du.
This news together with the news that General Tran Hung Đao had recaptured Dai Than in the north sent the fast advancing Mongol forces into chaos. Guerrilla tactics by the Vietnamese also started to cause a great deal of casualties to the Mongols. But the Mongols kept advancing to Thang Long, which was already abandoned by Dai Viet's Emperor. The following battle results were mixed: the Mongols won at Yen Hung and Long Hung but lost in the sea of Dai Bang. Eventually, Prince Toghan decided to withdraw his army: he would lead the ground force through Noi Bang while his fleet commander, Omar would direct the fleet back through Bach Dang River (Sông Bạch Đằng).
[edit] Battle of Bach Dang
Main article: Battle of Bach Dang (1288)
The Mongol fleet however had no idea of an unconventional trap already set by General Tran Hung Dao on Bach Dang River. Tran Hung Dao, for months before that, had his soldiers and peasants place huge steel-tipped wooden stakes in some waters of Bach Đang River. During the retreat of Omar, the Vietnamese used small craft to aggravate and lure the Mongol vessels to those waters, in what first appeared to be a victorious pursuit of the Mongols. As the tide on Bach Dang River receded, the Mongol vessels got stuck and sunk by those embedded steel-tipped stakes. The Vietnamese led by Tran Hung Dao burned off almost 400 Mongol vessels and attack ships on this river. The entire Mongol fleet was destroyed, and Omar was captured and executed.
The ground forces of Prince Toghan were more fortunate. They were ambushed along the road through Noi Bang, but managed to escape back to China by dividing their forces into smaller retreating groups.