Genghis Khan and Mongols

¶ … Mongols and Global History The Mongol conquest triggers one to wonder why they arose in the 13th C. to conquer the rest of the world. Theirs was the largest land empire ever known in Man's history. So why did the Mongols succeed so much (The Mongols in World History: The Mongol Conquests)? This paper attempts to extract the main factors from the many discussions and speculations regarding the conquest of the Mongols. Ecological factors: from 1180 to 1220, the average annual temperature in Mongolia dropped drastically.

This phenomenon effectively cut short the grass growing season. Such an eventuality placed direct survival risk on the path of the Mongols since their animals would not have enough to feed on. They had no option but to seek pastures elsewhere. Secondly, it is noted that the northern and western China neighbors tried to reduce the trade volumes they had with Mongolia.

Owing to the fact that the Mongols highly relied on the goods acquired from this trade, their survival was at stake if such interaction was stopped or significantly reduced. These attempts by Xia dynasty, in charge of the northwestern part and the Jin dynasty that controlled Northern China created a situation of crisis in terms of survival for the Mongols.

The result of the acts of the northern and north western China neighbors was invasion, raids and war by the Mongolians against the two neighbors (The Mongols in World History: The Mongol Conquests; Rossabi 15-25). Before the 1200s, the Mongols lived a nomadic lifestyle. They were split into divisive feuding clans that live in hostile climate. These conditions hardened them. The community spent significant energies fighting amongst themselves on clan basis. Such a lifestyle led to tough fighters that helped them in their outward bound conquests (Kingsberg Para. 1).

The Moguls found a uniting factor under Genghis Khan. Genghis was initially perceived as an unlikely figure for such success. He had lived through a series of misfortunes when he was young. His father had been poisoned; that led him to remain alone. He was captured by a rival clan but escaped later. He maneuvered politically and united the Mongols later. Yet still, other tribes that posed danger to his rule were still at large. He successfully got rid of these menacing ethnic groups (Kingsberg Para. 2).

The Shamanic beliefs that Ghenghis Khan held steered him to an ambitious mission to conquer the world. It is observed, according to the mythological accounts that the sky god of the Mongols, Tenggeri, commissioned Chinggis (Ghengis) to bring the world under one sword. All the narratives for the conquest revolve around Ghenghis. Therefore, it calls for the analysis of Ghengis as a character, his career and his policies including what such policies led him to achieve (The Mongols in World History: The Mongol Conquests).

Genghis Khan and his sons managed to bring the whole of Tibet, Iraq, Persia, Asia Minor (the most part) and Southern Russia under a single rule of the Mongolian Empire. The empire was split between the sons of Chinggis after he died in 1227. The four Kingdoms still managed to dominate most parts of Asia for over 150 years.

The conquests by the Mongols, and the empires that emerged from them presented the strongest challenge to the worldwide dominance of the civilized cores since the great nomadic migration that occurred in the first century A.D (Guisepi Para. 1). It is noted that Genghis Khan was good at recognizing the talented people among his subjects and rewarded them as appropriate (Kingsberg Para. 3).

Jebe was one of the Emperors' generals and was referred to as one of the four dogs of war that drew the attention of Genghis by shooting him in the neck in the course of a battle. He later confessed of having done it and offered his service. Genghis recognized the talent and never regretted it. Genghis' men, those that helped him conquer such a wide territory were natural warriors. They had learnt to hunt, to ride and to fight right from their youth. They were tough, physically and emotionally.

They could move fast, kill and decimate their opponents without retreat. They were also equipped with a range of weapons including iron maces, hatchets and lances. Yet the scariest of their weapons for their neighbors were the dangerous and effective short bows. It is said that a mogul warrior could shoot a quiver of arrows from his horse with amazing accuracy without breaking the stride of the horse.

It is said that he could strike enemy targets as far as four hundred yards which was amazing compared to the 250 yard range of the long bow of the English. They could duck under the belly of his horse while charging straight on, or lean over the rump of his horse as they retreated from dangerous opposition (Guisepi para 11; Rossabi 13-20). Ideally, the Mongol army can be termed as a modern army that happed way back in historical times. The soldiers of the Mongolian force were regularly paid.

They were constantly drilled and swore loyalty to the great Genghis Khan, the empire ruler and leader (Rossabi 95-100). The force was split into units and promotion was largely meritorial. Such operational and management discipline made the army efficient, loyal and disciplined too (Kingsberg Para. 6). History demonstrates that one of the secrets of keeping a disciplined, loyal and efficient army was to make sure that they are sufficiently supplied with the resources they require for a healthy and comfortable living.

The herding culture is said to have added to the advantages that the Mongol army had. They lived off the land and were used to travelling with no much baggage. Effective, the issue of supplies was not as much a concern for the Mongols as it was for most other armies at the time (Kingsberg Para. 8). The Mongolian fast mobility by their Calvary archers was effective in disrupting enemy formation by surprise and awe. Consequently, the enemy was often left disorganized and effectively routed.

The Mongolian army had many tricks to beat the enemy. They would make tactical retreats and draw the enemy forces into their territory before they launched lethal attacks right back. They often did this when firing arrows at the enemy directly didn't seem to move them. Once the enemy quickly seized an opportunity to pursue the Mongols in faked retreat, the Mongols would strike their powerful arrows at the disorganized columns and disorient the enemy and smother them (Kingsberg Para. 9).

The cavalry nature of the Mongolian army gave them the advantage of speed and mobility that often demoralized the enemy. They used up to three forces as remounts. The warriors could cover over 90 miles in one day. They often struck the enemy by surprise. They would then retreat back into their steppes and reappear suddenly with renewed force (Guisepi Para. 11). In addition, the Mongols were good at psychological warfare too.

They often made it clear that they were ready to accept surrender but being defiant was not an option for the enemy. They stated that if you surrendered to the Mongols and paid tribute, you would survive. Those who refused would bear the brunt; with the villages burnt down and their lives destroyed; with a few allowed to flee so that they would spread the word of the horror of Mongolian attacks. They often managed to get people to surrender without a fight (Kingsberg Para. 11). Chinggis formed.