1.
Seal (East Asia)
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China, Japan, Taiwan, and Korea currently use a mixture of seals and hand signatures, and increasingly, electronic signatures. It is used to an extent in Vietnam by authorised organisations and businesses. Chinese seals are made of stone, sometimes of metals, wood, bamboo, plastic, or ivory. The colloquial name chop, when referring to these kinds of seals, was adapted from the Hindi word chapa, in the past, fingerprints and handprints were used in East Asia for this function, being first impressed in clay, then printed on paper. This has been recorded since the 3rd century BCE in China – continuing for at least a millennium, see history of fingerprints for details and reference. Earlier similar devices are the seals used in Babylonia to make impressions on clay tablets. Zhuwen seals imprint the Chinese characters in red ink, sometimes referred to as yang seals, baiwen seals imprint the background in red, leaving white characters, sometimes referred to as yin seals. These were usually made of jade, and were square in shape. They were changed to a rectangular form during the Song dynasty, the Heirloom Seal was passed down through several dynasties, but had been lost by the beginning of the Ming dynasty. These seals typically bore the titles of the offices, rather than the names of the owners, different seals could be used for different purposes, for example, the Qianlong Emperor had a number of informal appreciation seals used on select paintings in his collection. The most popular style of script for government seals in the eras of China is the Nine-fold Script. The government of the Republic of China has continued to use traditional square seals of up to about 13 centimetres each side, known by a variety of names depending on the users hierarchy. Part of the ceremony for the President of the Republic of China includes bestowing on him the Seal of the Republic of China. In the Peoples Republic of China, the seal of the Central Peoples Government from 1949 to 1954 was a square, the inscription reads Seal of the Central Peoples Government of the Peoples Republic of China. Notably, the uses the relatively modern Song typeface rather than the more ancient seal scripts. Government seals in the Peoples Republic of China today are usually circular in shape, the name of the governmental institution is arranged around the star in a semicircle. There are many classes of personal seals, are the equivalent of todays email signature, and can contain the persons personal philosophy or literary inclination. These can be any shape, ranging from ovals to dragon-shaped, carry the name of the persons private studio 書齋, which most literati in ancient China had, although probably in lesser forms
2.
Tamga
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A tamga or tamgha stamp, seal is an abstract seal or stamp used by Eurasian nomadic peoples and by cultures influenced by them. The tamga was normally the emblem of a tribe, clan or family. They were common among the Eurasian nomads throughout Classical Antiquity and the Middle Ages, similar tamga-like symbols were sometimes adopted by sedentary peoples adjacent to the Pontic-Caspian steppe both in Eastern Europe and Central Asia. Archaeologists prize tamgas as a source for the study of present. Every time the clan branched off due to clashes, the number of derivative tamghas been gradually developed into personal, family, lineage, khans. Those new tamghas were created through adding new markings on the original tamgha, Tamga or tamag literally means a stamp or seal in the Mongolian language. In this regard, each family has their own tamga markings for easier identification, Tamga marking in that case is not very elaborate and is just a curved iron differentiating from other families tamgas. The President of Mongolia also passes the state seal when he or she transitions the position to the new president. In the presidential case, the tamag or seal is a more elaborate and is contained in a wooden box. The Turks who remained pastoral nomad kings in eastern Anatolia and Iran however, continued to use their clan tamgas, the Ak Koyunlu and Kara Koyunlu, like many other royal dynasties in Eurasia, put their tamga on their flags and stamped their coinage with it. For those Turks who never left their homeland of Turkestan in the first place it remained and still is what it was originally, a cattle brand and clan identifier. Among modern Turkic peoples, the tamga is a design identifying property or cattle belonging to a specific Turkic clan, when Turkish clans took over more urban or rural areas, tamgas dropped out of use as pastoral ways of life became forgotten. This is most evident in the Turkish clans who took over western and eastern Anatolia following the Battle of Manzikert, the Turks who took over western Anatolia founded the Sultanate of Rûm and became Roman-style aristocrats. Most of them adopted the Muslim symbol of the Seal of Solomon after the Sultanate disintegrated into a mass of feuding ghazi states. Only the Ottoman ghazi state kept its tamga, and this was highly stylized and it has been suggested that originally all Polish coats of arms were based on such abstract geometrical shapes, but most were gradually rationalized into horseshoes, arrows and so on. If this hypothesis is correct, it suggests in turn that Polish heraldry, also unlike Western European heraldry, on this matter, research and controversy continue. Columns of Gediminas, a coat of arms of Lithuania. In the late medieval Turco-Mongol states, the term became used for any kind of official stamp or seal
3.
Mongols
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The Mongols are an East-Central Asian ethnic group native to Mongolia and Chinas Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region. They also live as minorities in other regions of China, as well as in Russia, Mongolian people belonging to the Buryat and Kalmyk subgroups live predominantly in the Russian federal subjects of Buryatia and Kalmykia. The Mongols are bound together by a heritage and ethnic identity. Their indigenous dialects are known as the Mongolian language. The ancestors of the modern-day Mongols are referred to as Proto-Mongols, broadly defined, the term includes the Mongols proper, Buryats, Oirats, the Kalmyk people and the Southern Mongols. The latter comprises the Abaga Mongols, Abaganar, Aohans, Baarins, Gorlos Mongols, Jalaids, Jaruud, Khishigten, Khuuchid, Muumyangan, the designation Mongol briefly appeared in 8th century records of Tang China to describe a tribe of Shiwei. It resurfaced in the late 11th century during the Khitan-ruled Liao dynasty, after the fall of the Liao in 1125, the Khamag Mongols became a leading tribe on the Mongolian Plateau. However, their wars with the Jurchen-ruled Jin dynasty and the Tatar confederation had weakened them, in the thirteenth century, the word Mongol grew into an umbrella term for a large group of Mongolic-speaking tribes united under the rule of Genghis Khan. In various times Mongolic peoples have been equated with the Scythians, the Magog, based on Chinese historical texts the ancestry of the Mongolic peoples can be traced back to the Donghu, a nomadic confederation occupying eastern Mongolia and Manchuria. The identity of the Xiongnu is still debated today, although some scholars maintain that they were proto-Mongols, they were more likely a multi-ethnic group of Mongolic and Turkic tribes. It has been suggested that the language of the Huns was related to the Hünnü, the Donghu are mentioned by Sima Qian as already existing in Inner Mongolia north of Yan in 699–632 BCE along with the Shanrong. Mentions in the Yi Zhou Shu and the Classic of Mountains, the Xianbei chieftain was appointed joint guardian of the ritual torch along with Xiong Yi. These early Xianbei came from the nearby Zhukaigou culture in the Ordos Desert, where maternal DNA corresponds to the Mongol Daur people, the Zhukaigou Xianbei had trade relations with the Shang. In the late 2nd century, the Han dynasty scholar Fu Qian wrote in his commentary Jixie that Shanrong, againm in Inner Mongolia another closely connected core Mongolic Xianbei region was the Upper Xiajiadian culture where the Donghu confederation was centered. After the Donghu were defeated by Xiongnu king Modu Chanyu, the Xianbei, tadun Khan of the Wuhuan was the ancestor of the proto-Mongolic Kumo Xi. The Wuhuan are of the direct Donghu royal line and the New Book of Tang says that in 209 BCE, the Xianbei, however, were of the lateral Donghu line and had a somewhat separate identity, although they shared the same language with the Wuhuan. In 49 CE the Xianbei ruler Bianhe raided and defeated the Xiongnu, killing 2000, the Xianbei reached their peak under Tanshihuai Khan who expanded the vast, but short lived, Xianbei state. Three prominent groups split from the Xianbei state as recorded by the Chinese histories, the Rouran, the Khitan people, besides these three Xianbei groups, there were others such as the Murong, Duan and Tuoba
4.
Mongolian script
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Derived from Sogdian, Mongolian is a true alphabet, with separate letters for consonants and vowels. The Mongolian script has adapted to write languages such as Oirat. Alphabets based on this classical vertical script are used in Inner Mongolia and other parts of China to this day to write Mongolian, Xibe and, experimentally, the Mongolian vertical script developed as an adaptation of the Sogdian to the Mongolian language. From the seventh and eighth to the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, in the western dialect, materials of the Arab-Mongolian and Persian-Mongolian dictionaries, Mongolian texts in Arabic transcription, etc. The development over this period explains why Mongolian script looks like a vertical Arabic script, zain was dropped as it was redundant for. Various schools of orthography, some using diacritics, were developed to avoid ambiguity, the Uyghur script and its descendants—Mongolian, Oirat Clear, Manchu, and Buryat—are the only vertical scripts written from left to right. Mongols learned their script as a syllabary, dividing the syllables into twelve different classes, based on the final phonemes of the syllables, all of which ended in vowels. The Manchus followed the same syllabic method when learning Manchu script, Manchus when learning, instead of saying l, a---la, l, o---lo, etc. were taught at once to say la, lo, etc. Many more syllables than are contained in their syllabary might have formed with their letters. Manchu children were taught the language via the syllabic method, some westerners learn the script in an alphabetic manner instead. Today, the opinion on whether it is alphabet or syllabic in nature is still split between different experts, in China, it is considered syllabic and Manchu is still taught in this manner. The alphabetic approach is used mainly by foreigners who want to learn the language, studying Manchu script as a syllabary takes a longer time. The Traditional Mongolian script is known by a variety of names. Due to its shape like Uighur script, it known as the Uighurjin Mongol script. The name Old Mongol script stuck, and it is known as such among the older generation. It does not distinguish several vowels and consonants that were not required for Uyghur, the result is somewhat comparable to the situation of English, which must represent ten or more vowels with only five letters and uses the digraph th for two distinct sounds. Ambiguity is sometimes prevented by context, as the requirements of vowel harmony, moreover, as there are few words with an exactly identical spelling, actual ambiguities are rare for a reader who knows the orthography. Letters have different forms depending on their position in a word, initial, medial, in some cases, additional graphic variants are selected for visual harmony with the subsequent character
5.
Mongol Empire
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The Mongol Empire existed during the 13th and 14th centuries and was the largest contiguous land empire in history. The Mongol Empire emerged from the unification of tribes in the Mongol homeland under the leadership of Genghis Khan. The empire grew rapidly under the rule of him and his descendants, the Toluids prevailed after a bloody purge of Ögedeid and Chagataid factions, but disputes continued even among the descendants of Tolui. Kublai successfully took power, but civil war ensued as Kublai sought unsuccessfully to control of the Chagatayid and Ögedeid families. The Battle of Ain Jalut in 1260 marked the point of the Mongol conquests and was the first time a Mongol advance had ever been beaten back in direct combat on the battlefield. In 1304, the three western khanates briefly accepted the suzerainty of the Yuan dynasty, but it was later taken by the Han Chinese Ming dynasty in 1368. What is referred to in English as the Mongol Empire was called the Ikh Mongol Uls, in the 1240s, one of Genghiss descendants, Güyük Khan, wrote a letter to Pope Innocent IV which used the preamble Dalai Khagan of the great Mongolian state. After the succession war between Kublai Khan and his brother Ariq Böke, Ariq limited Kublais power to the part of the empire. Kublai officially issued an edict on December 18,1271 to name the country Great Yuan to establish the Yuan dynasty. Some sources state that the full Mongolian name was Dai Ön Yehe Monggul Ulus, the area around Mongolia, Manchuria, and parts of North China had been controlled by the Liao dynasty since the 10th century. In 1125, the Jin dynasty founded by the Jurchens overthrew the Liao dynasty, in the 1130s the Jin dynasty rulers, known as the Golden Kings, successfully resisted the Khamag Mongol confederation, ruled at the time by Khabul Khan, great-grandfather of Temujin. The Mongolian plateau was occupied mainly by five powerful tribal confederations, Keraites, Khamag Mongol, Naiman, Mergid, khabuls successor was Ambaghai Khan, who was betrayed by the Tatars, handed over to the Jurchen, and executed. The Mongols retaliated by raiding the frontier, resulting in a failed Jurchen counter-attack in 1143, in 1147, the Jin somewhat changed their policy, signing a peace treaty with the Mongols and withdrawing from a score of forts. The Mongols then resumed attacks on the Tatars to avenge the death of their late khan, the Jin and Tatar armies defeated the Mongols in 1161. During the rise of the Mongol Empire in the 13th century and it is thought that as a result, a rapid increase in the number of war horses and other livestock significantly enhanced Mongol military strength. Known during his childhood as Temujin, Genghis Khan was the son of a Mongol chieftain, when he was young he was from one of Yesugis orphaned and deserted families, he rose very rapidly by working with Toghrul Khan of the Kerait. Kurtait was the most powerful Mongol leader during this time and was given the Chinese title Wang which means Prince, Temujin went to war with Wang Khan. After Temujin defeated Wang Khan he gave himself the name Genghis Khan and he then enlarged his Mongol state under himself and his kin
6.
Northern Yuan dynasty
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Dayan Khan and Mandukhai Khatun reunited the entire Mongol nation in the 15th century. However, the distribution of his empire among his sons. The last sixty years of this period are marked by intensive penetration of Tibetan Buddhism into Mongolian society, the term Northern Yuan is derived from the corresponding term in the Chinese language. However, in the English language the term Northern Yuan is still used to cover the period for historiography reasons. Apart from the name Great Yuan in the period, the Mongols called their nation Ikh Mongol Uls. In Mongolian chronicles this period is known as The Forty. Furthermore, Mongolian historiography also use the term Period of political disunion, the Mongol Yuan dynasty ruled all of China for about a century. However, the Mongols dominated North China for more than 140 years, in 1351, the Red Turban Rebellion started and grew into a nationwide turmoil. Eventually, Zhu Yuanzhang, a Chinese peasant established the Ming dynasty in South China, toghon Temür, the last ruler of the Yuan, fled north to Shangdu from Dadu in 1368 after the approach of the forces of the Míng dynasty. He had tried to regain Dadu, but eventually failed, he died in Yingchang two years later, Yingchang was seized by the Ming shortly after his death. The Ming army pursued the Mongol forces of the Northern Yuan into Mongolia in 1372, in 1375, Naghachu, a Mongol official of Biligtu Khan in Liaoyang province invaded Liaodong with aims of restoring the Mongols to power. Although he continued to hold southern Manchuria, Naghachu finally surrendered to the Ming dynasty in 1387–88 after a successful diplomacy of the latter, the Yuan loyalists under Kublaid prince Basalawarmi in Yunnan and Guizhou were also destroyed by the Ming in 1381-82. The Ming tried again towards the Northern Yuan in 1380, ultimately winning a victory over Mongol forces around the Buir Lake region in 1388. About 70,000 Mongols were taken prisoner and the Mongol capital Karakorum was sacked and destroyed and it effectively destroyed the power of the Khaans Mongols for a long time, and allowed the Western Mongols to become supreme. Field guns and hand cannons were used by the Northern Yuan army, in 1388, the Northern Yuan throne was taken over by Yesüder, a descendant of Arik Böke, instead of the descendants of Kublai Khan. After the death of his master Togus Temur, Gunashiri, a descendant of Chagatai Khan, the following century saw a succession of Chinggisid rulers, many of whom were mere figureheads put on the throne by those warlords who happened to be the most powerful. From the end of the 14th century there appear designations such as period of kings for this period in modern historiography. On one side stood the Oirats in the west against the Eastern Mongols, while the Oirats drew their side to the descendants of Arik Boke and other princes, Arugtai of the Asud supported the old Yuan khans
7.
Plano Carpini
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He is the author of the earliest important Western account of northern and central Asia, Rus, and other regions of the Mongol dominion. He was the Primate of Serbia, based in Antivari, from 1247 to 1252, Giovanni appears to have been a native of Umbria, in central Italy. His surname was derived from Pian del Carpine, an area known later as Magione and he was one of the companions and disciples of his near-contemporary and countryman Saint Francis of Assisi. Giovanni was provincial of Germany at the time of the great Mongol invasion of eastern Europe, the defeat of European forces at Legnica led almost to Ögedei, Khan of the Mongol Empire, controlling most of Europe. In Europe, dread of the Tatars was still four years later. The missionaries were sent partly in protest at the Mongol invasion of Christendom and partly to gain information regarding the Khans intentions, Pope Innocent IV chose Friar Joannes to head this mission. Joannes was around sixty-five at the time, and apparently was in charge of everything in the mission. As a papal legate, he bore a letter from the Pope to the Great Khan, Cum non solum. Joannes started from Lyon, where the Pope then resided, on Easter day, accompanied by another friar, Stephen of Bohemia, who broke down at Kaniv near Kiev and was left behind. After seeking counsel of an old friend, Wenceslaus, king of Bohemia, Joannes was joined at Wrocław by another Franciscan, Benedykt Polak, the route passed by Kiev, entered the Tatar posts at Kaniv, and then ran across the Nepere to the Don and Volga. Joannes is the first Westerner to give us the names for these rivers. On the Volga stood the Ordu, or camp, of Batu and he was one of the most senior princes of the house of Genghis Khan. Here the envoys, with their presents, had to pass between two fires to remove possible injurious thoughts and poisons, before being presented to the prince, Batu ordered them to proceed to the court of the supreme Khan in Mongolia. On Easter day once more, they started on the second, then they went along the shores of the Dzungarian lakes until, on the feast of St Mary Magdalene, they reached the imperial camp called Sira Orda, near Karakorum and the Orkhon River. Joannes and his companions rode an estimated 3000 miles in 106 days, since the death of Ögedei Khan, the imperial authority was in interregnum and Güyük, Ögedeis eldest son, was designated to the throne. On the 24th of August, they witnessed the formal enthronement at another camp in the vicinity called the Golden Ordu, after which they were presented to the new emperor. The great Khan, Güyük, refused the invitation to become Christian, the Khan did not dismiss the expedition until November. He gave them a letter to the Pope—written in Mongol, Arabic and they began a long winter journey home
8.
Russians
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Russians are an East Slavic ethnic group native to Eastern Europe. The majority of Russians inhabit the state of Russia, while notable minorities exist in Ukraine, Kazakhstan. A large Russian diaspora exists all over the world, with numbers in the United States, Germany, Israel. Russians are the most numerous group in Europe. They are predominantly Orthodox Christians by religion, the Russian language is official in Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Tajikistan, and also spoken as a secondary language in many former Soviet states. There are two Russian words which are translated into English as Russians. One is русские, which most often means ethnic Russians, another is россияне, which means citizens of Russia. The former word refers to ethnic Russians, regardless of what country they live in, under certain circumstances this term may or may not extend to denote members of other Russian-speaking ethnic groups from Russia, or from the former Soviet Union. The latter word refers to all people holding citizenship of Russia, regardless of their ethnicity, translations into other languages often do not distinguish these two groups. The name of the Russians derives from the Rus people, the name Rus would then have the same origin as the Finnish and Estonian names for Sweden, Ruotsi and Rootsi. According to other theories the name Rus is derived from Proto-Slavic *roud-s-ь, the modern Russians formed from two groups of East Slavic tribes, Northern and Southern. The tribes involved included the Krivichs, Ilmen Slavs, Radimichs, Vyatiches, genetic studies show that modern Russians do not differ significantly from Belarusians and Ukrainians. Some ethnographers, like Zelenin, affirm that Russians are more similar to Belarusians, such Uralic peoples included the Merya and the Muromians. Outside archaeological remains, little is known about the predecessors to Russians in general prior to 859 AD when the Primary Chronicle starts its records and it is thought that by 600 AD, the Slavs had split linguistically into southern, western, and eastern branches. Later, both Belarusians and South Russians formed on this ethnic linguistic ground, the same Slavic ethnic population also settled the present-day Tver Oblast and the region of Beloozero. With the Uralic substratum, they formed the tribes of the Krivichs, in 2010, the worlds Russian population was 129 million people of which 86% were in Russia,11. 5% in the CIS and Baltic countries, with a further 2. 5% living in other countries. Roughly 111 million ethnic Russians live in Russia, 80% of whom live in the European part of Russia, ethnic Russians historically migrated throughout the area of former Russian Empire and Soviet Union, sometimes encouraged to re-settle in borderlands by the Tsarist and later Soviet government. On some occasions ethnic Russian communities, such as Lipovans who settled in the Danube delta or Doukhobors in Canada, after the Russian Revolution and Russian Civil War starting in 1917, many Russians were forced to leave their homeland fleeing the Bolshevik regime, and millions became refugees
9.
Handicraft
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One of the worlds oldest handicraft is Dhokra, this is a sort of metal casting has been used in India for over 4,000 years and is still used. Collective terms for handicrafts include artisanry, handicrafting, crafting, many handicrafters use natural, even entirely indigenous, materials while others may prefer modern, non-traditional materials, and even upcycle industrial materials. The individual artisanship of an item is the paramount criterion. Most crafts require the development of skill and the application of patience, like folk art, handicraft output often has cultural and/or religious significance, and increasingly may have a political message as well, as in craftivism. The Arts and Crafts movement originated as a late 19th-century design reform and social movement principally in Europe, North America and Australia and this was held up in contrast to what was perceived to be the alienating effects of industrial labor. These activities were called crafts because originally many of them were professions under the guild system, adolescents were apprenticed to a master craftsman, and refined their skills over a period of years in exchange for low wages. Simple arts and crafts projects are an elementary and middle school activity in both mainstream and alternative education systems around the world. e. The use of traditional handicrafting techniques by professional fine artists, many community centers and schools run evening or day classes and workshops, for adults and children, offering to teach basic craft skills in a short period of time. If sold, they are sold in Direct sales, Gift shops, Public markets, in developing countries, handicrafts are sold to locals and as Souvenirs to tourists. Sellers tend to speak at least a few words of common tourist languages
10.
Pope Innocent IV
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Pope Innocent IV, born Sinibaldo Fieschi, was Pope of the Catholic Church from 25 June 1243 to his death in 1254. Born in Genoa in an year, Sinibaldo was the son of Beatrice Grillo and Ugo Fieschi. The Fieschi were a merchant family of Liguria. Sinibaldo received his education at the universities of Parma and Bologna and, for a time and it is pointed out by Agostino Paravicini-Bagliani, however, that there is no documentary evidence of such a professorship. From 1216-1227 he was Canon of the Cathedral of Parma and he was considered one of the best canonists of his time, and was called to serve Pope Honorius III in the Roman Curia as Auditor causarum, from 11 November 1226 to 30 May 1227. He was then promoted to the office of Vice-Chancellor of the Holy Roman Church, though he retained the office, Vice-Chancellor Sinibaldo Fieschi was created Cardinal Priest of San Lorenzo in Lucina on 18 September 1227 by Pope Gregory IX. He later served as governor of the March of Ancona. It is widely repeated, from the 17th century on, that he became bishop of Albenga in 1235, Innocents immediate predecessor was Pope Celestine IV, elected 25 October 1241, whose reign lasted a mere fifteen days. The two prelates remained incarcerated and missed the conclave that immediately elected Celestine, the conclave that reconvened after his death fell into camps supporting contradictory policies about how to treat with the emperor. After a year and a half of debate and coercion. Cardinal de Fieschi very reluctantly accepted election as Pope 25 June 1243, as Cardinal de Fieschi, Sinibaldo had been on friendly terms with Frederick, even after his excommunication. The Emperor also greatly admired the cardinals wisdom, having enjoyed discussions with him from time to time, following the election the witty Frederick remarked that he had lost the friendship of a cardinal but made up for it by gaining the enmity of a pope. Negotiations leading to this objective began shortly afterwards, but proved abortive, the Emperors machinations caused a good deal of anti-papal feeling to rise in Italy, particularly in the Papal States, and imperial agents encouraged plots against papal rule. Realizing how untenable his position in Rome was growing, Innocent IV secretly and hurriedly withdrew, traveling in disguise, Innocent made his way to Sutri and Civitavecchia, to Genoa, his birthplace, where he arrived on 7 July. From there, on 5 October, he fled to France, making his way to Lyon, where he arrived on November 29,1244, Innocent was happily greeted by the magistrates of the city. The bishops met for three sessions,28 June,5 July, and 17 July 1245. Their principal business was to subjugate the Emperor Frederick II, Gregory IX, had issued letters on 9 June 1239, ordering all the bishops of France to confiscate all Talmuds in the possession of the Jews. Agents were to raid each synagogue on the first Saturday of Lent of 1240, the Bishop of Paris was ordered to see to it that copies of the Popes mandate reached all the bishops of France, England, Aragon, Navarre, Castile and León, and Portugal
11.
Buscarello de Ghizolfi
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Buscarello de Ghizolfi, or Buscarel of Gisolfe was a European who settled in Persia in the 13th century while it was part of the Mongol Ilkhanate. He was a Mongol ambassador to Europe from 1289 to 1305, serving the Mongol rulers Arghun, Ghazan, little is known of Buscarello except for his work as ambassador, and that he was a member of the powerful Ghisolfi family. The first mention of him is in 1274, in relation to the arming of a galley, the next is from 1279, which records that he was in the city of Ayas in Cilician Armenia, at the time a vassal state of the Mongol Empire. He then entered the service of the Mongol ruler Arghun, becoming Officer of his guard, Buscarello had a son, Argone de Ghizolfi, whom he named Arghun after his patron. In 1289, Arghun sent a mission to Europe, with Buscarel as ambassador, buscarels journey was the third attempt by Arghun to form an alliance with the Europeans. Buscarel was in Rome between July 15 and September 30,1289, and in Paris in November–December 1289, said, I have accepted the word that you forwarded by the messengers under Saymer Sagura, saying that if the warriors of Il Khaan invade Egypt you would support them. We would also lend our support by going there at the end of the Tiger years winter, worshiping the sky, if you send your warriors as promised and conquer Egypt, worshiping the sky, then I shall give you Jerusalem. If any of our warriors arrive later than arranged, all will be futile, if you care to please give me your impressions, and I would also be very willing to accept any samples of French opulence that you care to burden your messengers with. I send this to you by Myckeril and say, All will be known by the power of the sky and this letter was scribed on the sixth of the early summer in the year of the Ox at Ho’ndlon. Buscarel then traveled to England to bring Arghuns message to Edward I, Edward answered enthusiastically to the project, but deferred the decision about the date to the Pope, failing to make a clear commitment. After his meeting with Edward, Buscarello returned to Persia, accompanied by the English envoy Sir Geoffrey de Langley, Buscarel made multiple other trips back and forth between the Ilkhanate and Europe, acting as ambassador for various Mongol rulers in turn. He represented Ghazan in 1303, carrying a message which reiterated Hulagus promise that the Mongols would give Jerusalem to the Franks in exchange for help against the Muslim Mamluks. In 1303, the Mongols did attempt to invade Syria in great strength, but were defeated at Homs on March 30,1303 and it is considered to be the last major Mongol invasion of Syria. The message explained that internal conflicts between the Mongols were over, and promised the delivery of 100,000 horses to the Crusaders upon their arrival in the Holy Land, the Mongols and the West, 1221-1410
12.
Poles
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The Poles are a nation and West Slavic ethnic group native to Poland who share a common ancestry, culture, history and are native speakers of the Polish language. The population of Poles in Poland is estimated at 37,394,000 out of a population of 38,538,000. Polands population inhabits several historic regions, including Greater Poland, Lesser Poland, Mazovia, Silesia, Pomerania, Kuyavia, Warmia, Masuria, a wide-ranging Polish diaspora exists throughout Europe, the Americas and in Australasia. Today the largest urban concentration of Poles is the Katowice urban agglomeration of 2.7 million inhabitants, Poland was also for centuries a refuge for many Jews from all over Europe, a large number emigrated in the twentieth century to Israel. Several prominent Israeli statesmen were born in Poland, including Israels founder David Ben-Gurion, former President of Israel Shimon Peres, the Slavic people have been in the territory of modern Poland for over 1500 years. In the 9th and 10th centuries the tribes gave rise to developed regions along the upper Vistula, the last tribal undertaking resulted in the 10th century in a lasting political structure and state, Poland, one of the West Slavic nations. After 1945 the so-called autochthonous or aboriginal school of Polish prehistory received official backing in Poland, Polish people are the sixth largest national group in the European Union. Estimates vary depending on source, though available data suggest a number of around 60 million people worldwide. There are almost 38 million Poles in Poland alone, there are also Polish minorities in the surrounding countries including Germany, and indigenous minorities in the Czech Republic, Lithuania, Ukraine, and Belarus. There are some smaller indigenous minorities in nearby countries such as Moldova, the term Polonia is usually used in Poland to refer to people of Polish origin who live outside Polish borders, officially estimated at around 10 to 20 million. There is a notable Polish diaspora in the United States, Brazil, France has a historic relationship with Poland and has a relatively large Polish-descendant population. Poles have lived in France since the 18th century, in the early 20th century, over a million Polish people settled in France, mostly during world wars, among them Polish émigrés fleeing either Nazi occupation or later Soviet rule. In the United States, a significant number of Polish immigrants settled in Chicago, Ohio, Detroit, New York City, Orlando, Pittsburgh, Buffalo, the highest concentration of Polish Americans in a single New England municipality is in New Britain, Connecticut. The majority of Polish Canadians have arrived in Canada since World War II, the number of Polish immigrants increased between 1945 and 1970, and again after the end of Communism in Poland in 1989. In Brazil the majority of Polish immigrants settled in Paraná State, smaller, but significant numbers settled in the states of Rio Grande do Sul, Espírito Santo and São Paulo. The city of Curitiba has the second largest Polish diaspora in the world and Polish music, dishes and it is estimated that over half a million Polish people have come to work in the United Kingdom from Poland. Since 2011, Poles have been able to work throughout the EU and not just in the United Kingdom, Ireland. The Polish community in Norway has increased substantially and has grown to a number of 120,000
13.
French people
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The French are an ethnic group and nation who are identified with the country of France. This connection may be legal, historical, or cultural, modern French society can be considered a melting pot. To be French, according to the first article of the French Constitution, is to be a citizen of France, regardless of origin, race. The debate concerning the integration of this view with the underlying the European Community remains open. A large number of foreigners have traditionally been permitted to live in France, indeed, the country has long valued its openness, tolerance and the quality of services available. Application for French citizenship is often interpreted as a renunciation of previous state allegiance unless a dual citizenship agreement exists between the two countries, the European treaties have formally permitted movement and European citizens enjoy formal rights to employment in the state sector. Seeing itself as a nation with universal values, France has always valued. However, the success of such assimilation has recently called into question. There is increasing dissatisfaction with, and within, growing ethno-cultural enclaves, the 2005 French riots in some troubled and impoverished suburbs were an example of such tensions. However they should not be interpreted as ethnic conflicts but as social conflicts born out of socioeconomic problems endangering proper integration, the name France etymologically derives from the word Francia, the territory of the Franks. The Franks were a Germanic tribe that overran Roman Gaul at the end of the Roman Empire, in the pre-Roman era, all of Gaul was inhabited by a variety of peoples who were known collectively as the Gaulish tribes. Gaul was militarily conquered in 58-51 BCE by the Roman legions under the command of General Julius Caesar, the area then became part of the Roman Empire. Over the next five centuries the two cultures intermingled, creating a hybridized Gallo-Roman culture, the Gaulish vernacular language disappeared step by step to be replaced everywhere by Vulgar Latin, which would later develop under Frankish influence into the French language in the North of France. With the decline of the Roman Empire in Western Europe, a federation of Germanic peoples entered the picture, the Franks were Germanic pagans who began to settle in northern Gaul as laeti, already during the Roman era. They continued to filter across the Rhine River from present-day Netherlands, at the beginning, they served in the Roman army and reached high commands. Their language is spoken as a kind of Dutch in northern France. Another Germanic people immigrated massively to Alsace, the Alamans, which explains the Alemannic German spoken there and they were competitors of the Franks, thats why it became at the Renaissance time the word for German in French, Allemand. By the early 6th century the Franks, led by the Merovingian king Clovis I and his sons, had consolidated their hold on much of modern-day France, the Vikings eventually intermarried with the local people, converting to Christianity in the process
14.
Paul Pelliot
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Paul Eugène Pelliot was a French sinologist and Orientalist best known for his explorations of Central Asia and his discovery of many important Chinese texts among the Dunhuang manuscripts. Paul Pelliot was born on 28 May 1878 in Paris, France, accordingly, he studied English as a secondary school student at La Sorbonne, then studied Mandarin Chinese at the École des Langues Orientales Vivantes. Pelliot was a student, and completed the schools three-year Mandarin course in only two years. Chavannes also introduced Pelliot to the Collèges Sanskrit chair, Sylvain Lévi, Pelliot began studying under the two men, who encouraged him to pursue a scholarly career instead of a diplomatic one. In early 1900 Pelliot moved to Hanoi to take up a position as a scholar at the École Française dExtrême-Orient. In February of that year, Pelliot was sent to Peking to locate, between July and August, Pelliot was caught up in the siege of the foreign legations during the Boxer Rebellion. For his conduct during the siege, as well as for capturing a flag during the fighting. In 1901, when only 23 years old, Pelliot was made a professor of Chinese at the EFEO, Pelliot stayed in Hanoi until 1904, when he returned to France in preparation for representing the EFEO at the 1905 International Conference of Orientalists in Algiers. While in France, Pelliot was chosen to direct an archaeological mission to Chinese Turkestan. The group departed in June 1906 and spent several years in the field, Pelliots expedition left Paris on 17 June 1906. His three-man team included Dr. Louis Vaillant, an Army medical officer, and Charles Nouette, aboard the train in Samarkand, the Frenchmen met Baron Gustaf Mannerheim, a colonel in the Russian Imperial Army and the last Tsarist agent in the Great Game. Pelliot had agreed to allow the officer, disguised as an ethnographic collector. Mannerheim was actually carrying out a mission for Tsar Nicholas II to collect intelligence on the reform. The Tsar was assessing the possibility of a Russian invasion of Western China, Pelliot fully endorsed Mannerheims participation, and even offered himself as an informant to the Russian General Staff. In return, the Frenchman demanded free passage on the Trans-Caspian Railway, a personal and confidential payment of ten thousand francs and these were granted, and the payment even doubled. The expedition traveled to Chinese Turkestan by rail through Moscow and Tashkent to Andijan, from here, they travelled across the Alai Mountains of southern Kyrgyzstan over the Taldyk Pass and Irkeshtam Pass to China. Near the town of Gulcha, the expedition met Kurmanjan Datka, Mannerheim and Pelliot did not get along, and parted ways two days after leaving Irkeshtam Pass. The French team arrived in Kashgar at the end of August, Pelliot amazed the local Chinese officials with his fluent Chinese
15.
Genghis Khan
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Genghis Khan, born Temüjin, was the founder and Great Khan of the Mongol Empire, which became the largest contiguous empire in history after his death. He came to power by uniting many of the tribes of Northeast Asia. After founding the Empire and being proclaimed Genghis Khan, he started the Mongol invasions that conquered most of Eurasia, campaigns initiated in his lifetime include those against the Qara Khitai, Caucasus, and Khwarazmian, Western Xia and Jin dynasties. These campaigns were accompanied by large-scale massacres of the civilian populations – especially in the Khwarazmian. By the end of his life, the Mongol Empire occupied a portion of Central Asia. Before Genghis Khan died, he assigned Ögedei Khan as his successor and he died in 1227 after defeating the Western Xia. He was buried in an unmarked grave somewhere in Mongolia, many of these invasions repeated the earlier large-scale slaughters of local populations. As a result, Genghis Khan and his empire have a reputation in local histories. Beyond his military accomplishments, Genghis Khan also advanced the Mongol Empire in other ways and he decreed the adoption of the Uyghur script as the Mongol Empires writing system. He also practiced meritocracy and encouraged religious tolerance in the Mongol Empire, present-day Mongolians regard him as the founding father of Mongolia. This brought communication and trade from Northeast Asia into Muslim Southwest Asia and Christian Europe, Temüjin was related on his fathers side to Khabul Khan, Ambaghai, and Hotula Khan, who had headed the Khamag Mongol confederation and were descendants of Bodonchar Munkhag. When the Jurchen Jin dynasty switched support from the Mongols to the Tatars in 1161, Temüjins father, Yesügei, emerged as the head of the ruling Mongol clan. This position was contested by the rival Tayichiud clan, who descended directly from Ambaghai, when the Tatars grew too powerful after 1161, the Jin switched their support from the Tatars to the Keraites. Little is known about Temüjins early life, due to the lack of written records. The few sources that give insight into this period often contradict, Temüjins name was derived from the Mongol word temür meaning of iron, while jin denotes agency thus temüjin means blacksmith. Temüjin was probably born in 1162 in Delüün Boldog, near the mountain Burkhan Khaldun, the Secret History of the Mongols reports that Temüjin was born grasping a blood clot in his fist, a traditional sign that he was destined to become a great leader. He was the son of his father Yesügei who was a Kiyad chief prominent in the Khamag Mongol confederation. Temüjin was the first son of his mother Hoelun, according to the Secret History, Temüjin was named after the Tatar chief Temüjin-üge whom his father had just captured
16.
Yuan dynasty
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The Yuan dynasty, officially the Great Yuan, was the empire or ruling dynasty of China established by Kublai Khan, leader of the Mongolian Borjigin clan. His realm was, by point, isolated from the other khanates and controlled most of present-day China and its surrounding areas. Some of the Mongolian Emperors of the Yuan mastered the Chinese language, while others used their native language. The Yuan dynasty is considered both a successor to the Mongol Empire and an imperial Chinese dynasty and it was the khanate ruled by the successors of Möngke Khan after the division of the Mongol Empire. In official Chinese histories, the Yuan dynasty bore the Mandate of Heaven, following the Song dynasty, the dynasty was established by Kublai Khan, yet he placed his grandfather Genghis Khan on the imperial records as the official founder of the dynasty as Taizu. In addition to Emperor of China, Kublai Khan also claimed the title of Great Khan, supreme over the other khanates, the Chagatai, the Golden Horde. As such, the Yuan was also referred to as the Empire of the Great Khan. However, while the claim of supremacy by the Yuan emperors was at times recognized by the khans, their subservience was nominal. In 1271, Kublai Khan imposed the name Great Yuan, establishing the Yuan dynasty, dà Yuán is from the clause 大哉乾元 in the Commentaries on the Classic of Changes section regarding Qián. The counterpart in Mongolian language was Dai Ön Ulus, also rendered as Ikh Yuan Üls or Yekhe Yuan Ulus, in Mongolian, Dai Ön is often used in conjunction with the Yeke Mongghul Ulus, resulting in Dai Ön Yeke Mongghul Ulus, meaning Great Mongol State. Nevertheless, both terms can refer to the khanate within the Mongol Empire directly ruled by Great Khans before the actual establishment of the Yuan dynasty by Kublai Khan in 1271. Genghis Khan united the Mongol and Turkic tribes of the steppes and he and his successors expanded the Mongol empire across Asia. Under the reign of Genghis third son, Ögedei Khan, the Mongols destroyed the weakened Jin dynasty in 1234, Ögedei offered his nephew Kublai a position in Xingzhou, Hebei. Kublai was unable to read Chinese but had several Han Chinese teachers attached to him since his early years by his mother Sorghaghtani and he sought the counsel of Chinese Buddhist and Confucian advisers. Möngke Khan succeeded Ögedeis son, Güyük, as Great Khan in 1251 and he granted his brother Kublai control over Mongol held territories in China. Kublai built schools for Confucian scholars, issued paper money, revived Chinese rituals and he adopted as his capital city Kaiping in Inner Mongolia, later renamed Shangdu. Many Han Chinese and Khitan defected to the Mongols to fight against the Jin, two Han Chinese leaders, Shi Tianze, Liu Heima, and the Khitan Xiao Zhala defected and commanded the 3 Tumens in the Mongol army. Liu Heima and Shi Tianze served Ogödei Khan, Liu Heima and Shi Tianxiang led armies against Western Xia for the Mongols
17.
China
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China, officially the Peoples Republic of China, is a unitary sovereign state in East Asia and the worlds most populous country, with a population of over 1.381 billion. The state is governed by the Communist Party of China and its capital is Beijing, the countrys major urban areas include Shanghai, Guangzhou, Beijing, Chongqing, Shenzhen, Tianjin and Hong Kong. China is a power and a major regional power within Asia. Chinas landscape is vast and diverse, ranging from forest steppes, the Himalaya, Karakoram, Pamir and Tian Shan mountain ranges separate China from much of South and Central Asia. The Yangtze and Yellow Rivers, the third and sixth longest in the world, respectively, Chinas coastline along the Pacific Ocean is 14,500 kilometers long and is bounded by the Bohai, Yellow, East China and South China seas. China emerged as one of the worlds earliest civilizations in the basin of the Yellow River in the North China Plain. For millennia, Chinas political system was based on hereditary monarchies known as dynasties, in 1912, the Republic of China replaced the last dynasty and ruled the Chinese mainland until 1949, when it was defeated by the communist Peoples Liberation Army in the Chinese Civil War. The Communist Party established the Peoples Republic of China in Beijing on 1 October 1949, both the ROC and PRC continue to claim to be the legitimate government of all China, though the latter has more recognition in the world and controls more territory. China had the largest economy in the world for much of the last two years, during which it has seen cycles of prosperity and decline. Since the introduction of reforms in 1978, China has become one of the worlds fastest-growing major economies. As of 2016, it is the worlds second-largest economy by nominal GDP, China is also the worlds largest exporter and second-largest importer of goods. China is a nuclear weapons state and has the worlds largest standing army. The PRC is a member of the United Nations, as it replaced the ROC as a permanent member of the U. N. Security Council in 1971. China is also a member of numerous formal and informal multilateral organizations, including the WTO, APEC, BRICS, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, the BCIM, the English name China is first attested in Richard Edens 1555 translation of the 1516 journal of the Portuguese explorer Duarte Barbosa. The demonym, that is, the name for the people, Portuguese China is thought to derive from Persian Chīn, and perhaps ultimately from Sanskrit Cīna. Cīna was first used in early Hindu scripture, including the Mahābhārata, there are, however, other suggestions for the derivation of China. The official name of the state is the Peoples Republic of China. The shorter form is China Zhōngguó, from zhōng and guó and it was then applied to the area around Luoyi during the Eastern Zhou and then to Chinas Central Plain before being used as an occasional synonym for the state under the Qing
18.
Qing dynasty
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It was preceded by the Ming dynasty and succeeded by the Republic of China. The Qing multi-cultural empire lasted almost three centuries and formed the base for the modern Chinese state. The dynasty was founded by the Jurchen Aisin Gioro clan in Manchuria, in the late sixteenth century, Nurhaci, originally a Ming vassal, began organizing Banners, military-social units that included Jurchen, Han Chinese, and Mongol elements. Nurhaci formed the Jurchen clans into an entity, which he renamed as the Manchus. By 1636, his son Hong Taiji began driving Ming forces out of Liaodong and declared a new dynasty, in 1644, peasant rebels led by Li Zicheng conquered the Ming capital, Beijing. The Ten Great Campaigns of the Qianlong Emperor from the 1750s to the 1790s extended Qing control into Central Asia, the early rulers maintained their Manchu ways, and while their title was Emperor, they used khan to the Mongols and they were patrons of Tibetan Buddhism. They governed using Confucian styles and institutions of government and retained the imperial examinations to recruit Han Chinese to work under or in parallel with Manchus. They also adapted the ideals of the system in dealing with neighboring territories. The Qianlong reign saw the apogee and initial decline in prosperity. The population rose to some 400 million, but taxes and government revenues were fixed at a low rate, corruption set in, rebels tested government legitimacy, and ruling elites did not change their mindsets in the face of changes in the world system. Following the Opium War, European powers imposed unequal treaties, free trade, the Taiping Rebellion and the Dungan Revolt in Central Asia led to the deaths of some 20 million people, most of them due to famines caused by war. In spite of disasters, in the Tongzhi Restoration of the 1860s, Han Chinese elites rallied to the defense of the Confucian order. The initial gains in the Self-Strengthening Movement were destroyed in the First Sino-Japanese War of 1895, in which the Qing lost its influence over Korea, New Armies were organized, but the ambitious Hundred Days Reform of 1898 was turned back by Empress Dowager Cixi, a conservative leader. Sun Yat-sen and other revolutionaries competed with reformist monarchists such as Kang Youwei, after the deaths of Cixi and the Guangxu Emperor in 1908, the hardline Manchu court alienated reformers and local elites alike. The Wuchang Uprising on October 11,1911, led to the Xinhai Revolution, General Yuan Shikai negotiated the abdication of Puyi, the last emperor, on February 12,1912. Nurhaci declared himself the Bright Khan of the Later Jin state in both of the 12–13th century Jurchen Jin dynasty and of his Aisin Gioro clan. His son Hong Taiji renamed the dynasty Great Qing in 1636, there are competing explanations on the meaning of Qīng. The character Qīng is composed of water and azure, both associated with the water element and this association would justify the Qing conquest as defeat of fire by water
19.
Bogd Khan
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The Bogd Khan was enthroned as Khagan of Mongolia on 29 December 1911, when Outer Mongolia declared independence from the Qing dynasty after the Xinhai Revolution. As the 8th Jebtsundamba Khutuktu, he was the third most important person in the Tibetan Buddhism hierarchy, below only the Dalai and Panchen Lamas and he was the spiritual leader of Outer Mongolias Tibetan Buddhism. His wife Tsendiin Dondogdulam, the Ekh Dagina, was believed to be a manifestation of White Tara, the future Bogd Khan was born in 1869 in Lithang, Kham, in a family of a Tibetan official. His father, Gonchigtseren, was an accountant at the 12th Dalai Lamas court, the boy was officially recognized as the new incarnation of the Bogd Gegen in Potala in the presence of the 13th Dalai Lama and the Panchen Lama. The new Bogd Gegen arrived in Urga, the capital of Outer Mongolia, after this he lived only in Mongolia. According to one eyewitness. he did not become a puppet in the hands of the lamas but, on the contrary, took them in hand. Since his young years he wanted to restore the great Mongolian kingdom of Genghis Khan or, at least, to liberate Mongolia from the Chinese, local princes feared him, but the masses liked him. An independent and clever first hierarch and ruler was unacceptable neither for Tibet, as a result, from his young years the 8th Bogd Gegen was the subject of intrigues of Qing officials in Urga. However, analysis of documents stored in Mongolian and Russian archives does not confirm these statements, as a monk, the Bogd had limited access to physical means of imposing power, though some enemies were executed for blasphemy. It should be noted, however, that Ossendovskys claims for his acquaintance with the Bogd Gegen were not confirmed by analysis of his book. The Bogd Gegen lost his power when Chinese troops occupied the country in 1919, the Tusiyetu Khan Aimaks Prince Darchin Chin Wang was a supporter of Chinese rule while his younger brother Tsewang was a supporter of Ungern-Sternberg. When Baron Ungerns forces failed to seize Urga in late 1920, after the revolution in 1921 led by Damdin Sükhbaatar, the Bogd Khan was allowed to stay on the throne in a limited monarchy until his death in 1924, a year after that of his wife. The government took control of the Bogda Khans seal after his death according to the 26 November 1924 Constitution of the Mongolian Peoples Republic. It was proposed that Zhang Zuolins domain take Outer Mongolia under its administration by the Bogda Khan, however, rumors about a reincarnation of the Jebtsundamba Khutuktu appeared in northern Mongolia in that same year. No traditional determination of the incarnation was conducted. In November 1926 the 3rd Great Khural of Mongolian Peoples Republic approved a resolution that searches for reincarnations of the Bogd Gegen should not be allowed. A final prohibition was approved by the 7th Congress of the Mongolian Peoples Revolutionary Party, nevertheless, the next reincarnation of Bogd Gegen was found in Tibet as a boy born in 1932 in Lhasa. This was not announced until the collapse of the USSR and democratic revolution in Mongolia, the 9th Jebtsundamba Khutughtu was formally enthroned in Dharamsala by Tenzin Gyatso, the 14th Dalai Lama in 1991, and in Ulaanbaatar in 1999
20.
Soyombo alphabet
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The Soyombo alphabet is an abugida developed by the monk and scholar Zanabazar in 1686 to write Mongolian. It can also be used to write Tibetan and Sanskrit, the Soyombo script was created as the fourth Mongolian script, only 38 years after the invention of the Clear script. The name of the script alludes to this story and it is derived from the Sanskrit word Svayambhu self-created. The syllabic system in fact appears to be based on Devanagari, details of individual characters resemble traditional Mongolian alphabets and the Old Turkic alphabet. It is unclear whether Zanabazar designed the Soyombo symbol himself or if it had existed beforehand, the eastern Mongols used the script primarily as a ceremonial and decorative script. Zanabazar had created it for the translation of Buddhist texts from Sanskrit or Tibetan, as it was much too complicated to be adopted as an everyday script, its use is practically nonexistent today. Aside from historical texts, it can usually be found in temple inscriptions and it also has some relevance to linguistic research, because it reflects certain developments in the Mongolian language, such as that of long vowels. The Soyombo script was the first Mongolian script to be written horizontally left to right. As in the Tibetan and Devanagari scripts, the signs are suspended below a horizontal line, the two variations of the Soyombo symbol are used as special characters to mark the start and end of a text. Two of its elements form the base frame for the other characters. Within this frame, the syllables are composed of one to three elements, the first consonant is placed high within the angle. The vowel is given by a mark above the frame, except for u and ü which are marked in the low center. A second consonant is specified by a mark, appended to the inside of the vertical bar. A short oblique hook at the bottom of the vertical bar marks a long vowel, there is also a curved or jagged mark to the right of the vertical bar for the two diphthongs. The first character of the alphabet represents a syllable starting with a short a, syllables starting with other vowels are constructed by adding a vowel mark to the same base character. All remaining base characters represent syllables starting with a consonant, a starting consonant without a vowel mark implies a following a. In theory,20 consonants and 14 vowels would result in almost 4000 combinations, there are additional base characters and marks for writing Tibetan or Sanskrit. Apart from the Soyombo symbol, the punctuation mark is a full stop
21.
'Phags-pa script
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The actual use of this script was limited to about a hundred years during the Mongol Yuan dynasty, and it fell out of use with the advent of the Ming dynasty. The documentation of its use provides clues about the changes in the varieties of Chinese, the Uyghur-based Mongolian alphabet is not a perfect fit for the Middle Mongol language, and it would be impractical to extend it to a language with a very different phonology like Chinese. Therefore, during the Yuan dynasty, Kublai Khan asked Phags-pa to design a new alphabet for use by the whole empire, Phags-pa extended his native Tibetan alphabet, one of the Brahmic scripts, to encompass Mongol and Chinese, evidently Central Plains Mandarin. The resulting 38 letters have been known by descriptive names, such as square script based on their shape. Despite its origin, the script was written vertically like the previous Mongolian scripts, after this it was mainly used as a phonetic gloss for Mongolians learning Chinese characters. Unlike the ancestral Tibetan script, all Phags-pa letters are written in temporal order, however, vowel letters retain distinct initial forms, and short /a/ is not written except initially, making Phags-pa transitional between an abugida and a full alphabet. The letters of a Phags-pa syllable are linked together so that they form syllabic blocks, Phags-pa was written in a variety of graphic forms. The standard form was blocky, but a Tibetan form was more so, consisting almost entirely of straight orthogonal lines. A seal script form, used for seals and the like, was more elaborate, with squared sinusoidal lines. Korean records that state that hangul was based on an Old Seal Script, which Gary Ledyard believes to be Phags-pa, however, it is the simpler standard form of Phags-pa that is the closer graphic match to hangul. Following are the initials of the Phags-pa script as presented in the Menggu Ziyun and they are ordered according to the Chinese philological tradition of the 36 initials. Phags-pa script was added to the Unicode Standard in July 2006 with the release of version 5.0, the Unicode block for Phags-pa is U+A840–U+A877, Brahmic scripts Mongolian alphabets Origin of hangul Mongol elements in Western medieval art Menggu Ziyun Stephen Wootton Bushell Coblin, W. South. Herrscherurkunden aus der Zeit des mongolischen Großreiches für tibetische Adelshäuser, Geistliche und Klöster, halle, International Institute for Tibetan and Buddhist Studies. The Mongolian Monuments in hP´ags-pa Script, eine Untersuchung über tibetische Siegelaufschriften in ´Phags-pa-Schrift. Andrew West, BabelStone, Phags-pa Script Omniglot, Phags-pa script Ancientscripts, hPhags-pa Mongolian characters after Kublai Khan
22.
Mongolian nobility
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The Mongolian nobility arose between the 10th and 12th centuries, became prominent in the 13th century, and essentially governed Mongolia until the early 20th century. The Mongolian word for nobility, Yazgurtan, derives from the Mongol word yazgur, Khaan, the supreme ruler of the Mongol Empire. Noyon, meaning King of a State, a ruler of a state under the Mongol Empire. Jinong, meaning Crown Prince, the heir apparent of the Great Khaan, during the Yuan dynasty, the Jinong resided in Karakorum and administered ceremonial events. Mirza, a Persian term meaning Prince, Tumetu-iin Noyan, meaning Commander of a Tümen. A tümen was a unit of 10,000 troops. There were initially only nine tümens in the Mongol Empire in 1206, mingghan-u Noyan, meaning Commander of a Mingghan. A mingghan was a unit of 1,000 troops. Jagutu-iin Darga, meaning Commander of a Zuut, a zuut was a military unit of 100 troops. Arban-u Darga, meaning Commander of an Aravt, an aravt was a military unit of 10 troops. Cherbi, a title for a Kheshig commander, bey, a Turkish term meaning Chieftain. Begum, a Turkish term used to refer to the wife or daughter of a bey, gonji, referred to a princess or noble lady. Behi, referred to a noble lady, Khaan, the supreme ruler of the Northern Yuan Empire. Khan, a title for a Mongol feudal lord, by the mid-16th century, there were a number of khans in Mongolia as local feudal lords started calling themselves khan. Note that this khan is different from khaan, khaan was reserved for the supreme ruler only, Jinong, the crown prince or heir apparent of the Khaan. He resided in the Inner Mongolia region, from the 15th century, the title became a hereditary one and was no longer reserved exclusively for the heir apparent of the Khaan. Khong Tayiji, originated from the Chinese term huangtaizi and it was used to refer to a descendant of Genghis Khan who had his own fief. Taiji, a title for a descendant of Genghis Khan, Wang, a title for a descendant of Qasar or any of Genghis Khans brothers who had his own fief
23.
Khagan
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Khagan or Qagan is a title in the Mongolian language equal to the status of emperor and used to refer to someone who rules a khaganate or empire. The title was adopted by Ögedei Khan from the Turkic title kaɣan and it may also be translated as Khan of Khans, equivalent to King of Kings. In modern Mongolian, the title became Khaan with the g sound becoming almost silent or non-existent, since the division of the Mongol Empire, emperors of the Yuan dynasty held the title of Khagan and their successors in Mongolia continued to have the title. Kağan and Kaan are common Turkish names in Turkey, the common western rendering as Great Khan, notably in the case of the Mongol Empire, is translation of Yekhe Khagan. In the speech one of the Murongs general named Yinalou addressed him as kehan, the Rouran Khaganate was the first people to use the titles Khagan and Khan for their emperors, replacing the Chanyu of the Xiongnu, whom Grousset and others assume to be Turkic. However, many believe the Rouran were proto-Mongols. The Avar Khaganate, who may have included Rouran elements after the Göktürks crushed the Rouran ruling Mongolia, the Avars invaded Europe, and for over a century ruled the Carpathian region. Westerners Latinized the title Khagan into Gaganus or Cagan, Khagan or Khaan refers to Emperor or King in the Mongolian language, however, Yekhe Khagan means Great Khagan or Grand Emperor. Thus, the Yuan is sometimes referred to as the Empire of the Great Khan, coexisting with the independent Mongol khanates in the west, including the Chagatai Khanate, only the Ilkhanate truly recognized the Yuans overlordship as allies. Later Yuan emperors made peace with the three khanates of the Mongol Empire and were considered as their nominal suzerain. The nominal supremacy, while based on nothing like the foundations as that of the earlier Khagans, did last for a few decades. After the breakdown of Mongol Empire and the fall of the Yuan dynasty in the mid-14th century, dayan Khan once revived Emperors authority and recovered its reputation in Mongolia, but with the distribution of his empire among his sons and relatives as fiefs it again caused decentralized rule. The last Khagan of the Chahars, Ligdan Khan, died in 1634 while fighting the Qing dynasty founded by the Manchu people, in contemporary Mongolian language the word Khaan and Khan have different meanings, while English language usually does not differentiate between them. The title is used as a generic term for a king or emperor. Minor rulers were rather relegated to the title of khan. Khagan is the title of Safavid and Qajar shahs of Iran. For example, Agha Muhammad Khan Qajar, Fath Ali Shah, the nickname of Shah Ismail and other Safavid shahs is Kagan-i Suleyman shan. Emperor Taizong of Tang was crowned Tian Kehan, or heavenly Khagan after defeating the Tujue, a later letter sent by the Tang court to the Yenisei Kirghiz Qaghan explained that the peoples of the northwest had requested Tang Taizong to become the Heavenly Qaghan
24.
Khan (title)
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Khan is originally a title for a sovereign or a military ruler, widely used by Turkic and later medieval nomadic Mongolian tribes living to the north of China. Khan also occurs as a title in the Xianbei confederation for their chief between 283 and 289, the Rourans were the first people who used the titles khagan and khan for their emperors. Subsequently the Ashina adopted the title and brought it to the rest of Asia, in the middle of the sixth century the Iranians knew of a Kagan – King of the Turks. Khan now has many equivalent meanings such as commander, leader, as of 2015 khans exist in South Asia, Middle East, Central Asia, Eastern Europe and Turkey. The female alternatives are Khatun, Khatoon and Khanum and these titles or names are sometimes written as Han, Kan, Hakan, Hanum, or Hatun and as xan, xanım. Khagan is rendered as Khan of Khans and it was the title of Chinese Emperor Emperor Taizong of Tang, and also the title of Genghis Khan and of the persons selected to rule the Mongol Empire. For instance Möngke Khan and Ogedei Khan would be Khagans but not Chagatai Khan, some managed to establish principalities of some importance for a while, as their military might repeatedly proved a serious threat to such empires as China and kingdoms in Central Asia. One of the earliest notable examples of such principalities in Europe was Danube Bulgaria, Khan was the official title of the ruler until 864 AD, when Kniaz Boris adopted the Eastern Orthodox faith. The title Khan became unprecedently prominent when the Mongol Temüjin created the Mongol empire, the greatest land empire the world has ever seen and his title was khagan, or Khan of Khans, but has often been abbreviated to Khan or described as Great Khan. The great leader was regarded as a khan in the middle east, ming Dynasty Chinese Emperors also used the term Xan to denote brave warriors and rulers. The title Khan was used to designate the greatest rulers of the Jurchens, while most Afghan principalities were styled emirate, there was a khanate of ethnic Uzbeks in Badakhshan since 1697. For example, in present Armenia and nearby territories to the left and right, diverse khanates existed in Dagestan, Azerbaijan, including Baku, Ganja, Jawad, Quba, Salyan, Shakki and Shirvan=Shamakha, Talysh, Nakhichevan and Karabakh. The most important of these states were, Khanate of Kazan, sibir Khanate Astrakhan Khanate Crimean Khanate. The ruling descendants of the branch of Genghis Khans dynasty are referred to as the Great Khans. The title Khan of Khans was among numerous titles used by the Sultans of the Ottoman empire as well as the rulers of the Golden Horde and its descendant states. The title Khan was also used in the Seljuk Turk dynasties of the near-east to designate a head of multiple tribes, clans or nations, jurchen and Manchu rulers also used the title Khan, for example, Nurhaci was called Genggiyen Han. Rulers of the Göktürks, Avars and Khazars used the higher title Kaghan, see the main article for more details. Khan-i-Khanan was a given to the commander-in-chief of the army of the Mughals
25.
Noyan
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Noyon, noyan, nayan was a title of authority in the Mongol Empire and later periods. In modern Mongolic the word is used as a form of similar to Mister or Monsieur. Initially, it was a term for a commander in the army of Genghis Khan. During conquests, noyons used to receive territories for administration and they effectively became aristocracy, noyans were above the ordinary Mongols in social rank but below the descendants of Genghis and his brothers. They were sometimes called emir or bey in the Ulus of Jochi, the Ilkhanate, usually notable persons are referred to followed Noyan, similarly to the usage of the title Khan, e. g. Jebe Noyan, Chormaqan Noyan, Sali Noyan and Karik Noyan. The Qing Dynasty, which ruled Mongolia from 1694 to 1911, entrusted rule in Mongolia to the descendants of Genghis Khan, the term noyon in this epoch acquired the connotation of nobleman, since Mongolia was mostly at peace. After 1921 the word darga replaced the aristocratic noyon as the term for officials, many noyons were executed and/or arrested during the Great Purge in Mongolia
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Orda (organization)
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An orda or horde was a historical sociopolitical and military structure found on the Eurasian Steppe, usually associated with the Turkic raiders and Mongols. This entity can be seen as the equivalent of a clan or a tribe. Some successful ordas gave rise to khanates and these structures were contemporarily referred to as ulus. It was only in the Late Middle Ages that the Slavic usage of orda was borrowed back into the Turkic languages, etymologically, the word orda comes from the Mongolic ordu which could mean camp, palace, tent, seat of power or royal court. Within the Liao Empire of the Mongolic Khitans, the word ordo was used to refer to a noblemans personal entourage or court, which included servants, retainers, and bodyguards. Emperors, empresses, and high ranking princes all had ordos of their own, the Kazakh language name for a division of an army was jüz hundred. The word via Tatar passed into East Slavic as orda, and by the 1550s into English as horde, probably via Polish, the unetymological initial h- is found in all western European forms and was likely first attached in the Polish form horda. Ordu or Ordo also means the Mongolian court, in Mongolian language, the Government Palace is literally called Zasgiin gazriin ordon. They cover it with white felt, quite often they also smear the felt with chalk or white clay and ground bones to make it gleam whiter, and they decorate the felt around the neck at the top with various fine designs. Similarly they hang up in front of the entrance felt patchwork in various patterns, they sew onto one piece others of different colours to make vines, trees, birds and animals. I have counted twenty-two oxen to one wagon, hauling along a dwelling, eleven in a row, corresponding to the width of the wagon, and another eleven in front of them. The wagons axle was as large as a ships mast, and one man stood at the entrance to the dwelling on top of the wagon, driving the oxen. On reaching the place they took down the tents from the wagons and set them on the ground, for they are light to carry. Merriam–Webster defined horde in this context as a subdivision of central Asian people or a people or tribe of nomadic life. Ordas would form when families settled in auls would find it impossible to survive in that area and were forced to move, often, periods of drought would coincide with the rise in the number of ordas. Ordas were patriarchal, with its male members constituting a military, while some ordas were able to sustain themselves from their herds, others turned to pillaging their neighbors. In subsequent fighting, some ordas were destroyed, others assimilated, the term is also used to denote separate Kazakh tribes. In modern day, there three different groupings are differentiated, the Younger Horde in western Kazakhstan, the Middle Horde in central Kazakhstan and the Older Horde in southeastern Kazakhstan
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Pax Mongolica
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The term is used to describe the eased communication and commerce the unified administration helped to create, and the period of relative peace that followed the Mongols vast conquests. The conquests of Genghis Khan and his successors, spanning from Southeast Asia to Eastern Europe, the Silk Road, connecting trade centres across Asia and Europe, came under the sole rule of the Mongol Empire. It was commonly said that a bearing a nugget of gold on her head could wander safely throughout the realm. Despite the political fragmentation of the Mongol Empire into four khanates, nearly a century of conquest and civil war was followed by relative stability in the early 14th century. The end of the Pax Mongolica was marked by the disintegration of the khanates, the foundations of the Pax Mongolica lie in the Mongol Empire beginning with Genghis Khan in the early 13th century. In the process of conquering the various tribes in the region, after each new victory, more and more people were incorporated under Genghis Khans rule, thus diversifying the societal balance of the tribe. He arranged his army into arbans, and the members of an arban were commanded to be loyal to one another regardless of ethnic origin. Ten arbans made a zuun, or a company, ten zuuns made a myangan, or a battalion, by 1206 Genghis Khans military expansion had unified the tribes of Mongolia, and in the same year he was elected and acclaimed as the leader of Mongolia. The new Mongol Nation quickly moved to annex more territory, the first Mongol conquests were campaigns against the Western Xia in north-western China. In 1209 the Mongols conquered the Western Xia, between 1213 and 1214 the Mongols conquered the Jin Empire, and by 1214 the Mongols had captured most of the land north of the Yellow River. In 1235 the Mongols invaded Korea, two years later in 1237 Batu Khan and Subodei began their conquest of Rus, they invaded Poland and Hungary in 1241. In 1252 the Mongols began their invasion of Southern China, they would seize the capital of Hangzhou in 1276, in 1258 Hulagu Khan captured Baghdad. Each new victory gave the Mongols the chance to incorporate new peoples, especially engineers and labourers. Each new conquest also acquired new trade routes and the opportunity to control taxation, thus, through territorial expansion, the Mongol Nation not only became an empire, but it also became more technologically and economically advanced. At its height, the Mongolian empire stretched from Shanhaiguan in the east to Budapest in the west and this meant that an extremely large part of the continent was united under one political authority. As a result, the routes used by merchants became safe for travel, resulting in an overall growth. Thus, the Pax Mongolica greatly influenced many civilizations in Eurasia during the 13th and 14th centuries, before the Mongols rise, the Old World system consisted of isolated imperial systems. The new Mongol empire amalgamated the once isolated civilizations into a new continental system, the unification of Eurasia under the Mongols greatly diminished the amount of competing tribute gatherers throughout the trade network and assured greater safety and security in travel
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Paiza
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A paiza or paizi or gerege was a tablet carried by Mongol officials and envoys to signify certain privileges and authority. They enabled Mongol nobles and officials to demand goods and services from civilian populations, although only someone with a paiza was required to be supplied with mounts and served specified rations, those carrying military rarities used the yam even without a paiza. The officials and nobles of the Mongol Empire issued paizas unofficially, therefore, Ögedei Khan prohibited the nobility from issuing paizas and jarliqs. To attract foreign or overseas merchants and talents, the Great Khans gave them paiza exempting them from taxes, however, Möngke Khan limited notorious abuses and sent imperial investigators to supervise the business of the merchants who were sponsored by the Mongols. He prohibited them from using the imperial relay stations or yam, marco Polo, who visited the Yuan Dynasty during the reign of Kublai Khan, left a good description of the paiza. The Ilkhan Ghazan reformed the issuance of jarliqs, creating set forms and graded seals, ordering that all jarliqs be kept on file at court and canceling jarliqs older than 30 years, although paizas were popularized by the Mongols, they were not a Mongol innovation. Similar such passports were already in use in northern China under the Liao dynasty, and their use was continued under subsequent kingdoms such as the Jin Dynasty, the Jin paiza had seven different ranks
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Manghud
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The Mangghud, Manghud were a Mongol tribe of the Urud-Manghud federation. They established the Nogai Horde in the 14th century and the Manghit Dynasty to rule the Emirate of Bukhara in 1785. They took the Islamic title of Emir instead of the title of Khan since they were not descendants of Genghis Khan, the clan name was used for Mongol vanguards as well. Their descendants live in regions of the former Mongol Empire. According to ancient sources, they were derived from the Khiyad Mongols, the Manghuds and the Uruuds were war-like people from the Mongolian plateau. Some notable Manghud warriors supported Genghis Khan while a body of them resisted his rise to power, when the Mongol Empire began to expand westward, the Manghud people were spread westward into the Middle East along with many other Mongol tribes. In the Golden Horde, the Manghuds supported Nogai and established their own semi-independent horde from the khans in Sarai, after Nogais death in 1299 AD, the majority of Manghud warriors joined the service of Tokhta Khan. Their chieftain Edigu, the warlord of the Golden Horde. Turkish historians would record their name as Manghit or Nogais. The mangudai or mungadai were military units of the Mongol Empire, one source states that references to Mongol light cavalry suicide troops date back to the 13th century. However, a United States Army author believes that Mangudai was the name of a 13th-century Mongol warlord who created an arduous process to test potential leaders. The term is used by element of the United States Army as a name for multi-day tests of Soldiers endurance, the Travels of Marco Polo uses the word Meng-Gu-Dai as the name of a person, The Emperor ordered Meng-Gu-Dai to invade Si-Fan with 6000 men. Some of the Manghuds assimilated into Turkish people and these Manghuds became Manghit tribe of the Turks, the Nogais protected the northern borders of Astrakhan and Crimean khanates, and through organized raids to the northern steppes prevented Russian and Lithuanian settlements. Many Nogais joined the service of Crimean khan, settling there, they contributed to the formation of the Crimean Tatars. However, Nogais were not only soldiers, they also had considerable agricultural skills. Their basic social unit was the semi-autonomous ulus or band, but Nogais were proud of their nomadic traditions and independence, which they considered superior to settled agricultural life. At the beginning of the 17th century, the Kalmyks or the Oirats, the Kalmyks expelled the Nogais who fled to the plains of northern Caucasus and to the Crimea under the Ottoman Empire. A few part of them joined to Kazakh Khanate as part of Little jüz, in the 18th century the basins of the Amu Darya and Syr Darya passed under the control of three Uzbek khanates claiming legitimacy in their descent from Genghis Khan
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Tug Banner
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A tug, or a sulde сүлд) is a pole with circularly arranged horse or yak tail hairs of varying colors arranged at the top. It was historically flown during the period of the Mongol Empire, and later adopted in derived Turco-Mongol and Turkic khanates, in the 18th century, it was also adopted by Slavic cavalry, under the name bunchuk. It is still used by units of the Polish military. A white-haired banner is used as a symbol, while the black banner was for wartime. Usage of the tail is symbolic because horses are so central to the Mongols livelihood. This is similar to the use of tail hairs for the morin khuur. The original white banner disappeared early in history, but the black one survived as the repository of Genghis Khans soul, the Mongols continued to honor the banner, and Zanabazar built a monastery with the special mission of flying and protecting the black banner in the 17th century. Around 1937, the black banner disappeared amidst the great purges of the nationalists, monks and intellectuals, the Nine White Banners was a peacetime emblem used exclusively by the Khans in front of their yurt. The central banner is larger in size than the rest and is placed in the center of the other eight, the modern Mongolian nine white banners are kept in the Government Palace in Ulaanbaatar. The Dörvön khölt khar sulde or the Four base black banners was used in wartime and it is made of black horse tail hairs and flown in the same fashion. According to the illustrated Japanese chronicle Mōko Shūrai Ekotoba, the banner of the Mongolian Yuan fleet that invaded Japan was black, the modern Mongolian black banners are kept in the Ministry of Defense. Within the Mongolian Armed Forces, the tug is used as the finial in military colours flagpoles. A history of India under the two first sovereigns of the house of Taimur, Báber and Humáyun, longman, Brown, Green, and Longmans,1854. Zdzislaw Zygulski, Ottoman Art in the Service of Empire, Hagop Kevorkian Series on Near Eastern Art & Civilization, Ефрона Монгол Улсын Төрийн Туг // MongolWiki Довідник з історії України. Jack Weatherford, Wind, First Year Course on Genghis Khan Photo reportage, a tribute ceremony to the Great Black Banners, Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia
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Mongol invasions and conquests
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Mongol invasions and conquests took place throughout the 13th century, resulting in the vast Mongol Empire, which by 1300 covered much of Asia and Eastern Europe. Historians regard the destruction under the Mongol Empire as results of some of the deadliest conflicts in human history. In addition, Mongol expeditions brought the plague along with them, spreading it across much of Asia and Europe. The Mongol Empire developed in the course of the 13th century through a series of conquests and invasions throughout Asia, thus most Mongol conquering and plundering took place during the warmer seasons, when there was sufficient grass for the herds. Tartar and Mongol raids against Russian states continued well beyond the start of the Mongol Empires fragmentation around 1260, elsewhere, the Mongols territorial gains in China continued into the 14th century under the Yuan dynasty, while those in Persia persisted into the 15th century under the Timurid Empire. In India, a Mongol state survived into the 19th century in the form of the Mughal Empire, genghis Khan forged the initial Mongol Empire in Central Asia, starting with the unification of the Mongol and Turkic confederations such as Merkits, Tartars, and Mongols. The Uighur Buddhist Qocho Kingdom surrendered and joined the empire and he then continued expansion of the empire via conquest of the Qara Khitai and the Khwarazmian dynasty. Large areas of Islamic Central Asia and northeastern Iran were seriously depopulated, each soldier was required to execute a certain number of persons, with the number varying according to circumstances. For example, after the conquest of Urgench, each Mongol warrior – in an group that might have consisted of two tumens – was required to execute 24 people. Hungary became a refuge after the Mongol invasions for fleeing Cumans, one thousand northern Chinese engineer squads accompanied the Mongol Khan Hulagu during his conquest of the Middle East. The Yuan dynasty created a Han Army out of defected Jin troops, the Mongol force which invaded southern China was far greater than the force they sent to invade the Middle East in 1256. The Mongols greatest triumph was when Kublai Khan established the Yuan dynasty in China in 1271, the top-level government agency Bureau of Buddhist and Tibetan Affairs was established to govern Tibet, which was conquered by the Mongols and put under Yuan rule. The Mongols also invaded Sakhalin between 1264 and 1308, likewise, Korea became a semi-autonomous vassal state and compulsory ally of the Yuan dynasty for about 80 years. The Yuan dynasty was overthrown during the Red Turban Rebellion in 1368 by the Han Chinese who gained independence. Kublai Khans Yuan dynasty invaded Burma between 1277 and 1287, resulting in the capitulation and disintegration of the Pagan Kingdom, however, the invasion in 1301 was repulsed by the Burmese Myinsaing Kingdom. The Mongol invasions of Vietnam and Java resulted in defeat for the Mongols, the Mongols invaded and destroyed Volga Bulgaria and Kievan Rus, before invading Poland, Hungary and Bulgaria, and others. Over the course of three years, the Mongols destroyed and annihilated all of the cities of Russia with the exceptions of Novgorod. When we were journeying through that land we came across countless skulls, the Mongol invasions induced population displacement on a scale never seen before in central Asia as well as eastern Europe
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Destruction under the Mongol Empire
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The death and destruction during the 13th century Mongol conquests have been widely noted in both the scholarly literature and popular memory. It has been calculated that approximately 5% of the population were killed during Turco-Mongol invasions or in their immediate aftermath. If these calculations are accurate, this would make the events the hitherto deadliest acts of killings in human history. Diana Lary contends that the Mongol invasions induced population displacement on a never seen before, particularly in Central Asia. She adds, the arrival of the Mongol hordes spread terror. In addition, the Mongols practiced biological warfare by catapulting diseased cadavers into at least one of the cities they besieged, the Khans guaranteed protection only if the populace submitted to Mongol rule and was obedient to it. Sources record massive destruction, terror and death if there was resistance, David Nicole notes in The Mongol Warlords, terror and mass extermination of anyone opposing them was a well-tested Mongol tactic. The alternative to submission was total war, if refused, Mongol leaders ordered the slaughter of populations. Such was the fate of resisting communities during the invasions of the Khwarezmid Empire, the success of Mongol tactics hinged on fear, to induce capitulation amongst enemy populations. From the perspective of modern theories of international relations, Quester suggests that, the Mongols frequently faced states with armies and resources greater than their own. Furthermore, a nation was more desirable than a sacked one. The reputation of guaranteed wholesale enactment on those who fought them was also the reason why the Mongols could hold vast territories long after their main force had moved on. Even if the tumens were hundreds or thousands of miles away, the linchpin of Mongol success was the widespread perception amongst their enemies that they were facing an insurmountable juggernaut that could only be placated by surrender. The Mongols may have counted on reports of horrifying massacres and torture to terrify their foes, the goal was to convince all-and-sundry that the costs of surrendering were not nearly onerous enough to risk an un-winnable war, given the guarantee of complete annihilation if they lost. As Mongol conquest spread, this form of psychological warfare proved effective at suppressing resistance to Mongol rule, there were tales of lone Mongol soldiers riding into surrendered villages and executing peasants at random as a test of loyalty. It was widely known that an act of resistance would bring the entire Mongol army down on a town to obliterate its occupants. Thus they ensured obedience through fear, peasants frequently appear to have joined the troops or readily accepted their demands. The majority of kingdoms resisting Mongol conquest were taken by force, only skilled engineers, the aim was to spread terror to others
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Mongol military tactics and organization
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The Mongol military tactics and organization enabled the Mongol Empire to conquer nearly all of continental Asia, the Middle East and parts of eastern Europe. The original foundation of that system was an extension of the lifestyle of the Mongols. Other elements were invented by Genghis Khan, his generals, technologies useful to attack fortifications were adapted from other cultures, and foreign technical experts integrated into the command structures. For the larger part of the 13th century, the Mongols lost only a few battles using that system, in many cases, they won against significantly larger opposing armies. Their first defeat in the West came in 1223 at the Battle of Samara Bend by the hands of the Volga Bulgars. The second one was at the Battle of Ain Jalut in 1260, against the first army, but again they would return over 40 years later and defeat the Egyptian Mamluks at the Battle of Wadi al-Khazandar in 1299 and annex Syria, Palestine as well as Gaza. The Mongols suffered defeats in attempted invasions of Vietnam and Japan and they hold them in the greatest reverence and never tell them a lie. Army delegates were either by their blood association of the Khan family or by military-related meritocracy. Each delegate received responsibility and their titles, Transfers between units were forbidden. The leaders on each level had significant license to execute their orders in the way they considered best, individual soldiers were responsible for their equipment, weapons, and up to five mounts, although they fought as part of a unit. Their families and herds would accompany them on foreign expeditions, above all units, there existed an elite force called Kheshig. They functioned as imperial guard of the Mongol Empire as well as a ground for potential young officers. Each Mongol soldier typically maintained 3 or 4 horses, changing horses often allowed them to travel at high speed for days without stopping or wearing out the animals. Their ability to live off the land, and in extreme situations off their animals, in some cases, as during the invasion of Hungary in early 1241, they covered up to 100 miles per day, which was unheard of by other armies of the time. To avoid the deadly hail of missiles, enemies would spread out, or seek cover, breaking up their formations. Likewise, when they packed themselves together, into dense square or phalanx style formations, once the enemy was deemed sufficiently weakened, the noyans would give the order. The drums would beat and the signal wave, telling the lancers to begin their charge. Often, the devastation of the arrows was enough to rout an enemy, so the lancers were only needed to help pursue, at the Battle of Mohi, the Mongols left open a gap in their ranks, luring the Hungarians into retreating through it
