•Multiple clans of pastoral nomads, N. of  the Gobi Desert

•Steppe areas, harsh life, helped shape culture

•Expert horsemen – hunting and warfare

•Surrounded by other tribes (Tatars, Merkits, Jurchen in N. China)

•Desired greater Silk Road access for wealth and luxury goods

•Creates a series of tribal alliances and defeats neighboring hostiles

•Focused on gaining power, often promoted nonfamily members to high ranking positions

•Ruthless (killed a stepbrother over food?) and focused on personal loyalty

•At a meeting called a Kuriltai, he was elected khan of all of Mongolia---

•“Genghis Khan” – ruler of all

•Reputation:  all who oppose him are executed, civilian casualties, etc.  - this precedes many of his conquests in the West as many kingdoms surrender before fighting begins.

•Known as the ‘Pax Mongolica’

•Capital at Karakorum (inner Mongolia)

•Used scholars and engineers from Islamic and Chinese Civilizations

•Builds infrastructure for city/empire improvements

•Socially tolerant empire

•Attempts to unite the written world of the empire using a common script from the Uyghur alphabet (fails)

•**Soldiers are charged with guarding the Silk Road—as a result of this it ushers in a Golden Age of trading along these land routes

•Special messenger forces to map terrain ahead of the army (improvements in cartography—can be used later for Silk Road travel and trade)

•Use of siege weapons (towers, catapults, etc)

•Use of expert riders to carry oral messages

•The Mongols also adapted or borrowed ideas from the Chinese for their governments ex. flying cash for transactions

•The Mongols also patronized artists and scientists in China.

•The destruction of Dar al’Islam and the weakening of the Seljuk Turks allowed the Ottoman Turks to move into the Middle East.

•Russia was cut off from European contact.  Princes from Moscow led the final revolt against the Mongols, and that city became the new Russian capital