Rise of the Mongols

The geography of the Steppe provided important routes for travel and trade. The flat, grassy lands provided a route between asia and europe, where horses, camels, and donkeys traveled through for thousands of years. During the 13th century, the mongol- lead by Genghis Khan couqured most of europe with his expert horseman. He conquered everywhere from what is now mongolia, china, central asia, and the lands around the Caspian Sea; taking over approximately 24,000,000 square kilometers. Living on the steppe, it was priority to be tough and rugged people to survive; the learned from a young age (2 or 3) to use a bow and arrow to hunt and kill, Creating future warriors when they were older. the mongols survived by living a nomadic lifestyle- never staying completely dormant and moving around a lot: living in Yurts which they could pack up efficiently and more along to the next area. This is why they were able to conquer so much land in  a short period of time. Relying on their animals, pastorialsim, from substance: drinking their blood, milk, and eating their meat. the steppe provided the grassy plains for the animals to graze, hence why this type of living worked to well for them.

The most important Mongolian Khan was Genghis Khan. he was very loyal to his army. a He became so powerfulby uniting the nomadic tribes into one giant clan; after that, he started the Mongol invasions, which led to him conquering most of Eurasia. he used tactics to conquer. He had his own laws called Yasa, it was written in the Uighur script that he had introduced as the written language to the mongols. These laws included respecting elders and even slaves. You were to share your food with the poor and look after them. The laws were written on scrolls that were bound in volumes and kept hidden in secret archives to which only the supreme ruler and his closest associates were allowed access to.  The key to Mongol superiority in battle, was their success in peace. All religions and cultures were allowed to exist. The Mongols did not try to impose their values on the people they conquered. Instead, they learned from everyone. It made them smarter, better in battle,and much more effective in governing.

The Mongol invasion of China, exposed them to advanced technology and engineering skills. It was with Chinese technology that the Mongols thrust across Europe and into the Middle East. Gunpowder, catapults and other siege machines, along with Chinese engineers and laborers who could build a bridge across a wide river literally overnight. They adapted their sword making to the stronger steel. they Mongols used a thick silk garment which caused the arrows to literally slide off the silk. This was an early form of bullet proof vest, because the arrows would not pierce the silk. Even if the arrow entered the body they could pull it out since the silk also entered the wound and could be extracted without damaging tissue or leaving behind infectious bacteria.