Mongolian Empire

The Mongolian empire started in the 19th century and grew to become the largest empire of the time. The Mongolian empire expanded with time because of various factors, uniting people in various places in the 14th century and its impact was felt not only in Eurasia but also in other various parts of the world. The empire changed the region it ruled in a great way, and its effects are felt up to date. However, the empire later collapsed. The aim of this paper is to discuss the various factors that facilitated the growth of the empire and why it finally came to collapse.

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The Mongolian empire grew because of a charismatic leader, Temujin, who was able to unify all the tribes in Mongolia. Coming from a major tribe in Mongolia, he had an advantage over the other people who wanted leadership. After clashing with other tribes, he finally won and brought unity among the tribes hence creating a strong army that was able to ensure security (Weatherford, 2004). Since the army was loyal to Temujin, it was possible to expand the empire territory hence make the empire even more influential. The army ensured that there was a period of sustained peace in Mongolia.

The strong army that the Mongolian empire had invaded China and Central Asian and won the battle in these areas. This enabled the leader of the empire to expand the territory he ruled and as more leaders in the region became loyal to him for protecting, the empire continued to grow (Weatherford, 2004). This means that the strong army that the leader had was a major tool that facilitated the growth of the empire.

The economic activities in Mongolia were a great support for the empire. The large empire engaged in various trade activities with exchange taking place in the various cities that were already captured by the Empire. The exchange of goods encouraged people in the empire to work even harder to produce goods and then exchange them. The people were busy in economic activities and had no time to engage in rebellious activities, and this gave room for the empire to grow even further (Burbank, 2010). Items such as gun powder were traded as well as agricultural products.

The Mongolians loved knowledge, and this is why there were various inventions. Things like gun powder were invented in the period, and the empire benefited from such items because they were able to boost their security. The ideas also spread quickly through the merchants who traveled from one city to the other (Weatherford, 2004). The spread of knowledge improved the lives of people because it made their work even easier. Inventions help mechanize activities such as farming and this improved productivity of individuals.

The religious changes that occurred in the empire were also a key factor that facilitated the growth of the empire. Initially, the people in Mongolia were mainly Christians. With time, a cult emerged where people believed that Chinggis Khan was a demi-god. This earned the leader a lot of respect and helped legitimize his leadership such that there was no resistance to his rule. The princes who were born from his lineage also were recognized as legitimate leaders and this further facilitated the rule of Mongolia by one family without resistance (Burbank, 2010). With time, the Mongolians converted to Islam, and this unity of religion also brought greater peace to the region hence the continued existence of the empire.

Though the empire was successful for a long time, there are events that aroused that led to its collapse. First, there were disputes over succession in the empire both at the political level as well as at the army ranks. These conflicts divided the army such that the objectives of capturing new regions and making them part of Mongolia became difficult. Some of the attacks the army engaged in were lost. These disputes initiated disunity in the empire which would later lead to its collapse.

Conflicts between the Muslims and the Christians were also another factor that facilitated the fall of the empire. As the hostilities between the two groups increased, the peace that was a key pillar in the Mongolian empire was under threat, and when the empire engaged in external attacks, some groups would claim that people of their religion were being attacked, and this made such attacks inefficiently (Burbank, 2010).

There were civil wars that resulted from the struggle for power in the Mongol empire. Brothers and cousins to the ruling family attacked each other and even went to the extent of killing each other. Such wars further affected the empire because it became difficult to protect the empire and expand it with a divided army. The fights increased the hatred between people in the empire, and this weakened the empire further.

As the empire disintegrated and dynasties emerged that competed with each other, the Mongol empire was collapsing since there was no single leadership that would ever unite the empire again. The civil wars continued further creating more disunity among the people, and the final results were the collapse of the empire.

The Mongol empire is an empire that is recognized up to date for the changes it brought to the region it covered. Up to date, silk trade journeys are remembered for their contribution to the economic growth of Asia and parts of Europe. The trade developed during the Mongolian empire. The fact that there were many trade activities meant that the leaders in the empire would collect taxes and use them to create a strong army that protected the empire. The ability to unite people regardless of their tribe was another noble idea that worked to ensure that the large empire remained peaceful and focused on growing further. The love for knowledge facilitated good governance by the leaders in Mongolia.

The problem aroused when people in the ruling class became greedy with power and each aimed at taking over as a leader. This brought to an end the unity that had existed for a long period and the division of the army was another important factor that weakened the army. This meant the army would no longer pursue common objectives. While the large empire left a mark in the world, it is interesting to realize that the size of the empire was so large that it was destined to fall. It was not possible for one leader to manage such a large empire that had been achieved through military actions. It was obvious that divisions would arise in family, religious groups, army ranks and tribes that would bring the empire to an end.

References

Burbank, J., & Cooper, F. (2010). Empires in world history: Power and the politics of difference. Princeton, N.J: Princeton University Press.

Weatherford, J. M. I. (2004). Genghis Khan and the making of the modern world. New York: Three Rivers Press.