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AMERICAN PUBLIC UNIVERSITY SYSTEM

Charles Town, West Virginia

Mongol Empire and International Trade System

Submitted by

Elizabeth Ping

Submitted to the Department of History

November 21, 2010

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During the thirteenth century, the Mongol Empire dominated Eurasia through the

conquests of Genghis Khan, and victories over vast regions of people and land allowed for

the establishment of trade routes across great distances. This merger of lands permitted the

beginning of trade between the oriental and occidental; therefore, the Mongol Empire

became an agent for the unprecedented exchange of ideas, goods, and political gestures on an

international scale. There were multiple factors that led the Mongols to connect the great

nations of the time; the rise and impact of the Mongol Empire resulted from trade routes

between contemporary great civilizations emerging as a result of widespread military

conquests; desire for luxury trade items, knowledge, and technology; unified rule; and female

participation in trade concerns.

Superiority in Military Conquests

The opening of trade would not have been possible without the acquisition of new

territories. These new regions were conquered by the prowess of the Mongol Empire’s

military machine, willingness to adopt new advanced weaponry, and non-negotiating

political attitude. When invading new lands, the Mongols employed a variety of methods to

overcome their enemies, including feigned fright, surprise, and encirclement, after using

scouts and spies to gain intelligence on the enemy.1 For warfare over the steppes, the

Mongols had excellent equestrian and archery abilities that allowed them to overcome armies

of greater numbers, and the warriors would fire on their enemy from a distance before

advancing. After expending five dozen or fewer arrows, the Mongolian army would gallop

into the opposition while utilizing swords, lances, javelins, and mace in defense. They

employed the latest advancements in siege warfare to defeat larger cities. In particular, the

1
Kathy Sammis, Focus on World History, 45.
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Mongols demolished fortifications such as those in Iran and Iraq by employing flaming

arrows and projectiles launched from catapults initially designed by the Chinese.2

Terror tactics were used to spread fear and submission to Mongol rule.3 Those who

resisted the Mongol invasion often faced starvation or slaughter, and stories of Mongol

atrocities such as the bloodshed that occurred in Balkh in northern Afghanistan persuaded

enemies that the Mongols should be taken seriously. Although thousands died during the

military campaigns, the leadership provided by Genghis Khan inspired discipline and

organization in the Mongol army.4 Ultimately, these feelings would transform into a sense of

national identity based on the new unified Mongolian rule.

Desire for Luxury Items and Knowledge

The Mongols valued luxury items, fueling their desire to trade with neighboring

peoples. Likewise, Mongolia’s neighbors desired exotic items that had been unavailable as a

result of geographical and political constraints. New Mongolian laws prohibited harm to

travelers, under penalty of death, during their journeys to trading posts in Mongol-ruled

territories, encouraging Venetian merchants to journey along what came to be known as the

Silk Road.5 Any surplus silk the Mongols needed for clothing, wall hangings, and furnishings

was acquired from Europe and the Middle East by trade. In addition to fine silks, the

Mongols coveted artistic motifs from Japan and Tibet.6 Porcelain was prized and later

influenced Islamic cultural tastes.7 Furthermore, the desire for porcelain generated maritime

trade in the Indian Ocean and western Pacific. Tea, strongly associated with the booming

2
Bulliet et al., Earth and Its Peoples, 378.
3
Ibid., 378.
4
Sammis, Focus on World History, 47.
5
Zelenyj, Marco Polo, 7.
6
Bulliet et al., Earth and Its Peoples, 378.
7
Liu, Silk Road in World History, 110.
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porcelain trade, nearly outstripped the silk trade in the Song Empire, Japan, and Middle East.

Therefore, exchange between the oriental and occidental became nearly unlimited. The

Mongol Empire benefited from Persian gifts of leopards, camels, gyrfalcons, and precious

jewels.8 Similarly, everyone benefited from widespread trade in spices, lapis lazuli, cotton,

pearls, and perfume.9

In addition to extravagant items, the Mongols desired knowledge in the areas of

medicine, agriculture, religion, astronomy, craftsmanship, and technology. As such, scrolls

and books on medicine and agriculture were transported to and from the Middle East and

China.10 As these exchanges became more common, Middle Eastern pharmaceutical practices

began in China, and medical encyclopedias were translated into Chinese. Artisans and

specialists in various fields were spared from death and relocated to areas where they could

produce goods locally so the Mongols could more efficiently reap the benefits of conquest.

Likewise, curiosity about different religions allowed the migration of Islam and Buddhism

into the Middle East and China. Even Christianity took hold in the Orient since European

Christians saw the Mongolian population as an opportunity to evangelize and ultimately

create even greater opposition to Muslims who were rapidly gaining power.11

Unified Rule

At its height in 1265, the Mongolian Empire encompassed the khans of the Golden

Horde of Russia, the Jagadai domains in Central Asia, and the II-khans in Iran.12 Though the

Mongolian armies initially caused great destruction and chaos throughout the land, unified

8
Lane, Genghis Khan, 87.
9
Zelenyj, Marco Polo, 7-11.
10
Lane, Genghis Khan, 87.
11
Rosenwein, Short History, 265.
12
Bulliet et al., Earth and Its Peoples, 377.
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Mongol rule created stability that generated the peace necessary for safe trade.13 The freedom

to practice religion and maintain relationships among families also contributed to the

constancy that produced an environment for successful trade. As such, the Mongolian

Empire’s resources were often combined by wealthy families, and alliances were

strengthened through arranged marriages. Women were particularly important in the

promulgation of trade, and some married women were in charge of equipping wagons for

transportation of goods, and wealthy Mongols were known to have upward of two hundred

wagons holding chests for trade.

With the vastly expanded empire, unification allowed for standardization of trade

rules and taxation. To allow outside traders access to goods, the Mongolians developed one

of the world’s first passports, called the peisa (i.e., sign or card in Chinese). They extended

postal relay stations to expedite the transmission of mail, officials, military, and foreign

guests. To stimulate trade, the Mongols elevated the class of a trader to that of an ortagh,

who acted as a businessman or merchant to allied nations and represented a wealthy Mongol.

They typically enjoyed greatly reduced tax rates and respect, leading to increased trade and

collaboration between merchants.

Although the new trade exchange between the orient and the outside world

transformed the Mongolian Empire into a multicultural society, there were untoward

consequences of the increased traffic. The spread of disease became the most significant

consequence of Mongolia’s creation of one of the world’s most efficient trading frameworks

as infection was carried from location to location and disseminated the exposed populations.

It has even been postulated that bubonic plague or Black Death originated from Mongolian

13
Sammis, Focus on World History, 47.
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rodents hosting the fleas that carried the disease from the Crimean Sea.14 However, the

legacy of unified Mongolian rule through military conquest and desire for new goods,

wealth, and technologies ultimately reduced cultural isolation as tales of people such as

Marco Polo reached Europe.15 Thereby, world history became irrevocably changed by the

rise of the Mongolian Empire and opening of international trade routes.

14
Burgan, Empire of Mongols, 52.
15
Ibid., 15.
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Bibliography

Bulliet, Richard, Pamela Crossley, Daniel Headrick, Steven Hirsch, and Lyman Johnson.
The

Earth and Its Peoples: A Global History to 1550. Boston: Houghton Mifflin,
2009.

Burgan, Michael. Empire of Mongols. New York: Shoreline, 2005.

Lane, George. Genghis Khan and Mongol Rule. Indianapolis, IN: Hackett, 2004.

Liu, Xinru. The Silk Road in World History. New York: Oxford University Press, 2010.

Rosenwein, H. Barbara. A Short History of the Middle Ages. Toronto: University

of Toronto, 2009.

Sammis, Kathy. Focus on World History: The Era of Expanding Global Connections
1000-1500

Portland, ME: Walch, 2002.

Twitchett, Denis, and Herbert Franke. The Cambridge History of China: Alien Regimes
and

Border States. New York: Cambridge University Press, 1994.

Weatherford, Jack. The Secret of the Mongol Queens: How the Daughters of Genghis
Khan

Rescued His Empire. New York: Crown, 2010.

Zelenyj, Alexander. Marco Polo: Overland to China. New York: Crabtree, 2006.