Page 1 of 27 123456789101126 ... LastLast
Results 1 to 20 of 536

Thread: FACTION: The Mongol Empire

  1. #1
    Indefinitely Banned
    Join Date
    Jun 2006
    Location
    Calgary, Canada
    Posts
    13,967

    Default FACTION: The Mongol Empire

    all discussion and progress of this faction goes here


    DESCRIPTION

    UNITS

    SYMBOL AND BANNERS

    NAMES

  2. #2
    The Mongol's Avatar Primicerius
    Join Date
    Apr 2006
    Location
    Canada
    Posts
    3,863

    Default Re: FACTION: The Mongol Empire

    Just throwing some unit ideas out here:

    Thunderbombers - Perhaps a better version of the Naffatun unique to the Mongol faction? It might have not been used widely but it would make for an interesting unit. It could replace Naffatun or you could keep the Naffatun along with it, they used them as well.

    Naffatun Catapults - I don't know if it's possible with the MTW2 engine but I'm curious because you can switch to flaming shot/cows. It would obviously be larger than the standard infantry Naptha bomb and could inflict some major damage. I don't know, maybe a little redundant because we already have the flaming shot.

    Korean Auxilaries - I mentioned this before but auxilaries were an important part of the Mongol army because of how spread out they were. It could be an interesting exotic unit for the Mongols. They don't necessarily have to be Korean, but I have a picture of them so that's helpful.

    Just thinking out loud here. I'm sure you'd rather work on the first priority factions right now but maybe something to think about for the future.

    I also found this list of 13th century Mongolian names if you're interested. http://www.laohats.com/Names%20from%...%20Mongols.htm

    I don't know if it's a respectable source or not but it looks decent enough.
    Last edited by The Mongol; March 24, 2007 at 05:18 PM.

  3. #3

    Default Re: FACTION: The Mongol Empire

    Include Tatar units.
    The law is reason free from passion - Aristotle.

    The end does NOT justify the means.

  4. #4

    Default Re: FACTION: The Mongol Empire

    Mirage, while this article mostly deals with the Mongols of China, it should give some info on names and titles:

    The Rise of the Mongol Empire

    The so-called "Mongols" are actually a heterogenous group of different nomad peoples of Turkic and "Tartar" origin. The word "Mongol" is derived from the name of a tribe called Manghol. Although the cultural stage of these ethnical groups was quite different, they had a common language that allowed a unification under the hand of the strongest clan. The strongest ethnics were the Naiman, Kereyid, Kirghiz, Oirat, Buryat, Merkit and Tatar, socially divided into aristocracy, common people, slaves and prisoners of war. Except animism, the higher religions of Nestorian Christianity, Manicheism and Buddhism had won followers among the "Mongols". The economical base of these nomad people was cattle-breeding, hunting and the trade with different Inner Asian kingdoms and the empires of China (Jin 金 and Southern Song 南宋). The unifier of the nomad peoples, Činggis Qan (Genghis Khan, Gengghis Khan, Chinggis Khan), was a vasall of the Kereyid people that was employed by the Jin rulers to subdue the Kereyid Tatars. By 1206 Chinggis could defeat his opponents and unified the Mongol people under his rule as Great Khan (qan, or qaghan, qaγan, Chin. kčhán (!) 可汗). Chinggis used the knowledge of the Uighurs - that had reached a higher cultural stage than the nomad steppe peoples - to crush the empires in northern China, the Western Xia (Xixia 西夏) and Jin. These empires were intended to play the role of an economic and military base for the intrusions into the rest of China. The capital of the early Mongol empire was Karakorum (Qara-qorum, Karakhorum, "Halahelin 哈剌和林", short: Helin 和林) at the Orkhon River. His campaigns against the Jin empire had begun in 1211, the Central Capital 中都 (modern Beijing) fell in 1215, an the Mongols installed a military government. In 1217 a large campaign, consisting of the armies of different tribes and peoples of the grasslands north of the Gobi desert (a region called mobei 漠北 "north of the desert"), Khitan, Jurchen and submittive Chinese was launched against the Central Plain 中原, the heartland of northern China, under the leadership of general Muqali (Mukhali, "Muhuali 木華黎"). The Mongols were also supported by members of the gentry of the Jin empire who saw their chance by breaking away from the Jin rulers, like Zhang Rou 張柔, Yan Shi 嚴實, Zhang Rong 張榮, Li Quan 李全 and his son Li Tan 李璮, and collaborated with the conquerors.
    A political balance between Persia and the new Mongol empire was not very easy, and some difficulties between these two empires lead to the first Mongol expedition to the west: northern Persia and southern Russia became part of a huge steppe empire.
    Chinggis died in 1227 just when the Tangut empire of Western Xia had submitted to the Great Khan.

    Chinggis' son Öködei (Ögedei, "Wokuotai 窩闊台"), elected Great Khan during the state assembly, khuriltai ("hulitai 忽里台"), in 1229, started to fulfill the left heritage of the first Great Khan: the conquest of China. In three great armies, the Mongols advanced, Öködei himself commanding the center line, Temüge-otčigin ("Tiemuge Wochijin" 鐵木哥斡赤斤") commanding the eastern line, and Tölüi (Tolui, "Tuolei 拖雷") the right army, entering Jin territory from the Han River 漢水 valley. The Mongol armies united, but general Subotai ("Subutai 速不台") was not able to take the besieged Jin capital Kaifeng 開封 (Bianliang 汴梁, modern Kaifeng/Henan). Only in the next year, when Emperor Jin Aizong 金哀宗 had fled, the capital fell by treason. The Mongols then besieged the city of Caizhou 蔡州 (modern Xincai 新蔡/Henan) where the emperor had fled to, and sent to the Southern Song court with the proposal to attack the last Jin bastion in a concertated campaign. Eventually, the Song general Meng Gong 孟珙 fielded his army, marched north and helped the Mongols to break the fortress in early 1234. Shortly before, Mongol armies had conquered the Jin satellite state of Dongzhen 東真 and a great part of Korea. Chinggis' grandson Batu ("Badu 拔都"; by the Europeans called "Bathy rex Tartarorum") conquered a great part of the Russian principalities, the Turk Kipchaks and the Volga and Kama Bulgars, and the Mongol hords terrified the eastern European states. Only shortly after the destruction of the Jin empire, Öködei sent his sons "Kuochu 闊出" and "Kuoduan 闊端" to begin with the conquest of Song China - ally of yesteray, enemy of today. Öködei had a Khitan advisor named Yelü Chucai 耶律楚材 that compelled the Great Khan to make use of the traditional Chinese taxation method in northern China. Instead of plundering and enslaving the peasantry, argumented Yelü Chucai, a regular taxation would bring much more profit in the long run. The local adminitration in northern China - and later in the south - was taken over whithout making personal changes, but every Chinese or Jurchen official was superseded by a Mongol or Central Asian controller named daruhachi ("daluhuachi 達魯花赤"). Household registers were retained and adjusted in 1235, as base for the taxation. To make adminitration easier, five households were obliged to pay a collective cloth material tax (wuhu si 五戶絲). For their merit during the conquest, the Mongol nobility, princes and chieftains, were rewarded with large fiefs in the north China plain. The Central Asian merchants of Turkic, Uighur or Persian origin were given special rights and monopolies in the trade. Furthermore, they were given the exclusive right to collect taxes and to monopolize important branches of the economy and sales revenues. Generals or potentates of the Jin empire who quickly submitted to the Mongols and joined their cause were rewarded with the title of hereditary lord (shihou 世侯).
    The sudden death of Öködei in 1241 forced the Mongol troops to withdraw for the election of the new khan, that eventually should be Güyük ("Guiyou 貴由"), Öködei's son, installed in 1246. Between 1241 and 1246 Khan Widow Naimaĵin Töregene ("Naimazhen Tuoliegena 乃馬真脫列哥那") acted as regent of the Mongol homeland. Güyük's reign experienced the first split of the great Mongol empire, as Batu, khan of the Golden Horde in the far west, was no friend of him. Only Gügük's sudden death in 1248 could prevent a military confrontation between Mongols and Mongols. Oγul Qaimiš ("Wowuli Haimishi 斡兀立海迷失"), widow of Gügük, took over regency until the new Great Khan should be elected. Batu proposed to elect the Möngke (Mongka; "Mengge 蒙哥"), son of Tolui, youngest son of Chinggis, and forced his election during a one-sided state assembly in that the supporters of the Čagatai and Öködei lines did not participate. Only in 1251, after the other Chingisids, sons and grandsons, had resisted the second time to participate in an election of Möngke, he made himself Great Khan. Möngke was not willing to tolerate differences among the descendent lines of Chinggis. He killed Oγul Qaimiš and Gükük's adherents Čingqai ("Zhenhai 鎮海") and Elĵigidei ("Yelizhijidai 野里知吉帶") and ordered Güyük's son "Shiliemen" 失烈門 to the western front. While Möngke tried to perform an effective central government of the vast empire, his brothers took over the mililtary tasks: Hülagü ("Xüliewu 旭烈兀") conquered Persia, the relations to China were laid in the hands of Möngke's younger brother Khubilai (Qubilai, "Hubilie 忽必烈"). In 1252 a kind of household registration within the great Mongol empire was undertaken.


    Khubilai Khan, the Conquest of China, and the Foundation of the Yuan Dynasty

    It was a great difference for the Mongols to erect a Khanate on a vast territory in the scarcely populated areas of Inner Asia, Persia or southern Russia, or to control a densely populated empire with a highly sophisticated administration and culture. Immediately after being named ruler of the region of the former Jin empire Khubilai invited Khitan, Jurchen and Chinese scholar officials to advise him how to govern his realm: Liu Binzhong 劉秉忠, Zhang Wenqian 張文謙, Lian Xixian 廉希憲, Yao Shu 姚樞, Xu Heng 許衡, and Shi Tianze 史天澤 proposed to install regular pacification commissions (anfusi 安撫司) and military commissions (jinglüeshi 經略司) as administration units and to propagate the creation of military colonies (tuntian 屯田) as germs for the reconstruction of the economy. Chinese, Khitan or Jurchen advisors were essential for Khubilai's style of governing China. But this Mongol prince and eventual Great Khan had always to take a balance between the interests of the Mongol nobility and of his own empire. When the Chinese governor Li Tan rebelled against him in 1262, Khubilai sacrified almost all Chinese advisors in higher positions and replaced them with Persians and Uighurs.


    Khubilai becomes Great Khan

    But the orders of the Great Khan Möngke were to conquer Dali 大理, an empire in the southwestern region of Yunnan from where it would be possible to destroy Song China. After Khubilai had conquered - but not destroyed - the capital of Dali the new territory was left to general Uriyangqadai ("Ulianghedai 兀良合台") for further consolidation, and Khubilai headed to the north to observe the civil government of China's north. He had constructed a Chinese-style palace in his "Upper Capital" (Shangdu 上都) Kaiping 開平 (modern Duolun 多倫/Inner Mongolia; the "Xanadu" of Western reports). Great Khan Möngke meanwhile had learned that Khubilai was able to exploit great ressources from China, and being envious of his success, Möngke left the conquest of Southern Song to other generals like Alamdar ("Alandar 阿藍答兒") and "Tachar 塔察兒" that should conquer the region of the Han River west to the Huai River 淮水 region. Möngke himself commanded an army to conquer the rest of Sichuan. But the conquest of Sichuan proved far more complicated than expected because the Chinese governor resisted the Mongol assaults for long months in the fortress of Diaoyucheng 釣魚城. The eastern Mongol troops did neither smoothly advance, and Möngke could not but hand over command to the experienced Khubilai in 1258. He reorganized the Mongol army, installed the Chinese Yang Weizhong 楊惟中 and Hao Jing 郝經 as provisory governors and forbade his troops looting and marauding. In the same moment Mönkge died during the siege of Diaoyucheng. Neglecting the critical situation of this moment, Khubilai did not interrupt his campaigning and the duty to finish his task. Ariq-Böke (Arigh Böke, "Alibuge 阿里不哥"), his brother, who commanded the troops in Mongolia, saw his chance to assume the powerful throne of the Great Khan. Following the advice of Hao Jing, Khubilai negotiated a cease-fire with the Song commander Jia Sidao 賈似道 and hurried to the national assembly in Mongolia.
    In 1260 Khubilai was elected Great Khan by his own state assembly and simultaneously proclaimed a Chinese reign motto (Zhongtong 中統 "Well-balanced government") as emperor of China. His empire was governed through a traditional secretariate (zhongshusheng 中書省), the different regions of China were governed through "en route" branch secretariates (xing zhongshusheng 行中書省), units whose abbreviation should later become the term for "province" (sheng 省).


    The war with Ariq-Böke

    But Khubilai was not safe yet on the throne of the Mongol empire. Ariq-Böke had himself proclaimed Great Khan and was supported by the Mongol troops standing in China's west (modern Gansu, Shaanxi and Sichuan). To safe title and empire, Khubilai fielded his troops himself to engage in a protracted war among brothers. Most campaigns and battles took place far in the west and destroyed the territory and economic base of the Ili khanate. Only in 1264 Ariq-Böke submitted to the stonger khan in the east. Khubilai was accepted as the Great Khan, but the western khanates began to indulge in a fratricidal war that should end the unity of the Mongol world. Khubilai and his descendants became rulers of China and Mongolia. Under the influence of Chinese and Jurchen officials, Khubilai went on to regularize the administration of China's north without depriving the Mongol nobility of their privileges. Yanjing 燕京 (modern Beijing) became "Central Capital" (Zhongdu 中都), and an imperial palace was constructed on the traces of the old buildings. In 1271 Khubilai proclaimed the Yuan Dynasty 元, the Central Capital was made main capital with the title of "Great Capital" (Dadu 大都), in Mongolian-Turkic "Khanbalik" ("City of the Khan").

    The conquest of Southern Song

    The conquest of southern China with the Southern Song empire proved to be far mor prolonged and complicated than expected. The campaign began in 1268 with the siege of the double-city Xiangyang-Fancheng (modern Xiangfan 襄樊/Hubei) by the generals Aĵu ("Azhu 阿朮") and Liu Zheng 劉整, a defector from the Song. Only in 1274 the stubbornly defended fortress capitulated and the way to southern China was open. General Bayan ("Boyan 伯顏") marched down the Han River to the Yangtse valley, Liu Zheng and Dong Wenbing 董文炳 started to attack Song China in the Huai River region. Although there are also many examples of heroic Song commanders withstanding the assaults of the Mongol marine troops, there were many troops that capitulated without fighting. The actual powerholder of the Song empire, Jia Sidao, resisted the intruding Mongol troops only half-hearted. In 1275 the Song emperor Song Gongdi 宋恭帝 expressed his capitulation after the capital Lin'an 臨安 (modern Hangzhou 杭州/Zhejiang) was pocketed. In 1279 the conquest was ended, and China was reunited for the first time since the end of the 9th century - although by a dynasty founded by a foreign conquerer.
    The conquests of Khubilai were not yet ended, but within China, a time of consolidation began.

    Overseas expansion

    Two times, in 1274 and1281 Khubilai tried to invade Japan, but his flots were repelled by typhoons - by the Japanese interpreted as "Divine Winds" (kamikaze 神風). 1282 a flotilla under general Söghetei ("Suodu 唆都") was sent out to conquer Champa ("Zhancheng" 占城; middle part of modern Vietnam), two years later Prince "Tuohuan 脫歡" was sent out to conquer Annam 安南 (northern Vietnam). In the same period, Mongol troops were fielded from Yunnan to conquer the Burmanese state of Bagan ("Bugan 蒲甘") and devastated this holy city thoroughly. Mongol flotillas were event sent out to conquer Java ("Zhuawa" 爪哇), an undertaking that was determined to failure. So far the expansion politics of the early Yuan period.
    At home, in China, the situation seemed to be quite calm after the reunification of Chinese territory. Indeed, Khubilai invested much energy in the establishment of an effective government and administration in Chinese style that was better suited.


    The dissolution of the Great Khanate

    Marxist historians often overstress the significance of further wars of resistance against the Mongol government or - in their eyes - occupation. Much of these popular uprisings in the 1280es were mere small-scale rebellions against high taxation, like the rebellions of Huang Hua 黃華 and Zhong Mingliang 鐘明亮. Such peasant uprisings were quite "normal" through all ages of Chinese history and were almost naturally occurring through the Yuan period. Of much further consequence were the expansion wars to Japan and the south that imposed an enormous burdon on the state treasury, and the wars against the other Mongol khanates (ulus "horde", "wulusi 兀魯思") who rebelled against the overlordship of Khubilai. Qaidu ("Haidu 海都") from the Öködei Ulus, and Boraq ("Bala 八剌") from the Čaqadai Ulus united in a front against the Great Khan in 1276, inmidst Khubilai's campaigns against Southern Song. This second threat from Mongol khanates imposed upon Khubilai the question whether he was willing and able to control all khanates or to reduce his power to the rich region of China. In the struggles and war campaigns against his western neighbors the Chinese khan was not able to extend his control over Tarim basin that was mostly inhabited by Uighurs ("Weiwuer 畏兀兒"), descendants of Turkic tribes that had long been accustomed with diplomacy, communication and trade between east and west. But the Yuan government had learned much from these Central Asian specialists and employed many Uighurs and other Moslems within their bureaucray.

    Governing China and the Chinese


    At the same time, he had to appease the wishes of the Mongol nobility for land and wealth that was promised to them with the begin of all military undertakings in Mongolia. The Mongols installed translation offices, and although they had to rely on Chinese people for administration, their deep distrust in their new subjects lead to the decision that high offices could only be appointed with Mongols, and that tax administration could only be laid in the hands of Moslems - allies of the Mongols. The Mongol chieftains could be pursued not to use the Chinese soil as a prairie ground for their horses as they had intended to do during the first years of the conquest of the Jin empire. But Mongol rule exerted a deep discrimination among different ethnic groups of the Mongol empire - at least theoretically. The population was classified in occupational ranks or levels based on a combination of ethnic and political considerations. The highest rank was appointed to the Mongols, the next to their allies and Non-Chinese from Inner Asia (called semuren 色目人 "special people"), the third rank was filled by the inhabitants of north China including the Khitans and Jurchens (called hanren 漢人 "Han people", the Mongols called the Jurchen "Jürched"), and at the lowest level were the south Chinese (called nanzi 南子 "southlings" or manzi 蠻子 "barbarians"). This discrimination was the basis for taxation and penal law, but also vice versa for privileges granted to the members of the higher ranks. Mixed marriages were forbidden, promotion inside the social system was in theory impossible. While Chinese historians often blamed the Mongols for exerting a government of exploitation where the Chinese, especially in the south, were not seen as much more than animals, scholarly research has made evident that in practice and especially on the local level all restrictions imposed upon the whole population - Mongols, Uighurs, Jurchen, and Chinese - were not stringently practiceable. Thus, the senior co-incumbent office of the darughachi was often filled by Chinese and not, as law would expect, by Uighurs, Persians or Mongols. And the Mongols were not in total an illiterate, barbarious and ignorant of Chinese culture, but after a few generations, it became necessary that Mongol officials learned Chinese and took decisions in a cooperative way rather than by pure authority. And we shall see that at the end of the Yuan period, there were many Chinese warlords that fought for the Yuan Dynasty and against looters, bandits and rebels like Zhu Yuanzhang 朱元璋, eventual founder of the
    Ming 明.
    In 1294 Khubilai died without having nominated a heir - as he was not obliged to do according to Mongol law. His Chinese-style posthumous temple name is Yuan Shizu 元世祖.


    Mongol Rule over China

    After the death of Khubilai Khan the imperial court of Yuan was dominated by faction struggles among the Mongol nobility that sought to control the emperors. Khubilai had refrained from naming a successor, because according to steppe traditions it should be the Mongol nobility that should elect the new khan during a state assembly, a khuriltai. This custom should be a problem for the stability of the Yuan empire as the Chinese bureaucratic empire required the nomination of a heir. Nevertheless his grandson Temür, son of Prince Jingim ("Zhenjin" 真金), had obtained the seal of heir apparent and was backened by his mother Kököjin ("Kuokuozhen") and by merited officials of Khubilai, namely Üs Temür ("Yuxi Tiemu'r 玉昔鐵木耳"), Bayan ("Boyan 伯顏"), the Turk Bukhumu ("Buhumu 不忽木"), and Ölĵei ("Wanze 完澤") all experienced with the Chinese state bureaucracy and honored military leaders. These highly estimated persons could enforce the election of Temür against his opponent Kammala ("Ganmala 甘麻剌").

    Temür saw himself as successor (posthumous title Yuan Chengzong 元成宗, r. 1294-1307) and perpetuator of the will of his grandfather. Retaining the loyal ministers of his grandfather like Ölĵei, Bukhumu and later Harghasun ("Halahasun 哈剌哈孫"), Emperor Chengzong was dedicated to develop regular patterns of a peaceful Mongol rule over China. While Ölĵei and Harghasun were grand counsillors, Bukhumu as a well-educated Confucian scholar took over the task of censor-in-chief. Many other high post of the Yuan empire were filled with people of different origin, Chinese, Moslems and Mongols, in order to balance races and ideologies. But although many of these statesmen were guided by the Confucian principle - or rather by practicability - that the tax burden was to be held low, the Yuan state treasury was permanently plagued by deficits, caused by extremely high apanages to imperial princes, a blown-up bureaucracy with thousands of officials just being paid for doing nothing, and widespread corruption even among the highest state officials, Mongols like Chinese. Zheng Jiefu 鄭介夫 pointed out in his Taipingce 太平策 that jurisdicition took too long for final judgment. In that situation, much of the government expenditures had to be paid by the monetary (silver) reserves in the provinces. Soon Emperor Chengzong called off all preparations for further expansions to Annam (Vietnam) and Japan initiated by his grandfather. But he had to quell rebellions in the southwestern mountainous area, lead by tribal chieftains like Song Longji 宋隆濟 and the woman leader Shejie 蛇節. It took long months for the generals Liu Shen 劉深 and Liu Guojie 劉國傑 to supress these rebellions. In 1304 Emperor Chengzong concluded a peace treaty with Du'a ("Duwa 篤哇") and "Chabar 察八兒", khans of the Čaqadai Ulus and Öködei Ulus respectively. From now on, the western border of the Yuan empire was undisputed by territorials claims.

    Upon his death, the mighty Empress Dowager Bulukhan ("Buluhan 卜魯罕") and Akhutai ("Ahutai 阿忽台") planned to install Ananda (阿難答), but under the influence of Prince Tura ("Tula 禿剌") and Prince Yakhudu ("Yahudu 牙忽都") Harghasun as Right Counsillor-in-chief and the Chinese official Li Meng 李孟, acting as imperial tutor, preferred the princes Qaišan and Ayurbarwada who had in general better conditions for the throne. Ayurbarwada advanced to the capital, killed Akhutai and arrested the Empress Dowager in a coup d'état. It was thus the first time that a Mongol ruler came to the throne without really being elected on a khuriltai: the new khan was only reaffirmed by the Mongol nobility after his victory. The mother of the two princes, Targi ("Daji 答己"), made the elder, Qaišan, emperor under the condition that the younger, Ayurbarwada be his successor.
    Qaišan (posthumous title Yuan Wuzong 元武宗, r. 1307-1311) was a young man who was rather inclined to the traditional Mongol warrior arts than to bureaucratic administration. His retainers hoped to employ the wealth of China to reunite the Mongol world that was divided into four different khanates, but their ambitions were not to be fulfilled as Emperor Wuzong indulged in dissipative activities and wasted the wealthes of the state treasury. He even displayed disgrace for his supporter Harghasun and removed him from the Great Capital. The new emperor's disinterest in the conduction of appropriate government lead to a deep financial crisis. Highest official posts were not only filled with Wuzong's retainers he had brought with him from Mongolia; he even bestowed titles and posts to smallest charges of his entourage. Administrative matters bypassed the Chinese bureaucratic channels and were forwarded by his private court attendants. The state treasure suffered extreme deficits through these practices, and in this financial crisis the Uighur official Toghtō ("Tuotuo" 脫脫) proposed to reintroduce the department of state affairs (shangshusheng 尚書省) that was determined to organise fiscal reform. New paper money bills and two new coins were issued, and silver money was taken out of the circulation. Further, the prices on salt licences were lifted, liquor production licences were introduced, tax debts were recollected, and in some areas a tax surcharge was introduced, and the quota for grain being shipped to the state granaries was raised. Tax collectors obtained a commission in case of high collections. But instead of reducing expenditures, the department only looked for new sources of income. In the minds of the population, these new kind of taxation and the resulting inflation had already a bad image from the time of Khubilai, and so many high offials contradicted the introduction of these measures. The distastrous fiscal policy of Emperor Wuzong's ministers like "Baoba 保八", Yue Shi 樂 實 and "Sanbaonu 三寶奴" and natural calamities aggravated the living situation of vast parts of the population. Anyway, these reforms were nullified after Emperor Wuzong's early death.

    Emperor Wuzong left the throne to his younger brother Ayurbarwada (posthumous title Yuan Renzong 元仁宗, r. 1311-1320). Emperor Renzong was the best educated ruler among the Mongols. Through the guidance of his tutor Li Meng 李孟 he was able to study the Confucian classics as well as Buddhist sutras, poetry, and assembled around him scholars, painters and calligraphers from China and Central Asia. Renzong decisively pursued politics of accomodation of Mongol rule to the Chinese bureaucratic and state ritual system. He first dismissed or even executed courtiers and retainers of his brother Emperor Wuzong, abolished the department of state affairs and the new coins and paper bills. He then established a state council staffed with experienced loyals of Mongol and Chinese origin, restored the state examination system that could give Chinese access to official career. Many of his highest officials were Chinese scholars, like Zhang Gui 張珪, Li Qian 李謙, Hao Tianting 郝天挺, Cheng Jufu 程鉅夫 and Liu Minzhong 劉敏中. Emperor Renzong selected scholars to be members of the state academies (Hanlin Academy 翰林院, Jixian Academy 集賢院, and the Guozixue School 國子學). This measure gave a chance for Chinese scholars to climb the ladder of official career, and at the same time gave impetus to Mongol and semu people to study Chinese thought. He also took care for the regularization of the darughachi system by which Chinese officials of all levels were controlled by Mongols who often successful cooperated with their Chinese conterpart in administrative means. The grand-counsillor Temüder's ("Tiemudier 鐵木迭兒") proposal to take the Mongol princes the right to install their own judges (jarghuchi) and darughachi met the harsh resistance of the Mongol nobility. Emperor Renzong intiated the compilation of a legal code, the Da Yuan tongzhi 大元通制, published 1323, and the Yuan dianzhang 元典章. The Confucian among the Mongol emperors did not only have translated Confucian classics and Chinese books on government (e.g. Zhenguan zhengyao 貞觀政要) and social behaviour into Mongolian, but had also compiled the agricultural work Nongsang jiyao 農桑輯要 "Essentials of agriculture and sericulture".
    Factional struggles at the court impeded reforms and even the right exertion of imperial power during the last years of Emperor Renzong's reign. The court was dominated by Empress Dowager Targi and Temüder who almost acted with dictatorial or tyrannical power. Although a faction around Li Meng, the Khitan Xiao Baizhu 蕭拜住 (Baiju), the Tangut Yang Dorji and the Önggüd Zhao Shiyan 趙世延 unveiled the corruption of Temüder, he was protected by the Empress Dowager. While the court at the Great Capital was bound by struggles between these groups, tax burdens lead to peasant upraisings like in 1315 by Cai Wujiu 蔡五九.
    Renzong left the throne to his son Šudibala (posthumous title Yuan Yingzong 元英宗, r. 1320-1323) who tried to free himself from the influence of the Grand Empress Dowager Targi and the tyrant counsillor-in-chief Temüder. Supported by Confucian scholars like Ke Jiusi 柯九思, he installed Baiju, descendant of the honored general Mukhali, as his Left Counsillor-in-chief and therewith won the support of large parts of the Mongolian aristocracy. But only after the death of Temüder and the emperor's grand mother, the retainers of the tyrant could be executed. Emperor Yingzong announced further steps in the sinification of governmental structures, especially in means of education of scholar-officials in the state academies. He also installed important Chinese scholars in highest state offices, like Zhang Gui, Wu Yuangui 吳元珪, Wang Yue 王約, Han Congyi 韓從益, Wu Cheng 吳澄, and "Bozhulu Chong" 孛朮魯翀, all of them serving as his advisors. Superfluous post should be abandoned, corruption should be fighted, and a corvée-assistance law was issued to relieve the corvée burden of the small peasants. Nevertheless, Emperor Yingzong also was an ardent adherent of Buddhism and spent huge sums for constructing Buddhist temples, like the Dazhaoxiao Temple xxx near the Great Capital. Moslems on the other side were somewhat repressed during his short reign. The tensions between the pro-reforming group and the traditional Mongol warrior elite aggravated and resulted in bloody fights at the court and the assassination of the emperor and his chancellor at Nanpo 南坡 by chief-censor Tegshi ("Tieshi 鐵失") who lead a group of people who had been protégés of Temüder and feared further purges. To his sideliners also belonged many Mongol princes like Esen Temür ("Yexian Tiemu'r 也先帖木兒") who had not been granted their annual apanages by Emperor Yingzong and felt their traditional privileges endangered by the centralisation and bureaucratisation undertaken by Emperor Renzong and his son Yingzong.
    For a decade, the Yuan court should find no peace and was bound to be a battlefield of the pro-Mongol and the pro-China factions. The new ruler Yesun Temür (posthumously called the Taiding Emperor 元泰定皇帝, r. 1323-1328) tried to punish the assassinators of the late emperor - although the belonged to the pro-Mongol group himself and had probably stimulated the assassinators' group. Now, Tegshi and Esen Temür were executed, others were banished, a coup that legitimated the succession of Yesun Temür. The new emperor was quite the contrary of the two literate and educated rulers he followed. The Taiding Emperor had spent his life in the steppe and brought retainers with him that now filled the posts of the central government, including Mongols and semu people like the Moslem Daula Shāh ("Daolasha 倒剌沙"). Almost none of these men had a deeper understanding of Chinese culture. The Chinese scholars' influence on government was now very limited. Yesun Temür's policy was reconciliatorious, he compensated the relatives of the victims of Temüder and the Nanpo coup and granted high apanages and amnesty to the other Mongol princes to obtain their loyalty. He did not only patronage Islam and Buddhism but also showed reverence to Confucius and sponsored colloquia about the Confucian classics.
    The Taiding Emperor died unexpectedly, and El Temür ("Yan Tiemu'er 燕鐵木兒") who was in control of the imperial kesig guards (quexue 怯薛), took his chance to welcome Tuγ Temür as the new emperor (posthumous title Yuan Wenzong 元文宗, r. 1328; 1329-1331). At the same time Prince Ongchan ("Wangchan 王禪") and grand-councillor Daula Shāh proclaimed Aragibag as emperor (posthumously called the Infant Tianshun Emperor 幼主天順皇帝, r. 1328) in the Upper Capital. Tuγ Temür, emperor in the Great Capital, invited his older brother Qošila to mount the throne. In this situation of inner war, the Great Capital finally fell into the hands of the supporters of Tuγ Temür and his brother, and Qošila was installed as the new emperor (posthumous title Yuan Mingzong 元明宗, r. 1329). It took the rebel generals Temür Bukha ("Tiemu'r Buhua 帖木兒不花") and Örlüg Temür ("Yueli Tiemu'r 躍里帖木兒") one month to conquer the Upper Capital and to execute Arigibag's ministers; the infant emperor himself had vanished. Only in March 1332 the last followers of Yesun Temür's line, Prince Tügel ("Tujian 土堅"), capitulated. But only after a few months after the capitulation of the loyalists at the Upper Capital, El Temür felt endangered by the Inner Asian Moslem retainers of the new khan, Qošila, managed to meet with Emperor Mingzong in the Middle Capital Ongghachatu and poisoned him, installing his younger brother Tuγ Temür (posthumous title Yuan Wenzong 元文宗; r. 1328; 1329-1331). Tuγ Temür was a weak personality and left government widely in the hands of his ministers, especially the Turk-Qipchaq El Temür and the Merkit Bayan, who reigned with almost dictatorial power. All officials and retainers of Yesun Temür were punished, the deceased emperor was denied a temple name (hence the simple designation following the reign motto "Taiding"). Likewise, all governmental officials of Qošila were purged, and no single Moslem was allowed to hold a high office, and only a few Chinese advanced to important posts in the central government. Emperor Wenzong's reign was marked by permanent rebellions of discontent Mongol nobles, ethnic minorities in Yunnan and by increased pressure from the peasantry in China proper. Natural desasters aggravated the situation of the peasants, the suppression of rebellions and the feeding of starving peasants again endangered the state treasury. But unlike before, the government now tried to lower its expenditures for apanages, for religious means and inside the palace, but also by selling offices. Through these measures, it was necessary to issue new paper currency bills. Emperor Wenzong himself as one of the few well-educated Mongol rulers mastered calligraphy, poetry and studied the Confucian classics. He had published a political enyclopedia, Jingshi dadian 經世大典, compiled by Zhao Shiyan 趙世延 and Yu Ji 虞集, and was the first and only Mongolian ruler to perform the Suburban Offerings (jiaosi 郊祀). He also founded the Kuizhangge Academy 奎章閣學士院 whose objective was to transmit Chinese culture to the Mongolians, and whose members were renowned Chinese, Mongol, Uighur and other semu scholars.
    The tendency that not the emperor but ministers controlled the Yuan government should continue to the end of the Yuan Dynasty. After Yuan Wenzong's early death, Irinĵinpal (posthumous title Yuan Ningzong 元寧宗, r. 1332) was the first minor emperor who acceeded to the throne. He died after a few months and was succeeded by his older brother Toqōn Temür (posthumous title Yuan Shundi 元順帝, r. 1333-1368/1370), illigimate (?) son of the assassinated Qošila. This accession was only made possible after the death of the mighty El Temür who had controlled the court for a couple of years. Now, it was Bayan who held firm the grip of Yuan government and murdered El Temür's retainers. Bayan's political program intended to improve the general welfare of the Yuan empire's society by reducing expenditures, and also to resume the politics of the dynastic founder Khubilai, in first place the enforcement of the strict ethnic division of Yuan China's population. But during the last fourty years the strict separation into four castes had become indistinct, Mongols were accustomed to the Chinese way of life, and Chinese had adopted some Mongol customs, both peoples intermarried although it was strictly forbidden. Especially among the elite, Chinese, semu people and Mongols could no longer clearly be separated. Chinese historians blamed Bayan with many faults of the Mongol politics in general, the result of mass psychology in an unsecure mental environment. Bayan indeed abolished the state examinations in 1335 - destroying the hopes not only of Chinese, but also of young Mongols to climb the ladder of bureaucratic career. The main arguments of the most important proponent of the abolishment, Cherig Temür ("Cheli Tiemu'r 徹里帖木兒"), was the expenses for state schools and the examinations, and that the examination degrees undercut the value of the aristocratic hereditary privileges. Bayan prohibited the caste of Southern Chinese to learn Mongolian or one of the semu languages, he is even said to have planned to kill all Chinese with the most common surnames Zhang 張, Wang 王, Liu 劉, Li 李 and Zhao 趙.
    By his harsh treatment of some members of the Mongol aristocracy Bayan created himself enemies. When he was outraged by a murder committed by a Chinese, he wanted to purge a whole stratum of Chinese officials. In this situation, Bayan's nephew Toghtō ("Tuotuo 脫脫") arranged a coup against the mighty dictator great-councillor and had him banished into exile where Bayan died soon.
    Like in the decades before, every change in political leadership was immediately followed by almost reverse politics, either pro-Chinese and centralist-bureaucratic, or pro-Mongolian and provincial or nobility-oriented. It was the same now with the two leading politicians of the reign of Emperor Shundi, Toghtō and Berke Bukha ("Bie'rque Buhua 別兒怯不花"). The examination system was resumed, access to high offices was again opened to Chinese. Toghtō ("Tuotuo" 脫脫) cooperated with Chinese officials, strengthened fiscal policy, military administration and many other spheres of governmental duty like the compiling of the previous dynasties' (Song, Liao, Jin) official histories. The emperor himself scarcely intervened actively into government but instead indulged in asketic practices, influenced by a Tibetian monk. The period of Berke Bukha's administration made the strengthening of provincial civil and military administration necessary. Because of heavy taxation, corrupt local officials and permanent natural desasters and resulting banditry, the end of the had 1330es experienced several peasant uprisings, e.g. under Zhu Guangqing 朱光卿 in Guangdong, Bang Hu 棒胡 in Henan, Han Fashi 韓法師 in Sichuan, Li Zhifu 李志甫 in Fujian, Peng Yingyu 彭瑩玉 and Zhou Ziwang 周子旺 in Jiangxi, that now had to be encountered and suppressed through the initiative of provincial governors. When the state treasury again was severely running low, Toghtō was recalled to the court. The tax grain transports could not pass the Yellow River but had to follow the coastline where pirates under Fang Guozhen 方國珍 were active. Toghtō issued new paper currency to finance a huge project of diverting the Yellow River to a bed south of the Shandong Peninsula, a gigantic hydraulic project that was engineered by Jia Lu 賈魯 and successfully concluded in 1351.


    The End of Mongol Rule


    Throughout the history of Yuan Dynasty there was always a pending question that was never really decided: if the Mongols wanted to govern a steppe empire with according simple governmental structures of if they wanted to rule a civilized nation with a highly complex system of bureaucracy, long administrative tradition and important state rituals. Because this question was never solved - mainly because court factions and cliques of Mongol nobles never ceased to fight for power - the Mongol ruling elite was not able to retain a strong foothold on Chinese soil as soon as there was a large popular uprising in many places in the middle of 14th century. A crucial factor influencing court politics was the regular total replacement of the top echelon of court officials when a new ruler mounted the throne and gave the highest post only to his own retainers. By these changes in political leadership that took place every few years, a continuity in effective politics was not possible. One reason for the fall of the Yuan Dynasty is often neglected - the 14th century was full of natural desasters all throughout the world: droughts, inundatings, pestilence, and a decrease in average temperature.
    Peasant uprisings were seen throughout Chinese history, many of them were lead by Daoist or Buddhist sects and had a millenarian character. In the 1350es, there were also many salt workers among the rebels. Still, the Mongol military units were strong enough to handle with the bandit rebels, sometimes by recruiting the local population into governmental batallions. Toghtō even lead himself campaigns against rebels under the salt smuggler Zhang Shicheng 張士誠 in the Huai River area. When Emperor Shundi suddenly dismissed Toghtō in 1354, the Yuan Dynasty lost her military initiative against the rebels in the battle of Gaoyou 高郵 - and their empire.
    After the dismission of Toghtō the military and political initiative was left over to different factions, many of them regional governors who recruited their troops to defend in first place their own territory and only then the empire. But there were also many loyalists to the Yuan government like the half-Chinese Kökö Temür ("Kuokuo Tiemur" 擴廓帖木兒; Chinese name Wang Baobao 王保保) who controlled the region around Kaifeng 開封, Chen Youliang 陳友諒 in Fujian and He Zhen xxx in Guangdong. These loyalists were politically not inactive as is often suggested by Chinese historians. Especially in southeast China local governors tried to initiate a movement of Confucian revival, like under the Tangut Yu Que 余闕. Some scholars supported the installment of local warlords as appropriate and according to the principle of feudal system of the Zhou period 周. Others rather supported a centralization of the government with a radical change in ethical standards - away with corruption, favoritism and luxurious expenditures. Leaders of this group of reformist supporters of the Yuan Dynasty were Liu Ji 劉基 and Shimo Yisun 石抹宜孫 xxx who vehemently fought against the empowering of "bandits" like Fang Guozhen. When the Yuan central government did not adopt their proposals, both sided with the local warlord: Zhu Yuanzhang 朱元璋, founder of the Ming, who keenly receicved Liu's proposals for an austere and morally integer government. Enemies of the local governors and warlords were - especially in the areas of modern Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces - leaders of groups of salt workers and salt smugglers, pirates and "bandits - outlaws", like Zhang Shicheng and Fang Guozhen who even proclaimed their own dynasties. A fourth group of contenders for power in the decentralized Yuan empire were sectarian rebels who were lead by messianic personalities that preached synchretistic believes of popular religion, Buddhism, Daoism and Manicheism. The largest of these religious societies were the White Lotus Society (Bailianjiao 白蓮教) whose members were also called "Red Turbans" (hongjin 紅巾) and were active in the region of Jiangxi and north across Anhui into Shandong. But the leaders of this movement, including Han Shantong 韓山童, Liu Futong 劉福通, Du Zundao 杜遵道, Luo Wensu 羅文素, and Cheng Wenyu 盛文郁, were not able to unify the different branches among the rebels, even after the conquest of the prefecture Yingzhou 穎州 (modern Fuyang 阜陽/Anhui) under Han Lin'er 韓林兒 and his brother Han Jiao'er 韓咬兒. Nonetheless, the uprising workers, pirates, smugglers and peasants as followers of Buddhist belief could acheive a surprisingly fast victory over the Mongol troops under "Hesi 赫廝", "Tuchi 禿赤", Esen Temür ("Yexian Tiemu'er 也先帖木兒") and "Kuanchege 寬徹哥". The regular Mongol troops were sided by local potentates like the Uighur Čaqan Temür "Chahan Tiemu'er 察罕帖木兒" and Li Siqi 李思齊. In the region of Hubei Peng Yingyu 彭瑩玉 ("Monk Peng" Peng Heshang 彭和尚), Zhao Pusheng 趙普勝 and Xu Shouhui 徐壽輝 eliminated the Yuan government and founded their own Buddhist empire of Tianwan 天完. From 1354 on, when the regular Mongol armies lost their initative, the southern rebels started to advance to the north, pillaged the countryside and marched even beyond the capital Dadu like Guan Yi 關鐸 and Pan Cheng 潘誠 (also called "Potou Pan 破頭潘"). It was only local military leaders like Li Siqi and Čaqan Temür, "Dashibadulu 答失八都魯" and Zhang Liangbi 張良弼 who blocked and defeated the rebel armies under Li Wu 李武, Cui De 崔德, Mao Gui 毛貴 until 1362. The disagreement among the different leaders in the different regions and quarrels about leadership of emperorship had been the most important factor for the failure of the rebel armies.
    At this time, the Yuan Dynasty was again weakened by succession struggles. Emperor Shundi favored a nobleman called Hama 哈麻 whom he charged with the office of chief-counsillor. When Hama tried to undertake a plot against the emperor, there arose two factions at the court favoring different throne aspirant. Prince Ayuširidara was favored by the "Shuosijian 搠思監" and the eunuch "Pubuhua 樸不花", while the emperor himself was supported by "Laodisha 老的沙" and Tulu Temür. Both factions were supported by mighty generals outside the court, Kökö Temür supported the Prince, and Laodisha was supported by "Boluo Temür 勃羅帖木兒" and "Tujian Temür 禿堅帖木兒". Boluo Temür entered the capital and forced the Prince to flee. But only a few months later, Prince Ayuširidara was able to return with the help of Kökö Temür. The mighty general was expected to force Emperor Shundi to retreat, but Kökö Temür proved to be a loyal servant to his emperor. He was highly rewarded but soon stripped off his offices, and the military power was left to the crown prince.
    In 1362 rebel leader Zhu Yuanzhang 朱元璋, a follower of the rebel Guo Zixing 郭子興, achieved a great victory over the warlord emperor Chen Youliang 陳友諒 during the battle of Lake Poyang 鄱陽湖, and proclaimed himself Emperor of Wu 吳 in 1367. His next target were the mighty local governors Zhang Shicheng and Fang Guozhe in the region of Jiangsu and Zhejiang. After his conquest of Fujian province under Chen Youding 陳友定 Zhu Yuanzhang proclaimed himself emperor of the Ming Dynasty 明 in 1368. His generals Xu Da 徐達 and Chang Yuchun 常遇春 started to conquer the north that was heaviliy disturbed by the inner quarrels among the Mongol nobility. It took the Ming armies only half a year to advance to and to take the Yuan capital Dadu. In 1369 Kökö Temür was defeated, the Chinese loyals surrendered to the Ming, and Emperor Shundi died in the next year in Mongolia.


    The Northern Yuan


    The Northern Yuan period (Beiyuan 北元) is the half century between the escape of the Mongols from China after 1368 and their identification with the Tatars ("Dada 韃靼"). When general Xu Da 徐達 conquered Dadu 大都 (Beijing), the capital of the Yuan Dynasty, Emperor Yuan Shundi fled to the Upper Capital 上京 (near Dolonnur 多倫/Inner Mongolia), other Mongol troops withdrew to the areas of Liaodong 遼東 (modern Liaoning province) and the areas of Shaanxi and Gansu, under general Kökö Temür, and to Yunnan. In 1369 the Ming Dynasty generals Chang Yuchun 常遇春 and Li Wenzhong 李文忠 attacked Shangdu and forced the Mongols again to withdraw further to the north to Yingchang 應昌 (near Dalai Nur Lake 達爾諾爾/Neimenggu). One year later, Xu Da captured several hundred of the highest Yuan officials and nobles. Prince Ayuširidara ("Aiyoushilindala 愛猷識理達臘") united the rest of his forces with that of Köke Temür and established his capital at Helin 和林 (Karakorum, near Charchorin "Erdenisangtu 額爾德尼桑圖"/Mongolia), and the large military attack of the Ming army in 1372 could be encountered with a victory of the Mongol troops. Emperor Ming Taizu 明太祖 learned from this defeat and established military garrisons in the northeast and northwest that supported the rear of troops that advanced into Mongol territory. From then on, the Mongol rulers declared their dependance of the Ming court. In 1380 Ming troops under general Mu Ying 沐英 captured the Yuan duke "Tohoč 脫火赤".
    Meanwhile, the rest of the Mongol troops in Yunnan stood under the command of Prince "Bazalawarmi 把匝剌瓦爾密", and in 1381 Ming troops under the command of Fu Youde 傅友德 were fielded to conquer Yunnan. In 1387 Feng Sheng 馮勝 commanded the Ming armies that conquered the northeastern region. From then on the Mongol troops in Korea and Mongolia were blocked from China proper and were disembled to stage any further raids on Chinese soil. Tögüs Temür ("Tuogusi Tiemur 脫古思帖木兒"), the last qaγan of the Mongols, was murdered by one of his generals. Only five generations later, in 1403, Kun Temür 坤帖木兒 again adopted the title of qaγan and renamed his federation "Tatars" ("Dada 韃靼").












    The major lessons that Chinggis Khan learned from the hardships of his early years (his father's untimely death forced his mother to eke out a survival for the family in the harsh desert lands of Mongolia) convinced him that no one could survive in the daunting landscape of Mongolia without maintaining good relations and seeking help on occasion from one's allies. Chinggis's earliest experiences thus convince him of the importance of forging alliances. [For more on Chinggis's early life, see Key Figures in Mongol History: Chinggis Khan]

    One's anda (blood brother) pricked his finger and mixed blood with one to forge a blood brotherhood. Chinggis found many andas, and his blood brothers, realizing his superior abilities and his charisma, would often join under his banner.

    Early in his rise to power, Chinggis attempted immediately to break down the tribal groups that joined him, because he felt that loyalty in the tribal group would belong to the tribal leader rather than to himself. He wanted to eliminate any feeling of tribal identity and convert it to a Mongol identity — a unit that would be much larger, greater than that of the tribe, wherein the loyalty would remain with him, rather than with a tribal leader. Thus, when a tribe did join him, he quickly dispersed its members through the various units that he controlled.



    Former Historian & Dev Member for Broken Crescent Mod
    Dual-Major BA in Medieval History / Political Science, Adelphi University Aug. 1989
    Member of the World History Association
    Member of the Medieval Academy of America
    Member of the Richard III Society
    Member of the Society for the Study of the Crusades and Latin East
    If you like my post, please +Rep...if you dislike my post, please +REP me twice

  5. #5

    Default Re: FACTION: The Mongol Empire

    Not sure why, but my last post isn't showing up as a "new" post
    Former Historian & Dev Member for Broken Crescent Mod
    Dual-Major BA in Medieval History / Political Science, Adelphi University Aug. 1989
    Member of the World History Association
    Member of the Medieval Academy of America
    Member of the Richard III Society
    Member of the Society for the Study of the Crusades and Latin East
    If you like my post, please +Rep...if you dislike my post, please +REP me twice

  6. #6
    Indefinitely Banned
    Join Date
    Jun 2006
    Location
    Calgary, Canada
    Posts
    13,967

    Default Re: FACTION: The Mongol Empire

    Wow CelticPagan, now thats heavy research. Good job . Really glad to have you on the team researching this stuff, I've already read through the stuff you posted on the ottomans and gave me some ideas about ancillaries and such.

    I'm thinking that in later versions of the mod we might script new "mongol/islamic" factions like the "Ilkhanids" to emerge in the wake of the mongol invasion. In fact we could theoretically do it the first mod release since it could be a simple cloning of the Mongol factions combines with some of the units we create for the other factions.

    The unfortunate thing is that the mongols are emergent thus they will be officially unplayable for the mod. We could work around this and offer modified files for Broken Crescent which would allow the mongols to be playable, it could be a kind of "middle era" version of Broken Crescent and would really add to the experience and we could truly incorporate the history you posted.

    So making "Broken Crescent: Mongol Invasion" edition would be an awsome idea and practically feasible since there are already mongol skins present.


    And CelticPagan, since you're very detailed in your research do you have any sources and information with regards to the Abbasid, Khwarezmian, Ghazni and Delhi factions? We definitely would like to see our knowledge of them expanded, since as of now its mainly based on very old books i've read, general muslim knowledge (highly unreliable) and Osprey books. Any info on these factions would be much appreciated.
    Last edited by Miraj; March 29, 2007 at 02:12 PM.

  7. #7

    Default Re: FACTION: The Mongol Empire

    Quote Originally Posted by mirage41 View Post
    [a]nd CelticPagan, since you're very detailed in your research do you have any sources and information with regards to the Abbasid, Khwarezmian, Ghazni and Delhi factions? We definitely would like to see our knowledge of them expanded, since as of now its mainly based on very old books i've read, general muslim knowledge (highly unreliable) and Osprey books. Any info on these factions would be much appreciated.
    I posted some ideas for source material in the Abbasid folder, but for some reason it doesn't show up as a new post. I'll see what I can get my hands on, but many on-line periodicals are available to members only, and I am now disabled and no longer working for a school of higher learning (The Watson School of Bio-Informatitics, at Cold Spring Harbor Lab, www.cshl.edu , I worked on part of their website and most of their intrawebs) and can't access many of the journals I used to be able to through the library. I have a friend who is faculty member at UNM. I'll see if I can get access to their library.
    Former Historian & Dev Member for Broken Crescent Mod
    Dual-Major BA in Medieval History / Political Science, Adelphi University Aug. 1989
    Member of the World History Association
    Member of the Medieval Academy of America
    Member of the Richard III Society
    Member of the Society for the Study of the Crusades and Latin East
    If you like my post, please +Rep...if you dislike my post, please +REP me twice

  8. #8

    Default Re: FACTION: The Mongol Empire

    More info on the Mongols:

    Mongol Arms


    Until the modern era, no military force could compete with that of the Mongols in terms of effectiveness and certainly mobility. Through the use of a well disciplined and trained army, that focused on mobility and careful planning, the Mongols carved out the largest contiguous empire in history. Often their armies fought on several fronts at once, a difficult enough task in modern history and practically unheard of during the medieval period.

    Training

    All males between the ages of 15 to around 60 who were capable of bearing arms were eligible for military service. The rigors of daily living in the harsh climate of Mongolia prepared the nomads well in terms of endurance and fortitude. Trained from youth to be expert horsemen and archers, the nomads of Mongolia were well prepared to be warriors. By the thirteenth century, nomad horse archer armies already possessed a long history of success. Yet, the one which Chinggis Khan created perfected this form. He added the essential element that separated the Mongols from their peers: discipline. This enabled him to overcome the assortment of tribal confederations and alliances, which he faced before becoming the ruler of all Mongolia. While other armies would disintegrate in order to loot the dead and baggage of an enemy in flight, Chinggis Khan ordered his armies to wait until victory was complete. Those who disobeyed this command would be struck down. This disciplined soldier was then given a high rate of mobility. Each trooper had a string of three to five horses. This allowed him to exchange mounts when one tired. If one was slain, the Mongol trooper had replacements. In sedentary armies, this simply was not possible. Horses were simply too expensive to maintain to allow each cavalryman to have more than one, especially the large horses necessary to carry an armored warrior.

    Equipment

    The Mongols themselves, in order to maintain their mobility, were lightly armored compared to many of the armies they faced. Their armor, for the most part, consisted of lacquered or boiled leather, which mainly covered the upper body. A helmet was also part of their accoutrement. Other types of armor, such as chain mail, did appear, but it was not as widespread among the Mongols due to the weight. The armament of the Mongols focused on the bow. This was a double recurve composite bow, made of layers of sinew, horn, and wood. Each warrior had more than one, probably attached, in a special quiver, to their saddles on each horse in addition to quivers of arrows. The bow itself possessed an incredible amount of penetrating power, often consisting of pull weights of over one hundred pounds. The Mongols used a wide variety of arrows, many with specialized purposes, such as armor piercing, blunt stun arrows, and even whistling arrows for signaling purposes. In addition, the soldiers carried sabres, maces, axes, and sometimes a short spear with a hook at the bottom of the blade. Other supplies, such as rope, rations, files for sharpening arrows, etc., were also carried. This made the soldiers of the Mongol army a self-sufficient unit able to function independently of supply lines. Thus, they were not hampered by a slow moving baggage train, allowing them to make the rapid marches that so characterized Mongol warfare.

    Organization

    The organization of the Mongol army was also an old tradition of the steppe: the decimal system. The army was built upon a squad of ten (arban). Ten of these would then compose a company of a hundred (jaghun ). The next unit was a regiment of a thousand (mingghan). Most of the commanders listed in the contemporary sources were leaders of a mingghan. The equivalent of the modem division was a unit consisting of ten thousand (tumen).

    The organization was simple, but sensible. The system could also easily be applied to new conscripts from vassals, or even forcibly conscripted troops from among the conquered. Yet, it is one thing to have organized units, but quite another to have them operate with any amount of efficiency. This is why the discipline of the Mongol army was such a key factor. The tactics that the Mongol army used, such a caracole technique in which the soldiers advanced, shot, then wheeled back in order for the next rank to fire, demanded unit integrity. Unit integrity was achieved through the battue, or hunt. During the battue, the army would form lines which often stretched for miles. These ranks would then begin to envelope an area, forcing the game into the ring. The Mongols would then tighten their ranks, so that the circle continued to shrink. The objective of this was not to allow any animal to escape. An incredibly high degree of organization, communication, and cooperation was necessary for this task. Without it, points of rendezvous could not be established, gaps would eventually appear in the ranks, and inevitably, confusion would result.

    Only a disciplined army, with a high degree of unit integrity and command structure could accomplish this task.

    Strategy and Tactics

    Before invading a territory, the Mongols made extensive preparations in a quriltai. At this meeting it was decided not only how the upcoming war would be conducted, but also, which generals would participate in it. In The Secret History of the Mongols, this procedure is demonstrated on several occasions. The Mongols meanwhile would have been accumulating intelligence on their opponent. Only after this was obtained, would there be a declaration of hostilities. Then, during the quriltai, units would be called up. Although the planning of the campaign was a major component, the Mongol generals still maintained a high degree of independence. Thus, they were able to complete their objectives on their terms, but they still had to abide by the timetable. This allowed the Mongols to coordinate their movements and concentrate their forces at prearranged sites.

    The Mongols had a set method of invasion which varied only slightly from campaign to campaign. First the Mongol army would invade in several columns. Often it was three pronged attack, consisting of an army of the center and then two flanking forces. Flanking forces in some cases went into neighboring territories before rendezvousing with the army of the center. All of these columns were covered by a screen of scouts who constantly relayed information back to their mother column. In addition, because of their pre-planned schedule as well as the scouts, the Mongols not only marched divided, but also were also able to fight united.

    Furthermore, because of their forces marched in smaller concentrations, the Mongols were not impeded with columns stretching for miles. They used their mobility to spread terror to the effect that rarely were their opponents ever really prepared to concentrate their forces when the enemy appeared everywhere.

    The use of a many-pronged invasion also fit into their preferred method of engaging the enemy. The Mongols preferred to deal with all field armies before moving deep into enemy territory. This was very practical. Reaching this goal was rarely difficult, as the enemy (except in the case of the Khwarazmians) usually sought to meet the Mongols before they destroyed an entire province. Furthermore, the use of columns with its screen of scouts gathering intelligence enabled the Mongols to locate the enemy armies much more rapidly than one army wandering around. In addition, since the Mongols could usually unite their forces before the enemy was cognizant of all of the different invasion forces, the Mongols were better able to conceal their troop strengths. This also meant that an embattled force could receive reinforcements or, in the advent of defeat, they could be avenged.

    By concentrating on the field armies, the strongholds had to wait. Of course, smaller fortresses, or ones easily surprised, were taken as they came along. This had two effects. First, it cut off the principle city from communicating with other cities where they might expect aid. Secondly, refugees from these smaller cities would flee to the last stronghold. The reports from these cities and the streaming hordes of refugees not only reduced the moral of the inhabitants and garrison of the principle city, it also strained their resources. Food and water reserves were taxed by the sudden influx of refugees. Soon, what was once a formidable undertaking became easy.

    The Mongols were then free to lay siege without interference of the field army as it had been destroyed. Smaller forts and cities could not harry the Mongols who either foraged or were out on other various missions during the siege. Most importantly, the many columns and raiding forces, prevented the main cities from being effective in assisting its smaller neighbors before hand as to do so in any strength, would leave it open to attack. Finally, the capture of the outer strongholds and towns, provided the Mongols more siege experience as well as raw materials in the form of labor to either man the siege machines, or to act as a human shield for the Mongols. It was also not uncommon for defeated troops to be recruited into the Mongol army. The most common method of preventing mutiny at a critical moment was to simply divide the new recruits into the already existing units. This preventing them from being a cohesive force, and it helped maintain unit integrity in the already existing formations.

    Then came the task of destroying any hopes for an opponent to rally. This was carried out by harrying the enemy leader until they dropped. Chinggis Khan first carried this out in the wars of unification in Mongolia. In his first few encounters, he did not do this and it returned to haunt him. After that, it becomes a familiar tale. In Khwarazm, it was the flight of Muhammad to the Caspian Sea with Jebe and Subedei in pursuit. In the south of that empire, Chinggis Khan himself pursued Jelal al-Din to the Indus and later sent more troops after him. Then in Europe, King Bela IV received no breathing room after the disaster at Mohi.

    By being constantly on the move, the enemy leader was unable to serve as a rallying point for his armies. They too would have to keep moving to find him. In many reports, the enemy leaders were only a few steps ahead of the Mongols. This also offered an opportunity for the Mongols to acquire new intelligence on other lands, as it was only sensible for the fleeing king to run in the opposite direction of the Mongols. The pursuing forces then could wreak havoc in new territories. Their presence made it advisable for local powers to keep their forces at home rather than going to help their overlord. In many instances, the Mongol, when they encountered a local army, would defeat it while avoiding the strongholds.

    Again, the method of destroying a field army before laying siege. The most important aspect of these flying columns that went in pursuit, is that they destruction they made as well as the fear they spread, created a buffer between the territory in which they were in and the one in which the main army was subduing.

    The tactics used, whether in the field or during a siege, focused on two aspects: firepower and mobility. Military historians often speak of the great success of the English with their longbows at Agincourt or Crecy, but almost a century before Crecy, the Mongols had demonstrated on several occasions the advantages of concentrated firepower over any opponent. Not only did a withering hail of arrows break a charge of armored knights, but it also could pin units to a particular location. During siege operations, the Mongols still relied on concentrated firepower. At the siege of Aleppo, Hulegu used twenty catapults against the Bab al-Iraq alone (Gate of Iraq). In Jûzjânî, there are several episodes in which the

    Mongols constructed hundreds of siege machines in order to surpass the number, which a defending city possessed. While Jûzjânî surely exaggerated, the improbably high numbers which he used for both the Mongols and the defenders does give one a sense of the large numbers of machines used at a single siege.

    Mobility was vital for the Mongols to carry out the caracole technique. By advancing, firing, wheeling, and retreating, the Mongol warriors left themselves open to a possible counterattack. Only due to the unit integrity, and mobility (i.e. number of horses involved) permitted the Mongols to do this technique. Other tactics, such as encircling the enemy as the Mongols did during the battue hunt, could only be achieved with a high degree of mobility. Perhaps of most importance, it allowed the Mongols to withdraw and then reappear unexpectantly. This made it almost impossible for their opponents to accurately report on the movements of the Mongol armies.

    Discipline separated the Mongol armies from their contemporaries. Without discipline, the Mongols could not have perfected the system of steppe/horse archer warfare, which had existed for centuries. Nomads since the Scythians and Hsiung-nu based their armies and method of war on mobility and the bow. The Mongols, however, perfected it, allowing them to conquer the entire steppe land of Eurasia. While some may dismiss this accomplishment as simply being a victory over other tribes, one must remember, these are the tribes from which the Khitan, the Jurchen, and the mighty Seljuk armies came. Horse archers from the steppes were a desired element in every sedentary army stretching from China to Egypt. The Mongols perfected the system by adding the strict discipline that allowed them to overcome other nomads who also relied on the key factors of mobility and the bow. After overcoming the nomads of the Eurasian steppes, the victories over sedentary armies seem less astonishing.

    Dr. Timothy May
    Assistant Professor of History
    Young Hall
    North Georgia College and State University
    Former Historian & Dev Member for Broken Crescent Mod
    Dual-Major BA in Medieval History / Political Science, Adelphi University Aug. 1989
    Member of the World History Association
    Member of the Medieval Academy of America
    Member of the Richard III Society
    Member of the Society for the Study of the Crusades and Latin East
    If you like my post, please +Rep...if you dislike my post, please +REP me twice

  9. #9
    Sinan's Avatar Senator
    Join Date
    Apr 2007
    Location
    Leading the formation!
    Posts
    1,012

    Icon3 Re: FACTION: The Mongol Empire

    Celtic Pagan, you're doing an excellent job ! Keep it up !
    Add me on Steam if you are playing SHOGUN 2 multiplayer!

  10. #10
    Boztorgai_Khan's Avatar Domesticus
    Join Date
    Apr 2007
    Location
    Zutphen - (Netherlands)
    Posts
    2,028

    Default Re: FACTION: The Mongol Empire

    "in vanilla the mongols have ilkhanate and golden horde rulers (generals) so how will you do that in the MOD? because it is not correct."

  11. #11

    Default Re: FACTION: The Mongol Empire

    Quote Originally Posted by Boztorgai_Khan View Post
    "in vanilla the mongols have ilkhanate and golden horde rulers (generals) so how will you do that in the MOD? because it is not correct."
    Quote Originally Posted by Boztorgai_Khan View Post



    I am researching as much as possible on the Mongols, their arts of war, their leaders and social/cultural aspects. I doubt that they will be ready by the 1st release, but I will be working to see they are updated appropriately in subsequent versions. I will also try my damnedest to see that our skinners get the pest pics to work from.

    As for your question, I plan to include real life generals and rulers as the leaders such as Jebe and Subadai, who harassed the Shah of Khwarizam (after his defeat following his muder of a Mongol trade delegation) to his death. I also wish to give real life advisors to leaders like Genghis, such as his chief advisor, the Chinese philosopher and military strategtist Ch'u-ts'ai, who once told Genghis "The Empire was won on horseback, but it won't be governed on horseback."


    Hope this answers your question
    Former Historian & Dev Member for Broken Crescent Mod
    Dual-Major BA in Medieval History / Political Science, Adelphi University Aug. 1989
    Member of the World History Association
    Member of the Medieval Academy of America
    Member of the Richard III Society
    Member of the Society for the Study of the Crusades and Latin East
    If you like my post, please +Rep...if you dislike my post, please +REP me twice

  12. #12
    IrAr's Avatar Senator
    Join Date
    Mar 2007
    Location
    Writing the book...every day.
    Posts
    1,113

    Default Re: FACTION: The Mongol Empire

    Wasn't the lack of a mobile government a key part of the Empire's demise?

    Member of Anno Domini: Italia Invicta
    This makes me a happy half armenian panda--John I Tzimisces

  13. #13
    nnnm's Avatar Senator
    Join Date
    Jan 2007
    Location
    UAE
    Posts
    1,236

    Default Re: FACTION: The Byzantine Empire

    TIP OF THE DAY: When you have materials related to "Mongols" post it in the "Mongols" Thread. - MIRAGE

    The Mongols

    Code:
    light archer 
    
    
    light mounted archer
    
    
    heavy mounted archer
    
    
    Mongol heavy cavalry 
    
    
    Mongol Attack
    
    
    siege 
    
    
    infantry
    
    Last edited by Miraj; May 06, 2007 at 03:46 AM.

  14. #14
    Boztorgai_Khan's Avatar Domesticus
    Join Date
    Apr 2007
    Location
    Zutphen - (Netherlands)
    Posts
    2,028

    Default Re: FACTION: The Mongol Empire

    Ilkhanate



    The Ilkhanate, also spelled Il-khanate or Il Khanate (Persian: سلسله ایلخانی), was one of the four major divisions within the Mongol Empire. It was centered in the land of Persia (Iran) and also included present-day Iraq, Afghanistan, and western Pakistan. It was based, originally, on Genghis Khan's campaigns in the Khwarezmid Empire in 1219-1224, and the continual expansion of Mongol presence under the commands of Chormagan, Baiju, and Eljigidei.


    Hulegu

    The founder of the Ilkhanate dynasty was Hulegu Khan, grandson of Genghis Khan and brother of Mongke khan. Taking over from Baiju in 1255 or 1256, he had been charged with subduing the Muslim kingdoms to the west "as far as the borders of Egypt." His expedition, however, was halted in Palestine by a stinging defeat at the Battle of Ain Jalut at the hands of the Mamluks of Egypt.
    After a battle against the Turks in 1243, the Mongols occupied Anatolia. The Sultanate of Rum became a vassal of the Ilkhanate Mongols. This occupation led the Turkmens to move west to escape from the Mongolian tribes. This gave birth to the Ottomans. Hulegu then returned to the Persian heartland and established his dynasty. The succession thereafter continued through his family line.


    Early il-Khanate

    The term il-Khan means "subordinate Khan" and refers to their initial deference to Mongke as great Khan and ultimate sovereign of the entire empire. Hulegu's descendants ruled Persia for the next eighty years, beginning as shamanists, then Buddhists and ultimately converting to Islam. However, the Il-khans remained opposed to the Mamluks (who had defeated both Mongol invaders and crusaders), but were never able to gain significant ground against them, eventually being forced to give up their plans to conquer Syria, and their stranglehold over their vassals the Sultanate of Rum and the Armenian kingdom in Cilicia. This was due to the hostility of the khanates to the north and east--the Chagatai khanate in Mughulistan and the Blue Horde of Batu threatened the Il-khanate in the Caucasus and Transoxiana, preventing expansion westward. Even under Hülegü's reign, the Ilkhanate was engaged in open warfare in the Caucasus with the Mongols in the Russian steppes.


    Conversion to Islam

    Under the harsh reign of the succeeding il-khans after Hulegu, the Muslim majority were oppressed under the Buddhist emperors, who encouraged the flourishing of Tibetan Buddhism and Nestorianism. However, with the conversion of Ghazan to Islam, Islam rose once again, and the Buddhist and Christian counterparts were severely harassed. This pattern continued under his brother Öljeitü, whose magnificent tomb in Soltaniyeh remains the best known monument of Ilkhanid rule in Persia.
    After Abu Sa'id's death in 1335, the khanate began to disintegrate rapidly, and split up into several rival successor states, most prominently the Jalayirids. The last of the obscure Il-khan pretenders was assassinated in 1353. Timur the Lame later carved a state from the Jalayirids, ostensibly to restore the old khanate.
    The historian Rashid al-Din wrote a universal history for the khans around 1315 which provides much material for their history.


    Il-Khanid Dynasty rulers

    • Hülegü (1256-1265)
    • Abaqa (1265-1282)
    • Ahmad Tegüder (1282-1284)
    • Arghun (1284-1291)
    • Gaykhatu (1291-1295)
    • Baydu (1295)
    • Mahmud Ghazan (1295-1304)
    • Muhammad Khodabandeh (Oljeitu) (1304-1316)
    • Abu Sa'id Bahadur (1316-1335)
    • Arpa Ke'ün (1335-1336)
    Fragmentation. The regional states established during the disintegration of the Il-khanate raised their own candidates as claimants.
    • Musa (1336-1337) (puppet of Ali Padshah of Baghdad)
    • Muhammed (1336-1338) (Jalayirid puppet)
    • Sati Beg (1338-1339) (Chobanid puppet)
    • Sulayman (1339-1343) (Chobanid puppet, recognized by the Sarbadars 1341-1343)
    • Jahan Temur (1339-1340) (Jalayirid puppet)
    • Anushirwan (1343-1356) (non-dynastic Chobanid puppet)
    • Ghazan II (1356-1357) (known only from coinage)
    Claimants from eastern Persia (Khurasan):
    • Togha Temür (c. 1338-1353) (recognized by the Kartids 1338-1349; by the Jalayirids 1338-1339, 1340-1344; by the Sarbadars 1338-1341, 1344, 1353)
    • Luqman (1353-1388) (son of Togha Temür)
    Last edited by Boztorgai_Khan; May 21, 2007 at 03:13 PM.



    MOD's: >>> K-MTW2 & EW MOD & BC MOD <<< BoZToRGai KHaN

    Official Web Site: http://www.djeak.com/boztorgaikhan/ (Coming Soon..!!!)

    Website: http://www.cumankipchaksgroup.com/ (Coming Soon..!!!)


  15. #15
    Boztorgai_Khan's Avatar Domesticus
    Join Date
    Apr 2007
    Location
    Zutphen - (Netherlands)
    Posts
    2,028

    Default Re: FACTION: The Mongol Empire

    Last edited by Boztorgai_Khan; May 21, 2007 at 03:13 PM.



    MOD's: >>> K-MTW2 & EW MOD & BC MOD <<< BoZToRGai KHaN

    Official Web Site: http://www.djeak.com/boztorgaikhan/ (Coming Soon..!!!)

    Website: http://www.cumankipchaksgroup.com/ (Coming Soon..!!!)


  16. #16
    Boztorgai_Khan's Avatar Domesticus
    Join Date
    Apr 2007
    Location
    Zutphen - (Netherlands)
    Posts
    2,028

    Default Re: FACTION: The Mongol Empire

    Quote Originally Posted by CelticPagan View Post

    I am researching as much as possible on the Mongols, their arts of war, their leaders and social/cultural aspects. I doubt that they will be ready by the 1st release, but I will be working to see they are updated appropriately in subsequent versions. I will also try my damnedest to see that our skinners get the pest pics to work from.

    As for your question, I plan to include real life generals and rulers as the leaders such as Jebe and Subadai, who harassed the Shah of Khwarizam (after his defeat following his muder of a Mongol trade delegation) to his death. I also wish to give real life advisors to leaders like Genghis, such as his chief advisor, the Chinese philosopher and military strategtist Ch'u-ts'ai, who once told Genghis "The Empire was won on horseback, but it won't be governed on horseback."


    Hope this answers your question
    Hehe I Okay

    Jebe and Subotai

    Jelme was to Good and Strong, He was the Brother of Subotai and his best Friend Kubilai, Kubilai was to best Friend of Subotai and GENGHIS KHAN

    There was Tungusic peoples by
    Ming-Gang and Kubayu of Jurchens ( Jurchen was a Clan of Tungus )


    MORE HELP ?
    I'am HERE



    MOD's: >>> K-MTW2 & EW MOD & BC MOD <<< BoZToRGai KHaN

    Official Web Site: http://www.djeak.com/boztorgaikhan/ (Coming Soon..!!!)

    Website: http://www.cumankipchaksgroup.com/ (Coming Soon..!!!)


  17. #17

    Default Re: FACTION: The Mongol Empire

    Been researching various units for this faction and have been looking at what others have done as well. Here's a partial list of what I've come up with so far, pics to follow later when I scan them in:



    CAVALRY UNITS:

    Light Cavalry:
    Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 


    Mongol Levy Horse Archers - Drawn from the poor of multiple tribes, these archers, though used to harass enemy units, are the backbone of the Mongol jaguns (squadrons). Even though they are mostly hunters, they have been riding horses since age 3, and by 4 or 5 had his first bow and arrows. This made them extremely well versed in horse archery, being masters of both riding and archery. Contemporary chroniclers noted that most mounted archers carried up to three quivers of arrows at a time, and some had two bows, one short and one long. Both were compound and recurved, giving a pull eight of 166lbs (far greater than that of an English Longbow) and a range of 200 to 300 yards, respectively. They fought in a circling formation, firing their arrows into the enemy, and then, when out of arrows, raced back to the supply train where fresh horses and full quivers were waiting. Evidence showed that raiding parties had three to five horses per archer, while war parties had anywhere from five to twenty horses per horseman.

    Mongol Horse Javelinmen - While far fewer in number than the Horse Archers, Mongols made effective use of javelins from horseback. Their style of fighting is very similar to that of the horse archers, fighting in a circle and loosing their javelins into the enemy, then racing back to the supply train for more javelins and then back into the circle to continue to pepper the enemy unit(s) till they broke.

    Mongol Light Cavalry - Spear-wielding horsemen who who charge into enemy units and then pull back only to attack again. Mongol spears were slightly different from western versions. Light spears had a short crossbar just below the blade, which was used to knock riders off their horses as the spear blade hit home, or knock down foot troops while keeping them away from the Mongol riders so the riders would not be pulled off their mounts. In addition to spears most carried curved swords, modeled on either the Chinese Darn Dao (Chinese Broadsword) or the sabers of the Turks. (Historical analysis seems to differ as to who developed the curved blade first, but IMHO it was the Chinese and the curved blade moved westerly).

    All Light Cavalry units tended to wear padded armor over a thick hide robe. The robes were trimmed in fur, for the poor, mostly dog and or goat. Wealthier Mongols used wolf, fox, or lynx. Under the robe, many Mongols wore a silk shirt. The robes were open in front, buttoning or tying on the right breast using a longer flap from the left side. The padding and robe offered some protection from weapons, though not much, but the silk shirt has a special purpose. Should an arrow penetrate and lodge in the Mongol soldier, the silk would wad into the wound, slowing the bleeding, and making it far easier to remove the arrow when the wound was tended. The Mongol cap was distinctive as well, coming to a peak, in almost a conical shape, with flaps to either side of the face. In cold wealth, heavier caps were worn, and the flaps could be closed around the face. The lighter caps of summer allows the flaps to close in case of sand storms. Like the robes, most, if not all, the caps were fur lined, with the same style of fur used depending upon the owners wealth.

    It should be noted that while silk and even metallic threads were used (after the invasions of India in the case of the latter) Mongol clothing was never fancy, and was always dirty. Mongols had a habit of using their trousers as napkins and from contemporary sources, the only time their clothes got "washed" was if they happened to ford a deep stream or river. Many Islamic, Western and Chinese sources not the smell of a Mongol soldier was overwhelming to say the least. Thus, their clothing should appear soiled, and even in some cases in a slightly state of disrepair.


    Medium Cavalry:
    Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 


    Mongol Light Lancers - Armed with a slightly different long spear than the mounted spearmen, these men used a spear with a blade almost a foot long with a hook curving back at the bottom of the blade. It served a similar purpose to the crossbar, but in this case, it was used to pull, rather than push, opponents off their mounts while also doing some slashing damage. Unlike their lighter armored brethren, these units would leather lamellar and often used small shields (though this was not a standard). They would carry both an axe and either a mace or a curved sword as backup weapons.

    Mongol Horse Archers - Slightly better trained and armored in leather lamellar, these archers were otherwise armed with the same weapons as their Levy counterparts. They used the same tactics, and sometimes carried a small shield similar to the Turkish tribesmen (Turkomans). While they were made up of Mongols, it was not unlikely to find Turks (mostly of the Sha-t'o tribe) as well as Jurchen tribesmen, who joined for the spoils of war. Since both the Sha-t'o and Jurchen were from the northern provinces of China, their garb beneath the armor tended to be a little more elaborate, having been influenced by the Chinese fashions more so than the Mongols. They might be found to also have an overcoat, usually of silk, over their armor as well. (The Chinese/Sha-t'o Turk leader, Li K'o-yung required his horsemen to wear all black, giving them the nickname, Li's Black Crows). Tartars, Khitans and Tibetans were also found in these units.


    Heavy Cavalry:
    Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 


    Mongol Heavy Lancers - Utilizing iron armor common to the East (mostly Chinese) to fashion a metallic and leather lamellar armor, these units were also mounted on armored horses (cataphracts). They used the same lances as the lighter units, and carried axes, maces and curved swords as backup, and were far more likely to use shields, which were often larger versions of the smaller round Turkish style shield. Many also carried bows as well, and could double as heavy archers when needed.

    Mongol Heavy Archers - Armored in the same manner as the heavy lancers, these men used the same bows as other Mongol archer units. Their arrows were slightly heavier, with a broader head intended to pierce armor. The mounts they used were also armored. These men, along with the heavy lancers, were the "shock troops" of the Mongol armies, using their armor to get closer to the enemy while their medium and light counterparts continued to harry the enemy. They could also form a circle to fire from in continuous fashion, but were also fond of rushing toward the enemy and then loosing a volley of deadly arrows. They would then fall back in a feigned retreat, often luring the enemy to their deaths.


    INFANTRY UNITS

    Light Infantry:
    Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 


    Mongol Levy Archers - These units were almost entirely drawn from non-Mongol tribes who either joined the Mongols or were pressed into service. They used the same bows as did the horse archers, and were armored in padded armor. They often adopted Mongol dress, or some version of it using long robes (this was particularly the case with Koreans). Since even the poorest Mongols had horses, and were trained from such an early age to ride, fighting on foot was almost unknown to them, but after struggles with the Koreans and Chinese, they adopted the use of foot soldiers, more often than not, using either Koreans or Chinese, and later Turks and other Muslims.

    Mongol Levy Spearmen - Similarly drawn from other tribes, these spearmen were armored in padded armor and long robes, with the distinctive crossbar spears and swords as their weapons. Medium sized round shields were often deployed, while larger rectangular ones were used during sieges.

    Korean Auxiliaries - Many Koreans fought on behalf of the Khans, and made excellent spearmen. They used a spear that had no crossbar, but had a longer blade, resembling a short sword's blade, with both edges sharpened. While armored in padded, long robes, they used the large rectangular wooden shields the levy spearmen used during sieges all the time. These shields provided good protection to the Koreans, being almost as tall as they were, and utilized a wicker backing that aided in preventing arrows from penetrating them. A straight blade that was of a length somewhere between a short sword and a longsword was used as a backup weapon.

    Mongol Javelinmen - Basically dismounted versions of the horse units, these units were drawn from various tribes of the steeps, such as the Turks and some Afghan tribes, as well as Koreans. Used to attack and then pull back, they figured into the common tactic of attacking and feigning a retreat only to pull the opponent into chasing them while the wings of the Mongol army closed in a pincer move. However, the Mongols never closed the pincer, allowing the enemy to believe they had an escape route, and thus never allowing them to fight to the death, and thus inflicting more casualties on the Mongols. Instead the opponent was allowed to flee, and then chased down and killed by the horse units.


    Medium Infantry:
    Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 


    Chinese Halberds - These troops were armored better than most medium units, using metal and leather lamellar armor, often with silk over coats or robes. They used Chinese halberds, which were very different than their western namesakes. They were long, often ten foot, pole arms with a thin blade that had a second blade set at a right angle protruding from the main blade about 3/4ths of the way down the blade. They were used to both spear an opponent as well as like a pick, hammering the second blade through armor or the gaps in armor. Since these weapons were two-handed, no shield was used, but a backup sword, curved like most Chinese blades at this time were used if the combat became hand to hand. However, a wall of these halberds usually kept the fighting away from the halberd.

    Naffatun - Mongol forces were quick to make use of the fire weapons of both the Chinese and Muslim worlds. Naphtha was no exception. Armored in leather lamellar and carrying small round shield, these units were trained to rush the enemy and toss clay pots filled with the clear gasoline-like liquid naphtha, with a small fuse lite. Upon breaking, the now flaming liquid splashed enemy units and caused both death and fear.

    Grenadiers - Similar to the Naffatun, these troops, armored in the same manner, would attack the enemy using primitive grenades originating in China. They resembled the same clay pots used for the naphtha, but were made thicker, and when they exploded, they sent shrapnel into the enemy as well as causing a frightening explosive concussion that often frightened soldier and horse alike.

    Mongol Armored Archers - Lamellar armored versions of the levy archers, many came from Turkish, Korean, Chinese and Tibetan tribes, with some Burmese later in history. Armed with the renowned Mongol bows, as well as axes or swords, these troops could, thanks to their armor and small shields, withstand more attacks than their levy counterparts, and were used to attack small villages after the horsemen rode through, killing off any surviving defenders (and depending upon the mood of the commander or the Khan if he was with the army, the rest of the population).


    Heavy Infantry
    Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 


    Mongol Heavy Archers - Much like the armored archers, these foot archers were armored, but in this case, in the metal lamellar and/or chain. Many were Mongols, who agreed to fight on foot, after the effectiveness of archer units were seen. Commonly they were brought to the battlefield by mounted archers and dismounted before the horsemen went into their circle routine. Other non-Mongols were also found in these units, particularly Turks and Jurgen tribesmen, as well as Koreans and Chinese. Like the heavier mounted archers, they used broad-tipped arrows with exceptional armor piercing ability. The typical curved Mongolian sword were used as their backup weapons, with some opting for either axes or maces.

    Mongolian Foot Lancers - Dismounted versions of the Heavy Lancers, these units were used to kill mounted opponents, either by spearing the horses, or using the hooks to pull the riders off their mounts were they were more vulnerable. While they did not have a Western phalanx style, per se, they would, like the Chinese Halberds, often present an impenetrable wall of lances to onrushing horse units. Once the horses were killed or the riders pulled down, the butchery was accomplished with the curved sword, or axes. Shields, particularly those of the large rectangular style were often used in the same manner as the Korean Auxiliaries.


    SIEGE UNITS:

    Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

    Mongolian Catapults - The Mongols never developed their own siege artillery, and as a result hired both Chinese and Muslim engineers. Mongolian catapults differed from more western versions in that they were human-powered. Groups of pullers used ropes to pull down the lever arm of the catapult to achieve the launching of the rock or naphtha incendiary device. The greater the distance needed, the more men were employed. While this seems less powerful than the tension based versions found in Europe and the Middle East, they were both effective, and much cheaper/easier to build. They could be disassembled and reassembled with relative ease, and were used in great numbers during sieges (typical units had far more catapults than the two used by the current M2TW units).

    Mongolian Trebuchet - These were basic Muslim Trebuchets built, and often manned, by Muslim mercenaries or auxiliaries, and conformed to the same specifications as those used by the Muslims.

    Chinese Rocket Launchers - Not seen until the end of this Mod's period, these weapons were racks, usually on wheels, with firework rockets mounted inside them. Twenty to up to fifty rockets, depending upon the size of the rack could be fired off, using a long fuse that was in reality the fuses of each of the rockets twined together and lite from a distance behind the rack. While these rockets could kill, their main effect was to frighten the enemy. Rockets with greater killing capacity would not be seen till after this Mod's end date.


    SPECIAL UNIT
    Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 


    Imperial Guard - These men, often the sons of officers, as well as those who earned the right to be in the Guard through competition, were especially dedicated to the Khan and his Generals. Not only did they comprise the forces that guarded such men, but were considered the heart of all Mongol armies. A Guardsman held more power than many officers, and were trained in tactics, strategy and warfare from the moment they entered the Guards. They received training in all the weapons used by the Mongol army, as these men were expected to be able to assume the role of any officer who might be killed, and thus needed to know the style of weapon that unit used. They were mounted, and armed like Heavy Lancers, but made use of whatever weapon they wished. At the death of Genghis, the Muslim Historian and Painter, Raschid al-Din, stated that the Imperial Guard numbered 1,000 men, the Guard for Prince Juchi, Prince Chagadi, and Prince Ogedei numbered 4.000 each and other Guardsmen numbered 10,000. By 1229 C.E. these numbers increased considerably.



    Former Historian & Dev Member for Broken Crescent Mod
    Dual-Major BA in Medieval History / Political Science, Adelphi University Aug. 1989
    Member of the World History Association
    Member of the Medieval Academy of America
    Member of the Richard III Society
    Member of the Society for the Study of the Crusades and Latin East
    If you like my post, please +Rep...if you dislike my post, please +REP me twice

  18. #18
    The Mongol's Avatar Primicerius
    Join Date
    Apr 2006
    Location
    Canada
    Posts
    3,863

    Default Re: FACTION: The Mongol Empire

    What a coincidence, I've been reading up on my Mongol books lately as well.

    I've been trying to convince them to add Korean Auxiliaries from the beginning as well, they could be an interesting unit. They have a spear/bow in the Osprey pictures.

    The Chinese Halberds sound very interesting as well, I had never read about them before. I also fully support the Javelin units, some people think the Mongols are all fur hats and bows. As for the Grenadiers, wouldn't Thunderbomber sound more appropriate? (And not to mention, badass.)

    I'm getting ahead of myself I suppose, I just get giddy over the thought of AlphaDelta giving the Mongols a makeover. (In future versions, hopefully!)

    I'm gonna get some more general information about them though.

  19. #19
    The Mongol's Avatar Primicerius
    Join Date
    Apr 2006
    Location
    Canada
    Posts
    3,863

    Default Re: FACTION: The Mongol Empire

    Sorry to double post but I wanted to bump this thread.

    Are the Mongols going to be playable in the first release, a later release or ever? I realize they are an emergent faction so it would be kind of weird playing them from the start but it would be awesome nonetheless.

    I know you guys want to concentrate on the new factions first but will they get skinned in the future?

    Anyways, thanks in advance. Either way it's going to be a kickass mod.

  20. #20
    Indefinitely Banned
    Join Date
    Jun 2006
    Location
    Calgary, Canada
    Posts
    13,967

    Default Re: FACTION: The Mongol Empire

    Quote Originally Posted by The Mongol View Post
    Sorry to double post but I wanted to bump this thread.

    Are the Mongols going to be playable in the first release, a later release or ever? I realize they are an emergent faction so it would be kind of weird playing them from the start but it would be awesome nonetheless.

    I know you guys want to concentrate on the new factions first but will they get skinned in the future?

    Anyways, thanks in advance. Either way it's going to be a kickass mod.
    We probably won't make new units for 1.0. However, I've been thinking about making a "mongol invasion" expansion for BC in the future where the player can start off as one of mongol tribes and smash a built up Islamic world set to be like it was at 1220. But thats a idea for later on.

Page 1 of 27 123456789101126 ... LastLast

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •