The Mongol Empire

Overview

Learn how the Mongols both terrorized and advanced the world in this fascinating course taught by award-winning historian Craig Benjamin.

Course No. 3158

The Mongol Empire was the largest contiguous empire in history, forged by conquests across Eurasia in the 13th-14th centuries. These 24 lectures explore the paradox of Mongol brutality combined with religious tolerance and cultural exchange that shaped the modern world.

Course Content

Rise of the Mongols

• The Mongols’ Place in World History (32 min)
  • Introduction to the empire’s scope and impact from China to Europe

2. The Origins of Eurasian Steppe Nomadism (29 min)
   • 7,000 years of pastoral culture and military traditions

3. Nomadic Predecessors of the Mongols (29 min)
   • Xiongnu and Turkic empires that set the template

• The Rise of Chinggis Khan (29 min)
  • From obscure son of a chief to “Universal Ruler”

• Chinggis Khan’s Early Conquests (29 min)
  • First campaigns against the Jin Dynasty in China

Mongol Military Machine

6. Mongol Institutions under Chinggis Khan (29 min)
   • Reorganization of society, taxation, and the Great Yasa law code

7. Chinggis Khan’s Khwarazmian Campaign (29 min)
   • Brutal revenge against Shah Muhammad’s empire

8. The Death of Chinggis Khan (28 min)
   • Mysterious burial and succession plans

9. Ogedai Khan’s Western Campaigns (28 min)
   • Conquests in China and crushing European knights

10. The Strengths of Mongol Military Organization (28 min)
    • Discipline, tactics and hunting-based training

Khanates and Conquests

11. Dividing the Empire: A Tale of Four Brothers (29 min)
    • Mongke, Qubilai, Hulagu and Ariq Boke’s campaigns

12. The Mongols in China (29 min)
    • Qubilai Khan establishes the Yuan Dynasty

13. The Mongols in East/Southeast Asia (28 min)
    • Failed invasions of Japan and mixed success elsewhere

14. The Mongols in Central Asia (29 min)
    • Chagatai and Ogedei descendants’ rule

15. The Mongols in Persia/Middle East (29 min)
    • Religious clashes under rulers like Oljeitu

16. The Mongols in Russia: The Golden Horde (29 min)
    • Impact on Moscow’s rise and plague warfare

Legacy and Collapse

17. The Pax Mongolica: Eurasia Reconnected (27 min)
    • Marco Polo and other travelers’ accounts

18. The Collapse of the Mongol Empires (28 min)
    • Gradual disintegration across khanates

19. Timur the Lame (Tamerlane) (29 min)
    • Last great Mongol ruler’s early exploits

20. Timur’s Major Campaigns (28 min)
    • Sack of Delhi, defeat of Ottomans

21. Samarkand: Timur’s Cultural Capital (29 min)
    • Architectural marvels and curses

• From Mughals to Soviets (31 min)
  • Timur’s descendants and Inner Eurasian history

23. The Mongols and the Modern World (32 min)
    • Assessing their complex global legacy