The History of the Mongol Conquests [Paperback]

J. J. Saunders (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0812217667 | ISBN-13: 978-0812217667 | Publication Date: March 1, 2001

The Mongol conquests, culminating with the invasion of Europe in the middle of the thirteenth century, were of a scope and range never equaled. These nomadic peoples from central Asia briefly held sway over an empire that stretched across Asia to the frontiers of Germany and the shores of the Adriatic. Surprisingly little has been written on this vast and immensely influential empire, known chiefly through the charismatic leaders, Chingis Khan and Kublai Khan.

J. J. Saunders's landmark book, first published in 1972, is a carefully documented introductory history of the rise and fall of the great Mongol empire. Saunders sets the historical stage with a discussion of nomad groups and cultures at the dawn of the second millennium, and then traces the rise of the Mongol conquests through the earlier Turkish expansion into Asia between the eighth and twelfth centuries. Beginning in the early 1200s, the Mongols led by Chingis Khan began their insatiable assault on all the kingdoms and peoples around them, erasing whole cities, killing entire populations, forcing mass migrations, and permanently changing the distribution of the world's major religions. The Mongols were finally checked along the edges of Europe and forced out of the Middle East by rejuvenated Muslim factions.

As Saunders concludes, one of the major legacies of the Mongol conquests was the transfer of intellectual and scientific primacy of the Old World from Islamic societies to Western Europe, paving the way for the Renaissance.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"By far the best modern narrative account of the most extensive land empire in the history of the world. It is the ideal introduction to the field."—David Morgan, author of The Mongols

About the Author

J. J. Saunders was Reader in History at the University of Canterbury, New Zealand. He is author of A History of Medieval Islam.

Product Details

• Paperback: 296 pages
• Publisher: University of Pennsylvania Press (March 1, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0812217667
• ISBN-13: 978-0812217667
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.5 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #402,987 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

37 of 40 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Sould be required reading, December 10, 2002

By 

Ann Stewart (Elk Grove, CA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The History of the Mongol Conquests (Paperback)

How could I have lived for so long without the knowledge that's in this book? It's essential for understanding our (and "their") history. I had no idea of the permanent impact the Mongol infiltration of western Asia & eastern Europe had on the development of societies not only there but in Europe (and probably China, but most of the book is spent in Asia). They were only in control for about 100 years, but they weren't just mean tourists or hit-and-run snipers. And I had no idea that Turks (who, as a people, did a dry run of the Mongol invasion 5 or 600 years earlier) were originally from north of the Gobi desert. I had no idea of the degree of commercial and intellectual communication between China and the west that far back. And if you want to understand the rise of Islam, you must read this book. If you want to understand the nature of Russia, you must read this book. There's so much more. The book seems well researched, and the author seems to let us know when he's hypothesizing. This is a book to buy & keep.

25 of 29 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Thorough but academic, February 11, 2003

By 

Michael B Bond - See all my reviews

This review is from: The History of the Mongol Conquests (Paperback)

This is not for the lighthearted reader, but it is a fairly thorough review of the subject, and the author seems to have done rigorous analysis before asserting anything that may not be true. In that sense, you can accept this book with confidence. One annoyance is that the amount of notes is considerable, and they are all at the end of the book instead of the bottom of pages. So you find yourself flipping to the notes to get background information that probably could and should have been included in the text to allow for more fluid reading. It reads a little more slowly than your typical nonfiction book.

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Starts strong but fades, although still worth it, April 19, 2009

By 

Stage 3 (NSW Australia) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: The History of the Mongol Conquests (Paperback)

This book written by J.J. Saunders was originally published in 1971 and its continued production speaks volumes for the interest in the subject matter that he is writing about. The Mongol conquests were a fascinating period of history, although for the people of the times looking out from their villages as the Mongol warriors charged in on their steppe ponies, terror was probably more apt. Saunders covers a significant amount of time and territory across his pages in a roughly chronological approach. He starts with a very thorough coverage of Chingis Khan (Ghengis Khan as it is often spelt) from his birth, through the ostracism of his family, then on to his bloody climb to power in not just Mongolia but across a lot of the Eurasian land mass. This coverage is excellent with much detail. There are family trees at the start of the book to assist the reader in understanding the linkages. Saunders analyses the military side of the Mongols and also discusses the religious aspect, especially as they change from their paganism to Islam.

His discussion about the Mongols being confused with the legend of the Kingdom of Prester John is an interesting aside. The Crusade era of the West coincided with the time of the Mongol conquests. Travellers brought back confusing tails of what religion the Mongols were and some Christians in the West believed that the Mongols were the lost Christian Kingdom under Prester John. They hoped that the Christian West and the Mongols could squeeze the Muslims that were between their two spheres of influence. While they were encouraged by the Mongolian attacks of the Muslim lands they were disabused of their theory of co-coreligionists when the Mongols proved equally happy to sack Christian lands.

Saunders has brought a complex subject into an enjoyable book but it seemed that the further that he moved from Chingis the less information there was about the Mongols. This despite the observations of Marco Polo in the court of Kubilai Khan. Timur or Tamerlane also gets scant treatment. Saunders in a way does obliquely justify this by asking how Mongol was Timur when he was more Turkic then Mongol on the surface. In addition, by that time Timur was just one of the Mongol leaders in the area of the formally united Mongol Empire. Significantly, while other leaders used Khan, Timur did not.

That said this is a worthwhile volume to have in your library if you are interested in the Mongols. I believe that it will appeal to both those with a knowledge already of the Mongols and those with a passing interest.