The Pax Mongolica (Latin for "Mongol Peace"), less often known as Pax TataricaMichael Prawdin. The Mongol Empire: its rise and legacy. New Brunswick: Transaction, 2006. p. 347. ("Tatar Peace"), is a historiographical term modeled after the original phrase Pax Romana which describes the stabilizing effects of the conquests of the Mongol Empire on the social, cultural and economic life of the inhabitants of the vast Eurasian territory that the Mongols conquered in the 13th and 14th centuries. The term is used to describe the eased communication and commerce that the unified administration helped to create and the period of relative peace that followed the Mongols' vast and violent conquests.
The conquests of Genghis Khan (r. 1206–1227) and his successors spanned from Southeast Asia to Eastern Europe. The Silk Road, connecting trade centres across Asia and Europe, came under the sole rule of the Mongol Empire. It was commonly said that "a maiden bearing a nugget of gold on her head could wander safely throughout the realm".Charlton M. Lewis and W. Scott Morton. China: Its History and Culture (Fourth Edition). New York: McGraw-Hill, 2004. Print. p.121Laurence Bergreen. Marco Polo: From Venice to Xanadu. New York: Vintage, 2007. Print. p.27–28 Despite the political fragmentation of the Mongol Empire into four khanates (Yuan dynasty, Golden Horde, Chagatai Khanate, and Ilkhanate), nearly a century of conquest and civil war was followed by relative stability in the early 14th century. The end of the Pax Mongolica was marked by the disintegration of the khanates and the outbreak of the Black Death in Asia which spread along trade routes to much of the world in the mid-14th century.
During this time, Mongol elements including the ʼPhags-pa script made numerous appearances in Western art.
Mongol expansion
Pax Mongolica followed the wake of conquests by the Mongol Empire beginning with Genghis Khan in the early 13th century. In the process of conquering the various tribes in the region, Genghis Khan revolutionised the way Mongolian tribal society was structured.David Morgan (historian). The Mongols second edition. Oxford: OUP, 2007. p.55 After each new victory, more and more people were incorporated under Genghis Khan's rule, thus diversifying the societal balance of the tribe. In 1203, Genghis Khan, in an effort to strengthen his army, ordered a reform that reorganised his army's structure while breaking down the traditional clan- and kindred-based divisions that had previously fragmented the society and military. He arranged his army into arbans (inter-ethnic groups of ten), and the members of an arban were commanded to be loyal to one another regardless of ethnic origin.Amy Chua. Day of Empire: How hyperpowers rise to global dominance, and why they fall. New York: Random House, 2007. p. 95. Ten arbans made a zuun, or a company; ten zuuns made a myangan, or a battalion; and ten myangans formed a tumen, or an army of 10,000. This decimal system organisation of Genghis Khan's strong military would prove very effective in conquering, by persuasion or force, the many tribes of the central Asian steppe, but it would also strengthen Mongol society as a whole.Jack Weatherford. Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World. New York: Three Rivers Press, 2004. p. 28 By 1206, Genghis Khan's military expansion had unified the tribes of Mongolia, and in the same year he was elected and acclaimed as the leader of Mongolia.
The new Mongol empire quickly moved to annex more territory. The first Mongol conquests were campaigns against the Western Xia.All Empires: Online History Community. "The Mongol Empire." Feb. 2007. Web. 22 November 2009 In 1209, the Mongols conquered the Western Xia. Between 1213 and 1214, the Mongols conquered the Jin Empire, and by 1214, the Mongols had captured most of the land north of the Yellow River. In 1221, Mongol generals Jebe and Subutai began their expedition around the Caspian Sea and into Kievan Rus'; Genghis Khan defeated Turkic Jalal al-Din Mangburni at the Battle of the Indus; the Khwarazmian Empire were defeated that same year. In 1235, the Mongols successfully invaded Korea. Two years later in 1237, Batu Khan and Subutai began their conquest of Rus'; they invaded Poland and Hungary in 1241. In 1252, the Mongols began their invasion of Song China; they would seize the capital of Hangzhou in 1276. In 1258, Hulegu Khan captured Baghdad.
Each new victory gave the Mongols the chance to incorporate new people, especially foreign engineers and labourers, into their society. Each new conquest also acquired new trade routes and the opportunity to control taxation and tribute. Thus, through territorial expansion, the Mongol Nation not only became an empire, but also became more technologically and economically advanced.
Trade network
At its height, the Mongolian empire stretched from Busan in the east to Budapest in the west, from Lithuania in the north to Vietnam in the south. This meant that an extremely large part of the continent was united under one political authority. As a result, the trade routes used by merchants became safe for travel, resulting in an overall growth and expansion of trade from China in the east to Britain in the west.Joseph Needham, Ling Wang. Science and civilisation in China. New York: Caimbridge UP, 1954. Thus, the Pax Mongolica greatly influenced many civilizations in Eurasia during the 13th and 14th centuries.
Under the Mongols new technologies and commodities were exchanged across the Old World, particularly Eurasia. Thomas T. Allsen noted many personnel exchanges occurred during the Mongol period.Thomas T. Allsen - Culture and Conquest in Mongol Eurasia, p.6 There were many significant developments in economy (especially trade and public finance), military, medicine, agriculture, cuisine, astronomy, printing, geography, and historiography, which were not limited to Eurasia but also included North Africa.
World trade system: the Silk Road
Before the Mongols' rise, the Old World system consisted of isolated imperial systems.Janet Abu-Lughod. "The Shape of the World System in the Thirteenth Century." Studies in Comparative International Development 22.4 (1988): 3–25. Print. The new Mongol empire amalgamated the once isolated civilizations into a new continental system, and re-established the Silk Road as a dominant method of transportation. The unification of Eurasia under the Mongols greatly diminished the number of competing tribute gatherers throughout the trade network and assured greater safety and security in travel.Janet Abu-Lughod. Before European Hegemony: the world system a.d. 1250–1350. New York: OUP, 1989. Print. p.158 During the Pax Mongolica, European merchants like Marco Polo made their way from Europe to China on the well-maintained and well travelled roads that linked Anatolia to China.
On the Silk Road caravans with Chinese silk; pepper, ginger, cinnamon, and nutmeg came to the West from the Spice Islands via the transcontinental trade routes. Eastern diets were introduced to Europeans as well.Michael Prawdin. The Mongol Empire: Its rise and legacy. New Brunswick, NJ: Transaction, 2006. Print. p.350. Indian muslins, cottons, pearls, and precious stones were sold in Europe, as well as weapons, carpets, and leather goods from Iran. Gunpowder was also introduced to Europe from China. In the opposite direction, Europeans sent silver, fine cloth, horses, linen, and other goods to the near and Far East. Increasing trade and commerce meant that the respective nations and societies increased their exposure to new goods and markets, thus increasing the GDP of each nation or society that was involved in the trade system. Μany of the cities participating in the 13th century world trade system grew rapidly in size.Janet Abu-Lughod. Before European Hegemony: the world system a.d. 1250–1350. New York: OUP, 1989. Print. p.356–357
Along with land trade routes, a Maritime Silk Road contributed to the flow of goods and establishment of a Pax Mongolica. This Maritime Silk Road started with short coastal routes in Southern China. As technology and navigation progressed these routes developed into a high-seas route into the Indian Ocean. Eventually these routes further developed encompassing the Arabian Sea, Persian Gulf, Red Sea, and the sea off East Africa.Bira Shagdar. "The Mongol Empire in the Thirteenth and Fourteenth Centuries: East-West Relations". The Silk Roads: Highways of Culture and Commerce. Vadime Elisseeff. Paris: Berghahn, 2000. 288–293. Print.
Along with tangible goods, people, techniques, information, and ideas moved lucidly across the Eurasian landmass for the first time.Robert Findlay, Kevin H. O'Rourke. Power and Plenty: trade, war, and the world economy in the second millennium. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 2007. Print. p.108 For example, John of Montecorvino, archbishop of Beijing founded Roman Catholic missions in India and China and also translated the New Testament into the Mongolian language. Long-distance trade brought new methods of doing business from the Far East to Europe; bills of exchange, deposit banking, and insurance were introduced to Europe during the Pax Mongolica.Robert Findlay, Kevin H. O'Rourke. Power and Plenty: trade, war, and the world economy in the second millennium. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 2007. Print. p. 109. Bills of exchange made it significantly easier to travel long distances because a traveller would not be burdened by the weight of metal coins.
Islamic methods of mathematics, astronomy, and science made their way to Africa, East Asia, and Europe during the Pax Mongolica.John M. Hobson. The Eastern Origins of Western Civilization. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge UP, 2004. Print. p.181. Methods of paper-making and printing made their way from China to Europe. Rudimentary banking systems were established, and money changing and credit extension were common, resulting in large amounts of merchant wealth.William J. Bernstein. A Splendid Exchange: How Trade Shaped the World. New York: Grove Press, 2008. Print. p.78–128
Mongol administration
Mongolia's central geographical position on the Asian continent was an important reason why it was able to play such a large role in the trade system.Bira Shagdar. "The Mongol Empire in the Thirteenth and Fourteenth Centuries: East-West Relations". The Silk Roads: Highways of Culture and Commerce. Vadime Elisseeff. Paris: Berghahn, 2000. 127–144. Print. The Mongol army was easily able to assert strong rule throughout most of the empire.Jack Weatherford. Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World. New York: Three Rivers Press, 2004. Print. p.136 The military ensured that supply lines and trade routes flowed smoothly; permanent garrisons were established along trade routes to protect the travelers on these routes. Complex local systems of taxation and extortion that were prevalent before Mongol rule were abolished to ensure the smooth flow of merchants and trade through the empire. A system of weights-and-measures was also standardised. To make the voyage on the trade routes less harrowing, the Mongols went as far as to plant trees along the roads to shade the merchants and travelers in the summer months; stone pillars were used to mark the roads where trees could not grow.
The Mongols sought alliances with other nations and societies to ensure the flow of trade through the empire. The Mongol army was also used to reshape and streamline the flow of trade through the continent by destroying cities on the less-important or more inaccessible routes.Jack Weatherford. Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World. New York: Three Rivers Press, 2004. Print. p.118–119 The Mongol military was mostly made up of cavalrymen. This allowed the military to move swiftly and easily over large distances.George Lane. Genghis Khan and Mongol Rule. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 2004. Print. p.31