AP World 2.1 and 2.2 Silk Road and good ol Mongols

2.1 and 2.2 Silk Road and good ol Mongols

Silk Road Origins

• began as trading highway for ancient merchants at least as early as ancient rome/ Han Dynasty (100-300ce)

• named after its most coveted product silk! which romans and the middle eastern world FELL IN LOVE WITH!

• could only get it from china, so it was an epic long journey, but worth a fortune to traders

• sadly after roman empire and han dynasty fell trade along the road dried up to nearly none for several centuries 500-1000ce (ish)

Mongols join the party

• began as scattered nomadic tribes across mongolia with no real impact on most of the world

• but when ghengis khan united them under 1 ruler they began a 2 decade campaign to conquer most of eurasia (china to Hungary)

• were brutally fast, tough, and violent soldiers who terrified the world

• cities that didnt surrender and pay tribute were obliterated

Silk Road under new management

• Once Mongols established their gigantic empire, they governed basically all of Eurasia divided up into regional chunks

• dedicated alot of work to restoring the condition, safety, and access to silk road from both east and west

• established patrol riders, postal service, and customs processes for trade

• Led to a rebirth of travel along silk road and reconnecting east and west

Mongol law of land

• very strict yet fair and consitent laws

• very harsh punishments for most crimes

• led to a period of relative peace and stability in their empire and silk road

• encouraged possible merchants it was safe enough to make trip again

Fall of Mongols

• after Ghengis the mongol leaders got progressively more incompetent

• eventually the regional territories united under mongols begin to break off into independent kingdoms

• Mongols got too soft

• but hey they did conquer china for a while which is insanely hard to do

Silk Road trade hubs

• along the way several cities rose to wealth and power for their location along the road.

• became bustling diverse metropolises with huge open markets

• created micro economy in each area of these sites

• Samarkand, Damascus, Constantinople, baghdad, and Palmyra are some of the most famous

more of the goods on silk road tended to be highly valuable, yet easily carried/lightweight/fragile goods

Side-Effects of Silk Road

• knowledge and scholarly research travels to europe

• disease spreads

• increases demand of pilgramages

• raises interest in exotic adventures

• religion is spread by islam and christianity (not always politely)