Lecture 13

1. Lecture 13 Hist 100 World Civilization I Instructor: Dr. Donald R. Shaffer Upper Iowa University

2. Lecture 13Muslims invade India • Muslim influence in India spread slowly, starting in the 7th century CE and ending in their conquest of the Ganges Valley in the 13th century • The initial invasion came in 636 under the Umayyad general Muhammad ibn-Qasim who invaded the Indus Valley • The later invasions of India came under Turkish Muslims • Parts of northern India fell in the 10th century to Turkish Muslims then based in Afghanistan • A new wave of Turks from Afghanistan in the 12th century spread Muslim control further, establishing the Delhi Sultanate • Eventually, only a small part of southern India remained free of Muslim control Conquests of Muhammad Ibn- Qasim Moslem conquests in India 1206-1351 CE

3. Lecture 13India under Islam • Religion • Under Muslim rulers, Islam became the primary religion of the Indus Valley • Elsewhere, Hinduism continued to thrive and Moslems were such a minority that Moslems leaders were forced to tolerate the Hindu faith • The best they could do was to charge Hindus the jitza • The failure of Moslem rulers to generate significant converts outside the Indus Valley created religious divisions leading to the creation of Pakistan out of India in 1947 • Indian cultural exports • It should be noted during this same period, Indian merchants settled in Southeast Asia spreading Indian culture and religion Qutub Minar in Delhi The tallest brick minaret in the world and a fine example of Indo-Islamic architecture

4. Lecture 13Mongol Origins • Nomadic peoples had long existed in Central Asia north of China. • These horse borne nomads had long proved troublesome to the Chinese by invading their domain • China had tried unsuccessfully to keep the northern nomads out by constructing the Great Wall • The Mongols were simply the latest northern invaders to emerge from the Central Asian steppes • Hence, the Mongols were part of a centuries old phenomena • What made them different was the scale of their conquests • Their conquests took them well beyond Asia to the gates of Europe • They created the largest contiguous land empire in world history Some present-day Mongols continue to live a nomadic existence like their ancestors (with some accommodations to modernity)

5. Genghis Khan Lecture 13Mongol Conquests • After the ascension of Genghis Khan as the great Khan of the Mongols in 1206, he embarked on a series of conquests that left him and his successors in command of a vast empire • The empire he started stretched over much of the Eurasian landmass, from China and Korea in the east to Russia and the Middle East in the west, and Siberia to the north • Why the Mongols succeeded • Genghis Khan recruited talented military leaders • Mongol armies by the standards of the day were extraordinarily well-disciplined • They were not only skilled at mobility, but also siege warfare and had the ability to improvise in response to local opportunities and constraints Map of the extent of Mongol conquests superimposed on a present day map of Mongol population concentrations (in red)

6. Lecture 13Mongol Empires • The Mongol Empire was so large it proved impossible to govern as one unit • It also proved desirable to split up the empire to satisfy the ambitions of Genghis Khan’s descendants • Mongol Empire divisions • Domains of the Great Khan ruled over Mongolia proper, and China, and Korea • As seen, Genghis’ grandson, Kublai Khan declared himself Emperor of China (Yuan Dynasty) • Khanate of the Golden Horde: Russia and Asia west of the Ural Mountains • Il-Khan: Iran and Mesopotamia • Khanate of Jagadai (Chaghatai): sandwiched between the rest with India to the south

7. Lecture 13Mongols vs. Muslims • The most formidable obstacle to the Mongol conquests were Muslim empires of Persia and the Middle East • The Mongols managed to conquer Persia and Mesopotamia but Arab armies stemmed their further advance • Islam caused divisions within Mongol ranks between those who embraced the religion to reconcile the conquered to Mongol rule and those who wished to stamp it out • The Mongols were particular vicious in Persia and Mesopotamia, killing large parts of the population • Ultimately, the question of conversion became pointless as the Mongols proved ultimately unable to hold their conquests against revolts by the descendants of the conquered The Malmuk Arabs stopped Mongol conquests of Muslim lands at the Battle of Ain Julat in 1260

8. Lecture 13West African Empires: Ghana • Origins • Originally inhabited by the Sonike who called their ruler, the “ghana” or war chief • In the 10th-century CE they extended their influence into the sub-Saharan trading cities and west almost as far as the Atlantic • Leadership • The king was both a military and religious leader • The position of king passed matrilineally • Although the ruler maintained their polytheistic, animistic religion they relied increasingly on Muslim advisors and bureaucrats to run the kingdom • Ghana fell to a Berber invasion in the 11th century CE Empire of Ghana at its fullest extent

9. Lecture 13West African Empires: Mali • In the 13th century, the Mandinke, a former subject people of Ghana achieved dominance and established an even more impressive kingdom • The basis of Mali’s success was its agriculture, trade, and military prowess • They managed to gain control over the terminus of the trans-Saharan trade routes into West Africa • Mansa Musa • The Mali leader under which the kingdom reached its apex • Under his leadership Mali peaked at twice the size of Ghana • He established Timbuktu as one of the great cities of sub-Sahara • Musa converted to Islam and became famous for his Hajj Empire of Mali at its fullest extent Mansa Musa

10. Lecture 13West African Empires: Songhay • Emerged in the 15th century • Emerged as a distinct entity about 800 CE around Gao • Previously a small vassal kingdom of the Empire of Mali centered around Gao, which would be its capital • The decline of Mali was an opportunity for the Songhay to assert their independence and eventually to expand their territory beginning under Sonni Ali • Eventually Sonni’s dynasty was supplanted by the dynasty of Askia Mohammed • After Askia Mohammed, Songhay went into decline • Eventually the empire was conquered by Arabs coming from what is today Morocco Empire of Songhai at its fullest extent

11. Lecture 13Ethiopia • Another significant early kingdom of Africa was Ethiopia in the east • Ethiopia was the one significant center of Christianity in sub-Saharan Africa, where the religion spread from Egypt in about 350 CE • Hence, its Christianity resembles the Coptic tradition • Monophystic Doctrine: Christ was wholly divine • Most other Christian believe Christ both human and divine • Isolation • Unlike Egypt, Ethiopia never came under Moslem domination, but it did become isolated from the rest of Christendom until the 15th century • Isolation helped fuse the church and state to an unprecedented degree

12. Lecture 13East African City States • For much of its history, East Africa, south of Ethiopia and Somalia was dominated by lively city states • These city states had wide trading contacts • For example, Greco-Roman traders visited in the 1st century CE • After the rise of Islam, Muslim traders came regularly, liking the fact these cities could be reached by sea rather than over difficult desert caravan routes • Swahili is an Arabic term meaning “people of the coast” • Indonesian and Chinese traders also visited (including Zheng He) • The East African city states became perhaps the most cosmopolitan places in sub-Saharan Africa Area of Swahili speakers in East Africa