Yuan Dynasty & Mongol Rule in China

Mongol Rule in China

  • Mongol rule was not as harsh as imagined.
  • Fewer capital crimes and executions compared to the Song Dynasty.
  • Implemented laws to reduce animal suffering and ensure humane slaughter.
  • Discrimination existed, favoring those loyal longest (Central Asians, Northern Chinese, Southern Song Chinese).
  • Hierarchy of assessed loyalties, not racism.

Cultural Impact

  • Painting, drama, and vernacular literature flourished.
  • Debate among Confucian scholars on whether to serve Mongol masters.
  • Traditional Chinese education was maintained in private academies.
  • The Four Books became the authoritative canon of Neo-Confucian ideology during the Yuan Dynasty.

Yuan Dynasty Decline

  • Reasons: Inflation, unemployment, neglected water conservation, famine relief failures.
  • Overthrow: Zhu Yuanzhang led a rebellion in 1368, driving out the Mongols and establishing the Ming Dynasty.

Khubilai Khan and the Yuan Dynasty

  • Khubilai familiar with Chinese culture, aimed to emulate Tang Taizong.
  • Yuan Dynasty established before final conquest.
  • Legitimacy: Yuan Dynasty considered legitimate after the last Song emperor's death in 1279.
  • Administrative instability due to differing governance approaches (Chinese vs. Mongolian).

Mongol Administration

  • Mongols distrusted Chinese officials.
  • Appointed Mongolian/Central Asian commissars to supervise.
  • Chinese officials' decisions needed cosignatures from commissars.
  • Civil service examinations were mostly canceled during the Yuan Dynasty.

Mongol Conquest

  • Ögödei completed the conquest of the Jurchens in 1234, bringing Northern China under Mongol control.
  • Yelü Chucai convinced Ögödei not to turn Northern China into grasslands.
  • Möngke Khan initiated campaigns against Persia and Southern Song China.
  • Khubilai Khan completed the conquest of the Southern Song in 1279.
  • Initial Mongol intent may have been intimidation rather than outright conquest.

Yuan Dynasty's Place in Mongol Empire

  • Part of a larger Mongol world empire with khanates like the Golden Horde, Il Khanate, and Chagadai Khanate.
  • Khubilai Khan was Khaghan (Grand Khan) over all khanates.

Rise of Chinggis Khan

  • Temujin (later Chinggis Khan) built a following in the steppe regions north of China.
  • In 1206, he was proclaimed Chinggis Khan ("Universal Ruler").
  • Chinggis Khan attacked the Jurchen Jin dynasty but did not fully subjugate them, focusing instead on conquering Central Asia.