Mongolia

Abstract

Temujin became khan of Hamag Mongolia in 1190. Having united by conquest various Tatar and Mongolian tribes he was confirmed as ‘Universal’ (‘Genghis’, ‘Chingiz’) khan in 1206. The expansionist impulse of his nomadic empire (Beijing captured in 1215; Samarkand in 1220) continued after his death in 1227, although the empire was by then administratively divided among his sons. Tamurlaine (died 1405) was the last of the conquering khans. In 1368 the Chinese drove the Mongols from Beijing, and for the next 2 centuries Sino-Mongolian relations alternated between war and trade. Lamaism spread from Tibet in the 16th century. The last Mongol khan, Ligden (1604-34), failed to stem the tide of Manchu expansion; southern (Inner) Mongolia was conquered in 1636 and Beijing in 1644. In 1691 Outer Mongolia accepted Manchu rule. The head of the Lamaist faith became the symbol of national identity, and his seat (‘Urga#x2019;, now Ulan Bator) was made the Mongolian capital.