The Mongols and the Armenians (1220-1335), By Bayarsaikhan Dashdondog, Brill’s Inner Asian Library, Editors Michael R. Drompp Devin DeWeese, VOLUME 24 (original) (raw)

A Brief Historical Background of the Armenians and Mongols

The Mongols and the Armenians (1220-1335)

a background of the armenians and mongols 31 CHAPTER ONE A BRIEF HISTORICAL BACKGROUND OF THE ARMENIANS AND MONGOLS Before moving on to the relationship set up between the Mongols and the Armenians , it is necessary to give a short historical background about the origin, location and history of them. It is especially important to mention the historical conditions of the Armenians on the eve of the Mongol conquest , when Greater Armenia and Cilician Armenia existed separately from each other with no major political contacts, although with constant cultural, religious and trading links. The Mongols were dealing with two different vassal states, of which the Greater Armenians were their subjects, while the Cilician Armenians were their allies.

Reframing the Mongols in 1260: The Armenians, the Mongols and the Magi

Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society

The irruption of the Mongols led to profound changes in the political, cultural and confessional climate of the thirteenth-century Near East. While many did not survive the initial onslaught and the years of turmoil that followed, and rulers that opposed the Mongols were largely swept away, the communities and dynasties that remained were forced to seek some sort of accommodation with the new overlords. While subjection to the Mongol yoke was far from desirable, rulers could seek to make the best of the situation, in the hope that the ambitions of the Mongols might come to match their own, or that the Mongols might be persuaded to support their cause. This paper will consider how certain Christian groups in the Near East sought to reconcile themselves to the Mongol presence, and how they sought to place these alien invaders within a more familiar framework. In particular it will examine the visual evidence for this process by looking at a couple of appearances of recognisably Mongol...

The Routledge Handbook of the Mongols and Central-Eastern Europe. London and New York: Routledge, 2021. 544 pp.

The Routledge Handbook of the Mongols and Central-Eastern Europe offers a comprehensive overview of the Mongols’ military, political, socio-economic and cultural relations with Central and Eastern European nations between the thirteenth and fifteenth centuries. The Mongol Empire was the largest contiguous land empire in history, and one which contributed to the establishment of political, commercial and cultural contacts between all Eurasian regions. The Golden Horde, founded in Eastern Europe by Chinggis Khan’s grandson, Batu, in the thirteenth century, was the dominant power in the region. For two hundred years, all of the countries and peoples of Central and Eastern Europe had to reckon with a powerful centralized state with enormous military potential. Some chose to submit to the Mongols whilst others defended their independence, but none could avoid the influence of this powerful empire. In this book, twenty-five chapters examine this crucial period in Central-Eastern European history, including trade, confrontation, and cultural and religious exchange between the Mongols and their neighbours. This book will be an essential reference for scholars and students of the Mongols, as well those interested in the political, social and economic history of medieval Central-Eastern Europe.

The End of Mongol-Armenian Relations (1295–1335)

The Mongols and the Armenians (1220-1335)

the end of mongol-armenian relations 193 CHAPTER EIGHT THE END OF MONGOLARMENIAN RELATIONS 12951335 With the death of Abaqa Khan, Tegűder , as a convert to Islam , transferred the Il-Khanate to the Sultanate. 1 The Mongol minority was absorbed slowly but steadily by the indigenous Islamic majority. The process of the Mongols ' conversion to Islam reached its peak during the reign of Ghazan Khan when he adopted Islam. Ghazan, as a Mongol Chinggisid, actually demonstrated that affairs of state could prevail over the ancestral tradition of religious tolerance. The accomplishment of the Mongols ' conversion to Islam was well received by the Muslims and is well documented in Muslim historiography. However, the reaction of the Christians, particularly Armenians , to this act is less known. In fact, the Armenians perceived the Mongols' conversion process in light of their national interest. Therefore, the arguments related to Mongol-Armenian relations after the Islamisation of the Mongol Il-Khans, the end of Mongol-Mamluk war during the reign of Öljeitű Il-Khan (r. 1304-1316), and the aftermath of the cooperation merits our attention.

Mongol-Armenian Cooperation: Stage III (1265–1295)

The Mongols and the Armenians (1220-1335)

mongol-armenian cooperation 159 CHAPTER SEVEN MONGOLARMENIAN COOPERATION: STAGE III 12651295 As has been mentioned previously, the Mongol-Cilician Armenian partnership had great success at the beginning. However, conflicts within the Mongol Empire prevented the Mongol advance into the Near East , although the Mongols did not give up the idea of marching on northern Syria. Hűlegű 's successors made a series of approaches to various leaders to gain Latin support, including the Popes and the Kings of France and England. Meanwhile, the Mamluks became a more and more powerful adversary of the Il-Khanate and their hostility towards Cilician Armenia for being a Mongol ally intensified. The Christian States on the Syrian coast, seeking a chance of survival, saw in the Mongols a realisation of the Popes' dreams of 'Prester John .' 82 Over time, their hopes vanished with the conversion to Islam of the Mongols of the Golden Horde and the Il-Khans. The purpose of this chapter is to discuss the development of Mongol-Armenian military collaboration during the Mongol conquest of the Syrian coast, which eventually grew into a relationship that implicated not only the Mongol Il-Khans and the Armenian lords, but also the Mamluk Sultans and the Christian powers in that particular period. After the death of Hűlegű , the Armenians carefully watched the accession of each Il-Khan and the policy that would follow. The Cilician Armenians tried to use every possible moment to draw the Il-Khans' attention towards their own interests in order to safeguard their lands and rights. In fact, they succeeded in this as long as the Mongols ' interest coincided with theirs and remained strong enough to invade the Syrian coast. Examination of the contemporary Armenian sources reveals that the Armenians expected that each Il-Khan would give serious attention to Mongol-Armenian affairs. 82 The Pope and the King of France were aware of the danger of assisting Mongol armies; however, the Mongols were their only means of breaking the Muslim bondage. The belief in Prester John had grown since 1141, when the Seljuks were defeated by a non-Muslim army from Central Asia , who they thought were Nesto