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the Not so Mongol Invasions of Japan

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The Mongols under the Great Khans were truly one of a kind, forming the second-largest empire in History, right above the Russians but a fair bit short of the British. They went nearly everywhere in Asia, from the coasts of the Song to the eastern regions of Europe and Anatolia. Only three places have escaped their touch: the inhospitable lands of Siberia, the Indian Peninsula, and Japan. Now anyone who knows a bit about Japan’s history might be surprised by this, as the two great Mongol invasions are a big part of the Island Nation’s past. Now I am not denying these attacks ever happened, but rather that our favourite horse riders had very little to do with them. Let me explain.     Now the main reason why the idea that the Mongols tried to invade Japan on two separate occasions stemmed from the fact that both events were led by Kublai Khan, founder of the Yuan Dynasty and grandson of Genghis Khan. The problem with this is that Kublai, after the fragmentation of the g...
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Transcontinental Trade of the Old World

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  As I mentioned in my post on Rome’s economy, trade is a vital aspect of a healthy society. As civilizations developed and advanced, so did the trading routes, becoming more complex and farther reaching. Today, we will talk about one of the first transcontinental trade networks on the planet, the Silk Road, connecting the far east of Asia to Europe.   Everything started during the days of the Han dynasty, when Emperor Wu was searching for ways to end the threat of the Nomadic nation of  Xiongnu  in modern day Mongolia. As such, he sent an emissary , named  Zhang Qian, to central Asia for potential allies. Zhang, despite traversing the territories of his enemies, made it to his destination and successfully  made contact with  the local Yuezhi and  Dayuan  people, but was quickly attracted by something else: horses. Now, the Hans were no strangers to these animals, as they themselves fielded cavalry and chariot units in significant quantity. H...
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Rome's Economy, How Good was It.

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  The Roman Empire is one of the greatest and longest-ruling polities in history, beginning in 509 B.C. with the establishment of the Roman Republic and ending with the fall of Constantinople in 1453 A.D. It achieved dominance of the Mediterranean, and later survival in Anatolia, through a combination of factors, one of which was a robust economy. However, recent scholars have shifted this view, with more people arguing that the empire’s economy was far more fragile than it appeared. So, what is the  real answer  to that question?   What Rome Did Well   Let’s  be clear: Romans were not inept at managing their economy; in fact, they had many practices that made it  relatively robust  for its time. You cannot  establish  and maintain an empire as large as theirs for so long in the ancient world while being backward in finances. That said, this answer is not  very interesting  on its own, so  let’s  delve into how the Ro...
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