Mongol Siege Warfare: The Art of Taking Cities on Horseback

Khubilai Khan and the Mongol Yuan Dynasty Economic Meltdown

When Khubilai Khan conquered China and founded the Yuan dynasty, he inherited an empire of staggering wealth — and nearly bankrupted it within a generation. This episode follows the Mongols' disastrous experiment with paper money, from the first fiat currency in world history to the hyperinflation that collapsed the Yuan. We explore how Khubilai's chancellor, Ahmad Fanakati, imposed a state monopoly on silver and forced merchants to accept paper chao, how Marco Polo marveled at the 'almonds of the Great Khan,' and how the printing press — once a tool of conquest — became a weapon of self-destruction. Along the way, we meet the Silk Road merchants who evaded the system, the Chinese scholars who warned of inflation, and the rebel armies that finally burned the paper notes. This is the story of how the Mongol Empire's greatest innovation in finance became its gravest vulnerability. #YuanDynasty #PaperMoney #KhubilaiKhan #Chao #AhmadFanakati #Hyperinflation #MarcoPolo #FiatCurrency #SilkRoad #MongolEconomy #ZhongtongChao #ZhiyuanChao #Dadu #Khanbaliq #EconomicHistory #History #FexingoHistory #MedievalChina Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo [https://buymeacoffee.com/fexingo]

Mongol Siege Warfare: The Art of Taking Cities on Horseback

When we think of Mongol conquests, we picture cavalry charges across open steppe. But the Mongols also mastered siege warfare, reducing the most formidable walled cities of Asia to rubble. In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore how Genghis Khan and his successors adapted Chinese, Persian, and Muslim siege technology—trebuchets, gunpowder, sappers, and even human shields—to crush fortresses from Zhongdu to Baghdad. They discuss the role of Chinese engineers like Xue Tala-hai, the use of captive labor for assault trenches, and the psychological terror of Mongol siege tactics. The episode also examines the controversial 'scorched earth' policy at Merv and Nishapur, and how the Mongols' willingness to learn from conquered peoples made them unstoppable. A fresh angle for a show that has covered Yam, Yassa, and individual invasions—this time focusing on the nuts and bolts of how nomads brought down stone walls. #MongolSiegeWarfare #GenghisKhan #Zhongdu #Baghdad #XueTalahai #Trebuchet #Gunpowder #Sappers #Merv #Nishapur #SiegeOfBaghdad1258 #Subutai #YuanDynasty #CentralAsia #MilitaryHistory #FexingoHistory #History #SiegeTactics Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo [https://buymeacoffee.com/fexingo]

Genghis Khan's Bloody Revenge: The Destruction of the Khwarezmian Empire

In 1218, Genghis Khan sent a trade caravan to the Khwarezmian Empire. Its governor at Otrar massacred the merchants, sparking a war that would annihilate one of the medieval world's greatest powers. This episode follows the Mongol invasion of Khwarezm—a campaign of systematic devastation that saw cities like Samarkand, Bukhara, Urgench, Merv, and Nishapur reduced to rubble. We examine the strategic genius of Genghis Khan and his generals Subutai and Jebe, the desperate resistance of Sultan Muhammad II and his son Jalal al-Din, and the brutal aftermath that reshaped Central Asia. Along the way, we touch on Mongol siegecraft, the use of terror as a weapon, and the enduring legacy of a war fought for revenge. Contains discussion of historical violence. #MongolEmpire #GenghisKhan #Khwarezm #CentralAsia #Samarkand #Bukhara #Merv #Nishapur #Subutai #Jebe #JalalAlDin #SiegeWarfare #MedievalHistory #SilkRoad #TerrorTactics #SteppeConquest #History #FexingoHistory Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo [https://buymeacoffee.com/fexingo]

The Mongol Empire's Census: Counting People for Conquest

In this episode of The Mongol Empire: How Nomads Conquered the World, Lucas and Luna dive into one of the most underappreciated tools of Mongol domination: the census. While Genghis Khan united the steppe through cavalry and blood oaths, it was his successors—especially Ögedei and Möngke—who realized that to rule an empire, you need to know who you're ruling. We explore the first systematic census of the Mongol Empire in the 1230s, how the darughachi (imperial agents) counted households in China, Persia, and the Russian steppes, and how this data was used to allocate troops, taxes, and the famed Yam postal relays. We also touch on resistance to counting: revolts in the Caucasus, evasion in the forests of Siberia, and the philosophical clash between nomadic freedom and bureaucratic order. Specific names include Ögedei Khan, Möngke Khan, Shigi Qutuqu, and Rashid al-Din. The episode reveals how a simple administrative act—counting people—helped hold together the largest contiguous land empire in history. #MongolEmpire #Census #ÖgedeiKhan #MöngkeKhan #ShigiQutuqu #Darughachi #Qubchur #Yam #CentralAsia #SteppeHistory #Taxation #Bureaucracy #RashidAlDin #JamiAlTawarikh #13thCentury #History #FexingoHistory #AdministrativeHistory Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo [https://buymeacoffee.com/fexingo]

The Mongol Empire's Postal System: How the Yam Network Connected an Empire

In this episode of The Mongol Empire: How Nomads Conquered the World, Lucas and Luna explore the Yam — the Mongol Empire's extraordinary postal and intelligence network that stretched from the shores of the Pacific to the plains of Hungary. They delve into how Genghis Khan and his successors built a system of relay stations, riders, and horses that could move messages across the empire at speeds not seen again until the 19th century. Along the way, they discuss the institution of jamchi (postal riders), the use of paiza (metal passes granting access and authority), and the Yam's role in facilitating trade, espionage, and governance across diverse cultures. Lucas also shares the story of the European envoy André de Longjumeau, who traveled the Yam in the 1240s, and explains how the system influenced later postal networks in India and the Ottoman Empire. This episode offers a fresh look at one of the Mongol Empire's most durable innovations — a communications revolution that reshaped Eurasia. #Yam #MongolEmpire #PostalSystem #GenghisKhan #Paiza #Jamchi #SilkRoad #PaxMongolica #CentralAsia #Karakorum #Khanbaliq #AndrédeLongjumeau #RelayStations #Espionage #Communications #History #FexingoHistory #NomadicEmpire Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo [https://buymeacoffee.com/fexingo]