Day of Empire_ How Hyperpowers Rise to Global Dominance--And Why They Fall - Amy Chua [58]
CONQUERING EASTWARD
In the early thirteenth century, China was divided and decaying— “like an aged woman, sunk in meditation, clad perhaps in too elaborate garments, surrounded by many children, little heeded.” But compared to the steppe, China was still magnificent, rich with pagodas and pleasure lakes, silver dragons with turquoise eyes, carved jade, ivory chess pieces, phoenix-eared vases. Whereas Genghis Khan's subjects were hunters or herders, China's population included mandarins and scholars, poets and calligraphers, bridge builders, beggars, bronze-casters, dukes, princes, and of course the emperor.15
At that point, however, China had more than one emperor. Northern China was dominated by the kingdom of the Jurchens, themselves originally a “barbarian” forest-dwelling people from Manchuria. From their capital, Zhongdu, now Beijing, the Jurchen emperor ruled more than 50 million subjects. Southern China was dominated by the even larger, more powerful Song dynasty, based in Hangzhou, where the Chinese Son of Heaven ruled some 60 million people. Both the Jurchen and Song emperors had far more military manpower than Genghis Khan, not to mention moats and walls protecting the major cities, massive fortifications, and sophisticated weaponry. Neither ruler paid much attention to the Mongol nomads—they were too busy warring with each other.
In 1210, a young, newly ascended Jurchen emperor sent a delegation to the Mongol steppe. The envoys demanded tribute and a display of submission from Genghis Khan, who, after all, was listed on the official rolls as “Commander Against Rebels” and a subject of the Jurchen emperor. Instead of kowtowing, Genghis Khan reportedly spat on the ground, called the Jurchen ruler an “imbecile,” then mounted his horse and rode away. Such defiance by the Mongol leader was equivalent to a declaration of war.
Historians suspect that Genghis Khan wanted to invade the Jurchen kingdom anyway in order to seize control of the rich supply of trade goods that flowed through their territory. And Genghis Khan was no doubt emboldened by his recent subjugation of the Tanguts, who, while much less formidable than their Jurchen neighbors, also had walled fortifications. Genghis Khan had defeated the Tanguts despite a self-inflicted catastrophe. In an attempt to flood the Tangut capital, the Mongols diverted a section of the Yellow River, but, lacking in engineering skills, they flooded their own camp instead. Nevertheless, Genghis Khan managed to secure an alliance with the Tangut king, who provided him with famous Tangut camels (as reserves for the Mongol cavalry) as well as his daughter's hand in marriage.16
Meanwhile, the Jurchen emperor, although infuriated by Genghis Khan's insolence, apparently belittled the idea of a Mongol threat. “Our empire is like the sea; yours is but a handful of sand,” he is said to have boasted. “How can we fear you?” His confidence was understandable. The massive city walls of the Jur-chens seemed impregnable, particularly given the Mongols’ primitive weapons. The Jurchen warriors also outnumbered the Mongol army by a ratio of more than two to one.
But Genghis Khan was, by all accounts, a brilliant commander. The Mongol military differed starkly from traditional armies. It consisted entirely of horsemen; the absence of foot soldiers gave the Mongol forces not only much greater mobility but a decisive ability to strike suddenly. Genghis Khan's men were hardy, disciplined, and resourceful. Marco Polo claimed that they could go for ten days without stopping to make a fire, surviving on dried meat and dried milk mixed with water. When nothing else was available, “they opened a vein in a horse, drank a small quantity of blood and closed the vein.” Sometimes the warriors got fresh meat, either by slaughtering some of the reserve animals that always accompanied them or by hunting and looting.17
In the end, Genghis Khan defeated