RBSE Class 11 History Important Questions Chapter 5 Nomadic Empires

Rajasthan Board RBSE Class 11 History Important Questions Chapter 5 Nomadic Empires Important Questions and Answers. 

RBSE Class 11 History Important Questions Chapter 5 Nomadic Empires 

Very Short Answer Type Questions 

Question 1. 
Who was the greatest Mongol leader ? Where was he born ? Also write his childhood name.
Answer:
The greatest Mongol leader was Genghis Khan. He was born in 1162 in present day Mongolia region. He was the son of Yesugei and Oelun-eke. He ruled from 1206 to 1227. His earliest (childish) name was Temujin. 

Question 2. 
Who was Genghis Khan’s father ? To which tribe he belonged to ? Why was Genghis Khans named Temujin according to Mongolian tradition ?
Answer:
Yesugei was the name of Genghis Khan’s father. He belonged to Kiyat tribe. Genghis Khan was named ‘Temujin’, because when he was born his father defeated Tatar tribe’s chief Temujin. Thus, according to Mongolian tradition nearly born child Genghis Khan was named Temujin.

Question 3. 
What is the meaning of term Quriltai ? Describe in short its two function.
Answer:
The term ‘Quriltai’ means on assembly of Mongol chieftains.
Functions : 
(i) It was responsible for taking decisions pertaining to sucession.
(ii) It also decided about the expeditions further to be taken for the expansion of the state.

Question 4. 
Who was the Shah of Khwarazm during the time of invasion of Genghis Khan ? When did he invade on him ?
Answer:
During Genghis Khan’s invasion Muhammad was the Shah of Khwarazm. He invaded on him in 1221 CE.

Question 5.
Describe in brief the extent of Genghis Khan’s empire. Where was his capital ?
Answer:
Genghis Khan’s empire was extended from Persia to Peking and from Siberia to Sindh. He made ‘Karakoram’ his capital city.

Question 6. 
What is the meaning of term ‘Yasa’ ? By whom it was introduced and when ?
Answer:
The term ‘Yasa’ stands for Legal Code. This term was introduced in 1206 by Mongol leader ‘Genghis Khan’.

Question 7. 
What do you know about Ulus ?
Answer:
Ulus means a specified defined area under Genghis Khan. An Ulus was assigned to his sons to rule over conquered areas. Ulus made Genghis Khan’s son as their deputy rulers.

Question 8. 
What was the most important cause of the downfall of the Mongol Empire ?
Answer:
The intemt rivalries were the most important cause of the doomful of the Mongol empire.

Question 9. 
What was Qubkur ?
Answer:
It was a tax paid to the Mongol government in lieu of cattle, horses and other animals herds by the nomadic Mongol.

Question 10. 
Describe any three features of Yasa.
Answer:
Features of Yasa :
(i) These were legal codes introduced by Genghis Khan in 1206.
(ii) Under these codes all religions will be equally respected.
(iii) Priests of all religions should be exempted from all kinds of taxes.
(iv) No one could declared himself the Khan without the consent of Ouriltai.

Question 11. 
Why did Genghis Khan carry on a terrible destruction in Nishapur ?
Answer:
Genghis Khan carried out a terrible destruction in Nishapur in 1221 because during this expedition a young Mongol prince was killed accidently.

Question 12. 
What was the immediate factor responsible for Genghis Khan’s invasion on Khwarazm ?
Answer:
Muhammad Shah of Khwarrazm assassinated four members sent by Genghis Khan in 1219 for the commercial mission. This assassination of commercial members lead the invasion of Genghis Khan on Shah of Khwarazim.

Question 13. 
What was reason behind the construction of Great Wall of China ?
Answer:
The main reason behind the construction of Great Wall of China was to minimise or stop the repeatedly invasions of nomadic tribes of Mongolia. It was hence constructed to safeguard China from the invasions of nomadic tribals

Question 14. 
Which items did the Mongols imported and exported with China ?
Answer:
Items of Export : Horses, fur, hunting animals etc.
Items of Import : Agricultural products, iron implements and tools etc.

Question 15. 
Write any three features of Mongol society of that period.
Answer:
Features of Mongol society :
(i) The society was patriarchal in nature.
(ii) Polygamy was also prevalent in the society.
(iii) There was strict restriction on the marriage within same tribe.

Question 16. 
How did Buddhism benefit the Mongols ?    
Answer:
Th.e Buddhism monasteries served them as the important cultural centers of society. The Buddlism scriptures greatly enriched the Mongolion traditions and cussoms.

Question 17.
Describe in short the composition of Mongol army.
Answer:
People of various tribes were comprised of Mongol army. The army wras also included Uighurs of Turkish origin. Kereyits were also included in his (Genghis Khan’s) army. Later on, they turned staunch enemy of Genghis Khan.

Short Answer Type Questions

Question 1. 
Write any four rules formulated by Genghs Khan to lay special emphasise on discipline in the army.
Answer:
Following rules were formulated by Genghis Khan to maintain discipline in the army :
(i) The soldiers who were on leave during the revolt or any campaign immediately reported back.
(ii) No soldier according to wish can move or join another unit of the army.
(iii) Before leaving for battlefield, it was made compulsory for all soldiers to check or inspect their weapons.
(iv) Soldiers had to obey to their commander’s orders. Denying it was an offence.
(v) No soldiers can took part in loot and plunder until or unless they were asked by their commander.
(vi) Soldiers were to obey the order of their higher official and were to remain in discipline.

Question 2. 
What factors were responsible for Genghis Khan’s success ?
Answer:
Following factors were responsible for Genghis Khan’s success :
(i) He was a born commander.
(ii) He was an efficient leader and army commander. He had the capacity to lead the army.
(iii) He had organised a formidable army
(iv) His army was well-disciplined.
(v) Mongol soldiers were born as skilled horse riders and archers. No one could do anything to envy his agility

Question 3. 
Write some key rules of Yasa.
Answer:
‘Yasa’ were the ‘legally codes’ compiled by the Mongols. These are :
(i) Do not tell a lie.
(ii) Respect the poor and elders.
(iii) Respect all religions prevalent at that time in the society.
(iv) Strict punishment will be awarded to those spy who will provide false information.

Question 4. 
Describe religious policy of the Mongols.
Answer:
(i) Mongols had deep faith in religion. They worshipped Tengri (Sun God). 
(ii) It was believed that god is omni-potent.
(iii) For religious ceremony they also sacrificed their prominent animal i.e., horse.
(iv) Holy religious personalities were also respected. They were called Shamans.
(v) Mongols were religiously tolerant toward other religions.

Question 5. 
Write a short note on the ‘Great Wall of the China’.
Answer:
Throughout its history, China suffered extensively from nomad intrusion and different regimes - even as early as the eighth century BCE - built fortifications to protect their subjects. Starting from the third century BCE, these fortifications started to be integrated into a common defensive outwork known today as the ‘Great Wall of China’ a dramatic visual testament to the disturbance and fear perpetrated by nomadic raids on the agrarian societies of north China.

Question 6. 
Describe in brief the significance of trade for Mongols.
Answer:
In fact, the scant resources of the steppe lands drove Mongols and other Central Asian nomads to trade and barter with their sedentary neighbours in China. This was mutually beneficial to both parties : agricultural produce and iron utensils from China were exchanged for horses, furs and game trapped in the steppe. Commerce was not without its tensions, especially as the two groups unhesitatingly applied military pressure to enhance profit.

When the Mongol lineages allied they could force their Chinese neighbours to offer better terms and trade ties were sometimes discarded in favour of outright plunder. This relationship would alter when the Mongols were in disarray. The Chinese would then confidently assert their influence in the steppe. These frontier wars were more debilitating to settled societies. They dislocated agriculture and plundered cities. Nomads, on the other hand could retreat away from the zone of conflict with marginal losses.

Question 7. 
Why it was felt to transfer Mongol tribe into a new social and military organisation ?
Answer:
Just before the quriltai of 1206, Genghis Khan had reorganised the Mongol people into a more effective, disciplined military force that facilitated the success of his future campaigns. The first of his concerns was to conquer China, divided at this time into three realms: the Hsi Hsia people of Tibetan origin in the north-western provinces; the Jurchen whose Chin dynasty ruled north China from Peking : the Sung dynasty who controlled south China. 

By 1209, the Hsi Hsia were defeated, the ‘Great Wall of China’ was breached in 1213 and Peking sacked in 1215. Long drawn-out battles against the Chin continued until 1234 but Genghis Khan was satisfied enough with the progress of his campaigns to return to his Mongolian homeland in 1216 and leave the military affairs of the region to his subordinates.

Question 8. 
How do later Mongol reflections on the Yasa bring out the uneasy relationship they had with the memory of Genghis Khan ?
Answer:
By the middle of the thirteenth century the Mongols had emerged as a unified people and just created the largest empire the world had ever seen. They ruled over very sophisticated urban societies, with their respective histories, cultures and laws. Although the Mongols dominated the region politically, they were a numerical minority. 

The one way in which they could protect their identity and distinctiveness was through a claim to a sacred law given to them by their ancestors. The Yasa was in all probability a compilation of the customary traditions of the Mongol tribes but in referring to it as Genghis Khan’s code of law, the Mongol people also laid claim to a ‘lawgiver’ like Moses and Solomon, whose authoritative code could be imposed on their subjects. 

The Yasa served to cohere the Mongol people around a body of shared beliefs, it acknowledged their affinity to Genghis Khan and his descendants and, even as they absorbed different aspects of a sedentary lifestyle, gave them the confidence to retain their ethnic identity and impose their ‘law’ upon their defeated subject. It was an extremely empowering ideology and although Genghis Khan may not have planned such a legal code, it was certainly inspired by his vision and was vital in the construction of a Mongol universal dominion.

Question 9. 
What do you know about the military system of Genghis Khan ?
Answer:
(i) His army was organised according to the old steppe system of decimal units: in divisions of 10s, 100s, 1,000s and (notionally) 10,000 soldiers.

(ii) He divided the old tribal groupings and distributed their members into new military units. Any individual who tried to move from his/her allotted group without permission received harsh punishment.

(iii) The largest unit of soldiers, approximating 10,000 soldiers (tuman) now included fragmented groups of people from a variety of different tribes and clAnswer:This altered the old steppe social order integrating different lineages and clans and providing them with a new identity derived from its progenitor, Genghis Khan.

(iv) The new military contingents were required to serve under his four sons and specially chosen captains of his army units called noyan.

(v) Also important within the new realm were a band of followers who had served Genghis Khan loyally through grave adversity for many years.

(vi) Genghis Khan publicly honoured some of these individuals as his ‘bloodbrothers’ (anda); yet others, freemen of a humbler rank, were given special ranking as his bondsmen (naukar), a title that marked their close relationship with their master.

(vii) This ranking did not preserve the rights of the old clan chieftains; the new aristocracy derived its status from a close relationship with the Great Khan of the Mongols.

Question 10. 
“History relies upon written records produced by city-based literati, nomadic societies”. Would you agree with this statement ? Is it explain the reason why Persian chronicles produced such inflated figures of Mongols ?
Answer:
The nature of documentation on the Mongols and any nomadic regime makes it virtually impossible to understand the inspiration that led to the confederation of fragmented group of people in the pursuit of an ambition to create an empire. The Mongol empire eventually altered in its different milieus, but the inspiration of its founder remained a powerful force. 

At the end of the fourteenth century, Timur, another monarch who aspired to universal dominion, hesitated to declare himself monarch because he was not of Genghis Khanid descent. When he declare his independent sovereignty it was as the son-inlaw (guregen) of the Genghis Khanid family.

Today, after decades of Soviet control, the country of Mongolia is recreating its identity as an independent nation. It has seized upon Genghis Khan as a great national hero who is publicly venerated and whose achievements are recounted with pride. At a crucial juncture in the history of Mongolia, Genghis Khan has once again appeared as an iconic figure for the Mongol people, mobilising memories of a great past in the forging of national identity that can carry the nation into the further.

Question 11. 
What were the military achievements of Genghis Khan ?
Or
How were the military achievements of Genghis Khan a result of his ability to innovate and transform different aspects of Steppe combat and means of communication into extremely effective military strategies.
Answer:
Genghis Khan died in 1227, having spent most of his life in military combat. His military achievements were astounding and they were largely a result of his ability to innovate and transform different aspects of steppe combat into extremely effective military strategies.
(i) The horse-riding skills of the Mongols and the Turks provided speed and mobility to the army.
(ii) Their abilities as rapid-shooting archers from horseback were further perfected dining regular hunting expeditions which doubled as field manoeuvres.
(iii) The steppe cavaliy had always travelled light and moved quickly, but now it brought all its knowledge of the terrain and the weather to do the unimaginable.
(iv) They carried out campaigns in the depths of winter, treating frozen rivers as highways to enemy cities and camps.
(v) Nomads were conventionally at a loss against fortified encampments but Genghis Khan learnt the importance of seize engines and naphtha bombardment very quickly.
(vi) His engineers prepared light portable equipment which was used against opponents with devastating effect.

Question 12. 
Explain the main characteristics of the Mongol tribe.
Answer:
The main characteristics of the Mongol tribe were :
(а) Mongol tribes were united by ethnic and lingual ties but due to scarcity of resources, their society was divided into patrilineal lineages.

(b) The richer families were larger. They possessed more animals and pastoral lands. They had many followers and were mostly influential in local politics.

(c) During periodic natural calamities such as harsh, cold winters, their game and stored provisions ran out. Grasslands also dried in the absence of rain. So they had to wander in search of pastures.

(d) There were mutual conflict among    Mongol tribes. They also raided for livestock.

(e) Groups of families often allied for offensive and defensive purposes around richer and more powerful lineages.

Question 13. 
How was agriculture promoted \ with the ease of contradictions between the nomadic and sedentary elements through the 13th century ?
Answer:
Through the 13th century, the contradiction was eased between the nomadic and sedentary elements within the Mongol empire. This was so as :
(a) In the 1230s when Mongols won a war against the Chin dynasty in North China, there was a strong pressure group within the Mongol leadership that advocated the massacre of all peasantry and the conversion of their fields into pasture lands.

(b) By 1270s, when Sung dynasty was defeated and South China was annexed into Mongol empire, the grandson of Genghis Khan, Qublai Khan, came forward as a protector of peasants and cities.

(c) In the 1290s, the Mongol ruler of Iran, Ghazan Khan warned his family members and other generals not to plunder the, peasants. In one of his speech, he said that this plunder did not lead to a stable prosperous realm.    

Question 14. 
What was the nature of Mongol confederacies ? Write down the similarity    and dissimilarity between confederacies    formed by Attila and Genghis Khan.    
Answer:
(a) Mongol confederacies were usually small and short-lived.

(b) Genghis Khan made a confederacy of Mongol and Turkic tribes. In size, this confederacy was equal in size of the confederacy by Attila in the 5th century.

(c) But, unlike Attila's confideracy, Genghis Khan's confederacy system was far more stable. It was stable enough to counter large armies with superior equipment in China, Iran and eastern Europe. This was the reason why Mongols succeeded in establishing their control over these regions.

(d) They administered complex agrarian economies and urban settlements.

Question 15. 
Write a short note on the Ulus System.
Answer:
Ulus System was established by Genghis Khan. According to this system,
(а) Genghis Khan used to transfer the administration of newly conquered lands to his four sons, namely Jochi, Chaghatai, Ogedei and Toluy.
(b) His eldest son Jochi was given the region of Russian steppes. Chaghatai was given the charge of Transoxiana Steppe and the region of North of Pamir Hills. It was an indication from the Khan that his third son Ogedei would succeed him as the Khan.
(c) Toluy, the fourth son was given the region of Mongolia.
(d) Genghis Khan envisaged that his sons would rule the empire collectively and so, he placed military contingents (tama) of the individual princes in each ulus.

Question 16. 
Describe the conquest of Northern China by Genghis Khan.
Answer:
Genghis Khan's conquest of North China was divided into three realms :
(а) The Hsi Hsia people of Tibetan origin in the north-western provinces.
(b) The Jurchen whose Chin dynasty ruled north China from Peking.
(c) The Sung dynasty who controlled South China.
(d) By 1209, the Hsi Hsia were defeated, the ‘Great Wall of China’ was breached in 1213 and Peking sacked in 1215. Long drawn out battles against the Chin continued until 1234 but Genghis Khan was satisfied enough with the progress of his compaigns to return to his Mongplian homeland in 1216 and leave the military affairs of the region to his subordinates.

Question 17. 
How did Temujin became Genghis Khan ?
Answer:
(a) Genghis Khan was bom around 1162 near the Onon River in the north of present day Mongolia. Named, Temujin, he was the son of Yesugei, the Chieftain of Kiyat, a group of families related to the Boijigid clan.

(b) His father was murdered at an early age and his mother Oelun-eke, raised Temujin, his brothers and step brothers in great hardship.

(c) The following decade was full of hardships - Temujin was captured and enslaved and soon after his marriage, his wife was kidnapped and he had to fight to recover her.

(d) Through the 1180s and 1190s, he remained an ally of Oug Khan (his father's blood brother) and used the alliance to defeat powerful, adversaries like Jamuqa, his old friend who had become a hostile foe. It was after defeating him that Temujin felt confident to move against other tribes; the powerful Tatars (his father's assassins), the Kereyits and Oug Khan himself in 1203.

(e) The final defeat of the Naiman people and the powerful Jamuqa in 1206, left Temujin as the dominant personality in the politics of the steppe lands, a position that was recognised as at an assembly of Mongol chieftains where he was proclaimed as ‘the Great Khan of the Mongols’, ‘the Oceanic Khan’ or ‘Universal Ruler’.

Question 18. 
Examine the role of civil administrators in 'Mongol administration. 
Answer:
From Genghis Khan's reign itself, the Mongols had recruited civil administrators from the conquered cities.
(a) These civil administrators moved around; Chinese secretaries deployed in Iran and Persians in China.
(b) They helped in integrating the distant dominions and their backgrounds and training were always useful in blunting the harsher edges of nomadic predation on sedentary life.
(c) The Mongol Khans trusted them as long as they continued to raise revenue for their masters and these administrators could sometime command considerable influence.

Question 19. 
Who were Mongols ? Explain briefly.
Answer:
(a) The Mongols were a diverse body of people, linked by similarities of language to the Tatars, Khitan and Manchus to the east, and the Turkic tribes to the west.
(b) Some of the Mongols were pastoralists and rest of them were hunter gatherers.
(c) The pastoralists reared animals like horses, sheep, camel etc. They nomadised in the steppes of Central Asia.
(d) The hunters and food gatherers lived to the north of the pastoralists in the Siberian forests. They were poorer than the pastoralists. They made a living from trade in furs of animals trapped in the summer months.
(e) The Mongols lived in tents and used to travel with their herds from winter to summer pasture lands.

Question 20. 
Why did the conquered people hardly felt a sense of affinity with their new Mongol nomadic masters ? What was its result ?
Answer:
The conquered people hardly felt a sense of affinity with their new Mongol nomadic masters because of the following reasons :
(a) Cities were destroyed during the campaigns in the first half of the 13th century. 
(b) Agricultural lands laid waste.
(c) There was disruption in trade and production of handicraft.
(d) Thousands of people were killed and even more enslaved.
In this way, every class of society suffered including elites and peasantry.

Result : It led to the emergence of s instability in the state. That is why, it was not possible to do periodic maintenance of underground canals in the arid Iranian N plateau. As a result the desert crept which led to an ecological devaslation.    

Question 21. 
How do you appreciate the ^ achievements of Genghis Khan’s descendants ?
Answer:
The achievements of Genghis Khan’s descendants were not fewer. They included people of different faiths and beliefs in their society. It is right that Mongol rulers themselves belonged to a number of different faiths but they never dictated their personal beliefs on the public. They recruited soldiers . and administrators from different groups. The regime of Mongols was multi-lingual, multi-ethnic and multi-religious. This was quite- . strange during those times. It is right that Mongol empire eventually altered in its different milieus but its founder remained a powerful force behind all the inspirations for descendants.

Question 22. 
“Genghis Khan’s army was a mixture of diverse people.” Explain with examples.
Answer:
Many new members entered the Genghis Khan’s army due to the unification of different Mongol tribes and because of subsequent campaigns against diverse people. These soldiers belonged to different communities. This army included groups like the Turkic, Uighurs who had willingly accepted the Mongol authority. Except this, the Kereyits were also included in it who were included in confederacy despite their earlier hostility. 

Long Answer Type Question 

Question 1. 
Describe the major events of Mongol tribe that took place after the death of Genghis Khan.
Answer:
After Genghis Khan's death in 1227, the Mongol empire was divided into two phases : 

(i) The first phase spanned the years 123642 when the Mongols obtained major gains in Russian Steppes, Bulghar, Kieo, Poland and Hungary, 

(ii) The second phase spanned the years 1255-1300 in which whole of China, Iran, Iraq and Syria were conquered.
In the decades after 1203, the Mongol military forces faced certain hardships. But the original impetus of campaigns could not be sustained in the west after the 1260s.

It is right that Vienna, Western Europe and even Egypt were well within the reach of Mongol forces but when forces were retreated from the Hungarian steppes and when they were defeated by Egyptian forces then there came the signals of emergence of new political trends. There were two facets of this :

(a) The first was the result of internal politics of succession within the Mongol family. In this, the descendants of Jochi and Ogodei tied up with each other to control the office of the Great Khan. Instead of pursuing campaigns in Europe, these interests were given more importance.

(b) The second situation occured when the To luyid brach of Ganghis Khanid descendants sidelined the Jochi and Ogodei lineages. When Mongke, grandson of Genghis Khan became the ruler, military campaigns were launched in Iran during the 1250s. But in the decade of 1260, descendants of Toluy started taking more interest in China.

As a result, a small and understaffed force was fielded against the Egyptian military because of which it was defeated. This western expansion came to an end with this defeat and increased their interest in China. During this, conflicts started between Toluy and Jochid descendants along the Russian-Iranian frontiers.

Question 2. 
Mongolia has projected Genghis Khan as an iconic figure for forging national identity, alongwith carrying the nation into the future. Justify this statement with suitable arguments.
Answer:
(i) For the Mongols, Genghis Khan was the greatest leader of all time. He united the Mongol people, freed them from interminable tribal wars and Chinese exploitation.

(ii) He brought them prosperity, fashioned a grand transcontinental empire and restored trade routes and markets that atracted distant travellers.

(iii) Although the Mongol Khans themselves belonged to a variety of different faiths - Shaman, Buddhist, Christian and eventually Islam - they never let their personal beliefs dictate public policy.

(iv) The Mongol rulers recruited administrators and armed contingents from people of all ethnic groups and religions.

(v) The historians are only now studying the ways in which the Mongols provided ideological models for later regimes (like the Mughals of India) to follow.

(vi) The nature of the documentation on the Mongols - and any nomadic regime - makes it virtually impossible to understand the inspiration that led to the confederation of fragmented groups of people in the pursuit of an ambition to create an empire.

(vii) At the end of the fourteenth century, Timur, another monarch who aspired to universal dominion, hesitated to declare himself monarch because he was not of Genghis Khanid descent.

(viii) Today, after decades of Soviet control, the country of Mongolia is recreating its identity as an independent nation.

(ix) It has seized upon Genghis Khan as a great national hero who is publicly venerated and whose achievements are recounted with pride.
At a crucial juncture in the history of Mongolia, Genghis Khan has once again appeared as an iconic figure for the Mongol people, mobilishing memories of a great past in the forging of national identity that can carry the nation into the future.

Question 3. 
Mention the description about the facts regarding code of law under Genghis Khan.
Answer:
Following the research of David Ayalon, recent work on the Yasa, the code of law that Genghis Khan was supposed to have promulgated at the quriltai of 1206, has elaborated on the complex ways in which the memory of the Great Khan was fashioned by his successors. In its earliest formulation the term was written as yasaq which meant ‘law’, ‘decree’ or ‘order’. 

Indeed, the few details that we possess about the yasaq concern administrative regulations: the organisation of the hunt, the army and the postal system. By the middle of the thirteenth century, however, the Mongols had started using the related term yasa in a more general sense to mean the ‘legal code of Genghis Khan’.

We may be able to understand the changes in the meaning of the term if we take a look at some of the other developments that occurred at the same time. By the middle of the thirteenth century the Mongols had emerged as a unified people and just created the largest empire the world had ever seen. They ruled over very sophisticated urban society.

Question 4. 
What was the result of cessation in the Mongol’s military campaigns on the state ?
Answer:
(i) After cessation in the Mongol’s military campaigns, territories of Europe and China were linked.
(ii) Mongol conquest brought peace in the region and trade connections also matured. Trade and commerce, under the Mongols, reached its peak through the Silk Route. Now the trade routes did not ended in China. These trade routes now reached the Mongolia and to Karakorum in the north.
(iii) Ease of travel and communication was very important to retain the coherence of the Mongol empire.
(iv) Passes were given to travellers for safe conduct. These passes were known as paiza in Persian and gerege in Mongolian. For this purpose, traders paid the tax called ‘baj’. The meaning of paying this tax was that these traders had acknowledged the authority of the Mongol ruler. 

Source Based Questions

1. Ghazan Khan (1295 - 1304) was the first II-Khanid ruler to convert to Islam. He gave the following speech to Mongol Turkish named commanders, a speech that was probably drafted by his Parsian wazir Rashiduddin and included in the minister's letter.

'I am not on the side of Persian peasantry, if there is a purpose in pillaging them all, there is no one with more power to do this then I. Let us rob them together. But if you wish to be certain of collecting grain and food for your table in the future, I must be harsh with you.

You must be taught reason. If you insult the peasantry, take their oxen and seed and trample their crops into the ground. What will you do in the future ?
The obedient peasantry must be distinguished from the peasantry who are rebels.    

1. Name the II-Khanid, ruler who adopted Islam and which religion was followed by him earlier?
2. Who drafted the speech of Ghazan Khan and for whom?
3. According to Ghazan Khan which type
of peasantary would be beneficial in future?    -
Answer:
1.Ghazan Khan was the first-II Khanid ruler to convert Islam.
2. Rashiduddin draft the speech for Ghazan Khan. It was drafted for the peasant.
3. Obedient peasantry.

2. Read the passage given below and answer the questions that follow :

Ghazan Khan’s Speech
Ghazan Khan (1295-1304) was the first II- Khanid rider to convert to Islam. He gave the following speech to the Mongol-Turkish nomad commanders, a speech that was probably drafted by his Persian wazir Rashiduddin and included in the minister’s letters :
‘I am not on the side of the Persian peasantry. If there is a purpose in pillaging them all, there is no one with more power to do this than I. Let us rob them together. But if you wish to be certain of collecting grain and food for your tables in the future, I must be harsh with you. You must be taught reason. If you insult the peasantry, take their oxen and seed and trample their crops into the ground, what will you do in the future ? ...The obedient peasantry must be distinguished from the peasantry who are rebels...’

(i) Who prepared Ghazan Khan’s speech ?
Answer:
Ghazan Khan’s speech was prepared by his Persian wazir Rashiduddin.

(ii) Who was Ghazan Khan ?
Answer:
Ghazan Khan was ruler of II-Khanid dynasty. He ruled from 1295-1304. He was the first to convert to Islam.

(iii) What does his (Ghazan Khan’s) speech depict ?
Answer:
His speech depicted that he was not in- favour of Persian peasantry. He was against those peasantry class who want to rebel and was in favour in rebellion. He was not against the hard working peasantry class. 

3. Read the given passage and answer the question that follows.

Yasa

In 1221, after the conquest of Bukhara, Genghis Khan had assembled the rich Muslim residents at the festival ground and had admonished them. He called them sinners and warned them to compensate for their sins by parting with their hidden wealth. The episode was dramatic enough to be painted and for a long time afterwards people still remembered the incident. In the late sixteenth century, Abdullah Khan, a distant descendant of Jochi, Genghis Khan’s eldest son, went to the same festival ground in Bukhara. Unlike Genghis Khan, however, ‘Abdullah Khan went to perform his holiday prayers there. His chronicler, Hafiz-i Tanish, reported this performance of Muslim piety by his master and included the surprising comment: ‘this was according to the yasa of Genghis Khan’.

(i) What was Yasa ?
Answer:
‘Legal Code’ compiled by Mongols.

(ii) When was Bukhara conquered ?
Answer:
In 1221.

(iii) Who won the capital city of Bukhara ?
Answer:
Genghis Khan.

(iv) Who was Abdullah Khan ?
Answer:
A well known chronicler who compiled ‘Hafiz-i- Tanish.

(v) Write any two moral values depicted by Yasa.
Answer:
(i) Respect your elders.
(ii) Do not tell a lie.

Map Questions

Question 1.
On the map mark and locate the extent of the Mongol Empire. 
Answer:


Question 2. 
On the given map of Asia; Mark Baghdad, Karakoram, Merv and Ormuz -  the places related to Mongol Empire.
Answer:

Question 3. 
On the map mark and locate the extent of Mongol campaigns. 
Answer:

Choose the Correct Option:

Question 1.    
were a nomadic group inhabiting central Asia.
(a) Aryans    
(b) Mongols
(c) Both ‘a’ and 'b'
(d) None of these 
Answer: 
(b) Mongols.

Question 2. 
When was Genghis Khan born ?
(а) In 1162 CE
(b) In 1170 CE
(c) In 1191 CE
(d) In 1206 CE 
Answer: 
(a) In 1162 CE.

Question 3. 
What was the original name of Genghis Khan ?
(а) Tank Muhammad
(b) Yesugei
(c) Temujin
(d) TarikFazal 
Answer:
(c) Temujin.

Question 4. 
Genghis Khan belonged to which of the following tribes ?
(a) Manchus    
(b) Tatar
(c) Mongke    
(d) Kiyat
Answer: 
(d) Kiyat.

Question 5.
Who was Mongke ?
(a) Father of Genghis Khan
(b) Son of Genghis Khan
(c) Grandson of Genghis Khan 
(d) Grandfather of Genghis Khan
Answer: 
(c) Grandson of Genghis Khan.

Question 6. 
Who bestowed Temujin with the title of Genghis Khan ?
(a) Muhammad
(b) The Prophet Muhammad
(c) Quriltai
(d) Mongke 
Answer: 
(c) Quriltai.

Question 7. 
Where was Genghis Khan born ?
Or
Genghis Khan born in present day region of    .
(a) South Korea 
(b) Vietnam
(c) China    
(d) Mongolia
Answer: 
(d) Mongolia.

Question 8. 
Mongol rulers took keen interest in the region of    .
(а) Southern India
(b) China
(c) Japan    
(d) Korea
Answer: 
(b) China.

Question 9. 
Which of the following rulers was not a successor of Genghis Khan ?
(a) Ogodei    
(b) Guyuk
(c) Mongke    
(d) Quriltai
Answer: 
(d) Quriltai.

Question 10. 
When was Temujin bestowed with the title of Genghis Khan ?
(a) 1206
(b) 1229
(c) 1198    
(d) 1199
Answer:
(a) 1206.
 
Question 11. 
When was Bukhara occupied by Mongol army (forces) ?
(a) 1226    
(b) 1220
(c) 1240    
(d) 1235
Answer: 
(b) 1220.

Question 12. 
Ogodei defeated Jalaludin, the Iranian ruler in which of the following year ?
(a) 1231    
(b) 1234
(c) 1236    
(d) 1241
Answer: 
(a) 1231

Question 13. 
Who was the founder of Yuan dynasty ?
(a) ArikBuka    
(b) Ibluy
(c) Qubilai Khan    
(d) Harihar Buka
Answer: 
(c) Qubilai Khan. 

Question 14.
Who defeated Sung ruler of southern China ?
(a) QubilaiKhan
(b) Toluy
(c) Arik Buka
(d) ChurkBuka 
Answer: 
(a) Qubilai Khan.

Question 15. 
Which of the following is the founder of D-Khanid Dynasty ?
(a) Mongke    
(b) Helegu
(c) Juwaini    
(d) Ghazan Khan
Answer: 
(b) Helegu.

Question 16. 
Who was the first Il-Khanid ruler convert to Islam ?
(a) Ghazan Khan
(b) Mongke
(c) Toluy    
(d) Juwaini
Answer: 
(a) Ghazan Khan.

Question 17.
Which of these is an outstanding Persian historian ?
(а) Ghazan Khan
(b) Juwaini
(c) Jochi    
(d) Ogodei
Answer: 
(b) Juwaini.

Question 18. 
What is the meaning of ‘Quriltai’ ?
(a) Rulers of Mongolia
(b) Assembly of Robbers
(c) Assembly of Mongol Chieftains
(d) Trustworthy nobles of Genghis Khan
Answer: 
(c) Assembly of Mongol Chieftains.

Question 19. 
What is the meaning of Yasa ?
(а) Legal Authority
(b) Legal Code
(c) Legally Examined 
(d) Illegal documents 
Answer: 
(b) Legal Code.

Question 20. 
What was ‘Yam’ ?
(a) A military dictator
(b) A military official
(c) A military post
(d) A military office 
Answer: 
(c) A military post.

Question 21.
What was the period of Guyuk’s reign ?
(a) 1246 to 1248
(b) 1247-1249
(c) 1246 to 1270
(d) 1236-1246 
Answer: 
(a) 1246 to 1248.

Question 22. 
'Qara Khita’ was conquered by Genghis Khan in which of the following years ?
(a) 1216    
(b) 1208
(c) 1218    
(d) 1228
Answer: 
(c) 1218.