Those who study history will definitely come across a section devoted to a huge state founded by nomads led by Genghis Khan and his successors. Today it is hard to imagine how a handful of steppe people could defeat highly developed countries, take cities hidden behind powerful walls. However Mongol Empire existed, and half of the then known world obeyed it. What kind of state was it, who ruled it and why was it special? Let's find out!

Preface to the Mongol Conquests

The Mongol Empire was one of the largest and most powerful in the world. It arose at the beginning of the thirteenth century in Central Asia due to the unification of the Mongol tribes under the firm hand of Temujin. In addition to the emergence of a ruler capable of subjugating everyone to his will, the success of the nomads was favored climatic conditions. According to historians, in the 11-12 centuries, a lot of precipitation fell in the eastern steppe. This led to an increase in the number of livestock, as well as a rapid increase in the population.

But towards the end of the twelfth century weather are changing: droughts cause the reduction of pastures, which can no longer feed the numerous herds and the surplus population. A fierce struggle for limited resources begins, as well as invasions of settled tribes of farmers.

Great Khan Temujin

This man went down in history as Genghis Khan, and the legends about him still excite the imagination. In fact, his name was Temujin, and he had an iron will, lust for power and determination. He received the title of "Great Khan" at the kurultai, that is, at the congress of the Mongolian nobility in 1206. Yassa is not even laws, but records of the commander's wise sayings, stories from his life. Nevertheless, everyone was obliged to follow them: from a simple Mongol to their commander.

Temujin's childhood was difficult: after the death of his father Yesugei-bagatur, he lived in extreme poverty with his mother and the second wife of the pope, several brothers. All their livestock was taken away, and the family was driven out of their homes. Over time, Genghis Khan will brutally get even with the offenders and become the ruler of the largest empire in the world.

Mongol Empire

The Mongol empire, which began to form during the life of Genghis Khan after a series of his successful campaigns, reached amazing proportions under his successors. The young state of nomads was very viable, and its army was really fearless and invincible. The basis of the army was the Mongols, united by ancestry, and the conquered tribes. A unit was considered a dozen, which included members of one family, yurts or villages, then stons (consisting of a clan), thousands and darkness (10,000 warriors). The main force was the cavalry.

At the beginning of the 13th century, the northern parts of China and India, Central Asia, and Korea were under the rule of nomads. The tribes of the Buryats, Yakuts, Kirghiz and Uighurs, the peoples of Siberia and the Caucasus submitted to them. The population was immediately overlaid with tribute, and the soldiers became part of an army of many thousands. From more developed nations (particularly from China), the Mongols adopted their scientific achievements, technology, and the science of diplomacy.

Reason for success

The formation of the Mongol Empire seems illogical and impossible. Let's try to find the reasons for such a brilliant success of the army of Genghis Khan and his associates.

1. The states of Central Asia, China and Iran were going through hard times at that moment. Feudal fragmentation prevented them from uniting and repulsing the conquerors.
2. Excellent hiking preparation. Genghis Khan was a good strategist and tactician, he carefully thought out the invasion plan, carried out reconnaissance, pitted peoples against each other and fanned civil strife, if possible, put close people at the main military posts of the enemy.
3. Genghis Khan avoided open battle with a large enemy army. He exhausted his strength, attacking individual parts, appreciating his warriors.

After Temujin's death

After the death of the legendary Genghis Khan in 1227, the Mongol Empire lasted another forty years. During his lifetime, the commander divided his possessions between his sons from his elder wife Borte into uluses. Ogedei got Northern China and Mongolia, Jochi - lands from the Irtysh to the Aral and Caspian Seas, Ural mountains, Chagatai - all of Central Asia. Later, another ulus was given to Hulagu, the grandson of the great khan. These were the lands of Iran and Transcaucasia. In the early years of the fourteenth century, the possessions of Jochi were divided into the White (Gold) and Blue Hordes.

The unified Mongol Empire of Genghis Khan, after the death of the founder, found a new great khan. They became Ogedei, then his son Guyuk, then Munke. After the death of the latter, the title passed to the rulers of the Yuan dynasty. It is noteworthy that all the khans of the Mongol Empire, as well as the Manchu emperors, were descendants of Genghis Khan or married princesses from his family. Until the twenties of the twentieth century, the rulers of these lands used Yassa as a code of laws.

Mongolian people and the Mongol Empire

At the end of the XII century, among the Mongols, there was a rapid formation of a people from separate ethnic groups. This is connected with the activities of Temujin. First, Temujin conquers the neighboring Mongolian ethnic groups and becomes Genghis Khan, the supreme ruler of all the Mongols. Then he expands the zone of his political interests and includes more and more new ethnic groups in the new rapidly emerging people. Those ethnic groups that obey Genghis Khan become part of his army-people. Those who resist, Genghis Khan mercilessly cuts out. This is how a new Laos is created - the Mongol-Tatar people.

Army of Genghis Khan, and after his death – his heirs, capture Manchuria, the entire Eurasian steppe from Pacific Ocean to Pannonia, China, the possessions of the Khorezm Shah, which included all of Central Asia, Afghanistan and Persia, all the Russian principalities, reach Syria in the Middle East (where they are defeated by the Egyptian Mamluks), capture Hungary and come close to Vienna, from where they return back. This is how a mega-empire is formed, headed by the Mongols as a “leading ethnic group”. In its entirety, the empire of Genghis Khan does not last long, and his children and grandchildren become the rulers of its individual parts, repeating the general scenario of the collapse of most mega-empires.

Now let's turn to the "Golden Horde", created by Genghis Khan's grandson Batu, which included the Russian principalities conquered by the Mongols. The "Golden Horde" was at first an integral part of the Mongol mega-empire, but later it gradually became autonomous and became an independent state. For more than 200 years, the Russian people find themselves in the composition of a new type of statehood, established from the outside. This period is usually called the "Mongol-Tatar yoke", since, compared with the historical experience of their own statehood, the Russians perceived the Mongol rule as a "regression", "catastrophe" and a historical "loss".

Typologically, we can say that the Slavs again returned to a situation where they found themselves tributaries of nomadic empires, the center of which was located outside their territories, as happened more than once in the pre-Kiev period. The only difference was that now the Slavs knew what their state, which they had lost, and what historical existence was, while earlier they apparently perceived external domination as something that did not affect their ethnic existence. Now the Russians had something to compare with: the memory of Kievan Rus was still alive, which contrasted sharply with the current situation of the conquered people.

The fate of the Russian people in the Mongol era was determined by a number of external and internal factors. On the one hand, the influence of the "Golden Horde" and its socio-political, cultural, religious system, as well as the development of the Horde policy itself, on which the Russians involuntarily depended, and on the other – political decisions taken by certain grand dukes and specific princes. A huge role was played by princely feuds, to which different stages the Mongols joined in.

First of all, one should pay attention to the value system of the Golden Horde.

absolutization of the military spirit,

· the proclamation of the prevalence of military aggressive heroic. ethics over all other cultural forms,

full identification of society and troops, army,

demand for total obedience to superiors,

chanting of courage, bravery, endurance and all other military prowess,

contempt for peaceful work, effeminacy, sedentary and especially urban forms of existence,

glorification of extreme cruelty to the enemy,

hatred of betrayal and imperative punishment for it,

preference for the death penalty for any form of serious violation of the law,

restriction in food, drunkenness and pleasures,

· total and obligatory religious tolerance towards all religions and a categorical refusal to support any one faith to the detriment of another,

staging of ministers of religious cults outside general rules and the preservation of their life and freedom even in the event of the total extermination of the population of those countries and societies to which they belong.

These principles, one way or another, were guided by almost all the Golden Horde khans, who made these principles the basis of their rule. For more than two hundred years, Russians have fully mastered this heroic style and subsequently began to build their statehood precisely on such a value system.

And finally essential element The Golden Horde system is the veneration of the khan himself, who is perceived not just as an administrative authority, but as the bearer of absolute and indisputable power, incomparable with the competence of all other lower aristocrats.

Assimilation and use of Horde social principles by the Russian society

In practice, the listed principles of the Golden Horde social structure formed the most important features of the future Moscow kingdom. Thanks to religious tolerance, Russians have preserved and repeatedly strengthened their Orthodox identity. Religion became in this period what made the people a people, that is, it allowed him to be himself in conditions when state independence was lost. Most likely, as it will be clear from the subsequent, post-Horde history, it was during these more than two hundred years that the Russian people deeply assimilated Orthodox principles.

The most important result for the sociological structure of Russian society was the principle of absolute khan power, previously unknown to Russians in all its fullness and radicalness. No matter how prestigious the title of Grand Duke, he still remained in the eyes of other princes no more than the first among equals. Having become acquainted with the Horde form of power, the princes of Vladimir, and later the Moscow princes, made for themselves very important conclusion: if it is required to preserve the unity of a great state, it is necessary to establish just such a management model when Supreme ruler not just the first among equals, but surpasses all who are close to him to the same extent that he surpasses ordinary smerds.

Two paths of Russian principalities in the Mongol period

All these moments of the Mongol influence made themselves felt not immediately, but gradually, as the Russians got acquainted with the Horde way of life for more than 200 years. All this time, fragmentation continued in Russia itself, feuds between specific princes, clashes with each other of smaller princes and battles for the grand prince.

At the same time, the border between Western Russia and Eastern Russia was more and more clearly designated. Western Russia included the Polotsk, Smolensk, Galicia-Volyn principalities, as well as the territory of the principality of Kiev, Pereyaslav and part of Chernigov. To the east - the Vladimir-Suzdal principality, Ryazan, Novgorod and the east of the Seversk land. Almost all of these and a number of lands belonging to the northwestern ocarinas of the Polotsk principality paid tribute to the Golden Horde and were part of its territory. But politically and sociologically, the fate of these two halves of Russia gradually diverged.

Western Russia: the desire to resist the Mongol invasion based on Western Europe and Catholicism.

Eastern Russia: cooperation with the Mongols, strengthening of Russia, opposition to the West and Catholicism (Alexander Nevsky)

These two vectors predetermined two orientations for subsequent ethno-sociological processes - in the zones of Western and Eastern Russia in the era of the Mongol conquests, from the remains of a single ancient Russian people and most of the Slavic ethnic groups that were transformed in the course of previous history and acquired new properties, two candidates for the people are gradually formed - Western Russian and Eastern Russian. Later, the Western Russian “people” would be called “Belarusians” (in the north) and “Little Russians” (in the south), and the Eastern Russian people would be called “Great Russians”.

Rise of Moscow

Vladimir Russia from the era of Alexander Nevsky became the center of the formation of the Great Russian people. Gradually, the focus is transferred to Moscow. From Prince Daniel of Moscow, son of Alexander Nevsky, the dynasty of Moscow princes originates. Daniil of Moscow, like the entire subsequent line of Moscow princes, most consistently continues the traditions of Alexander Nevsky, striving in every possible way to strengthen, expand and build up the Grand Duchy of Vladimir, later Moscow, while maintaining loyalty to the Horde, loyalty to Orthodoxy and alertness towards the West.

Ivan Kalita: in the expansion of Moscow possessions, buying or annexing by force many Russian cities and regions, mainly in the north of the country . Ivan Kalita integrates into the Horde elite, rigorously collects tribute for the khan from the Russian population, subjugates the surrounding principalities, and receives a label for a great reign. Moscow becomes the center of Russian Orthodoxy. The children of Ivan Kalita, the Grand Dukes Simeon the Proud and Ivan II the Red, acted in the same vein, strengthening Moscow, working closely with the Mongols and trying to strengthen Russian Orthodoxy as much as possible.

Dmitry Donskoy went down in history with his victory over the Horde army of Mamai on the Kulikovo field, when the Russian troops for the first time in the history of the horde demonstrated their ability to defeat the Mongols and their army. Many historians see this as a turning point in the formation of the Great Russian people.

After 1380, about a hundred more years will pass until Moscow is finally freed from the Mongol yoke, although after the Kulikovo field, the role of the Horde has significantly decreased. The Horde itself began to weaken and turned from an unquestionable supreme imperial principle into a strong and powerful, but declining state, on which Moscow still depended and paid tribute (“exit”), but which no longer predetermined its fate.

This is how the maturation of the Great Russian people, which was formed in the Mongolian period from the eastern part of the Old Russian people - the inhabitants of the eastern and northern principalities of Russia (Vladimir-Suzdal, Ryazan, Tver, Novogorodsky), ends.

This people - the Great Russians - was based on a predominantly Slavic population with a significant proportion of the Finno-Ugric ethnic group. At the same time, over the centuries, statehood has been firmly established political elite, consisting of the princely dynasty of Rurikovich, the ancient boyars, as well as a significant number of Turkic, Mongolian, Lithuanian nobility, integrated into ruling class during historical and political upheavals.

Orthodoxy was the most important element that held this people together, both among the masses and among the elites.

At the same time, the political and social structure of the Golden Horde had a huge impact on him.

Russian lands as part of the Mongol Empire of Genghisides, their right.

At the end of the XII - beginning of the XIII centuries. events took place in Central Asia that had a huge impact on the history of China, Central Asia, the Caucasus and Eastern Europe. These events are associated with the invasion of the Mongol-Tatars and the formation Mongol Empire - a state created in Central Asia by the talented commander Temuchin (Genghis Khan) at the beginning of the 13th century. AT a short time The Mongols conquered a huge territory in Asia and Europe from the Pacific Ocean to the Adriatic Sea and Central Europe. The city of Karakorum became the capital of the empire.

Considering the development of the Mongol-Tatar tribes, it is necessary to take into account the most diverse historical conditions of that era, the internal situation of these tribes, the level of feudal relations that have developed in them, and, finally, economic and political factors.

Mongolian tribes until the end of the XII century. lived on the territory of the modern Mongolian People's Republic. They did not constitute a single nationality, did not have their own statehood and spoke different dialects of the Mongolian language. Among the Mongol tribes during this period, a large tribe of Tatars stood out, who lived in the eastern part of Mongolia. The Mongol-Tatar tribes led a nomadic lifestyle. The most numerous were the steppe Mongols, engaged in cattle breeding and hunting. Forest Mongols were mainly engaged in hunting and fishing. The Mongols roamed in large kurens, and each kuren had significant political independence: they waged wars, made alliances, etc.

The Mongols were subsistence farming and produced extremely little food. There was no money circulation, and trade took place in the form of exchange. The development of class relations, the impoverishment of ordinary nomads and the accumulation of wealth in the hands of individual families led to the disintegration of kuren communities into smaller economic associations: villages, yurts, tents of one family.

To beginning of XII 1st century the Mongol-Tatar tribes switched to the early feudal system, although they still retained the remnants of tribal relations. In the process of mutual clashes between the clans, alliances of tribes were formed. At the head of the tribes were special leaders or leaders, the most powerful, dexterous, rich (nions, rich). They had their own detachments of nukers, who participated with them in raids, hunts, feasts, and helped with advice in decisions.

The fierce struggle between the tribes ended with the formation of the beginning of the XIII century. The Mongolian state, which had a strong military organization. After long and bloody wars the leader of one of the Mongol tribes, Temujin, conquered the rest of the tribes.

In 1206, at a kurultai - a meeting of representatives of the Mongol nobility - Khan Temuchin (Temujin) was elected Khan of all Mongols, receiving the title Genghis Khan (Great Leader). He managed to create a combat-ready army, in which iron discipline was introduced.

Soon Genghis Khan began to pursue an aggressive policy. In the next five years, the Mongol detachments, united by Genghis Khan, conquered the lands of their neighbors, and by 1215 conquered Northern China. With the help of Chinese specialists taken into the service of the Mongols, an effective administration was created. In 1221, the hordes of Genghis Khan defeated the main forces of the Khorezm Shah, then conquered Central Asia and the Caucasus. In 1223, in the battle on the Kalka River, the advance detachment of the Mongol army defeated the combined forces of the Russian princes. The Russians acted indecisively, not all regiments took part in the battle due to the fact that the princes who led them took a wait-and-see attitude.

In 1237, a huge army of Batu Khan, the grandson of Genghis Khan, invaded Russian lands. Almost all the principalities were conquered, the cities of Ryazan, Moscow, Vladimir, Chernigov, Kyiv and many others were burned. The Mongols did not reach Novgorod, but soon the Novgorodians were forced to agree to pay a heavy tribute to the Mongol Khan.

In 1241 the Mongols attacked Poland and Hungary. The Poles and the Teutonic Knights were defeated. However, due to the struggle for the Khan's throne, Batu stopped the offensive and went to the southern Russian steppes.

Even during his lifetime, Genghis Khan divided his empire into 4 uluses (regions), headed by his sons. After his death, in the 40s. 13th century uluses gradually turned into independent states. The Western ulus, originally transferred at the beginning of Jochi Khan, occupied a vast territory from the Irtysh to the Danube. In turn, this ulus was divided between the sons of Khan Jochi into two destinies (yurt). On the territory of the western yurt, the possession of the grandson of Genghis Khan - Batu Khan, a state was formed, which received the name Golden Horde.

Golden Horde was founded in 1243. and was an early feudal monarchy that accepted the influence of Chinese political culture and retained many elements of the pre-state culture traditional for nomad Mongols. The social system of the Mongols was characterized by the following features:

- nomadic and semi-nomadic way of life of the population;

- the patriarchal nature of slavery;

- the significant role of tribal leaders;

- hierarchy of nomadic landownership.

The economic basis of the state was feudal production relations, a characteristic feature of which is feudal ownership of land, pastures, and livestock. According to some researchers, this was a class property recognized by ordinary nomads by giving a certain share of the resulting product to their master. Smaller feudal lords (tenants, centurions) depended on larger ones (thousanders, temniks), which determined the nature of the structure of the Golden Horde based on the hierarchy of nomadic land ownership. All land was nominally the property of the Golden Horde Khan, but each landowner, within the limits of the land granted to him, disposed of the nomad camps of people dependent on him, distributed the best pastures at his own discretion. The majority of the Mongol-Tatars preserved semi-feudal relations with numerous remnants of tribal life.

Feudal class, or "white bone"- the top of the Golden Horde society - included the Mongol-Tatar nomadic aristocracy. At the top of the social ladder was the khan and princes (children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, etc.) from the house of Jochi, the first khan of the Golden Horde. With the passage of time, the genus of the Jochids grew greatly. With the adoption of Islam, which allowed polygamy, the number of princes increased and the struggle for power between them intensified.

The second group of the ruling class were Beki (Turkic title) and Nayons(Mongolian title) - the largest feudal lords. Each major Golden Horde landowner received huge incomes from his possessions - 100-200 thousand dinars per year.

The third group of Golden Horde feudal lords was represented tarkhans, middle-class people who occupied relatively low positions in the state apparatus.

Finally, the last group of the ruling class included nukers. They were part of the inner circle of their master and were dependent on him. The number of nukers depended on the wealth and nobility of their leader.

An important role in the Golden Horde state was played by the church with complex system church institutions. Religious tolerance was allowed in the Golden Horde, but with the adoption of Islam, the role of the Muslim clergy increased. Its representatives occupied important positions in the state and judicial apparatus. Church organizations had large material resources.

The feudal-dependent population was called "black bone” and consisted of nomadic pastoralists, farmers and city dwellers. Nomadic pastoralists - Karachu lived in ails, led individual households, owned cattle and grazed it on pastures owned by the landowner. The economic duties of pastoralists were generated by a general despotic system. For example, paying duty with milk, nomadic pastoralists had to bring mare's milk to their master "every third day." Karachu also carried out military service, kept officials and military units, provided them with transport for movement. When dividing military booty, they received a small part of it.

The peasant population in the settled agricultural regions of Central Asia, the Crimea, the Volga region, etc. were called sobanchi and urtakchi. Sobanchi are communal peasants dependent on the landowner. They cultivated the master's land with their inventory, carried duties from vineyards, outbuildings (barns, threshing floor), paid duties from ditches. Urtakchi - impoverished members of the peasant community, deprived of land and inventory. They worked on the master's land for a share of the products (half, one third, a quarter).

In the XIII - XIV centuries. in the Golden Horde there is a revival of urban planning. The Golden Horde cities arose as administrative and political settlements, determined by the needs of the state. However, most of them were destroyed as a result of Timur's campaigns. During 1395 - 1396. the urban planning culture of the Golden Horde was completely destroyed and could no longer be revived.

The urban population consisted mainly of artisans, small traders and merchants and was quite numerous. According to some scholars, associations of artisans existed in the Golden Horde cities. Numerous officials who worked in the executive, administrative and tax apparatus also lived in the cities.

At the very bottom of the social ladder were slaves. Their number in the Golden Horde was extremely large. Captivity was the source of slavery. The slave trade flourished in the Golden Horde.

However, slaves were usually turned into dependent peasants, shepherds and artisans. For example, the son of a slave was most often attached to the ground as a sobanchi or urtakchi.

Political system. The highest authorities and management. Genghis Khan divided the entire state into 4 uluses (destinies), each of which was headed by one of his sons.

Khan. At the head of the Golden Horde was a khan from the clan of Genghis, who had strong despotic power. The military structure, to which the administrative division of the country was adapted, permeated it from top to bottom. He was elected kurultai - congress of the Mongolian aristocracy. The capital of the state was originally the city of Sarai-Batu, built in 1254 on the Volga.

Travelers who arrived in the Golden Horde from Europe torn apart by feudal unrest, first of all, were amazed that "the khan has amazing power over everyone." Khans were surrounded by the top of the nomadic aristocracy, which directed and controlled their activities. Kurultai - a congress of the Mongol-Tatar nobility - was convened to resolve the most important issues (election of a khan, planning campaigns, hunting, etc.). Its convocation was usually timed to coincide with religious holidays. Kurultai was an advisory body. He made decisions pleasing to the khan. However, in most cases, the khan resolved issues on his own, in a narrow circle of court nobility. Women (khatuni) - representatives of the ruling elite were present at the kurultai and took an active part in its work.

The central apparatus consisted of the head of state (khan), the court nobility, the administrative apparatus, various departments and the judicial apparatus. Sofas (offices) acted as the central bodies of sectoral administration in the Golden Horde state. An important official was the vizier - the nominal head of the government.

Among the highest officials sources name four ulus emirs (rulers). The eldest of the emirs was called beklyaribek (commander-in-chief of the troops) and was considered the first person in the state after the khan.

In the system of central administration, the position of bakoul, who was in charge of supplying the troops, was of great importance. Temniks (commanders of ten-thousandth detachments) were subordinate to Bakouls. Thousanders (commanders of thousands of detachments) were subordinate to temniki, and centurions and foremen were subordinate to the latter. Among other officials, the sources mention customs officers, falconers, stationmasters, etc.

Local governments were in the hands of the Mongol-Tatar feudal nobility. Local rulers were Darugs and Baskaks, who had their own offices with a staff of officials.

The Golden Horde ruled the conquered peoples cruelly. For example, on the territory of Russia, a Baskak military-political organization was created, consisting of foremen, centurions, thousanders and temniks. The Baskaks kept order in the country, checked the payment of tribute and the performance of other duties in favor of the Golden Horde. Forcibly, special military detachments were formed, partly staffed from the local population. They were commanded by the Mongol-Tatars. These military contingents were placed at the disposal of the Baskaks who lived in the principalities and exercised control over these principalities. The Baskaks were subordinate to the "great" or chief Baskak, who was in Vladimir. The local nobility was also involved in the management of the conquered peoples.

The military organization of the Golden Horde had a decimal character. The entire population was divided into tens, hundreds, thousands, darkness (10 thousand). The nature of the occupations of the Mongols (nomadic cattle breeders) also determined the main branch of their troops - the numerous highly mobile cavalry, which was divided into light and heavy. Rams, mobile siege towers and other structures were used as siege equipment.

Preservation of tribal adhesion, iron discipline, good organization and high mobility of the cavalry masses, skillfully staged reconnaissance and surprise attacks, vast combat experience and flexible tactics gave the steppes an advantage over the inactive feudal militias of settled peoples and allowed them to win victories over them.

Judicial institutions in the Golden Horde had a pronounced class character. Higher judicial branch belonged to the Khan. On the ground, justice was administered by the governors of regions and military units.

There was a special judicial body - divan-yargu, which was headed by the chief judge. The lower instances of judicial institutions were local courts headed by a yarguchi (judge), who considered less dangerous cases.

With the adoption of Islam, Muslim judges appeared - qadis. When making decisions, they were guided by Sharia law (i.e. the norms of Muslim law).

His greatest flourishing The Horde reached in 1313, after Khan Uzbek came to power as a result of an internecine feudal war. Under him in the Golden Horde received wide use Islam. The Uzbek army numbered more than 300 thousand soldiers. With her help, he subjugated the Blue Horde ( East End empire) and strengthened power over all the conquered lands, including over Russia.

The beginning of the collapse of the Golden Horde is attributed to the 70s. XIV century, and in the second half of the XV century. The Horde finally disintegrated into several independent states.

In the traditional view of the European reader, Mongolian laws are exclusively associated with the famous Yasa code, established in 1206 by the “great world conqueror” Genghis Khan. Meanwhile, even after the collapse of the Genghisid empire in the second half of the 13th century, the life of Mongolian legislation did not stop. A unique find - the discovery in 1914 in abandoned ruins of a miraculously preserved armful of birch bark sheets covered with old Mongolian inscriptions - led to the discovery of a remarkable monument of Mongolian law of the late 16th - early 17th centuries, "Eighteen Steppe Laws".

Main sources of law The Golden Horde were:

1) letters, paizi, labels, orders to local rulers and other documents - the result of the legislative activity of the Golden Horde khans;

2) to the very beginning of the XII century. refers to a record of Genghis Khan's instructions on various issues state and social system, known in literature under the name "Yasa" ("Yasa of Genghis Khan", "Great Yasa"). It was the only written source of Mongol law in the 12th century. The nature of these instructions vividly illustrates the despotic power of Genghis Khan. Of the 36 excerpts of Yasa that have come down to us, 13 we are talking about the death penalty.

3) Secret legend (monument of law of later origin).

4) Sharia (according to Sharia, cases of religious crimes were considered).

5) Customary law of the Mongolian tribes.

The norms of the "Great Yasa" were casual in nature and largely expressed religious prescriptions and prohibitions. For example, severe punishments threatened those who jumped over a fire, a table, a cup, washed clothes, returned along the same road along which they set off. Under pain of death, it was forbidden to pass through the place where the headquarters of the khan was located, the same punishment threatened for lowering a hand into the flowing water.

In general, Yasa recognized the following groups of offenses as crimes subject to punishment: against religion, morality and established customs; against the khan and the state; and against the life and interests of the individual.

For criminal law The characteristic feature of the Golden Horde was the extreme cruelty of punishments for the crimes committed. Failure to comply with the laws of Iasi was often punishable by death or self-mutilation. So, one of the most commonly used varieties of the death penalty was: "slaughter like a ram." They could also be sentenced to death for deliberate deceit, killing a person, violating the rules for slaughtering animals for food, for witchcraft and a number of other acts.

For petty theft, the perpetrator was subjected to corporal punishment, he had to return the stolen or reimburse its value.

Military crimes and crimes against the authorities were punished with particular cruelty, in order to intimidate. Against the conquered peoples, extrajudicial reprisals were often used by military detachments. So, in 1293 the Mongols invaded the North Eastern Russia and, as the chronicler noted, "they made the whole earth empty."

The main goal of punishment, in the understanding of Yasa, was the physical destruction of the offender. Therefore, the death penalty plays an important role in this code. Yasa recognizes the temporary isolation of the offender through imprisonment, deportation, removal from office, as well as intimidation through pain or fines. In some cases, not only the offender himself, but also his wife and children are subject to punishment.

The death penalty was prescribed for almost all types of crimes. She followed a large part of the crimes against religion, morality or established customs; for most crimes against the khan and the state; for certain crimes against property; for the third bankruptcy; for horse stealing - in the case when the thief could not pay a fine.

Punishment through imprisonment and deportation was provided for the violation of Yasa by members of the khan's family. Each officer of a military unit was subject to demotion if he could not cope with his official duties. Warriors and hunters were punished by inflicting pain for minor offenses against military discipline. Murder was punishable by a fine. For the theft of a horse, the offender was subjected to repression, a fine, or even the death penalty.

Civil law. Certificates of civil law Yasas are scarce. This, perhaps, is explained not only by the incompleteness of the existing fragments, but also by the fact that such relations were regulated by a generally accepted generic law. However, one important article regarding inheritance was included in the Yasa: "Nothing is taken from a deceased person who does not have an heir in favor of the khan, but his property must be given to the person who cared for him."

Commercial Law. It is known that Genghis Khan paid great attention to trade. Keeping commercial routes safe for international trade was one of the important goals of his policy. Therefore, it is natural to assume that Yasa contained some kind of statute regarding trade. However, among the fragments there is only one part of the commercial legislation that has survived: “If anyone takes the goods on credit and goes bankrupt, then takes the goods again and goes bankrupt again, and then takes the goods again and goes bankrupt, then he must be sentenced to death after his third bankruptcy."

Inheritance and marriage and family relations based on common law and traditions. The eldest son inherited most of the property, and the yurt, utensils and the rest of the cattle remained younger son, who even after marriage continued to live with his parents. The law required the groom to pay a ransom to the bride's parents, the property after the death of the husband was managed by the main wife until the sons came of age. Many girls got married in adulthood, since the groom had to long time save money for the ransom of his bride.

From all that has been said, it can be seen that the Great Yasa was basically a strict law, with cruel provisions intended to keep the people calm. As a monument of feudal law, the Great Yasa asserted the absolute power of the Mongol Khan over his subjects. However, the analysis of the legal regulations indicates that it was more severe than other codes of the eastern countries. Thus, Babylonian laws under Hammurabi or ancient Chinese laws were severe to the point of cruelty. Describing the punitive system of Yasa, V.A. Ryazanovsky wrote: "The death penalty is used very often, but Yasa also knows the payoff from execution for murder, theft, and, probably, for some smaller crimes and misdemeanors." Yasa does not know crippling punishments and a qualified death penalty. If we compare the punitive system of the Yasa with the indicated Eastern systems, as well as with the medieval European criminal law, then, of course, the Great Yasa cannot be called an exclusively severe code.

Higher judicial branch belonged to the khan, on the ground justice was administered by the governors of the uluses and the local judges (yarguchi) appointed by them, in the army - by the unit commanders. There was also a supreme judicial body - Yarga sofa. With the adoption of Islam appeared cadi- local judges who made decisions on the basis of Islamic law (Sharia).

Trial was open and competitive. Punishment was imposed only if the accused "is convicted of the act and confesses." In addition to testimonies, oaths, duels, torture was used, the principle of mutual responsibility and group responsibility was used.

Mongolian law applied only to the Mongols; in the conquered lands, the former local legal norms were in force.

In the first half of the XIII century. most of the Russian principalities, including Novgorod and Pskov, were in a position Tributaries of the Horde. The Russian lands were forced to pay the Mongols the heaviest tribute, but retained their statehood, church and administration. The collection of tribute was carried out by the Grand Duke, whose right was secured Khan's label. The label gave the right not only to the title of Grand Duke, but also to political and military support from the Golden Horde. Some Russian princes used this situation to increase their influence on other principalities.

On the territory of Russia, the power of the Horde was represented by special officials - Basques. They controlled the collection of tribute, carried out population counts, punitive, police and other functions. The main Baskak was under the Grand Duke.

The Mongols in Russia left in power, as their vassals, not only the Grand Duke, but also other local princes. This was done to make it difficult to unite the Russian principalities. In some southern regions, the direct rule of the Horde was introduced.

The Muscovite state adopted some features of the administrative administration used by the Mongols. This was reflected in the system and procedure for taxation, the organization of the army, the financial department, etc.

The Golden Horde khans opposed veche democracy. The city militia was disbanded. Some democratic elements (veche) survived only in Novgorod and Pskov.

The Russian princes applied the strict order established by the Mongols in the administrative sphere, in the field of taxation and military affairs. The entire population of the principalities and lands was rewritten and heavily taxed. The power of the Grand Duke gradually replaced such political institutions as veche, election, an agreement between the prince and the people, etc.

The Mongols, following the Chinese model, established some institutions in Russia: a postal (pit) service, customs ( tamga- duty on transported goods).

In general, the Mongol rule had negative impact on the development of the Russian state and law. It separated Eastern Russia from Western Europe, part of the Russian people ended up on the lands occupied by the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. To get rid of foreign oppression, the Russian people had to wage a fierce struggle, which naturally slowed down its political and legal development.

Because they have done some outstanding things that have never been done before and have never been done since. Within decades, they became an invincible superpower. You will be very surprised, but the Mongols were also great engineers and extremely good students who changed the world more than any other empire. Many people have very outdated stereotypes about Mongols. After all, they are often represented as people on horseback with bows and arrows. However, what would you say if someone in the year 2700 described the British Empire as nothing more than men with muskets and a Union Jack wearing a red tunic? Or the Arab Empire, like people with swords on horseback singing to Allah? Or the US as a superpower that dropped the atomic bomb while watching Adam Sandler films?

The red color shows the growth of the Mongol Empire. Later, it broke up into several parts, which are marked in yellow, green and purple.

Military prowess of the Mongols

Unlike Hitler, Napoleon and many others, the Mongols had little trouble taking over Russia. The Mongols liked to attack in the winter, because their horses could safely run on the ice of the river without the need to build bridges. While the Afghans could resist the Americans, the USSR and the British, they could not avoid being conquered by the Mongols. China has never been ruled by outside forces until then. Arab empire prospered, and Baghdad was the greatest city in the world. Until the Mongols, of course. And the Indians were barely able to avoid the attack of the hordes of Genghis Khan.

The Teutonic knights-crusaders had nothing to answer the Mongols, as well as various tribes of the South East Asia. It doesn't matter if you were a super advanced civilization or a completely nomadic people, you would still lose to the Mongols. The Mongols could advance in cold Siberia and hot Arabia. They didn't care if they rode the vast steppes of Asia or the deep tropical jungles of Burma. They could safely cross the rice fields of China, the Himalayas, as if it were some kind of local hill, and even organize naval attacks.

If the enemies attacked in a phalanx, the Mongols destroyed them with arrows. If the enemies scattered, the Mongols pursued them on horseback. They easily overcame enemy archers, cavalry and swordsmen. In short, there was not a single technology, not a single military strategy that could succeed against the Mongols.

Not only brute force, but also a colossal empire

When talking about the Mongols, many imagine an outdated, often racist picture of a few rude and bloody "barbarians" who just got lucky. Recently, however, historians have become aware of quite Interesting Facts about them to give them due respect. Let's face it: there is no superpower or empire that has less blood on its hands. The Mongols were actually very open to innovation. Being master engineers, they used all the technologies known to man at that time, while their competitors were weak and stubborn. At the same time, the Mongols did not stop learning. The development of many technologies in the world (including the spread of gunpowder, paper and the printing press in most of Europe) occurred as a direct result of their conquests. In short, they have helped significantly shape the world we now live in. The Mongols were free from the burden of any ideology and religion. In this sense, they were much better than any European colonial power.

Other achievements of the Mongols

Genghis Khan brought a writing system to Mongolia that is still used by many Mongols today. The Mongol Empire exempted teachers from taxes, which led to the great distribution of printing throughout East Asia. They also helped the growth of the educated class in Korea. The Mongols built an impressive international postal system across a huge part of Eurasia called the Yam (route), the effectiveness of which was tested over the next five centuries. They began to create standardized banknotes and paper money centuries before they did in Europe.

The Mongols had a fantastic "zone free trade', which included most known world. Trade flourished as merchants traveled without worrying about looting. The economy flourished. It was at this time that Marco Polo and other Europeans were able to visit Asia. In the era of religious wars, the Mongols built an empire of religious tolerance that embraced almost all known religions: Islam, Christianity, Buddhism, Confucianism. Chinese sciences, astronomy, medicine, engineering and mathematics began to explode in the Mongol era, as the khans understood the importance of science. Among the greatest scholars of that era are Guo Shoujing and Zhu Shijie. The Mongols also created a highly accurate calendar. Art and theater flourished during the Yuan era in China. Various European achievements in the field of glass and musical instruments were brought here.

The Mongols had a constant thirst for knowledge and were very capable students. They also spread their knowledge to different cultures, which caused an explosion of ideas. Like all the great empires of the world, they had a lot of blood on their hands. However, their contribution to human existence, through the explosion of ideas in the fields of science, art, and commerce, has shaped our history more than the contribution of any other superpower.