Preface
After Genghis Khan's death, the Mongol Empire split into four khanates, among which the Mongols rose to prominence in Central Asia over time. In the course of the history of the Ming and Yuan dynasties, the prominent figure Timur became the new leader of the Mongols. Although Timur was not a descendant of Genghis Khan, he dreamed of carrying on Genghis Khan's legacy and rebuilding a vast empire for the Mongols.
Since becoming the khan of the Mongol Khanate, Timur has displayed similar ambition and fighting qualities to Genghis Khan. Unlike Genghis Khan, who spoke Turkic, Timur also used Turkic. This may be due to the fact that the Turkic language was widely spoken in Central Asia during the Mongol Empire, and the descendants of Genghis Khan continued to use this linguistic tradition.
Timur's ambitions were not limited to Central Asia, he also had plans to conquer the Ming dynasty. However, on the eve of his preparations, Timur fell ill and died, failing to complete his plan. Why did the Mongol Timur speak Turkic? How did Timur dominate the Arab world? and what does Timur have to do with the Ming Dynasty?
1. The rise of a generation of heroes in the Central Asian steppes
In 1336, a Mongol boy was born in the city of Thirsty Rock in the Western Chagatai Khanate of Central Asia. He was Timur, who would later become famous in Europe and Asia. Timur was born into a prosperous Mongol aristocratic family, descendants of Genghis Khan's expeditions to the west.
As a teenager, Timur had a haughty and unruly temperament, and he fought with his brothers at every turn. One day, the two brothers fought over a horse, and Timur drew his sword and killed his brother. Since then, he has been forced to run away from home. A few years later, with his extraordinary military and political skills, Timur gradually unified the various ethnic groups in his homeland, and finally returned to his hometown to seize power and unify the Western Chagatai Khanate. Since then, a generation of heroes has risen on the steppes of Central Asia - Timur.
2. The Turkic Mongol dynasty
After the establishment of the Western Chagatai Khanate established by Timur, it began to launch large-scale conquests into the surrounding areas. Under the leadership of Timur, the Western Chagatai Khanate was overwhelmed and soon conquered and annexed the Eastern Chagatai Khanate and other surrounding countries. A vast empire was initially formed.
Although Timur was of pure Mongol descent, his native language was Turkic. This is largely due to the fact that, several generations ago, a large number of Mongol nobles in Central Asia had completely converted to Islam and began to gradually integrate with the local Turkic peoples.
As one scholar put it: "Mongolian culture has always been stuck in the age of shamans, not only inferior to the well-developed East Asian Confucianism, but also easily crushed by Arab Islam." So, Timur's generation was already completely Turkicized Mongols. Timur himself, on the other hand, was a devout Muslim. During his reign, he vigorously supported the development of Islam.
3. Dominate one side and call the Lord of West Asia
In 1370, at the age of 35, Timur put one of his puppets as the titular ruler of the Western Chagatai Khanate, while he controlled the military and political power as the de facto ruler. He also moved the capital to his native Samarkand, officially establishing the "Timurid Empire".
During the thirty years from 1370 to 1400, Timur ruled Central Asia, conquering and annexing Eastern Chagatai, Khorezm, Afghanistan and other neighboring countries and regions. By 1400, a vast empire spanning Central Asia was taking shape.
During this period, Timur also made many expeditions to the east and west, defeating the Golden Horde in Russia, the Delhi Sultanate in India, and the Mamluks in Egypt. One by one, the once unscrupulous strong enemies in Asia were all defeated by Timur. At this point, Timur established an unshakable position of authority in Asia and the Islamic world. The entire region of West Asia has been firmly under his control.
Fourth, the enemy from the east - the Ottoman Empire
However, the good times were short-lived. After the conquest of Persia and most of Central Asia, Timur's military conquests were slowed down. At the same time, a new and powerful enemy arose in the East - the Ottoman Empire. This was also an Islamic dynasty founded by the Turks, which rose rapidly in Asia Minor and soon became another powerful force in the Timurid Empire.
The two sides are prosperous and bound to compete for power. In 1402, two of the most powerful empires in the Islamic world went head-to-head in Angola. Sultan Bayezid of the Ottoman Empire personally led an army of 80,000 men, while Timur personally led the army, a total of 140,000 men.
At night, the Ottoman Empire collaborated with the enemy and turned against each other. The Bayezid army was thrown into chaos in an instant. Taking advantage of the situation, Timur launched a fierce assault and finally defeated the Ottoman army and captured Bayezid. At this point, Timur's hegemony in Asia and the Islamic world was further consolidated. The whole of West Asia was firmly under his control.
At this time, Timur was almost 70 years old and was very old. It would have been the last battle of his military career. But he still has another dream lingering in his heart - to reproduce the great cause of Genghis Khan's entry into China!
Fifth, fight alone, and your dreams are shattered
From 1387 onwards, Timur began to pay tribute to the Ming Dynasty. During the Hongwu period, he took a submissive attitude towards Zhu Yuanzhang, the Taizu of the Ming Dynasty. But with the death of Ming Taizu, his ambition to conquer China gradually sprouted.
From 1398 onwards, Timur began to secretly collect all kinds of information about the Ming Dynasty. In six years, he had mastered China's topographic maps and military deployments. He even requisitioned up to 800,000 troops, preparing to raid with 200,000 vanguard troops in advance, crush the Ming army's border defenses, and then attack the Central Plains in one fell swoop.
After the Battle of Angola in 1402, the 70-year-old Timur began his final military plan, the Eastern Expedition to the Ming Dynasty, to recreate the history of the Mongol domination of the Central Plains.
However, the heavens did not favor this Central Asian celestial. In 1404, when Timur himself led an army of 200,000 to cross the river to the east, he suddenly contracted a severe malaria and died of illness in less than two months. He fought alone, and his dreams were shattered.
6. The attempted Mongol-Han catastrophe
The sudden death of Timur averted a possible Mongol-Han war. This was undoubtedly a lucky escape of the Ming Dynasty. According to historical records, Timur had been preparing for many years in the Eastern Expeditionary Army, in addition to the 200,000 vanguard army, he also requisitioned 600,000 follow-up reinforcements. If the real troops attack on two fronts, the consequences will be unimaginable.
The frontier defense of the Ming Dynasty under the rule of Yu Wen has long ceased to be prosperous. Zhu Di himself was attacked by the enemy in China because of the seizure of the throne. Even if he managed to mobilize hundreds of thousands of troops to defend, it would be extremely difficult to repel Timur's tiger and wolf army in a head-to-head encounter. If Timur is really allowed to invade the hinterland of the Central Plains, the catastrophe of the death of the three generations of heroes of the Ming Dynasty may be repeated.
Fortunately, the lonely battle of the Mongol lord came to naught, and Middle-earth was prevented from falling into war and catastrophe again. As a result, the Chinese nation has retained its glorious glory since Hongwu.
epilogue
Ambition and greed are doomed to failure. The great cause of Genghis Khan, which Timur diligently pursued, could only be attributed to Huangquan in the end. Although his 200,000 iron horsemen are terrifying, it is difficult to shake the unity and courage of the Chinese nation. When the Mongols came, our generation invited them to take care of themselves; The soul of China, let him be arrogant!