In the Shadow of the Mongol Empire: Ming China and Eurasia (Hardcover) (ISBN-13: 9781108482448)

During the thirteenth century, the Mongols created the greatest empire in human history. Genghis Khan and his successors brought death and destruction to Eurasia. They obliterated infrastructure, devastated cities, and exterminated peoples. They also created courts in China, Persia, and southern Russia, famed throughout the world as centers of wealth, learning, power, religion, and lavish spectacle. The great Mongol houses established standards by which future rulers in Eurasia would measure themselves for centuries. In this ambitious study, David M. Robinson traces how in the late fourteenth century the newly established Ming dynasty (1368-1644) in China crafted a narrative of the fallen Mongol empire. To shape the perceptions and actions of audiences at home and abroad, the Ming court tailored its narrative of the Mongols to prove that it was the rightful successor to the Mongol empire. This is a story of how politicians exploit historical memory for their own gain.

Author: David M. Robinson
ISBN-10: 1108482449
ISBN-13: 9781108482448
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Language: English
Published: 11/21/2019
Pages: 386
Format: Hardcover
Weight: 1.60lbs
Size: 9.10h x 6.20w x 0.90d

Review Citation(s):
Choice 07/01/2020