Mongol Empire Dbq Essay

All throughout history, numerous nations have tried to conquer the islands of Japan. However, no matter how large their invasion forces were, those who tried never fully succeeded. Of all those who attempted to conquer Japan, arguably the most famous of all were the Mongols, who tried to subjugate the Japanese people twice, one in 1274, and the other in 1281. The leader of the invading armies, Kublai Khan, wished to expand his people’s influence and culture across the Tsushima Strait, and into the islands east of China. But, try as they may, they could not tame the people that called these islands home. So, following defeat after defeat, the Mongol hordes finally retreated back to the mainland of Asia never to set foot on Japanese soil again.

This caused rifts between the two, which would have more serious consequences for Japan in the future. It was during the dominance of the Hojo Clan that Kublai Khan began sending emissaries to seek for Japan’s cooperation which the Mongol Empire, meaning the Mongols wanted the Japanese to submit to them, else face a war. The people in the Shogunate rebuffed the great Khan’s proposals, angering him in the process. Knowing that war was inevitable, the Japanese began readying their fiefdoms for defense against the Mongols. For the first time in Japan’s history, its people were not preparing to wage war against one another, but rather, to wage war against a foreign enemy. As a result, former enemies became allies in battle, fighting for a common

It was on this night that a storm blew across the Mongol fleet, which was filled with troops since the ship captains feared that the former would be stranded in Japan, in the event that the storm would either ravage the fleet, or force it to leave. The storm was very intense, destroying a large part of the Mongol fleet. However, it was not entirely destroyed by the winds, rather, the Japanese were able to board the Mongol ships under the cover of night (the Japanese ships were not destroyed due to their superior maneuverability and swiftness). It was here, in this scenario, that the Japanese had the upper hand, since the Mongols were not able to fight the Japanese in large quantities, and had to resort to man-to-man fighting, which the Japanese were accustomed to. So, as dawn rose, the Japanese were able to win a decisive victory for Japan. As for the Mongols, their numbers had dwindled significantly, and were forced to sail back to China, and abandon the