Lesson test: The Mongol century

1.[2p]
What was the yam?

A postal relay of stations a day's ride apart, supplied by the local population as a tax in kind

Correct

A Mongol tax on merchants crossing a frontier

The answer is: A postal relay of stations a day's ride apart, supplied by the local population as a tax in kind

A council of princes that elected the great khan

The answer is: A postal relay of stations a day's ride apart, supplied by the local population as a tax in kind

A partnership between Mongol nobles and merchant associations

The answer is: A postal relay of stations a day's ride apart, supplied by the local population as a tax in kind

2.[2p]
Karakorum to Tabriz is about 4,630 km. At 300 km a day with fresh horses, how many days does a relay courier take?

CorrectNot quite: 15

5.[2p]
Francesco Balducci Pegolotti travelled the road from Tana to Cathay himself.

True

The answer is: False

False

Correct

6.[3p]
Juvayni says 1.3 million died at Merv. The walled city covers about 400 hectares. How many people per hectare does his figure imply?

CorrectNot quite: 3250

7.[3p]
Why would a historian in Mongol service inflate the number of dead?

Terror was policy, and a reputation for annihilation saved the cost of later sieges

Correct

He was paid by the number of words he wrote

The answer is: Terror was policy, and a reputation for annihilation saved the cost of later sieges

He had no access to any figures at all

The answer is: Terror was policy, and a reputation for annihilation saved the cost of later sieges

Persian law required round numbers in official histories

The answer is: Terror was policy, and a reputation for annihilation saved the cost of later sieges

8.[3p]
What did Mongol unification change for exchange across Asia?

Select all that apply

One law and one ruling family across most of the route

Correct

A relay system that made messages travel several times faster

Correct

Elite capital invested in trade through ortogh partnerships

Correct

The abolition of all tolls anywhere in Asia

The answer is: One law and one ruling family across most of the route, A relay system that made messages travel several times faster, Elite capital invested in trade through ortogh partnerships

9.[3p]
Muslim engineers built counterweight trebuchets for the siege of Xiangyang in 1273. What does that illustrate?

Deliberate transfer of specialists is orders of magnitude faster than diffusion

Correct

Technique diffused freely across Asia in this period

The answer is: Deliberate transfer of specialists is orders of magnitude faster than diffusion

The Mongols had no siege capability of their own before 1273

The answer is: Deliberate transfer of specialists is orders of magnitude faster than diffusion

Chinese engineers had forgotten how to build siege engines

The answer is: Deliberate transfer of specialists is orders of magnitude faster than diffusion

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The Mongol century

1.[2p]
What was the yam?

2.[2p]
Karakorum to Tabriz is about 4,630 km. At 300 km a day with fresh horses, how many days does a relay courier take?

3.[2p]
How many days would a single rider on one horse take over the same distance, at 40 km a day?

4.[2p]
What was the inscribed tablet that entitled its bearer to use the relay stations? One word.

5.[2p]
Francesco Balducci Pegolotti travelled the road from Tana to Cathay himself.

6.[3p]
Juvayni says 1.3 million died at Merv. The walled city covers about 400 hectares. How many people per hectare does his figure imply?

7.[3p]
Why would a historian in Mongol service inflate the number of dead?

8.[3p]
What did Mongol unification change for exchange across Asia?

9.[3p]
Muslim engineers built counterweight trebuchets for the siege of Xiangyang in 1273. What does that illustrate?

1.[2p] What was the yam?

2.[2p] Karakorum to Tabriz is about 4,630 km. At 300 km a day with fresh horses, how many days does a relay courier take?

3.[2p] How many days would a single rider on one horse take over the same distance, at 40 km a day?

4.[2p] What was the inscribed tablet that entitled its bearer to use the relay stations? One word.

5.[2p] Francesco Balducci Pegolotti travelled the road from Tana to Cathay himself.

6.[3p] Juvayni says 1.3 million died at Merv. The walled city covers about 400 hectares. How many people per hectare does his figure imply?

7.[3p] Why would a historian in Mongol service inflate the number of dead?

8.[3p] What did Mongol unification change for exchange across Asia?

9.[3p] Muslim engineers built counterweight trebuchets for the siege of Xiangyang in 1273. What does that illustrate?

1.[2p]
What was the yam?

2.[2p]
Karakorum to Tabriz is about 4,630 km. At 300 km a day with fresh horses, how many days does a relay courier take?

3.[2p]
How many days would a single rider on one horse take over the same distance, at 40 km a day?

4.[2p]
What was the inscribed tablet that entitled its bearer to use the relay stations? One word.

5.[2p]
Francesco Balducci Pegolotti travelled the road from Tana to Cathay himself.

6.[3p]
Juvayni says 1.3 million died at Merv. The walled city covers about 400 hectares. How many people per hectare does his figure imply?

7.[3p]
Why would a historian in Mongol service inflate the number of dead?

8.[3p]
What did Mongol unification change for exchange across Asia?

9.[3p]
Muslim engineers built counterweight trebuchets for the siege of Xiangyang in 1273. What does that illustrate?