“Everywhere where people live, they are all subordinated to me”: the influence of the imperial steppe ideology on the Mongol Empire’s cultural exchange and diplomacy

Quinn, Luke Jonathan Stephen (2023) “Everywhere where people live, they are all subordinated to me”: the influence of the imperial steppe ideology on the Mongol Empire’s cultural exchange and diplomacy. Masters by Research thesis (MPhil), Manchester Metropolitan University.

Preview

Available under License Creative Commons Attribution Non-commercial No Derivatives. Download (919kB) | Preview

Abstract

This thesis will argue that the Mongolian Empire’s policies of cultural exchange and diplomacy towards the Latin world were driven by an imperial steppe ideology whose core characteristic was to achieve universal dominion. The thesis will make this argument by explicitly linking these two broad agendas of diplomatic engagement and cultural exchange to each other and placing them within the context of the Mongol ideology of universal rule. The thesis will make this argument by first examining the imperial steppe ideology of the nomadic empires which preceded the Mongol Empire in order to demonstrate that they also considered universal rule to be a key factor in their respective ideological basis. The early history of the Mongol Empire will then be examined to show the ideological continuities with the previous empires. Subsequently, the individuals and groups which comprised the empire’s administration will have their religious and cultural backgrounds examined in order to indicate why they retained the universal nature of the imperial steppe ideology. Following this, examples of cultural exchange and trade within the Mongol Empire and with its neighbouring states will be situated within the context of the universalism of the imperial steppe ideology. Finally, diplomatic engagement between the Mongol Empire and the Latin world will also be placed within the ideological framework of the empire’s goal of achieving universal rule. It is hoped that the thesis will provoke further questions and research into the field of Mongolian history concerning the ideological foundations of the empire and its effect on their policies.