MONGOLIAN WOMENHISTORY 252INTRODUCTION TO MONGOLIAGENERAL REMARKSTODAY 3 TIMES SIZE OF MODERN FRANCETODAY HAS POPULATION OF 2.2 MILLIONWHEN GENGHIS KHAN & HIS SUCCESSOR ACHIEVED MONGOL EMPIRE ITCONTAINED ABOUT 200,000 PEOPLEKOREA & PACIFICALL WAY TO GEORGIA, ARMENIA & HUNGRYHOW WAS GENGHIS OR CHINGGIS KHAN ABLE TO RULE OVER 100 MILLIONCHINESE?NO CENTRAL GOVERNMENT OF POWER INRUSSIAABBASID DYNASTY CRUMBLINGMIDDLE EAST FRAGMENTEDGENGHIS KHAN DID NOT SET OUT TO CREATE EMPIREAPPARENTLY CLIMATE CHANGED & AS TEMPERATURE DECLINEDGROWING SEASON REDUCEDFORCING MONGOLS TO MOVEMONGOLIAN WOMEN UTILIZED AS MUCH AS MENWOMEN'S IMPORTANT ROLES REPEATEDLY MENTIONED IN MONGOL, CHINESE & EUROPEAN CHRONICLES OF 13TH C.LATER TRANSLATORS OF SECRET HISTORY SOUGHT TO DOWNPLAY ROLE OFWOMEN & SHOWING SUPERIOR OF MENMONGOLIAN WOMENINTRODUCTIONWOMEN ENJOYED SUBSTANTIALLY STRONGER SOCIAL POSITION THAN IN CHINAEXAMPLES OF WOMEN'S HIGHER STATUSPRIMARY SOURCE SECRET HISTORYMONGOLS BELIEVED ADVANTAGEOUS IF MAN'S WIFE SOMEWHAT OLDER THAN HE WASSHE WOULD BE WISER THAN HIMABLE TO GUIDE HIM IN WORLDLY MATTERSCONSIDERED UNMANLY & SIGN OF IMMATURITY IF MONGOL MAN DIDNOT LISTEN TO ADVICE OF HIS WOMANWHEN GENGHIS KHAN'S FATHER DIED HIS MOTHER HOELUN SUCCESSFULLYROUSED THE PEOPLE TO FOLLOW HER HUSBAND'S BANNER & TRIBE THUS LEADING TO GENGHIS BECOMING LEADERGENGHIS KHAN HIMSELF SOUGHT & ACCEPTED GUIDANCE OF WOMEN GENGHIS RELATED HOW HIS MOTHER HOELUN FACILITATED HIS CAREER BY HER SKILLS & LABORLATER GENGHIS DESCRIBED HOW THE ADVICE OF HIS WIFE BORTE LED TO HIS BREAKING ALLIANCE WITH HIS BLOOD BROTHER, WHOM BORTE SUSEPTED OF PLOTTING AGAINST TEMUCHIN OR GENGHISTHIS WAS NO SMALL THING TO DO SINCE THIS IS A SPIRITUAL BROTHERHOOD THAT ACCORDING TO OLD MONGOL TRADITION IS MORE BINDING & OBLIGING THAN ANY FAMILY TIEBORTE ALSO DROVE HOME DECISION TO EXECUTE SHAMAN KOKOCHU TEBTENGRIWHO TRIED TO ASSUME POLITICAL POWER BY INSTIGATING RIVALRY BETWEEN TEMUCHIN & HIS BROTHERS MATERNAL LINES FOR MONGOLS ARE STRONGSTORY OF HOW ONE OF FIRST MONGOL GENERATIONSDOBUN FATHERED 2 SONS WITH HIS WIFE ALAN THE FAIRLATER HE PASSED AWAY & HIS WIDOW SUBSEQUENTLY GAVE BIRTH TO 3 SONSTHESE 3 SONS ARE DESCRIBED AS BEING RESULT OF NO EARTHLY MAN,BUT OF DIVINE IMPREGNATIONBEFORE GENGHIS KHAN EXTRAMARITAL AFFAIRS GENERALLY PUNISHED BYDEATH OF THE WOMANAFTER HIS RISE TO SUPREME POWERHE CHANGED LAWS & RULED BOTH MAN & WOMAN KILLED FOR ADULTERYOTHER RIGHTS OF MONGOLIAN WOMENCOULD INHERIT PROPERTY FROM DECEASED HUSBANDSMOTHER BECAME HEAD OF FAMILY IF FATHER DIEDWHILE MONGOLIAN SOCIETY POLYGYNOUSIF WOMAN'S HUSBAND DIED SHE GIVEN FREE CHOICEWHETHER TO REMARRY OR NOTMONGOL WOMAN COULD DIVORCE HER HUSBAND IF MARRIAGE UNSUCCESSFULIF DIVORCED OR WIDOWED WOMAN REMARRIEDNEW HUSBAND ACCEPTED HER CHILDREN AS HIS OWNIDEA OF MONGOLS' VIEW IF PERSON ACQUIRED READY-MADE FAMILY THERE WAS PRE-EXISTING SPIRITUAL CONNECTION BETWEEN THEM& IT WAS MORE NB THAN BIOLOGICAL ONEMONGOLIAN WOMEN ALSO DID NOT HAVE TO MARRYMONGOLIAN WOMEN AS WARRIORSWOMEN DESCRIBED AS PROFICIENT & MERCILESS WARRIORSWOMEN ROUTINELY GIVEN EXTENSIVE MILITARY TRAININGSTRONGEST & MOST SKILLED OF THESE WOMEN FOUGHT IN WARS WITH MENITALIAN WRITER WHEN VISITING MONGOLS IN CHINA WROTEGIRLS & WOMEN RIDE & GALLOP AS SKILLFULLY AS MEN. WE EVEN SAY THEM CARRYING QUIVERS AND BOWS, AND THE WOMEN CAN RIDE HORSES FOR AS LONG AS THE MEN; THEY HAVE SHORTER STIRRUPS, HANDLE HORSES VERY WELL, AND MIND ALL THE PROPERTY.ON OTHER SUBJECTS TOO SAME AUTHOR WROTE WOMEN MAKE EVERYTHING: SKIN CLOTHES, SHOES, LEGGINGS AND EVERYTHING MADE OF LEATHER. THEY DRIVE CARTS AND REPAIR THEM, THEY LOAD CAMELS, AND ARE QUICK AND VIGOROUS IN ALL THEIR TASKS. THEY ALL WEAR TROUSERS, AND SOME OF THEM SHOOT JUST LIKE MEN.MARCO POLO TELLS OF KUBLAI KHAN'S NEPHEW AND RIVAL KAIDU'S DAUGHTERAIGIARN = MEANS SHINING MOON2ALSO CALLED KHUTULUN IN OTHER SOURCESFAMOUS FOR HER BEAUTY & IMMENSE STRENGTH OF BODYSHE SO STRONG SHE SURPASSED EVERY MALE MONGOL WARRIOR IN PHYSICAL STRENGTH & SKILLSAIGIARN REFUSED TO MARRY A MAN UNLESS HE COULD BEAT HER IN WRESTLINGACCORDING TO STORY SHE STATED THAT ANY SUITOR MUST BRING 100 HORSES AS FORFEIT.OVER TIME SHE LICKED 100 STRONG MEN & COLLECTED 10,000 HORSESONE SUITOR BROUGHT 1000 HORSES AND BEGGED AIGIARN TOPURPOSELY LOOSE TO HIMSHE WOULD NOT & SHE WONTHIS STORY IS FOUND IN TRAVELS OF MARCO POLO PP. 417-9 DORSET PRESS 1987MONGOLIAN WOMEN & RELIGIONSHAMANISM IMPORTANT TO THEIR SOCIETYIT WAS PREVALENT COMMUNAL RELIGIOUS EXPERIENCEBOTH SEXES SHAMANSWOMEN WERE BETTER AT RECEIVING MESSAGES FROM THE OTHER WORLDSMONGOLIAN WOMEN & ECONOMYWOMEN'S LABOR CRUCIALTHEY PACKED UP MOVED YURTS OR GERSMADE CLOTHES, RUGS, FLAGS & COVERINGS FOR HORSESTHEY PROCESSED MILK, CHEESE & MEATBASIS OF MONGOLIAN DIETUSUALLY EACH ADULT WOMAN HAD HER OWN HERD OF SHEEP TO TENDAS RESULT WOMEN'S ABILITY TO MAINTAIN MONGOLIAN SUBSISTENCE ECONOMYENTIRE MALE POPULATION FREE TO HUNT OR FIGHTSORGHANHTANI BEKIPROBABLY MOST FAMOUS MONGOLIAN MOTHERKUBLAI KHAN'S MOTHERGENGHIS KHAN'S DAUGHTER IN LAWA MIDDLE EASTERN PHYSICIAN WROTE ABOUT HER IF I WERE TO SEE AMONG THE RACE OF WOMEN ANOTHER WHO IS SO REMARKABLE A WOMAN AS THIS, I WOULD SAY THAT THE RACE OF WOMEN IS SUPERIOR TO THE RACE OF MENSHE SET STATE FOR ALL 4 OF HER SONS TO BECOME KHANSALTHOUGH SHE HERSELF ILLITERATESHE RECOGNIZED HER SONS HAD TO BE EDUCATEDEACH ONE LEARNED DIFFERENT LANGUAGE THAT MONGOLS NEEDED IN ADMINISTERING VAST DOMAIN THEY HAD CONQUEREDSORGHAGHTANI BECAME A NESTORIAN CHRISTIAN & RECOGNIZED THAT IF MONGOLS WERE TO ADMINISTER THEIR VAST EMPIRE ONE OF WAYS TO ACCOMPLISH THIS WAS TO INGRATIATE THEMSELVES WITH CLERGY OF VARIOUS RELIGIONSSO SHE & HER SONS PROTECTED & PROVIDED SUPPORT FOR EACH OF RELIGIONS WITH MONGOL DOMAINSSHE SUPPORTEDMUSLIMSBUDDHISTS3CONFUCIANISTSSHE INTRODUCED HER SON KUBLAI TO IDEAS OF CONFUCIAN SCHOLARS TO HELP HIM UNDERSTAND & BE PREPARED TO RULE CHINASHE ALSO RECOGNIZED THAT EXPLOITATION OF SUBJECTED PEOPLES WOULD MAKE NO SENSERAVAGING ECONOMY OF CONQUERED TERRITORIES WOULD ULTIMATELY BE SELF DEFEATINGSHE SUPPORTED CHINESE PEASANTRYIF MONGOLS BOLSTERED LOCAL ECONOMY THIS WOULD LEAD EVENTUALLY TO INCREASED PRODUCTION & INCREASED TAX COLLECTIONSEACH OF HER SONS FOLLOWED SAME PHILOSOPHYCHABIKUBLAI KHAN'S WIFESHE PLAYED IMPORTANT ROLE IN HIM CARRYING OUT HIS MOTHER'S GAME PLANTHEY ACTED AS CHINESE EMPEROR & EMPRESS.THEY RESTORED CONFUCIAN RITUALS TO COURTMOVED CAPITAL FROM MONGOLIA TO CHINASELECTED BEIJING AS SITETHEY PATRONIZED PAINTING, PAINTERS IN CHINESE