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Mongol invasion of Europe

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Mongol conquests in Asia and Europe

Genghis Khan empire-en.svg
The route of the first Mongol expedition in Russia - 1223


Date
a) 1223, 1236�
b) late 1240�
c) April 11, 1241
d) 1242

Location

a) Modern Russia, Ukraine and Belarus
b) Parts of southern and eastern Poland
c) Medieval Hungary
d) northern Bulgaria

Result

a) Decisive Mongol victory resulting in principalities of Kievan State becoming vassals of the Mongol Golden Horde.
b) Mongol victory
c) Mongol victory, but Mongol forces withdraw for a kurultai
d) Mongol victory resulting in the Second Bulgarian Empire becoming a vassal of the Mongol Golden Horde

Territorial
changes

a) Ukraine and Russia added to Mongol Empire
b) Kingdom of Poland subject to Mongol raids
c) Parts of Kingdom of Hungary controlled by Mongol Empire
d) Second Bulgarian Empire


Belligerents




Mongol Empire
a) Vladimir-Suzdal
Alex K Halych-Volhynia.svg Kingdom of Galicia–Volhynia
Nowogród.svg Novgorod Republic
Principality of Ryazan
Volga Bulgars
Alans
Cumans
Circassians
North caucasian peoples
b) Reconstruction of the Grand Coat of Arms of the Crown of the Polish Kingdom.svg Polish states and allies
c) EU Member States' CoA Series- Hungary.svg Kingdom of Hungary
Insignia Germany Order Teutonic.svg Teutonic Knights
Crusades TF.JPG Knights Templar
d) Second Bulgarian Empire

Commanders and leaders

a) Batu Khan
Möngke Khan
Subutai
Jebe
Burundai
Berke
Orda
Güyük Khan
b) Baidar (possibly †)
Kadan
Orda Khan
c) Batu Khan
Subutai
Shiban
Berke
Burundai
d) Batu Khan
Kadan a) Alex K Halych-Volhynia.svg Mstislav Mstislavich
Yuri II of Vladimir †
Alex K Kyiv Michael 2.svgMstislav III of Kiev (POW), executed
Dmitro
b) Alex K Halych-Volhynia.svg Daniel of Galicia
Various, most prominent being Wappen Schlesiens.png Henry II the Pious †
c) Coa Hungary Country History Béla IV (1235-1270).svg King Béla IV
Alex K Kingdom of Hungary.svg Prince Coloman (DOW)
Archbishop Ugrin Csák †
Archbishop Matthias Rátót †
Palatine Denis Tomaj †
d) Ivan Asen II

Strength

a) 20,000 in 1223
In 1236, More than 35,000 Mongols+More than 40,000 Turkic auxiliaries
b) about 10,000 (one tumen)[1]
c) Former estimation:
70,000[2]
New estimation:
30,000[3][4] a) 80,000 in 1223
b) over 10,000-30,000[5]+at least 500 armed men from Templar order.
c) Former estimation:
80,000[6]
New estimation:
25,000[3][4]
including Hungarian heavy cavalry, Knights Templar, nomadic light cavalry mercenaries and Serbian valiants. Thousands of Cumans and Kipchaks

Casualties and losses

a) More than 7,000
b) Minimal
c) Few thousands killed[4] a) 500,000 (6-7% of the population of Rus)[7]
b) Heavy
c) Tens of thousand killed[4]



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The Mongol invasion of Europe in the 13th century involved the destruction of East Slavic principalities, such as Kiev and Vladimir, the invasion of the Kingdom of Hungary (in the Battle of Mohi) and fragmentation of Poland (in the Battle of Legnica). The operations were masterminded by General Subutai and commanded by Batu Khan and Kadan, both grandsons of Genghis Khan. As a result of the successful invasions, many of the conquered territories would become part of the Golden Horde empire.

Historians regard the Mongol raids and invasions as some of the deadliest conflicts in human history up through that period. Brian Landers argues that, "One empire in particular exceeded any that had gone before, and crossed from Asia into Europe in an orgy of violence and destruction. The Mongols brought terror to Europe on a scale not seen again until the twentieth century."[8] Diana Lary contends that the Mongol invasions induced population displacement "on a scale never seen before," particularly in central Asia and eastern Europe. She adds, "the impending arrival of the Mongol hordes spread terror and panic."[9]



Contents [hide]
1 Invasions and conquest of Rus' lands
2 Invasion into Central Europe 2.1 Invasion of the Kingdom of Hungary
2.2 Invasion of the Kingdom of Croatia
2.3 Impact on Romanian principalities

3 European tactics against Mongols
4 Mongol diffusion of Chinese gunpowder to Europe
5 End of the Mongol advance 5.1 Mongol infighting

6 Later campaigns 6.1 Against Poland (1259 and 1287)
6.2 Against Byzantine Thrace (1265, 1324 and 1337)
6.3 Against Bulgaria (1241, 1242, 1271, 1274, 1280 and 1285)
6.4 Against Hungary (1280s)
6.5 Against Serbia (1293)

7 Maps
8 See also
9 Footnotes
10 References
11 External links


Invasions and conquest of Rus' lands[edit]

Main article: Mongol invasion of Rus'





Returning to Vladimir by Yaroslav II of Vladimir after Mongol destruction. From the medieval Russian annals
Ögedei Khan ordered Batu Khan to conquer Russia in 1235. The main force, headed by Jochi's sons, and their cousins, Möngke Khan and Güyük Khan, arrived at Ryazan in December 1237. Ryazan refused to surrender, and the Mongols sacked it and then stormed Suzdalia. Many Rus' armies were defeated Grand Prince Yuri was killed on the Sit River (March 4, 1238). Major cities such as Vladimir, Torzhok, and Kozelsk were captured.

Afterward, the Mongols turned their attention to the steppe, crushing the Kypchaks and the Alans and sacking Crimea. Batu reappeared in Russia in 1239, sacking Pereyaslavl and Chernihiv. Most of the Russian princes fled when it became clear resistance was futile. The Mongols sacked Kiev on December 6, 1240 and conquered Galich and Volodymyr-Volynskyi. Batu sent a small detachment to probe the Poles before passing on to Central Europe. One column was routed by the Poles while the other defeated the Polish army and returned.[10]

The Mongols had acquired Chinese gunpowder, which they deployed in battle during the invasion of Europe to great success.[11]

Invasion into Central Europe[edit]

Main article: First Mongol invasion of Poland

The Mongols invaded Central Europe with three armies. One army defeated an alliance which included forces from fragmented Poland and members of various Christian military orders, led by Henry II the Pious, Duke of Silesia in the battle of Legnica. A second army crossed the Carpathian mountains and a third followed the Danube. The armies re-grouped and crushed Hungary in 1241, defeating the Hungarian army at the Battle of Mohi on April 11, 1241. The devastating Mongol invasion killed half of Hungary's then-population.[12] The armies swept the plains of Hungary over the summer and in the spring of 1242, regained impetus and extended their control into Austria and Dalmatia and Moravia. The Great Khan had, however, died in December 1241, and on hearing the news, all the "Princes of the Blood" of Genghis Khan went back to Mongolia to elect the new Khan.[13]





Henry II the Pious who lost his life at the battle of Legnica, 19th-century painting by Jan Matejko.
After sacking Kiev,[14] Batu Khan sent a smaller group of troops to Poland, destroying Lublin and defeating an inferior Polish army. Other elements—not part of the main Mongol force—saw difficulty near the Polish-Galich border. As for Poland, the Mongols were just passing through and the efforts of king Wenceslas amounted to little in Mongol strategic considerations.[citation needed]





The Mongols at Liegnitz display the head of King Henry II of Duchy of Silesia.
The Mongols then reached Polaniec on the Czarna Hańcza[clarification needed], where they set up camp. There, the Voivode attacked them with the remaining Cracovian knights, which were few in number, but determined to vanquish the invader or die. Surprise gave the Poles an initial advantage and they managed to kill many Mongol soldiers. When the invaders realized the actual numerical weakness of the Poles, they regrouped, broke through the Polish ranks and defeated them. During the fighting, many Polish prisoners of war found ways to escape and hide in the nearby woods. The Polish defeat was partly influenced by the initially successful Polish knights having been distracted by looting.

The attack on Europe was planned and executed by Subutai, who achieved perhaps his most lasting fame with his victories there. Having devastated the various Russian principalities, he sent spies into Poland and Hungary, and as far as eastern Austria, in preparation for an attack into the heartland of Europe. Having a clear picture of the European kingdoms, he prepared an attack nominally commanded by Batu Khan and two other familial-related princes. Batu Khan, son of Jochi, was the overall leader, but Subutai was the strategist and commander in the field, and as such, was present in both the northern and southern campaigns against Russian principalities. He also commanded the central column that moved against Hungary. While Kadan's northern force won the Battle of Legnica and Güyük's army triumphed in Transylvania, Subutai was waiting for them on the Hungarian plain. The newly reunited army then withdrew to the Sajo River where they inflicted a decisive defeat on King Béla IV of Hungary at the Battle of Mohi. Again, Subutai masterminded the operation, and it would prove one of his greatest victories.

Invasion of the Kingdom of Hungary[edit]

Further information: Battle of Mohi

The Mongolian army was based upon light cavalry. One of the major light cavalry tactics was to suddenly rush the enemy position. However, if the enemy held or re-formed, light cavalry was insufficient to achieve a victory. Another significant tactic was to feign retreat, in which the light cavalry would attack the enemy and then withdraw, apparently fleeing. The enemy would ideally pursue and become disorganized, leaving themselves open to attack by units hidden in reserve. The light cavalry would then reform and attack the flanks or rear of the enemy forces. In the late 11th century, the majority of the Hungarian army consisted of mounted sergeants (heavy knights) and infantry. The Hungarian allies, some of whom still utilized the light cavalry combat style, included the Cumans, who had settled down in Hungary not long before the Mongol invasion. They were tasked with providing the light cavalry force in the Hungarian army. However, the Hungarians accused the Cumans of being Mongol spies due to Mongolian tactics of using Cuman forces. After a bloody fight, the Hungarians killed Kuthen (the Cuman Leader) and his bodyguards the remaining Cumans fled to the Balkans. After the Mongol invasion, Béla IV of Hungary recalled the Cumans to Hungary to repopulate settlements devastated by war. The nomadic Cumans subsequently settled throughout the Great Hungarian Plain. The Cumans were violent against local people and their nomadic lifestyle was hurtful for the Hungarian peasants but the king favoured the Cumans.

Around 1241, the Kingdom of Hungary was much like any other feudal kingdom of Europe: although the throne was still inherited by Árpád's successors, the king's authority and power was greatly curtailed. Rich magnates cared less about the national security of the whole kingdom than about petty feudal quarrels with their fellow landlords. The Golden Bull of 1222 issued by King Andrew II authorized magnates to rebel against the king in some circumstances, and made him only 'primus inter pares'—first among equals. Béla IV tried to restore the king's former authority and power, without much success.

The Hungarians had first learned about the Mongol threat in 1229, when King Andrew granted asylum to some fleeing Russian boyars. Some Magyars, left behind during the main migration to the Pannonian basin, still lived on the banks of the upper Volga (It is believed by some that the descendants of this group are the modern-day Bashkirs, although this people now speaks a Turkic language, not Magyar.). In 1237 a Dominican friar, Julianus, set off on an expedition to lead them back, and was sent back to King Béla with a letter from Batu Khan. In this letter, Khan called upon the Hungarian king to surrender his kingdom unconditionally to the Tatar forces or face complete destruction. Béla did not reply, and two more messages were later delivered to Hungary. The first, in 1239, was sent by the defeated Cuman tribes, who asked for and received asylum in Hungary. The second was sent in February 1241 by the defeated Polish princes.

Only then did King Béla call upon his magnates to join his army in defense of the country. He also asked the papacy and the Western European rulers for help. Foreign help came in the form of a small knight-detachment under the leadership of Frederick, Prince of Austria, but it was too small to change the outcome of the campaign. The majority of the Hungarian magnates also did not realize the urgency of the matter. Some may have hoped that a defeat of the royal army would force Béla to discontinue his centralization efforts and thus strengthen their own power.

Although the Mongol danger was real and imminent, Hungary was not prepared to deal with it in the minds of a people who had lived free from nomadic invasions for the last few hundred years, an invasion seemed impossible, and Hungary was no longer a predominantly soldier population. Only rich nobles were trained as heavy-armored cavalry. The Hungarians had long since forgotten the light-cavalry strategy and tactics of their ancestors, which were similar to those now used by the Mongols, as well as by their predecessors, the Huns.

The Hungarian army (some 60,000 on the eve of the Battle of Mohi) was made up of individual knights with tactical knowledge, discipline, and talented commanders. Because his army was not experienced in nomadic warfare, King Béla welcomed the Cuman King Kuthen (also known as Kotony) and his fighters. However, the Cuman invitation proved detrimental as Batu Khan justified his invasion of Hungary as Béla giving asylum to the Cumans, a group Batu Khan regarded as rebels and traitors to the Mongol Empire. After rumors began to circulate in Hungary that the Cumans were agents of the Mongols, some hot-headed Hungarians attacked the Cuman camp and killed Kotony. This led the enraged Cumans to ride south, looting, ravaging the countryside, and slaughtering the unsuspecting Magyar population. The Austrian troops retreated to Austria shortly thereafter to "enlist more Western help." The Hungarians now stood alone in the defense of their country.





Battle of Mohi in a Medieval-era depiction
The Hungarian army arrived and encamped at the Hernád river[where?] on April 10, 1241 without having been directly challenged by the Mongols. The Mongols began their attack the next night quickly it was clear the Hungarians were lost. While the king escaped with the help of his bodyguard, the remaining Hungarian army was mercilessly killed by the Mongols or drowned in the river as they attempted escape. The Mongols now systematically occupied the Great Hungarian Plains, the slopes of the northern Carpathian Mountains, and Transylvania. Where they found local resistance, they ruthlessly killed the population. Where the locale offered no resistance, they forced the men into servitude in the Mongol army. Still, tens of thousands avoided Mongol domination by taking refuge behind the walls of the few existing fortresses or by hiding in the forests or large marshes along the rivers. The Mongols, instead of leaving the defenseless and helpless people and continuing their campaign through Pannonia to Western Europe, spent the entire summer and fall securing and pacifying the occupied territories. Then during the winter, contrary to the traditional strategy of nomadic armies which started campaigns only in spring-time, they crossed the Danube and continued their systematic occupation, including Pannonia. They eventually reached the Austrian borders and the Adriatic shores in Dalmatia. At this time, Croatia was part of Hungary, since it was conquered by the Kingdom of Hungary in 1091.[15][16] The Mongols appointed a darughachi in Hungary and minted coins in the name of Khagan.[17] According to Michael Prawdin, the country of Béla was assigned to Orda by Batu as an appanage. At least 20%-40% of the population died, by slaughter or epidemic. Rogerius of Apulia, an Italian monk and chronicler who witnessed and survived the invasion, pointed out not only the genocidal element of the occupation, but also that the Mongols especially "found pleasure" in humiliating local women.[18] But while the Mongols claimed control of Hungary, they could not occupy fortified cities such as Fehérvár, Esztergom, Veszprém, Tihany, Győr, Pannonhalma, Moson, Sopron, Vasvár, Újhely, Zala, Léka, Pozsony, Nyitra, Komárom, Fülek and Abaújvár. Learning from this lesson, fortresses came to play a significant role in Hungary. King Béla IV rebuilt the country and invested in fortifications. Facing a shortage of money, he welcomed the settlement of Jewish families, investors, and tradesmen, granting them citizenship rights. The King also welcomed tens of thousands of Kun (Cumans) who had fled the country before the invasion. Chinese fire arrows were deployed by Mongols against Buda in December 25, 1241, which they overran.[19]

During the spring of 1242, Ögedei Khan died at the age of fifty-six after a binge of drinking during a hunting trip. Batu Khan, who was one of the contenders to the imperial throne, returned at once with his armies to Asia, leaving the whole of Eastern Europe depopulated and in ruins (before withdrawal, Batu Khan ordered wholesale execution of prisoners). But because of his withdrawal, Western Europe escaped unscathed.

Some Hungarian historians[who?] claim that Hungary's long resistance against the Mongols actually saved Western Europe, though many Western European historians reject this interpretation[citation needed]. They point out that the Mongols evacuated Hungary of their own free will, and that Western Europe avoided Mongol attacks due to the sudden death of Ögedei Khan, not by the endeavor of the Hungarians. Other European and American historians have questioned whether the Mongols would have been able to, or even wished to, continue their invasion into Europe west of the Hungarian plain at all,[20] given the logistical situation in Europe and their need to keep large number of horses in the field to retain their strategic mobility.

The Mongolian invasion taught the Magyars a simple lesson: although the Mongols had destroyed the countryside, the forts and fortified cities had survived. To improve their defense capabilities for the future, they had to build forts, not only on the borders but also inside the country. During the remaining decades of the 13th century and throughout the 14th century, the kings donated more and more royal land to the magnates with the condition that they build forts and ensure their defenses.

Invasion of the Kingdom of Croatia[edit]






At Klis Fortress the Mongols experienced defeat in 1242.
During the Middle Ages, the Kingdom of Croatia was in a personal union with the Kingdom of Hungary, with Béla IV as a king.[21][22][23]

When routed on the banks of the Sajo River in 1241 by the Mongols, Béla IV fled to today's Zagreb in Croatia. Batu sent a few tumens (roughly 20,000 men at arms) under Khadan in pursuit of Bela. The major objective was not the conquest but the capture of the Arpad king. The poorly fortified Zagreb was unable to resist the invasion and was destroyed, its cathedral burned by Mongols.[24] In preparation for a second invasion, Gradec was granted a royal charter or Golden Bull of 1242 by King Béla IV, after which citizens of Zagreb engaged in building defensive walls and towers around their settlement.[24][25]


The Mongols' pursuit of Béla IV continued from Zagreb through Pannonia to Dalmatia. While in pursuit, the Mongols under the leadership of Kadan (Qadan) suffered a major defeat at Klis Fortress in Croatia in March 1242.[26] The Mongols pursued Béla IV from town to town in Dalmatia, while Croatian nobility and Dalmatian towns such as Trogir and Rab helped Béla IV to escape. After their defeat against the Croatian soldiers, the Mongols retreated and Béla IV was awarded Croatian towns and nobility. Only the city of Split did not aid Béla IV in his escape from the Mongols. Some historians claim that the mountainous terrain of Croatian Dalmatia was fatal for the Mongols because of the great losses they suffered from Croat ambushes set up in mountain passes.[25] Most historians claim that the death of Ögedei Khan (Croatian: Ogotaj) was the primary reason for retreat. In any case, though much of Croatia was plundered and destroyed, long-term occupation was unsuccessful.

Saint Margaret (January 27, 1242 – January 18, 1271), a daughter of Béla IV and Maria Laskarina, was born in Klis Fortress during the Mongol invasion of Hungary-Croatia in 1242.[27]

Impact on Romanian principalities[edit]

The 1241 Mongol invasion first affected Moldavia and Wallachia (situated east of the Carpathians). Tens of thousands of Wallachians and Moldavians lost their lives defending their territories from the Golden Horde. Crops and goods plundered from Wallachian settlements seem to have been a primary supply source for the Golden Horde. The invaders killed up to half of the population and burned down most of their settlements, thus destroying much of the cultural and economic records from that period. Neither Wallachians nor the army of Hungary offered much resistance against the Mongols.[28] The swiftness of the invasion took many by surprise and forced them to retreat and hide in forests and the enclosed valleys of the Carpathians. In the end, however, the main target of the invasion was the Kingdom of Hungary.[28]

European tactics against Mongols[edit]

The traditional European method of warfare of melee combat between knights ended in catastrophe when it was deployed against the Mongol forces as the Mongols were able to keep a distance and advance with superior number. The New Encyclopædia Britannica, Volume 29 says that "Employed against the Mongol invaders of Europe, knightly warfare failed even more disastrously for the Poles at Legnica and the Hungarians at Mohi in 1241. Feudal Europe was saved from sharing the fate of China and Muscovy not by its tactical prowess but by the unexpected death of the Mongols' supreme ruler, Ögedei, and the subsequent eastward retreat of his armies."[29]

Mongol diffusion of Chinese gunpowder to Europe[edit]

Several sources mention Chinese firearms and gunpowder weapons being deployed by the Mongols against European forces at the Battle of Mohi in various forms, including bombs hurled via catapult.[30][31][32] Professor Kenneth Warren Chase credits the Mongols for introducing into Europe gunpowder and its associated weaponry.[33]

End of the Mongol advance[edit]

In A History of the English-Speaking Peoples, Winston Churchill wrote:


But Asia too was marching against the West. At one moment it had seemed as if all Europe would succumb to a terrible menace looming up from the East. Heathen Mongol hordes from the heart of Asia, formidable horsemen armed with bows, had rapidly swept over Russia, Poland, Hungary, and in 1241 inflicted simultaneous crushing defeats upon the Germans near Breslau and upon European cavalry near Buda. Germany and Austria at least lay at their mercy. Providentially in this year the Great Khan died in Mongolia the Mongol leaders hastened back the thousands of miles to Karakorum, their capital, to elect his successor, and Western Europe escaped.[34]

The historian Jack Weatherford claims that European survival was due to Mongol unwillingness to fight in the more densely populated German principalities, where the weather affected the glue and sinew of the Mongol bows. The territory of Western Europe had more forests and castles than the Mongols were accustomed, and there were opportunities for the European heavy cavalry to counter-attack. Of course, his argument does not explain how the Magyars, using tactics and weapons identical to those of the Mongols, achieved such enormous successes against these same populations three hundred years earlier.

Some historians believe that the reason for Batu's stopping at the Mohi River, was that he never intended to advance further.[20] He had made the Russian conquest safe for the years to come, and when the Great Khan died and he rushed back to Mongolia to put in his claim for power, it ended his westward expansion. Subutai's recall at the same time left the Mongol armies without their spiritual head and primary strategist. Batu Khan was not able to resume his plans for conquest to the "Great Sea" (the Atlantic Ocean) until 1255, after the turmoil after Ögedei's death had finally subsided with the election of Möngke Khan as Great Khan. He was not capable nor interested in launching an invasion on Western Europe.

Mongol infighting[edit]

From 1241 to 1248 a state of almost open warfare existed between the son of Jochi, Batu, and the son of Ögedei, Güyük. The Mongol Empire was ruled by a regency under Ögedei's widow Töregene Khatun, whose only goal was to secure the Great Khanate for her son, Güyük. There was so much bitterness between the two branches of the family that Güyük died in 1248 on his way to confront Batu to force him to accept his authority. He also had problems in his last years with the Principality of Halych-Volhynia, whose ruler, Danylo of Halych, adopted a policy of confronting the Golden Horde and defeated some Mongol assaults in 1254. He was only defeated in 1259, under the Berke's rule. Batu Khan was unable to turn his army west until 1255, after Möngke had become Great Khan in 1251, and he had repaired his relations with the Great Khanate. However, as he prepared to finish the invasion of Europe, he died. His son did not live long enough to implement his father and Subutai's plan to invade Europe, and with his death, Batu's younger brother Berke became Khan of the Kipchak Khanate. Berke was not interested in invading Europe as much as halting his cousin Hulagu Khan from destroying the Holy Land. Berke had converted to Islam and watched with horror as his cousin destroyed the Abbasid Caliph, the spiritual head of Islam as far as Berke was concerned. The Mamluks of Egypt, learning through spies that Berke was both a Muslim and not fond of his cousin, appealed to him for help and were careful to nourish their ties to him and his Khanate.

Both entities were Turkic in origin.[35] Most of the Mamluks were of Turkic descent and Berke's Khanate was almost totally Turkic also. Jochi, Genghis Khan's oldest son, was of disputed parentage and only received 4,000 Mongol warriors to start his Khanate. His nearly 500,000 warriors were virtually all Turkic people who had submitted to the Mongols. Thus, the Khanate was Turkic in culture and had more in common with their Muslim Turkic Mamluks brothers than with the Mongol shamanist Hulagu and his horde. Thus, when Hulagu Khan began to mass his army for war against the Mamluk-controlled Holy Land, they swiftly appealed to Berke Khan who sent armies against his cousin and forced him to defend his domains in the north.

Hulagu returned to his lands by 1262, but instead of being able to avenge his defeats, had to turn north to face Berke Khan, suffering severe defeat in an attempted invasion north of the Caucasus in 1263, after Berke Khan had lured him north and away from the Holy Land. Thus, the Kipchak Khanate never invaded Europe keeping watch to the south and east instead. Berke only sent troops into Europe twice, in two relatively light raids in 1259 and 1265, simply to collect booty he needed to pay for his wars against Hulagu from 1262-65.

Later campaigns[edit]

Against Poland (1259 and 1287)[edit]

Main article: Second Mongol invasion of Poland

In 1259, eighteen years after the first attack, two tumens (20,000 men) from the Golden Horde, under the leadership of Berke, attacked Poland after raiding Lithuania. This attack was commanded by general Burundai with young princes Nogai and Talabuga. Lublin, Sieradz, Sandomierz, Zawichost, Kraków, and Bytom were ravaged and plundered. Berke had no intention of occupying or conquering Poland. After this raid the Pope Alexander IV tried without success to organize a crusade against the Tatars.

Main article: Third Mongol invasion of Poland

An unsuccessful raid followed in 1287, led by Talabuga and Nogai Khan. Lublin, Mazovia, Sandomierz and Sieradz were successfully raided, but they were defeated at Kraków, although this city too was devastated. This raid consisted of less than one tumen, since the Golden Horde's armies were tied down in a new conflict which the Il-Khanate initiated in 1284. The force sent was not sufficient to meet the full Polish army, nor did it have any siege engineers or equipment to breach city walls. It raided a few caravans, burned a few small towns, and fled when the Polish army was mustered.

Against Byzantine Thrace (1265, 1324 and 1337)[edit]

During the reign of Berke there was also a raid against Thrace. In the winter of 1265 Nogai Khan led a Mongol raid of two tumens (20,000 soldiers) against the territories of Bulgaria and Byzantine Eastern Thrace. In the spring of 1265 he defeated the armies of Michael VIII Palaeologus. Instead of fighting, most of the Byzantines fled. After this Thrace was plundered by Nogai's army, and the Byzantine emperor made an alliance with the Golden Horde, giving his daughter Euphrosyne in marriage to Nogai. Michael also sent much valuable fabric to Golden Horde as tributary. Also during Uzbeg Khan reign Thrace suffered raids in 1324 and 1337.

Against Bulgaria (1241, 1242, 1271, 1274, 1280 and 1285)[edit]

After the death of Khan Ögedei, Batu decided to return from Hungary to Mongolia. Part of his army invaded Bulgaria, but was defeated by the Bulgarian army under Tsar Ivan Asen II. The successors of Tsar Ivan Asen II - the regency of Kaliman Asen I decided to pay tax to the Golden Horde. In 1271 Nogai Khan led a successful raid against the country, which was a vassal of the Golden Horde until the early 14th century. Bulgaria was again raided by the Tatars in 1274, 1280 and 1285. In 1278 and 1279 Tsar Ivailo lead the Bulgarian army and crushed the Mongol raids before being surrounded at Silistra. After a three-month siege, he managed to once again break through the elite Mongol forces, forcing them to retreat north of the Danube. In 1280 a rebellion inspired by Byzantium left Ivailo without much support, and so he fled to Nogai's camp, asking him for help before being killed by the Mongols. Tsar George I, however, became a Mongol vassal before the Mongol threat was finally ended with the reign of Theodore Svetoslav.

Against Hungary (1280s)[edit]

In the mid-1280s Nogai Khan led an invasion of Hungary alongside Talabuga. Nogai lead an army that ravaged Transylvania with success: Cities like Szászrégen, Brassó and Beszterce were plundered and ravaged. However Talabuga, who led the main army in Northern Hungary, was stopped by the heavy snow of the Carpathians and the invading force was defeated[36] near Pest by the royal army of Ladislaus IV and ambushed by the Székely in the return. As with later invasions, it was repelled handily, the Mongols losing much of their invading force. The outcome could not have contrasted more sharply with the 1241 invasion, mostly due to the reforms of Béla IV, which included advances in military tactics and, most importantly, the widespread building of stone castles, both responses to the defeat of the Hungarian Kingdom in 1241.

Against Serbia (1293)[edit]





Serbian king Uroš II Milutin after victory over Mongols.
In 1293 a large Mongol-Bulgarian alliance raided into Serbia, where Serbian king Stefan Uroš II Milutin defeated them. However, the Serbian king acknowledged Nogai's supremacy and sent his son as hostage to prevent further hostility when Nogai threatened to lead a punitive expedition himself.[37]

Maps[edit]



[show]Mongol expansion





Genghis Khan empire-en.svg



See also[edit]
Franco-Mongol alliance
Mongol invasions
Mongol military tactics and organization
Rogerius of Apulia
Romania in the Early Middle Ages
Tatar invasions




Footnotes[edit]

1.Jump up ^ Sources vary, with estimates of Mongol forces from 10,000 to 50,000.
2.Jump up ^ Carey states on p. 128 that Batu had 40,000 in the main body and ordered Subutai to take 30,000 troops in an encircling maneuver. Batu commanded the central prong of the Mongols' three-pronged assault on eastern Europe. This number seems correct when compared with the numbers reported at the Battles of Leignitz to the north and Hermannstadt (Sibiu) to the south. All three victories occurred in the same week.
3.^ Jump up to: a b Markó, László (2000). Great Honours of the Hungarian State. Budapest: Magyar Könyvklub. ISBN 963-547-085-1
4.^ Jump up to: a b c d Liptai, Ervin (1985). Military history of Hungary. Budapest: Zrínyi Katonai Kiadó. ISBN 963-326-337-9
5.Jump up ^ René Grousset The Empire of Steppes
6.Jump up ^ Carey, Brian Todd, p. 124
7.Jump up ^ Colin McEvedy, Atlas of World Population History (1978)
8.Jump up ^ Brian Landers (2011). Empires Apart: A History of American and Russian Imperialism. Open Road Media. p. 17.
9.Jump up ^ Diana Lary (2012). Chinese Migrations: The Movement of People, Goods, and Ideas over Four Millennia. Rowman & Littlefield. p. 49.
10.Jump up ^ Eddie Austerlitz (2010). History of the Ogus. p. 27.
11.Jump up ^ Odette Keun (1944). Continental stakes: marshes of invasion, valley of conquest and peninsula of chaos. Letchworth printers ltd. p. 53. Retrieved 2011-11-28. "Ogdai Khan continued this stupendous career of conquests. He swept his hosts, organized to a very high level of efficiency, armed with a Chinese invention, gunpowder, that they used in small field-guns, and commanded with a sense of strategy quite beyond the capacity of any European general through Russia to Poland."
12.Jump up ^ The Mongol invasion: the last Arpad kings
13.Jump up ^ Hildinger, Erik. Mongol Invasions: Battle of Liegnitz. First published as: "The Mongol Invasion of Europe" in Military History, (June, 1997).
14.Jump up ^ The Destruction of Kiev
15.Jump up ^ "Croatia - definition of Croatia by the Free Online Dictionary, Thesaurus and Encyclopedia". Thefreedictionary.com. 2008-09-10. Retrieved 2013-05-31.
16.Jump up ^ "Marko Marelic, The Byzantine And Slavic Worlds". Korcula.net. 2005-10-03. Retrieved 2013-05-31.
17.Jump up ^ Michael Prawdin, Gerard (INT) Chaliand The Mongol Empire, p.268
18.Jump up ^ Richard Bessel Dirk Schumann (2003). Life after death: approaches to a cultural and social history of Europe during the 1940s and 1950s. Cambridge University Press. pp. 143–. ISBN 978-0-521-00922-5. Retrieved 1 October 2011.
19.Jump up ^ Gloria Skurzynski (2010). This Is Rocket Science: True Stories of the Risk-Taking Scientists Who Figure Out Ways to Explore Beyond Earth (illustrated ed.). National Geographic Books. p. 1958. ISBN 1-4263-0597-4. Retrieved 2011-11-28. "In A.D. 1232 an army of 30,000 Mongol warriors invaded the Chinese city of Kai-fung-fu, where the Chinese fought back with fire arrows...Mongol leaders learned from their enemies and found ways to make fire arrows even more deadly as their invasion spread toward Europe. On Christmas Day 1241 Mongol troops used fire arrows to capture the city of Buda in Hungary, and in 1258 to capture the city of Baghdad in what's now Iraq."
20.^ Jump up to: a b "The Mongols in the West, Journal of Asian History v.33 n.1". By Denis Sinor. 1999. Retrieved 16 August 2009.
21.Jump up ^ "Croatia (History)". Encarta. Archived from the original on 2009-10-31.
22.Jump up ^ Font, Marta: Hungarian Kingdom and Croatia in the Middle Age
23.Jump up ^ "Croatia (History)". Encyclopædia Britannica.
24.^ Jump up to: a b 750th Anniversary of the Golden Bull Granted by Bela IV
25.^ Jump up to: a b Klaić V., Povijest Hrvata, Knjiga Prva, Druga, Treća, Četvrta i Peta Zagreb 1982(Croatian)
26.Jump up ^ Prošlost Klisa (Croatian)
27.Jump up ^ Klis - A gateway to Dalmatia
28.^ Jump up to: a b Epure, Violeta-Anca. "Invazia mongolă în Ungaria şi spaţiul românesc" (PDF). ROCSIR - Revista Româna de Studii Culturale (pe Internet) (in Romanian). Retrieved 2009-02-05.
29.Jump up ^ The New Encyclopaedia Britannica 29 (15 ed.). 2003. p. 663. ISBN 0-85229-961-3. Retrieved 2011-07-29.
30.Jump up ^ Michael Kohn (2006). Dateline Mongolia: An American Journalist in Nomad's Land. RDR Books. p. 28. ISBN 1-57143-155-1. Retrieved 2011-07-29.
31.Jump up ^ William H. McNeill (1992). The Rise of the West: A History of the Human Community. University of Chicago Press. p. 492. ISBN 0-226-56141-0. Retrieved 2011-07-29.
32.Jump up ^ Robert Cowley (1993). Robert Cowley, ed. Experience of War (reprint ed.). Random House Inc. p. 86. ISBN 0-440-50553-4. Retrieved 2011-07-29.
33.Jump up ^ Kenneth Warren Chase (2003). Firearms: a global history to 1700 (illustrated ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 58. ISBN 0-521-82274-2. Retrieved 2011-07-29.
34.Jump up ^ Sir Winston Churchill, Winston Spencer Churchill (1999). Sir Winston Churchill, Winston Spencer Churchill, ed. The great republic: a history of America. Random House. p. 7. ISBN 0-375-50320-X. Retrieved 2011-11-28. "But Asia too was marching against the West. At one moment it had seemed as if all Europe would succumb to a terrible menace looming up from the East. Heathen Mongol hordes from the heart of Asia, formidable horsemen armed with bows, had rapidly swept over Russia, Poland, Hungary, and in 1241 inflicted simultaneous crushing defeats upon the Germans near Breslau and upon European cavalry near Buda. Germany and Austria at least lay at their mercy."
35.Jump up ^ Amitai-Preiss, Reuven. The Mamluk-Ilkhanid War
36.Jump up ^ Pál Engel, Tamás Pálosfalvi, Andrew Ayton: The Realm of St. Stephen: A History of Medieval Hungary, 895-1526, I.B.Tauris & Co Ltd, London, pp. 109 [1]
37.Jump up ^ István Vásáry Cumans and Tatars: Oriental military in the pre-Ottoman Balkans, 1185-1365, p.89

References[edit]



This article has an unclear citation style. The references used may be made clearer with a different or consistent style of citation, footnoting, or external linking. (March 2011)
Chambers, James -- The Devil's Horsemen: The Mongol Invasion of Europe
Cook, David, "Apocalyptic Incidents during the Mongol Invasions", in Brandes, Wolfram / Schmieder, Felicitas (hg), Endzeiten. Eschatologie in den monotheistischen Weltreligionen (Berlin, de Gruyter, 2008) (Millennium-Studien / Millennium Studies / Studien zu Kultur und Geschichte des ersten Jahrtausends n. Chr. / Studies in the Culture and History of the First Millennium C.E., 16), 293-312.
Hildinger, Erik -- Warriors of the Steppe: A Military History of Central Asia, 500 B.C. to A.D. 1700
Morgan, David -- The Mongols, ISBN 0-631-17563-6
Nicolle, David, -- The Mongol Warlords, Brockhampton Press, 1998
Reagan, Geoffry -- The Guinness Book of Decisive Battles, Canopy Books, New York (1992)
Saunders, J.J. -- The History of the Mongol Conquests, Routledge & Kegan Paul Ltd, 1971, ISBN 0-8122-1766-7
Sicker, Martin -- The Islamic World in Ascendancy: From the Arab Conquests to the Siege of Vienna, Praeger Publishers, 2000
Soucek, Svatopluk -- A History of Inner Asia, Cambridge, 2000
Sinor, Denis (1999). "The Mongols in the West". Journal of Asian History 33 (1).

External links[edit]
The Islamic World to 1600: The Golden Horde



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요사이 한국 관광객들이 많이 몰려 가는 곳이 크로아티아이다. 아드리아해를 끼고 이탈리아와 대면하는 이 지역은 옛날부터 그리스, 로마, 베니스, 헝가리, 오스만 터키, 오스트리아 문명권에 속했다.
나는 지난 週 이 지역을 여행하다가 1240년 러시아 남쪽에서 발진한 징기스칸 손자 바투의 몽골 기마군단이 아드리아해의 크로아티아 지역까지 쳐들어와 초토화시킨 이야기들을 현지인들로부터 많이 들었다. 몽골인들에 대한 공포심과 외경심은 지금까지도 크로아티아 사람들의 뇌리에 박혀 있다. 비슷하게 생긴 한중일 관광객이 요사이 이 지역을 뒤덮고 있다. 다른 모습의 몽골 침략인 셈이다.

1241년 봄 몽골군에 헝가리 군대가 전멸당하자 왕 벨라 4세는 아드리아 해안으로 도망 갔다. 당시 크로아티아 왕국은 헝가리 왕국과 연합국 개념의 동맹 관계였다. 바투가 2만 명의 별동대를 크로아티아로 보낸 것은 정복이 아니라 벨라 4세 체포였다.
이틀 전 크로아티아 수도 자그레브로 갔더니 여자 가이드가 몽골군이 이곳을 휩쓸고 간 이야기를 했다. 약 900년 전 눈이 작게 찢어진 몽골군이 몰려와 성당을 불태우고 성곽을 파괴한 뒤 자그레브가 재건된 과정을 설명하면서 그 사건이 도시의 번영을 가져오는 전화위복의 계기가 되었다고 했다. 벨라 4세는 재건을 위하여 자그레브 시민들에게 자치권을 주었다.

1942년 봄 몽골군이 크로아티아의 클리스 요새에서 참패를 당하였다는 이야기도 전해오는 데 학자들은 증거가 없다는 입장이다. 문학인들이 사실을 과장하였거나 조작하였을 가능성이 있다. 침략당한 나라는 저항을 영웅적으로 과장하는 경향이 있다.

몽골군이 헝가리 쪽에서 아드리아해로 넘어오려면 디나르 산맥을 지나야 한다. 해발 2000m급의 험준한 산맥이다. 여기서 크로아티아군으로부터 매복 공격을 받아 고생하였을 가능성이 있다. 2차 대전 때는 크로아티 출신 티토가 이 산악 지대를 무대로, 게릴라 부대를 지휘, 나치 점령군과 싸웠다.

몽골군대는 1250년대엔 이집트의 맘루크 왕국이 다스리던 시리아, 이스라엘까지 진격하는데, 몽골군의 서양 원정은 지금까지도 깨어지지 않은 最長의 작전이다. 나폴레옹와 히틀러의 러시아 원정보다도 몽골에서 시작, 아드리아해와 갈릴리 호수까지 간 원정의 범위가 더 넓다. 말과 활, 그리고 야성과 조직의 힘이었다.








기자는 1996년에 몽골에서 헝가리까지 유라시아의 몽골 벨트 지역 15개국을 약 60일에 걸쳐 취재한 적이 있었다.13세기 초 징기스칸의 몽골 기마군단이 高麗(고려)에서 헝가리에 이르는 문명세계의 거의 전부를 정복했을 때 몽골 본토의 인구는 1백만에 불과했으나 점령지의 인구는 약 1억이었다. 이런 '1당 백'의 정복과 통치가 어떻게 가능했느냐 하는 데 대해서 서양 학자들은 많은 연구를 하고 있다. 1927년에 영국의 전략사상가 리델 하트가 쓴 '위대한 지휘관들을 벗긴다(Great Captains Unveiled)'라는 책을 읽어보았다.

그 첫 장이 징기스칸과 그의 휘하 장군 스부데이를 다루고 있었다. 스부데이는 징기스칸의 손자인 바투를 모시고 러시아와 유럽을 원정했던 勇將(용장)이다.

이 章(장)의 결론에서 著者(저자)는 몽골 기마 군단 조직의 간편성(Simplicity)을 승리의 근본으로 꼽았다. 몽골 군단은 보급부대가 따로 없는 전원 기병이었다. 기병 한 사람이 말을 4∼5마리씩 몰고 다니면서 짐을 나르는 데뿐 아니라 비상식량이나 물통(사막을 건너갈 때는 말의 피를 빨아마셨다)으로 활용했기 때문이다. 느린 보급부대가 따라 다니지 않으면 전투부대의 이동속도는 엄청 빨라진다. 나폴레옹의 유명한 공식에 따르면 <전투력=무장력x기동성>이다. 몽골군단은 全員(전원)기병체제 덕분에 농경민족 군대보다 4∼5배나 빨랐다. 기동성을 높이기 위해서 몽골군단은 갑옷도 가볍게 만들었다.

몽골 군단은 지금도 깨어지지 않는 기록을 두 개 갖고 있다. 그들은 1237∼1238년 겨울, 그리고 1240∼1241년 겨울 두 차례 러시아로 쳐들어가 겨울 작전을 성공시켰다. 수 백년 뒤 나폴레옹과 히틀러를 굴복시켰던 러시아의 冬(동)장군도 몽골 기마군단의 지구력을 꺾지 못했던 것이다. 몽골 기마군단은 1241년 초에는 헝가리 정복전에서 하루 평균 1백km를 주파했다. 이 속도는 2차세계대전에서 기록된 독일 기갑군단의 돌파속도보다 더 빠른 것이었다.

세계사를 바꾼 간편성의 전략사상

당시 유럽의 騎馬(기마)전법은 중무장이었을 뿐 아니라 보병과 연계된 조직이었다. 성격이 다른 이런 두 조직을 지휘하는 것은 기병 單一(단일) 조직보다도 복잡하다. 인간이든 조직이든 복잡하면 기동성이 떨어지게 돼 있다. 기자가 헝가리에 가서 확인한 바에 따르면 중세 유럽 기사들의 갑옷 무게는 약 40kg이었고 말에 덮어씌운 甲胄(갑주)까지 보태면 100kg을 넘었다. 이런 말은 넘어지면 혼자서는 일어날 수가 없었다고 한다. 영화에선 근사하게 보이지만 이런 로보캅 같은 중무장은 결국 죽기 싫다는 방어적인 심리를 반영한다. 이는 복잡한 규정을 많이 만들어 철갑처럼 자신을 둘러싸고는 무사안일을 추구하는 관료조직에 비유할 수 있다. 유럽 기사들은 창과 칼을 主(주)무기로 썼다.

그들은 활이 비겁한 무기라 하여 법으로 금지시키기도 했고 하층민의 무기로 제한했다. 세종대왕이 野人(야인)들에 대한 간첩작전을 지시하니까 '오랑캐를 상대로 어찌 속임수를 쓸 수 있겠습니까'하고 들고 일어났던 주자학 선비들의 僞善(위선)을 연상시킨다. 도덕을 아무 데나 갖다대면 결과는 가끔 非도덕으로 나타난다.
중무장한 유럽기사들에 대하여 몽골기만군단의 고전적 戰法(전법)은 200∼300m쯤의 거리를 두고 활로써 집중사격을 하여 혼란에 빠트린 다음 돌격하여 요절을 내는 것이었다. 몽골 군단은 또 퇴각을 위장하여 유럽기병들을 유도, 분산시킨 다음 삽시간에 재집결하여 분산된 敵(적)을 각개 격파하는 戰法(전법)도 즐겼다. 이것은 기동성에서 앞섰기 때문에 가능했다. 리델 하트는 몽골군단의 全員기병제를 참고하여 영국도 步兵(보병)에서 독립된 순수한 기갑군단을 만들어야 한다고 이 책을 통해서 주장했다.

그의 주장에 귀를 기울인 것은 히틀러의 장군들이었다. 독일 기갑군단의 아버지로 불리는 구데리안은 '나는 리델 하트의 제자다'고 말한 적이 있다. 프랑스의 드골 대령도 독립기갑군단의 창설을 주장했던 사람이다. 2차 세계 대전의 초장에서 독일이 전격전으로써 연전연승한 것은 탱크들을 보병사단에 분산시켜 놓지 않고 단일한 기갑군단 조직으로 집중시킨 덕분이었다. 편 손가락이 아닌 불끈 쥔 주먹을 만들었다는 얘기이다. 이 발상의 근본이 간편성(Simplicity)인 것이다. 리델 하트에 따르면 기동성은 간편성에서 나오고 기동성은 중무장보다도 더 안전한 방법이란 것이다. 즉, 빠르면 산다는 뜻이다.

간편성은 자신감에서

놀랍게도 미국의 가장 성공한 최고경영자 잭 웰치가 몽골 기마군단의 성공 원리와 꼭 같은 내용을 경영의 원리로 삼고 있다. 그는 GE의 회장일 때 이런 말을 했다.
<우리는 신속하려면 (조직이나 경영지침이) 간편해야 한다는 것을 깨달았습니다. 複(복)문장의 脚注(각주)가 붙은 경영지침을 누가 따르겠습니까. 간편하지 않으면 빨라질 수 없고 빨라지지 않으면 이길 수 없습니다. 엔지니어에게 간편성이란 간결하면서도 기능이 우수한 디자인을 뜻합니다. 영업인들에게는 이 간편성의 원칙이 투명한 거래를 의미합니다. 생산현장에서는 모든 작업인들이 납득할 수 있는 상식적인 작업과정을, 인간관계에 있어서는 쉽게 말하고 솔직하고 정직하게 대하는 것을 의미합니다>

그는 또 '자신 없는 경영자들일수록 복잡한 것을 만들어낸다'면서 '겁이 많고 불안한 관리자들은 뚜꺼운 계획서와 슬라이드가 있어야 안심을 하는데 그 내용은 하나마나한 것들뿐이다'고 했다. 잭 웰치는 그러면서 '신속성(Speed)은 간편성(Simplicity)에서 우러나오지만 이 간편성은 자신감(Self-Confidence)에 뿌리를 박고 있다'고 결론내렸다.

'그런 자신감은 관료주의의 충복에게서는 기대할 수 없다. 직위가 아니라 진정한 성취에서 보람을 찾으려 하는 사람, 정보를 공유하고 자신의 주변, 上下(상하) 사람들의 이야기를 귀담아 들을 수 있는 사람, 그런 다음 대담하게 행동하는 사람들, 이들이 바로 (조직과 인간관계의) 간편성을 창조하는 자신있는 사람들이다.'

몽골인종의 오기

그러면 웰치는 이런 성공의 3S 조건을 구체적으로 어떻게 조직경영에 적용하는가.
<능력의 한계를 벗어날 정도로 과중한 업무를 맡은 경영진은 가장 능률적이다. 자질구레한 데 신경 쓰고 참견하여 부하들을 귀찮게 할 시간이 없기 때문이다. 사무실 근무자는 현장사람들을 도와주기 위해서 존재하는 것이지 현장으로부터 보고를 받기 위해 있는 것이 아니다. 보고는 사무실에서 현장으로 향해야지 거꾸로가 돼서는 안된다. 우리는 옛날에는 몇년 걸리던 투자결정을 이제는 며칠만에 해치우고 있다>

자신감(Self-Confidence)-간편성(Simplicity)-신속성(Speed)의 3S 공식에서 몽골인종과 자신감의 문제는 어떻게 연결되는가. 기자가 하버드 옌칭 도서관의 어두컴컴한 書庫(서고)에서 찾아낸 '위험한 변경(The Perilous Frontier)'이 그 해답을 안고 있었다. 북방 유목민족 전문학자 토마스 J.바필드는 이 책에서 이렇게 말하고 있다.

<이 기마유목민족들은 가장 발달된 정착문명인 중국과 인접하여 살면서도 중화적 문화와 이념을 거부했을 뿐 아니라 속으로는 그들의 삶의 방식을 경멸했다. 돔의 천장 같은 광활한 하늘 아래에서 말젖과 말고기를 먹으면서 천막에서 나고 죽고 전쟁과 모험을 동경하는 자신들의 삶이 농경민족보다도 더 행복한 것이라고 생각했기 때문에 목축생활이 유지될 수 있었고 이에 기초한 기만군단의 우세도 계속될 수 있었다>

高麗史(고려사)에는 몽골장군 흔도가 고려 장군 金方慶(김방경)에게 한 이런 말이 실려 있다.
<내가 보건대 고려 사람들은 모두 글도 알고 불교를 믿는 것이 漢族(한족)과 유사한데 매양 우리를 멸시하면서 '몽골 사람들은 살육만 일삼으니 하늘이 그들을 미워할 것이다'라고들 한다. 그러나 하늘이 우리에게 살육하는 풍속을 준 것이기 때문에 하늘의 뜻에 따라서 그렇게 하는 것에 불과하니 하늘은 그것을 죄로 삼지 않는다. 이것이 바로 그대들이 몽골 사람들에게 굴복하게 된 까닭이다>

먹물 먹은 사람들에 대한 武士(무사)들의 경멸과 '우리 식'에 대한 자부심을 담고 있는 흔도의 이 오기서린 일갈은 몽골기마군단의 파괴력이 자라난 정신적 토양을 보여주고 있다.

기자는 해외 여행을 여러 번 한 뒤에 이런 원리를 발견했다. '선진국은 제도와 사람이 간편한 곳이다'는 원리가 그것이다. 예컨대 선진국 사람들은 넥타이를 안 매는 경우가 많다. 기자가 네덜란드 암스테르담을 여행했을 때 종일 돌아다녀도 넥타이 맨 사람을 세 사람 보았을 뿐이다. 이 나라는 국왕도 공식석상에 나와 넥타이를 풀어버린다고 한다. 제도가 간편하고 사람들이 소박하면 살기가 편리한 것이다.

이 복잡한 한국사회에서 어떻게 하면 간편하게 살 것인가. 간편해지려면 일과표의 많은 부분을 잘라내야 하므로 이것은 결단이다. 冠婚喪祭(관혼상제)의 문제, 소비성향, 인간관계, 복장, 話法(화법), 예절,회의, 업무처리 방식 등 많은 부분에서 무엇을 줄이고 없애야 본연의 일에 집중할 수 있는 시간을 최대한도로 얻어낼 수 있을 것인가. 그리하여 하루에 해야 하는 일들의 가짓수를 줄이는 대신에 좁은 주제를 붙들고 깊게 파고들 수 있는 시간을 확보할 것인가. 천재와 영웅은 집중하는 사람이다.