The 'Great Mongol Crisis' of the Fourteenth Century from a Eurasian Perspective: Preconditions, Developments and Consequences

所谓的“大蒙古危机”包括1330年代至1370年代之间的几十年。在这几年中，统一帝国的后继“国家”（汗国或乌鲁斯），即欧亚大陆东部的元朝、中部的察合台乌鲁斯、北部的约吉德乌鲁斯（“金帐汗国”）和西部的伊尔汗国，都经历了戏剧性的转变。在危机过程中，所有四个国家都被分裂，政治上进行了重组，并出现了新的政治和社会行动者。两个汗国不复存在，即1336年的伊儿汗国和1368年的元朝。来自不同学科的学者已经在各个汗国研究了这些过程的具体方面，但到目前为止，还没有尝试系统地比较汗国的过程，并从综合的角度理解它们之间的动态相互依存关系，这将是该项目的主要目标。该研究将特别借鉴Subrahmanyam的“连接历史”方法，它侧重于不同文化和政治领域的相互联系。因此，蒙古欧亚大陆被理解为一个复杂的，但相互关联的研究单位，以提供一个总体的宏观视角，补充在各自领域的具体发展的详细分析。主要来源将包括中文，波斯语，阿拉伯语和教会斯拉夫语的文本，但也包括考古和钱币学发现，以及艺术品和建筑遗迹。跨学科的观点是必不可少的，以实现该项目的目标。此外，本研究将以其他历史背景下的个案研究为基础，批判性地讨论帝国学领域的几种方法。一方面，对蒙古王国分析有用的分析范畴将被整合，另一方面，蒙古案例提供了修改和扩展现有理论的可能性。本研究将探讨是什么导致了整个蒙古欧亚地区的危机，以及它是如何展开的。它还将包括对危机对早期现代欧亚大陆的中期和长期影响的审查。四个主要专题类别指导系统分析：“气候与环境”，“政治与军事”，“社会与宗教”和“移民与种族”。沿着这些思路，拟议的研究将探讨系统内部脆弱性与偶然因素之间的相互作用。该项目的另一个创新潜力在于，它试图通过追踪随后在帖木儿征服过程中和之后欧亚大陆全球转型的根源，以及伟大的陆地和海洋强国的崛起，来更深入地了解早期现代性。

The so-called ‚Great Mongol Crisis’ encompasses the decades between the 1330s and the 1370s. During the course of these years the successor-‘states’ (khanates or uluses) of the United Empire, namely the Yuan dynasty in the East of Eurasia, the Chagataid Ulus in its centre, the Jochid Ulus (‘Golden Horde’) in the North and the Ilkhanate in the West underwent dramatic transformations. In the course of the crisis all four were split up, politically restructured and saw the rise of new political and social actors. Two khanates ceased to exist, namely the Ilkhanate in 1336 and the Yuan in 1368. Scholars from various disciplines have tackled specific aspects of these processes in the respective khanates, but up to today no attempt has been made to systematically compare the processes in the khanates and understand their dynamic interdependence from an integrative perspective, which will be the major goal of the project.The study will draw on Subrahmanyam’s approach of ‘connected histories’ in particular, which focuses on the interconnectedness of diverse cultural and political realms. Mongol Eurasia is thus understood as one complex, yet interrelated research unit so as to offer an overarching macroperspective complementing detailed analyses of specific developments in the respective realms. The primary sources will include texts in Chinese, Persian, Arabic and Church Slavonic, but also archeological and numismatic findings, as well as art objects and architectural remnants. An interdisciplinary outlook is essential to accomplish the goals of the project. Furthermore, the study will critically discuss several approaches from the field of Imperial Studies based on case studies in other historical contexts. On the one hand, analytical categories proving useful for an analysis of the Mongol realm will be integrated, on the other hand, the Mongol case offers the possibility to modify and expand the existing theories. The research will investigate what led to the crisis in the Mongol Eurasian realm as a whole, and how it unfolded. It will furthermore encompass an examination of the mid-and long-term impacts the crisis had on early modern Eurasia. Four main thematic categories guide the systematic analysis: „Climate and Environment”, “Politics and Military”, “Society and Religion” and “Migration and Ethnicity”. Along these lines the proposed study will explore the interplay of the inner fragility of the system and contingent factors. An additional innovative potential of the project lies in its attempt to gain a more thorough understanding of Early Modernity by tracing the roots of the subsequent global transformations of Eurasia in the course and aftermath of Temür’s conquests and the rise of the great land and sea powers.