Mongols, Huns and Vikings

by Kennedy, Hugh; Keegan, John

• ISBN13: 9780304352920
• ISBN10: 0304352926
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2002-07-01
• Publisher: Cassell

Summary

This is the story of some of the most famous and ferocious warriors in history. From the Huns to the Mongols, successive waves of nomadic horsemen swept out of the great steppe lands of central Asia to wreak havoc on the static civilizations of Europe, India and China. How were they so successful? What were the limits of their powers? Professor Hugh Kennedy reveals why such 'undeveloped' societies spawned great generals from Attila to Genghis Khan. He explains how the nomadic Arabs swarmed out of the desert in the 7th century to carve out an empire that stretched from Spain to the Chinese frontier, why the Mongols failed to conquer western Europe, and where those unique, sea-borne raiders, the Vikings, fitted into the story of kingdoms versus nomads.

Author Biography

Hugh Kennedy teaches in the Department of Medieval History at the University of St. Andrews, and was elected Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgements	5	(9)
Map List	9	(1)
Chronology	10	(5)
Introduction The Nomad Paradox
Nomad societies	15	(8)
Attila and the Huns	23	(34)
The homeland of the Huns
The Huns and their horses
Hunnic weapons
Hunnic siege techniques
The coming of Attila
Attila and the Roman Empire
The battle of the Catalaunian Plains 451
Attila's invasion of Italy 452
The death of Attila and the break-up of his empire
The Arabs	57	(36)
Arab tribes and society
Arab weapons and armour
Muhammad and the coming of Islam
Arab unification and expansion
The battle of Yarmuk 636
Arab tactics
Arab siege warfare
The Arrival of the Turks	93	(16)
The origins of the Turks
The slave-soldiers in the Muslim world
The battle of Dandanqan and the foundation of Turkish power
The battle of Manzikert
Genghis Khan and the Mongols	109	(32)
The rise of Genghis Khan
Mongol tactics and training
The organization of the Mongol armies
The attack on China 1211 and the fall of the Chin
The fall of the Khwarazm Shah
Mongol siege weapons and tactics
The reputation of the Mongols
The Mongols in Europe	141	(32)
The campaigns against the Russian principalities
The fall of Kiev
The battle of Mohi 1241
Hulegu's campaigns against the Assassins
Hulegu's campaign against the Caliph of Baghdad
The battle of `Ayn Jalut 1260
The Vikings	173	(34)
Viking ships
Viking weapons
Viking raids on France and in the Mediterranean
The Viking invasions of Britain 865--1066
Postscript The end of nomad dominance	207	(7)
Biographies	214	(4)
Further Reading	218	(2)
Index	220	(4)
Picture Credits	224