Book contents
- The Cambridge History of the Mongol Empire
- The Cambridge History of the Mongol Empire
- Copyright page
- Dedication
- Contents
- Figures in Volume I
- Figures in Volume II
- Maps in Volume I
- Maps in Volume II
- Tables in Volume I
- Contributors to Volume I
- Contributors to Volume II
- Acknowledgments
- Notes on Dates and Transliterations
- Abbreviations
- Volume I
- Introduction
- Volume I Part 1 Political History
- Volume I Part 2 Thematic Histories
- 6 Mongol Imperial Institutions
- 7 Imperial Ideology
- 8 The Military Machine
- 9 Economic Exchange
- 10 Religious Exchange
- 11 Scientific Exchange
- 12 Artistic Exchange
- 13 The Climate and Environment of the Mongol Conquest
- 14 Women and Gender under Mongol Rule
- Volume I Part 3 Views from the Edges
- Volume I Part 4 External Histories
- Epilogue
- Volume II
- Index to Volume I
- Index to Volume II
- References
14 - Women and Gender under Mongol Rule
from Volume I Part 2 - Thematic Histories
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 01 January 2024
Book contents
- The Cambridge History of the Mongol Empire
- The Cambridge History of the Mongol Empire
- Copyright page
- Dedication
- Contents
- Figures in Volume I
- Figures in Volume II
- Maps in Volume I
- Maps in Volume II
- Tables in Volume I
- Contributors to Volume I
- Contributors to Volume II
- Acknowledgments
- Notes on Dates and Transliterations
- Abbreviations
- Volume I
- Introduction
- Volume I Part 1 Political History
- Volume I Part 2 Thematic Histories
- 6 Mongol Imperial Institutions
- 7 Imperial Ideology
- 8 The Military Machine
- 9 Economic Exchange
- 10 Religious Exchange
- 11 Scientific Exchange
- 12 Artistic Exchange
- 13 The Climate and Environment of the Mongol Conquest
- 14 Women and Gender under Mongol Rule
- Volume I Part 3 Views from the Edges
- Volume I Part 4 External Histories
- Epilogue
- Volume II
- Index to Volume I
- Index to Volume II
- References
Summary
Gender relations on the Mongolian steppe were crucial to Mongol military successes and the rise of the world empire. Women’s labor within nomadic camps freed up men for wartime mobilization. Elite women were directly involved in policy decisions at the highest levels, and, like elite men, might control large armies and estates. Some were Christian, Muslim, or Buddhist, and served as patrons of these religions for their nomadic followers and for conquered people. Royal women also influenced public affairs through their marriage ties, and could thereby empower their male and female relatives for generations. The first section of this chapter discusses women and gender relations during the expansion of the United Empire, including marriage practices, women’s work, women’s participation in politics, and examples of powerful women in Mongol history. The second section covers women in the western khanates, and the third looks at women and gender in China during the Mongol Yuan dynasty.
Keywords
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- The Cambridge History of the Mongol Empire , pp. 628 - 654Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2023
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