Free A Short History of the World by Christopher Lascelles Page A

through Constantinople, ransacking it and butchering its population, an act that dashed any hope of reconciliation between the Roman and Orthodox Churches.  
    There were further crusades over the next hundred years, one of which resulted in the occupation of Jerusalem for a period of 15 years, but patience with the crusader armies eventually ran out. In 1261 the Byzantine Emperor drove the crusaders from Constantinople. By this time, however, the Byzantine Empire was only a fraction of its original size, occupying only parts of Greece and the north-west part of present-day Turkey. The original crusaders lingered on in Syria and Palestine in the forts they had built to protect themselves, only for their last fortress to fall to an invading Mamluk army in 1291.  
                                            
    The Mamluks: Kingdom of Slaves (AD 1250–1517)
    Mamluks, from the Arabic ‘Mamluk’ meaning 'enslaved', first appeared under the Abbasid Caliphate. Unsure as to the loyalty of those surrounding them and fearful of the bordering Byzantine Empire in a period when their power was in decline, the Abbasids had already in the 9th century created an army loyal only to themselves. They achieved this by taking the sons of enslaved non-Muslim families, bringing them up as Sunni warriors, and giving them positions of responsibility in the service of the caliphate. The power of these slaves grew to such an extent that they ended up playing a major role in the medieval Islamic world, overthrowing the remains of Saladin’s Ayubbid dynasty in 1250, 39 and quickly extending their power over Palestine and Syria. 40
                                            

    The crusaders may have been ejected in the end but the experience had reaped benefits for the West. ‘ Although they would ultimately end in failure, the Crusades nonetheless paid significant dividends by bringing the Latin world face-to-face with the scientific and technological prowess of the Arab East. ’ 41 One of the skills the crusaders brought home with them was that of stone carving, a skill that contributed greatly to the building of magnificent churches throughout Europe in the 12th and 13th centuries. Another major effect of the Crusades was economic: they opened the old Middle East and Asia to the West, stimulating demand for Asian luxuries and making great trade centres of Venice and Genoa. This was important in that it laid the foundations for the economic prosperity that would help drive the Renaissance in Europe.  
    While the Holy Land was in turmoil, Europe had enjoyed a period of peace. Agricultural advances meant that productivity was improved which meant that fewer farmers were needed to feed society. More people moved to towns and trade grew significantly as a result. However, this was all to be interrupted in the 13th century when Europe and the Middle East were invaded by new hoards of bloodthirsty warriors from the east: the Mongols.

    The Mongols and Genghis Khan (13th – 15th centuries)
    An obscure pastoral and tribal people who lived in what is now Outer Mongolia – the Mongols had been gradually united towards the end of the 12th century. One of their leaders, Timuchin, so impressed them with his military abilities that in 1206, at the age of 42, they named him ‘Universal Ruler’ or Genghis Khan.  
    Under his leadership, the Mongols exploded out of the Steppe and terrorised much of Asia. Reasons for their westerly march are unclear; it may have occurred due to changes in the climate that forced them to seek out new pastures for their animals, or it could have been as simple as having more time and energy to focus on adventures other than internecine warfare now that they were unified. After all, ‘ Genghis Khan succeeded in doing for the Mongols what Muhammad had done for the Arabs, he had united them. ’ 42
    Their success is perhaps slightly easier to understand. Up