Beyond the Big Four Eurasian civilizations (Europe, India, Middle East, China) that dominated 90% of humanity, there existed a fifth major player—not a civilization, but its opposite. The Steppe produced history's greatest conquerors despite having 1/100th the population and no cities or formal religions. These nomadic warriors influenced world history as much as any civilization, creating an anti-civilization power that repeatedly brought empires to their knees. The ultimate historical paradox: how could Mongolia conquer China with 1% of its population? -- SPONSORS: NetSuite: More than 41,000 businesses have already upgraded to NetSuite by Oracle, the #1 cloud financial system bringing accounting, financial management, inventory, HR, into ONE proven platform. Download the CFO's Guide to AI and Machine learning: https://netsuite.com/102 Shopify: Shopify powers millions of businesses worldwide, handling 10% of U.S. e-commerce. With hundreds of templates, AI tools for product descriptions, and seamless marketing campaign creation, it's like having a design studio and marketing team in one. Start your $1/month trial today at https://shopify.com/cognitive Go to https://ground.news/whatif to stay fully informed on every side of every story. Save 50% on unlimited access with their Vantage Plan through my link. It's their biggest sale of the year! -- LINKS: Link to my second podcast on world history and interviews: / @history102-qg5oj Link to my Twitter-https://twitter.com/whatifalthist?ref... Link to my Instagram-https://www.instagram.com/rudyardwlyn... -- Bibliography: A History of Russia, Central Asia and Mongolia by David Christian The Invention of Yesterday by Tamim Ansary Europe's Steppe Frontier 1500-1800 by McNeil Plagues and Peoples by McNeil Rise of the West by McNeil Genghis Khan and the making of the modern world by Jack Weatherford The Khan Trilogy by Khan Iggulden (fiction but is the best intro to Mongol history for lay people since the author does the research really well) A History of Warfare by John Keegan A History of Religious Ideas v 3 by Mircea Eliade War and Peace and War by Peter Turchin Fighting Techniques of the Oriental World by Rice War in Human Civilization by Azar Gat The Soul of China by Amaury de Riencourt Nomads and Crusaders by Archibald Lewis War! What is it Good for by Ian Morris The Evolution of Civilizations by Carroll Quiggley Who We Are and How We Got Here by David Reich The Tree of Culture by Ralph Linton The Silk Road by Frankopan

Ask this episode

“What did the council decide on item 42?” — answered with the speaker and the moment.

Transcript

Related