Comment by ardit33 | Hacker News Reader

Comment by ardit33 | Hacker News Reader

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Yeah... the whole region is dotted with castles. They did really well on ravaging and ransacking cities that were on plains, or close to larger fields. Hungary and Serbia are part of the the Panioan Plane, which is open terrain and perfect for them.

They couldn't take Dubrovnik (the first well fortified western European city), and also were defeated on mountainous terrain by the Bulgarians. They wouldn't been able to take something more fortified like Constantinople. They actually had clashes at the time, but it was mostly raids by the Mongols.

So, it is pretty clear. In Europe, the Mongolians did great on open terrain, planes, and cities that didn't have great natural defenses. They didn't do that well on cities that were better fortified, and with natural defenses (mountains). They raided and ransacked the areas, and moved on as they couldn't sustain a siege in such terrains.

"The Bulgarian victory can likely be attributed to the mountainous terrain, to which the Mongols were not accustomed.[16]"

Let’s remember that at its height the mongol empire was spanning from the Sea of Japan to modern day Ukraine.

That include the mountainous region of Nepal and Tibet.

From what we know of their administration, their focus was on maintaining control of the rich region around Beijing, Xanadu and Cheng du. Not so much the Eastern Europe.

> That include the mountainous region of Nepal and Tibet.

I don't believe the Mongols ever dominated Tibet. They may have made inroads into grassy northern regions such as Kham. In fact I believe that Genghis as Emperor of China paid tribute to Tibetan rulers.

I'd like to see a source for Mongols crossing the Himalaya and impacting Nepal.

> I don't believe the Mongols ever dominated Tibet.

Then again... https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mongol_conquest_of_Tibet

Thanks; I am better-informed. I suppose my opinion was based on Genghis's non-invasion. I hadn't heard of Godan before.

If the Mongol attacks had reached the west. First time, the Mongols would kill all the peasants outside the castles and city walls. Or the peasants would join the mongols. The absence of peasants meant the cities were starving.

In Chechnya, Mongols maintained a siege for more than a decade, and finally won.

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