The Mongols

Osprey Men at Arms #105

by Stephen Turnbull, Angus McBride (Illustrator)

The history of the Mongol armies is a catalogue of superlatives. No armies in history have ever won so many battles or conquered so much territory. No army has ever provoked such justifiable terror and loathing in its victims, or slaughtered so many of its vanquished. What other army in history has marched on Russia in the winter and survived, let alone won victories? The stories of these and many other amazing feats of this 'barbarian' people are here brought vividly to life by Stephen Turnbull, from the birth of Genghis Khan in the wind-swept steppes of Mongolia, through the conquest of China and beyond.

Genres: History, Military History, Nonfiction, Medieval, World History, Military Fiction

48 pages, Paperback

First published November 20, 1980

About the author

Stephen Richard Turnbull is British a historian specializing in eastern military history, especially the samurai of Japan. His books are mainly on Japanese and Mongolian subjects. He attended Cambridge University where he gained his first degree. He currently holds an MA in Theology, MA in Military History and a PhD from the University of Leeds where he is currently a lecturer in Far Eastern Religions. He has also written a number of books on other medieval topics. He is semi-retired but still holds the post of Visiting Professor of Japanese Studies at Akita International University in Japan.

Reviews

[Indah Threez Lestari]

1058 - 2012

Membaca jilid ini tentu saja jadi teringat pada cerita masterpiece Chin Yung: Sia Tiauw Eng Hiong. Karena sebelum membela Kerajaan Song, Kwee Ceng merupakan jenderal besar Mongol yang turut menghancurkan Khwarazm, dengan taktik pasukan terjun payung pertama di dunia (mungkin...)

Yang mengecewakan dari seri Petarung Osprey yang ini:

1. Ilustrasi yang dipakai di buku ini kebanyakan berasal dari museum Jepang. Padahal invasi Jepang adalah salah satu cerita kegagalan laskar Mongol (selain Jawa).

2. Cerita kiprah laskar Mongol di Jawa cuma seuprit, satu paragraf juga tidak. Padahal Kertanegara kan sehebat Helen of Troy, maksudnya sanggup membuat Kublai Khan meluncurkan armada seribu kapal untuk menyerbu Jawa. Sepertinya si penulis malas riset, karena cuma menulis Prajurit Jawa mungkin menggunakan sumpit dengan panah beracun melawan pasukan Mongol. Please dong ah! #pundung

Oke, saudara-saudara, sebenernya mitos mana yang lebih tepat, Raden Wijaya membantu pasukan Mongol menghancurkan Jayakatwang, atau pasukan Mongol membantu Raden Wijaya menghancurkan Jayakatwang?

[Declan Waters]

A short review of the conflicts of the Mongols and - importantely for a Man-At-Arms series - a review of what they wore and their weaponry.

There wasn't much in here I didn't already know or hadn't learnt from the Essential Histories on Ghenghis Khan, but the plates (colour pictures) are always useful and will prove a nice resource if I ever need to paint Mongols or their enemies.

[Grant]

A well-illustrated introduction to a people and an army more famous than understood.

[James S.]

An extremely brief and shallow look at the Mongols, with no attention given to what made them so effective or to the significance of their expansion. More of a pamphlet than anything.

[R.D. Villam]

Cukup informatif, tapi masih kurang memuaskan. Cocok buat pengantar pelajaran kehidupan dan taktik perang laskar mongol, tapi kalo mau lebih dalem ya mesti cari sumber lain. Susahnya memang, karena konon orang2 mongol ini benci buku (mereka terkenal pernah membumihanguskan perpustakaan besar di baghdad), dan karenanya benci penulis dan lebih mengagumi para insinyur yang bisa bantuin mereka bikin peralatan perang canggih, agak susah menemukan catatan sejarah yg ditulis oleh kalangan mereka sendiri. Informasi lebih banyak dari laporan pandangan mata dari musuh2 atau para pengelana dan pedagang seperti marco polo dll. Jadi, ini buku yg cukup bagus, tapi masih belum cemerlang.

[Devon Start]

this is a great series that my father and i have been reading for ever. they are always informative studies of tactics, uniforms and the evolution of the warriors in question. For me and my old man the other main benefit are the many colour plates in the book, which we use to accurately paint our toy soldiers. I have read almost the whole series of these books.

[Blain]

Short and informative, not much more to say than that, other than it's probably much more interesting to read this as you live in Mongolia

[Charles]

Good Pictures, info that's hard to find elsewhere, shame the don't cite their sources

[Manolo González]

Astonishly brief! Good to know about the mongols and their campaigns, but NOTHING detailed.