The Ilkhanate was a state that began under Mongol commander Hulegu who founded the House of Hulegu.
[1]
The nearly eighty years the dynasty lasted was a time of general economic prosperity for the 5 million inhabitants of Persia. The end of the Ilkhanate came when Abu Said, who it is said "ruled during what was described as the ’best period of the domination of the Mongols".
[1]
, died without an heir, which resulted in the Jalayirids becoming the strongest faction in the region.
[2]
The Mongol invaders assimilated to the local culture in Persia. They converted to Islam, used the local languages (Persian and Arabic), and maintained existing Persian administrative practices, the financing of which was underpinned by iqta land grants awarded to senior bureaucrats and army officers.
[3]
[4]
According to the Persian historian Rashid al-Din, who was chief minister to Ghazan
[5]
, the Mongols assessed the vizier (chief of the bureaucracy) on his ability to extract revenue.
[6]
Even so, previously better known in the region as barbarians bent on destruction, the Mongols rebuilt many hospitals, mosques, and observatories, and impressive mausoleums to the rulers appeared in the cities.
[4]
[3]
During this period, Sultaniya was a famous commercial center and after the intense building activities of Oljetu (r.1304-1316 CE) the ’great city’ became the capital. As a result of the work, the circumference of the outer walls almost tripled in length, containing within new fabulous palaces, gardens, and a purpose-built quarter of a thousand houses.
[7]
The largest city in the Ilkhanate at this time was probably Tabriz which also "developed into a great metropolis".
[8]
Tabriz had a cistern for drinking water and baths with hot water.
[9]
In 1300 CE Tabriz may have contained 100,000-200,000 inhabitants.
[1]: (Marshall 1993, 229) Robert Marshall. 1993. Storm from the East: From Ghengis Khan to Khubilai Khan. University of California Press.
[2]: (Morgan 2015, 78) David Morgan. 2015. Medieval Persia 1040-1797. Routledge.
[3]: (Morgan 2007, 134-148) David Morgan. The Mongols. 2nd ed. The Peoples of Europe. Malden, MA; Oxford: Blackwell Publishing.
[4]: (Amitai 2012) Reuven Amitai. 2012. Il-Khanids. Dynastic History. IranicaOnline. http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/il-khanids-i-dynastic-history
[5]: (Marshall 1993, 228) Robert Marshall. 1993. Storm from the East: From Ghengis Khan to Khubilai Khan. University of California Press.
[6]: (Morgan 2015, 67) David Morgan. 2015. Medieval Persia 1040-1797. Routledge.
[7]: (Marozzi 2004, 133-135) J Marozzi. 2004. Tamerlane. HarperCollinsPublishers. London.
[8]: (Morgan 2015, 69) David Morgan. 2015. Medieval Persia 1040-1797. Routledge.
[9]: (Houtsma et al. 1993, 586) M Th. Houtsma. A J Wensinck. H A R Gibb. W Heffening. E Levi-Provencal. First Encyclopaedia of Islam: 1913-1936. E.J. Brill. Leiden.
38 E |
Il-khanate |
Maragha | |
Tabriz | |
Sultaniya |
Il-Khanate | |
Il-Khanids | |
House of Hulegu |
nominal allegiance to [---] | |
alliance with [---] |
Mongolian |
Chobanids |
25,000,000 km2 |
cultural assimilation | |
elite migration |
UNCLEAR: [elite migration] |
unitary state |
[100,000 to 200,000] people | 1300 CE |
3,800,000 km2 |
5,250,000 people | 1300 CE |
absent | 1256 CE 1303 CE |
present | 1304 CE 1335 CE |
present |
inferred present |
present |
inferred absent |
present |
inferred absent |
present |
present |
present |
unknown |
absent |
unknown |
present |
present |
present |
present |
present |
present |
present |
present |
present |
unknown |
present |
present |
present |
present |
present |
present |
absent |
present |
unknown |
absent |
inferred present |
present |
present |
present |
unknown |
unknown |
present |
absent |
absent |
present |
absent |
absent |
present |
present |
absent |
present |
present |
present |
present |
present |
present |
present |
present |
present |
unknown |
present |
present |
present |
present |
present |
unknown |
Year Range | Ilkhanate (ir_il_khanate) was in: |
---|---|
(1263 CE 1326 CE) | Southern Mesopotamia Susiana Konya Plain |
(1326 CE 1335 CE) | Southern Mesopotamia Susiana |
Hulegu made Maragha the capital. This location, in Azarbaijan, had the best pastureland. The Ilkhans lived under tents. [1] [2] Tabriz became the the capital 1281 CE. [3] Capital moved to Sultaniya 1313 CE: "Founded in about 1285 by Arghun, the sixth Ilkhanid ruler of Persia, who was attracted by its abundant pastures and used it as his summer capital, Sultaniya became the seat of empire under his son Mohammed Oljeytu Khudabanda in 1313." [4] Tabriz "developed into a great metropolis" but was not a capital. [2]
[1]: (Morgan 2015, 63) Morgan, David. 2015. Medieval Persia 1040-1797. Routledge.
[2]: (Morgan 2015, 69) Morgan, David. 2015. Medieval Persia 1040-1797. Routledge.
[3]: (Houtsma et al. 1993, 586) Houtsma, M Th. Wensinck, A J. Gibb, H A R. Heffening, W. Levi-Provencal, E. 1993. First Encyclopaedia of Islam: 1913-1936. E.J. Brill. Leiden.
[4]: (Marozzi 2004, 133) Marozzi, J. 2004. Tamerlane. HarperCollinsPublishers. London.
Hulegu made Maragha the capital. This location, in Azarbaijan, had the best pastureland. The Ilkhans lived under tents. [1] [2] Tabriz became the the capital 1281 CE. [3] Capital moved to Sultaniya 1313 CE: "Founded in about 1285 by Arghun, the sixth Ilkhanid ruler of Persia, who was attracted by its abundant pastures and used it as his summer capital, Sultaniya became the seat of empire under his son Mohammed Oljeytu Khudabanda in 1313." [4] Tabriz "developed into a great metropolis" but was not a capital. [2]
[1]: (Morgan 2015, 63) Morgan, David. 2015. Medieval Persia 1040-1797. Routledge.
[2]: (Morgan 2015, 69) Morgan, David. 2015. Medieval Persia 1040-1797. Routledge.
[3]: (Houtsma et al. 1993, 586) Houtsma, M Th. Wensinck, A J. Gibb, H A R. Heffening, W. Levi-Provencal, E. 1993. First Encyclopaedia of Islam: 1913-1936. E.J. Brill. Leiden.
[4]: (Marozzi 2004, 133) Marozzi, J. 2004. Tamerlane. HarperCollinsPublishers. London.
Hulegu made Maragha the capital. This location, in Azarbaijan, had the best pastureland. The Ilkhans lived under tents. [1] [2] Tabriz became the the capital 1281 CE. [3] Capital moved to Sultaniya 1313 CE: "Founded in about 1285 by Arghun, the sixth Ilkhanid ruler of Persia, who was attracted by its abundant pastures and used it as his summer capital, Sultaniya became the seat of empire under his son Mohammed Oljeytu Khudabanda in 1313." [4] Tabriz "developed into a great metropolis" but was not a capital. [2]
[1]: (Morgan 2015, 63) Morgan, David. 2015. Medieval Persia 1040-1797. Routledge.
[2]: (Morgan 2015, 69) Morgan, David. 2015. Medieval Persia 1040-1797. Routledge.
[3]: (Houtsma et al. 1993, 586) Houtsma, M Th. Wensinck, A J. Gibb, H A R. Heffening, W. Levi-Provencal, E. 1993. First Encyclopaedia of Islam: 1913-1936. E.J. Brill. Leiden.
[4]: (Marozzi 2004, 133) Marozzi, J. 2004. Tamerlane. HarperCollinsPublishers. London.
[1]: REUVEN AMITAI, ’IL-KHANIDS i. DYNASTIC HISTORY’ http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/il-khanids-i-dynastic-history
[2]: (Marshall 1993, 229) Marshall, Robert. 1993. Storm from the East: From Ghengis Khan to Khubilai Khan. University of California Press.
[1]: REUVEN AMITAI, ’IL-KHANIDS i. DYNASTIC HISTORY’ http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/il-khanids-i-dynastic-history
[2]: (Marshall 1993, 229) Marshall, Robert. 1993. Storm from the East: From Ghengis Khan to Khubilai Khan. University of California Press.
[1]: REUVEN AMITAI, ’IL-KHANIDS i. DYNASTIC HISTORY’ http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/il-khanids-i-dynastic-history
[2]: (Marshall 1993, 229) Marshall, Robert. 1993. Storm from the East: From Ghengis Khan to Khubilai Khan. University of California Press.
During the reign of Ḡāzān the Il-khanate entered "a new and dynamic era"
[1]
However, it was Abu Said, whose reign began in 1316 CE, who "ruled during what was described as the ’best period of the domination of the Mongols’. The economy boomed, a treaty was negotiated with the Mamluks and Persia looked forward to peace and prosperity."
[2]
The Ilkhanate "fell without in any real sense having previously declined. Why was this? ... The crucial reason is a simple one: Abu Said left no heir. ... the direct line of Hulegu had failed. ... None was able to gain control of the whole Ilkanate legacy. Of the factions the most notable, ultimately, were the Jalayirids, who built up a strong position in Iraq and Azabaijan which survived into the fifteenth century."
[3]
[1]: REUVEN AMITAI, ’IL-KHANIDS i. DYNASTIC HISTORY’ http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/il-khanids-i-dynastic-history
[2]: (Marshall 1993, 229) Marshall, Robert. 1993. Storm from the East: From Ghengis Khan to Khubilai Khan. University of California Press.
[3]: (Morgan 2015, 78) Morgan, David. 2015. Medieval Persia 1040-1797. Routledge.
Beginning 1256 CE. "By 1256, Hülegü [the Mongol commander] had all but eliminated the Ismāʿilis as an independent force in Persia (although individual forts remained independent for some time, even years), and had moved with the bulk of his army to Azerbaijan, which was to become the center of the Il-khanid state."
[1]
End 1335 CE. The Ilkhanate came to an end with the death of Abu Sa’id in 1335 CE.
[2]
Dynastic failure: the Ilkhanate "fell without in any real sense having previously declined. Why was this? ... The crucial reason is a simple one: Abu Said left no heir. ... the direct line of Hulegu had failed."
[3]
Actually the 1335 dates seems to be an over simplification. The actual end seems to be 1339 CE when Iran was divided into the four kingdoms: "who then set up another puppet, Sulayman Khan, a descendant of Hulagu, and gave him Sati Beg in marriage, while Hasan ’the Greater’ set up as a rival a descendant of Abaqa named Shah Jahan Timur. A battle took place ... 1340 ... Hasan ’the Greater’ was defeated ... deposed his puppet ... proclaiming himself king founded the dynasty ... of the Jala’irs, who reigned until 1411 over Western Persia and Mesopotamia with Baghdad as their capital. As for Hasan ’the Less,’ ... he was murdered in 1343, while marching to attack his rival, by his wife ... The Mongol ascendancy in Persia was now at an end, and, until Timur’s hordes swept over the country (1384-1393), it was divided into at least four kingdoms, those of the Jala’irs, the Muzaffaris, the Kurts, and the Sar-ba-dars..."
[4]
[1]: REUVEN AMITAI, ’IL-KHANIDS i. DYNASTIC HISTORY’ http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/il-khanids-i-dynastic-history
[2]: Melville, Charles. “Anatolia under the Mongols.” In The Cambridge History of Turkey, edited by Kate Fleet, Suraiya Faroqhi, and Reşat Kasaba, 51-101. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2009, p.93.
[3]: (Morgan 2015, 78) Morgan, David. 2015. Medieval Persia 1040-1797. Routledge.
[4]: (Browne 1920, 59-60) Edward Granville Browne. A History of Persian Literature in Modern Times (A.D. 1500-1924). University Press. Cambridge.
Nominal allegiance
The Il-khans "never gave up their de jure recognition of the Great Khan’s preeminence."
[1]
Hülegü’s succesors were officially invested by the Great Khan Qubilai; the Great Khan had a high commissioner at the court of the Il-khanid.
[1]
Alliance - did this attempt result in any joint activity at all?
attempt was made to form alliance by crusaders and Mongols against Mamluks in Syria. However, "The problems of distance and the difficulties of synchronization proved, in thirteenth century conditions, to be insurmountable."
[2]
Hulegu in Syria had the assistance of "16,000 Christian crusaders sent by King Hayton of Armenia."
[3]
[1]: REUVEN AMITAI, ’IL-KHANIDS i. DYNASTIC HISTORY’ http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/il-khanids-i-dynastic-history
[2]: (Morgan 2015, 65) Morgan, David. 2015. Medieval Persia 1040-1797. Routledge.
[3]: (Carey 2006) Carey, Brian Todd. 2006. Warfare in the Medieval World. Pen and Sword.
Nominal allegiance
The Il-khans "never gave up their de jure recognition of the Great Khan’s preeminence."
[1]
Hülegü’s succesors were officially invested by the Great Khan Qubilai; the Great Khan had a high commissioner at the court of the Il-khanid.
[1]
Alliance - did this attempt result in any joint activity at all?
attempt was made to form alliance by crusaders and Mongols against Mamluks in Syria. However, "The problems of distance and the difficulties of synchronization proved, in thirteenth century conditions, to be insurmountable."
[2]
Hulegu in Syria had the assistance of "16,000 Christian crusaders sent by King Hayton of Armenia."
[3]
[1]: REUVEN AMITAI, ’IL-KHANIDS i. DYNASTIC HISTORY’ http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/il-khanids-i-dynastic-history
[2]: (Morgan 2015, 65) Morgan, David. 2015. Medieval Persia 1040-1797. Routledge.
[3]: (Carey 2006) Carey, Brian Todd. 2006. Warfare in the Medieval World. Pen and Sword.
The Il-Khans and their armies were Mongolian and the Il-Khanid dynasty continued to recognise the authority of the Great Khan. [1]
[1]: REUVEN AMITAI, ’IL-KHANIDS i. DYNASTIC HISTORY’ http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/il-khanids-i-dynastic-history
"Although at first the Chobanids maintained the fiction that they were vassals of the ruling house of Hülegü (Hūlāgū), after the collapse of Il-khanid authority they became effectively independent rulers of the areas that they were able to seize." [1]
[1]: Charles Melville and ʿAbbās Zaryāb, ’CHOBANIDS’ http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/chobanids-chupanids-pers
km squared. The area of the Mongolian Empire when it was split into its subdivisions of the Golden Horde, the Chagatai Khanate , Great Yuan and the Ilkhanate (purple), c. 1300. Calculated with Google Maps Area Calculator and map (below).
"Hülegü took with him an enormous army, supposedly two out of every ten Mongol soldiers, who were accompanied by families and herds. This, then, was not just a military campaign but also the mass migration of a large portion of the Mongol nation to Persia and the surrounding countries." [1]
[1]: REUVEN AMITAI, ’IL-KHANIDS i. DYNASTIC HISTORY’ http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/il-khanids-i-dynastic-history
"Hülegü took with him an enormous army, supposedly two out of every ten Mongol soldiers, who were accompanied by families and herds. This, then, was not just a military campaign but also the mass migration of a large portion of the Mongol nation to Persia and the surrounding countries." [1]
[1]: REUVEN AMITAI, ’IL-KHANIDS i. DYNASTIC HISTORY’ http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/il-khanids-i-dynastic-history
(Relationship): "Hülegü took with him an enormous army, supposedly two out of every ten Mongol soldiers, who were accompanied by families and herds. This, then, was not just a military campaign but also the mass migration of a large portion of the Mongol nation to Persia and the surrounding countries."
[1]
, "Hülegü took with him an enormous army, supposedly two out of every ten Mongol soldiers, who were accompanied by families and herds. This, then, was not just a military campaign but also the mass migration of a large portion of the Mongol nation to Persia and the surrounding countries."
[1]
(Entity): Seljuk Kingdom of Rum; the Nezari Esmailis; Abbasid caliphate. the Nezāri Esmāʿilis = ’the Assassins’. The Il-Khanid state covered territory that had been ruled by several different polities from the Saljuq kingdom of Rum to the Nezāri Esmāʿilis (’the Assassins’)to the Abbasid caliphate.
[1]
[1]: REUVEN AMITAI, ’IL-KHANIDS i. DYNASTIC HISTORY’ http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/il-khanids-i-dynastic-history
Ḡāzān had princes removed from power. [1]
[1]: REUVEN AMITAI, ’IL-KHANIDS i. DYNASTIC HISTORY’ http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/il-khanids-i-dynastic-history
The original Ilkhans were Mongols and therefore spoke Mongolian. Manuscripts were written in Persian and Arabic. [1]
[1]: Stefano Carboni, ’IL-KHANIDS iii. Book Illustration’ http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/il-khanids-iii-book-illustration
The original Ilkhans were Mongols and therefore spoke Mongolian. Manuscripts were written in Persian and Arabic. [1]
[1]: Stefano Carboni, ’IL-KHANIDS iii. Book Illustration’ http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/il-khanids-iii-book-illustration
The original Ilkhans were Mongols and therefore spoke Mongolian. Manuscripts were written in Persian and Arabic. [1]
[1]: Stefano Carboni, ’IL-KHANIDS iii. Book Illustration’ http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/il-khanids-iii-book-illustration
Inhabitants. Estimate is more than Rayy in 1220 CE, significantly more on basis that Tabriz was likely the most populous city in Persia at this time.
Tabriz.
Prior to the Mongol conquest Rayy, in northern Iran, had about 80,000 in 1220 CE.
[1]
Tabriz "developed into a great metropolis".
[2]
As the major trade center in Persia it therefore was likely the most populous city in Persia in the post-Mongol conquest era. Tabriz had a cistern for drinking water and baths with hot water.
[3]
The population of Tabriz was larger than that of the later Ilkhan capital Sultaniya, which was also impressive.
[4]
"Sultaniya was an important commercial centre, a ’great city’, as Clavijo reported on his arrival on 26 June 1404 ... Founded in about 1285 by Arghun, the sixth Ilkhanid ruler of Persia, who was attracted by its abundant pastures and used it as his summer capital, Sultaniya became the seat of empire under his son Mohammed Oljeytu Khudabanda in 1313. The city was expanded aggressively, the outer walls increasing from twelve thousand paces in circumference to thirty thousand. ... Oljeytu intended Sultaniya to become a fully functioning capital, no mere royal camp. He duly embarked on a terrific building spree, ordering his courtiers to design graceful palaces and gardens. The vizier Rashid al-din built an entire quarter of a thousand houses. Another, Tak al-din Ali Shah, built a lavish, ten-thousand-dinar palace called Paradise, its doors, walls and floors studded with pearls, gold, rubies, turquoise, emeralds and amber. A city of monuments made from baked brick, stone and wood sprang up on the desert plain, luxuriously decorated with bronze doors, inlaid window grilles, marble revetments and mosaic faience."
[5]
[1]: (Chandler and Fox 2013, 232) Chandler, Tertius. Fox, Gerald. 2013. 3000 Years of Urban Growth. Elsevier.
[2]: (Morgan 2015, 69) Morgan, David. 2015. Medieval Persia 1040-1797. Routledge.
[3]: (Houtsma et al. 1993, 586) Houtsma, M Th. Wensinck, A J. Gibb, H A R. Heffening, W. Levi-Provencal, E. 1993. First Encyclopaedia of Islam: 1913-1936. E.J. Brill. Leiden.
[4]: (Marozzi 2004, 135-136) Marozzi, J. 2004. Tamerlane. HarperCollinsPublishers. London.
[5]: (Marozzi 2004, 133-135) Marozzi, J. 2004. Tamerlane. HarperCollinsPublishers. London.
in squared kilometers. Estimate of Ilkhanate at its greatest extent.
The Ilkhanate emerged from the Mongol conquest of Iran, Iraq and Turkey. The armies of Hulegu had attacked and destroyed many of the great cites of the Middle East, and ended the Abbasid Caliphate. Local dynasties had to submit to Mongol rule. In 1300 the Mongols spilt up their empire into four semi-independent regions, one of these was the Ilkhanate. From then on it was a fairly autonomous polity, although its rulers acknowledged a higher authority in the Great Khan. The Ilkhanate saw the return of stability to the region. Over time the Ilkhanate absorbed influences from Persia and the Middle East, becoming less ’Mongol’.
[1]
[1]: REUVEN AMITAI, ’IL-KHANIDS i. DYNASTIC HISTORY’ http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/il-khanids-i-dynastic-history; Morgan, David. The Mongols. 2nd ed. The Peoples of Europe. Malden, MA ; Oxford: Blackwell Publishing, 2007, pp.134-148.
People.
McEvedy and Jones
[1]
Iran: 3.5m
Afghanistan: 1.75m
"The problem in Persia is that land that has been neglected may well not be easy to bring back into cultivation. Agriculture was, in the absence of large rivers or adequate rainfall, very dependent on the qanat system of underground water channels. ... qanats require constant skilled maintenance if they are to continue to operate, many will have been ruined, not necessarily by deliberate destruction but simply through long-term neglect because the peasants had fled. ... Similarly in the case of Iraq. ... It is unlikely that Hulegu deliberately destroyed the agricultural potential of Iraq though here, too, much damage could inadvertently have been done simply through lack of proper maintenance of the irrigation canals."
[2]
[1]: (McEvedy and Jones 1978, 153-155) McEvedy, Colin. Jones, Richard. 1978. Atlas of World Population History. Penguin Books Ltd.
[2]: (Morgan 2015, 79-80) Morgan, David. 2015. Medieval Persia 1040-1797. Routledge.
levels.
1. Tabriz
[1]
2. Cities
"Mostawfī distinguishes in his account of the revenues of the different provinces and districts between the revenues of certain towns and their surrounding districts (welāyāt) ... Among the towns and districts described in this way, all of which were situated on the main trade routes, were Baghdad, Kūfa, Wāseṭ, Ḥella, Isfahan, Solṭānīya, Qazvīn, Qom, Kāšān, Hamadān, Yazd, Tabrīz, Ojān, Ahar, Šūštar, Āva, Sāva, Zanjān, Marāḡa, and Shiraz."
[2]
3. Towns
4. Villages
5. Hamlets
[1]: Morgan, David. The Mongols. 2nd ed. The Peoples of Europe. Malden, MA ; Oxford: Blackwell Publishing, 2007, p.142.
[2]: Ann K. S. Lambton, ’ECONOMY v. FROM THE ARAB CONQUEST TO THE END OF THE IL-KHANIDS (part 3)’ http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/economy-5-part2-islamic
levels.
Until Ghazan the Reformer the Ilkhans were pagan
[1]
although Teguder had converted to Islam before 1284 CE.
[2]
1. The Khan. After Ghazan’s formal conversion to Islam he adopted the title padishah-i Islam which "expressed independence within the Mongol tradition and claims to pre-eminence in the Islamic world"
[3]
2. Islamic judges. They were regulated under Ghazan’s administrative reforms.
[4]
3. Imams
[1]: (Marshall 1993, 228) Marshall, Robert. 1993. Storm from the East: From Ghengis Khan to Khubilai Khan. University of California Press.
[2]: (Morgan 2015, 66) Morgan, David. 2015. Medieval Persia 1040-1797. Routledge.
[3]: Beatrice Forbes Manz, ‘The Rule of the Infidels: The Mongols and the Islamic World’, in David O. Morgan and Anthony Reid (eds), The New Cambridge History of Islam: Volume 3. The Eastern Islamic World, Eleventh to Eighteenth Centuries (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2010), 151.
[4]: Morgan, David. The Mongols. 2nd ed. The Peoples of Europe. Malden, MA ; Oxford: Blackwell Publishing, 2007, p.147.
levels.
"Noteworthy was the decimal chain of command, the grouping of soldiers in tens, hundreds, and thousands, up to an army division of 10,000 men (Mongolian tümän, Pers. tūmān), which was to have an enduring impact on the military organization of succeeding eastern Islamic powers, being adopted by, e.g., the Mughals in India."
[1]
1. Khan.
The military retinue, governors, warriors holding iqtas and the tribes all owed military obligations to the Khan.
[2]
2. Military retinue.Like the Seljuks and the Ottomans, the Khans had “a group of armed, mainly free men (the majority of them foreigners), who served on a voluntary basis and were attached personally to the leader. They were his closet companions, friends and servants; they commanded the troops in wars, while a select group of them served as his bodyguard. Their livelihood was secured by their masters, predominantly from the booty acquired during incursions and wars. The strength of these retinues ranged from a few dozen to 3,000 men. When the founders of the new states began to transform their personal might into territorial power, they relied heavily on their military retinues, delegating them to and settling them on the territories they controlled. In this Gefolgschaft-type of state, it is the military retinue to which the origins of the formal institutions of power can be traced back.”
[3]
2. Chief hajeb or espahsalar (commander) (10,000s?)"For all these dynasties—whose administrative infrastructures tended in any case to be derived from, or at least strongly influenced by, those of the ʿAbbasid Caliphate ... The commander-in-chief of the actual troops was normally a Turk, and held the title of “chief ḥāǰeb” (ḥāǰeb-e bozorg, ḥāǰeb al-ḥoǰǰāb, etc.) or espahsālār, lesser commanders having the unqualified title of ḥāǰeb."
[1]
3. hajeb (lesser commander) (1,000s?)
4. intermediate officer (100s?) inferred
5. iqta holders (10s?)Warriors holding iqtas.
[4]
6. Soldiers- those men who had to fight through tribal obligations or recruited locally.
[4]
[1]: (Bosworth 2011) Bosworth, C E. 2011. ARMY ii. Islamic, to the Mongol period. www.iranicaonline.org/articles/army-ii
[2]: Fodor, Pal. “Ottoman Warfare, 1300-1453.” In The Cambridge History of Turkey, edited by Kate Fleet, Suraiya Faroqhi, and Reşat Kasaba, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2009. P.193; Reuven Amitai, ‘Armies and Their Economic Basis in Iran and the Surrounding Lands, c.1000-1500’, in David O. Morgan and Anthony Reid (eds), The New Cambridge History of Islam: Volume 3. The Eastern Islamic World, Eleventh to Eighteenth Centuries (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2010), pp.555, 557.
[3]: Fodor, Pal. “Ottoman Warfare, 1300-1453.” In The Cambridge History of Turkey, edited by Kate Fleet, Suraiya Faroqhi, and Reşat Kasaba, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2009. P.193.
[4]: Reuven Amitai, ‘Armies and Their Economic Basis in Iran and the Surrounding Lands, c.1000-1500’, in David O. Morgan and Anthony Reid (eds), The New Cambridge History of Islam: Volume 3. The Eastern Islamic World, Eleventh to Eighteenth Centuries (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2010), pp.555, 557.
levels.
1. Khan
2. Royal household and the high officials e.g. chief minster, tax officials. Later, some were granted land holdings to support them.
[1]
_Central government_
"For all these dynasties - whose administrative infrastructures tended in any case to be derived from, or at least strongly influenced by, those of the ʿAbbasid Caliphate - there was a military affairs department (dīvān al-ǰayš, dīvān al-ʿarż/ʿāreż) in the central administration, headed by an official, normally a civilian, called the ṣāḥeb al-ǰayš or ʿāreż."
[2]
2. wazir
[3]
Persian historian Rashid al-Din was chief minister to Ghazan.
[4]
According to Rashid al-Din, the Mongols assessed the wazir on his ability to extract revenue.
[3]
3. divans - Departments of state.
3. ṣāḥeb-e dīvān (postal service?)"These stations were in the charge of the ṣāḥeb-e dīvān, who had nāʾebs in the provinces."
[5]
4. nāʾebs
5. Station master"Each station was to be run by a station master and to keep twenty horses for the government couriers"
[5]
6. Stable hand inferred
_Provincial government_
2. Regional governors.Members of the Khan’s military retinue were appointed as regional governors to administer conquered territory.
[6]
Local tax-farmers. "Apart from the shortage of liquid funds, because the Mongols had no officials capable of running the fiscal administration at the local level, it was convenient to place the responsibility for the provincial tax administration on the tax-farmers; and so the tax farm or moqāṭaʿa became the dominant fiscal institution of the Il-khanate... The tax-farmers were mainly local people—merchants, landowners, members of the bureaucracy, and amirs temporarily resident in the district. It was rare for them to be members of the Mongol military classes, perhaps partly because local people could be more easily coerced by the central government. "
[7]
[1]: Morgan, David. The Mongols. 2nd ed. The Peoples of Europe. Malden, MA ; Oxford: Blackwell Publishing, 2007, pp.142-143.
[2]: (Bosworth 2011) Bosworth, C E. 2011. ARMY ii. Islamic, to the Mongol period. www.iranicaonline.org/articles/army-ii
[3]: (Morgan 2015, 67) Morgan, David. 2015. Medieval Persia 1040-1797. Routledge.
[4]: (Marshall 1993, 228) Marshall, Robert. 1993. Storm from the East: From Ghengis Khan to Khubilai Khan. University of California Press.
[5]: (Floor 1990) Floor, Willem. 1990. ČĀPĀR. www.iranicaonline.org/articles/capar-or-capar-turk
[6]: Fodor, Pal. “Ottoman Warfare, 1300-1453.” In The Cambridge History of Turkey, edited by Kate Fleet, Suraiya Faroqhi, and Reşat Kasaba, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2009. P.193.
[7]: Ann K. S. Lambton, ’ECONOMY v. FROM THE ARAB CONQUEST TO THE END OF THE IL-KHANIDS (part 3)’ http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/economy-5-part2
Originally the Ilkhanid army was a branch of the Mongol army, organised on a tribal basis. The Ilkhans did not adopt the slave-soldier system; instead maintain "large armies of mounted horse archers (supplemented by infantry and cavalry auxiliaries" from local rulers.
[1]
After "the Ilkhanate was no longer expanding and the supply of plunder could not be relied upon" Ghazan the Reformer introduced the iqta system of land grants to pay soldiers.
[2]
[3]
However, it is uncertain "to what extent the distribution of iqtas was actually implemented, for this particular edict was issued only very shortly before Ghazan’s early death in 703/1304."
[2]
More so because our source for the Ilkhanate’s apparently successful use of the itqa system is Rashid al-Din who was Ghazan’s great minister and the individual responsible for implementing the policy.
[4]
In any case, Ghazan’s reforms may have put the financing of the army on a better footing, so that eventually warriors were being allocated iqtas [grants of land holding] to provide revenues with which to equip themselves.
[5]
[1]: Reuven Amitai, ‘Armies and Their Economic Basis in Iran and the Surrounding Lands, c.1000-1500’, in David O. Morgan and Anthony Reid (eds), The New Cambridge History of Islam: Volume 3. The Eastern Islamic World, Eleventh to Eighteenth Centuries (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2010), p.557.
[2]: (Morgan 2015, 75) Morgan, David. 2015. Medieval Persia 1040-1797. Routledge.
[3]: Reuven Amitai, ‘Armies and Their Economic Basis in Iran and the Surrounding Lands, c.1000-1500’, in David O. Morgan and Anthony Reid (eds), The New Cambridge History of Islam: Volume 3. The Eastern Islamic World, Eleventh to Eighteenth Centuries (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2010), P.555, 557.
[4]: (Morgan 2015, 75-76) Morgan, David. 2015. Medieval Persia 1040-1797. Routledge.
[5]: Morgan, David. The Mongols. 2nd ed. The Peoples of Europe. Malden, MA ; Oxford: Blackwell Publishing, 2007. p.148
Originally the Ilkhanid army was a branch of the Mongol army, organised on a tribal basis. The Ilkhans did not adopt the slave-soldier system; instead maintain "large armies of mounted horse archers (supplemented by infantry and cavalry auxiliaries" from local rulers.
[1]
After "the Ilkhanate was no longer expanding and the supply of plunder could not be relied upon" Ghazan the Reformer introduced the iqta system of land grants to pay soldiers.
[2]
[3]
However, it is uncertain "to what extent the distribution of iqtas was actually implemented, for this particular edict was issued only very shortly before Ghazan’s early death in 703/1304."
[2]
More so because our source for the Ilkhanate’s apparently successful use of the itqa system is Rashid al-Din who was Ghazan’s great minister and the individual responsible for implementing the policy.
[4]
In any case, Ghazan’s reforms may have put the financing of the army on a better footing, so that eventually warriors were being allocated iqtas [grants of land holding] to provide revenues with which to equip themselves.
[5]
[1]: Reuven Amitai, ‘Armies and Their Economic Basis in Iran and the Surrounding Lands, c.1000-1500’, in David O. Morgan and Anthony Reid (eds), The New Cambridge History of Islam: Volume 3. The Eastern Islamic World, Eleventh to Eighteenth Centuries (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2010), p.557.
[2]: (Morgan 2015, 75) Morgan, David. 2015. Medieval Persia 1040-1797. Routledge.
[3]: Reuven Amitai, ‘Armies and Their Economic Basis in Iran and the Surrounding Lands, c.1000-1500’, in David O. Morgan and Anthony Reid (eds), The New Cambridge History of Islam: Volume 3. The Eastern Islamic World, Eleventh to Eighteenth Centuries (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2010), P.555, 557.
[4]: (Morgan 2015, 75-76) Morgan, David. 2015. Medieval Persia 1040-1797. Routledge.
[5]: Morgan, David. The Mongols. 2nd ed. The Peoples of Europe. Malden, MA ; Oxford: Blackwell Publishing, 2007. p.148
original code: absent: 1256-1303 CE; disputed_present_absent: 1304-1335 CE Changed on the basis of this: There were full time officers and soldiers within the Khan’s military retinue and those warriors who held iqtas [land grants] in return for military service.
[1]
absent
"the Ilkhan Ghazan decided to give a modest level of pay to low-ranking soliders, while the high-ranking Mongol officers remained unpaid."
[2]
In 1303 an officer captured by the Mamluks reportedly said: "The Mongol is the slave of his sovereign, He is never free. His sovereign is his benefactor: he does not serve him for money. Although I was the least of Ghazan’s servants I never needed anything."
[2]
present
Senior warriors within the Khan’s retinue.
[1]
There were full time officers and soldiers within the Khan’s military retinue and those warriors who held iqtas [land grants] in return for military service.
[1]
There were full time Muslim priests.
[1]: Reuven Amitai, ‘Armies and Their Economic Basis in Iran and the Surrounding Lands, c.1000-1500’, in David O. Morgan and Anthony Reid (eds), The New Cambridge History of Islam: Volume 3. The Eastern Islamic World, Eleventh to Eighteenth Centuries (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2010), P.555, 557.
[2]: (Turnball 2003, 11) Turnball, Stephen R. 2003. Mongol Warrior 1200-1350. Osprey Publishing.
Appointments were made by the Khan, it was not a meritocratic service. [1]
[1]: Morgan, David. The Mongols. 2nd ed. The Peoples of Europe. Malden, MA ; Oxford: Blackwell Publishing, 2007, pp.142-143; Ann K. S. Lambton, ’ECONOMY v. FROM THE ARAB CONQUEST TO THE END OF THE IL-KHANIDS’ (part 2) http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/economy-5-part2
e.g. chief minster, tax officials. [1] There were full time officials involved in administration at the royal court and regional governors as well. The bureaucracy’s main focus was on collecting revenues and providing writing services. Senior officials were granted land holdings to support their offices. Appointments were made by the Khan, it was not a meritocratic service. [2]
[1]: Morgan, David. The Mongols. 2nd ed. The Peoples of Europe. Malden, MA ; Oxford: Blackwell Publishing, 2007, pp.142-143.
[2]: Morgan, David. The Mongols. 2nd ed. The Peoples of Europe. Malden, MA ; Oxford: Blackwell Publishing, 2007, pp.142-143; Ann K. S. Lambton, ’ECONOMY v. FROM THE ARAB CONQUEST TO THE END OF THE IL-KHANIDS’ (part 2) http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/economy-5-part2
Appointments were made by the Khan, it was not a meritocratic service. [1]
[1]: Morgan, David. The Mongols. 2nd ed. The Peoples of Europe. Malden, MA ; Oxford: Blackwell Publishing, 2007, pp.142-143; Ann K. S. Lambton, ’ECONOMY v. FROM THE ARAB CONQUEST TO THE END OF THE IL-KHANIDS’ (part 2) http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/economy-5-part2
General reference for Seljuk? - Safavid? time period: "The bāzār was usually, though not always, divided into a number of sūqs (markets) in which different crafts and occupations had separate quarters. At night, after members of the crafts and shopkeepers had shut their premises and retired to their homes, the gates of the bāzārs were locked and barred." [1] In Iraq, Ala al-Din Juwayni oversaw the construction of a new city al-Ma’man which was provided with a market. [2]
[1]: (Lambton 2011) Lambton, Ann K S. 2011. CITIES iii. Administration and Social Organization. Encyclopedia Iranica. http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/cities-iii
[2]: (Gilli-Elewy 174) Gilli-Elewy, Hend in Fuess, Albrecht and Hartung, Jan-Peter. 2014. Court Cultures in the Muslim World: Seventh to Nineteenth centuries. Routledge.
qanats in Persia and irrigation canals in Iraq. however, under the Mongols many fell into disrepair and disuse. [1] Arch dams were constructed e.g. at Kibar (Kivar): "the dam is 85 ft. high and 180 ft. long at the crest, the thickness of which is between 15 and 16 1/2 ft." [2] A gravity dam was built at Sawa. [2]
[1]: (Morgan 2015, 79-80) Morgan, David. 2015. Medieval Persia 1040-1797. Routledge.
[2]: (Bosworth et al. 1983, 868) Bosworth, CE. van Donzel, E. Lewis, B. Pellat, Ch. 1983. The Encyclopaedia of Islam. E.J. Brill
Repairs of canals. [1] In Iraq, Ala al-Din Juwayni (Ilkhan official, governor of Baghdad) "built a canal from the Euphrates town of Anbar to Kufa and Najaf in an effort to promote agricultural production and allegedly led to the creation of 150 villages along the bank." [1]
[1]: (Gilli-Elewy 174) Gilli-Elewy, Hend in Fuess, Albrecht and Hartung, Jan-Peter. 2014. Court Cultures in the Muslim World: Seventh to Nineteenth centuries. Routledge.
It is not stated in the sources that the Ilkhans destroyed all the bridges in Persia and this would be unlikely due to the importance of bridges to trade. Ghazan tried to improve security on the roads [1] and may have built or maintained bridges.
[1]: (Morgan 2015, 75) Morgan, David. 2015. Medieval Persia 1040-1797. Routledge.
e.g. the writings of Rašid al-Din one of the main sources for Mongolian history as well as the Il-Khans. [1] This period is seen as one of flourishing production of illustrated manuscripts sponsored by the court and senior officials. At first Baghdad was the centre of production, before it moved to Tabriz after the court converted to Islam. A Chinese influence is clearly seen on manuscript illustration at this time. [2]
[1]: REUVEN AMITAI, ’IL-KHANIDS i. DYNASTIC HISTORY’ http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/il-khanids-i-dynastic-history
[2]: Stefano Carboni, ’IL-KHANIDS iii. Book Illustration’ http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/il-khanids-iii-book-illustration
e.g. Persian, Arabic. The administration used Persian writing. Arabic manuscripts survive as well [1] Both Persian and Arabic were in use, and a wide range of document types and scholarly subjects were produced.
[1]: REUVEN AMITAI, ’IL-KHANIDS i. DYNASTIC HISTORY’ http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/il-khanids-i-dynastic-history; Stefano Carboni, ’IL-KHANIDS iii. Book Illustration’ http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/il-khanids-iii-book-illustration
e.g. the writings of Rašid al-Din one of the main sources for Mongolian history as well as the Il-Khans. [1] This period is seen as one of flourishing production of illustrated manuscripts sponsored by the court and senior officials. At first Baghdad was the centre of production, before it moved to Tabriz after the court converted to Islam. A Chinese influence is clearly seen on manuscript illustration at this time. [2]
[1]: REUVEN AMITAI, ’IL-KHANIDS i. DYNASTIC HISTORY’ http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/il-khanids-i-dynastic-history
[2]: Stefano Carboni, ’IL-KHANIDS iii. Book Illustration’ http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/il-khanids-iii-book-illustration
e.g. "a translation from Arabic into Persian of a zoological text on the usefulness of organs and other body parts of animals (Manāfeʿ-e ḥayawān) ordered by Ḡāzān Khan" [1] Hulegu built an astronomical observatory for polymath Nasir al-Din Tusi. [2]
[1]: Stefano Carboni, ’IL-KHANIDS iii. Book Illustration’ http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/il-khanids-iii-book-illustration
[2]: (Morgan 2015, 66) Morgan, David. 2015. Medieval Persia 1040-1797. Routledge.
e.g. Qu’ran. Öljeytü commissioned a "gigantic Koran" from fine artists. [1]
[1]: REUVEN AMITAI, ’IL-KHANIDS i. DYNASTIC HISTORY’ http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/il-khanids-i-dynastic-history
After the official conversion of the court to Islam there was "a specific Il-khanid interest in patronizing works [illustrated manuscripts] that deal with different religions of the past and present, emphasizing the prominence of Islam above all the others and in particular of Shiʿite Islam" [1]
[1]: Stefano Carboni, ’IL-KHANIDS iii. Book Illustration’ http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/il-khanids-iii-book-illustration
In the 11th century and after "the genre of writing treatises on statecraft in Persian develops, such treatises usually containing advice on the organizing of armies and on the art of war." [1] Treatise on government finance written by the scholar Tusi. [2]
[1]: (Bosworth 2011) Bosworth, C E. 2011. ARMY ii. Islamic, to the Mongol period. www.iranicaonline.org/articles/army-ii
[2]: Morgan, David. The Mongols. 2nd ed. The Peoples of Europe. Malden, MA ; Oxford: Blackwell Publishing, 2007, p.134
Philosopher and astronomer Nasir al-Din Tusi. [1]
[1]: (Pfeiffer 2006, 174) Pfeiffer, Judith in Woods, John E. Pfeiffer, Judith. Quinn, Sholeh Alysia. Tucker, Ernest eds. 2006. History and Historiography of Post-Mongol Central Asia and the Middle East: Studies in Honor of John E. Woods. Otto Harrassowitz Verlag.
The History of the Mongols (Tāriḵ-e ḡāzāni-e mobārak) written by Rašid al-Din, who was Gazan’s head administrator and eventually co-vizier. [1] Chronicler Abul Qasim Kashani. [2] Persian historian Rashid Al-Din. [3]
[1]: REUVEN AMITAI, ’IL-KHANIDS i. DYNASTIC HISTORY’ http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/il-khanids-i-dynastic-history
[2]: (Marozzi 2004, 136) Marozzi, J. 2004. Tamerlane. HarperCollinsPublishers. London.
[3]: (Marshall 1993, 228) Marshall, Robert. 1993. Storm from the East: From Ghengis Khan to Khubilai Khan. University of California Press.
e.g. Abu Rayḥān Biruni’s Ketāb al-āṯār al-bāqia ʿan al-qorun al-ḵālia ( “The Chronology of Ancient Nations”) contains calendars. [1]
[1]: Stefano Carboni, ’IL-KHANIDS iii. Book Illustration’ http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/il-khanids-iii-book-illustration
Geikhatu’s minster Sadr al-Din issued paper money along Chinese lines the chao, following concerns about the lack of funds in the royal treasury. These paper certificates had Chinese character printed on them and the Muslim confession of faith. [1]
[1]: Morgan, David. The Mongols. 2nd ed. The Peoples of Europe. Malden, MA ; Oxford: Blackwell Publishing, 2007, P.145.
Dinars. [1] Ghazan the Reformer reformed the coinage. [2] "the gold and silver coins and the measures (kila, gas) were standardised according to the standards of Tabriz". [3]
[1]: Morgan, David. The Mongols. 2nd ed. The Peoples of Europe. Malden, MA ; Oxford: Blackwell Publishing, 2007, P.147.
[2]: (Morgan 2015, 75) Morgan, David. 2015. Medieval Persia 1040-1797. Routledge.
[3]: (Houtsma et al. 1993, 586) Houtsma, M Th. Wensinck, A J. Gibb, H A R. Heffening, W. Levi-Provencal, E. 1993. First Encyclopaedia of Islam: 1913-1936. E.J. Brill. Leiden.
Through trade and through tribute, for example from the Seljuks who paid partly in cash. [1]
[1]: Melville, Charles. “Anatolia under the Mongols.” In The Cambridge History of Turkey, edited by Kate Fleet, Suraiya Faroqhi, and Reşat Kasaba, 51-101. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2009.p.54, p.60
e.g. textiles, animals. Used in barter and tribute. [1] A variety of money was used in the Ilkhanate. Articles were used in barter. Coins existed alongside articles. These included gold and silver coins, coins minted by the Ilkhante and foreign coins acquired in commerce and through tribute from other rulers. Money leading associations show the existence of debt and credit among the population. The Ilkhanate was part of the Mongols extensive postal system [Yam system] that carried royal communications around the empire.
[1]: Fleet, Kate. “The Turkish Economy, 1071-1453.” In The Cambridge History of Turkey, edited by Kate Fleet, Suraiya Faroqhi, and Reşat Kasaba, 227-65. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2009.p.244
Post stations were erected at distances of one day’s journey between them. Marco Polo said that this was 25-30 miles distance. [1] The extensive Yam system was used to communicate royal orders and royal envoys across the empire. [2] Ḡāzān Khan established "special yāms exclusively for official couriers (īḷčī or yārāltū; cf. Doerfer, III, p. 12 and I, pp. 551-53) and making each one the responsibility of a grand amir. Stations were built along main arteries at a distance of three farsaḵs from one another and were required to have on hand fifteen well-nourished (farbeh) horses at all times. Two special couriers (peyk) were stationed at each yām; their function was to carry to the capital important reports about the provinces; such reports bore a special seal called tamḡā-ye peykī (seal of the messenger). A single courier could travel 30 farsaḵs in twenty-four hours, changing mounts frequently; the distance could be doubled if relays were used. Theoretically an urgent message could reach Tabrīz from Khorasan in four days (Rašīd-al-Dīn, Jāmeʿ al-tawārīḵ, Baku, pp. 483-84; idem, Tārīḵ-eḡāzānī, pp. 274-75; cf. Spuler, Mongolen3, pp. 424-25)." [3]
[1]: David Morgan, The Mongols (Oxford: Blackwell, 2nd ed. 2007), p.91.
[2]: David Morgan, The Mongols (Oxford: Blackwell, 2nd ed. 2007), p.90-91.
[3]: (Floor 1990) Floor, Willem. 1990. ČĀPĀR. www.iranicaonline.org/articles/capar-or-capar-turk
"Although the Mongol postal service was a government operation, merchants and others also made use of it." However this practice was ended by Möngke (r.1251-1260 CE) who "gave clear orders that the couriers had to stay on their prescribed routes and execute their orders exactly." [1]
[1]: (Floor 1990) Floor, Willem. 1990. ČĀPĀR. www.iranicaonline.org/articles/capar-or-capar-turk
Ghazan built a new wall around Tabriz. [1] The summer palace built by Hülegü’s son Abaqa near Lake Urmia had "massive oval walls protected by towers and accessed by a new gate". [2]
[1]: (Houtsma et al. 1993, 586) Houtsma, M Th. Wensinck, A J. Gibb, H A R. Heffening, W. Levi-Provencal, E. 1993. First Encyclopaedia of Islam: 1913-1936. E.J. Brill. Leiden.
[2]: Sheila S. Blair, ’IL-KHANIDS ii. Architecture’ http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/il-khanids-ii-architecture
Ilkhans would have encountered moats e.g. in Syria. Did they use them themselves? Were any already present in Persia that survived the Mongol destructions e.g. southern Persia?
The summer palace built by Hülegü’s son Abaqa near Lake Urmia had "massive oval walls protected by towers and accessed by a new gate". [1]
[1]: Sheila S. Blair, ’IL-KHANIDS ii. Architecture’ http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/il-khanids-ii-architecture
The summer palace built by Hülegü’s son Abaqa near Lake Urmia had "massive oval walls protected by towers and accessed by a new gate". [1] Cannot find any reference to concentric walls.
[1]: Sheila S. Blair, ’IL-KHANIDS ii. Architecture’ http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/il-khanids-ii-architecture
Mangonels used in siege warfare. [1] Mongols recruited 1, 000 Chinese catapult operators in 1253. [2]
[1]: David Nicolle, Arms and Armour of the Crusading Era, 1050-1350: Islam, Eastern Europe and Asia, rev. and updated ed (London : Mechanicsburg, Pa: Greenhill Books ; Stackpole Books, 1999). p.296
[2]: Findley, Carter V., The Turks in World History (New York: Oxford University Press, 2005),p.83.
Often said that Chinggis "used gunpowder in siege warfare, sapping and mining operations, during his western campaigns”. [1] Raphael disputes the evidence for this and in any case the description are not of the use of gunpowder artillery. [2]
[1]: Bira, Sh. “THE MONGOLS AND THEIR STATE IN THE TWELFTH TO THE THIRTEENTH CENTURY.” In History of Civilizations of Central Asia. Vol. IV: The Age of Achievement A.D. 750 to the End of the Fifteenth Century. Part I The Historical, Social and Economic Setting, edited by C. E. Bosworth, Muhammad S. Asimov, and Yar Muhammad Khan, 248-64. Paris: Unesco, 1998. p.259.
[2]: Raphael, Kate. “Mongol Siege Warfare on the Banks of the Euphrates and the Question of Gunpowder (1260-1312).” Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society, Third Series, 19, no. 3 (July 1, 2009): 355-70.
“Large framed mounted crossbows" used in sieges. Crossbowmen may have come into Iran in this period through the Mongols. [1]
[1]: David Nicolle, Arms and Armour of the Crusading Era, 1050-1350: Islam, Eastern Europe and Asia, rev. and updated ed (London : Mechanicsburg, Pa: Greenhill Books ; Stackpole Books, 1999). P.221, p.296 .
Depictions of Ilkanid/Mongol soldiers with spears [1] Cavalry had lances. [2]
[1]: David Nicolle, Arms and Armour of the Crusading Era, 1050-1350: Islam, Eastern Europe and Asia, rev. and updated ed (London : Mechanicsburg, Pa: Greenhill Books ; Stackpole Books, 1999). P.243
[2]: Martin, H. Desmond. “The Mongol Army.” Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland, no. 1 (April 1, 1943): 52.
As used by Mongol cavalry, the main fighting force. [1] As the Ilkhanid forces had emerged from the Mongols they fought in classic style of Steppe warfare. The core of the army was mounted cavalry, whose main weapon was the bow. Javelins and a variety of hand weapons were also used. Siege weapons used included large crossbows, mangonels and incendiary devices. Although some soldiers had metal armour, such as chain mail, other were more lightly equipped with leather and heavy padding.
[1]: Bira, Sh. “THE MONGOLS AND THEIR STATE IN THE TWELFTH TO THE THIRTEENTH CENTURY.” In History of Civilizations of Central Asia. Vol. IV: The Age of Achievement A.D. 750 to the End of the Fifteenth Century. Part I The Historical, Social and Economic Setting, edited by C. E. Bosworth, Muhammad S. Asimov, and Yar Muhammad Khan, 248-64. Paris: Unesco, 1998. p.259.
Pack animal? Donkeys were present. The 8th Ilkhan was "originally given the name Kharbandeh or ’Donkey herder’ following Mongol tradition of naming a person for the first thing they see at birth, which out of respect to his Muslim subjects was changed to Khodabandeh or ’Servant of God’".;George Lane. 2018. A Short History Of The Mongols. I.B. Tauris & Co. Ltd. London.;
No reference to plate armour. Plate armour more typical for heavy cavalry which carried lances rather than horsemen with bows. However, some Mongol cavalry carried lances. [1]
[1]: Martin, H. Desmond. “The Mongol Army.” Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland, no. 1 (April 1, 1943): 52.
Helmets had flaps made of leather. Some Mongol armour was made of hide, which "consisted of six layers tightly sewn together and shaped, after being softened by boiling,to fit the body." [1]
[1]: Martin, H. Desmond. “The Mongol Army.” Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland, no. 1 (April 1, 1943): 52-53.
No reference to plate armour. Plate armour more typical for heavy cavalry which carried lances rather than horsemen with bows. However, some Mongol cavalry carried lances. [1]
[1]: Martin, H. Desmond. “The Mongol Army.” Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland, no. 1 (April 1, 1943): 52.
"The story is recounted by Bar Hebraeus (tr. Budge, p. 486), that 900 Franks came to Iraq in order to build a fleet to harass Muslim shipping, apparently in the Indian Ocean." [1]
[1]: REUVEN AMITAI, ’IL-KHANIDS i. DYNASTIC HISTORY’ http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/il-khanids-i-dynastic-history