Important Questions For Class 11 History Chapter 3 Nomadic Empires

Important Questions for Class 11 History Chapter 3 Nomadic Empires

Nomadic Empires is Chapter 3 of the Class 11 History book Themes in World History, published by NCERT (National Council of Educational Research and Training). The chapter looks at the Mongols under Genghis Khan and his successors. It explains how a nomadic people built the largest land empire in history, how their army, laws (the yasa) and trade worked, and how the empire was divided among the descendants of Genghis Khan.

These Class 11 History Chapter 3 important questions and answers cover 5-mark long answer questions and 1-mark multiple choice questions, including a source-based question on Ghazan Khan's speech, with pictures from the chapter. They help students revise for exams, help parents check preparation at home, and give teachers ready material for class practice. A free printable PDF of the complete set is also available for download.

Important Questions For Class 11 History Chapter 3 Nomadic Empires

Nomadic Empires
Easy
Q.
Why was trade so significant to the Mongols?
Nomadic Empires
Easy
Q.
Why did Genghis Khan feel the need to fragment the Mongol tribes into new social and military groupings?
Nomadic Empires
Medium
Q.
How do later Mongol reflections on the yasa bring out the uneasy relationship they had with the memory of Genghis Khan.
Nomadic Empires
Medium
Q.
‘If history relies upon written records produced by city-based literati, nomadic societies will always receive a hostile representation.’ Would you agree with this statement? Does it explain the reason why Persian chronicles produced such inflated figures of casualties resulting from Mongol campaigns?
Nomadic Empires
Difficult
Q.
Keeping the nomadic element of the Mongol and Bedouin societies in mind, how, in your opinion, did their respective historical experiences differ? What explanations would you suggest account for these differences?
Nomadic Empires
Medium
Q.
How does the following account enlarge upon the character of the Pax Mongolica created by the Mongols by the middle of the thirteenth century?
The Franciscan monk, William of Rubruck, was sent by Louis IX of France on an embassy to the great Khan Mongke’s court. He reached Karakorum, the capital of Mongke, in 1254 and came upon a woman from Lorraine (in France) called Paquette, who had been brought from Hungary and was in the service of one of the prince’s wives who was a Nestorian Christian. At the court he came across a Parisian goldsmith named Guillaume Boucher, ‘whose brother dwelt on the Grand Pont in Paris’. This man was first employed by the Queen Sorghaqtani and then by Mongke’s younger brother. Rubruck found that at the great court festivals the Nestorian priests were admitted first, with their regalia, to bless the Grand Khan’s cup, and were followed by the Muslim clergy and Buddhist and Taoist monks…

Important Questions For Class 11 History Chapter 3 Nomadic Empires

Question 1. Mongol invasions adversely affected irrigation in the Iranian plateau, including Khorasan, which had desert areas. How does this reflect the role of humans in rising desertification all around the world?

Sand dunes in a desert

Answer: Desertification refers to a process, either natural or man-made, which leads to a decline in the productivity of drylands, including both arid and semi-arid regions.
While climatic changes, like scant rainfall leading to droughts, can be a major cause of desertification, the role of human activity cannot be overlooked.
Deforestation, overgrazing, unsustainable irrigation practices, poverty, political instability, or a combination of some or all of these factors are the man-made causes of desertification. The Mongol invasions disrupted the irrigation networks of Khorasan and turned farmland into desert.
Presently, nearly 50% of the world's land surface, excluding ice regions, is affected by desertification. It has proved especially devastating for some of the world's poorest countries, most of which are in the 'Third World'.

Question 2. Under Genghis Khan, Mongol and Turkish horse-riding skills provided his army speed and mobility, while their rapid horse archery skills proved tactically effective. Why do you think the role of horse archers as an effective military force declined over the subsequent centuries?

Mongol horse archers

Answer: Though usually quick and effective, horse archery was not without shortcomings.
Horse archers were generally very ineffective against foot archers, who could shoot better, while a foot archer proved too small a target for a horse archer.
Crossbowmen, used in Europe, the Middle East and China, proved to be particularly effective against them.
The introduction of gunpowder proved to be the final blow, as it removed the need for horse archers.
From the 16th century onwards, cavalry with firearms was used increasingly, for example dragoons and carabiniers.

Question 3. Following the Mongol victory over the Khwarazm Empire, its crown prince, Jalaluddin, was chased by a Mongol force into Afghanistan and Sindh. How do you think the attitude of the ruler of these regions proved pivotal in the course of Indian history?

Mongol cavalry in pursuit

Answer: During the time of the Mongol invasion of Khwarazm, much of the northern part of the Indian subcontinent was ruled by Iltutmish of the Mamluk dynasty.
As the Khwarazm prince fled from the Mongols, he asked Iltutmish for shelter.
However, Iltutmish, sensing the potential dangers of taking such a step, refused to entertain his request.
This act of Iltutmish went a long way towards the preservation of the Delhi Sultanate, then at its nascent stage. It went on to survive till the early 16th century.
Although Mongol invasions of India did take place later, by that time the Delhi Sultanate had become strong enough to resist these invasions, especially during the late 13th and early 14th centuries.

Question 4. Interaction between Mongols and Chinese, during truce, was majorly centred around commercial exchanges under the barter system. Why do you think it is not possible for present societies to conduct trade via the barter system?

Exchange of goods under the barter system

Answer: Under the barter system, one item is exchanged directly for another item, as per one's needs, without any standard medium of exchange.
One of its biggest demerits is the difficulty of finding a double coincidence of wants, whereby one person wants to sell exactly what the other wants to buy, and wants to buy exactly what the other person wants to sell.
Another issue linked with barter is indivisibility, which arises when a big indivisible commodity is to be traded for a smaller item.
Finally, it is difficult to store items purchased under barter, especially semi-durable or perishable items, if storage facilities are insufficient.

Question 5. Many praiseworthy accounts of the Mongols were censored by the Soviet Union, especially under Joseph Stalin, who feared possible regional aspirations within his domain. How far do you think the structure of the Soviet Union was responsible for hostility towards such works?

Joseph Stalin delivering a speech

Answer: The USSR (Union of Soviet Socialist Republics) was formed out of the Russian Empire in 1917, essentially as a huge unitary state that ruled over a vast area of land, covering many regions and ethnicities in Europe and Asia.
In these regions, people were brought under Soviet rule either by promising them more autonomy, or by repression to forcibly incorporate them.
Hence, the USSR, till its demise in 1991, was reluctant to promote works that had the potential to fan a desire for regionalism and independence from the USSR.
Even in client states, like the Mongolian People's Republic, works promoting historical leaders were seen as potentially challenging Soviet hegemony.

Question 6. It was probably a compilation of the customary traditions of the Mongol tribes, but the Mongols referred to it as Genghis Khan's code of law. Due to it, the Mongol people also claimed to be lawgivers like Moses and Solomon, whose authoritative code could be imposed on their subjects. A sacred law given to them by their ancestors became the way by which they could protect their identity and distinctiveness. Which of the following aspects of the Mongol community is described above?
(a) Anda
(b) Yasa
(c) Qubcur
(d) Ulus

Answer: (b) Yasa
By the middle of the thirteenth century, the Mongols had started using the term yasa in a more general sense to mean the 'legal code of Genghis Khan'. Although the Mongols dominated the region politically, they were a numerical minority. Yasa provided them with a way in which they could protect their identity and distinctiveness.

Question 7. The Mongol armies pushed Sultan Muhammad, the ruler of Khwarazm, into Azerbaijan, defeated Russian forces at the Crimea and encircled the Caspian Sea because:
(a) he executed Mongol envoys.
(b) he provided shelter to an enemy of the Mongols.
(c) he had overthrown the king who supported the Mongols.
(d) he killed a Mongol prince.

Answer: (a) he executed Mongol envoys.
Sultan Muhammad, the ruler of Khwarazm, felt the fury of Genghis Khan's rage when he executed Mongol envoys. Mongol forces, in pursuit of Sultan Muhammad, pushed into Azerbaijan, defeated Russian forces at the Crimea and encircled the Caspian Sea. Another wing followed the Sultan's son, Jalaluddin, into Afghanistan and the Sindh province.

Question 8. In which of the following years did the Mongols breach the Great Wall of China?
(a) 1209
(b) 1213
(c) 1215
(d) 1234

Answer: (b) 1213
The Mongols breached the Great Wall of China in 1213. Its construction was started in the 7th century BCE, and Qin Shi Huang, the first emperor of China, joined the walls together.

Question 9. Which of the following are INCORRECT pairs of the division of the Mongol Empire and the descendants of Genghis Khan who ruled?
1. Ghazan Khan – Khanate of the Golden Horde
2. Ogodei – The Empire of the Great Khan
3. Jochi – The Empire of the Il-Khanid
4. Toluy – Yuan Dynasty in China
(a) 1 and 2 only
(b) 1 and 3 only
(c) 2 and 3 only
(d) 1, 2 and 3

Answer: (b) 1 and 3 only
The Jochid descendants of Genghis Khan formed the Golden Horde in the Russian steppes, while Ogodei's lineage was absorbed into the branch of Toluy, Genghis Khan's youngest son. The descendants of Toluy ruled both China (Yuan Dynasty) and Iran (Il-Khanids). Ghazan Khan was one of the rulers of the Il-Khanid dynasty.

Question 10. 'I am not on the side of the Persian peasantry. If there is a purpose in pillaging them all, there is no one with more power to do this than I. Let us rob them together. But if you wish to be certain of collecting grain and food for your tables in the future, I must be harsh with you. You must be taught reason. If you insult the peasantry, take their oxen and seed and trample their crops into the ground, what will you do in the future? … The obedient peasantry must be distinguished from the peasantry who are rebels…'
In the form of the above speech, Ghazan Khan tried to tell his followers that:
(a) farming was a profitable occupation.
(b) they should not annoy farmers.
(c) farmers were necessary for the empire.
(d) revolting farmers must be identified.

Answer: (c) farmers were necessary for the empire.
Ghazan Khan was a descendant of Hulegu, the Il-Khan. He gave this speech to the Mongol-Turkish nomad commanders. In this speech he was trying to say that farmers are necessary for the economy as they produce food.

Question 11. Who among the following was NOT a son of Genghis Khan?
(a) Jochi
(b) Chaghatai
(c) Ogodei
(d) Qubilai

Answer: (d) Qubilai
Jochi, Chaghatai and Ogodei were the sons of Genghis Khan, while Qubilai, or Qubilai Khan, was his grandson.

Question 12. Why could the descendants of Genghis Khan in the late thirteenth century not glorify themselves as violent as their ancestors, despite understanding the importance of their ancestors' legacy?
(a) They had to rule over settled people.
(b) The military conquests were stopped.
(c) The wealth collected had corrupted them.
(d) They required the support of their subjects in the internal conflict of the Genghis Khan family.

Answer: (a) They had to rule over settled people.
Genghis Khan's legacy was important for his descendants to appear as convincing heroes to a sedentary audience, but they could no longer appear in quite the same way as their ancestors, as they had to rule over settled people.

Question 13. Which of the following events in Mongol history marked the end of the western expansion of the Mongols?
(a) Mongol army's defeat in Hungary
(b) Revolt in Spain against the Mongols
(c) Increasing power of the Egyptians
(d) Toluyid family's increasing interest in the conquest of China

Answer: (d) Toluyid family's increasing interest in the conquest of China
With the accession of Mongke (a descendant of Toluy, Genghis Khan's youngest son), military campaigns were pursued energetically in Iran during the 1250s. But during the 1260s, Toluyid interest in the conquest of China increased, and forces and supplies were increasingly diverted into the heartlands of the Mongol dominion. As a result, the Mongols fielded a small, understaffed force against the Egyptian military. Their defeat and the increasing interest in China marked the end of the western expansion of the Mongols.

Question 14. Which of the following do you think were largely responsible for the Mongol army's military achievements?
1. Heavy engineering equipment
2. Siege engines
3. Naphtha bombardment
(a) 1 and 2 only
(b) 1 and 3 only
(c) 2 and 3 only
(d) 1, 2 and 3

Answer: (c) 2 and 3 only
Genghis Khan learnt the importance of siege engines and naphtha bombardment in warfare. His engineers prepared light, portable equipment, which was used against opponents with devastating effect.

Question 15. Which of the following was a characteristic of Genghis Khan's confederation of Mongol and Turkish tribes?
(a) It was stable enough to counter larger armies with superior equipment.
(b) It was not divided into patrilineal lineages.
(c) It had larger, richer families.
(d) Groups of families occasionally allied for offensive and defensive purposes.

Answer: (a) It was stable enough to counter larger armies with superior equipment.
Genghis Khan's political system was durable and survived after the death of its founder. It was stable enough to counter larger armies with superior equipment in China, Iran and eastern Europe.

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