Historical Impact of the Mongol Conquests

The Mongol conquests have been defined as the last chapter of the Eurasian transformations of the tenth [through the] thirteenth centuries. Yet with the same, or even better, justification they can also be regarded as the first chapter of a new era, perhaps the early-modern one....The Mongol period was a significant step towards closer integration of the old world, both inside and outside the empire’s realm. Certainly the vast dimensions of the empire contributed to that, but the role of the Mongols was not limited to [being] the passive medium through which [their] subjects learned from one another. Instead they actively promoted inter-cultural exchange.