The Empire of Tamerlane as an Adaptation of the Mongol Empire: An answer to David Morgan, “The Empire of Tamerlane: An Unsuccessful Re-Run of the Mongol State?”

• Published in: Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society Vol. 26; no. 1-2; pp. 281 - 291
• Main Author: MANZ, BEATRICE F.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Cambridge, UK Cambridge University Press 01-01-2016
• Subjects: 14th century; Asian history; Islam; Legitimacy; Middle Eastern history; Muslims; Part IV: Beyond the Empire; Persian language; Power; Religious conversion; Sovereignty; Traditions; Baghdad Iraq; Mongol Empire; Iraq; Iran
• ISSN: 1356-1863; 2051-2066; 1474-0591
• DOI: 10.1017/S135618631500070X

I write this article in the spirit of the Persian poetic tradition, in which
an answer to an earlier work takes off from the original and charts its own
course. I will suggest that Tamerlane's recreation of the Mongol Empire was
symbolic, and was part of his successful creation of a regional state which
was at once Turco-Mongolian and Perso-Islamic. His experiment was continued
and elaborated by his successors, and the resulting state provided a highly
useful model for later dynasties in the Middle East and Central Asia. Through my long engagement with Mongols and Turks, David Morgan's influence
and aid have been a constant advantage and his friendship a recurring
pleasure. Our acquaintance began in 1987 with a kind letter he sent me after
reading the manuscript for The Rise and Rule of Tamerlane
for the Cambridge University Press. Since then I have profited from his
scholarship, have used his two books to teach generations of students, and
have called on him for uncountable letters of recommendation, always
generously given. I also want to thank David for asking me to write the
Mongol chapter for the New Cambridge History of Islam, and
thus attracting me into the Mongol period. It may seem odd to express my
gratitude by writing an answer to David's article which is not entirely in
agreement with his conclusions. I trust in the well-known openness of his
mind and assume that he will take this in the spirit in which it is offered,
as the continuation of many years of discussion.