by Yvonne Wang
2Wenceslaus I, the then King of Bohemia.
3Baidar, the son of Genghis Khan’s second son Chagatai.
4Kaidu, the grandson of the third son of Genghis Khan, Ögedei (the Great Khan of Mongolia at that time). He is assisting Baidar in leading the northern division of the army.
5Subutai, a native of Uriyangqan. He had been Ganghis Khan’s right-hand man in uniting Mongolia; he is known as one of four pioneers. In Mongolia’s second expedition westward, although Prince Batu was the commander in chief in name, Subutai was actually in command.
6The Han Chinese is the largest native ethnic group in China. Today, 92% of the Chinese population in mainland China are Han.
7Reconnaissance cavalry, Mongolian army’s spy organization. Before they launch an offensive each time, they covertly gather intelligence about the enemy.
8Refers to battles during the years 1217 to 1223. Genghis Khan attacked western Liao, Khwarizm, Kievan Rus’ and other places. It is referred to as the first Mongolian westward expedition in history. The Great Khan that Baidar is referring to is one of the four sons, Ögedei.
9Karakorum. It later becomes the capital of the Yuan Dynasty. It is in the upper reaches of the Orkhon in present day Mongolia.
10Wonbayer’s uncle is Chenglin Wanyan, the last emperor of the Jin Dynasty. Chenglin was a former general of the State of Jin, which is located in the north of China. In 1234 A.D., Emperor Ai of Jin did not want to be the emperor who ended the dynasty so he passed the throne to him. As soon as he completed the enthroning ceremony, he left the city to engage in a battle with the Mongolian army and died there.
11Song, the Chinese Dynasty that lasted 300 years from 960-1276 A.D.
12Most warhorses during the 13th Century in the Mongolian army were female. Soldiers may squeeze mare milk to sustain themselves, reducing the burden of food provisions.
13Duke Silesia is Henry II, the uncle of the Polish King. He commands one of the four dukedoms. Silesia is the only force inside Poland that is left to resist Mongolia.
14The Holy Roman Empire (843-1806) is today’s Germany. Many dukedoms constitute the empire; the king only has real power in his territory.
15The native religion of Mongolia involves worshiping the “Blue, Mighty, Eternal Heaven”, gods who created lives.
16The Mongols divide their army into Tumens (10,000 soldiers). Each Tumen has ten groups of 1,000 soldiers, which further consist of ten groups of 100 soldiers. A Centurion is the leader of an 100 men group.
17The year 1214 A.D, Emperor Ningzong of Song dispatched envoy to Mongolia for negotiations. Since then, Song and Mongolia united in their combat against Jin in endless battles. In 1234, the State of Jin ended.
18Moscow was occupied in 1238 A.D. by Mongolian Commander-in-Chief Batu and was controlled by the Mongols for more than 200 years.
19In the year 1156 A.D., Yuri Dolgoruky, the son of the Kievan prince Vladimir Monomach, built a wooden fortress on Borovitsky Hill, which later developed into the Kremlin. Moscow was developed around the fortress, while the name “Jityecz” is fictional.
20Emperor Ningzong of Song, Kuo Zhao (1168-1224) was the fourth emperor of the Southern Song. He had use four titles during his reign, while “Jiading” is one of the titles. The Sixth Year of Jiading was 1213 A.D.
21Lin’an was the capital city of Southern Song
22Jun Zhao, birth name Yuju Zhao, was the ninth generation offspring of Dezhao Zhao, who was the son of Kuangyin Zhao; he was a distant relative of the Song Dynasty imperial family at that time. Emperor Ningzong of Song had wanted his young brother Bing Zhao’s son, Guihe Zhao to be the prince; but when Minister Miyuan Shi and Queen Yang colluded in a coup, they forced Jun Zhao who was a civilian to become the emperor.”
23Historically, the Hungarian King Béla had already led his army out to meet the Mongolian military, but the Mongols retreated to the east shore of the Sajo River to attract Béla into the Mohi Plains, on a topography most familiar to the Mongols in this decisive battle.
24Sulede. The legend goes that this banner descended from heaven as a gift for Genghis Khan; it is the battle flag of Genghis Khan’s grand army and the god of war for the Mongolian military. It is in the shape of a lance. In Chinese, it is called a fan of black flags.
25Tengri, the name of the Heaven God
26These embroideries are Mongolian ornaments approximately two inches wide and three inches long. Mongolian girls use two pieces of starched fabric, wrap them with silk, then sew them into an empty packet. They then embroider patterns symbolizing happiness on there. They can hold spices, jewelry or snuff boxes; they are important tokens of love.
27Zhu Yuan Zhang, or the Hongwu Emperor, was the leader who founded the Ming Dynasty in the 14th Century. By taking China from the hands of Mongols he ended the Yuan Dynasty.
28Xinhai Revolution, also known as Hsinhai Revolution, Revolution of 1911 or Chinese Revolution, ended the last imperial dynasty in China.
