The first world war that continued in 1914-1918 exercised an influence upon the destiny of Mongolia. Furthermore, communists headed by V.Lenin took power of Russia in 1917. It precipitated deep political crises in Russia. The Russian involvement in Mongolia slackened. The Japanese took measures to develop influence upon Mongolia. The Japanese suggested some Mongol nobles and the Czarist Russian general G.Semenov who disliked the new government of Russia and was in exile to form pan-Mongolia. So G.Semenov gathered some Buriad people at Daur village in the vicinity of the Chita town and convened a special conference. This conference announced the formation of the pan Mongolia confederation consisting of inner and outer Mongolia, Barga and Buriad Mongolia. Mongolia did not participate in this conference.
The Russian federation and the Chinese Republic both opposed this conference and G.Semenov. It was inevitable that a strong Japanese military base would be set up in Mongolia if pan-Mongolia was be formed. So the Russian federation issued statement to the Mongolia and the Chinese Republic. It said that Russia was ready to abolish the Kyagt tripartite agreement of 1915 if Mongolia intended to support the formation of pan-Mongolia. The government of Mongolia protested against the decision of the Daur conference and did not want to contact with G.Semenov in any form.
The Japanese plan to form pan Mongolia failed. Soon after it the Chinese republic started its policy to eliminate the autonomy of Mongolia. It had two purposes-not to bring the influence of Russian Revolution into Mongolia and not to give Mongolia to Russia. The Chinese deployed many Chinese soldiers to the Jikhe Kuree. Chinese general Hsu Shu-Chang, commissioner for north-west frontiers, arrived from Peking to the Jikhe-Kuree, and urged to abolish the autonomy at the volunteer base. The prime minister, ministers and vice ministers signed the document so called to abolish the autonomy, on the November 17,1919. The independence declared in 1911 was frustrated. The Mongolian people were opposed to this Chinese atrocity and were organised to fight against the foreign aggressors.
There were two underground groups working against China. They were interested in getting contact with the new government in Russia and assistance from them. They sent in their several delegates to Russia. Their approaches were considered as correct. The two underground groups met on the June 26, 1920 and set up the people’s party of Mongolia. The leaders of those groups were D.Sukhbaatar, D.Bodoo, S.Danzan and others. D. Sukhbaatar was one of the outstanding leaders who participated in the national revolution of 1921 and setting up the people’s government. He was the founder of the people’s army of Mongolia. The Mongolian patriots headed by D.Sukh-Baatar played a very crucial role in liberating Mongolia from the foreign occupants, in 1919-1921.
The soldiers of the peoples’s army headed by D.Sukh-Baatar came to liberate the Jikhe-Kuree/present Ulaan-Baatar/ from the Baron Ungern on the July 6,1921. The force of the white guard was not completely smashed up. In the middle of 1922 the whole territory of Mongolia was totally liberated. The struggle of the Mongolian patriots against the foreign occupants turned into a national revolution to change Mongolian society. As soon as the Jikhe Kuree was liberated there was the mass meeting, which elevated the Bogda Javjandamba to the throne with limited power and proclaimed the people’s government. Then the new government was set up.
Thursday, July 24, 2014
History of Mongolia
In 1206, Chinggis Khan (also known as Genghis Khan) founded the Mongol Empire, the largest empire in history. The Mongol Empire’s territory extended from present-day Poland in the west to the Korean peninsula in the east, from Siberia in the north to the Arab peninsula and Vietnam in the south, covering approximately 33 million square kilometers. In 1227, after Chinggis Khan’s death, the Mongol Empire was subdivided into four kingdoms. In 1260, Chinggis Khan’s grandson, Kublai Khan, ascended the throne of one of the four kingdoms that encompassed present-day Mongolia and China. In 1271, Kublai Khan formally established the Yuan Dynasty. The Yuan Dynasty was the first foreign dynasty to rule all of China until it was overthrown by the Chinese Ming Dynasty in 1368.
The Mongol court returned to its native land, however, centuries of internal conflict, expansion and contraction brought them fall into Manchu Qing dynasty. They conquered Inner Mongolia in 1636. Outer Mongolia was submitted in 1691. For the next two hundred years Mongolia was ruled by the Qing Dynasty until 1911. Mongolia declared its independence in 1911 under the Bogd Khan, the spiritual leader of Mongolia’s Tibetan Buddhism. However, the Chinese government still considered “Outer Mongolia” as part of it and invaded the country in 1919.
In 1921, People’s Revolution won in Mongolia with the help of the Russian Red Army and thus Mongolia became the second socialist country in the world. After Bogd Khan’s death in 1924, the Mongolian People’s Republic was proclaimed and the first Constitution was adopted.
Mongolia was under a Soviet-dominated Communist regime for almost 70 years, from 1921 to 1990. In the fall of 1989 and the spring of 1990, new currents of political thought began to emerge in Mongolia, inspired by the glasnost and perestroika in the Soviet Union and the collapse of the Communist regimes in Eastern Europe. In March 1990, a democratic revolution that started with hunger strikes to overthrow the Government led to the peaceful renouncement of communism. Mongolia’s renouncement of communism led to a multi-party system, a new constitution and a transition to a market economy.
Over the past two decades, Mongolia has transformed itself from a socialist country with a planned economy into a vibrant multi-party democracy with one of the world’s fastest growing economies.
Mongolia is the world’s second largest landlocked country and occupies a territory of 1.56 million square kilometers. Mongolia is located in Northern Asia, bordered by Russia in the north and China in the south, east and west. Mongolia is the world’s least densely populated country, with a population of more than 2.9 million people living in a vast area of 1.56 million square kilometers. Ulaanbaatar is Mongolia’s capital and largest city and home to approximately 45% of the country’s population.
Ethnic Mongols comprise approximately 94.9% of the population, Kazakh 5% and Turkic, Chinese and Russians make up the remaining population.
Buddhism is major religion in Mongolia with a small number of Muslims, Christians, and Shamans reside in Mongolia.
The official language is Mongolian and is spoken by 90% of the population. English is quickly replacing Russian as the most popular language following Mongolian. Many Mongolians also speak Korean, Japanese, Chinese, German and other western European languages.
Mongolian brief history
Mongolia's history is extremely long; it spans over 5,000. "The Mongols has little inclination to ally with other nomadic peoples of northern Asia and, until the end of the 12th century, the Mongols were little more than a loose confederation of rival clans, It was in the late 12th century that a 20-year-old Mongol named Temujin emerged and managed to unite most of the Mongol tribes. In 1189 he was given the honorary name of Genghis Khan, meaning 'universal king'. No Mongolian leader before or since has united the Mongolians so effectively."Manchu controlled Mongolia from the year 1691 to 1911. Thanks to the fall of the Manchu dynasty that controlled stopped. A group of Mongol princes "proclaimed" the living Buddha of Urga to be ruler. "Mongolians have always taken wholeheartedly to Tibetan Buddhism and the links between Mongolia and Tibet are old and deep." In 1921 there were 110,000 lamas or monks in Mongolia living in 700 monasteries. In the 1930s thousands of monks were arrested. Some believed that by the year 1939 3% of Mongolia's population, at the time, was executed or out of 27,000; 17,000 were monks.
In the year 1990 the freedom of religion returned. Since then a revival of Buddhism and other religions has occurred. Mongolia won its independence in 1911. In 1921 the Mongolian People's Revolutionary Party government started. "When the last living Buddha died in 1924( "with the rise of Tibetan Buddhism in the 16th century, a living Buddha would be named"), the Mongolian People's Republic was established." It took 22 years for China to recognize this. All subsequent Monolian texts were written in script until Stalin forcibly replaced it with Russian Cyrillic in the 1940s. The text was written in scripts named SECRET HISTORY scripts. Since 1944 the Russian Cyrillic alphabet has been used to write Mongolian.
A new constitution came into force in 1960, and Mongolia was admitted to the United Nations in 1961. Mongolia traditionally supported the Soviet Union. In January 1992 the president of Mongolia, Ponsalmaagiyh Ochirbat institute a new constitution. "In 1993, Birus Yeltsin, Russia's president and Ochirbar signed a new treaty." Also Ochirbat was reelected in 1993.
In the 1980s Mongolia fell in control of Jambyn Batmonkh, a decentralize heartened by the Soviet reforms under Mikhail Gorbachev. "By the late 1980s, relations with China even started to thaw and full diplomatic relations were established in1989. "In March 1990, large pro-democracy protests erupted in the square in front of the parliament building in Ulaan Baatar and hunger strikes were held." Also lots of things happened at a rapid paste around that same month. Some of which are: Batmonkh lost power; new political parties sprang up; and hunger strikes and protests continued. In May Mongolia was awarded from the government to have multiparty election in June 1990. The communists won the elections. In the first half of the year 1996 Mongolia was "beset" by wild fires that raged for more than three months and lost 41,000 sq mi (106,000 sq km) of forest and rangeland. In the year 1997 Ochirbat lost the election because of the economy. In the year 2000 the elections resulted in nearly a total win for the MPRP. In fact the total amount of seats won by the MPRP was 95%.
Mongolia | Facts and History
ince 1990, Mongolia has had a multiparty parliamentary democracy. All citizens over the age of 18 can vote.The head of state is the President; executive power is shared with the Prime Minister. The Prime Minister nominates the Cabinet, which is approved by the legislature.
The legislative body is called the Great Hural, made up of 76 deputies. Mongolia has a civil law system, based on the laws of Russia and continental Europe.
The highest court is the Constitutional Court, which hears primarily questions of constitutional law.
The current President is Nambaryn Enkhbayar. Sanjaa Bayar is the Prime Minister.
Population of Mongolia:
Mongolia's population is just under 3 million (July, 2008 estimate). (About 4 million ethnic Mongols live in Inner Mongolia, which is now part of China.)
94% of the population of Mongolia are ethnic Mongols, mainly from the Khalkha clan. About 9% of the ethnic Mongols come from the Durbet, Dariganga, and other clans.
5% of Mongolian citizens are members of Turkic peoples, primarily Kazakhs and Uzbeks. There are also tiny populations of other minorities, including Tuvans, Tungus, Chinese and Russians (less than 0.1% each).
Languages of Mongolia:
Khalkha Mongol is the official language of Mongolia, and the primary language of 90% of Mongolians. Others in common use include different dialects of Mongolian, Turkic languages (such as Kazakh, Tuvan and Uzbek), and Russian.
Khalkha is written with the Cyrillic alphabet.
Russian is the most commonly-used foreign language, although both English and Korean are gaining popularity.
(The total is more than 100% because some Mongolians practice both Buddhism and Shamanism.)
Geography of Mongolia:
Mongolia is a land-locked country sandwiched between Russia and China. It covers an area of about 1,564,000 square kilometers - roughly the size of Alaska.
Mongolia is known for its steppelands, the dry, grassy plains that support the traditional Mongolian livestock-herding lifestyle. Some areas of Mongolia are mountainous, however, while others are desert.
The highest point in Mongolia is Nayramadlin Orgil, at 4,374 meters (14,350 feet). The lowest point is Hoh Nuur, at 518 meters (1,700 feet).
A tiny 0.76% of Mongolia is arable, with exactly 0% under permanent crop cover. Much of the land is used for grazing.
Climate of Mongolia:
Mongolia has a harsh continental climate, with very little rainfall and wide seasonal temperature variations.
Winters are long and bitterly cold, with average temperatures in January hovering around -30 C (-22 F); in fact, Ulaan Bataar is the coldest and windiest nation capital on Earth. Summers are short and hot; most precipitation falls during the summer months.
Rain and snowfall totals are only 20-35 cm (8-14 inches) per year in the north, and 10-20 cm (4-8 inches) in the south. Nevertheless, freak snowstorms sometimes drop more than a meter of snow, burying livestock.
Mongolian Economy:
The economy of Mongolia depends upon mineral mining, livestock and animal products, and textiles. Minerals are a primary export, including copper, tin, gold, molybdenum, and tungsten.
Mongolia's per capita GDP in 2006 was estimated at $2,402 U.S. About 36% of the population lives below the poverty line.
The currency of Mongolia is the tugrik; $1 US = 1,156 tugriks. (June, 2008)
History of Mongolia:
Early Mongolian History:
Mongolia's nomadic people have at times hungered for goods from settled cultures - things like fine metal-work, silk cloth, and weapons. To get these items, the Mongols would unite and raid surrounding peoples.
The first great confederation was the Xiongnu, organized in 209 B.C. The Xiongnu were such a persistent threat to Qin Dynasty China that the Chinese began work on a massive fortification - the Great Wall of China.
In 89 A.D., the Chinese defeated the Northern Xiongnu at the Battle of Ikh Bayan; the Xiongnu fled west, eventually making their way to Europe. There, they became known as theHuns.
Other tribes soon took their place. First the Gokturks, then the Uighurs, the Khitans, and the Jurchens gained ascendancy in the region.
The Mongol Empire:
Mongolia's fractious tribes were united in 1206 A.D. by a warrior named Temujin, who became known as Genghis Khan. He and his successors conquered most of Asia, including the Middle East, and Russia.
The Mongolian Empire's strength waned after the overthrow of their centerpiece, the Yuan Dynasty rulers of China, in 1368.
Mongolia Overpowered:
In 1691, the Manchus, founders of China's Qing Dynasty, conquered Mongolia. Although the Mongols of "Outer Mongolia" retained some autonomy, their leaders had to swear an oath of allegiance to the Chinese emperor.
Mongolia was a province of China between 1691 and 1911, and again from 1919 to 1921.
The present-day border between Inner (Chinese) Mongolia and Outer (independent) Mongolia was drawn in 1727, when Russia and China signed the Treaty of Khiakta.
As the Manchu Qing Dynasty grew weaker in China, Russia began to encourage Mongolian nationalism. Mongolia declared its independence from China in 1911, when the Qing Dynasty fell.
Chinese troops recaptured Outer Mongolia in 1919, while the Russians were distracted by their revolution. However, Moscow occupied Mongolia's capital at Urga in 1921, and Outer Mongolia became a People's Republic under Russian influence in 1924.
Japan invaded Mongolia in 1939, but was thrown back by Soviet-Mongolian troops.
Mongolia joined the UN in 1961. At that time, relations between the Soviets and Chinese were souring rapidly. Caught in the middle, Mongolia tried to remain neutral.
In 1966, the Soviet Union sent a large number of ground forces into Mongolia to face down the Chinese. Mongolia itself began to expel its ethnic Chinese citizens in 1983.
Independent Mongolia:
In 1987, Mongolia began to pull away from the USSR. It established diplomatic relations with the U.S., and saw large-scale pro-democracy protests in 1989-1990. The first democratic elections for the Great Hural were held in 1990, and the first presidential election in 1993.
In the two decades since Mongolia's peaceful transition to democracy began, the country has been developing slowly but steadily.
A BRIEF MONGOLIAN HISTORY
Eight generations after Batachikan, Yesugei was born, and Yesugei had a son named Temujin. The history of the Mongolian nation starts with Temujin, later known as Chinggis Khan, the founder of the world’s largest continental empire. Before Chinggis Khan came to power, in the land known to us as Mongolia, sporadic clans conducted on-going wars and raids over grazing areas and water sources. Chinggis Khan united these clans under one flag, and turned them into one nation, although throughout the last 800 years, many of these clans have kept their ancient ethnic identity and unique traditions.
Archeological evidence shows that the area now known as Mongolia has been inhabited for over 500,000 years. Though Mongolia is known today as the land of nomads, the evidence clearly indicates that many societies were once farmers. As far as we know, the name “Mongol” was first mentioned in Chinese writings from the 9th century. The Chinese described the Mong-ko (Mongol) as “the people who follow the tails of their horses according to the growth pace of the grass and its withering”. Only in the 12th century, under the rule of Chinggis Khan, were Mongolia’s clans gathered under one flag, becoming a unified nation.
Leading his fearless warriors, and implementing military strategies still studied today by armed forces all over the world, Chinggis Khan, and later his successors, formed the world’s largest continental empire. Covering the vast land mass between Korea and Hungary, the infamous Mongolian horde ruled over an empire that encompassed many countries, nations, religions and languages. Though famous for its ruthlessness towards enemies, the Mongolian Empire was known to be very tolerant towards the different beliefs of its occupied societies. It is said that at the court of the Mongol Khans, Buddhist, Muslim, Christian, Jewish, Confucian, and other religious leaders used to sit and exchange ideas with one another and the local Shamans and healers.
After the decline of the empire, in the 14th century, Mongolia was ruled by the Manchu dynasty of Qing. Ironically, the Manchu never had to conquer Mongolia, as the Mongols themselves invited the Manchu to protect them from attacks initiated by western clans. The violent and repressive regime of the Manchu lasted until 1911, when Mongolia proclaimed its independence, taking advantage of the weakening power of the Qing Emperor. Upon the declaration of independence, a Mongolian government was established, under the leadership of the Bogd Khan (The God King), and by 1915 the Kyahta Treaty was signed between Russia, China and Mongolia granting Mongolia limited autonomy.
By 1919 Mongolia was again under the rule of a Chinese warlord. At that time the communist revolution was taking Russia by storm. At the invitation of the Mongolian government in 1921, White Russian soldiers, running from the Communist Reds, defeated the Chinese conquerors, and took control of Mongolia while retaining the Bogd Khan as a puppet ruler. The Mongolians found the White Russians under the leadership of Baron Ungern von Sternburg (The Mad Baron) as brutal as the Chinese, and groups of Mongolian nationalists approached the advancing Bolshevik forces to help them expel the White Russians. On November 26, 1924, Mongolia became the second communist country. This period of history is a complex one, with the Mad Baron alternately viewed as a crazed, power hungry individual or as a Mongolian nationalist, while the Bogd Khan was seen as either a spiritual leader or a drunken eccentric isolated in his palace.
For the next 70 years Mongolia was a satellite country to the Soviet Union. The Mongolian government was a actually puppet government controlled by the communist party, executing orders issued by the Kremlin. Between 1930 and 1940 at least one third of the male population of Mongolia was slaughtered by order of the communist party in far-away Moscow. Religious figures, intellectuals, and anyone who might be a threat to the communist party was killed or exiled to Siberia. Lams from entire monasteries were shot and piled into mass graves, monasteries destroyed, and much of Mongolia’s cultural heritage was looted or obliterated. Images of Chinggis Khan were prohibited. The horse tail banner of his reign, which protected and embodied the spirit of the Mongolian people and which had been protected and preserved for generations, was taken away, never to be found again.
On the other hand, the Soviet occupation also brought to Mongolia, with its massive resources, infrastructure for transportation, communication and civil services such as education and health in Mongolia. During communist times Mongolia attained a 97% literacy rate, one of the highest around the world, and saw drastically reduced rates of infant and child mortality. Adult health improved greatly with the introduction of education in sanitary measures, and the advent of running water and sewage systems. Many Mongolians were sent to Russian to receive educations in scientific, engineering, and medical professions. The vast herds of the Mongols were collectivized, and the nomads were given new administrative jobs in settlements designed to create a more fixed, and therefore controllable, civilized population.
As the Soviet block experienced the crash of the communist ideology, Mongolia underwent a peaceful revolution and became a Democratic Republic. Mongolia held its first ever democratic elections since the time of the Great Khans on July 29th, 1990, when surprisingly the Mongolian Peoples Revolutionary Party, the former communist party, was elected. It is with much emotion that Mongolians reflect on the communist experience. The communist regime brought electricity, telephone lines, schools, hospitals, trucks and planes, sanitation, science, and many positive things to Mongolia, along with education in professions that would not have been accessible to Mongolians for perhaps several more decades. At the same time, the fierce independence and self determination of the Mongols was broken, an entire cultural heritage was stripped within the space of a generation, and the nomadic pattern of life within closely knit family clans following seasonal migration routes was destroyed.
The collapse of the communist system brought two significant changes to Mongolia - the end of Russian subsidies and funding for development, and the transition to a market economy. Mongolia went into economic recession, followed by a collapse in the banking system in 1995. In the elections of 1996 the Democratic Party won, establishing the first ever democratic government. In the 2000 election the MPRP won again, and in the 2004 election the Democratic Party won very by a tight margin. The transition to a Democratic Republic has brought about relatively stable government, and peaceful transfers of power, while election results reflect a struggle between the desire for the stability and state support of the past and an equally deep desire for a free economy and liberal business policies. In recent years, Mongolia has been experiencing economic growth and increased prosperity, largely due to the inflow of foreign investment and the exploitation of mineral resources. As educated Mongolians, business people, and younger people find jobs in the cities and new industries of Mongolia, nomadic herders find it increasingly necessary to participate in the market economy and are becoming less reliant on government promises to provide services in a system where social subsidies have become meaninglessly small.
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