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The Chinese Cultural Revolution : China

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The Chinese Cultural Revolution The history of China is a vast and extremely enriching topic. Stretching for thousands of years, Chinese culture has been able to grow and expand thanks to the help from others. Between the 13th and the 20th centuries especially, China has a multicultural and ethnical revolution. There is not just one thing that sets off this expansion, but multiple factors that will be discussed in detail through out this essay thanks to the Cambridge Illustrated Edition of China and The Travels of Marco Polo the Venetian. The Mongol invasion, Marco Polo, and the Qing Dynasty are all factors that lead to this cultural revolution. Chinggis (aka Ghengis) Khan is the most predominant name that comes to mind when Mongols are talked about, but it is his son (Ogodei) and his grandson (Khubilai) who are the reason the Chinese experience the multicultural and ethnical diversity during this time. Upon his death, Chinggis’s conquerings are divided into four territories with Ogodei, gaining control of Mongolia. He gains control of Northern China when “in 1234 he crushed the Jin” (Ebrey 170). This is a big step for the Mongols and by “1236 he had taken all but four of the 58 districts in Sichuan, previously held by the Song” (Ebrey 170). For any other nation with a big army this is not an impressive feat, but the Mongols are not like the other big armies of the time, since the Mongols themselves are no more than two million people. In fact they can base their

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