TELEVISION

Barbarian Empires of the Steppes

Series: Great Courses
4.5
(43)
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Episodes
36
Rating
TVPG
Year
2014
Language
English
Publisher
The Great Courses

About

Attila the Hun and Genghis Khan loom large in the popular consciousness as two of history's most fearsome warrior-leaders. Yet few people today are aware of their place in a succession of nomadic warriors who emerged from the Eurasian steppes to seize control of civilizations. Get startling new insights on how the world was shaped and discover cultures and empires you've likely never encountered.

Related Subjects

Episodes

1 to 3 of 36

1. Steppes and Peoples

30m

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The Mongol sack on Baghdad in 1258 is often seen as the epitome of the clash between barbarian peoples of the steppes and the peoples of the civilized world. Explore this notion and hear a detailed account of the destruction, then conclude with an overview of life on the steppes and the organization of this course.

2. The Rise of the Steppe Nomads

30m

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Learn about the earliest known nomads of the Pontic-Caspian steppes, beginning with the origins of the Indo-European languages. See how innovations including the raising of livestock, the domestication of the horse, and the invention of the spoked wheel - and ultimately, the light chariot - transformed steppe life and led to migrations across Eurasia.

3. Early Nomads and China

30m

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As you shift focus from the original homeland of the Indo-Europeans on the Pontic-Caspian steppes to Mongolia, examine how Iranian and Tocharian nomads came into contact with China, their interaction, and the repercussions this contact had across the central and western steppes, and the great bordering civilizations.

Extended Details

  • Closed CaptionsEnglish

Artists

Kenneth W. Harlwriter
Kenneth W. Harlactor

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