male narrator: THIS IS CHINA. THIS COUNTRY OF MORE THAN 1 BILLION PEOPLE HAS ONE OF THE LARGEST ECONOMIES IN THE WORLD. AND WHERE THERE IS MONEY, THERE ARE MERCHANTS. MERCHANTS, OR PEOPLE WHO BUY AND SELL GOODS, HAVE BEEN A PART OF CHINESE LIFE FOR THOUSANDS OF YEARS. BUT IT WASN'T UNTIL THE 13TH CENTURY WHEN THE WARRIOR KUBLAI KAHN CONQUERED CHINA THAT THESE MERCHANTS BECAME A POWERFUL GROUP. THE NEW EMPEROR KNEW THAT HE COULDN'T RULE A COUNTRY AS LARGE AS CHINA FOR LONG WITH ONLY A FEW HUNDRED THOUSAND SOLDIERS. KUBLAI KAHN NEEDED HELP AND LOTS OF IT. KUBLAI KAHN DECIDED TO GROUP ALL OF HIS SUBJECTS INTO SPECIAL CLASSES, EACH WITH DIFFERENT RIGHTS AND RESPONSIBILITIES. KUBLAI KAHN'S WARRIORS, THE MONGOLS, WOULD BE THE MOST POWERFUL CLASS. THEY WOULD RULE THE COUNTRY, LIVE IN GREAT ESTATES, AND NEVER PAY TAXES. PEASANTS LIVING IN THE NORTH AND SOUTH WOULD BE CHINA'S FARMERS AND LABORERS. KUBLAI KAHN ALSO CREATED ANOTHER GROUP, THE SEMU REN, OR PERSONS WITH SPECIAL STATUS. THESE SPECIAL PEOPLE ACTED AS THE MONGOLS' ASSISTANTS AND HELPED THEM GOVERN CHINA. WHILE NOT AS WEALTHY OR AS POWERFUL AS THE MONGOLS, THE SEMU REN WERE ABLE TO USE THEIR CONTACTS WITH PEOPLE INSIDE AND OUTSIDE OF THE EMPIRE TO PROMOTE TRADE. OFFICIALS IN KUBLAI KAHN'S EMPIRE WERE ABLE TO PROVIDE TRADERS WITH TEXTILES, TEA, AND SUGAR IN RETURN FOR GOLD AND SILVER. THE SEMU REN CHANGED FROM OFFICIALS TO MERCHANTS. FROM THE DAYS OF KUBLAI KAHN TO THE PRESENT, MERCHANTS HAVE BEEN AN INTEGRAL PART OF CHINESE LIFE. THEY HAVE NOT ONLY TRADED IN GOODS, THEY HAVE ALSO HELPED TO SPREAD THE WONDERS OF CHINESE CULTURE TO THE REST OF THE WORLD.
Follow Up Question 1:
True or false? Kublai Khan's warriors never had to pay taxes.
BY THE YEAR 1279, THE GRANDSON OF GENGHIS KHAN, KUBLAI KHAN, HAD OVERTHROWN THE LAST EMPEROR OF THE SONG DYNASTY AND ESTABLISHED THE MONGOL YUAN DYNASTY. IT WAS DURING THE YUAN DYNASTY THAT CHINA ACHIEVED ITS MAXIMUM SIZE BY BEING UNITED WITH THE MONGOL EMPIRE OF GENGHIS KHAN. AND IT WAS ALSO DURING THE YUAN DYNASTY THAT A MAN NAMED MARCO POLO BECAME THE FIRST EUROPEAN TO WRITE A BOOK ABOUT CHINA. MARCO POLO CAME FROM VENICE, A RICH AND POWERFUL ITALIAN CITY-STATE THAT CONTROLLED A MIGHTY TRADING EMPIRE. IN FACT, NEARLY ALL OF THE LUXURY GOODS THAT REACHED THE WEST ON THE SILK ROAD ENDED UP BEING CARRIED TO EUROPE ON VENETIAN SHIPS. AS A RESULT, VENICE PRETTY MUCH CONTROLLED THE PRICES OF THOSE GOODS. IN THE YEAR 1271, MARCO POLO SAILED FROM VENICE TO THE EASTERN EDGE OF THE MEDITERRANEAN SEA, AND THEN, FOR THREE YEARS, HE TRAVELED DOWN THE SILK ROAD TO CHINA. AFTER SPENDING NEARLY TWO DECADES IN THAT COUNTRY AND GETTING TO KNOW KUBLAI KHAN QUITE WELL, MARCO POLO RETURNED TO VENICE, LOADED DOWN WITH VALUABLE TREASURES FROM THE EMPEROR, AS WELL AS A LETTER TO THE POPE. AND THE BOOK MARCO POLO WROTE ABOUT HIS TRAVELS INSPIRED EUROPEANS TO LEARN MORE ABOUT CHINESE INVENTIONS, CUSTOMS, AND INSTITUTIONS OF GOVERNMENT.
Follow Up Question 2:
How long did it take Marco Polo to travel down the Silk Road until he reached China?
