Why the Mongols Never Conquered Japan (It Wasn't Just the Wind)

Why did the Mongols never conquer Japan? The Mongol invasions of Japan (1274 and 1281) explained: the kamikaze "divine wind," Kublai Khan, the samurai and the history behind the legend. Spoiler: the typhoon came last. A stone wall, night raids and a shaky fleet came first. Kublai Khan sent two invasion fleets at Japan, and the famous story says a divine wind sank them both. The real history is stranger: a letter Japan refused to answer, envoys who never went home, a 12-mile stone wall built in about six months, samurai raiding the fleet in small boats at night, invasion ships found on the seabed off Takashima, and one warrior who paid for two very long illustrated scrolls to prove he deserved a reward. Animated, sourced and told start to finish by the Sage. Chapters: 0:00 Intro 0:44 Why Did Kublai Khan Want Japan? 2:04 1274: Did a Storm Really Save Japan? 4:12 Round Two: Japan Builds a Wall 5:14 1281: Two Months Going Nowhere 6:51 What the Wind Actually Did 8:25 Who Got the Credit, and Who Paid? Sources (key works): Thomas D. Conlan, In Little Need of Divine Intervention: Takezaki Suenaga's Scrolls of the Mongol Invasions of Japan (Cornell East Asia Series, 2001) Bowdoin College / Thomas Conlan, Mongol Invasions of Japan, 1274 and 1281 (learn.bowdoin.edu/mongol-invasions) Stephen Turnbull, The Mongol Invasions of Japan 1274 and 1281 (Osprey, 2010) Randall J. Sasaki, The Origins of the Lost Fleet of the Mongol Empire (Texas A&M University Press, 2015) Yoshifumi Ikeda, Underwater Archaeological Research on the Mongol Invasions of Japan (JSPS Kakenhi essay, 2013) James P. Delgado, "Relics of the Kamikaze," Archaeology 56:1 (2003) Kawai Atsushi, "Saved by the Wind? The Mongol Invasions of Japan," Nippon.com National Archives of Japan, "Relations between Japan and Mongolia in the 13th century" Credits: Narration: synthetic voice (Kokoro). Sound effects: Kenney (CC0). Map data: Natural Earth (public domain); terrain: Terrain Tiles on AWS Open Data (Mapzen/Tilezen; SRTM, GMTED2010, ETOPO1). Fonts: Alfa Slab One, IM Fell English SC (SIL OFL). #history #mongols #japan