Onslaught 1247;
In 1241, having conquered the Rus states, the Mongol Hordes descended upon eastern Europe.
One Army looped north through Poland, defeating a combined Army of Poles, Templars & Empire troops at Legnica. A second Army crossed the Carpathian Mountains whilst a third followed the Danube.
The now combined Mogol force feigned a retreat from the Army of King Bela IV of Hungary.
Bela's Army included Cuman troops but the Hungarians turned on them & they fled, devastating the land as they went. Bickering also saw the departure of Duke Frederick of Austria.
The battle at the Sajo River saw the Hungarian Army outmanouvered, out-fought & almost destroyed. Bela escaped but was pursued south, by 1242, into Croatia then into Dalmatia.
The Mongols experienced the same difficulty they had during the first invasion of China, namely, they were unable to take fortified towns. Croatian troops had defeated the pursuing Mongol force outside the fortress of Klis & it was here, whilst Bela continued to retreat from the re-inforced Mongols, that Stephen, Bela's son, was born.
Employing skilled citizens from the captured cities of Hungary plus imported engineers fro their new rus vassals the fortified places of Hungary fell during the seasons of 1242-1244. Bela was finally captured & killed in Bosnia, the Arpad line extinguished except for Stephen whose mother fled with him to the presumed safety of the Empire.
The main Mongol force had sent out strong scouting forces to investigate neighbouring states &, after the near destruction of Weiner Neustadt, south of Vienna, Duke Frederick followed the example of previous Rus princes, putting himself under the protection of the Khan.
Other forces raided deep into the Empire, both north & south of the Alps reaching the River Rhine in the north whilst the southern force sacked Pisa & Rome, among many other rich Italian Cities. Emperor Frederick II was killed in battle near Ancona in 1244 plunging the Empire into Civil War over the succession as well.
In the early 1230's Genoa had reached an agreement with the Mongols that saw only the trading posts of their rivals attacked. This agreement now stood them in good stead, they were successful against depleted Pisan forces on Sardinia & also made gains in Liguria. Similarly Nicaea made alliance with this Northern branch of the Mongols which gained them protection from the southern forces of Hugalu who was entering Anatolia after capturing Mesopotamia.
The new Mongol lands were organised into two new states or Ulus, Ulus Jurchj & Ulus Orda.
The death of Khan Ogedei, in 1247, was not unexpected. He had suffered a long illness. For this reason, raids in 1246-47 were severely curtailed.
All claimants to the Great Khanate headed towards Karakorum to decide on the new ruler. Civil War seemed certain. The death of Guyuk, in 1248, left Batu & Mongke as front runners. As Jochi, Batu's father, had not been of pure Mongol parentage, support swung towards Mongke who was proclaimed Great Khan in 1251.
