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| 0224 |
The Book of Ser Marco Polo : vol.2 |
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bishop in succession to the deceased John of Monte Corvino. John Marignolli speaks
of those Alans as "the greatest and noblest nation in the world, the fairest and
bravest of men," and asserts that in his day there were 30,000 of them in the Great
Kaan's service, and all, at least nominally, Christians.* Rashiduddin also speaks of
the Alans as Christians; though Ibn Batuta certainly mentions the Aas as Mahomedans.
We find Alans about the same time (in 1306) fighting well in the service of the
Byzantine Emperors (Muntaner, p. 449). All these circumstances render Marco's
story of a corps of Christian Alans in the army of Bayan perfectly consistent with
probability. (Carpini, p. 707; Rub., 243; Ramusio, II. 92; I. B. II. 428;
Gaubil, 40, 147; Cathay, 314 seqq.)
[Mr. Rockhill writes (Rubruck, p. 88, note): "The Alans or Aas appear to be
identical with the An-ts'ai or A-lan-na of the Hou Han shu (bk. 88, 9), of whom we
read that 'they led a pastoral life N.W. of Sogdiana (K'ang-chü) in a plain bounded
by great lakes (or swamps), and in their wanderings went as far as the shores of the
Northern Ocean.' (Ma Twan-lin, bk. 338.) Pei-shih (bk. 97, 12) refers to the
under the name of Su-tê and Wen-na-sha (see also Bretschneider, Med. Geog., 258,
et seq.). Strabo refers to them under the name of Aorsi, living to the north but con-
tiguous to the Albani, whom some authors confound with them, but whom later
Armenian historians carefully distinguish from them (De Morgan, Mission, i. 232).
Ptolemy speaks of this people as the 'Scythian Alans' (Ἀλανοὶ Σκύθαι); but the first
definite mention of them in classical authors is, according to Bunbury (ii. 486), found
in Dionysius Periergetes (305), who speaks of the ἀλεξίερρες Ἀλανοί. (See also De
Morgan, i. 202, and Deguignes, ii. 279 et seq.)
"Ammianus Marcellinus (xxxi. 348) says, the Alans were a congeries of tribes
living E. of the Tanais (Don), and stretching far into Asia. 'Distributed over two
continents, all these nations, whose various names I refrain from mentioning, though
separated by immense tracts of country in which they pass their vagabond existence,
have with time been confounded under the generic appellation of Alans.' Ibn Alathir,
at a later date, also refers to the Alans as 'formed of numerous nations.' (Dulaurier,
xiv. 455).
"Conquered by the Huns in the latter part of the fourth century, some of the Alans
moved westward, others settled on the northern slopes of the Caucasus; though long
prior to that, in A.D. 51, they had, as allies of the Georgians, ravaged Armenia.
(See Yule, Cathay, 316; Deguignes, I., pt. ii. 277 et seq.; and De Morgan, I. 217,
et seq.)
"Mirkhond, in the Tarikhi Wassaf, and other Mohammedan writers speak of the
Alans and As. However this may be, it is thought that the Oss or Ossetes of the
Caucasus are their modern representatives (Klaproth, Tabl. hist., 180; De Morgan,
i. 202, 231.)" Aas is the transcription of A-soo (Yuen-shi, quoted by Devéria,
Notes d'épig., p. 75. (See Bretschneider, Med. Res., II., p. 84.)—H. C.]
Note 3.—The Chinese histories do not mention the story of the Alans and their
fate; but they tell how Chang-chau was first taken by the Mongols about April 1275,
and two months later recovered by the Chinese; how Bayan, some months afterwards,
attacked it in person, meeting with a desperate resistance; finally, how the place was
stormed, and how Bayan ordered the whole of the inhabitants to be put to the sword.
Gaubil remarks that some grievous provocation must have been given, as Bayan was
far from cruel. Pauthier gives original extracts on the subject, which are interesting.
They picture the humane and chivalrous Bayan on this occasion as demoniacal in
cruelty, sweeping together all the inhabitants of the suburbs, forcing them to construct
his works of attack, and then butchering the whole of them, boiling down their
carcasses, and using the fat to grease his mangonels! Perhaps there is some misunder-
standing as to the use of this barbarous lubricant. For Carpini relates that the
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731
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