Why Is He Called The Tartars?

John Plano di Carpini was a Franciscan friar and one of the first Europeans to travel to the Mongol Empire. He wrote his History of the Mongols, who he called the Tartars, after his mission and is one of the first attempts of recording the history of the Mongols. In 1241, the Mongols crossed Russia and invaded Eastern Europe. They destroyed the areas of modern-day Poland, Hungary, and parts of Germany. Four years later, Pope Innocent IV sent a mission to try and convert the Mongols, but to also learn about them. The Pope chose Carpini to lead the dangerous mission. Within his text, Carpini described his worries about the trip. In it, he writes “we feared we might be killed by the Tartars or other people, or imprisoned for life, or afflicted with hunger, thirst, cold, heat, injuries and exceeding great trials almost beyond our powers of endurance” (Dawson 3). His fears concerned basic instincts of survival that arise in foreign places around unknown peoples.
He had participated in the Seventh Crusade under the French King Louis IX. While there, he heard about the Mongols and decided to try and convert them to Christianity. He also wanted to convince them to help the Christians fight against the Muslims. The Journey of William of Rubruck is his account of his travel and times among the Mongols. Unlike Carpini who feared for his safety, Rubruck feared that he was doing it wrong. He cites the Wise Man in the book of Ecclesiasticus, and writes that “for many perform the same actions as a wise man, not however in a wise manner but rather foolishly and I fear I am to be numbered among these” (Dawson