The history of the later Abbasid period saw the rise of Turkic Islamic states in Central Asia and their conquest of the Buddhist states in the region, such as Khotan. At the end of this period, before the Mongol invasions of Central Asia, the Ghurid Turks conquered Northern India and plundered and destroyed the wealthy Buddhist monasteries that were garrisons of resistance. The main motive did not seem to be based on religion, but on political and economic gain.