Genghis Khan: the Mongol chief who founded the world’s largest land empire

In the late 12th century, dozens of nomadic tribes fought one another across the vast grasslands of Mongolia. Among them a boy named Temujin was born. He later came to be known as Genghis Khan. He ruled from 1206 until his death in 1227. He united the tribes and founded an empire that his successors made the largest contiguous land empire in history. His conquests were accompanied by widespread destruction and massacre. One chapter of his story was also written on the banks of the Indus, in present-day Pakistan.

Early life

According to the World History Encyclopedia, the main source for Genghis Khan’s life is the "Secret History of the Mongols". Parts of it date from the first half of the 13th century, and it also contains many legendary details. The year of his birth is uncertain. Some scholars give 1162 and others 1167. His father, Yesugei, was a tribal chief who was poisoned by a rival tribe. Temujin was then between nine and 12 years old.

After his father’s death, the tribe abandoned the family. According to History.com, Temujin was once taken captive by a tribe but escaped. Gradually he formed alliances, built ties with Toghrul, chief of the Keraites, and gained a reputation as a warrior.

The Great Khan

According to the World History Encyclopedia, Temujin defeated rivals such as the Tatars, Keraites, Naimans and Merkits in about ten years. In 1206, the "Quriltai", the assembly of Mongol chiefs, near the source of the Onon River, recognised him as its head and gave him the title "Genghis Khan", which probably means "universal ruler".

According to History.com, he broke with tradition by giving key posts to capable companions rather than relatives. He organised soldiers in groups of ten rather than by tribe. According to the World History Encyclopedia, he ordered the Mongol language, which had until then only been spoken, to be written in the Uyghur script. He had a code of laws, known as the "Yasa", compiled and set up a postal system of mounted messengers. According to both sources, followers of different religions were free to practise their faith in his empire, and trade and merchants were protected.

Campaigns towards China

Genghis Khan’s first major foreign campaign was against the Xi Xia state in north-western China. After the campaign of 1209, its ruler agreed to pay tribute. The turn of the Jin dynasty of northern China followed. According to History.com, from 1211 to 1214 the Mongols ravaged its countryside, and in 1215 they destroyed the Jin capital Zhongdu, present-day Beijing. According to the World History Encyclopedia, about 90 cities were destroyed in 1212 and 1213 alone. One tactic was to destroy one city to warn others that they would meet the same fate if they did not surrender.

The Khwarazm war and the battle at the Indus

In the west, Genghis Khan came up against the Khwarazmian empire, which spread across present-day Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Afghanistan and Iran. According to History.com, the Sultan of Khwarazm made a trade agreement. But when the first Mongol trade caravan arrived, its goods were plundered and the merchants were killed. Genghis Khan’s envoys were then killed as well. The campaign began in 1219. In 1220–1221 the Mongol army took cities such as Bukhara, Samarkand and Gurganj one by one. Craftsmen were generally spared, while soldiers and nobles who resisted were killed. According to the World History Encyclopedia, countless cities were destroyed in this campaign and the region’s irrigation system was also ruined.

Jalal al-Din, son of the Khwarazm Shah, resisted and moved east. According to extracts from the history of the Persian historian Juwaini, included in the book by Elliot and Dowson, Jalal al-Din put his horse into the river when defeat became certain in the battle on the banks of the Indus, and swam to the other side. According to an account in the same book, the river bank stood more than 30 feet above the water. Genghis Khan watched the scene from the bank and praised Jalal al-Din’s courage. Juwaini dates the event to 618 AH (1221). According to the same source, a Mongol detachment later crossed the river in pursuit, reached Multan and besieged the city, but withdrew because of the intense heat.

The scale of destruction: historians’ estimates

There is no reliable figure for how many people were killed in the wars of Genghis Khan and his successors. According to the World History Encyclopedia, medieval chroniclers speak of deaths in the hundreds of thousands. According to History.com, it is impossible to know the exact toll, partly because the Mongols themselves publicised their ruthlessness to spread terror. In another article by the same organisation, many historians put the number killed in the Mongol conquests at about 40 million. The available estimates thus range from "hundreds of thousands" to about 40 million, and they include the wars of his successors, not only those of Genghis Khan.

Death and legacy

According to History.com, in early 1227, during a new campaign against Xi Xia, Genghis Khan fell from his horse and was injured. His health never recovered. He died on 18 August 1227. According to the World History Encyclopedia, his body was taken to Mongolia but the location of his grave was kept secret and is still unknown.

He had divided the empire among his sons Jochi, Chagatai, Tolui and Ogedei. In 1229, Ogedei became Great Khan. His grandson Kublai Khan later conquered all of China and founded the Yuan dynasty. According to History.com, at its height the Mongol empire covered more than 11 million square miles. In Mongolia today, Genghis Khan is remembered as the founder of the nation.

Historians describe both sides of Genghis Khan. On one side are the destruction of cities and the loss of hundreds of thousands of lives in his wars. On the other are writing, law, the postal system and the protection of trade routes, which brought East and West closer. His story can only be understood by keeping both facts in view.