In this article, we’ll tell you more about the Mongols and before Genghis Khan, and of course, we’ll detail his impressive rise to power and the inner workings of his massive empire.
Before the Empire
The history of Mongolia did not start with the birth of Genghis; in fact, it stretches back for at least a millennium. The first state on the territory of Mongolia was the Xiognu state in the 3rd century BC. There have been many other states in Mongolia, but the Mongols were only truly united in the Medieval Age.
Around the 12th and 13th centuries, there were major struggles for power in Mongolia. The biggest stretch of land was long ruled by the Chinese Liao dynasty, but they were overthrown by another Chinese dynasty, the Jin, who took control of Mongol lands in 1125. The Jin emperors tried to keep Mongol tribes divided to avoid them contesting their power.
Genghis Khan, Beginnings
The native tribes of Mongolia were loosely organized in tribal confederations (usually with khans ruling over each tribe), that often fought with each other, and were also nomadic, which made centralization a much harder task. One such confederation was the Khamag Mongol, from which emerged Genghis Khan.
Genghis was born Temujin around 1162 as the son of chieftain Yesugei and his wife Hoelun. Both his parents had noble lineage with deep roots in the Khamag Mongol and the Khongirad, which gave him legitimacy, as well as powerful allies.
Tragedy struck when Yesugey was poisoned by the Tatars and Temujin and his mother lost their previously elevated status. They barely survived and the situation got even worse when Temujin was enslaved by the Tayichi’ud in 1177. He managed to escape, however, which earned him respect and allies (most notably Jelme and Bo’orchu).
By that time, Temujin was already married to his first wife, Börte (only her sons were allowed to inherit their father). When she was kidnapped in 1184 by the Merkits (common occurrence at the time), Temujin sought the help of khan Toghrul of the Keraites and he successfully saved Börte, which was a pivotal moment in his military career.
Creating the Mongol Empire
In 1186, Temujin was elected khan of the Mongols. His old friend Jamukha contested his power and eventually defeated him. Temujin, along with his patron Toghrul were exiled. In 1197, however, they won their positions back by helping the Jin attack the Tatars.
Temujin’s rise threatened Toghrul’s leadership and the old khan turned against his former ally with the help of Jamukha. Curiously, many of Toghrul’s and Jamukha’s allies joined Temujin. This could be explained by his political philosophy, which was centred around meritocracy, rather than noble blood, enriching those who excel in military strategy and politics.
He was also well-liked by the common folk due to his treatment of conquered tribes; the tribes were made equal “citizens” of his growing dominion where they could keep practicing their religion and culture. They were also offered unprecedented protection from attacks with a popular saying postulating that a man could cross the Mongol Empire covered in gold without being robbed.
Temujin won the battle against Toghrul and continued his conquest, defeating the Merkits, Keraites and Tatars. He faced Jamukha once again after the khan was betrayed by his friends and turned to Temujin. Jamukha recognised Temujin as the superior leader and asked for a noble death rather than allyship.
Genghis Khan, the Great Khan
Temujin changed his name to Genghis meaning “sea”, with Genghis Khan meaning “ruler of the sea” or “universal ruler”. That happened when he was elected the Great Khan, leader of all Mongols, in 1206, which formally began the Mongol Empire.
His new title inspired him to dream big and lead his troops to Western Xia which he soon conquered. This allowed him to open up the Silk Road, which he turned into an even more sophisticated trading route that earned him a lot of revenue for his campaigns and allowed for the first-of-its-kind international trade.
Genghis Khan then set his eyes on the Jin dynasty, the Chinese royals claiming ownership of Mongol land. The Jins decided to barricade inside Beijing and use the Great Wall as protection. Little did they know that their positions would be revealed to the enemy. Genghis Khan captured the capital in 1215 and started expanding westward.
He began a war with the Khwarazmian Empire after a few peaceful Mongol convoys were attacked by the shah. Genghis Khan created three military divisions that would attack from different sides, which exhausted Khwarazmian troops. After a long and very bloody war, the empire fell.
Genghis Khan continued expanding westward, raiding Afghanistan and reaching Russia. The Mongols conquered the kingdom of Georgia, sacked Crimea and defeated Kievan Rus, although the latter didn’t join the empire until 1237 after being defeated by the Golden Horde. On their way back, the Mongols captured Persia as well.
The last successful military campaign of Genghis Khan was the one against Western Xia against the Chinese. The Western Xia allied with the defeated Jins against the Mongols, but the state eventually fell in 1227 with Genghis Khan killing the whole imperial family, thus putting an end to their line.
Soon after, Genghis Khan died. Some attributed his demise to illness, while others to battle wounds, and even an accidental fall from his horse. Whatever the case is, he left his empire in good hands and his successors kept on conquering neighbouring kingdoms.