How many years did Genghis Khan live? Genghis Khan is not his real name

Genghis Khan was born in 1155 or 1162, in the Delyun-Boldok tract, on the banks of the Onon River. At birth he was given the name Temujin.

When the boy was 9 years old, he was betrothed to a girl from the Ungirat clan, Borte. He was raised for a long time in the family of his bride.

When Temujin became a teenager, his distant relative, the Taichiut leader Tartugai-Kiriltukh, declared himself the sole ruler of the steppe and began to pursue his rival.

After an attack by an armed detachment, Temujin was captured and spent many years in painful slavery. But soon he managed to escape, after which he was reunited with his family, married his bride and entered into the struggle for power in the steppe.

First military campaigns

At the very beginning of the 13th century, Temujin, together with Wang Khan, launched a campaign against the Taijiuts. After 2 years, he undertook an independent campaign against the Tatars. The first independently won battle contributed to the fact that Temujin’s tactical and strategic skills were appreciated.

Great conquests

In 1207, Genghis Khan, having decided to secure the border, captured the Tangut state of Xi-Xia. It was located between the state of Jin and the possessions of the Mongol ruler.

In 1208, Genghis Khan captured several well-fortified cities. In 1213, after capturing the fortress in the Great Wall of China, the commander carried out an invasion of the Jin state. Struck by the power of the attack, many Chinese garrisons surrendered without a fight and came under the command of Genghis Khan.

The unofficial war continued until 1235. But the remnants of the army were quickly defeated by one of the children of the great conqueror, Ogedei.

In the spring of 1220, Genghis Khan conquered Samarkand. Passing through Northern Iran, he invaded the southern Caucasus. Then Genghis Khan's troops came to the North Caucasus.

In the spring of 1223, a battle between the Mongols and the Russian Polovtsians took place. The latter were defeated. Intoxicated by victory, Genghis Khan's troops themselves were defeated in Volga Bulgaria and in 1224 returned to their ruler.

Genghis Khan's reforms

In the spring of 1206, Temujin was proclaimed Great Khan. There he “officially” adopted a new name - Chingiz. The most important thing that the Great Khan was able to do was not his numerous conquests, but the unification of the warring tribes into the powerful Mongol Empire.

Thanks to Genghis Khan, courier communications were created, intelligence and counterintelligence were organized. Economic reforms were implemented.

last years of life

There is no exact information regarding the cause of death of the Great Khan. According to some reports, he died suddenly in the early autumn of 1227, due to the consequences of an unsuccessful fall from his horse.

According to the unofficial version, the old khan was stabbed to death at night by his young wife, who was taken by force from his young and beloved husband.

Other biography options

• Genghis Khan had an appearance atypical for a Mongol. He was blue-eyed and fair-haired. According to historians, he was too cruel and bloodthirsty even for a medieval ruler. He more than once forced his soldiers to become executioners in conquered cities.
• The tomb of the Great Khan is still shrouded in mystical fog. It has not yet been possible to reveal her secret.

Death of Genghis Khan. Major versions

Genghis Khan died in 1227 during a campaign against. According to Genghis Khan's dying wish, his body was transported to his homeland and interred in the area of ​​Mount Burkan-Kaldun.
According to the official version of the “Secret Legend”, on the way to the Tangut state he fell from his horse and was badly injured while hunting wild kulan horses and fell ill:
“Having decided to go to the Tanguts at the end of the winter period of the same year, Genghis Khan conducted a new re-registration of the troops and in the fall of the Year of the Dog (1226) set out on a campaign against the Tanguts. Of the Khanshas, ​​Yesui-ha followed the sovereign tun. On the way, during a raid on the Arbukhai wild kulan horses, which are found there in abundance, Genghis Khan sat astride a brown-gray horse. During the attack of the kulans, his brown-gray climbed onto the dab, and the sovereign fell and was badly hurt. Therefore, we made a stop at the Tsoorkhat tract. The night passed, and the next morning Yesui-khatun said to the princes and noyons: “The sovereign had a strong fever at night. We need to discuss the situation."
Further in the text of the “Secret Legend” it is said that “Genghis Khan, after the final defeat of the Tanguts, returned and ascended to heaven in the year of the Pig” (1227). From the Tangut spoils, he especially generously rewarded Yesui-Khatun at his very departure.”
In the “Collection of Chronicles” of Rashid ad-Din the following is said about the death of Genghis Khan:
“Genghis Khan died within the country of Tangut from an illness that befell him. Even earlier, during his will to his sons and sending them back, he commanded that when this event happened to him, they would hide it, not weep or cry, so that his death would not be discovered, and that the emirs and troops there would wait until the sovereign and the inhabitants of Tangut did not leave the walls of the city at the appointed time, then they would have killed everyone and would not have allowed the rumor of his death to quickly reach the regions until the ulus gathered together. According to his will, his death was hidden.”
In Marco Polo, Genghis Khan heroically dies in battle from an arrow wound to the knee, and in the chronicle « from an incurable disease, the cause of which was an unhealthy climate" or from a fever that he contracted in the Tangut city,from a lightning strike. The version of the death of Genghis Khan from a lightning strike is found only in the works of Plano Carpini and brother C. de Bridia. In Central Asia, death from lightning was considered unfortunate to the extreme.
In the Tatar chronicleGenghis Khan was stabbed to death with sharp scissors in his sleep by a young Tangut princess during their wedding night. According to another less common legend, he died on his wedding night from a fatal wound inflicted with the teeth of a Tangut princess, who then threw herself into the Huang He River. This river began to be called Khatun-muren by the Mongols, which means “ queen river».
In retellingthis legend goes like this:
“According to a widespread Mongolian legend, which the author also heard, Genghis Khan allegedly died from a wound inflicted by the Tangut Khansha, the beautiful Kurbeldishin Khatun, who spent her only wedding night with Genghis Khan, who took her as his wife by right of the conqueror after the capture of the Tangut kingdom. Having left his capital and harem, the Tangut king Shidurho-Khagan, distinguished by cunning and deceit, allegedly persuaded his wife, who remained there, to inflict a mortal wound on Genghis Khan with her teeth during their wedding night, and his deceit was so great that he sent advice to Genghis Khan so that she could searched “to the nails” in order to avoid an attempt on the life of the khan. After the bite, Kurbeldishin Khatun threw herself into the Yellow River, on the banks of which Genghis Khan stood at his headquarters. This river was then called Khatun-muren by the Mongols, which means “river of the queen.”
A similar version of the legend is given by N.M. Karamzin in “History of the Russian State” (1811):
“Carpini writes that Genghis Khan was killed by thunder, and the Siberian Mungals say that he, having forcibly taken his young wife from the Tangut Khan, was stabbed to death by her at night, and that she, fearing execution, drowned herself in the river, which was therefore called Khatun-Gol.”
N.M. Karamzin probably borrowed this evidence from the classic work “History of Siberia”, written by the German historian academician G. Miller in 1761:
“It is known how Abulgazi tells about the death of Genghis: according to him, it followed on the way back from Tangut, after he defeated the ruler he himself had appointed, but who rebelled against him, named Shidurku. The Mongolian chronicles report completely different information about this. Gaudurga, as they write, was then khan in Tangut, he was attacked by Genghis with the aim of kidnapping one of his wives, about whose beauty he had heard a lot. Genghis was lucky to get the desired booty. On the way back, during a night stop on the banks of a large river, which is the border between Tangut, China and Mongolian land and which flows through China into the ocean, he was killed while sleeping by his new wife, who stabbed him with sharp scissors. The killer knew that for her act she would receive retribution from the people. She prevented the punishment that threatened her by throwing herself into the above-mentioned river immediately after the murder and committed suicide there. In memory of her, this river, which is called Gyuan-guo in Chinese, received the Mongolian name Khatun-gol, that is, women's river. The steppe near Khatun-gol, in which this great Tatar sovereign and founder of one of the largest kingdoms is buried, bears the Mongolian name Nulun-talla. But it is not known whether other Tatar or Mongol sovereigns from the clan of Genghis were buried there, as Abulgazi tells about the Burkhan-Kaldin tract.”
G. Miller names the Tatar handwritten chronicle of Khan Abulagazi as the source of this information and “. However, information that Genghis Khan was stabbed to death with sharp scissors is given only in the chronicle of Abulagazi; in the “Golden Chronicle” this detail is not present, although the rest of the plot is the same.
In the Mongolian work “Shastra Orunga” the following is written: “Genghis Khan in the summer of the year of the Ge-cow in the sixty-sixth year of his life in the city simultaneously with his wife Goa Khulan, changing his body, showed eternity.”
All of the listed versions of the same memorable event for the Mongols are surprisingly very different from each other. The latest version contradicts the “Secret Legend”, which says that at the end of his life Genghis Khan was ill, and next to him was his devoted khansha Yesui Khatun.
Thus, today there are five different versions of the death of Genghis Khan, each of which has an authoritative basis in historical sources.

Yesugai carefully took the screaming baby into his arms, looked caringly at his beloved wife and said:

Hoelun, he will be a real warrior! Just look how he screams, how tightly he clenches his fists! Let's call him Temujin?

Why Temujin? – the brown-eyed beautiful wife calmly asked. In the short time since Yesugai stole her from under the crown, she taught herself not to be surprised by her husband’s impulsive actions: after all, he was a warrior, the ruler of a small domain.

That was the name of the brave leader who fought with me to the last drop of blood,” Yesugai answered thoughtfully. – I respect strong opponents. Our son faces the path of a warrior, may he be as brave as Temujin, defeated by my hand?

Hoelun meekly agreed. The mother’s heart told her that her first-born would have a difficult path in life, and a talisman in the form of the name of a strong warrior would come in handy for the boy.

Temujin grew up as a strong and brave boy. Together with his brothers, he organized competitions on the banks of the Onon River, where his father’s possessions were located. Their mother told them legends and stories about brave warriors, and inspired them that the time would come when they would be able to conquer the whole world. Temujin listened to her every word. Then neither he nor his parents could have imagined that several decades later this clever boy would be proclaimed the ruler of all lands from the Urals to China - the Great Khan over all the tribes inhabiting the lands he conquered. And his name will be Genghis Khan.

Temujin's years of wandering

The childhood of the future commander lasted until he was nine years old in the calm atmosphere of a loving and friendly family, until his father decided to marry him to the daughter of an eminent neighbor, the brave warrior Dai-sechen. The girl was only a year older than Temujin, and her name was Borte. According to Mongolian law, the groom had to live in the bride's yurt for several years before the wedding. However, the wedding did not take place on time, because on the way back Yesugai ended up with the Tatars, his sworn enemies. He mistook them for peacefully feasting nomads and shared the meal with them. He soon returned home to his wife and died a few days later in terrible agony. Before his death, Yesugai blamed the Tatars for his death, saying that they poisoned him.

The grief of Hoelun was immeasurable, and the grief of the sons of Yesugai was immeasurable. But no one could have imagined that his eldest son, who experienced the death of his beloved father, his idol, the hardest of all, began to hatch a plan for revenge on the poisoners. Thirty years later, he and his invincible warriors will fall on the Tatars and defeat them, seizing territory.

Upon learning of his father's death, Temujin urgently left the yurt of his future wife, to whom he had become very attached during this time, and went to his native village. Imagine his grief when he learned that cunning neighbors, having slandered Hoelun and falsely accused her of non-compliance with rituals (widows of khans were supposed to go annually to worship their ancestors and make sacrifices to the gods on the spring holiday), provoked a mass exodus of Yesugai’s subjects. They themselves quickly took possession of the cattle and lands that rightfully belonged to Olwen and her family.

They had to endure many hardships during this time - constant assassination attempts from treacherous neighbors, destruction of pastures, livestock theft, hunger, poverty, murder of Yesugai's loyal subjects, who decided to share the fate of the widow and her children. Fearing for the fate of his heirs, Hoelun decides to go to a very remote, even by the standards of Mongolia, province - at the foot of Mount Burkhan-Khaldun. The family spent several years there. It was in those places that the character of her eldest son, Temujin, the future conqueror and khan of all Mongol tribes, was tempered in adversity.

Temujin never gave up. In his youth, he was captured by his father's enemy Targutai. Fleeing from hunger, Yesugaya's family, now extremely impoverished, descended into the river valley. There they were tracked down and robbed by Targutai, capturing Temujin. In addition, he subjected the young man, and the future conqueror at that time was only 16-17 years old, to a shameful punishment - by putting him in stocks. The young man himself could not take food, water or even move without help - for a week he walked around the village and asked each yurt for food and overnight accommodation. But one day he hit a guard with a neck block and fled. The best warriors of Targutai set off in pursuit of him, but they failed to catch Temujin there - he spent the whole day in one of the river backwaters, chained in stocks. The neck acted as a life preserver.

Soon he returned home, where another test awaited him - to return the horses stolen by horse thieves. And Temujin coped with this task perfectly, at the same time making friends with his peer Bogorchi from the seedy Arulat family. Having become Genghis Khan, he did not forget his comrade and made him his right hand - the commander of the right flank of the army.

Marriage of Temujin

On the eve of his seventeenth birthday, Temujin reminded his mother of his matchmaking with Borte and expressed his desire to marry her. Hoelun was tormented by doubts - after all, despite their famous pedigree, they were now barely making ends meet. How will the rich and influential Dai-sechen receive them? Will he drive away her first-born son in disgrace? However, Hoelun's fears were not justified. Father Borte turned out to be a man of his word and agreed to give his daughter to Temujin as his wife.

She became the first and most beloved wife of the future Genghis Khan. They lived together for almost fifty years. She was her husband’s adviser, support, and homemaker. Borte gave her husband four sons, future uluses of the Great Mongol Power, as well as five daughters. When, due to her age, she could no longer give birth to children, she humbly accepted her husband’s desire to have children from other wives, of whom Genghis Khan, according to some information, had eight.

The family life of the future Genghis Khan with Borte has long been overgrown with legends. According to one of them, the girl’s mother gave her daughter a sable fur coat as a dowry, which later played an important role in the release of Borte from captivity. Long before the birth of Temujin, Yesugei kidnapped Hoelun from a noble Merkit warrior from under the crown. With this in mind, the Merkits stole Borte from Yesugei’s son and held her captive. Temujin brought this fur coat as a gift to the Kereit khan as a reminder of the warm and friendly relations between Yesukei and the Kereits. It was they who helped Temujin attack the Merkits, defeat their army and free Borte.

When Borte was released after several months of captivity, it turned out that she was expecting a child. Noble Temujin stubbornly insisted that his wife was stolen from him in his position. The subjects, however, did not really believe in it. It is possible that Genghis Khan was not completely sure of his paternity, but he never reproached his beloved. And he treated the child (and this was his first-born, Jochi, the father of Batu Khan) with the same love as he treated the rest of his children.

Military campaigns of Temujin - Genghis Khan

It is not known for certain how many aggressive campaigns the emperor of the Mongol Empire undertook. However, the annals of history preserve information about the largest military enterprises in his biography. It is known that Genghis Khan was very ambitious. His main goal was to create a powerful state from the scattered Mongol tribes.

He owed his first military successes not only to his tactical plans, but also to the help of his allies. For example, with the help of Toghrul, his father’s comrade in arms, he participated in a campaign against the Tatars, whom he had long been planning to avenge for his father’s death. They succeeded. The Tatar leaders were defeated, the warriors were captured, and the lands were divided between the Jin emperor, Temujin and Toghrul.

The second time, as the commander of a small army, he launched a campaign against his childhood friend Jamukha. Despite the fact that they considered themselves sworn brothers, their views on the form of government in Mongolia differed in many ways. Jamukha sympathized with the common people, and Temujin pinned his hopes on the aristocracy.

The future Genghis Khan believed that only among the Mongols could a new leader and commander emerge, who would be able to unite all the scattered Mongol tribes. Remembering numerous legends told to him by his mother as a child, Temujin was convinced that it was he who would have such a mission.

Genghis Khan was supported by the numerous Mongol aristocracy, and the common people took the side of Jamukha. Temujin's former comrade now turned out to be his sworn enemy, who was plotting against him with forces hostile to the future ruler of Mongolia. However, Temujin, with the help of troops and cunning military tactics, won. He put the leaders to immediate execution to intimidate their enemies.

Subsequently, many leaders and ordinary warriors went over to the side of the future emperor - this is how Genghis Khan’s army gradually increased, as well as the lands he conquered. There are several reasons for this: thanks to many military victories, the ideal of a hero, protected by Heaven itself, was assigned to him. In addition, Temuzhdin had a remarkable oratorical gift that ignited the hearts of people, a rare mind, military talents and a strong will.

After numerous military victories in 1206, Temujin was proclaimed Genghis Khan, i.e. the greatest ruler of all Mongol tribes. Among his many victories are the Mongol-Jin and Tangut wars, the conquest of all of Central Asia, Siberia, several provinces of China, the Crimea, as well as the famous battle on the Kalka River, when Genghis Khan’s army easily defeated the army of Russian princes.

Genghis Khan's military tactics

Genghis Khan's army did not know defeat, because the main principle of the leader was attack and good reconnaissance. Genghis Khan always attacked from several positions. He demanded a detailed plan of action from military leaders, approved it or rejected it, was present at the beginning of the battle, and then left, completely relying on his subordinates.

Most often, the Mongols attacked suddenly, acted by deception - they pretended to run away, and then, scattering, surrounded one of the enemy’s flanks and destroyed it. They attacked under the cover of light cavalry in parallel columns and pursued the enemies until they were destroyed. The right ear of the dead was cut off, stored separately, and then specially trained people counted the number of those killed using such unusual trophies. In addition, under the leadership of Genghis Khan, Mongol warriors began to use smoke screens and signal black and white flags.

Death of Genghis Khan

Genghis Khan participated in military campaigns until his old age. In 1227, returning with victory from the Tangut state, he died. Several causes of death are called at once - from illness, from a wound, from a fall from a horse, from the hand of a young concubine, and even from exposure to an unhealthy climate, i.e. from fever. This is still an unresolved issue.

It is only known that Genghis Khan was a little over seventy. He had a presentiment of his death and was deeply affected by the death of his eldest son Jochi. Shortly before the campaign against the Tanguts, the emperor left a spiritual testament to his sons, in which he spoke of the need for the brothers to stick together both in governing the great empire and in military campaigns. This was necessary, according to Genghis Khan, so that his children would gain the pleasure of power.

Before his death, the great commander bequeathed to bury himself in his homeland, in a tomb, at the bottom of a river, the location of which no one should know. Two historical monuments - the “Golden Chronicle” and the “Secret Legend” - say that Genghis Khan’s body was buried in a tomb made of gold, at the very bottom of the river. For these purposes, the noble Mongols brought with them many slaves, who built a dam after the funeral, and then returned the river to its previous course.

On the way to the Onon River (according to one version), the soldiers killed all living things they encountered along the way - people, birds, animals. All slaves involved in the construction of the dam were ordered to be beheaded. All these measures were necessary so that no one could discover the graves of Genghis Khan. It has not been discovered yet.

After the death of Genghis Khan, the glory of the Mongol Empire only increased, thanks to the exploits of his sons and grandsons. The Empire continued to be a great power until the end of the 15th century, when internecine wars weakened and destroyed it. The Mongols still believe in the imminent coming of a great hero who will be able to return the country to its former glory, as Genghis Khan once did.

LEGENDARY PEOPLE OF MONGOLIA

GENGISH KHAN
(1162-1227)

Genghis Khan (Mong. Chinggis Khaan proper name - Temujin, Temujin, Mong. Temuuzhin). May 3, 1162 - August 18, 1227) - Mongol khan, founder of the Mongolian state (from 1206), organizer of conquests in Asia and Eastern Europe, great reformer and unifier of Mongolia. The direct descendants of Genghis Khan in the male line are the Genghisids.

The only historical portrait of Genghis Khan from a series of official portraits of rulers was painted under Kublai Khan in the 13th century. (beginning of reign in 1260), several decades after his death (Genghis Khan died in 1227). A portrait of Genghis Khan is kept in the Beijing Historical Museum. The portrait shows a face with Asian features, blue eyes and a gray beard.

early years

According to the “Secret Legend,” the ancestor of all Mongols is Alan-Goa, in the eighth generation from Genghis Khan, who, according to legend, conceived children from a sunbeam in a yurt. Genghis Khan's grandfather, Khabul Khan, was a wealthy leader of all the Mongol tribes and successfully waged wars with neighboring tribes. Temujin's father was Yesugei-baatur, the grandson of Khabul Khan, the leader of most of the Mongol tribes, in which there were 40 thousand yurts. This tribe was the complete owner of the fertile valleys between the Kerulen and Onon rivers. Yesugei-baatur also successfully fought and fought, subjugating the Tatars and many neighboring tribes. From the contents of the “Secret Legend” it is clear that Genghis Khan’s father was the famous khan of the Mongols.

It is difficult to name the exact date of birth of Genghis Khan. According to the Persian historian Rashid ad-din, his date of birth was 1155, modern Mongolian historians adhere to the date - 1162. He was born in the Delyun-Boldok tract on the banks of the Onon River (in the area of ​​Lake Baikal) in the family of one of the Mongolian leaders of the Taichiut tribe Yesugei-bagatura (“bagatur” - hero) from the Borjigin clan, and his wife Hoelun from the Onhirat tribe. It was named in honor of the Tatar leader Temujin, whom Yesugei defeated on the eve of the birth of his son. At the age of 9, Yesugei-Bagatur betrothed his son to a 10-year-old girl from the Khungirat family. Leaving his son with the bride's family until he came of age, so that they could get to know each other better, he went home. On the way back, Yesugei stopped at a Tatar camp, where he was poisoned. When he returned to his native ulus, he became ill and died a few days later.

The elders of the Mongol tribes refused to obey the too young and inexperienced Temujin and left along with their tribes to another patron. So young Temujin remained surrounded by only a few representatives of his family: his mother, younger brothers and sisters. All their remaining property included only eight horses and the family “bunchuk” - a white banner with the image of a bird of prey - a gyrfalcon and with nine yak tails, symbolizing the four large and five small yurts of his family. For several years, widows and children lived in complete poverty, wandering in the steppes, eating roots, game and fish. Even in the summer, the family lived from hand to mouth, making provisions for the winter.

The leader of the Taichiuts, Targultai (a distant relative of Temujin), who declared himself the ruler of the lands once occupied by Yesugei, fearing the revenge of his growing rival, began to pursue Temujin. One day, an armed detachment attacked the camp of the Yesugei family. Temujin managed to escape, but was overtaken and captured. They put a block on it - two wooden boards with a hole for the neck, which were pulled together. The block was a painful punishment: a person did not have the opportunity to eat, drink, or even drive away a fly that had landed on his face. He finally found a way to escape and hide in a small lake, plunging into the water with the block and sticking only his nostrils out of the water. The Taichiuts searched for him in this place, but could not find him; but one Selduz, who was among them, noticed him and decided to save him. He pulled young Temujin out of the water, freed him from the block and took him to his home, where he hid him in a cart with wool. After the Taichiuts left, the Selduz put Temujin on a mare, provided him with weapons and sent him home.

After some time, Temujin found his family. The Borjigins immediately migrated to another place, and the Taichiuts could no longer detect them. Then Temujin married his betrothed Borte. Borte's dowry was a luxurious sable fur coat. Temujin soon went to the most powerful of the then steppe leaders - Togoril, the khan of the Keraits. Togoril was once a friend of Temujin's father, and he managed to enlist the support of the Kerait leader, recalling this friendship and presenting a luxurious gift - Borte's sable fur coat.

Beginning of conquest

With the help of Khan Togoril, Temujin's forces began to gradually grow. Nukers began to flock to him; he raided his neighbors, increasing his possessions and herds.

Temujin's first serious opponents were the Merkits, who acted in alliance with the Taichiuts. In Temujin's absence, they attacked the Borjigin camp and took Borte and Yesugei's second wife, Sochikhel, captive. Temujin, with the help of Khan Togoril and the Keraits, as well as his anda (sworn brother) Jamukha from the Jajirat clan, defeated the Merkits. At the same time, while trying to drive away the herd from Temujin’s possessions, Jamukha’s brother was killed. Under the pretext of revenge, Jamukha and his army moved towards Temujin. But without achieving success in defeating the enemy, the leader of the Jajirat retreated.

Temujin's first major military enterprise was the war against the Tatars, launched jointly with Togoril around 1200. The Tatars at that time had difficulty repelling the attacks of the Jin troops that entered their possessions. Taking advantage of the favorable situation, Temujin and Togoril inflicted a number of strong blows on the Tatars and captured rich booty. The Jin government awarded high titles to the steppe leaders as a reward for the defeat of the Tatars. Temujin received the title "jauthuri" (military commissar), and Togoril - "van" (prince), from that time he became known as Van Khan. In 1202, Temujin independently opposed the Tatars. Before this campaign, he made an attempt to reorganize and discipline the army - he issued an order according to which it was strictly forbidden to capture booty during the battle and pursuit of the enemy: the commanders had to divide the captured property between the soldiers only after the end of the battle.

Temujin's victories caused the consolidation of the forces of his opponents. A whole coalition took shape, including Tatars, Taichiuts, Merkits, Oirats and other tribes, which elected Jamukha as their khan. In the spring of 1203, a battle took place that ended in the complete defeat of the forces of Jamukha. This victory further strengthened the Temujin ulus. In 1202-1203, the Keraits were led by Van Khan's son Nilha, who hated Temujin because Van Khan gave him preference over his son and thought to transfer the Kerait throne to him, bypassing Nilha. In the fall of 1203, Wang Khan's troops were defeated. His ulus ceased to exist. Van Khan himself died while trying to escape to the Naiman.

In 1204, Temujin defeated the Naimans. Their ruler Tayan Khan died, and his son Kuchuluk fled to the territory of Semirechye in the country of the Karakitai (southwest of Lake Balkhash). His ally, the Merkit khan Tokhto-beki, fled with him. There Kuchuluk managed to gather scattered detachments of Naimans and Keraits, gain favor with the Gurkhan and become quite a significant political figure.

Reforms of the Great Khan

At the kurultai in 1206, Temujin was proclaimed the great khan over all tribes - Genghis Khan. Mongolia has been transformed: the scattered and warring Mongolian nomadic tribes have united into a single state.

At the same time, a new law was issued: Yasa. In it, the main place was occupied by articles about mutual assistance in the campaign and the prohibition of deception of those who trusted. Anyone who violated these regulations was executed, and the enemy of the Mongols, who remained loyal to his khan, was spared and accepted into his army. “Good” was considered loyalty and courage, and “evil” was cowardice and betrayal.

After Temujin became the all-Mongol ruler, his policies began to reflect the interests of the Noyon movement even more clearly. The Noyons needed internal and external activities that would help consolidate their dominance and increase their income. New wars of conquest and the robbery of rich countries were supposed to ensure the expansion of the sphere of feudal exploitation and the strengthening of the class positions of the noyons.

The administrative system created under Genghis Khan was adapted to achieve these goals. He divided the entire population into tens, hundreds, thousands and tumens (ten thousand), thereby mixing tribes and clans and appointing specially selected people from his confidants and nukers as commanders over them. All adult and healthy men were considered warriors who ran their households in peacetime and took up arms in wartime. This organization provided Genghis Khan with the opportunity to increase his armed forces to approximately 95 thousand soldiers.

Individual hundreds, thousands and tumens, together with the territory for nomadism, were given into the possession of one or another noyon. The Great Khan, considering himself the owner of all the land in the state, distributed land and arats into the possession of noyons, on the condition that they would regularly perform certain duties in return. The most important duty was military service. Each noyon was obliged, at the first request of the overlord, to field the required number of warriors in the field. Noyon, in his inheritance, could exploit the labor of the arats, distributing his cattle to them for grazing or involving them directly in work on his farm. Small noyons served large ones.

Under Genghis Khan, the enslavement of arats was legalized, and unauthorized movement from one dozen, hundreds, thousands or tumens to others was prohibited. This ban meant the formal attachment of the arats to the land of the noyons - for migrating from their possessions, the arats faced the death penalty.

A specially formed armed detachment of personal bodyguards, the so-called keshik, enjoyed exceptional privileges and was intended mainly to fight against the internal enemies of the khan. The Keshikten were selected from the Noyon youth and were under the personal command of the khan himself, being essentially the khan’s guard. At first, there were 150 Keshikten in the detachment. In addition, a special detachment was created, which was always supposed to be in the vanguard and be the first to engage in battle with the enemy. It was called a detachment of heroes.

Genghis Khan elevated the written law to a cult and was a supporter of strong law and order. He created a network of communication lines in his empire, courier communications on a large scale for military and administrative purposes, and organized intelligence, including economic intelligence.

Genghis Khan divided the country into two “wings”. He placed Boorcha at the head of the right wing, and Mukhali, his two most faithful and experienced associates, at the head of the left. He made the positions and ranks of senior and highest military leaders - centurions, thousanders and temniks - hereditary in the family of those who, with their faithful service, helped him seize the khan's throne.

Conquest of Northern China

In 1207-1211, the Mongols conquered the land of the Yakuts [source?], Kyrgyz and Uyghurs, that is, they subjugated almost all the main tribes and peoples of Siberia, imposing tribute on them. In 1209, Genghis Khan conquered Central Asia and turned his attention to the south.

Before the conquest of China, Genghis Khan decided to secure the eastern border by capturing in 1207 the Tangut state of Xi-Xia, who had previously conquered Northern China from the dynasty of the Chinese Song emperors and created their own state, which was located between his possessions and the Jin state. Having captured several fortified cities, in the summer of 1208 the “True Ruler” retreated to Longjin, waiting out the unbearable heat that fell that year. Meanwhile, news reaches him that his old enemies Tokhta-beki and Kuchluk are preparing for a new war with him. Anticipating their invasion and having carefully prepared, Genghis Khan defeated them completely in a battle on the banks of the Irtysh. Tokhta-beki was among the dead, and Kuchluk escaped and found shelter with the Karakitai.

Satisfied with the victory, Temujin again sends his troops against Xi-Xia. After defeating an army of Chinese Tatars, he captured the fortress and passage in the Great Wall of China and in 1213 invaded the Chinese Empire itself, the state of Jin and advanced as far as Nianxi in Hanshu Province. With increasing persistence, Genghis Khan led his troops, strewing the road with corpses, deep into the continent and established his power even over the province of Liaodong, central to the empire. Several Chinese commanders, seeing that the Mongol conqueror was gaining constant victories, ran over to his side. The garrisons surrendered without a fight.

Having established his position along the entire Great Wall of China, in the fall of 1213 Temujin sent three armies to different parts of the Chinese Empire. One of them, under the command of the three sons of Genghis Khan - Jochi, Chagatai and Ogedei, headed south. Another, led by Temujin's brothers and generals, moved east to the sea. Genghis Khan himself and his youngest son Tolui, at the head of the main forces, set out in a southeastern direction. The First Army advanced as far as Honan and, after capturing twenty-eight cities, joined Genghis Khan on the Great Western Road. The army under the command of Temujin's brothers and generals captured the province of Liao-hsi, and Genghis Khan himself ended his triumphant campaign only after he reached the sea rocky cape in Shandong province. But either fearing civil strife, or due to other reasons, he decides to return to Mongolia in the spring of 1214 and makes peace with the Chinese emperor, leaving Beijing to him. However, before the leader of the Mongols had time to leave the Great Wall of China, the Chinese emperor moved his court further away, to Kaifeng. This step was perceived by Temujin as a manifestation of hostility, and he again sent troops into the empire, now doomed to destruction. The war continued.

The Jurchen troops in China, replenished by the aborigines, fought the Mongols until 1235 on their own initiative, but were defeated and exterminated by Genghis Khan's successor Ogedei.

Fight against the Kara-Khitan Khanate

Following China, Genghis Khan was preparing for a campaign in Kazakhstan and Central Asia. He was especially attracted to the flourishing cities of Southern Kazakhstan and Zhetysu. He decided to implement his plan through the valley of the Ili River, where rich cities were located and ruled by Genghis Khan’s longtime enemy, the Naiman Khan Kuchluk.

While Genghis Khan was conquering more and more cities and provinces of China, the fugitive Naiman Khan Kuchluk asked the gurkhan who had given him refuge to help gather the remnants of the army defeated at the Irtysh. Having gained a fairly strong army under his hand, Kuchluk entered into an alliance against his overlord with the Shah of Khorezm Muhammad, who had previously paid tribute to the Karakitays. After a short but decisive military campaign, the allies were left with a big gain, and the gurkhan was forced to relinquish power in favor of the uninvited guest. In 1213, Gurkhan Zhilugu died, and the Naiman khan became the sovereign ruler of Semirechye. Sairam, Tashkent, and the northern part of Fergana came under his power. Having become an irreconcilable opponent of Khorezm, Kuchluk began persecuting Muslims in his domains, which aroused the hatred of the settled population of Zhetysu. The ruler of Koylyk (in the valley of the Ili River) Arslan Khan, and then the ruler of Almalyk (northwest of modern Gulja) Bu-zar moved away from the Naimans and declared themselves subjects of Genghis Khan.

In 1218, Jebe's troops, together with the troops of the rulers of Koylyk and Almalyk, invaded the lands of the Karakitai. The Mongols conquered Semirechye and Eastern Turkestan, which were owned by Kuchluk. In the first battle, Jebe defeated the Naiman. The Mongols allowed Muslims to perform public worship, which had previously been prohibited by the Naiman, which contributed to the transition of the entire settled population to the side of the Mongols. Kuchluk, unable to organize resistance, fled to Afghanistan, where he was caught and killed. The residents of Balasagun opened the gates to the Mongols, for which the city received the name Gobalyk - “good city”. The road to Khorezm opened before Genghis Khan.

Conquest of Central Asia

After the conquest of China and Khorezm, the supreme ruler of the Mongol clan leaders, Genghis Khan, sent a strong cavalry corps under the command of Jebe and Subedei to explore the “western lands”. They walked along the southern shore of the Caspian Sea, then, after the devastation of Northern Iran, they penetrated into Transcaucasia, defeated the Georgian army (1222) and, moving north along the western shore of the Caspian Sea, met a united army of Polovtsians, Lezgins, Circassians and Alans in the North Caucasus. A battle took place, which did not have decisive consequences. Then the conquerors split the ranks of the enemy. They gave gifts to the Polovtsians and promised not to touch them. The latter began to disperse to their nomadic camps. Taking advantage of this, the Mongols easily defeated the Alans, Lezgins and Circassians, and then defeated the Polovtsians piecemeal. At the beginning of 1223, the Mongols invaded Crimea, took the city of Surozh (Sudak) and again moved into the Polovtsian steppes.

The Polovtsians fled to Rus'. Leaving the Mongol army, Khan Kotyan, through his ambassadors, asked not to refuse him the help of his son-in-law Mstislav the Udal, as well as Mstislav III Romanovich, the ruling Grand Duke of Kyiv. At the beginning of 1223, a large princely congress was convened in Kiev, where it was agreed that the armed forces of the princes of Kiev, Galicia, Chernigov, Seversk, Smolensk and Volyn principalities, united, should support the Polovtsians. The Dnieper, near the island of Khortitsa, was appointed as the gathering place for the Russian united army. Here envoys from the Mongol camp were met, inviting the Russian military leaders to break the alliance with the Polovtsians and return to Rus'. Taking into account the experience of the Cumans (who in 1222 persuaded the Mongols to break their alliance with the Alans, after which Jebe defeated the Alans and attacked the Cumans), Mstislav executed the envoys. In the battle on the Kalka River, the troops of Daniil Galitsky, Mstislav the Udal and Khan Kotyan, without informing the other princes, decided to “deal with” the Mongols on their own and crossed to the eastern bank, where on May 31, 1223 they were completely defeated while passively contemplating this bloody battle on the part of the main Russian forces led by Mstislav III, located on the elevated opposite bank of the Kalka.

Mstislav III, having fenced himself off with a tyn, held the defense for three days after the battle, and then came to an agreement with Jebe and Subedai to lay down arms and freely retreat to Rus', as he had not participated in the battle. However, he, his army and the princes who trusted him were treacherously captured by the Mongols and cruelly tortured as “traitors to their own army.”

After the victory, the Mongols organized the pursuit of the remnants of the Russian army (only every tenth soldier returned from the Azov region), destroying cities and villages in the Dnieper direction, capturing civilians. However, the disciplined Mongol military leaders had no orders to linger in Rus'. They were soon recalled by Genghis Khan, who considered that the main task of the reconnaissance campaign to the west had been successfully completed. On the way back at the mouth of the Kama, the troops of Jebe and Subedei suffered a serious defeat from the Volga Bulgars, who refused to recognize the power of Genghis Khan over themselves. After this failure, the Mongols went down to Saksin and along the Caspian steppes returned to Asia, where in 1225 they united with the main forces of the Mongol army.

The Mongol forces remaining in China enjoyed the same success as the armies in Western Asia. The Mongol Empire was expanded with several new conquered provinces lying north of the Yellow River, with the exception of one or two cities. After the death of Emperor Xuyin Zong in 1223, the Northern Chinese Empire virtually ceased to exist, and the borders of the Mongol Empire almost coincided with the borders of Central and Southern China, ruled by the imperial Song dynasty.

Death of Genghis Khan

Upon returning from Central Asia, Genghis Khan once again led his army through Western China. In 1225 or early 1226, Genghis launched a campaign against the Tangut country. During this campaign, astrologers informed the Mongol leader that five planets were in unfavorable alignment. The superstitious Mongol believed that he was in danger. Under the power of foreboding, the formidable conqueror went home, but on the way he fell ill and died on August 25, 1227.

Before his death, he wished that the Tangut king would be executed immediately after the capture of the city, and that the city itself would be destroyed to the ground. Different sources give different versions of his death: from an arrow wound in battle; from a long illness, after falling from a horse; from a lightning strike; at the hands of a captive princess on her wedding night.

According to Genghis Khan's dying wish, his body was taken to his homeland and interred in the Burkan-Kaldun area. According to the official version of the “Secret Legend,” on the way to the Tangut state, he fell from his horse and was badly injured while hunting wild kulan horses and fell ill: “Having decided to go to the Tanguts at the end of the winter period of the same year, Genghis Khan carried out a new re-registration of troops and in the fall Year of the Dog (1226) set out on a campaign against the Tanguts. From the Khansha, Yesui Khatun followed the sovereign. Along the way, during a roundup of the Arbukhai wild horses-kulans, which are found there in abundance, Genghis Khan sat astride a brown-gray horse. " During the raid of the kulans, his brown-gray climbed up to the ground, and the sovereign fell and was badly hurt. Therefore, they made a stop at the Tsoorkhat tract. The night passed, and the next morning Yesui-Khatun said to the princes and noyons: “The sovereign had a strong fever at night. It is necessary to discuss the situation." The "Secret Legend" says that "Genghis Khan, after the final defeat of the Tanguts, returned and ascended to heaven in the year of the Pig" (1227). From the Tangut booty, he especially generously rewarded Yesui-Khatun at his very departure." .

According to the will, Genghis Khan was succeeded by his third son Ogedei. Until the capital of Xi-Xia Zhongxing was taken, the death of the great ruler was to be kept secret. The funeral procession moved from the Great Horde camp to the north, to the Onon River. The “Secret Legend” and the “Golden Chronicle” report that on the route of the caravan with the body of Genghis Khan to the burial place, all living things were killed: people, animals, birds. The chronicles record: “They killed every living creature they saw so that the news of his death would not spread throughout the surrounding areas. His four main hordes mourned and he was buried in the area that he had once deigned to designate as a great reserve.” . His wives carried his body through his native camp, and in the end he was buried in a rich tomb in the Onon Valley. During the burial, mystical rites were performed, which were designed to protect the place where Genghis Khan was buried. His burial place has not yet been found. After the death of Genghis Khan, mourning continued for two years.

According to legend, Genghis Khan was buried in a deep tomb, sitting on a golden throne, in the family cemetery "Ikh Khorig" near Mount Burkhan Khaldun, at the source of the Urgun River. He sat on the golden throne of Muhammad, which he brought from captured Samarkand. To prevent the grave from being found and desecrated in subsequent times, after the burial of the Great Khan, a herd of thousands of horses was driven across the steppe several times, destroying all traces of the grave. According to another version, the tomb was built in a riverbed, for which the river was temporarily blocked and the water was directed along a different channel. After the burial, the dam was destroyed and the water returned to its natural course, forever hiding the burial site. Everyone who participated in the burial and could remember this place was subsequently killed, and those who carried out this order were subsequently killed too. Thus, the mystery of Genghis Khan’s burial remains unsolved to this day.

So far, attempts to find the tomb of Genghis Khan have not been successful. Geographical names from the times of the Mongol Empire have completely changed over many centuries, and no one today can say with accuracy where Mount Burkhan-Khaldun is located. According to the version of academician G. Miller, based on the stories of the Siberian "Mongols", Mount Burkhan-Khaldun in translation can mean "God's mountain", "Mountain where deities are placed", "Mountain - God scorches or God penetrates everywhere" - "sacred mountain Chinggis and his ancestors, the deliverer mountain, to which Chinggis, in memory of his salvation in the forests of this mountain from fierce enemies, bequeathed to sacrifice forever and ever, was located in the places of the original nomads of Chingis and his ancestors along the Onon River."

RESULTS OF GENGIGI KHAN'S REIGN

During the conquest of the Naimans, Genghis Khan became acquainted with the beginnings of written records; some of the Naimans entered the service of Genghis Khan and were the first officials in the Mongolian state and the first teachers of the Mongols. Apparently, Genghis Khan hoped to subsequently replace the Naiman with ethnic Mongols, since he ordered noble Mongolian youths, including his sons, to learn the Naiman language and writing. After the spread of Mongol rule, during the lifetime of Genghis Khan, the Mongols also used the services of Chinese and Persian officials.

In the field of foreign policy, Genghis Khan sought to maximize the expansion of the territory under his control. Genghis Khan's strategy and tactics were characterized by careful reconnaissance, surprise attacks, the desire to dismember enemy forces, setting up ambushes using special units to lure the enemy, maneuvering large masses of cavalry, etc.

The ruler of the Mongols created the greatest empire in history, which in the 13th century subjugated vast expanses of Eurasia from the Sea of ​​Japan to the Black Sea. He and his descendants swept away great and ancient states from the face of the earth: the state of the Khorezmshahs, the Chinese Empire, the Baghdad Caliphate, and most of the Russian principalities were conquered. Vast territories were placed under the control of the Yasa steppe law.

The old Mongolian code of laws "Jasak", introduced by Genghis Khan, reads: "Genghis Khan's Yasa prohibits lying, theft, adultery, prescribes to love one's neighbor as oneself, not to cause offenses, and to forget them completely, to spare countries and cities that have submitted voluntarily, to free from all tax and respect the temples dedicated to God, as well as his servants." The significance of "Jasak" for the formation of statehood in the empire of Genghis Khan is noted by all historians. The introduction of a set of military and civil laws made it possible to establish a firm rule of law on the vast territory of the Mongol Empire; non-compliance with its laws was punishable by death. Yasa prescribed tolerance in matters of religion, respect for temples and clergy, prohibited quarrels among the Mongols, disobedience of children to their parents, the theft of horses, regulated military service, rules of conduct in battle, distribution of military spoils, etc.
“Immediately kill whoever steps on the threshold of the governor’s headquarters.”
“Whoever urinates in water or on ashes is put to death.”
“It is prohibited to wash the dress while wearing it until it is completely worn out.”
“Let no one leave his thousand, hundred or ten. Otherwise, let him and the commander of the unit who received him be executed.”
"Respect all faiths, without giving preference to any one."
Genghis Khan declared shamanism, Christianity and Islam the official religions of his empire.

Unlike other conquerors who dominated Eurasia for hundreds of years before the Mongols, only Genghis Khan was able to organize a stable state system and make Asia appear to Europe not just as an unexplored steppe and mountainous space, but as a consolidated civilization. It was within its borders that the Turkic revival of the Islamic world then began, which with its second onslaught (after the Arabs) almost finished off Europe.

In 1220, Genghis Khan founded Karakorum, the capital of the Mongol Empire.

The Mongols revere Genghis Khan as their greatest hero and reformer, almost as an incarnation of a deity. In European (including Russian) memory, he remained something like a pre-storm crimson cloud that appears before a terrible, all-purifying storm.

DESCENDANTS OF GENGISH KHAN

Temujin and his beloved wife Borte had four sons:

• son Jochi
• son Çağatay
• son Ogedei
• son Tolu y.

Only they and their descendants could claim supreme power in the state. Temujin and Borte also had daughters:

• daughter Hodgin bags, wife of Butu-gurgen from the Ikires clan;
• daughter Tsetseihen (Chichigan), wife of Inalchi, the youngest son of the head of the Oirats, Khudukha-beki;
• daughter Alangaa (Alagai, Alakha), who married the Ongut noyon Buyanbald (in 1219, when Genghis Khan went to war with Khorezm, he entrusted her with state affairs in his absence, therefore she is also called Tor zasagch gunj (ruler-princess);
• daughter Temulen, wife of Shiku-gurgen, son of Alchi-noyon from the Khongirads, the tribe of her mother Borte;
• daughter Alduun (Altalun), who married Zavtar-setsen, noyon of the Khongirads.

Temujin and his second wife, Merkit Khulan-Khatun, daughter of Dair-usun, had sons

• son Kulhan (Hulugen, Kulkan)
• son Kharachar;

From the Tatar Yesugen (Esukat), daughter of Charu-noyon

• son Chakhur (Jaur)
• son Harkhad.

The sons of Genghis Khan continued the work of the Golden Dynasty and ruled the Mongols, as well as the conquered lands, based on the Great Yasa of Genghis Khan until the 20s of the 20th century. Even the Manchu emperors, who ruled Mongolia and China from the 16th to the 19th centuries, were descendants of Genghis Khan, as for their legitimacy they married Mongol princesses from Genghis Khan's golden family dynasty. The first prime minister of Mongolia of the 20th century, Chin Van Handdorj (1911-1919), as well as the rulers of Inner Mongolia (until 1954) were direct descendants of Genghis Khan.

The family record of Genghis Khan dates back to the 20th century; in 1918, the religious head of Mongolia, Bogdo Gegen, issued an order to preserve the Urgiin bichig (family list) of Mongol princes, called shastir. This shastir is kept in the museum and is called “Shastir of the State of Mongolia” (Mongol Ulsyn shastir). Many direct descendants of Genghis Khan from his golden family still live in Mongolia and Inner Mongolia.

ADDITIONAL LITERATURE

Vladimirtsov B.Ya. Genghis Khan. Publishing house Z.I. Grzhebina. Berlin. Petersburg. Moscow. 1922. Cultural and historical sketch of the Mongol Empire of the XII-XIV centuries. In two parts with applications and illustrations. 180 pages. Russian language.

The Mongol Empire and the nomadic world. Bazarov B.V., Kradin N.N. Skrynnikova T.D. Book 1. Ulan-Ude. 2004. Institute of Mongolian, Buddhist and Tebetology SB RAS.

The Mongol Empire and the nomadic world. Bazarov B.V., Kradin N.N. Skrynnikova T.D. Book 3. Ulan-Ude. 2008. Institute of Mongolian, Buddhist and Tebetology SB RAS.

On the art of war and the conquests of the Mongols. Essay by Lieutenant Colonel of the General Staff M. Ivanin. St. Petersburg, Publishing house: printed in a military printing house. Year of publication: 1846. Pages: 66. Language: Russian.

The hidden legend of the Mongols. Translation from Mongolian. 1941.

Compared to him, Napoleon, Hitler and Stalin seem like inexperienced beginners

Genghis Khan was the founder of the Mongol Empire and one of the most brutal men in human history. Compared to him, Napoleon, Hitler and Stalin seem like inexperienced novices.

Today we rarely hear anything about Mongolia, unless Russia is conducting nuclear tests on the steppes there. If Genghis Khan were alive, he would never have allowed this!

And in general, he would not give anyone peace, because most of all he loved to fight.

Here are 15 amazing facts about the Mongol commander who could have conquered the world:

1. 40 million corpses

Historians estimate that Genghis Khan was responsible for 40 million deaths. Just so you understand, this is 11% of the total population of the planet at that time.

For comparison: World War II sent “only” 3% of the world’s population (60–80 million) to the next world.

The adventures of Genghis Khan thus contributed to the cooling of the climate in the 13th century, as they removed more than 700 million tons of carbon dioxide from the Earth.

2. At the age of 10, Genghis Khan killed his half-brother

Genghis Khan had a difficult childhood. His father was killed by warriors from a rival tribe when Genghis Khan was only 9.

Then his mother was kicked out of the tribe, so she had to raise seven children alone - not easy in 13th century Mongolia!

When Genghis Khan was 10 years old, he killed his half-brother Bekter because he did not want to share food with him!

3. Genghis Khan is not his real name

The real name of the man we know as Genghis Khan is Temujin, which means "iron" or "blacksmith".

The name is not bad, but clearly not worthy of a great warrior and emperor. Therefore, in 1206, Temujin named himself Genghis Khan.

"Khan"- this, of course, "ruler", but about the meaning of the word "Genghis" Scientists are still arguing. The most common version is that it is a corruption of Chinese "zheng" - "fair". So - this, oddly enough, "just ruler".

4. Genghis Khan used brutal torture

Under Genghis Khan, the Mongols were famous for their terrible torture. One of the most popular was to pour molten silver into the throat and ears of the victim.

Genghis Khan himself loved this method of execution: the enemy was bent backward until his spine was broken.

And Genghis Khan and his squad celebrated the victory over the Russians in the following way: they threw all the surviving Russian soldiers onto the ground, and placed a huge wooden gate on top of them. Then they held a feast at the gate, crushing the suffocating prisoners.

5. Genghis Khan held beauty contests

Having captured the new land, Genghis Khan ordered to kill or enslave all the men, and gave the women to his warriors. He even organized beauty contests among his captives to choose the most beautiful one.

The winner became one of his large harem, and the rest of the participants were sent to be desecrated by the soldiers.

6. Genghis Khan defeated superior armies

The size of the Mongol Empire indicates that Genghis Khan was a truly great commander.

At the same time, he repeatedly won victories over superior enemy forces. For example, he defeated a million Jin dynasty soldiers with an army of 90,000 Mongols.

During his conquest of China, Genghis Khan destroyed 500,000 Chinese soldiers before the rest surrendered to the mercy of the victor!

7. Genghis Khan turned enemies into comrades

In 1201, Genghis Khan was wounded in battle by an enemy archer. The Mongol army won the battle, after which Genghis Khan ordered to find the same archer who shot him.

He said that the arrow hit his horse, and not himself, so that the archer would not be afraid to confess. And when the archer was found, Genghis Khan acted unexpectedly: instead of killing the enemy on the spot, he invited him to join the Mongol army.

Such military cunning and foresight is one of the reasons for Genghis Khan’s unprecedented military successes.

8. Nobody knows what Genghis Khan looked like

There are tons of pictures of Genghis Khan on the internet and in history books, but we actually have no idea what he looked like.

How is this possible? The fact is that Genghis Khan forbade depicting himself. Therefore, there are no paintings, no statues, or even written descriptions of his appearance.

But after his death, people immediately rushed to impersonate the late tyrant from memory, so we have a rough idea of ​​what he might have looked like. However, some historians say that he had red hair!

9. Genghis Khan had a lot of children

Every time Genghis Khan conquered a new country, he took one of the local women as his wife. They all eventually became pregnant and gave birth to his offspring.

Genghis Khan believed that by populating all of Asia with his descendants, he would guarantee the stability of the empire.

How many children did he have?

It’s impossible to say for sure, but historians estimate that about 8% of all Asians are his descendants!

10. In Mongolia, Genghis Khan is revered as a folk hero

A portrait of Genghis Khan adorns the tugrik, the Mongolian currency. In Mongolia, he is considered a hero for creating the great Mongol Empire.

It is not customary to talk about the cruelty of Genghis Khan there - he is a hero.

When Mongolia was socialist, that is, ruled from Moscow, any mention of Genghis Khan was prohibited. But since 1990, the cult of the ancient ruler has flourished with renewed vigor.

11. Genghis Khan committed genocide against Iranians

The Iranians hate Genghis Khan with the same intensity that the Mongols adore him. And there's a reason for that.

The Khorezm Empire, located on the territory of modern Iran, was a powerful power until it was attacked by the Mongols. Within a few years, the Mongol army completely destroyed Khorezm.

According to historians, Genghis Khan’s troops slaughtered ¾ of the entire population of Khorezm. It took the Iranians 700 years to restore their population!

12. Genghis Khan was religiously tolerant

Despite his cruelty, Genghis Khan was quite tolerant in matters of religion. He studied Islam, Buddhism, Taoism and Christianity and dreamed of the Mongol Empire as a place where there would be no religious strife.

Genghis Khan once even arranged a debate between Christians, Muslims and Buddhists to determine which religion was the best. However, the participants got very drunk, so the winner was never determined.

13. Genghis Khan did not forgive his offenders

Genghis Khan allowed the inhabitants of the Mongol Empire to live for their own pleasure, as long as they did not violate the rules he set. But any violations of these rules were punished in the most severe manner.

For example, when the ruler of one Khorezm city attacked a Mongol trade caravan and killed all the traders, Genghis Khan became furious. He sent 100,000 warriors to Khorezm, who killed thousands of people.

The unlucky ruler himself paid cruelly: his mouth and eyes were poured with molten silver. This was a clear sign: any attack against the Mongol Empire would be punished disproportionately harshly.

14. The death of Genghis Khan is shrouded in mystery

Genghis Khan died in 1227 at the age of 65. To this day, his death is surrounded by an aura of mystery.

It is unknown what he died from, nor where his grave is located. Of course, this gave rise to many legends.

The most popular version says that he was killed by a captive Chinese princess. There are also versions that he fell from his horse - either just like that, or because he was hit by an enemy arrow.

It is unlikely that we will ever know the truth about what happened 800 years ago. After all, even the burial place of the Mongol emperor was never found!

15. Genghis Khan created the largest continuous empire in history

The Mongol Empire created by Genghis Khan will forever remain the largest uninterrupted empire in human history.

It occupied 16.11% of all land, and its area was 24 million square kilometers!