60 Facts About Genghis Khan

Temujin formally adopted the title "Genghis Khan", the meaning of which is uncertain, at an assembly in 1206.

Genghis Khan then launched a campaign against the Jin dynasty, which lasted for four years and ended in 1215 with the capture of the Jin capital Zhongdu.

Genghis Khan was provoked to invade the Khwarazmian Empire the following year by the execution of his envoys; the campaign toppled the Khwarazmian state and devastated the regions of Transoxiana and Khorasan, while Jebe and his colleague Subutai led an expedition that reached Georgia and Kievan Rus'.

In 1227, Genghis Khan died while subduing the rebellious Western Xia; following a two-year interregnum, his third son and heir Ogedei acceded to the throne in 1229.

Genghis Khan was generous and intensely loyal to his followers, but ruthless towards his enemies.

Genghis Khan welcomed advice from diverse sources in his quest for world domination, for which he believed the shamanic supreme deity Tengri had destined him.

The Mongol army under Genghis Khan killed millions of people, yet his conquests facilitated unprecedented commercial and cultural exchange over a vast geographical area.

Genghis Khan is remembered as a backwards, savage tyrant in Russia and the Arab world, while recent Western scholarship has begun to reassess its previous view of him as a barbarian warlord.

Genghis Khan was posthumously deified in Mongolia; modern Mongolians recognise him as the founding father of their nation.

When Genghis's grandson Kublai Khan established the Yuan dynasty in 1271, he bestowed the temple name Taizu and the posthumous name Shengwu Huangdi upon his grandfather.

Kublai's great-grandson Kulug Genghis Khan later expanded this title into Fatian Qiyun Shengwu Huangdi.

Zhao Hong recorded that the future Genghis Khan spent several years as a slave of the Jin.

Genghis Khan's senior were appointed to the highest ranks and received the greatest honours.

Alaqush of the Ongud was allowed to retain five thousand warriors of his tribe because his son had entered into an alliance pact with Genghis Khan, marrying his daughter Alaqa.

From 1204 to 1209, Genghis Khan was predominantly focused on consolidating and maintaining his new nation.

Genghis Khan faced a challenge from the shaman Kokechu, whose father Munglig had been allowed to marry Ho'elun after he defected to Temujin.

Genghis Khan allowed Temuge to arrange Kokechu's death, and then usurped the shaman's position as the Mongols' highest spiritual authority.

Genghis Khan dispatched Jochi northwards in 1207 to subjugate the Hoi-yin Irgen, a collection of tribes on the edge of the Siberian taiga.

Genghis Khan had previously served on the steppe frontier and Genghis greatly disliked him.

The campaign was halted in 1212 when Genghis Khan was wounded by an arrow during the unsuccessful siege of Xijing.

When Genghis Khan returned to Mongolia in early 1216, Muqali was left in command in China.

Genghis Khan waged a brutal but effective campaign against the unstable Jin regime until his death in 1223.

In 1207, Genghis Khan had appointed a man named Qorchi as governor of the subdued Hoi-yin Irgen tribes in Siberia.

Genghis Khan was a greedy and arbitrary ruler who probably earned the enmity of the native Islamic populace whom he attempted to forcibly convert to Buddhism.

Genghis Khan reckoned that Kuchlug could be a threat to his empire, and Jebe was sent with an army of 20,000 cavalry to the city of Kashgar; he undermined Kuchlug's rule by emphasising the Mongol policies of religious tolerance and gained the loyalty of the local elite.

Genghis Khan had now attained complete control of the eastern portion of the Silk Road, and his territory bordered that of the Khwarazmian Empire, which ruled over much of Central Asia, Persia and Afghanistan.

Merchants from both sides were eager to restart trading, which had halted during Kuchlug's rule; the Khwarazmian ruler Muhammad II dispatched an envoy shortly after the Mongol capture of Zhongdu, while Genghis Khan instructed his merchants to obtain the high-quality textiles and steel of Central and Western Asia.

The killing of an envoy infuriated Genghis Khan, who resolved to leave Muqali with a small force in North China and invade Khwarazmia with most of his army.

Jalal al-Din moved southwards to Afghanistan, gathering forces on the way and defeating a Mongol unit under the command of Shigi Qutuqu, Genghis Khan's adopted son, in the Battle of Parwan.

Genghis Khan summoned and spoke with the Taoist patriarch Changchun in the Hindu Kush.

In either case, Genghis Khan initially attempted to resolve the situation diplomatically, but when the Xia elite failed to come to an agreement on the hostages they were to send to the Mongols, he lost patience.

Genghis Khan ordered that the cities of the Gansu Corridor be sacked one by one, granting clemency only to a few.

Marco Polo claimed that he was shot by an arrow during a siege, while Carpini reported that Genghis Khan was struck by lightning.

The Secret History records that Genghis Khan chose his successor while preparing for the Khwarazmian campaigns in 1219; Rashid al-Din, on the other hand, states that the decision came before Genghis Khan's final campaign against the Xia.

Genghis Khan was angered by Jochi's refusal to return to him in 1223, and was considering sending Ogedei and Chagatai to bring him to heel when news came that Jochi had died from an illness.

Genghis Khan's elimination left Ogedei and Tolui as the two primary candidates.

Genghis Khan was still a viable candidate for succession and had the support of the family of Jochi.

Any general, attended by the commanders Genghis Khan had promoted and honoured, would however observe their former ruler's desires without question and appoint Ogedei as ruler.

Genghis Khan gave birth to four sons and five daughters, who all became influential figures in the empire.

Genghis Khan granted Borte's sons lands and property through the Mongol appanage system, while he secured marriage alliances by marrying her daughters to important families.

Zhao wrote that Genghis Khan had a broad brow and long beard while Juzjani commented on his cat's eyes and lack of grey hair.

Genghis Khan valued loyalty above all and mutual fidelity became a cornerstone of his new nation.

Genghis Khan did not find it difficult to gain the allegiance of others: he was superbly charismatic even as a youth, as shown by the number of people who left existing social roles behind to join him.

Genghis Khan took responsibility for the families of killed in battle or who otherwise fell on hard times by raising a tax to provide them with clothing and sustenance.

The principal source of steppe wealth was post-battle plunder, of which a leader would normally claim a large share; Genghis Khan eschewed this custom, choosing instead to divide booty equally between himself and all his men.

Genghis Khan encouraged his companions to address him informally, give him advice, and criticise his mistakes.

Genghis Khan sought and gained knowledge of sophisticated weaponry from China and the Muslim world, appropriated the Uyghur alphabet with the help of the captured scribe Tata-tonga, and employed numerous specialists across legal, commercial, and administrative fields.

Genghis Khan understood the need for a smooth succession and modern historians agree he showed good judgement in choosing his heir.

Genghis Khan's skills were more suited to identifying potential commanders.

The army that Genghis Khan created was characterised by its draconian discipline, its ability to gather and use military intelligence efficiently, a mastery of psychological warfare, and a willingness to be utterly ruthless.

Genghis Khan came to believe the supreme deity Tengri had ordained a great destiny for him.

Genghis Khan's conquests enabled the creation of Eurasian trading systems unprecedented in their scale, which brought wealth and security to the tribes.

For many centuries, Genghis Khan was remembered in Mongolia as a religious figure, not a political one.

Genghis Khan became the focus point of a sleeping hero legend, which says he will return to help the Mongol people in a time of great need.

Genghis Khan's visage appears on items ranging from postage stamps and high-value banknotes to brands of alcohol and toilet paper.

Genghis Khan is generally recognised as the founding father of Mongolia.

In post-Mongol Asia, Genghis Khan was a source of political legitimacy, because his descendants had been recognised as the only ones entitled to reign.

Until the eighteenth century in Central Asia, Genghis Khan was considered the progenitor of the social order, and was second only to the prophet Muhammad in legal authority.

Under the Yuan dynasty in China, Genghis Khan was revered as the nation's creator, and he remained in this position even after the foundation of the Ming dynasty in 1368.

The Western world, never directly affected by Genghis Khan, has viewed him in shifting and contrasting ways.