Genghis Kahn and the Making of the Modern World

This week I went with a book I’ve read before but one that is well worth a second look, Genghis Kahn and the Making of the Modern world by Jack Weatherford.

Genghis Kahn was born in the Spring of 1162, and his name was not Genghis. It was Temujin, named after a rival clan’s warrior his father had slain. His mother, Hoelun, was from the Merkid tribe and was on her way to her new home with her husband Chiledu when a hunter spotted them. This hunter quickly gathered up his two brothers and engaged in one of the two accepted ways of getting a bride. The first, which had been paid by Chiledu, was to perform service for the bride’s family by way of payment. The second was kidnapping. Hoelun advised Chiledu to leave her behind or their attackers would kill him. She knew she was the prize the hunters were after. So Chiledu fled, and Hoelun began her new life as the second wife of Yesugei.

Legend has it that when he was born, Temujin came into this world holding a blood clot from his mother’s womb in his tiny hand. Hoelun did not know what this portended, if it was a sign of great things to come, or ill omen. Given the history that follows, it seems likely that this was a sign that he was born in blood and would lead men in battle.

When Temujin was nine, he and his father set out to find a suitable bride for him, with the expectation that unlike Yesugei, Temujin would work to earn his bride. The original intent was to go to Temujin’s mother’s people, where a marriage would strengthen the bonds that had been broken when Yesugei kidnapped Hoelun. But on the way there, a closer family was found with a likely girl, Borte. Temujin and Borte got along well, and so the deal was struck, with Temujin being left behind to earn his bride and get to know his bride’s family. Yesugei returned home. On his way back, he sees a clan of the Tatar tribe. Now, the Temujin he had slain, from which he derived OUR Temujin’s name, had been Tatar. Yesugei thought he could slip in as a fellow traveler and not be recognized. He thought wrong, and sometime during the evening, the Tatar’s slipped him poison.

Whatever it was, it was slow acting, as Yesugei made it home and managed to send a messenger to retrieve Temujin, who barely made it home before Yesugei died. Now Hoelun and Yesugei’s first wife Sochigel, were in a pickle. Traditionally, one of the brothers who had helped kidnap Hoelun would have taken her and Sochigel and their children into his family. But while not the first wife, Hoelun was clearly a favorite, and prolific mother, having born Yesugei five children. Sochigel had two. This being a small, poor tribe, neither brother was in a position to accept nine more mouths to feed. So, the Tayichiud tribe set out to abandon them all to their fate. Only one man objected, who was promptly killed for his opinion. Hoelun, having a clear-headedness and fierceness about her, grabbed up her dead husband’s spirit banner, and chased after the fleeing Tayichiud. This shamed them in to returning to camp. But that night, they snuck away, leaving them all to their fate.

This was desperate times, and here is where Temujin’s core personality starts to really form. In the tribal cultures of the steppes, the oldest boy was now the head of the family, and everyone was supposed to obey him without question. The oldest boy was NOT Temujin. It was his half-brother Begter. Who was a bit of a bully. Temujin disliked bullies. So, when Temujin and his younger brother Khasar were out hunting and brought down a bird, Begter demanded they give him their kill. Temujin was outraged and complained to Hoelun, who supported Begter. Seeing his life unfolding as being lesser than his bullying brother, Temujin and his brother Khasar, hunted down Begter, and killed him.

Now, fratricide is not exactly a favored method of advancement in the West. On the steppes of Mongolia, it was very much a crime. Hoelun immediately knew what they had done and began screaming at them for their crime. This act made the entire family a band of criminals. And word of the deed quickly reached the Tayichiud. While they had no problem abandoning the family to the whims of fate, they took this murder very seriously, and captured Temujin, turning him into a slave in camp. It’s not really known how long he was a slave. Long enough to recognize the evils of slavery, and to appreciate the kind family that helped him escape. He would later repay their kindness in turn.

By the time all of these events played out, seven years had passed. It was now 1178, and Temujin was now 16. He returned to his bride’s family, hoping she was still available. Apparently, theirs was a genuine love match, as Borte had waited for him. The two were married, and headed towards home, with a bride gift of a heavy sable coat. Now, here is where Temujin’s understanding of steppe politics, stood him in very good stead. After depositing Borte with his mother, Temujin took the sable coat to Torghil, aka Ong Kahn of the Kereyid tribe. Ong Kahn had been Yesugei’s anda, blood brother. If Ong Kahn accepted the coat as a gift, then he was acknowledging Temujin as his spiritual son. This would afford the family protection and a place to live. In steppe life, safety lay in numbers, and the Ong Kahn’s was a large clan compared to Temujin’s tiny band of Mongols. Ong Kahn did accept the coat, which granted the entire family protection. Temujin returned home and prepared to start his life as a hunter with his wife and small but loyal band of followers.

Enter another aspect of steppe life—a persistent history of revenge. For the kidnapping of Hoelun 18 years previously, the Merkid now sought vengeance on Temujin’s family. By kidnapping Borte. Temujin and his family were sleeping, when an old woman, with no kinship ties to the family but whom Temujin and his family had accepted in to their ger (house), heard the approaching horses. She quickly woke everyone up, and Temujin and his hunters fled. The way of the steppe was to let the warriors flee if they would not stand and fight, in favor of looting the gers and kidnapping the women. And there was no shame in running away. It was the way of the steppe. What was not the way of the steppe was to plan a counter attempt. Typically, once a wife was stolen, she was gone, and the husband could either find a new bride to perform service for or kidnap a different wife from someone else.

Temujin went to Ong Kahn and asked for men to lead a raid on the Merkid and retrieve Borte. Ong Kahn agreed, and with Temujin when his own childhood friend, Jamuka. Temujin and Jamuka had been anda in their youth and would renew those bonds after Borte was successfully retrieved, which she was. But now she was pregnant. And the timeline was such, that they did not know if the child was Temujin’s, or her kidnappers. When the child was born, Temujin never treated him as any different. He raised the boy as his own. But he named him Jochi—guest. It is unclear if the name was a comment on his questionable parentage, or if the name was chosen due to Temujin’s clan being a guest of Jamuka’s. Regardless, that name choice, and the mystery of Jochi’s parentage, later had a direct effect on the succession of the Mongolian empire.

Now, while Jamuka and Temujin had renewed their anda relationship, eventually, Jamuka became jealous of Temujin’s popularity and natural gift for leadership. In the steppe tradition, Jamuka was from a white-boned family, meaning aristocratic. Temujin was from a black-boned family, meaning low born. And eventually, Jamuka began treating Temujin as a second-class citizen. Temujin was confused by this sudden turn and animosity from his erstwhile friend and sought consultation with his mother Hoelun. Borte, who was present, insisted they leave. Always and forever, a good woman will know your worth. Temujin and his followers fled that night, traveling all night to put distance between himself and Jamuka. This happened in 1181 and formed the basis of the next 20 years of warfare between the two tribes.

Now, all of this history and backstory is incredibly relevant in understanding the sweeping changes Temujin would make, in both warfare and governance. First off, Temujin appointed leaders under him who were loyal, versus based on ties of kin. Based on his own killing of his brother Begter and his rift with Jamuka, he valued loyalty over blood ties.

The second change was in how captives were to be treated. Temujin no longer sought retribution. He sought justice. The tribe he implemented his new policy against was the Jurkin, who were to have joined him in warfare against Jamuka. Only instead of joining Temujin, they waited until he had left and raided his camp. After rounding them up, he held a public trial and found the Jurkin aristocracy guilty of betraying their bonds. He executed the leaders and had the remaining tribe members split up amongst his own followers, where they were adopted into the individual families. Temujin set his own example here by adopting boys from each tribe they conquered into his own family as younger brothers, giving them to his mother to raise. This eliminated slavery and ensured loyalty as new family was brought in and treated well.

In this manner, Temujin managed to take over all the tribes, and unite them under his banner. His biggest success was with the Tatar tribe…the same tribe that killed his father. As he united the smaller tribes, they were all enfolded into his Mongolian Horde in this fashion, through adoption and marriage to trusted allies. But the Tatar tribe numbered in the thousands. For this tribe, Temujin took two women as additional wives: Yesugin and Yesui. Despite the addition of extra wives, Borte remained his undisputed queen.

Remember how the steppe tradition was to run away, leaving the women, children, and ger behind? Traditionally, the attacking party would take the bait, raid the ger, kidnapping the women and children, leaving the men to plot retaliation for the insult. Temujin determined that no looting would occur until the fleeing men had been captured or slain.  Then looting would be systematically conducted. Additionally, he ordered that “a soldiers share be allocated to each widower and to each orphan of every solider killed in the raid….this policy not only ensured him of the support of the poorest people in the tribe, but it also inspired loyalty among his soldiers, who knew that even if they died, he would take care of their surviving families.” (p. 50) 

Temujin insisted that all military units be completely mixed, doing away with old clan affiliations. A unit had 10 men, who were to be as brothers to each other, and were forbidden to leave anyone behind in battle as a captive. Usually, the eldest would be the leader; however, owing to his own experiences with his long-murdered half-brother, Temujin allowed each 10 squad to choose their own leader, if the eldest was not suited for it. Ten squads together formed a company of 100 men, and on this the squads together would choose who led them. Ten companies formed a battalion of 1000 men, who again picked their leader. Ten battalions formed an army of 10000. Those leaders were chosen by Temujin directly.

Once he solidified his army, Temujin sought one more additional alliance with Ong Kahn. Temujin sought to marry his son Jochi to Ong Kahn’s daughter. If Ong Kahn accepted, he would be admitting that Temujin was his favored over Jamuka. Ong Kahn’s own son, jealous of Temujin’s success, convinced his father not to accept the proposal. However, Ong Kahn began to worry about Temujin’s response to the rejection, and instead decided to set a trap for Temujin. One day’s ride from the meeting place, Temujin was alerted to the trap and his small party, and he fled in all directions, meeting up later at Lake Baljuna, where in what was seen as a sign from the Eternal Blue Skies, a horse appeared to the starving men. The horse was quickly slaughtered and eaten and word of this gift from the earth spread rapidly. More people flocked to Temujin’s banner, including deserters from Ong Kahn’s camp. Temujin welcomed them all, provided they had not violated any of his edicts and their only sign of disloyalty was leaving Ong Kahn’s camp for Temujin’s own.

He won. Quite handily. Ong Kahn’s tribe was broken and absorbed in to Temujin’s, and Jamuka’s own tribe was torn apart and scattered. Jamuka’s men tried to buy a good place with Temujin by capturing Jamuka and bringing him to Temujin. He had them slaughtered. If they had brought only themselves, he’d have welcomed them. But trying to buy their way in at the life of Temujin’s anda was unforgiveable. Jamuka, he tried to reconcile with, but Jamuka refused. He asked only for an aristocrat’s death, meaning no blood of his be spilled on the earth, and to be buried high, someplace where his spirit could watch over and guard Temujin. Both wishes were granted.

At this point, Temujin called a khuriltai, basically a gathering of the clans, so that they could vote for a leader. And when he was unanimously voted in as Kahn of all the clans, he took for himself the name of Genghis Kahn. This was in 1206, he was 44 years old.

And here are the political changes he made, the policies he put in place, that not only shaped his people, but had long lasting effects on the entire world. Genghis Kahn implemented The Great Law.

First, he forbade the kidnapping of women. The potential for continued strife if members of the clan kidnapped other women of the clan were too great. So, he outlawed it. In conjunction with this, he forbade the abduction and enslavement of any Mongol. He declared that all children were legitimate, regardless of if the mother was wife or concubine to the father. He forbade the selling of women into marriage. He forbade adultery, defined in the Mongolian tradition as relations between married people of separate households. He made animal rustling a capital offense. He forbade hunting during breeding time, from March to October, only allowing hunting during the winter season. And then, they had to use every part of the animal, so that nothing was wasted. He also recognized religion as a major source of disruption. But rather than outlawing religion, he decreed complete and total religious freedom for everyone. And you were required to respect the religious choices of whoever you had contact with. Religion would NOT be a source of strife in the Kahn’s camp.

And he made damn sure that NO ONE, not even himself, was exempt from the law. “To be a just Mongol, one had to live in a just community.” (p. 70).

And he implemented a postal service, which fell under the graces of the Kahn, and were vital to his military operations.

The final conflict Genghis Kahn had to resolve, before turning his empire to expansion, was with the shaman class. While everyone was absolutely free to worship as they please, Genghis Kahn himself was a shamanist, who worshipped the Eternal Blue Sky. And he refused to let people turn that into a cult. But the head shaman, Teb Tengeri, tried to make himself and his 6 brothers exempt from many rules. And because the shaman class had upheld his claims, for a while, Genghis Kahn let him. The shamans at one point beat up Genghis Kahn’s brother Khasar. When Khasar went to Genghis Kahn complaining, Genghis Kahn mocked him for a weakling. Khasar went to their mother, who live a day’s journey away. She promptly rode to visit Genghis Kahn in her ox cart and berated Genghis Kahn for turning his back on family. Khasar was reinstated. Shortly after this, Hoelun died, of natural causes most likely, at least there’s nothing to indicate retaliation from the shaman. Now, traditionally, all of her belongings should have been inherited by Genghis Kahn’s youngest brother, Temuge Otchigen, who was the hearth son, meaning youngest and the one who was tasked with caring for Hoelun in her old age. Teb Tengeri, however, seized her property. As the administrator of her estate, he had this authority. And while he should have treated this as a formality and immediately handed it over to Temuge Otchigen, Teb Tengeri instead tried to keep it. Fortunately, at this point, Borte stepped in. She pointed out that if they would be this cavalier with Hoelun’s estate, what did Genghis Kahn think they would do with HIS estate on his passing? Did he want his own wife and children to be bereft of property and left to starve? Ladies, a good man will listen to your advice, and heed it. And Genghis Kahn did.

The next time Teb Tengeri appeared in court, Temuge Otchigen grabbed him as he walked by. Genghis Kahn pretended they were just wrestling and told them to take it outside. Where Temuge Otchigen promptly broke Teb Tengeri’s back. Teb Tengeri was left to die. And the shaman were put in their place. And now the Mongolian Horde needed a new enemy to fight.

Having solidified the steppe tribes under his rule, Genghis Kahn had to find a new enemy for the hordes to conquer. And once the Mongol’s turned their sights on conquest, the trade goods and loot flooded the steppes, making the Mongolian Empire among the wealthiest in the world. One conveniently presented itself when a delegation arrived and demanded tribute from Genghis Kahn to the Golden Kahn of the Jurched.

However, the Jurched’s power was not in military might. It lay in controlling the flow of goods to Mongolia. And here is where Genghis Kahn’s military genius took a turn for the truly innovative and horrifying. See, even when he was fighting the other steppe tribes, his goal was to preserve Mongolian life. That was always his primary goal: to see his Mongol warriors return home safely. The other side, however…that was fair game. And so, he used the peasants surrounding the town to take the town. He had the peasants cutting down wood for engines of war. He used the peasants to fill the moat surrounding the town, so that his own men could walk over them. Additionally, the average Mongol’s diet was almost pure protein. The average Jurched diet, being that they were townies, included a great deal more grain. And so, the Mongol’s were bigger, almost solid muscle from hard lives lived on the steppe. The Mongol horde was entirely cavalry, and so they were very mobile. And their primary weapon were very powerful short bows, so they were mounted cavalry. This became increasingly important when they turned to the west and started looking at Europe.

And if preserving Mongolian life was his number one priority, avenging those wrongfully slain was a very close second. Killed in war was one thing. He understood that people fall in battle. But when he sends ambassadors to a country…like Khwarizm, for example…he expects them to be returned alive. So, in 1222, when Genghis Kahn sent his ambassadors to try and establish trade with the Sultan of Khwarizm, he did not react well when the sultan looted the trade caravan and disfigured the faces of the ambassadors. This did not end well for Khwarizm, as the Mongolian Horde overtook Bukhara, and sent the screaming peasants in advance to warn other cities along the silk road of the coming horrors.

I think, that among the reasons Genghis Kahn went down as such a villain in the history books is not so much his proven track record of conquest. There have been plenty of conquerors who are not reported as such villains. It’s that he did not care if you were aristocracy. Or rather, if you were aristocracy, you were number one on his hit list…with a bullet. Whenever the Horde took a town, it was invariably the aristocracy that was slaughtered. Additionally, while Genghis Kahn thought Mongol enslaving Mongol was evil, if you were not Mongol, you were fair game for the slave trade.  The peasants might be taken for slaves. But generally, if you were a skilled craftsman, you were conscripted to the Horde to create whatever your trade was. See, the Mongols knew war. That was it. That was their talent. They did not know how to spin fiber or weave fabric. They did not know metalworking, pottery, tanning, or leather craft. They knew war. And so, there was a dearth of craftsmen on the steppe. Until the Mongol’s started conscripting them. But the aristocracy…they served no purpose. Genghis Kahn did not see the point in holding someone for ransom, only to release them and have them come back later and try to kill you. He knew the peasants just wanted to be left alone. So, he killed the aristocracy, and other than craftsmen, left the peasants alone.

Genghis Kahn died in the summer of 1227. Unlike most other kings, he was very aware of his mortality, having lived with it since his earliest days, when the Tayichiud abandoned his family. In an effort to stave off the fighting that he knew would destroy the empire he had built, Genghis Kahn held a khuriltai for the family, so see which of his four sons would take over. While there may have been some doubt of his parentage, Jochi was undoubtedly Genghis Kahn’s favorite. However, when he turned to Jochi to hear Jochi’s thought, the second born son Chaghatai brought up the old family scandal, hinting that no one would follow Jochi, if they could not be sure Jochi was in fact Genghis Kahn’s son. And while Chaghatai undoubtedly wanted the position for himself, the compromise was met to give the title of Great Kahn to the third son, Ogodei. Genghis Kahn, wanting to see how his sons did in leadership, began sending them off on military campaigns, with Jochi being sent west, Chaghatai and Ogodei being sent to try and finish the conquest of China, and the youngest son, the hearth son Tolui, staying in the Mongolian homelands.

Jochi, sadly, died in early 1227. However, his son, Batu, was quite capable of leading what would become known as the Golden Horde across Russia and into eastern Europe. With their light and fast horses, and the greater range afforded by their powerful short bows, they made very short work of the Russian nobility, as related in the Novgorod Chronicles.

Ogodei was a drunk, and a profligate spender. By the time he died in 1241 he had burned through the vast wealth of the Mongolian Horde. Now, one of the distinguishing characteristics of the Mongolian steppe people, is the acknowledgment that women were absolutely equals. While the men rode off and fought the wars, the women ruled at home. And the men were not allowed to second guess the choices the women made in their absence. Consequently, the women of the Steppe were highly capable administrators. Following the death of Ogodei, his widow Toregene took over as regent. In an absolutely fascinating piece of history, her closest advisor was a Persian captive woman, Fatima. Toregene held the regency from 1241 until 1246, when she died unexpectedly. While poison is suspected, nothing was ever proven. Immediately after her death, Fatima was seized and accused of being a witch. To ensure none of her evil spirit escaped, the Mongols stitched up every orifice, rolled her in a heavy pelt, and threw her in the river. At this time, Ogodei’s son Guyuk stepped into the position of Kahn. Guyuk was…a monster. He was cruel and abusive. His father had tried to secure the Mongolian homeland from the hearth son, Tolui, and his lineage when Tolui died, by forcibly marrying Guyuk to Tolui’s widow, Sorkhokhtani. This failed, but Guyuk never forgave his aunt by marriage her rejection of him. Fortunately, his reign was short lived, and he died two years later, with a brother, Oghul Ghaimish holding the position for a bare 3 years, from 1248 to 1251.

So, at this point, we have Jochi’s son Batu with the Golden Horde, terrorizing Russia and the eastern parts of Europe. Not wanting to risk losing what he had already gained in the West, Batu and his followers declined to return to the Mongolian seat for an official khuriltai; however, he fully supported Sorkhokhtani’s maneuvers against the descendants of Ogodei. Chaghatai has gone south, and eventually his line will form the Moghul Empire in India, which ruled until England took over in 1857. Ogodei’s line has died out, but Tolui and Sorkhokhtani had four sons. Four very capable sons, all of whom would lead the Great Horde, at one time or another. First was the oldest, Mongke, who ruled from 1251-1259. He directed his younger brother, the second born Hulegu, to go south, and conquer Persia and Iraq. Which he did. In a little less than 2 years, Hulegu took Baghdad, the crown jewel of the Arabian empire, a feat which had not been completed in the 600 years of the cities existence and would not be repeated until 2003. And the tribute flowed north. When Mongke died, Hulegu followed his cousin’s decision to not return to the homeland, and created the Ilkhanate of Persia and Iraq, which ruled in one form or another until 1920. Sorkhokhtani supported her youngest son, Arik Boke; however, Khubilai, while not a warrior, did have the ability to inspire others to follow him. Which he did. And so Khubilai took the title of Great Kahn, and the legacy of Genghis Kahn began its true descent, to present day. I have often thought of the axiom that history is written by the winners. Sometimes, though, history is rewritten by the very sore losers. Which is why, rather than being known as someone who spread culture like dandelion fluff on the wind, Genghis Kahn is remembered as the terror of Europe.

Once the sibling rivalry between Khubilai and his brother Arik Boke was resolved, it turned out Khubilai was a very capable administrator. He may not have been his mother favorite, as evidenced by her backing Arik Boke in their brief struggle, but he was certainly an apt pupil, as he began expanding the empire through trade.

And it had to be trade. Khubilai was not the warrior that his grandfather had been, and was overweight and had developed gout, following his love of alcohol and fine foods. But he did inherit his grandfathers’ administrative talents, and the ability to appoint the right person to the right position. And the first thing he recognized was that there was no way to conquer China by force. Khubilai chose to adopt the parts of Chinese culture that would make him acceptable to the common man…but certainly left him at odds with the remaining aristocracy. Among the steps he took to consolidate Mongolian rule over China was posthumously granting Chinese names on his great-grandparents, Yesugei and Hoelun, for his grandfather Genghis Kahn, and on each of Genghis Kahn’s four sons. And then proclaiming this was all part of his reign, named Zhiyuan, meaning “complete beginning.” This became the basis for the dynastic name of Da Yuan, the Yuan dynasty, meaning “great origins” or “great beginnings.” (p. 196)

And while Khubilai’s uncle Ogodei tried to create a Mongolian capital in the heart of Mongolia, which was destined to failure due to being so far off the trade routes, Khubilai created a capital city in China, which grew to become modern day Beijing. And then proceeded to rip apart the things the aristocracy held dear. Within Beijing, he created the forbidden city, which was basically a way for the Mongolian royalty to continue living in gers, in the heart of “civilized” China. Within the forbidden city, Mongolian women mingled freely with Mongolian men. And the Mongols rejected the elitist snobbery of Confucianism and thought foot binding was barbaric, refusing to practice it.

His administration guaranteed property rights, reduced taxes, and improved roads and communications (p. 200). He ensured that the laws were consistent, and consistently applied. He eradicated torture as barbaric, and drastically reduced the number of crimes that resulted in execution, as well as actual executions performed for those crimes that remained punishable by death.

Monetarily, he instituted one of the first forms of paper money. This wasn’t, strictly speaking, brand new, as Ogodei Kahn had also instituted paper money. However, Ogodei’s money quickly fell to inflation, owing to his own spendthrift habits which drained the treasury. Khubilai’s policy of greatly increasing trade and technological innovations, ensured a constant stream of gold, silver, and gems, ensuring that the paper money, was fully backed by actual trade goods that could easily be exchanged for such. It seems the Mongols, gave us capitalism.

And where traditionally peasants were at the bottom of the pecking order, subject to the whims of petty bureaucrats, Khubilai upset this order, organizing the peasants into units of 50,000 each, and giving these local units broad authority over their lives. Within these units, called she, literacy and education were encouraged and prized. The Mongols, 500 years before the thought ever occurred to Europe, taught their peasants to read. And while they valued literacy and learning, they turned those pursuits, to entertainment. While the traditional Chinese society used literacy as a way to gatekeep who could function as administrators, the Mongolian empire used literacy to entertain the people. During the Yuan dynasty, some 500 plays were written and performed, of which 160 survive and are performed to this day. But unlike any European counterpart, the Mongolians did not enjoy blood sport. And while they enjoyed wrestling as a form of entertainment, public slaughter, bear baiting, bull fighting, and public execution were never touted as being entertainment in the Mongolian Dynasty.

And through these methods, without bloodshed, Khubilai managed to conquer the rest of China, as the peasants and warriors of the Sung dynasty abandoned the Sung, for the Yuan. “Through patient propaganda and shrewd policies, Khubilai Kahn had succeeded in doing what Genghis Kahn had not been able to do with his mighty army.” (pp 208-209)

But he was definitely NOT a warrior. Under Khubilai Kahn, the Mongolians twice tried to invade Japan. Both times, the weather caused defeat when the ships carrying the Mongolian army sank. And when he tried to take Java, the Mongolian horde was instead ambushed and defeated. And so, following Genghis Kahn’s death, and the military conquests of his sons and grandsons “between 1242 and 1293, the Mongol expansion reached its maximum, and four battles marked the outer borders of the Mongol world—Poland, Egypt, Java, and Japan. The area inside those four points had suffered devastating conquests and radical adjustments to a markedly different kind of rule, but they were about to enjoy an unprecedented century of political peace with a commercial, technological, and intellectual explosion unlike any in prior history.” (p. 214)

In 1287, Khubilai Kahn sent an emissary to the crown heads in Europe. Rabban Bar Sawma started out heading towards Jerusalem, but in Baghdad, his orders were diverted to Europe. And so, he made a visit to the Mongol Ilkhan in Persian, Emperor Andronicus II Palaeologus of Byzantium in Constantinople, the College of Cardinals in Rome, King Philip IV of France, and King Edward I of England (pp 218-219). Marco Polo may have traveled the silk road, but Rabban Bar Sawma traveled the entire Eurasian continent, a journey of some 7,000 miles one way. And while he did not secure any treaties, with his voyage, he opened up trade with Europe.

And trade flourished. In addition to absolute freedom of religion, doctors from China and Persia traded places, so that each might learn what the other knew about medicine. Khubilai’s scholars combined Chinese, Arab, and Greek knowledge of geography to produce sophisticated maps. While roads were recognized as the fastest way to transport the military, water was quickly discovered to be the fastest way to transport trade goods.

Generally, aristocrats globally look down on commerce and commercial enterprise. It’s ok to inherit wealth, but God forbid you work for it. But the Mongols did not see it that way. And so, the aristocracy, whether European or Chinese, thought education for the elites was fine, but working for a living was beneath them. Sounds a lot like the extreme left in 21st century America. But, lest they think I’m picking on them unfairly, there is also this. The feudal system in Europe disliked trade not so much because it was work that was beneath them, but that they thought each kingdom and feudal manor should be able to stand on its own. Reliance on imported goods represented failure at home. And so, there is my disdain for the far right. Trade makes the world go round. And where there is honest trade, there is seldom warfare. The Mongols knew this, and used this knowledge to create a global, capitalist, empire, built on the mutual desire for wealth.

Accordingly, through the trade routes opened and safely maintained by the Mongolian empire, Europe was introduced to silk satin, silk damask, and muslin. To be sure, these things were known to Europe PRIOR to Mongolian rule in Asia, but under Mongolian rule, the flood of these textiles became such, that they were more affordable. Enter a small but growing middle class of tradesmen on the European continent. Playing cards, paper stock, spices, porcelain, technology, agricultural improvements…all flowed freely to Europe, who suffered almost nothing of the original Mongolian conquests. But they were happy to accept the trade goods, which contributed to the end of feudalism. “The Mongols made culture portable…They searched for what worked best; and when they found it, they spread it to other countries.” (pp. 229-233)

The beginning of the end started between 1328 and 1332. During that time, four new members of the Golden Family had sat in the Kahn’s chair, each of them dying horribly. The same roads that made conquest so easy and became the life blood of the trade that fueled the empire, also made the spread of plague lightning fast. From the heart of the Mongolian Empire in Beijing, the bubonic plague spread across the Eurasian and African continents, wiping out millions and reducing the global population by as much as 30%, wiping out whole towns. Once the center fell out of the Mongolian empire, the satellites dissolved, and the Mongolian empire began a slow collapse. The descendants of Chagatai held out as the Moghul empire in India until the 19th century. The Ilkhanate in Persia lasted until the 20th century. The Golden Horde in Russia fell apart almost immediately, the troops combining with the Turks there. And history began to turn on Genghis Kahn.

It wasn’t immediate. For a while, that stream of gold and commerce was remembered in Europe. When the land routes had been closed as a result of warfare and new empires, Christopher Columbus sought to re-establish contact by sea. But with the renaissance in Europe, it was all over. Christian and European arrogance could not allow that this golden age had started in Asia. And in seeking to establish European dominance over history, the scientists came up with scientific explanations for why Asians, and especially Mongols, were inferior classes of humanity, which ideas held sway all the way through Communist conquest of Mongolia. It wasn’t until Soviet Russia fell, and the archaeologists in Mongolia were allowed to have intellectual curiosity about the Great Kahn, that history started to be unearthed, starting with a book. Genghis Kahn had done well in insisting on having a written copy of the Mongolian language. The written copy, a book called The Secret History of the Mongols, was an ancient Mongolian text discovered in the early part of the 20th century, and slowly translated into modern language. And from this and from justifiable national pride, we know more about Genghis Kahn now, then was ever assumed by the 18th and 19th century scientists.

I love this book, I’ve read it a few times and recommended it to my family and now I recommend it to anyone who wants the other side of the story. He was not necessarily a nice man, there was certainly conquest, rape, and violence while under his command. But he was a man who cared for HIS people. Which is more than we can say about 21st century politicians.

This book was originally reviewed on YouTube on November 14, 2021, but is now available on Rumble and PodBean.