History and Legacy of Genghis Khan
Genghis Khan (born on 1162 and died on 8th of August 1227) was the founder of Mongol empire and is considered the most feared conquerors of all time.
Genghis wasn’t his real name, he was given the title when he became the leader of Mongols, It means “supreme” or “universal”, his real name was Temujin (meaning “of iron” or “blacksmith”), and Khan is a traditional name meaning the leader or ruler. Genghis Khan is popularly known as to have created the largest contiguous empire in all human history.
He came into power by uniting many of the nomadic tribes of Northeast Asia. When Genghis Khan launched the Mongol invasions that conquered most of Eurasia.
Genghis Khan was one of the well known and greatest historical figures in history. The military tactics and the strategies of Genghis Khan were the reason for him to conquer most of Eurasia. After Genghis Khan’s death the empire past down to Ögedei Khan, and Later, his grandsons split the empire into khanates (a political entity ruled by a khan or khagan).
Before his death in 1227, the Mongol ruler Genghis Khan conquered nearly 12 million square miles of territory. Although Genghis Khan slaughtered millions while cutting through Europe and Asia, he also modernized Mongolian culture, embraced religious freedom and helped open contact between east and west.
Some of the interesting facts about Genghis Khan that most people not know are:
- Genghis Khan was one of the greatest minds in history. He was a military genius; he trained his army with several unknown tactics of that time, he trained archers to be able to shoot while riding horses, they were so effective that they would not stand or remain still to engage (they were a moving target that shot back).
- Genghis Khan had the most effective military force. Under the rule of Genghis Khan, Mongolians were one of the fastest travelling army fleets; some consider that it was the key of Mongolians military success, their ability to move faster in a short period.
- Genghis Khan was also the inventor of psychological warfare, the amount of dust rising from the galloping of the horses, that could be seen from a farther distance, it would create so much panic in the hearts of people that they would take their own life, before being butchered or killed by the Mongolians.
- After a conquer, Genghis Khan would spare the lives of engineers and craftsmen; he learned the tactics and skills of every region he’s been through. This was the reason of his large armada and the variety of weapons he had, from powerful battling rams to a long trebuchet, the Mongolians were known as the master of siege due to these weapons.
- Although everyone feared Genghis Khan for Mongolians, he is considered as a hero and a great unifier. After Genghis Khan would conquer a culture or a region he would assimilate them, he would bring them into a greater empire.
