10 Little-Known Facts About Genghis Khan: What History Textbooks Are Silent About

2024 Author: Richard Flannagan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-15 23:55

The name of Genghis Khan is known all over the world. His Mongol horde conquered half the world. Genghis Khan's empire stretched from the Caspian Sea to the Pacific Ocean, covering an unimaginable 23 million square kilometers - the largest empire in history. In 25 years of campaigns, Genghis Khan managed to conquer more lands than the entire Roman Empire in 400 years. His warriors were unprecedentedly fierce, and the soldiers of the defeated armies faced an unenviable fate - they were beheaded or forced to swallow molten metal. Entire cities were destroyed, and the prisoners were killed or forced to go ahead of the advancing army as human shields. However, although his name is now synonymous with barbarism, Genghis Khan was a leader with a number of truly amazing qualities.

1. Modesty

Genghis Khan himself was a rather humble person. He did not build monuments to honor his achievements. Even after death, he wanted to remain humble. Other people in his position might have built elaborate memorials for themselves, as the pharaohs did in Egypt. Genghis, however, wished to be buried in a secret place in an unmarked grave. After his death, the loyal army fulfilled the leader's wishes. They took his body in an unknown direction, killing everyone they met along the way, so that these people could not reveal the whereabouts of the great khan's final resting place.

Chinggis's men dug a grave somewhere in the mountains of Mongolia, or perhaps in the wide plains, depending on who you believe. Then they trampled the grave site with horses to disguise it. It is said that after Genghis Khan's funeral, the slaves who dug the grave were killed and the soldiers planted a grove of trees over the burial site. When the soldiers returned home, they were killed by their own comrades to prevent them from revealing the location of Genghis Khan's remains. Today, archaeologists and treasure hunters are still searching for the grave, hoping to find the final resting place of the great Mongol leader and possibly a treasure trove rumored to have been buried with him.

2. Writing in Mongolia

In 1204, Genghis Khan established a writing system in Mongolia known as the Old Uigur writing system, which has been in continuous use until today. It was actually taken over from the Uyghur tribes conquered by the Mongol army. Genghis was very wise: when he conquered another tribe, he assimilated their cultural and technological customs, especially if they were superior to his own. In this he demonstrated much more wisdom than most conquering nations who simply destroyed the captured culture. Genghis Khan attached great importance to the ability to read and write. He ordered to teach all the children of the Mongol Empire to read, as well as to make a written set of all the laws of the empire.

3. Meritocracy in the Mongol Empire

The empire of Genghis Khan consisted of a large number of scattered tribes and peoples. Most of the conquering nations find it difficult to maintain order among the indigenous population, and it also takes a lot of troops to suppress unrest and impose a new order. Chingis chose a different method. He ruled the Mongol Empire as a strict meritocracy. He once said: "A leader cannot be happy if his people are not happy." All leaders were appointed only on the basis of their ability, and career advancement in the army was based on ability and demonstrable results. Even in his family, he implemented something similar. On his deathbed, he instructed his advisors to appoint his successors (by general agreement, they were members of his own family), based solely on their ability to succeed.

4. Restoring the Silk Road

The Silk Road is the name of a trade route that ran overland through China, India and Southeast Asia to the lucrative markets of Europe. It was eventually abandoned due to the danger, because the vast expanses that the merchants had to cross was a real paradise for robbers. The entire trade route of the Silk Road fell under the power of Genghis Khan - a distance of more than 7000 kilometers. The period after the conquest of this area became known as Pax Mongolica ("Mongol Peace"), and it was a period of calm and stability that allowed traders to move freely along the route.

Trade caravans carried silk and other precious goods such as pearls, precious stones, spices, precious metals, carpets, and medicines. In addition, it ensured the prosperity of the local economy, and refreshments were provided to travelers along the way. All this was organized by the Mongol authorities. The Silk Road became so safe that it was even said that "a young maiden, laden with gold, could go all the way without punishment."

5. Strict code of laws

Usually, the Mongol horde is considered to be something like an uncontrolled group of hooligans, raping and robbing at will. In fact, Mongolian society tended to be very orderly and law-abiding. Under Genghis Khan, a "Yasak" or code of law was drawn up, which detailed the expected behavior of the citizens of the empire and punishment for those who broke the laws. Every citizen of the Mongol Empire had to abide by these rules, including Genghis Khan himself. The ban included kidnapping, animal abuse, theft and, surprisingly, slavery (although only for fellow Mongols).

Other decrees included raising the minimum age of military service to 20 years. In addition, no one could be considered guilty of a crime unless he was actually caught in the act or confessed of his own free will. On his deathbed, Genghis Khan said: "If my followers abandon Yasak, the state will collapse." It looks like it was a bit of a prophecy as his empire completely disintegrated within 150 years and not a single copy of Yasaka remained.

6. Attitude towards the army

The well-being of his own troops was of particular concern to Genghis Khan. He stated: "I want to feed them juicy meat, let them live in beautiful yurts, and let them graze their cattle on fertile land." If a warrior died due to the negligence of his commander, then the commander was punished. And if a wounded soldier was thrown onto the battlefield, his commander was executed on the spot. All this forced the commanders of the army to resort to any measures to ensure the well-being of the people under their command. The army worked on a system of mutual loyalty, and this allowed it to conquer the world. Soldiers in the Mongol army were not paid. Instead, they received an equal share of the spoils of war. This ensured that all warriors were motivated to win. If a soldier died in battle, his share of the booty was handed over to his family.

7. Supporting women's rights

At that time, Genghis Khan was a real defender of women's rights. Women in Mongolia were much freer than their neighbors in China or Persia. They could ride horses, fight battles, tend farms, and participate in politics. Although most women still had fewer rights than men, some women had great influence in the Mongol Empire. They held government offices and played major roles in the administration of the empire. Abduction of wives was specifically prohibited by law (Genghis Khan's wife was abducted), as was the practice of selling women into marriage against their will.

8. Religious freedom

Genghis Khan was a shamanist, like most of the Mongols of that time. Nevertheless, he maintained a tolerance for all religions in his empire. He exempted religious leaders of all denominations from paying taxes and encouraged citizens to freely practice their chosen religions. He invited religious leaders to meet with him for interfaith discussions and wanted to hear their beliefs. Genghis Khan deliberately chose counselors from a wide variety of religious backgrounds. His empire was so vast that it consisted of followers of a large number of religions, including Muslims, Buddhists, Hindus, Jews and Christians. They were all allowed to practice their religions without interference from the Mongol state.

9. Mail

Perhaps one of the most amazing achievements of Genghis Khan was the creation of an organized postal system throughout his empire. Postal stations were created to deliver official mail, but they were also available for use by citizens, soldiers, and even foreigners. Postal systems have helped the economy, facilitated the transportation of goods along the Silk Road, and improved the quality and reliability of information exchange. The post stations were located 24 km apart. Couriers moved between stations, where they were provided with food and shelter. Foreign observers like Marco Polo admired the system's efficiency. By the end of Mongol rule, there were thousands of postal stations with tens of thousands of horses and couriers.

10. Great lover and fighter

Although Genghis Khan is famous for his conquests and empire-building, his longest-lasting legacy is more of a lover than a fighter. Recent DNA research suggests that Genghis Khan was quite loving. It is estimated that there are 16 million people in Central Asia alone who are descendants of the Mongol emperor. It is known that Genghis Khan had many wives, and he "courted" many women. After the Mongol horde took over the city, Chinggis was given a choice of the most beautiful women, and it seems that he took full advantage of this. His sons and grandchildren were also very prolific. One of his grandchildren had 22 legal wives and added 30 virgins a year to his harem. Although the Mongol Empire has long since disappeared, it seems that Genghis Khan found other ways to conquer the world.