Gengiz Khan

Chengiz Khan (Gengiz Khan) as I remember from my history book was a very cruel and horrendous plunderer. The very name of the Mongol King would send shudders down the spine of the inhabitants of the area he was moving closer to. Though my history book only had a light mention and I am sure less than a page worth of material about Chengiz Khan it still left a mark in my mind. The mark was that of cruelty, killing, torture and suffering was spread in the land he conquered. Little did I know that the Great Khan of Mongolia had many achievements including starting of the first paper currency, healthy trade between Europe and Asia, spreading better agricultural practices, good governing practices, co-existence of religions within a country and equal law for all citizens are to name a few.

Chengiz Khan (original name Temujin) was just another nomad in the steppes of Mongolia. Early in his life he was captured and even served as a slave for some of tribes in the steppes. Trying to save his family and survive in the rough life of the steppes and constant rioting between the Mongolian tribes made him take up fighting. Temujin swiftly and intelligently defeated and unified all the Mongolian tribes under himself and to create a region of Mongolia. This was Temujin who followed the spirit banner ( a spear with the hair of the best stallion tied just below the blade). He did not followed any particular religion but the believed that the Eternal Blue Sky. He promoted healthy debates between religions and religious freedom to all  citizens in his territory however, there no favoritism for any one religion.

Chengiz Khan lived like a nomad and did not believe in a capital or any kind of fortification. Until his death in the early 13th century he is said to live in gers or tents. He had an empire that was bigger than the Romans which stretched from the east end of modern China to the west end in eastern Europe. It is believed that Chengiz Khan developed and excelled in war strategies, war equipments and learnt from various opponents that he faced in his lifetime. He was a very thoughtful warrior and had good skills in setting up and managing his army. After taking over a city the great Khan had a come up with the method of looting the city and sharing the loot among all of his citizens. Though a great enemy Chengiz Khan is said to have respected his opponents and did not use any kind of torture or sadistic methods to kill his opponents in war. However, his war tactics did include spreading of rumors regarding the horrible fate of people who oppose him. 

Unfortunately, his descendants did not follow his principles. His son Odegei was not a great ruler but just enjoyed the wealth and loot acquired by his father. During his time the empire got its capital in Karakoram and a fort was built for the golden family. Though his grandson Kublai Khan did lead to the fall of the Sung Dynasty of China and also lead efforts to improve trade, literature, currency and knowledge transfer between the various parts of the empire the slow decay of the empire had started. After Kublai Khan the empire broke up and slowly was taken over by other relatives of the Great Khan. The Moghul emporer Babar who invaded India is said to be the 13th generation of the Golden Khan. 

My understanding and image of Gengiz Khan was shockingly different from what the book wrote. The details about the whole Mongol dynasty and its effects on the modern world is sadly forgotten. This book is a great read and is very interesting narration by the author Jack Weatherford. A professor from Macalester College in Minnesota his research seems thorough and conclusions very real. I would recommend this book to anyone who has an intereste in knowing about history and it has made the world we live in today.

My Rating: 8.5/10