topics: |  mongolia | biography | history | medieval | genghis

This is the authoritative biography of Genghis so far; consulting a broad
range of texts from Mongol and Chinese to the Arabic and Persian,
Ratchnevsky takes a nuanced position on all events relating to his life. 

Excerpts

The vast steppes of the Mongolian plateau have, from time immemmorial, been
the setting for bitter struggles between the Turkic and the Mongol-Tungusic
pastoral tribes.  Bands of horsemen from this area swept across Asia and
Europe: Hsiung-Nu, Hsien-pi, Tavgach, Juan-juan, Tu-chueh, Uighurs, Kirghiz,
and Khitans ruled the area and founded might empires, but these did not
endure, usually collapsing in the 3d generation as a result of dissension
among the tribal princes, or were victims of incursions by fresh bands of
nomads.  Mastery of the steppe changed - some races remained, forming the
substratum in the confederations of the conquerors and adopting the name of
the victorious races; ethnic and linguistic dividing lines became
increasingly blurred.

12th c. : Mastery of W Mongolia passed to the Naimans

Ascertaining Temujin's Birth Year

		p.17-19:  birth year debate: 
Died in 1227. 
some chinese sources: lived till 75 --> gives 1155.  This is also the
calculation in Zhao Hong, who gives 1154/55.  But Yuanshi, Shenwu, and
Zhuogeng lu record it as 1162.  
Another earlier tradition, referred to by Peillot, that he was born in
1167.  Yang Weizheng, quoted by Tao Zongyi, offers the year dinghai (1167)
as his birthdate, and in the older version of the Shenwu, as in the Lidai
fozu tongzai (Record of successive gneerations of Buddha), G is said to
have died at the age of sixty.

Reasons for a date later than 1155:

* at time of Merkit raid that stole Borte, SH says that Temulin was in
  Hoelun's lap; and the Altan tohchi says that Temulin was nine years
  younger.  By the 1155 reckoning, Temulun would have been 18 at the time of
  that attack. [18-19]
* Temujin would have become a father only at the age of 30 - most unlikely if
  one considers the early Mongol marriages; GK would not have subjugated the
  peoples of Central Asia until he was fifty; at sixty he would have
  undertaken
  rolling out on world conquest, and actively
  leading a campaign at age 75 (though he was of very robust health) [18]

These contradictions go away with about +10, but exact year can't be
calculated - I doubt whether Genghis himself knew it. 19

In the remainder of this work it is assumed that T was born around the
mid-1160s. 19 

[After Kerait raids] elder daughter of Wang-Khan's brother Jagambu, Ibaka
taken by Temuchin as wife - although he later separated and gave her in
marriage to Jurchedei.  Younger daughter Sorkaktani, later to play an
important political role in during the reign of Ogodei Khan, was given to
Temuchin's son Tolui, who also received the Wang Khan's grand-daughter,
Dokuz-khatun.  After Tolui's death, the latter was, in accordance with to
Mongol custom, married to his son, the Il-khan Hulegu, and she exercised
great influence on his religious policies. 80

Genghis was no less superstitious than his contemporaries. He separated from
his wife Ibaka because of a bad dream; he caused the Taoist Changchun to
come visit him in Samarkand hoping that he might provide the elixir of
longevity; kept people like Ila Ahai and Ila Chuzai who could read the
future from the shoulder-blade of sheep 157

Genghis' wives and concubines

Genghis doubtless found pleasure in sex, and he brought a new wife home from
every campaign.  Carpini reports that the most beautiful maidens of the
empire were selected and presented to Genghis each year; some he retained,
others he presented to his sons and comrades-in-arms.  Rashid maintains that
G had a harem of 500 wives and concubines and the Yuanshi lists the names
of twenty-three wifves and 16 concubines.  A favourite wife accompanied him
on every campaign - Kulan on the westen campaign, and Yisui on the final
campaign against the Tanguts.  G Retained his sexual appetite into old age
and during the western campaign, a convoy of maidens were supp to have been
dispatcched to him from far-off China.  Jusjani asserts that during the
western campaign 12,000 virgins, seleccted for G from among the prisoners,
followed the army on foot.  Two divisions of virgins, about the same no as
the whole of Jebe's expeditionary force, marched behind the army - clearly a
gross exaggeration. 164

He does not appar ever to have had a passion or a deel pove for any woman.
In his youth he abandoned Borte to her fate, thinking only of his own safety
when the camp was raided by the Merkits; in old age Kulan and Yisui enjoyed
his especial affection.  165

The Mongols attributed no great importance to the virginity of their women.
165

Genghis and Cultural icons

History usually depicts GK as the destroyer of flourishing civilizations;
yet he was not opposed to culture.  He grasped the importance of writing
and, after the defeat of the Naimans, had the Mongol princes instructed in
the Uighur script.  He valued highly those who had the gift of languages
and writing and when he learned of a young Uighur, Mengsusi (Mungsuz), who
at age 15 was experienced in the literature of his people, he had the boy
borought to him and prophesied: "The day will come when this boy will be of
great value."  He took pleasure at the humanistic teaching of the Uighur
Yelian Temur; he valued the medical expertise of the Iranians and had an
eye infection treated by a Persian doctor; craftsmen were spared and
scribes attained high positions.

The souther Chinese Zhao Hong was an eyewitness to the bloody trail of the
Mongol campaign in N China; ion his personal travelogue he describes GH:
"This man is brave and decisive, he is self-controlled and lenient towards
the population, he reveres Heaven and Earth, prizes loyalty and justice. 167

After Genghis Khan

Marco Polo:
Khubilai presented each of his 12K strong bodyguard with a golden belt and
with thirteen robes of diff colours, adorned w jewels and costly pearls.

Marco Polo: 40K people attended a banquet given by Khubilai.

Juvaini: During Mongke's accession, weeklong festivities, 2000 carts loaded w
wine+fermented mare's milk (_airak),  300 horses and oxen and 3K sheep
arrived each day to feed the guests.

Even the normal catering for the court and people of Karakorum required 500
carts w food and drink.  Ogodei instituted an animal tax - regular people had
to provide horses, and mare's milk, as taxes.  Also needed to provide horses
and supplies for the ever-increasing courier service,

Under Khubilai however, the wealth moved to China, and Mongolia itself became
impoverished, a relatively unimp province. 203

Many Mongols, after settling in remote parts, were in dire straits, and sold
their women and children as slaves.  Ghazan laments numb of Genghis' top
emirs' descendants sold as slaves to Dadzikhs or in destitution.

Laws against theft took deep roots:  Ibn Batuta, travelling in Iraq, lost 2
horses in the night, but were returned on their way back 20 days later.
Comments that pack animals would be left unattended because of the severe
Turkic laws against theft.  
Carpini: Their houses and the carts on which they store their wealth have
   neither locks nor bolts.  Juzaini: No one except the owner would pick up
   even a whip lying on the ground. 205

Later, robbery increased considerably; including overseers and customs
officials.

Marco Polo: fidelity of the Mongols: "On no account will they lay hand on the
wife of another man.... regard that as a most evil and disgusting deed.
Fidelity of men is remarkable, and the wives are very virtuous" 205

The underlying concept of the universal empire [introduced by GK] was new and
this concept was to maintain the ruling position of the conquerors for years
after the death of GK - although eventually it shattered given the
superiority of the economic structure of the peasant farmer over the
restricted possibilities of expanding the animal-breeding economy.  After the
conquests ceased, there was no more war booty and the conquerors slipped into
economic dependence on the conquered but civilized peoples.