Mongol Conquests
The largest contiguous land empire in history. Genghis Khan and his descendants conquered from China to Eastern Europe. The destruction of Baghdad (1258) ended the Abbasid Caliphate; depopulation of Central Asia and China was catastrophic.
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Belligerents
- Mongol Empire (Genghis Khan, successors)
- China
- Persia
- Russia
- Baghdad Caliphate
Casualties
~40 million (c. 10% of world population)
Key events
- 1219–1221 — Khwarazmian campaign (Samarkand, Merv razed)
- 1241 — Liegnitz & Mohi (Europe overrun)
- 1258 — Sack of Baghdad (caliphate destroyed)
Aftermath
Largest contiguous land empire ever. Sack of Baghdad ended the Abbasid Caliphate and the Islamic Golden Age. Black Death (1347–1351) likely spread along Mongol trade routes from Yunnan to Crimea to Europe. Russia under 'Tatar yoke' for 240 years. Fragmented into khanates that became Mughal India, Ilkhanate Persia, Yuan China, Crimean Tatars.
Weapons & matériel
- Mongol composite recurve bow (range ~300m)
- Three-arrow quivers (light, heavy, signal)
- Lamellar armour
- Captured Chinese siege engines (counterweight trebuchet)
- Early gunpowder bombards
Technology
Yam postal-relay system (forerunner of modern messaging); integrated Chinese siegecraft; gunpowder weapons (early bombards); decimal military organization
Economy
Pax Mongolica reopened Silk Road; introduced paper currency (chao) across Eurasia; first guaranteed-safe transcontinental trade
Cost
Estimated 30–40 million dead — perhaps 7–10% of world population at the time
Sources
- Secret History of the Mongols
- Rashid al-Din
- Juvayni