Genghis khan when was he born

She kept the family going in the harsh desert lands of Mongolia, surviving on nuts and berries or whatever else they could find. She taught Chinggis the basic skills of survival, particularly those needed for survival in the steppelands and in the desert. Why did the Mongols begin their conquests? Chinggis Khan Tribal group vs. From what modern-day historians can gather he was born sometime around A. Genghis Khan was born with the name Temujin also spelled Temuchin.

At the time, Mongolia was ruled by different clans and tribal groups. The boy was named Temujin to celebrate his father's triumph over an enemy, also named Temujin, writes Haqqi, who notes that naming a newborn child after an auspicious event was a common practice. Haqqi believed that Temujin lived for some time with his father in-law, although this is a source of debate among scholars.

Temujin, his family and remaining followers were forced to eke out a living on marginal pasturelands, contending with thieves and old rivals of Yesukai hoping to kill his family. Around the age of 14, Temujin is said to have murdered his half brother Bektor. He overestimated his own strength, and Borte was kidnapped in a raid by a tribe called the Merkit.

Temujin had to seek out the help of his friends Jamuqa and Toghrul also called the Ong Khan or Wang Khan to free her they were both glad to help, as they hated the Merkit. Chinese historical sources say that at some point Temujin was captured by the Jin Dynasty who controlled part of China and was held there for a number of years.

Whether this is accurate or not is unknown. The records do show that around Temujin had allied himself with Toghrul and would launch a campaign against the Tatars, which they defeated in The two would later have a falling out, and Toghrul was killed after his forces were defeated by Temujin.

Temujin also had a falling out with Jamuqa and eventually had him killed also. In , Genghis Khan's armies struck the Jin Dynasty in northern China, lured not by the great cities' artistic and scientific wonders, but rather the seemingly endless rice fields and easy pickings of wealth. Although the campaign against the Jin Dynasty lasted nearly 20 years, Genghis Khan's armies were also active in the west against border empires and the Muslim world.

Initially, Genghis Khan used diplomacy to establish trade relations with the Khwarizm Dynasty, a Turkish-dominated empire that included Turkestan, Persia, and Afghanistan.

But the Mongol diplomatic mission was attacked by the governor of Otrar, who possibly believed the caravan was a cover for a spy mission. When Genghis Khan heard of this affront, he demanded the governor be extradited to him and sent a diplomat to retrieve him. Shah Muhammad, the leader of the Khwarizm Dynasty, not only refused the demand, but in defiance sent back the head of the Mongol diplomat. This act released a fury that would sweep through central Asia and into eastern Europe. In , Genghis Khan personally took control of planning and executing a three-prong attack of , Mongol soldiers against the Khwarizm Dynasty.

The Mongols swept through every city's fortifications with unstoppable savagery. Those who weren't immediately slaughtered were driven in front of the Mongol army, serving as human shields when the Mongols took the next city. No living thing was spared, including small domestic animals and livestock. Skulls of men, women, and children were piled in large, pyramidal mounds.

City after city was brought to its knees, and eventually the Shah Muhammad and later his son were captured and killed, bringing an end to the Khwarizm Dynasty in Scholars describe the period after the Khwarizm campaign as the Pax Mongolica. In time, the conquests of Genghis Khan connected the major trade centers of China and Europe.

The empire was governed by a legal code known as Yassa. Developed by Genghis Khan, the code was based on Mongol common law but contained edicts that prohibited blood feuds, adultery, theft and bearing false witness. Also included were laws that reflected Mongol respect for the environment such as forbidding bathing in rivers and streams and orders for any soldier following another to pick up anything that the first soldier dropped. Infraction of any of these laws was usually punishable by death.

Advancement within military and government ranks was not based on traditional lines of heredity or ethnicity, but on merit. There were tax exemptions for religious and some professional leaders, as well as a degree of religious tolerance that reflected the long-held Mongol tradition of religion as a personal conviction not subject to law or interference. This tradition had practical applications as there were so many different religious groups in the empire, it would have been an extra burden to force a single religion on them.

With the annihilation of the Khwarizm Dynasty, Genghis Khan once again turned his attention east to China. The Tanguts of Xi Xia had defied his orders to contribute troops to the Khwarizm campaign and were in open revolt. In a string of victories against Tangut cities, Genghis Khan defeated enemy armies and sacked the capital of Ning Hia. Soon one Tangut official surrendered after another, and the resistance ended.

Genghis Khan hadn't quite extracted all the revenge he wanted for the Tangut betrayal, however, and ordered the execution of the imperial family, thus ending the Tangut lineage. Genghis Khan died in , soon after the submission of the Xi Xia. The exact cause of his death is unknown. Some historians maintain that he fell off a horse while on a hunt, and died of fatigue and injuries. Others contend that he died of respiratory disease.

Genghis Khan was buried without markings, according to the customs of his tribe, somewhere near his birthplace—close to the Onon River and the Khentii Mountains in northern Mongolia.

According to legend, the funeral escort killed anyone and anything they encountered to conceal the location of the burial site, and a river was diverted over Genghis Khan's grave to make it impossible to find. Before his death, Genghis Khan bestowed supreme leadership to his son Ogedei, who controlled most of eastern Asia, including China. The rest of the empire was divided among his other sons: Chagatai took over central Asia and northern Iran; Tolui, being the youngest, received a small territory near the Mongol homeland; and Jochi who was killed before Genghis Khan's death.

Jochi and his son, Batu, took control of modern Russia and formed the Golden Horde.