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Genghis Khan was a leader who inevitably brought terror, fear and death
due to his harsh and punitive methods, however, he was a tactical and
prodigious leader who brought positive change for the overall success of
his great empire. Though he had such merciless approaches, he was a
man who not only united Mongol but ordered the adoption of a writing
system, banned slavery, abolished aristocratic titles and allowed freedom
of religion. He created Yassa which was a secret written code of law
meaning order or decree of the Mongol Empire and had a range of
effective strategies for the triumph of his empire.
Psychological warfare is a severe yet incredibly effective strategy in
conquering. Genghis Khans strategy for uniting all of Mongol was evoking
fear. His success hinged on the idea of terror as Perhaps terrorism
produced a fear that immobilized and incapacitated the forces that would
have resisted."1 By massacring villages, spreading his brutality, and
overall showing his merciless nature, this escalation of widespread
psychological fear amongst his enemies made them believe that they
were facing an insurmountable juggernaut that could only be avoided by
surrendering. 2 This idea of terror was used to demoralize anyone who
thought of opposing the Mongols. This was efficient as it induced simple
capitulation as it was not necessary to expend on food, soldiers, money
and overall battling the enemy which would result in the loss of vital man
force as well as the effort put into sacking the town.3 By surrendering to
Genghis Khan and his army, the people were spared from death. They
were however required to support them with fighters, food, supplies and
other essentials. Genghis Khans pitiless methods in killing shone when
villagers and towns resisted, resulting in painful deaths for both, men,
woman and elderly. The younger kids were usually taken and made to join
his army.4 The village was then burnt down, though a few civilians were
allowed to flee so they would spread terror to others which was essential
into this psychological warfare strategy in inciting fear onto towns and
1 George H. Quester (2003). Offense and Defence in the International System
2 Weatherford, J. (2004). Genghis Khan and the making of the modern world. New York:
Crown.
3 Weatherford, J. (2004). Genghis Khan and the making of the modern world. New York:
Crown. P.41
11 Amy Chua, (2007) Day of Empire: How Hyperpowers Rise to Global Dominanceand
Why They Fall
on a message when one came to his station with information. This method
was efficient as it allowed information to pass quickly throughout the
empire as the messengers were never tired. The rapid spread of
information allowed the Mongols to continue their expansion to keep their
armies which were at times, great distances away, informed.15 These
methods of having a written writing script, great trade techniques, and a
postal system not only made it easier for his army to function and grow
but were a prime reason as to why his empire flourished.
The success of Genghis Khans empire was also because of his masterful
military tactics which are still used today. Khan used tactics like capturing
enemy prisoners and driving them in front of his men to act as body
shields, the cutting of resources for the towns or cities by blocking off
certain rivers and the feigned retreat where they would slay down those
that chased after them. Many of their military strength came from the
weaponry and how skilful they were at using them.16 They were trained
how to shoot with a bow and arrow facing backwards or while hanging
from one side of their saddle, protecting themselves by using the
armoured horse as a shield. Horses were one of the Mongols greatest
advantages as they were taught how to ride them at an early age, no
more than 3 years old.17 The speed, agility and stamina allowed the
Mongols to ride up to 100 miles a day, a distance much further than any
large army or soldier could walk within that time. It was also efficient that
the horses could survive on grass but also provided the Mongols with food
such as milk from a Mare which was turned into yoghurt, cheese and Airag
which was a fermented drink. The Mongols took in technology from China
which provided them with more improved weaponry like the Trechubet, a
variation of the catapult, giving them easy victories.18 His tactical
strategies and handle of weaponry was a massive influence on his
empires success as no enemy could stand a chance against his power.
Overall, Genghis Khan may have been a leader who rose to power my
implementing harsh policies and gruesome techniques, but by doing so,
combined with his genius tactics and introduction of new methods, he was
able to create the largest empire in the world. He was a man, who
tolerated diverse religions, introduced new methods like postal systems, a
15 Fiction, B. (2013). Ortoo How the Mongol Empire Stayed Together. [online]
Wide World of Wiki.
16 Weatherford, J. (2004). Genghis Khan and the making of the modern world.
New York: Crown
17 Lange, B. (2003). Genghis Khan. Philadelphia: Chelsea House Publishers.
18 Genghiskhan.fieldmuseum.org. (2016). Genghis Khan | Genghis Khan.
secret written code of law and overall was a master in warfare strategy. All
of these combined, were the reasons why Genghis Khan created such a
successful and large empire.
Bibliography/ Sources/References
Books:
Weatherford, J. (2004). Genghis Khan and the making of the modern
world. New York: Crown.
Rachewiltz, I. (2004). The secret history of the Mongols. Leiden: Brill.
(Translation) Primary source (anonymous)
Clife Floss, (2006).The Tyrants: The Story of Historys Most Ruthless
Oppressors Clive Foss
Amy Chua, (2007) Day of Empire: How Hyperpowers Rise to Global
Dominanceand Why They Fall
George H. Quester (2003). Offense and Defense in the International
System
Lamb, H. (1927). Genghis Khan, the emperor of all men. New York:
Doubleday.
Lange, B. (2003). Genghis Khan. Philadelphia: Chelsea House Publishers.
Websites/Articles:
McGlynn, S. and McGlynn, S. (2015). Was Genghis Khan the cruellest man
who ever lived?. [online] The Spectator. Available at:
http://www.spectator.co.uk/2015/06/was-genghis-khan-the-cruellest-manwho-ever-lived/ [Accessed 20 Jul. 2016].
List25.com. (2016). [online] Available at: http://list25.com/25-insanethings-you-didnt-know-about-genghis-khan/ [Accessed 20 Jul. 2016].
Myers, G. (2016). 10 Brutal Facts About the Merciless Genghis Khan Toptenz.net. [online] Toptenz.net. Available at:
http://www.toptenz.net/10-brutal-facts-merciless-genghis-khan.php
[Accessed 20 Jul. 2016].
www.BookRags.com. (2016). Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern
World Summary. [online] Available at:
http://www.bookrags.com/studyguide-genghis-khan-and-the-makingof-the/#gsc.tab=0 [Accessed 20 Jul. 2016].
Genghiskhan.fieldmuseum.org. (2016). Battle Tactics | Genghis Khan.
[online] Available at: http://genghiskhan.fieldmuseum.org/behind-thescenes/establishing-an-empire/battle-tactics [Accessed 20 Jul. 2016].
En.unesco.org. (2016). The Silk Route of the Mongols | SILK ROAD. [online]
Available at: http://en.unesco.org/silkroad/knowledge-bank/silk-routemongols [Accessed 20 Jul. 2016].
YouTube. (2016). Dan Carlin Hardcore History Wrath of the Khans Part 2.
[online] Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r9rc4R4S-uQ
[Accessed 31 Jul. 2016].
Fiction, B. (2013). Ortoo How the Mongol Empire Stayed Together.
[online] Wide World of Wiki. Available at:
https://wideworldofwiki.wordpress.com/2013/11/23/ortoo-how-the-mongolempire-stayed-together/ [Accessed 20 Jul. 2016].