Genghis Khan’s Death and the Continuation of the Empire

When Genghis Khan returned to Mongolia in 1225, he controlled a huge swath of

territory from the Sea of Japan to the Caspian Sea. Nevertheless, he didn’t rest for
long before turning his attention back to the Xi Xia kingdom, which had refused to
contribute troops to the Khwarezm invasion. In early 1227 a horse threw Genghis
Khan to the ground, causing internal injuries. He pressed on with the campaign, but
his health never recovered. He died on August 18, 1227, just before the Xi Xia were
crushed.

Genghis Khan conquered more than twice as much land as any other person in
history, bringing Eastern and Western civilizations into contact in the process. His
descendants, including Ogodei and Khubilai, were also prolific conquerors, taking
control of Eastern Europe, the Middle East and the rest of China, among other places.
The Mongols even invaded Japan and Java before their empire broke apart in the
14th century. Genghis Khan’s last ruling descendant was finally deposed in 1920

DECLINE OF THE MONGOLS

At its height in 1279, the Mongol empire spanned from the Pacific Ocean to Central Europe
making it the largest contiguous land empire in history. Under its ruthless leader, Genghis
Khan, the Mongol army slaughtered huge populations and decimated entire cities,
conquering more land in 25 years than the Romans did in 400 years. Before Genghis Khan
died in 1227, he divided the empire among his sons who each went on to conquer their own
portion of the world.  The four descendant empires were the Mongol-founded Yuan Dynasty
in China, the Chagatai Khanate, the Golden Horde that controlled Central Asia and Russia,
and the Ilkhans who ruled Persia from 1256 to 1353. Of the latter, their ruler Ilkhan Ghazan
was converted to Islam in 1295 and actively supported the expansion of this religion in his
empire.These four khanates were ruled by a single leader of the Empire, Genghis’ son,
Ogedei Khan. When Ogedei died in 1241, it led to a decade long power struggle among
Mongol elites.

End of the expansion

Ultimately, one of Ghengis’ grandsons, Möngke Khan took power in 1251. He quickly
renewed Mongol expansion, primarily through new conquests in the Middle East and
southern China. But just 8 years later, in 1259, Mongke died, and Mongol generals gathered
in the capital to choose a successor. One of these generals, was forced to take much of his
army away from his conquests around what is today Syria and Israel. While this region was
left barely protected, and without its conquering general, the small remaining army came up
against another conquering empire, the Muslim Mamluks. This standoff, known as the Battle
of Ain Jalut was lost spectacularly by the Mongols, and marked the end of their south-west
expansion, as well as their first permanent loss. Around this time, the Mongol elites in the
capital were unable to choose a successor, escalating into a civil war between Genghis
Khan’s descendants. They broke apart into four autonomous empires: Golden Horde, the
Ilkhanate the Chagatai Khanate,and the Yuan Dynasty. In 1260 Mongke’s brother, Kublai
Khan, took over as Great Khan, however his power was limited to his own Khanate: the
Yuan Dynasty. The divided Mongol empire gradually grew weaker, as the khanates were
disorganized and succumbed to infighting. One of the biggest issues was that they failed to
create a system to peacefully transition power. So, for instance, when the last ruling heir of
the Golden Horde died in 1359, the khanate’s government was left in chaos and ultimately
overtaken by a rival Muslim Dynasty. Similar defeats brought down other khanates
throughout the 14th Century. This gradual collapse was exacerbated by the black plague,
which spread along Mongol trade routes.Finally, in 1368, the Ming Dynasty overthrew the
Yuan Dynasty, which covered most of the Mongol’s remaining land. At that point, Genghis
Khan’s last descendants retreated to Mongolia, where they ruled until 1635.

Today, more than 600 years later, the Mongol Empire continues to bewilder historians. The
Mongols permanently shifted borders and displaced or eradicated entire populations. But at
the same time, they created a completely new system of free trade, and were exceptionally
tolerant of different religions and ethnicities. The scope of the Mongols’ unrelenting
conquests, and their impact on Central Asia and surrounding regions, cannot be ignored.
The rise of the Mongol Empire was one of the deadliest conquests in history with fatalities
rivaling those of world wars.