WORLD HISTORY READERS Level 4-⑧ Genghis Khan

Birth Who was Genghis Khan? What year was he born? He was one of the best-known warriors and leaders of men that the world has ever known. Who was Genghis Khan? What year was he born? About 1162 What was his name at birth? Mongolia Temujin Who was his father? His father was a chief. Stories say that he was born with a blood clot in his hand which meant that he was destined to be a leader. What folklore surrounds his birth?

A Hard Early Life What happened to Temujin’s father? Temujin hid in a river during his escape What happened to Temujin’s father? A rival killed his father when Temujin was only nine years old. He and his family lived in extreme poverty. Their tribe abandoned them in the winter. Temujin and his family ate things like roots, wild fruit, and fish to survive. What happened after his father died? Mongolian winter He had good fighting skills, and he fought hard. His enemies and rivals feared him. How did Temujin grow in power and influence?

Temujin Becomes a Leader What was he good at? He was skilled at riding horses, using a bow, and wrestling. Mongol warriors were experts with bows and arrows, even while racing on horseback. What happened because of his success? What did he do after each victory? More and more warriors joined him. He took the land from the people he defeated. The common people he defeated had a simple choice—join him or die.

Temujin Becomes Genghis Khan What happened in the beginning of the 13th century? “Khan” means leader. All the Mongol clans declared him to be their leader. They gave him the title “Genghis Khan” which can be translated as “universal ruler.” Who were the Jin people? They were Genghis Khan’s enemies. They controlled China.

The Start of His Empire What was one famous battle against the Jin? Mountains near Badger Mouth Pass What was one famous battle against the Jin? One famous battle was at Badger Mouth Pass in 1211. Steep mountain cliffs created a bottleneck. What happened? Genghis had less than 100,000 warriors while the Jin had at least 300,000 warriors. The Jin soldiers got stuck in a bottleneck. The Jin cavalry was driven back, but they did not have enough room because of the bottleneck. The retreating cavalry got in the way of the infantry and caused confusion. A great number of Jin soldiers were killed.

The Battle of Badger Mouth Pass Who was Wanyan Yongji? The leader of the Jins What happened to him? Statues of the warriors of Genghis Khan He and his remaining soldiers escaped to Huihe Fortress after the Battle at Badger Mouth Pass. They were surrounded and attacked by the Mongols. The Jin army was destroyed, but Wanyan Yongji escaped. He fled to Zhongdu (modern-day Beijing).

The Attack on Beijing What did Genghis do? What happened? Mongolian warriors heading toward Beijing What did Genghis do? He led his army south toward Beijing, but Wanyan Yongji was killed before Genghis arrived. What happened? Parts of the wall in Beijing still exist today. The new leader acknowledged Genghis Khan as his overlord and gave him valuable gifts to save the city from attack. Genghis took the gifts and went home. Genghis got angry and marched back to Beijing. It had a wall with 1,000 guard towers around it. What happened in 1215?

The Surrender Did Genghis and his warriors break down the wall? Burning farmland No, they burned the area outside the wall, and then surrounded it. No food could get into the city, so the Jin eventually gave up. The Jin surrendered Beijing. Genghis allowed his soldiers to sack the city, and he went back to Mongolia. What happened next?

The Muhammad He was an enemy of Genghis Khan. He was the leader of the Khwarezm Empire. Who was Muhammad? Genghis sent gifts and merchants to Muhammad because he wanted to trade with the Khwarezm Empire, but Genghis got very angry because his people were killed. What happened between Muhammad and Genghis Khan? Did Genghis attack immediately? The Jin were in northeast China, and Utrar, part of Khwarezm, was near Georgia and the Caspian Sea. No, he sent an ambassador to demand that the governor who had killed his people be handed over. But Muhammad killed the ambassador and sent his head back to Genghis.

Expanding the Empire What happened next? Genghis had no mercy in victory. What happened next? Genghis took 10 tumens with him to fight. How many soldiers did Muhammad have? Around 400,000 A tumen is a group of 10,000 warriors. Ten tumens is 100,000 warriors. What did Genghis do? He surrounded Muhammad and his troops. Muhammad held out for about a month, but Genghis and his men were victorious. His revenge was brutal. Whole cities were destroyed—including the people.

Genghis the Legend What other lands did Genghis Khan conquer? The Mongol Empire under Genghis Khan and his family under the reign of Genghis Khan in 1227 under his heirs at its greatest extent in 1279 Parts of Afghanistan and Russia What can be said about Genghis Khan? He was the most feared leader that Asia has ever known. He and his warriors took a huge amount of wealth from Central Asia. What happened after the death of Genghis Khan? His sons and grandsons continued to conquer and gain more land.

Vocabulary bottleneck n. infantry n. a place where a road or passage becomes narrow which causes those using the road to slow down or stop infantry n. the part of an army that fights on foot

Vocabulary merchant n. Mongolia n. a person who buys and sells goods a country in Asia between China and Russia

Vocabulary poverty n. tribe n. the state of being very poor a group of people who live together, usually in areas far away from cities, and who have the same customs, language, religion, etc.

Vocabulary translate v. wrestling n. to change words from one language to another wrestling n. a sport in which two people fight and try to push each other to the ground