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Name: Bedtime Biography: Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World
Rating: 4.6 (327 reviews)
Author: Jack Weatherford

Jack Weatherford

The Rise of the Mongol Empire and Its First Great Khan

4.6 (327 ratings)

37 mins

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Political Figures Wars Ancient History Bedtime Biographies Biographies

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Bedtime Biography: Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World
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Introduction

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Genghis Khan’s reputation today is fraught, to say the least. Across the world, myths and legends recount tales of a man who embodied brutality itself –⁠ a man who destroyed civilizations and murdered for sport.

But how accurate really is this characterization? Was Genghis Khan a destroyer of civilizations, or a uniter of them? Was he a ruthless conqueror, a fair leader –⁠ or a bit of both? Was he born into greatness, or did he have to earn it? Find out in this bedtime biography.

Chapter 1

A teenaged girl and her husband galloped furiously across the steppes of central Asia, pursued by three horsemen from a different tribe. The man –⁠ Chiledu –⁠ attempted to create a diversion by circling around the base of a nearby mountain. But the girl –⁠ Hoelun –⁠ knew her husband’s efforts were doomed to fail. These lands belonged to their attackers, and the cargo she and her husband were carrying was far too valuable to ignore.

Hoelun was probably no more than sixteen years old. Yet she was about to make a decision that would forever change the course of history.

Chapter 2

Temujin and his childhood friend, Jamuka, stood in front of a tree at the edge of a steep cliff. They’d come together to make vows of sworn brotherhood to one another –⁠ vows they’d already taken twice before in their younger years. This time, though, they were doing it as two grown men. The two exchanged horses and golden sashes. Through these gifts, Temujin and Jamuka were offering parts of their souls and symbols of their manhood. That day, they swore never to forsake each other.

Temujin’s small band would now join with Jamuka’s and learn about the herding way of life. For a while, Temujin was content with that arrangement, allowing Jamuka to take the lead. But Temujin was still the man who’d once preferred to kill his older half-brother rather than submit to his dominance. And so over the next few months, as Jamuka began to treat Temujin less like an equal and more like a younger brother, Temujin’s resentment grew. He couldn’t stand it.

Chapter 3

What happened in the wake of Ong Khan’s betrayal became the stuff of legends among the Mongol people.

After being on the run all day, Temujin eventually reached the shores of Lake Baljuna. He and the nineteen men that had come with him were at risk of starving in this remote, inhospitable land. But, suddenly, a wild horse approached from the north. A potential source of food, Temujin’s brother, Khasar, rode out and killed the animal so the group could eat.

Chapter 4

In the thirteenth century, the area south of Mongolia –⁠ or modern-day China –⁠ consisted of many independent states and kingdoms. All together, they comprised about a third of the world’s population. In this region, between 1207 and 1209, Genghis Khan subdued the Tangut people and, in 1211, decided to invade and conquer a group that had once been an ally, the Jurched. His raid on the Jurched would eventually develop into a war that would be fought for the next fifteen years, and the lands he took would be bequeathed to his descendents for generations to come.

After Genghis Khan and the Mongols defeated the Jurched, they brought back with them caravans of people, animals, and goods. Particularly vast was their bounty of silk. The Mongols were so replete with the textile that they used the surplus as packing material and wrapping for their other goods.

The End

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What is Bedtime Biography: Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World about?

Read to you by Marston York.

Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World (2004) tells the fascinating story of Genghis Khan, the man who founded the great Mongol Empire. Today, he’s remembered as a ruthless, violent conqueror who thrived on bloodshed and destruction. What has largely been forgotten, though, is how he united disparate peoples, fostered trade and modernization, and advanced democracy – and in so doing, ushered in the modern world.

Who should read Bedtime Biography: Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World?

History buffs
Global citizens interested in the roots of the modern world
Anyone with preconceived notions about the Mongol Empire

About the Author

Jack Weatherford is an anthropologist, ethnographer, and former professor at Macalester College. In 2006, he received Mongolia’s Order of the Polar Star, the highest award the country can give to a foreign citizen. His written works include Genghis Khan and the Quest for God, The Secret History of the Mongol Queens, and Indian Givers: How the Indians of the Americas Transformed the World.

Categories with Bedtime Biography: Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World

Society & Culture History Biography & Memoir

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