The Mongol Empire was the world's greatest empire after the British Empire. It was the world's biggest contiguous empire. It encompassed a massive area of 9.3 square miles or 23 million square kilometers at its greatest extent, accounting for approximately 16.11 percent of the entire geographical area of the World. ¹⁾

Mongols were nomads for as long as the Mongolian Empire existed. They used to roam in quest of food and shelter. ²⁾

Genghis Khan was born as Temujin in 1162 AD. His family was impoverished and struggled to make ends meet. He was kidnapped and imprisoned by a competing tribe, but he managed to escape and hide in a river fissure. Between 1178 and 1206, he unified several nomadic tribes of the Mongolian steppe in northeast Asia, eventually establishing the empire in 1206 AD. ³⁾

Genghis Khan grew up on the frigid Mongolian grasslands. In his youth, he was known as Temujin. Temujin translates to “iron” in English. Ogedei, Tolui, Chagatai, and Jochi were Genghis Khan's four sons. Tolui's son, Kublai Khan, was another renowned Mongolian monarch. ⁴⁾

Mongols waged war against the Western Xia, who governed northwest China and portions of Tibet, from 1207 until 1210 AD. In 1210, the Xia surrendered to Genghis Khan. In 1211, Genghis Khan and his army crossed the Gobi Desert to fight the Jin Dynasty in northern China. Mongols invaded Zhongdu, the capital of the Jin Dynasty, in 1215 AD. ⁵⁾

The Mongols were infamous for their ruthlessness in combat. To conquer the kingdoms, they destroyed everything and ruthlessly killed people everywhere they went. ⁶⁾