Archaeologists Reveal Details of Mongol Metropolis Karakorum
Karakorum, the capital of the Mongol empire between 1235 and 1263 is finally revealed to its full extent
The Khan dynasty
The name Genghis Khan reverberates through history.
He was born as Temüjin around 1162, the first son of Hoelun, the second wife of the Kiyad chief Yesügei. The Kiyad were one of the many tribes that roamed the steppes of present-day Mongolia.
According to legend, little Temüjin was born clutching a clot of blood in his tiny hand. A sign that he was destined to become a great leader.
And he did.
By 1206, he managed the unite the numerous tribes that each controlled a part of the Mongolian steppes. He became the first Great Khan of Mongolia, Genghis Khan. His conquests provided the basis for what would become the largest contiguous empire the world has ever seen (only the twentieth-century British empire surpassed his in terms of area controlled, but that includes their overseas colonies).
His campaigns were brutal, costing many millions of lives. At the same time, he enabled the spread and development of science and culture at a rate that couldn’t be achieved in the previous tribal era.
