38 Fascinating Facts about the Mongol Empire That You Probably Didn’t Know

They wiped out up to 10 percent of the population at the time, the women were kick-ass, their postal system was unrivalled, they invented the composite bow, they were multicultural and believed in religious freedom, and much more

Mongolia as it is now versus as it was as the Mongol Empire. By Quadell — Information: w:File:Mongolsethnic.jpg (now deleted)Own work based on: Asia-map.png, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=227022

The Mongol Empire is as legendary for being as innovative as it was brutal. It lasted from 1206 until 1368, and at its peak, it covered 16 percent of the world’s landmass and contained 25 percent of the world’s population — at the time, approximately 100 million people — making it the second biggest empire in history after the British Empire.

Here are 38 facts about the Mongols that you probably didn’t know.

The Mongol Empire was the second biggest empire overall and the biggest continuous land empire in history, at its peak, covering 9.27 million square miles. The craziest thing about it, these lands were accumulated in just 86 years.

The advance of the Mongol Empire. By User:Astrokey44, modified by Sting — Image:Mongol_Empire_map.gif (alternative colours)Based on the freely licenced Image:Genghis khan empire at his death.png using information from maps of the Mongol Empire in atlases and on the web such as [1], [2], [3], [4], [5]. Made in Photoshop and Painter., CC BY-SA 2.5, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=23348014