The History of Kazakhstan from the Earliest Period to the Present time. Volume I. Zhanat Kundakbayeva

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СКАЧАТЬ advancing until he reached Mount Khangkharkhan, where the army of Tayang Khan, later joined by Jamugha, awaited him. Genghis and his brothers, with his hounds of war (his generals) led a ferocious attack and Tayang and Jamugha were driven up the mountain. Tayang and Jamugha held out into the night but in the end Genghis was victorious. The Naimans and Jamugha's seven Mongol Clans surrendered and were assimilated into Genghis' "Empire." Jamugha escaped from the battle, but was completely deprived of power and was forced into a life of banditry.

      With the Naimans defeated and Jamugha's Mongol clans surrendered, Genghis had nearly gained complete mastery of the steppes. There were only two minor groups left to conquer. There were the Merkids, who had regrouped after suffering several defeated including when Genghis first allied with Toghrul. Finally there were the Oriats, in the extreme north of Mongolia. The Merkids were annihilated shortly after the victory over the Naimans, and the latter, the Oriats, would eventually be defeated later on.

      Jamugha, defeated as a Khan, was soon defeated as a bandit leader. His gang of bandits betrayed him and turned him in to Genghis Khan. Although the two had been strong political enemies, Genghis remembered that they were still andas, that "when two men becomes anda, their lives become one." The relationship between Jamugha and Genghis is somewhat interesting. Although they were political rivals, they never considered themselves to be personal enemies. They fought each other only for conquest and control over other people. Now that Jamugha was no longer a political power, Genghis was ready to fully accept Jamugha into his service, but Jamugha declined. He stated that his anda had surpassed him in every way and thus there is no longer a place for him. Jamugha requested an execution and Genghis honored his request. According to the Secret History of the Mongols, he had Jamugha executed without shedding his blood and buried his bones with honor.

      The Khuriltai of 1206 – Building the Empire

      In the year of the Tiger, 1206, the whole steppes stood watching as the great Khuriltai (assembly) was being held and the implied enthronement of Genghis Khan as emperor of the steppes. As emperor of the steppes, Genghis wanted to ensure the longevity of his empire. It is somewhat of a daunting task, as not so long ago his empire had been a chaotic battleground of many nomadic powers. To do this, Genghis created a system that would stress the unity of the empire, and would wipe out tendencies towards local tribal authorities. The entire population was divided into 95 military units, each responsible for maintaining 1000 warriors. Each of these units had a commander personally assigned by Genghis Khan. During times of war, each commander was expected to effectively assemble a thousand men. Failure to do so would mean removal from office and a new commander from the thousand would be elected. To ensure availability of warriors, every male at the age of fifteen were required for military duty.

      Genghis also created various offices of power within his empire, including imperial administrators and the chief justice. Furthermore, he decreed a number of specific laws, including the toleration of religion, exemption of priests in taxation, the prohibition of contaminating running water, and death penalty for crimes such as robbery, adultery, military desertion, and continual bankruptcy of merchants. All of these laws and decrees made by Genghis Khan were compiled into one piece, the Great Yasa. While Genghis is often thought to be a vicious barbarian, there is no doubt that he was also a brilliant statesman.

      The new military superstructure ensured a stable and militaristic society, but was not enough to conquer the world. Genghis went on to make several military reforms, including a decimal organization of the army (from units of 10 to 10,000 men), standardization of equipment, a strict system of regularly performed military drill, and a strict system of military laws. All of these regulations installed a sense of unity and maximum discipline to men who already had a lifetime of experience in horsemanship and archery. Every man in the Mongol army was both a lifetime warriors and a soldiers fighting as a part of a group – something rarely achieved before contemporary militaries. The Mongol army soon became the most disciplined, experienced, and fear less force the world had yet to see.

      Genghis Khan invasion

      Throughout history of the steppes have always been stages for continuous struggle between various nomadic groups. As time passed certain groups were able to rise and gain mastery over the others. However, few have ever been able to create a lasting empire. In the late XIIth century, various Turkish and Mongol-Tungusic tribes roamed the steppes of Mongolia. The Naimans and Kereyids' tribes controlled western Mongolia, the Oirats controlled the north areas, the Merkids controlled the south of Lake Baikal, and the Tartars the east of the River Kerulen. The Mongols were located between the Tartars and the Merkids. These groups are referred to as Tribes. Within these tribes are divisions called clans. Note that the clans within a tribe are not always united, as with the case of the Mongols during the rise of Genghis Khan.

      It must also be noted that the common phrase saying that Genghis Khan "united the Mongol tribes" is a misleading statement. This error comes from the lack of distinguishment between Mongols and non-Mongols and between "tribes" and "clans". He united both the Mongol Clans (that used to be a united tribe) and other "non-Mongol" tribes such as the Naimans, (whose clans were united, unlike the Mongols). The nomadic nobility supported the khan only under a condition if war – a constant source of profit would not only stop but on the contrary, would extend. Therefore Genghis – khan became on a way of external conquests.

      He had a plan – invasion of the whole Eurasia, to the last sea where the Mongolian horses's hoofs would reach.

      In 1207-1211 people of Siberia and Easten Turkestan were subdued by the Mongols. They were – the Yakuts, the Oirats, the Byruats, The Kirgiz, The Uigurs. In that period the Mongols undertook a campaign against The Tangut's State Xī Xià, which was finally defeated in 1227. In 1211 the Mongols began attacking the Jurchens's State – The Jīn Dynasty, which was situated on the Northern Part of China. Here the Mongols destroyed more than 90 cities and in 1215 siezed Beijing. As a result by the 1217– all the territories to the North from the Hanher river had been conquered by the Mongols.

      The Mongols in their aggressive policy which was successfully realized during the XIIIth centure had a plan of a campaign to Kazakstan and Central Asia. It would open them the way to Eastern Europe and Fore Asia. It was the reason why Genghis Khan paid great attentions on that campaign and prepared carefully.

      After conquering Eastern Turkestan and Semirechye the way to Southern Kazakhstan and Central Asia was opened. The formal casus belli was the events of so-called ‘Utar cathastrophe’. Genghis lost interest in the war in China and instead, turned his attention towards the west. In 1218 he sent his general Chepe westward and conquered the Kara Khitai Empire. But the real issue was with the huge Kwarazmian Empire in Perisa. Hostilities broke out when the Kwarazm Shah attacked a Mongol caravan and humiliated Genghis’s ambassadors by burning their beards. Since Genghis sent the ambassadors for the purpose of making peace, he was outraged. Genghis prepared for the largest operation, he had yet performed and assembled a force that totaled around 90-110,000 men. The total numerical strength of the Kwarazm shah was two to three times greater, but Genghis ' army was better disciplined, and most of all, better led.

      The campaign began in September 1219 from the banks of the Irtysh. Accoding to the sources Genghis led his army from the Irtysh to the Syr-Darya across the Semirechye. Approaching Utar Genghis Khan divided his Army. One part headed by Chagatai and Ugedei was left for the siege of Otrar. The second part headed by Juji he sent to the lower reaches of the Syr Darya, the third troops subjugated the towns in upper reaches of the Syr Darya. The main forces of the Mongols headed by him went towards Buhara.

      In 1219, Genghis’s sons Chagatai and Ugedei set out to attack the city of Utar, located to the east of the Aral Sea. Meanwhile, Genghis' general Chebe, marched southwestward to protect the left flank during the operation. The main attack, however, was led by Genghis Khan himself, who together with general Subedei, marched through the Kizil Kum desert and outflanked the Kwarazmiam forces. The plan was that the Kizil Kum desert was considered impractical to cross, which made it a great opportunity to surprise the enemy. СКАЧАТЬ