Genghis+Khan-+bailey

Genghis Khan was one of the most successful, most powerful, and greatest military leaders of all time. Success- the achievement of something desired, planned, or attempted; the gaining of fame or prosperity. According to that definition, Genghis Khan should be considered a very successful leader. Genghis Khan was born around 1155 A.D. in Northern Mongolia. He was around during the same time as the Ancient Islamic Empire, the Christian Crusades, and the Northern/Southern Song Dynasties in China. Genghis Khan is the most successful, powerful, and the greatest leader of all time because he produced the largest empire in the world, he united all Mongol tribes in Central Asia, and he ran very extensive army almost entirely on his own. Genghis Khan learned power and violence at a very young age. His father, Yesukhei, was the head of his Mongol tribe, the Tatar.(1) When Genghis Khan was only ten years old, his father was abducted and poisoned to death by a rivaling tribe.(2) After being taken into custody by the Taichi’uts and living with them for a while, he broke away and decided that he needed to start an army. His new army contained about 20,000 people. With this army, he gained control of all Central and Eastern Mongolia within just eleven years. The only way this feat was possible was because of Genghis Khan’s extraordinary military smarts. He was brilliant in the ways he used to help take control of tribes. He used spy networks to look for technologies that were used by rival tribes, he invented a signaling system between soldiers that used fires and smoke, and he also used different sounds to signal his men to charge before attacking. After many devastating attacks, he was recognized as anequal to a God. If he was not a well-respected and great leader, he would never have gained this amount of respect from his inferiors.(3 everything from footnote 2) His terror not only affect Mongolia, but eventually reached China, where he and his army forced the Jin Dynasty to surrender after a twenty year fight. After receiving threats from a Middle Eastern dynasty called the Khzarizm Dynasty, he decided they would be his next victim. After a serious of ruthful attacks through Asia, Genghis Khan had now had successful control over the largest empire ever in history. Even after Khan had died, his empire held strong. And because of his ability to control the largest empire in the world, power to unite all Mongol tribes, and his capability to run an extensive army on his own made him the greatest military leader and ruler of all time.

1. Corbis Corporation. http://www.notablebiographies.com/Fi-Gi/Genghis-Khan.html#b. 2. The Biography Channel. http://www.thebiographychannel.co.uk/biographies/genghis-khan.html. 3. A&E Television Network. http://www.biography.com/people/genghis-khan-9308634.