Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World

Weatherford begins his account of Genghis Khan’s life in the middle, by describing the siege and conquest of the important oasis city of Bukhara, in 1220, during the course of Khan’s military campaigns in Central Asia. Weatherford chooses to open with this particular episode, one of many similar events in the campaigns, because it provides a good demonstration of Genghis’ unique strategies and innovations in both warfare and culture.

By first intimidating and forcing the surrender of surrounding settlements before besieging the city, Khan was able to use fear and intimidation, rather than actual violence, as his primary weapon. By dividing his armies, he was able to launch a surprise attack on the city and appear unexpectedly with his main force, trapping a large number of fleeing defenders. Further, by traveling light and only building what was required for the siege on-site, he was able to maneuver quickly.

Weatherford contrasts Khan’s remarkable leniency towards those who submitted to his rule with his determination to crush those enemies that did not submit: “Resistance would be met with death, loyalty with security” (9). Civilian residents of the city were spared while the city’s military was utterly destroyed by newly-constructed siege engines and artillery. All these weapons were adapted from cultures the Mongols had come into contact with: “Genghis Khan’s army combined the traditional fierceness and speed of the steppe warrior with the highest technological sophistication of Chinese civilization” (8).