On Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World by Jack Weatherford.
The book focuses on the rise of the Mongolian Empire with Genghis, raids into eastern Europe and china, and the establishment of Kublai Khan, Genghis' grandson, ans the Yuan Dynasty in China. The book spans the 12th and 13th centuries. The innovative brilliance of Genghis on the battlefield is nearly matched by the state-craft of Kublai. On balance, and OK book Short on details about Persian and European military campaigns, rich on details about the consolidation of the Chinese state. This book could have been called “Genghis Khan and the Unification of China.”
Well China was considered to be unified under the Qin dynasty in 221BC but it nowhere compared to the conquered area that Genghis Kahn achieved. He truly set the bar high for future empires.
ReplyDeleteRightfully so, his battlefield strategy and skills were light years ahead of anyone.