In the thirteenth century, the Mongols fought in a variety of climates and environments and carved out a vast empire. Their defeated enemies often trembled as they talked of the vast numbers in the “Mongol Hordes.” When the Mongols invaded Europe, they were said to have come with 500,000 warriors. In one battle in Persia, they were said to have attacked with over 700,000. These were great exaggerations, however, as defeated peoples tried to explain and justify their defeats. In fact, the largest army the Mongols put into the field, the army that completed the conquest of China, numbered at most 200,000 warriors, and it was composed mostly of Chinese and Koreans. On only a few occasions were the Mongols able to muster more than about 60,000 men for a battle. Rarely did they outnumber their enemies on the field of battle; in fact, they were almost always greatly outnumbered, both in battle and in a campaign. Yet, over the course of the thirteenth century, Mongol armies succeeded in establishing the largest continuous land empire in history.
This chapter traces the Mongol origins and conquests to show how they were able to subdue such a vast territory. The Mongols came out of the Central Asian steppes, and though there had been many steppe empires in the past (see especially Chapter 6), there had never been one as vast and efficient as that created by the Mongols. Within a few decades, the Mongol rulers could call on the resources of a far-flung realm that included several sedentary civilizations. The foundation for Mongol success was established by Chingiz Khan (Genghis Khan), who organized the Mongol military and tribal society. The Mongol military was hardly unique for a steppe army and almost never had technological superiority over its enemies; what was distinctive was its organization.