A drawing of an early Mongolian flag; One of many similar blue and red designs.

Empires throughout history are remembered for a variety of reasons, including architectural feats, masterful bureaucratic systems, and unique cultural traditions. The Mongols are remembered for all of these reasons (if you count really good tents as architecture), and, maybe, the fact that they carved the largest contiguous land empire in human history by riding through Eurasia subjugating those who surrendered and obliterating those who resisted. From its start as tribes in the steppes of Asia, the Mongolian Empire constantly destroyed every single foe they faced with brutally brilliant tactics, administrative organization, and technological adaptability until it finally fractured in 1294 because of a lack of unity and succession.

The Mongol Empire at its height, stretching from the Pacific to the Mediterranean.

Although it eventually dominated most of the largest continent on the planet other than Antarctica (I’d love to see someone take that over), the Mongol Empire had humble beginnings. Towards the end of the 12th century, a son was born to the clan leader Yesugei, who he named Temujin. When the boy was only nine years old, his father was poisoned by a rival tribe and he was forced to wander the steppes with his family of only seven people. From there, the poor kid had nowhere to go but up, and up he went. Starting with asking a friend of his father to help rescue his wife from a rival tribe who had kidnapped her, Temujin used his political and martial prowess to gather together a coalition of Mongol tribes and defeat those who had poisoned his father. In 1206 he called a great meeting and was named Genghis Khan, ruler of the Mongol Empire.

An epic statue of Genghis Khan completed in 2008 near the Ulaanbaatar, the capital of present-day Mongolia.

After Genghis Khan had secured the Mongolian tribes, he began the deluge of Mongol conquests that would plague the complacent empires surrounding them. First on the plate of the ravenous ruler were the Xi Xia and Jin Empires of China, who he forced to pay tribute and basically destroyed respectively. After getting bored riding around in East Asia, Genghis went west. The Mongols destroyed the Kara-Khitai empire as an appetizer before attacking the Kwarazmian Empire in Persia. Following this campaign and suppressing rebels back in China, Genghis Khan died and the empire was divided into four ulus or hordes controlled by his sons. The empire remained connected, and his successors successfully conquered Russia in the winter (something Napoleon and Hitler tried to do and failed miserably), defeated a Caliphate with the help of some ragtag Christian crusaders, took out Poland, and united the entirety of China. As emperors came and passed, the central power of the empire waned and, finally, the multiple sub-factions within the empire split apart with the death of  Kublai Khan, the last great Khakhan or Emperor who was more of a bureaucrat than a warrior and focused on governing from his throne in China.

The Mongol Empire divided into its different factions.

Overall, the Mongol Empire had a huge impact on the history and development of both Europe and Asia. Its conquest and control of the land connecting the East to the West allowed for the Silk Road to thrive like never before. The warfare and conquering also resulted in a united China, a weakened Eastern Europe, and eventually laid the groundwork for the successor Mughal Empire in India. Mongols did not only bring war, they also brought technologies such as gunpowder, ideas from Persia and other regions, and eventually, the Black Death through trade routes they established. Around 30 million people lost their lives during the expanse of the empire as well, and entire cities were razed if their citizens refused to submit to the onslaught of the horde. Like those all other empires, the legacy of the Mongol Empire is bittersweet, and its rise and fall had a significant impact on the development of the world of today.

Artistic rendering of Mongol warriors besieging a city.

Sources:

http://asianhistory.about.com/od/Genghis_and_Mongols/ss/The-Mongol-Empire.htm

http://www.allempires.com/article/?q=The_Mongol_Empire

http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Mongol_Empire