11-20-2005, 08:26 AM
Genghiz Khan was a Mongol (but not a Muslim) and the greatest conqueror in the history of the planet,if greatness is measured in the extent of the territory you control.
It is commonly assumed in India that Khan is a Muslim name. It is not, even though large number of Muslims in India and Pakistan bear that name. Theree are however no Arabs that i know of that go thename of Khan. It is essentially the Mongol equivalent of a sheikh or a tribal chief. Genghiz Khan or Temujin never did conquer india, and iirc the closest he came to India was Afghanistan which had by then beeen converted to Islam by Turco Afghans. It is not clear why Genghiz Khan never did vouchsafe enough attention to India, as his descendants Tamerlang and Babar did centuries later. Maybe others like Hauma, who has made an in depth study of the Khanates can shed light on this.
A century and a half later the mongols did attack India which by that time was ruled by Allauddin Khilji while they came close could not dislodge Allauddin from Dilli. If they had succeeded the history of India might have taken a different course. TheMongols were by and large indifferent administrators but where they differed from the Turco Afghans was that they left the local population to their own worship and did not interfere in the practices that were local. Furthermore, they were not unfamiliar with Indic practices and worship as these were widespread throughout central asia.
But the descendants of Genghiz Khan remained fierce and successful warriors by their own efforts and controlled vast territories stretching from the Japanese archipelago to the gates of Vienna or at least the Danube river. They were responsible for the sack of Damascus and the destruction of the Khalifate which for all intents and purposes ceased to remain in the hands of the Arabs. One of Genghiz's grandsons Kublai Khan became the Great Khan of China and established his capital in Khanbalik , which eventually came to be known as Beijing. Another batu Khan became the leader of the Golden Horde and controlled vast areas of present day Russia. Hulagu the one responsbile for the sack of Damascus , the destruction of Baghdad in 1259 CE, and the defeat of the Assassins rules Persia and callshimself Il-Khan (il meaning little or subordinate to the Great Khan who at that time was Kublai Khan, who ruled China). His descendants the Il-Khans convert to Islam. It is said that Hulagus son had Islamic sympathies. Well, in any eventtheIl Khans whoruled from Tabriz in Present day Iran turn Muslim soon after the death of Hulagu.
But they were the the exception rather than the rule. The vast majority of the Mongols in time became Buddhists and populate a rather large area stretching from Mongolia to Tibet. They are today one of the most peaceful people on this planet for which they have paid a price (especially the Tibetans)
Hereis a timeline of the Mongols
http://www.scaruffi.com/politics/mongols.html
(at this point in time ihave no way of authenticating this timeline, other than to say, it remains internally consistent
It is commonly assumed in India that Khan is a Muslim name. It is not, even though large number of Muslims in India and Pakistan bear that name. Theree are however no Arabs that i know of that go thename of Khan. It is essentially the Mongol equivalent of a sheikh or a tribal chief. Genghiz Khan or Temujin never did conquer india, and iirc the closest he came to India was Afghanistan which had by then beeen converted to Islam by Turco Afghans. It is not clear why Genghiz Khan never did vouchsafe enough attention to India, as his descendants Tamerlang and Babar did centuries later. Maybe others like Hauma, who has made an in depth study of the Khanates can shed light on this.
A century and a half later the mongols did attack India which by that time was ruled by Allauddin Khilji while they came close could not dislodge Allauddin from Dilli. If they had succeeded the history of India might have taken a different course. TheMongols were by and large indifferent administrators but where they differed from the Turco Afghans was that they left the local population to their own worship and did not interfere in the practices that were local. Furthermore, they were not unfamiliar with Indic practices and worship as these were widespread throughout central asia.
But the descendants of Genghiz Khan remained fierce and successful warriors by their own efforts and controlled vast territories stretching from the Japanese archipelago to the gates of Vienna or at least the Danube river. They were responsible for the sack of Damascus and the destruction of the Khalifate which for all intents and purposes ceased to remain in the hands of the Arabs. One of Genghiz's grandsons Kublai Khan became the Great Khan of China and established his capital in Khanbalik , which eventually came to be known as Beijing. Another batu Khan became the leader of the Golden Horde and controlled vast areas of present day Russia. Hulagu the one responsbile for the sack of Damascus , the destruction of Baghdad in 1259 CE, and the defeat of the Assassins rules Persia and callshimself Il-Khan (il meaning little or subordinate to the Great Khan who at that time was Kublai Khan, who ruled China). His descendants the Il-Khans convert to Islam. It is said that Hulagus son had Islamic sympathies. Well, in any eventtheIl Khans whoruled from Tabriz in Present day Iran turn Muslim soon after the death of Hulagu.
But they were the the exception rather than the rule. The vast majority of the Mongols in time became Buddhists and populate a rather large area stretching from Mongolia to Tibet. They are today one of the most peaceful people on this planet for which they have paid a price (especially the Tibetans)
Hereis a timeline of the Mongols
http://www.scaruffi.com/politics/mongols.html
(at this point in time ihave no way of authenticating this timeline, other than to say, it remains internally consistent