This fact is a definite one among a host of other Genghis Khan facts you may come across. It was Genghis Khan that can be credited with the invention of the modern day postal service called ‘Yam’. The Mongols, most historians say were a savage lot who only knew to kill with dangerous weapons and techniques not known to other empires. But, when it came to communication tactics, the Mongols were light years ahead. Khan founded Yam, the courier service operated by cavalry. The Mongol territories were united by means of smart communication systems in the form of post houses and way stations. The riders were appointed to deliver post and goods. And they would usually cover 200 miles per day. These people also served as spies for the warrior leader who kept a hawk’s eye on every affair in his empire.
12. His name was removed from school textbooks during the Soviet occupation of Mongolia
The founding father of Mongolia was at one time declared a villain when the Soviets took reign from 1221 to 1224. This national hero was blacklisted from all school textbooks by the Soviets who tried to erase Genghis from the memory of people. Even visiting his birthplace in Kentii was banned by the Soviets. However, after Mongolia became free in the early part of 1990’s that Khan and his stories were restored everywhere. It was after the independence that people began to paint Khan in a variety of ways, and soon this warrior assumed the supreme position in Mongolia and its history with his portraits appearing in the Mongolian currency and an airport that’s named after him in Ulan Bator.
13. Mongols never took bath or washed their clothes
The Mongols were no doubt one of the greatest warrior clan of all times, but they sure were a superstitious lot. In their superstition, they believed that taking bath angered the dragons that were the guardians and controllers of the water cycle. The Mongols thought that bathing led to water pollution and thus refrained from taking bath…ever…eeww!! Another disgusting habit of these people was their practice of not washing their clothes. Of course, this should not come as a surprise to readers as they are already familiar with the Mongoloid custom of not washing themselves. They never changed their clothes till the time they became tattered. It was only during festivals that people in the old Mongolian Empire changed clothes. It was a common belief in those times that the smell of a person carried his or her specialty and hence smelling bad wasn’t considered a result of ill hygiene.
14. The enigmatic Khan’s way of death and place of burial are still shrouded in mystery
Genghis Khan facts about his death and place of burial are not proven till date. No one knows as to how the Great Khan died and where he was buried. There are many stories surrounding his death and burial, like, in one account, its suggested that Genghis Khan died because of a tragic fall from a horse that resulted in serious injuries to him. He died in 1227, say most accounts. While, there are a few that chronicle his death resulting from an arrow, to him dying because of malaria. However, the most unbelievable thing about his death comes from a chronicle that says he was murdered when he tried to rape a Chinese princess. Its not only the stories about his death that have circulated in various forms, but there have been rumors and legends about his burial too. Some say that while traveling for his burial, his army slaughtered everyone that came in their way to safeguard this secret. Once he was buried, his men rode horses over his grave to hide his resting place from the world. But, the most accountable finding suggests that Khan was buried on a mountain called Burkhan Khaldun.
Genghis Khan was a brutal warrior who mayhemed anyone that resisted him or his army. He was a revengeful man who wouldn’t think twice before going on a murderous spree. In one such horrific instance, Khan beheaded almost 1.75 million citizens of a Persian city called Nishapur. The reason? Well, our Genghis always looked forward to spill blood and did so quite enjoyably when in April 1221, Toquchar, his most loved son in law was killed by a resident archer of Nishapur. Looking at his inconsolable daughter and at her request that every single man, woman and child must be killed, his troops began massacring people savagely. The campaign was led by his youngest son named Tolui. The troops didn’t spare even a dog or a cat in this mayhem that saw all of Nishapur’s citizens getting beheaded. So much was the count that many pyramids were formed out of skulls of people murdered. However, this story is not definitive and we will never know actually what conspired that day in that year.
Some of the details mentioned here are merely fragments of imagination chronicled by historians over a period of time. While, there are others that are true. There are numerous legends surrounding the life and death of this Universal Warrior named Genghis Khan, we now know as the man who preferred spirituality over materialism, and was the founding father of the first international postal system. He was a tyrant who cut a ruthless path through many international territories and along his way, murdered millions. We hope that these 15 Genghis Khan facts would help you understand this enigma better than before.