Ruler of the Great Sea

Mongolia | Anno 2013

 

Tuesday 9 July | Ulaanbaatar – Terelj National Park

Wednesday 10 July | Gorkhi-Terelj National Park – Tsonjin Boldog – Ulaanbaatar

 

 

Tuesday 9 July | Ulaanbaatar – Terelj National Park

Attila. Genghis Khan. Kublai Khan. There isn't a soul on earth who doesn’t know their names. From distant Asia, they managed to strike fear into Europe, even though it required a journey of over 8,000 km – on horseback, no less. Who were they? What drove them? And, most importantly, how did they manage to conquer one-fifth of the earth’s surface?

 

Ulaanbaatar – Suburb with gers

These are questions that play in our minds as the airplane begins its descent over the endless steppes of Mongolia. Below, a shallow river meanders through the grassland. White specks are scattered across the undulating landscape. These are round, white tents that we tend to call yurts. However, that is actually the name used by Turkish nomadic peoples. In Mongolia, they are called gers.

Startled, a flock of sheep takes off running as the plane roars toward the runway

Startled, a flock of sheep takes off running as the plane roars toward the runway. Just before ten, we land at the sun-drenched Genghis Khan International Airport in Ulaanbaatar and set our watches six hours ahead. The thermometer reads 16 °C (61 °F), and it is bone dry.

 

To Terelj

A cheerful young man with North African features is waiting for us. Not a Mongolian, we think to ourselves. But that turns out to be a hasty conclusion. This young man is the son of a Mongolian mother and an Ivorian father, with a grandfather from Madeira. His parents met many years ago as students in China, but they have since divorced, and his father has returned to Africa.

His name is Batmunkh, but if we find that too difficult, we can call him Tintin. After all, Tintin was and still is his favourite comic book character. Guiding is essentially a vacation job for him, as he is still a student. More specifically, he studies environmental science at Harbin University in northeastern China. In addition to Mongolian, he speaks fluent Russian and Chinese, but thankfully, he also speaks excellent English. As we get to know him, we will come to appreciate him as a well-read and enthusiastic commentator, immensely proud of his country and maternal ancestors, though with a tendency to focus more on anecdotes than on history.

Tugrik is the name of the national currency. We had never heard of it before. For one euro, you get 1,840 tugrik. A bit of rounding shows us that one thousand tugrik is worth just over half a euro. We also quickly learn that exchanging money here typically yields a hefty bundle of banknotes.

Our driver, Bagi, is waiting for us in the parking lot. He will be driving a spacious, somewhat dated bus from the defunct Korean automaker Asia Motors. There is no cargo area; the luggage is loaded into the back through the windows of the bus.

 

You can’t really call this a ride; it’s more like a wrestling match with the steering wheel

Bagi promptly faces the 14 km long stretch that connects the airport to the capital of Mongolia. You can’t really call this a ride; it’s more like a wrestling match with the steering wheel. Once, an attempt was made to lay asphalt here, but today all that remains is a collection of potholes and bumps that Mongolians conveniently call a paved road. While Bagi tirelessly yanks the wheel in all directions, manoeuvring the bus along its swaying path, our eyes eagerly explore the vast surroundings through the dry dust.

Ulaanbaatar, has approximately 1.3 million inhabitants, as we learn from Batmunkh. The city is situated 1,350 meters above sea level in the Tuul River valley, a river whose waters eventually flow into the vast Baikal Lake via increasingly larger rivers.

This country is three times the size of France, yet it has only 3 million residents – not counting the 50 million sheep, goats, cows, horses, and camels. On average, you encounter about two Mongolians per square kilometre. Only on the Falkland Islands, Spitsbergen and Greenland is it even lonelier. And most Mongolians don’t even live in Mongolia, Batmunkh adds pointedly. Buryatia, an autonomous republic in Siberian Russia just east of Lake Baikal, is home to 2.5 million Mongolians, while Inner Mongolia, an autonomous region of China, has as many as 6.9 million.

In the ger districts in the northern reaches of the city, poverty is rampant

To further emphasise the rural solitude, nearly half of those meagre three million Mongolians reside permanently in the capital. Ulaanbaatar is not equipped to handle such a population influx, leading to dire poverty in the so-called ger districts located on the northern outskirts of the city. Access to running water is lacking, and while the electricity supply is slightly better, it still leaves much to be desired.

The road from the airport to the capital is essentially one big construction site, where the government is erecting apartment buildings. This initiative is driven not only by social considerations but also by ecological reasons. More than the factories, the ger districts contribute significantly to the smog over the city, as they emit the smoke from their stoves at low levels.

 

 

Literally, the name Ulaanbaatar means Red Hero, a title the city has retained since 1924, reflecting its connection to the Russian communist regime. Nowadays, this heroic city is primarily characterised by constant traffic jams. In principle, Mongolians drive on the right side of the road, although they interpret this concept quite loosely. Still, about two out of three cars have the steering wheel on the right side, as they are often imported from Japan, Australia, or Singapore.

In the distance, the trans-Siberian train thunders by, carrying a load of coal. Mongolia ranks tenth among coal-producing countries.

 

Cinereous vulture

Steppe eagle

A few large birds of prey along the road catch our attention. A man is displaying a steppe eagle and two vultures. These turn out to be cinereous vultures, the largest vultures found in Mongolia, weighing up to eight kilograms.

Higher up on the slope, we spot a cemetery. Some graves are covered with flat headstones, which Batmunkh explains are for the Islamic Kazakhs. Mongolians, on the other hand, are buried under upright headstones.

 

Ovoo with blue ceremonial khadags

Today, our destination is not Ulaanbaatar but the Gorkhi-Terelj National Park, located about 80 km northeast of the capital. At Nalaikh, we turn left onto an unpaved road. An asphalt road is under construction here as well, but for now, we must navigate improvised tracks through the steppe. With endless patience, Bagi manoeuvers the bus over the relentless terrain. Signs of human presence are absent in the wide, treeless valley, but traces of sheep and cattle are abundant.

 

Tuul Valley

Gradually, we ascend out of the valley. At the highest point of the ridge, we encounter an imposing pile of large stones adorned with fluttering blue ribbons. This is an ovoo, a shamanistic structure used in Mongolian spiritual practices. The blue ribbons, known as khadags, are ceremonial scarves, symbolising the sky and offerings to the spirits of the land.

 

Gorkhi-Terelj National Park – Guru Travel Camp

Below, the valley of the Tuul River unfolds, the same river that flows through Ulaanbaatar. Trees lining the riverbank give the place an idyllic character. Brightly coloured vacation homes dot the landscape, offering a retreat for city dwellers looking to escape for a while.

 

Guru Travel Camp

This spot immediately serves as the gateway to Gorkhi-Terelj National Park. It's almost a quarter to three when we reach Guru Travel Camp, about thirty gers perched high on the slope. The view over the vast, sun-drenched valley, dotted here and there with white gers, is simply magnificent.

As a welcome gesture, she offers a bowl of milk. One by one, we take a sip, as is customary

A young lady in traditional attire is waiting for us. As a welcome gesture, she offers a bowl of milk. One by one, we take a sip, as is customary. Fortunately, they also have a hearty meal ready for us in the kitchen – chicken soup and a stew.

 

Welcome drink

Ger – Interior

We are each assigned a ger. Structurally, they hardly differ from the traditional gers of the steppe. Only the stone platforms on which they stand are a concession to our presumed need for comfort. Otherwise, a thick felt cover, lined inside and out with white canvas, rests on a frame of curved poles. These poles are painted orange – the colour of the sun – and converge towards a kind of wagon wheel at the top of the ger. Two central poles provide extra support to the structure. A canopy can be used to close off the wagon wheel, but it's usually left half-open to let light in, as there are no windows. The low orange door fits tightly in its frame, ensuring that no warmth is lost even in winter temperatures of –30 °C (–22 °F).

No warmth is lost, even in winter temperatures of –30 °C (–22 °F)

The interior is spartan but clean and functional – little milking stools around a small table, chest drawers, wooden single beds that also serve as benches. In the centre stands a basic metal stove. A thin stovepipe leads the smoke out through the wagon wheel. A light bulb dangles from a wire, and we’re told that the electricity will be cut off without fail at ten. Meals and sanitary facilities are available in communal areas.

 

Gorkhi-Terlzj National Park

At four o'clock, we continue exploring the area by bus. A symbiosis between careful tourist activities and sustainable development for the local population is what the Mongolian government strives for in its national parks. In some parks, this works better than in others, Batmunkh sighs. What makes this national park unique is the combination of rock formations and trees amid the rolling green steppes. The park owes its name to the small river Terelj.

 

Melkhi Khad or Turtle Rock

Melkhi Khad is one of the park's main attractions. This gigantic rock strikingly resembles a turtle – if you look at it from the right angle. We stroll towards it through the sunlit landscape. Batmunkh is annoyed by the litter and picks up a few plastic bottles – a brave, but ultimately futile gesture in this vast steppe. Among the grass on the hillside, we spot edelweiss.

 

Aryapala or Elephant Temple (in the distance)

Until the 19th century, life in these green valleys was extremely peaceful. So peaceful, in fact, that monks came here to meditate. Traces of this still remain today. In the distance, we can just make out the Aryapala, a meditation temple on the mountainside. The locals call it the Elephant Temple. The long staircase leading up to the temple resembles an elephant's trunk, while the two stupas on the roof represent its ears.

However, it's the rural life on the endless steppe that truly fascinates us. How do these families living in their gers sustain themselves? How do they survive the harsh winters? Seeking human contact, Bagi stops at a ger. Saddles and an anvil lie next to the tent, but there's also a solar panel and a satellite dish – a surprising blend of tradition and modernity. Unfortunately, no one is home.

Hospitality is a national virtue in Mongolia, and Namgilma practices it with great enthusiasm

At the next ger, we are luckier. As soon as our bus approaches, Namgilma, the grandmother of the family, comes running to greet us. Hospitality is a national virtue in Mongolia, and she practices it with great enthusiasm. Without much ado, she invites us inside. It's a bit of a squeeze with the fourteen of us, but eventually, we find a place on or near the beds.

 

Edelweiss

Gers of Namgilma

Meanwhile, a procession of small dishes appears on the table, each containing a traditional snack made from dairy products. Cheese, butter, and curd, freshly made from cow's milk and prepared on-site. The fact that they come from a small fridge powered by solar panels quickly silences any hygienic concerns we might have. As etiquette dictates, we taste everything – albeit in small bites. Even the famous aarul, which is as hard as a rock and probably just as tasty.

We even taste the famous aarul – as hard as a stone, and probably just as tasty

The hospitable Namgilma

Traditional dairy based snacks

Completely unjustly, the nomadic culture is often described as reckless or even chaotic, Batmunkh begins his introduction. Nomads actually follow strict rules dictated by nature , he points out.

For nomads, their livestock is their greatest treasure. Growing grains or vegetables is not possible with this poor soil and extreme climatic conditions. However, the nomadic lifestyle, which has been the norm here for thousands of years, thrives in these circumstances.

Summer and autumn are entirely focused on fattening the animals so that they can survive the winter and spring. Only the greenest grasses are suitable for this. Therefore, they move four to six times per season with all their belongings. During winter and spring, they do not relocate, as this would require far too much energy from both humans and animals. Nomads like to huddle their gers close to the mountains during this time, seeking some shelter from the wind. Especially in spring, it is a nerve-wracking wait. The winter reserves are depleted, the new food is not yet available, but the boisterous young calves are already making their appearance.

Especially in the spring it is an anxious wait, when the unruly young calves make their appearance

Throughout the year, it is their own herd that provides food. In summer, the nomads live exclusively on tsagaan idee or white food – butter, cheese, curd, and yogurt. This provides them with ample protein. In contrast, it is essential for meat to be on the table in winter.

Five of them live in this ger – Namgilma with her son, his wife, and their two children. The children are three and six years old. The eldest already goes to school in Nalaikh and stays there in a kind of boarding facility.

 

Ger of Namgilma – Interior

In the centre, there is a stove with a supply of firewood. Against the wall are three wooden beds with large storage drawers. Directly opposite the door, we recognise the customary household altar on a large cabinet. Next to it, there is some horse tack hanging on a rack. A refrigerator and TV are also present. Most of the wooden floor is covered with carpets. A natural spring nearby provides the necessary water.

We want to know if the lack of privacy is a problem. Namgilma sees no issues with this; on the contrary, the closeness makes life warmer, and the family comes closer together. Batmunkh chuckles at the memory of a similar question from film star Julia Roberts during a visit to a ger: Where is the room for making the babies? she asked. Outside, there is a second ger, but it is solely set up as a kitchen.

Namgilma’s parents have never known another life than this steppe. She has lived here for over twenty years. In her younger years, she tried to build a life in the capital, but that came to an end when she inherited her parents’ livestock. She doesn’t mind at all. The stress and unhealthy air in the capital were never really her thing.

Throughout the winter, Namgilma remains alone in this ger, often enclosed by snow

Now seventy, she still gets up every morning at five to milk the twenty cows and prepare fresh dairy products. Additionally, she takes care of two horses and over twenty sheep and goats. Luckily, all the animals are marked, and there is a rotation system with distant neighbours to tend to them. Throughout the winter, Namgilma remains alone in this ger, often enclosed by snow, as her son and daughter-in-law work in Nalaikh during that time.

 

 

A bit stunned, we return to Guru Travel Camp. While nomadic life may be on the decline, we take our hats off to what happens daily in and around the gers on the steppes. A stray grey cloud releases a few drops of rain.

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Wednesday 10 July | Gorkhi-Terelj National Park – Tsonjin Boldog – Ulaanbaatar

It's half past five when the snorting of horses wakes us. We briefly stick our heads outside. Mares are grazing with their foals among the gers. The herd has emerged from behind the hill and is calmly descending into the valley to graze.

It will be a prosperous journey today, that much is certain. For just before eight, as we drive down the mountain with the bus, our welcoming lady generously sprinkles milk in all directions with her ladle. It's an offering to the sky spirits to win their favour.

 

 

Down in the valley, rural life has already unfolded. Smoke plumes rise from the chimneys of the gers. Horses, cows, and even yaks are grazing. A man on horseback drives a herd of galloping horses ahead of him.

Peaceful scenes, but it hasn’t always been like this here. When the Mongols kicked the Chinese out in 1921 and the Russians were happy to lend them a helping hand, it was not a sudden burst of altruism. Mongolia would become a Soviet Russian vassal state, the second communist nation in the world, and also a buffer state against China.

 

 

Soon, the Bolsheviks discovered that Buddhism had a significant influence on the daily lives of the Mongols. Even when they moved their gers, they would seek advice from their monks beforehand, Batmunkh jokes.

In such a social context, communism had no chance. So, there was nothing left to do but eliminate Buddhism, its monks, and its monasteries. As said, so done. Out of the 650 temples, only three remained standing, and 40,000 monks were ordered to be executed by Stalin.

Out of the 650 temples, only three remained standing, and 40,000 monks were ordered to be executed by Stalin

About a hundred monks managed to hide in a cave in this valley. They secretly received food from nearby residents. However, they were discovered and promptly executed. Since then, the place has been called the Cave of the 100 Monks.

 

Cave of the Hundred Monks

Bagi walks clockwise around the ovoo

Only with the implosion of the USSR and the fall of Gorbachev in 1990 did the suffocating Soviet-Russian grip on Mongolia come to an end. Today, the communist party has been replaced by the revolutionary party. In some regions of Mongolia, that still holds some influence, Batmunkh adds with a sneer.

We cross the Tuul River, climb out of the valley, and stop on the mountain ridge. Some children are playing in the grass. Bagi walks clockwise around the ovoo and throws a few stones on it. This way, he appeases the earth spirits and increases our chances of a safe journey.

 

 

Originally, this is a shamanistic tradition. However, the Buddhists have incorporated the pagan ovoos, as evidenced by the khadags, the blue ceremonial scarves that typically flutter above the ovoos. Their blue colour refers to the sky. This ovoo also serves as a boundary marker on this ridge, delineating the territory between two Mongolian tribes.

 

Shamanistic doll

A bit further along stands a blue figure. It looks like a scarecrow. However, this being is also part of the shamanistic tradition. For although many Mongolians adhere to Buddhism, shamanism is never far away.

Shamans are needed to heal the sick and to guide the deceased to their place in the afterlife

Traditionally, each tribe has one shaman, known as a bo or an udgan – a male or female shaman. They are needed to heal the sick and to guide the deceased to their place in the afterlife. In essence, they act as a medium between the living and their ancestors.

Even during the time of the Great Mongol Empire, shamans were quite powerful. It was a shaman who gave Temüjin the title of Genghis Khan, Ruler of the Great Sea. This was a reference to his great power, but also a bizarre honorific in a land nearly a thousand kilometres from the nearest ocean.

Once, Genghis Khan was even convinced by his shaman to kill his brother. However, his mother, Höelün, persuaded him that he should value his brother's words more than those of the shaman. As a result, Genghis Khan killed the shaman instead of his brother, after which the influence of the shamans quickly declined.

At the end of the 16th century, the Mongols began to realise that shamanism was not a significant unifying force. Due to Altan Khaan, a direct descendant of Genghis Khan, they introduced Buddhism, specifically the Tibetan variant or Lamaism, as a counterweight to Russian Orthodoxy and Chinese Confucianism.

Today, shamanism is experiencing a resurgence, as part of the search for an authentic Mongolian identity

Today, shamanism is experiencing a resurgence, as Batmunkh suspects, as part of the search for an authentic Mongolian identity. Nevertheless, more than 50% of Mongolians still identify as Buddhists.

A herd of horses trots down the mountainside. Instead of riding a horse, the herder is swerving behind them on a motorbike, trying to keep his herd together and drive them in the right direction.

 

 

Just before half past nine, we reach the main road. We are not driving back to Ulaanbaatar yet, but are heading east. A handful of yaks scatter as soon as they notice our cameras.

Shortly afterward, a gigantic silver helmet emerges above the hills in the distance. This is our first glimpse of the giant equestrian statue they erected here for Genghis Khan in 2008.

A long staircase leads us to the round visitor centre, which serves as the pedestal for the statue. Four horsemen of the Tumen Khishigten, the elite corps that served as Genghis Khan's personal bodyguard, stand guard on the steps. The statue itself is thirty meters tall, not even counting the ten-meter-high pedestal. A remarkable 250 tons of steel were used for this largest equestrian statue in the world.

 

Tsonjin Boldog – Equestrian statue of Genghis Khan

Right at this spot, Tsonjin Boldog, the young Temüjin is said to have found his famous golden whip in 1179. A four-meter-long wooden replica of that whip, covered in gold leaf, is supposed to be the centrepiece of the reception hall. However, it is overshadowed by a rather gaudy boot. This is the largest boot in the world, certified by the Guinness Book of Records, the attendant proudly announces. He backs up this claim with impressive figures: it took 225 pieces of cowhide, 300 litres of glue, and 4,500 meters of rope to create this colossal boot, which stands nine meters high. With a foot that measures two meters wide and six meters long, one could just fit into it. In short, if your shoe size is 7,650, then this boot is for you.

In short, if your shoe size is 7,650, then this boot is for you

Moving past the trivia, we find two fascinating museums in the basement belonging to a private collector. First, there are several halls dedicated to the Xiongnu, better known to us as the Huns. From 209 BCE to 93 CE, they ruled over a vast empire that extended across present-day Mongolia and far beyond. The Mongolians like to consider the Huns as their distant ancestors.

The Han Chinese, however, were quite unsettled by this hyperkinetic equestrian people at their northern border. With their swift horses, they posed a constant threat of invading China, plundering crops, possessions, and, if possible, the women of hardworking Chinese farmers. To pin the Huns to their home territory, the steppe, Emperor Qin Shi Huangdi ordered the construction of the first great Chinese wall. More than two thousand years later, that same Qin Shi Huangdi would gain worldwide fame as the emperor of the Terracotta Army.

 

Tumen Khishigten (soldier of the elite corps)

However, it wasn't these Xiongnu that we learned about and feared in school as the Huns, since the first Hun empire quickly fell apart. The southern Huns were soon absorbed by the Chinese. In contrast, the northern Huns swarmed westward across the steppes and would, starting in the fourth century, put pressure on Europeans. From 445 onward, this feared military force was led by the infamous Attila, often referred to as the Scourge of God by the somewhat biased historical narratives that would emerge.

The Huns even served in the Roman army to learn about their organisational structure, strategies, and weapon technology

Now, you shouldn’t portray the Huns as a bunch of misfits, emphasises Batmunkh. They were clever enough to profit from the ongoing struggles between the Romans and the Germanic and Slavic tribes and to exploit the rivalries among those tribes. They even served in the Roman army to learn about their organisational structure, strategies, and weapon technology.

When Attila crossed the Rhine in 451 with several vassals, a decisive battle soon ensued with the armies of the Romans and the Visigoths led by Flavius Aetius. In the Catalaunian Fields, presumably slightly west of present-day Troyes in France, the Huns faced their first major setback.

Yet, Attila appeared again a year later in Northern Italy. In Mantua, slightly south of Lake Garda, he even had a conversation with Pope Leo I. The pope managed to convince Attila to cease hostilities and leave Europe. What the pope specifically said to Attila is unknown, according to Batmunkh. Nevertheless, historians are convinced that a severe food shortage, following two years of poor harvests, prevented Attila from advancing deeper into Italy.

In the museum, we encounter excellently displayed artefacts from that time. Bronze jewellery, weapons, and horse gear dominate. In particular, four beautiful bronze figurines of reindeer and a richly decorated sword make a strong impression.

In the harsh Mongolian steppe, being ostracised was little less than a death sentence

The second museum basement is dedicated to the origin and rise of the Great Mongol Empire. The story is well known. After his father Yesugei was killed by the Tatars, the family of the eight-year-old Temüjin was ostracised from the tribe. In the harsh Mongolian steppe, this was little less than a death sentence. Nevertheless, they managed to survive on wild garlic, wild onions, marmots, and the carcasses of larger animals, according to legend. Through his marriage to Börte, the girl he was betrothed to as a child, Temüjin gradually regained his social status.

 

Equestrian Statue of Genghis Khan

The abduction of Börte by the Mergid threw a spanner in the works. For the Mergid, it was nothing more than settling an old score, as Yesugei had similarly kidnapped Temüjin's mother back in the day. Temüjin was once again hunted down, but he ultimately managed to rescue Börte. The fact that Börte bore a son who was not his own was not an issue for him.

So much respect did Temudjin manage to command that he was proclaimed khan around 1195. And that would have far-reaching consequences beyond Mongolia. The accursed Tatars who had murdered his father Yesugei were the first to suffer the consequences. In 1202, they succumbed to the Mongolian war machine. With Mongolia completely under his control, Temüjin was proclaimed Genghis Khan in 1206. The first Great Mongol Empire was a reality.

The only thing Genghis Khan had left to do was conquer the world

The only thing Genghis Khan had left to do was conquer the world. First, he sent his son Jöchi to subjugate the Siberian peoples, to prevent any future attacks from the rear.

Those who joined Genghis Khan were spared; those who resisted were ruthlessly eliminated. Some peoples, like the Uyghurs and the Khitan, chose to back down and willingly aligned themselves with the Mongols.

Others showed more defiance. Cities like Samarkand, Bukhara, and Urgench fell one by one. In Merv, in present-day Turkmenistan alone, nearly a million men, women, and children were said to have been slaughtered. Genghis Khan's obsession was so great that three days after the victory, he sent part of his army back to the city to finish off the few survivors who had emerged from their hiding places to bury their dead.

In a military campaign lasting barely three years, Genghis Khan dealt a decisive blow to the military power of Islam, something that the Crusaders had failed to achieve for two centuries. Yet the Mongols were not satisfied. In a new campaign lasting four years, one of the armies returned to Mongolia via the Caucasus and Ukraine, making a wide loop around the Caspian Sea while also subjugating Russia along the way.

For every Mongolian soldier there were 250 enemy soldiers

Thus, Genghis Khan conquered an area that stretched from the Sea of Japan to the Mediterranean Sea in just twenty years. And this was achieved while there were 250 enemy soldiers for every Mongolian soldier, Batmunkh adds, not without a hint of pride.

In the end, the campaign against the Tanguts would prove to be fatal for Genghis Khan. He had a score to settle with them because they had not come to his aid during the battle when he called up his troops. In 1227, he died, presumably from the effects of a fall from his horse. No one knows where he was buried. Anyone involved in his burial is said to have been killed.

It was Kublai Khan, a grandson of Genghis Khan, who would expand the Mongol Empire to its greatest extent, specifically to 33 million square kilometres or one-fifth of the Earth's land area. Today, that area encompasses 30 countries.

At its height, the Mongol Empire encompassed one-fifth of the Earth's land area. Today, that includes 30 countries.

But the legacy of Genghis Khan had already turned into a loose confederation of four khanates. In the west was the Khanate of the Golden Horde, which largely coincided with present-day Russia, Kazakhstan, and Turkmenistan. Here, it was just a matter of waiting for Ivan the Terrible, who would put an end to the descendants of Genghis Khan at the end of the 15th century.

The Ilkhanate, which included present-day Iran, Iraq, Syria, and Türkiye, had already fragmented into loose Islamic states by the mid-14th century. The Chagatai Khanate in Central Asia was also short-lived. Timur the Lame attempted to replicate the exploits of Genghis Khan from Samarkand, and he succeeded quite well in terms of brutality.

Kublai Khan took control of the Great Khanate, which included present-day Mongolia, China, and Korea. To the displeasure of many Mongolians, he moved the capital of the Mongol Empire to Beijing and established the Yuan dynasty, one of the major Chinese dynasties. In 1368, Chinese farmers succeeded in driving the Yuan out, leading to three centuries of Ming rule.

In 1995, The Washington Post declared Genghis Khan the Man of the Millennium

Equestrian Statue of Genghis Khan

In 1995, The Washington Post declared Genghis Khan the Man of the Millennium, citing that no other figure in the second millennium had a greater impact on their contemporaries. In his vast empire, there was religious tolerance, and the safety of priests, monks, and diplomats was guaranteed. A uniform writing system had been introduced, and the legal system applied equally to all. Low taxes turned the Silk Road into the first intercontinental free trade zone. Such was the grip of the Mongol army that, according to an Arab saying, one could travel safely from Beijing to Baghdad with a golden bowl of valuables balanced on one's head.

17% of the world's population at the time perished in warfare, making it the deadliest conflict in relative terms in history

Does this outweigh the millions of civilian deaths left in the wake of his armies? Modern estimates suggest that between 1206 and 1368, at least 30 million people perished in warfare, which amounts to 17% of the world's population at the time – making it the deadliest conflict in relative terms in history.

Fortunately, the vast empire wasn't solely composed of warriors; skilled artisans and artists were also active. This is evident in the museum, where beautiful bronze and gold objects are on display, including jewellery, coins, everyday items, weapons, chainmail, and horse gear.

And there’s more. A climb of 161 steps leads through the horse's hind legs and body to its crown, which serves as a balcony offering a panoramic view. In the distance, we can spot the pale statue of Hö’elün, Temüjin’s mother, a woman who had a significant influence on him.

Genghis Khan’s metallic torso and head tower over us. Since no image of him has survived, his facial features are speculative. Here, he is depicted with a full beard and traditional locks behind his ears. In his right hand, he holds the golden whip; a sword hangs from his left belt. He gazes sternly into the distance, eyes fixed firmly on the east, where he was born – either in 1162 or 1155, as even that remains uncertain.

 

Hö’elün, mother of Genghis Khan

Yaks

In the restaurant of the visitor centre, we sit down for lunch and then head toward Ulaanbaatar, but not without first greeting the statue of Hö’elün once more. Meanwhile, Bagi has found a Mongolian flag and hung it on the bus, as today is National Flag Day. Tomorrow, the entire country will be caught up in the Naadam Festival, Mongolia’s version of the Olympics, albeit with only wrestling, archery, and horse racing on the agenda.

A strong wind drives a blanket of grey clouds across the rolling landscape. Beside the road, a herd of yaks is foraging for grass in the mud. By late afternoon, we make our first entry into Ulaanbaatar, the capital of Mongolia.

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Jaak Palmans
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Crushed between two eras