The Rise and Fall of the Second Largest Empire in History: How Genghis Khan's Mongols Almost Conquered the World

Thomas J. Craughwell

feb 2010 · Quarto Publishing Group USA

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How Genghis Khan and the Mongols conquered nearly one-sixth of the planet: “The fascinating story of history’s most misunderstood empire builders.” —Alan Axelrod, bestselling author of Miracle at Belleau Wood

Emerging out of the vast steppes of Central Asia in the early 1200s, the Mongols, under their ferocious leader, Genghis Khan, quickly carved out an empire that by the late thirteenth century covered almost one-sixth of the Earth’s landmass—from Eastern Europe to the eastern shore of Asia—and encompassed 110 million people. Far larger than the much more famous domains of Alexander the Great and ancient Rome, it has since been surpassed in overall size and reach only by the British Empire.

The Rise and Fall of the Second Largest Empire in the World recounts the spectacularly rapid expansion and dramatic decline of the Mongol realm, while examining its real, widespread, and enduring influence on countless communities from the Danube River to the Pacific Ocean.

“Great sweeping history from a superb writer.” —Joseph Cummins, author of The War Chronicles

“A skillful and imaginative storyteller and conscientious historian.” —David Willis McCullough, author of Wars of the Irish Kings

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Thomas J. Craughwell (Bethel, CT) is the author of a dozen books, including Failures of the Presidents, How the Barbarian Invasions Shaped the Modern World, and Stealing Lincoln’s Body (Harvard University Press, March 2007). He has written articles on history, religion, and popular culture for The Wall Street Journal, The American Spectator, and U.S. News & World Report