Why Are Ten Years Missing From Chinggis Khan’s Life?

Official records are silent over what happened to the Great Khan between 1186 and 1196

Chinggis Khan at the seige of Beijing (Zhongdu), from Rashid-al-Din’s Jami’ al-tawarikh. Source: Wikimedia

In 2012, I saw the film Mongol: The Rise of Genghis Khan, directed by Sergei Bodrov. As the title suggests, it was about Chinggis(Genghis) Khan’s early life. The movie begins in 1192 with Chinggis as a prisoner in the Tangut kingdom (Xi Xia in Chinese sources) in northwestern China. He has flashbacks of his childhood.

Note the date 1192.

Years later, when I researched Mongol historical records about Chinggiss' early life, I found that his imprisonment in the Tangut kingdom, shown in the movie, was missing. It wasn’t just official accounts. Popular history books such as Jack Weatherford’s Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World say nothing about Chinggis being taken as a prisoner.

Did the filmmakers take liberties?

A cinematic interpretation of historical figures is nothing new, but depicting Chinggis Khan imprisoned and mocked by onlookers felt out of place.

I was surprised why historical records omitted such a crucial detail.

Later, I found an interesting book, “Genghis Khan: His Life and Legacy,” by Paul Ratchnevsky. The book mentions a ten-year gap in Chinggis Khan’s life, from 1186 to 1196. Something must have happened during this period, and discussing it was taboo among Mongol historians, as it could undermine the Great Khan’s larger-than-life image.

What was so embarrassing that historians excluded ten years of history from Chinggis Khan’s life?

Was the movie telling the truth?

We need context regarding what may have transpired around 1186 to get the answer. Our story starts with a feud between two blood brothers.

Before we begin, it is crucial to remember that Chinggis Khan (meaning universal ruler or “oceanic” ruler) was bestowed on Temujin after he unified Mongolia under one banner in 1206. Because this essay focuses on events before 1206, we’ll use “Temujin” rather than “Chinggis Khan.”

United by Blood Divided By Ambition

Mongol tribes and neighboring kingdoms in East Asia. Source: Wikimedia

Temujin was eight when his father, Yesugei, negotiated an alliance between him and Börte, a girl from Temujin’s mother’s tribe. Yesugei was a Khamag Mongol. On their way home, the Tatars, rivals of Khamag Mongols, poisoned Yesugei.

Because he lost his father early, Temujin and his family were stripped of their possessions, barred from religious festivities, and forced to live as hunter-gatherers. There was no security, and their friends and family abandoned them. They lived hand to mouth.

During this challenging time in Temujin’s life, he made a best friend, a kid named Jamukha. The boys, who were around ten years old, exchanged gifts. In return for an arrow with a horn tip, Jamukha offered a whistling arrowhead. They twice swore an oath to be blood brothers, known as anda in Mongolian.

Temujin and Jamukha forged a friendship that changed their lives. When the Merkits, an enemy tribe, kidnaped Börte, Jamukha helped Temujin rescue her. The two then united to defeat the Merkits.

But things soon turned sour between them.

A few years after Börte’s rescue, Temujin and Jamukha clashed. The cause was a power struggle. After the victory against the Merkits, many Mongols started viewing Temujin as their leader. Shamans, who were influential in the politics of Eurasian Steppes, began prophesying Temujin as heaven’s chosen leader. Temujin was born clutching a blood clot, an ominous sign, making many believe in the prophecies that he was destined to rule.

Jamukha refused to accept the predictions.

The brothers had different views regarding the appointment of people to high posts. Temujin advocated a meritocratic system in which abilities determined one's position. Jamukha preferred assigning ranks based on blood ties and genealogy.

A 15th-century French depiction of Toghrul or Ong Khan. Source: Wikimedia

Toghrul, also known as Ong Khan, the head of the Keraites, a Mongol tribe, was the most influential leader in Mongolia during the 1180s. Temujin sought an alliance with him because Yesugei and Toghrul were blood brothers.

The pact was crucial for Temujin as it increased his leadership credibility. So, when some Mongol tribes elected Temujin as Khan (long before he was elected Chinggis Khan), Jamukha split ways.

Jamukha had the backing of many Mongol tribes, who elected him “Gurkhan” (universal ruler). The schism between the blood brothers set the stage for a showdown at Dalan Baljut (seventy marshes) in 1187. Scholars believe the battle occurred between 1186 and 1190, though the exact date is debatable.

The battle of Dalan Baljut was Temujin’s first military engagement as a commander. He lacked experience and numbers and was soundly defeated. Jamukha didn’t pursue Temujin. However, Jamukha’s decision to boil seventy captive princes alive horrified the Mongols and proved to be an unpopular move among his potential followers.

Temujin's military career was far from over after his defeat at the Seventy Marshes; he was only getting started. According to the Secret History of the Mongols, the oldest surviving Mongolian account of Chinggis Khan’s life, Temujin’s next notable military engagement was an expedition against the Tatars in 1196.

So what happened in those ten years after Dalan Buljut?

Where did Temujin disappear?