Genghis Khan Unites the Mongols

What happened

After a decade of warfare and diplomacy, in 1206 a great assembly of the Mongol nobility proclaimed the chieftain Temüjin their supreme leader, giving him the title Genghis Khan — 'universal ruler.' He welded the feuding tribes of the steppe into a single people and a disciplined army of fast, coordinated cavalry, and gave them a written script and a law code.

Why it matters

Genghis Khan's unification of the Mongols created the war machine and the state that would go on to build the largest contiguous land empire in history.

Sources

• World History Encyclopedia. Genghis Khan · Reputable source