Genghis Khan was a Mongol Khan who founded of the Mongol Empire by unifying independent Mongol tribes under his banner for the first.

Born as the second son of Yesugay Ba’ature, a tribal chief of the Kiyad (singular: Kiyan), Genghis Khan had a name of Temuzin which came after a defeated rival chief. Temuzin’s early life was a most difficult one. When he reached the marriageable age of 14, his father was murdered by the neighboring Tartars while returning home and Temuzin was inducted as the clan’s chief. His clan abandoned him and his family, refusing to be led by a mere boy. For the next few years, he and his family lived the way of life of poor nomads, surviving primarily off rodents. In one instance he slew his half-brother over a dispute about sharing hunting spoils. In another, Temuzin was captured in a raid by his former tribe and held captive with a wooden collar around his neck. He later escaped with help from a sympathetic captor. His mother Hoelun taught him many lessons on how to survive in the harsh climate of Mongolia, especially the need for alliances with others, which would shape his understanding in his later years.

Uniting the tribes Temuzin began his slow ascent to power by allying himself with his father’s friend Toghril, a local chief. He traded his coat for an army and joined the Keriat, a confederacy of Mongols led by Wang Khan. After successful campaigns against the Tartars (1202), Temuzin was adopted as Wang Khan’s heir. This led to bitterness on the part of Senggum, Wang’s former heir, who planned to assassinate Temuzin. After learning of Senggum’s intentions, eventually defeated Senggum and his loyalists and succeeded to the title of Wang Khan, Temuzin eventually created a written code of laws for the Mongols called Yassa, and he demanded it to be followed very strictly in order to strengthen his organization and power among his people.

Feeling the need to secure his borders from the south against the Jin Dynasty and from the west against Xi Xia, Temuzin organized his people to prepare for possible conflicts, especially with the Han people. With his personal charisma and strong will, in 1206 Temuzin finally managed to unite the tribes under a single system, a monumental feature for Mongols, who had a long history of internecine dispute and economic hardship. After united what is now Mongolia, at a Kurultai (a council of Mongol chiefs), he was titled “Genghis Khan” or Universal Ruler (also “Ruler of all between the oceans”).