The Mongols invaded the Khwarezmian Empire in 1219 for a number of reasons. The most immediate reason was the treacherous execution of two of Genghis Khan’s envoys by the Khwarezmian Shah Muhammad II. The deeper reasons were the Mongol desire to expand their territory, the Khwarezmian refusal to submit to Mongol demands, and the strategic importance of the Khwarezmian Empire as a gateway to the south and west.
The Mongol invasion of the Khwarezmian Empire was one of the most consequential events of the medieval period. The campaign of 1219-1221 was triggered by the treacherous execution of two of Genghis Khan’s envoys by the Shah, and it resulted in the destruction of one of the most powerful states in the medieval world.
The Immediate Cause
The immediate cause of the invasion was the treacherous execution of two of Genghis Khan’s envoys. In 1218, Genghis Khan sent a small group of envoys and merchants to the Khwarezmian court to negotiate a trade agreement. The envoys were received at the border city of Otrar by the local governor, who, on suspicion of spying, executed the envoys and confiscated the goods. The governor, a man named Inalchuq, was acting on his own authority, but the Khwarezmian Shah Muhammad II refused to punish him, and Genghis Khan was given no satisfaction.
Genghis Khan responded by sending a second group of envoys, this time led by two of his most trusted officials, to demand the surrender of the governor. The Shah, who is reported to have been advised against the move by some of his counselors, executed one of the envoys and sent the other back with his beard shaved — a deliberate insult, by the customs of the steppe. The insult was a fatal mistake, and it gave Genghis Khan a pretext to launch a major invasion.
The Deeper Causes
The deeper causes of the invasion were the Mongol desire to expand their territory, the Khwarezmian refusal to submit to Mongol demands, and the strategic importance of the Khwarezmian Empire as a gateway to the south and west.
The Mongol desire to expand their territory was a major factor. The Mongols had been expanding their empire for several decades, and they had conquered most of the major powers of the steppe. The Khwarezmian Empire was one of the few major powers that had not yet been conquered, and the Mongols were determined to add it to their empire.
The Khwarezmian refusal to submit to Mongol demands was another major factor. The Mongols had sent envoys to the Khwarezmian court, demanding that the Shah submit to Mongol rule and pay tribute. The Shah refused, and the Mongols took the refusal as a casus belli.
The strategic importance of the Khwarezmian Empire as a gateway to the south and west was a third major factor. The Khwarezmian Empire controlled most of Central Asia, and the empire was a major obstacle to the Mongol expansion to the south and west. The conquest of the Khwarezmian Empire would open up the trade routes of Central Asia and would give the Mongols access to the riches of the Islamic world.
The Campaign
The campaign of 1219-1221 was one of the most extensive in the history of the Mongol military. The Mongol army crossed the Syr Darya and laid siege to the city of Otrar, where the offending governor was based. The siege lasted for several months, but the city eventually fell and the governor was executed in a particularly gruesome manner.
After the fall of Otrar, the Mongol columns fanned out across the Khwarezmian Empire. The main body, under Genghis Khan, marched on the city of Bukhara, which fell in February 1220. The city of Samarkand fell in March 1220, after a long siege. The city of Urgench, the capital of the empire, fell in April 1221, after a long and difficult siege.
The Aftermath of the Campaign
The aftermath of the campaign was profound. The Khwarezmian Empire, which had been one of the most powerful states in the medieval world, was destroyed, and the destruction opened up Central Asia to Mongol rule. The campaign also had a profound effect on the populations of the conquered territories, with millions of people killed, deported, or displaced.
The campaign also had important consequences for the Mongol Empire itself. The campaign introduced the Mongols to the riches of the Islamic world, and it gave them a taste for the luxury goods of the Islamic East. The campaign also introduced the Mongols to the administrative traditions of the Islamic world, and the Mongols began to use Persian and Turkic administrators in the administration of their empire.
Sources
- John Man, Genghis Khan: Life, Death and Legacy (London, 2004).
- Igor de Rachewiltz, ed., The Secret History of the Mongols (2 vols., Brill, 2004–2013).
- Paul Ratchnevsky, Genghis Khan: His Life and Legacy (Oxford, 1991).