Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World

By Jack Weatherford,

Book cover of Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World

Book description

The name Genghis Khan often conjures the image of a relentless, bloodthirsty barbarian on horseback leading a ruthless band of nomadic warriors in the looting of the civilized world. But the surprising truth is that Genghis Khan was a visionary leader whose conquests joined backward Europe with the flourishing cultures…

When you buy books, we may earn a commission that helps keep our lights on (or join the rebellion as a member).

Why read it?

2 authors picked Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?

This fast-paced, wide-ranging history of Genghis Khan and his successors is by an author with first-hand experience of living among the nomads of the Eurasian steppes.

This work is the best introduction for the general reader on the role of Genghis Khan as a conqueror and ruler as well as the impact of the Mongols on shaping the modern world.

Weatherford turns a biography of Genghis Khan (properly Chinggis Khan) into a vehicle for narrating the rise of the Mongols from a confederation of nomads into the largest land empire in history. 

Although we often think of the Mongol Empire as a "state," its origins were decidedly more "tribal" or confederal than state-like. Their motives and methods are essential to understanding the full variety of warfare in the human experience. 

From Wayne's list on war beyond the state.

Want books like Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World?

Our community of 12,000+ authors has personally recommended 49 books like Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World.

Browse books like Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World

Book cover of War in Human Civilization
Book cover of The Silk Roads: A New History of the World
Book cover of The Victory With No Name: The Native American Defeat of the First American Army

Share your top 3 reads of 2024!

And get a beautiful page showing off your 3 favorite reads.

1,187

readers submitted
so far, will you?

5 book lists we think you will like!

Interested in Mongols, Genghis Khan, and nomads?

Mongols 16 books
Genghis Khan 14 books
Nomads 23 books