The Rise and Fall of the Second Largest Empire in History (gnv64)

The Rise and Fall of the Second Largest Empire in History
By Thomas J. Craughwell
Fair Winds Press | February 2010 | ISBN-10: 1592333982 | 272 pages | PDF | 125 mb
https://www.amazon.com/Rise-Second-Largest-Empire-History/dp/1592333982

Emerging out of the vast steppe grasslands of Central Asia in the early 1200s, the Mongols, under their ferocious leader, Genghis Khan, quickly carved out an empire that by the late thirteenth century covered almost one-sixth of the Earth’s landmass—from Eastern Europe to the eastern shore of Asia—and encompassed 110 million people. Far larger than the much more famous domains of Alexander the Great and ancient Rome, it has since been surpassed in overall size and reach only by the British Empire.
The Rise and Fall of the Second Largest Empire in the World recounts the spectacularly rapid expansion and dramatic decline of the Mongol realm, while examining its real, widespread, and enduring influence on countless communities from the Danube River to the Pacific Ocean.

About the Author

After four years in a doctoral program studying medieval English literature, three years as a copywriter for Book-of-the-Month Club, and one year as a marketing director for a pricey, upscale travel company, he went into business as a full-time writer in 1992. His first book was 'Every Eye Beholds You: A World Treasury of Prayer' (Harcourt Brace, 1999). He has a book on patron saints, 'Saints for Every Occasion' (Stampley Enterprises, 2001). Thomas J. Craughwell has written about saints for the Wall Street Journal, Inside the Vatican, and Catholic Digest, among other national publications.

CONTENTS
FAMILY TREE 6
INTRODUCTION 9
CHAPTER 1 The Asian Steppes: An Intensely Hostile World. 12
CHAPTER 2 The Savage Boyhood of Temiijin. 28
CHAPTER 3 A Friendless Boy's First Allies 42
CHAPTER 4 Temiijin's First Battle 52
CHAPTER 5 The Showdown that Made Temiijin a Khan. 66
CHAPTER 6 Temiijin Becomes Genghis Khan and the: Mongol Nation is Born 78
CHAPTER 7 The Nomads Conquer an Empire . 94
CHAPTER 8 Northern China Falls to the Mongols . 108
CHAPTER 9 Genghis Khan Invades the Muslim World 124
CHAPTER 10 The Mongol Style of Warfare. 142
CHAPTER 11 The Passing of Genghis Khan 156
CHAPTER 12 "The Devil's Horsemen" Invade Europe 170
CHAPTER 13 How One Man's Death Saved Europe from Destruction . 186
CHAPTER 14 Rifts in the Family 206
CHAPTER 15 The Rise of Kublai Khan and the Breakup of Genghis Khan's Empire. 224
CHAPTER 16 The First Mongol Emperor of China . 238 5
EPILOGUE 254
BIBLIOGRAPHY 257
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS 260
ABOUT THE AUTHOR 260
INDEX 261