Wild & Weird: April Showers Bring ... Genghis Khan Genghis KhanAt its peak the vast, horse-powered military of the Mongol Empire (1206-1368) controlled the most geographically expansive empire in all of history, stretching from Central Europe to the Sea of Japan, and from Siberia to Southeast Asia. But howd the Mongols take over so much of the world so quickly? A new study based on tree-ring samples from ancient Siberian pines in central Mongolia suggests warm weather and rain. The report, published this month in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, says that in the years immediately preceding Genghis Khans rule, a period of tribal disarray, the steppe region suffered intense drought. But then, coinciding with the meteoric rise of the empire, Mongolia witnessed a climatic shift involving rain and warmth to a degree never experienced in the region before or since. That rainfall brought unprecedented growth in plants, namely grasses. The theory is that grass abundance allowed the Mongols to increase the horsepower that overwhelmed their enemies across the known world.
Posted on: Thu, 13 Mar 2014 18:57:14 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015