This short article does not intend to narrate Genghis Khan's military history and stories per se - there are already too many books and literary works that cover these topics. Instead, it is about the Great Khan's military thinking and the historical relationship between the war mechanism of the Mongolians, sometimes known to Medieval Europeans as the Tartars, and the future of new types of warfare for humanity.
Humans are innately drawn to stories and possess a natural ability to listen and absorb them. Prior to the development of writing systems, such as during a specific era in Mongolian history, oral traditions, and stories served as the primary means of transmitting ideas, knowledge, and vital information. However, a potential drawback of humanity's fascination with storytelling is that it may lead to oversight or neglect of precise and critical scientific concepts.
The military prowess of the Mongolians can be attributed to two key factors: their distinctive military assets and their rules of engagement in battle. These two elements are inherently interconnected and mutually reinforcing. Without one, the other would not be feasible, and when combined, they constituted the world's most advanced, successful, and notable military warfare system of that era.
The Mongolians' distinctive military assets encompassed military organizations that ranged from small units of ten households to massive forces of hundreds, thousands, and even tens of thousands. These organizations formed the foundation of their military structure, enabling their commanders to flexibly command small or large groups of soldiers and deploy the formidable Mongolian army effectively in warfare across the known world of that time. They ingeniously devised an advanced social system for their era, in which all men were trained as warriors for warfare. They honed their archery skills from a young age and became expert archers. They were capable of enduring hunger and cold, and could ride continuously for two days and nights. On average, each Mongolian warrior of that time possessed 18 warhorses, granting them unparalleled mobility and combat effectiveness.
Such an approach to battle engagement was a paradigm of advanced warfare thinking that bewildered the world of that time. Rather than conventional warfare, they employed a hunting-like strategy. Leveraging their superior mobility, the Mongolian army would swiftly encircle their enemies, akin to trapping prey, and rain down precise arrows upon them without relenting. The inevitability of being struck by arrows, falling off horses, and suffering injuries or deaths was a grim reality for their opponents, as long as the Khan's army maintained their superior mobility. Unlike the traditional practice of head-to-head battles, such as duels with swords during the Han and Tang dynasties in China, the Mongolians avoided direct confrontations. Instead, they employed strategic and precise strikes, not unlike hunting, to systematically eliminate enemies in large numbers.
The resurgence of similar warfare and battle tactics can be witnessed on the Ukrainian battlefield today. Ukrainian special forces are employing precision attacks utilizing anti-tank missiles, akin to hunting, to effectively target and neutralize Russia's unwieldy armies. As Ukraine evolves into a sophisticated war machine, even formidable powers like Russia are grappling with the inability to secure victory in the conflict. This exemplifies the face of modern and future warfare, a strategy that has roots dating back to Genghis Khan's conquest of the world. However, the far-sightedness of the Great Khan's intimidating warfare is often misconstrued and misunderstood.
In such dire circumstances, Russia finds itself limited to relying solely on its numerical advantage to barely withstand Ukraine's agile combat forces. It is apparent that Ukraine has recognized Russia's strategy and has strategically deployed a significant proportion of its forces in the Bakhmut front line as "territorial defense forces", essentially armed militias rather than elite troops. These forces are utilized by Ukraine to gradually wear down Russia's numerical superiority in the trenches. As a result, the current form of the Ukraine war goes beyond simple replication of the trench warfare tactics of World War I. Ukraine's assaults will commence once Russia's manpower advantage is nearly depleted, and the "encirclement hunting" will ensue once again.
Genghis Khan's era has bequeathed certain key concepts to the world, which continue to shape the fundamental nature of warfare even today. These concepts include organization, mobility, intelligence, precision, and encirclement hunting. These principles have left a lasting legacy and continue to influence the way warfare is conducted in modern times.
