Temujin’s Life Before His Rise to Power

  Before his rise as the Khan, Temujin had gone through hardships in his childhood. Learning about his life as a young boy is important to understand how his childhood experiences may have long-term impacted him. Furthermore, we can learn about how his decisions could have been influenced by how he felt or was treated as a kid. The relationships from his childhood are important to learn about and how they have impacted him as he began to rise to power.

          During his youth, Temujin’s father, Yubusgeiba, was returning home after arranging a betrothal when he was poisoned by a Tatar. With the death of his father, Temujin and his family were abandoned by their tribe. Leaving them to survive on their own, and leaving Temujin dissatisfied with the tribe. His mother, Ho’elun, was left to gather food to feed her kids. Temujin and his brothers had to learn how to fish and shoot small birds to survive. On one of their hunting days, Temujin accidentally shot and killed Bekter, his half-brother. Soon, he was captured by his father’s tribe and was able to escape after facing hardships while being captured. When Temujin returned, his family lived in the same conditions as they were before he was captured.

          As he grew older he “began to draw on old connections once made by his father with others and new alliances forged by himself” (Buell and Fiaschetti 9). His new allies included Sorqan-sira, an individual who risked their life to help him escape from his father’s tribe, the Tayici’ut. Another new ally was Bo’orcu, and he helped Temujin when he was injured from an encounter with horse rustlers. These individuals later became part of Temujin’s trusted associates as he rose to power. However, an important relationship Temujin had was his wife, Börte. His wife was the arranged marriage his father worked on before he passed. Börte was the daughter of Chieftain Dei-secen and Temujin had gone to fulfill the marriage after escaping the Tayici’ut. 

The Merkit had captured Börte after they attacked his family. The Merkit were “a tribe living in northern Mongolia, bore Temüjin a grudge, because Yesügei had stolen his own wife, Höelün, from one of their men, and in their turn they ravished Temüjin’s wife Börte” (Bawden 2025). To get his wife back, Temujin had sought to reconnect with To’oril, who was the leader of Kereit. In addition, To’oril had a connection with his father, and to reconnect Temujin gave him a black sable coat he received as a wedding gift from his mother. To’oril provided him with a retainer, Jelme, and in the future became an important general. Temujin had To’oril’s people and his anda Jamuqa help him get his wife back.       

          Temujin had gone through numerous hardships that helped shape him into the person he was. His experiences in his youth helped him value loyalty as he developed his empire and rose to power. Later on, the relationships he built along his journey helped him as he began his rise to power, however, his relationship with Jamuqa did not last and they became enemies. His relationship with To’oril began to deteriorate as he continued to rise in power. 

In sum, Temujin faced many obstacles in his journey that date back to his youth, and the relationships he formed early on left a major influence on him and his decision-making.  

Bibliography 

Bawden, Charles R.. “Genghis Khan”. Encyclopedia Britannica, 1 Jan. 2025, https://www.britannica.com/biography/Genghis-Khan. Accessed 31 January 2025.

Buell, Paul D, and Francesca Fiaschetti. “Essay 1: Mongolia Before the Empire (to 1206).” Historical Dictionary of the Mongol World Empire, 2nd ed., Rowman & Littlefield , New York, NY, 2018, pp. 3–15.