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 While
all this was taking place in Asia Minor and Palestine, Europe was
threatened again by hordes pouring in from the interior of Central
Asia. This time it was the Mongols under Genghis Khan (properly:
Cingiz-Han) (1155 - 1227) . The ruler of the emerging global empire
was himself a Mongol, but most of his generals were Turkmen from
Chinese Turkestan or from the region of the Aral Sea. After the
conquest of North China (including Peking in 1215) and the destruction
of the Empire of the Khwarizm Shah (1220), which had extended all
across Western Asia, and following the "turkizing" of
the entire area between the Great Wall of China and the Urals, he
assembled all his people in Karakorum, his capital city. He addressed
the serried ranks from the battlements of the city wall to spur
them on, exhorting them to "go out and conquer the world".
Soon afterwards the vast Mongolian hordes started westward. Attacking
on a broad front, Genghis Khan overran Northern Iran, Armenia and
Georgia and destroyed the kingdom of the Turkish Polovtsers in the
steppes of Southern Russia.
 In
answer to their request for help, the Russian princes of the Kingdom
of Kiev hastened to the south, but suffered a severe defeat near
the Sea of Asov (Battle of the Kalka, May 1223). Instead of proceeding
westward, Genghis Khan became embroiled in a feud with the Volga
Bulgars and did not live to cross the great river. He died suddenly
in 1227. It remained for his son, the Great Khan Ogedei (1229-1241)
to continue the Mongolian advance on Europe. The Lesser Khan Batu
invaded Russia in 1238, put an end to the Empire of the Volga Bulgars,
conquered all of Central Russia and turned south instead of advancing
to the Baltic Sea, as he had planned. He captured Kiev in 1240.
An alliance was formed between Pomerania, the
King of Poland and the Duke of Silesia, Henry II. The army of Polish-German
knights met the Mongols on the Valstatt by Liegnitz near the Oder
on 9th April 1241, only to be decimated. Again the Occident lay
open to the ravages of Asia's hordes. They had already ravaged part
of Poland and Hungary (The Battle of the Theiss), when suddenly
things took a turn for the better: Ogedei died early in 1241. Batu,
the Commander-in-Chief of the Mongol vanguard in Europe, suddenly
decided to check his advance in order to take part in the fight
for succession to the throne of the Mongol Greater Khans. Once again
the menace had gone up in smoke. Europe was saved. Bells rang in
churches and cathedrals everywhere to celebrate the event.
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