Hardcore History 44 – Wrath of the Khans II

Host: Dan Carlin
Release Date: July 31, 2012

Episode Overview

In this second installment of the "Wrath of the Khans" series, Dan Carlin continues his deep dive into the Mongol conquests of the early 13th century, focusing on their fateful collisions with Northern China’s Jin dynasty and, pivotally, with the Islamic Khwarazmian Empire. The episode is marked by Carlin’s signature dramatic narration, graphic historical storytelling, and sharp analysis of military, political, and moral dimensions. Themes include the mechanics and consequences of Mongol warfare, the role of terror as a weapon, pivotal moments of betrayal and resistance, and the persistent debate about 'creative destruction' as history’s engine.

Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. Prelude: The Mongol Shockwave

• Carlin introduces the situation as a narrative midstream: listeners encounter "a pile of bones" on the road to devastated Zhongdu (Beijing), witness to the staggering scale of Mongol violence.

  “As they got closer, it turned out to be an absolutely massive pile of bones… The stench was so horrible… several of the mission became ill and some actually died.” (03:40)

• The Muslim world’s terrifying first impression of the Mongols comes via spies reporting on the annihilation of a Chinese mega-city, establishing a tone of awe and dread.

2. Mongol Campaign Against Jin China (c. 1211–1215)

• Carlin likens the Mongols’ 1211 invasion of Jin-controlled northern China to a medieval blitzkrieg:

  • Genghis rides out with 100,000 horsemen—an alliance of Mongols and mostly Turkic tribes.
  • Despite being outnumbered, the Mongols exploit internal divisions within Jin society (Jurchen rulers, disaffected Chitan elite, Han Chinese majority, and other steppe peoples), echoing “the Maginot Line not held by Frenchmen” analogy.

  “It's never smart to base your defense on a bunch of people who hate you.” (15:10)

• Mongol tactics include calculated terror: sacking towns, encouraging surrender with “spare vs. slaughter” policies, leveraging treachery and intelligence to swiftly breach defenses.

  “Genghis Khan probably knew all of this. He had an intelligence service that is one of the greatest in all history.” (19:10)

• Notable: Wining surrendered after its governor defected; repeated acts of betrayal and ambush cripple Jin coordination.

  “The governor of the town switching sides, joining the Mongols, and given a plum command.” (21:00)

• Temporary resistance emerges when Genghis is wounded, giving the Jin a reprieve.

• Disease, starvation, and logistical difficulties (including rumors of cannibalism in the Mongol camp) force the Mongols to negotiate, with the Jin offering tribute and even a princess in marriage to stall the attackers.

  Secret History of the Mongols (27:00–31:00) – Carlin reads from this contemporary source about the peace negotiations.

3. The Cataclysmic Fall of Zhongdu (Beijing, 1215)

• Jin miscalculation: the dynasty moves its capital south, abandoning Zhongdu’s population of a million.
• Subsequent Mongol siege starves the city, prompting cannibalism among the inhabitants; relief columns are destroyed, the city falls.
• The scale of massacre and rape is legendary; tales include "60,000 virgins jumping off the walls," fires lasting over a month, and years of streets littered with skulls.

  “The sack of the city was terrible to behold… Thousands were slaughtered and raped and allegedly 60,000 women and girls committed suicide rather than allow themselves to be ravished by Mongol soldiers.” (39:30)

• Carlin addresses the concept of creative destruction, challenging revisionist or utilitarian interpretations that view such horror as a price for political unity or future commercial flourishing.

  “What's worth that? ... How would we feel if the shaking UP process killed 10 to 50 million of our countrymen?” (44:20)

4. Quelling Internal Rebellions & the Tale of Kuchlug

• Genghis Khan puts down steppe revolts (such as the Merkits) with annihilatory violence.

• The case of Kuchlug, a fugitive prince, illustrates the fractal complexity of steppe dynamics:

  • Kuchlug, a Naiman prince (and Nestorian Christian turned Buddhist), finds asylum with the Karakitai Empire (ruled by remnants of the Chitan).
  • With Khwarazmian support, Kuchlug overthrows his hosts, persecutes the local Muslim population, and sets the stage for Mongol intervention.
  • Genghis seizes the opportunity, casting himself as a liberator promising religious freedom—pragmatic rather than idealistic, Carlin argues.

    “He was doing it for the same reasons that many other great empires… did the same thing… Empires want stability. They want peace within their borders…” (1:03:45)

• Kuchlug’s fall and the collapse of the Karakitai remove the last buffer between Mongols and the Khwarazmian Empire.

5. Approach to the Islamic World: A Rashomon of Sources

• Carlin reflects on the contrasting written accounts: later, Mongol-censored chroniclers versus contemporaries writing before Mongol dominance.
• Escalating sense of civilizational apocalypse, especially articulated by Ibn al-Athir, a contemporary Arab historian:

  “Who is there who would find it easy to write the obituary of Islam and the Muslims?... If anyone were to say… mankind has not had a comparable affliction, he would be speaking the truth.” (1:17:00)

6. The Road to War: Genghis vs. the Khwarazmian Shah

• A diplomatic and commercial incident sets the Mongol war machine in motion:
  • Genghis’s huge caravan is seized—possibly a result of local initiative, but Shah Muhammad chooses to escalate, executing or humiliating Mongol envoys.
• Genghis Khan’s famous retort:

  “You kill my men and my merchants and you take from them my property. Prepare for war, for I'm coming against you with a host you cannot withstand.” (1:27:05)

• The Mongol invasion unfolds in a shockingly modern fashion—multiple independent columns, rapid movement, feigned retreats, psychological warfare; overwhelming opponents unprepared for this style.

7. The Conquest of Central Asia: Atrocity as Tactic

• Widespread sieges and massacres follow:

  • Mongols use surrendered civilian populations as human shields and cannon fodder—an innovation in terror and efficiency.
  • Gruesome psychological warfare: use of mass executions, rape (including of children), and enslavement; deployment of artisans and siege engineers (captured from China) to overcome city defenses.

• Standout moments:

  • The sacking of Bukhara:

    “O people, know that you have committed great sins… I am the punishment of God. If you had not committed great sins, God would not have sent a punishment like me upon you.” —attributed to Genghis Khan by Persian historian Juvayni (1:45:20)

    • Subsequent plunder, mass killings, systematic division of spoils, and rape recounted in detail by Ibn al-Athir and Rashid al-Din.

  • The annihilation of cities: Merv, Nishapur, Samarkand, and others—death tolls in the hundreds of thousands or more, with vivid stories of beheading, fires, and rivers running red.

    “The men were so paralyzed with fear from the Mongols that they simply wouldn't fight back, even when they outnumbered them and they were armed.” (2:09:45)

• Carlin addresses dehumanization—settled peoples seen as little more than “herd animals” by the Mongols—and situates such psychology within a broader history of human atrocity.

8. Pursuit and Collapse of the Khwarazmian Empire

• The Mongol general Subedai chases the Shah across his crumbling empire—pursuing him to the Caspian Sea, annihilating any who resist, employing scorched-earth tactics.

• Internal strife: some cities debate surrender vs. resistance, often erupting in intra-communal violence (e.g., the city of Rai). Subedai’s cold pragmatism means both sides suffer.

  “Subedai rode into the city and watched with fascination as the two sides killed one another. ... He ordered the extermination of every male in the city.” (2:27:00)

• The fall of the Shah marks the obliteration of organized resistance; the road is now open for the Mongols to project power toward Europe.

9. Legacy, Trauma, and Historical Memory

• Carlin draws a sharp line under the notion of creative destruction and the idea that civilization's progress can justify its worst crimes.

  “Most of the time, historians look at big picture things like trade and commerce and world events, and the individual lives, as we pointed out, tend to fade into the background.” (46:45)

• He underscores the lasting trauma, the scars left on Islamic and Chinese civilizations, and the problematic revisionist effort to recast Genghis Khan as a bringer of trade, unity, and peace.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Jin China’s fatal weakness:
  “It's never smart to base your defense on a bunch of people who hate you.” (15:10)

• On Mongol psychological warfare:
  “People with absolutely mathematical, cold, calculating precision... kill everyone. Townspeople, farmers in the field, people in the marketplace, people you just ran into.” (12:30)

• On the fall of Zhongdu:
  “Thousands were slaughtered and raped and allegedly 60,000 women and girls committed suicide rather than allow themselves to be ravished by Mongol soldiers.” (39:30)

• On revisionist history and suffering:
  “How would we feel if the shaking UP process killed 10 to 50 million of our countrymen? What's worth that?” (44:20)

• Genghis Khan’s ‘Punishment of God’ speech in Bukhara:
  “O people, know that you have committed great sins… I am the punishment of God. If you had not committed great sins, God would not have sent a punishment like me upon you.” (1:45:20)

• Chronicler Ibn al-Athir, on the agony of recording Mongol atrocities:
  “For several years I continued to avoid mention of this disaster as it horrified me and I was unwilling to recount it... For whom would it be a trifling matter to give an account of this? Oh, would that my mother had not given me birth.” (1:17:00)

• On the dehumanizing logic of mass atrocity:
  “Once you dehumanize people and put them on the level of vermin, killing them, harming them, mistreating them becomes so much easier. And you see it over and over and over again. It's one of the common themes of the horrific nature of human history.” (2:10:10)

Important Timestamps

• 00:02 – Opening and recap; establishing the context for the Mongol-Jin and Mongol-Muslim encounters.
• 12:30 – Mongol approach: terror as operational method against the Jin.
• 19:10 – On Mongol intelligence superiority.
• 39:30 – The sack of Zhongdu: details of massacre and aftermath.
• 44:20 – Reflection on revisions of history, ‘creative destruction’, and moral calculus.
• 1:03:45 – Genghis Khan’s religious policy and the defeat of Kuchlug.
• 1:17:00 – Ibn al-Athir’s testimony: the scale and pain of the Mongol disasters.
• 1:45:20 – Genghis Khan’s speech at Bukhara.
• 2:09:45 – The effect of Mongol terror on resistance and collective psychology.
• 2:27:00 – Subedai’s ruthless logic in Rai; the pursuit of the Khwarazmian Shah.

Tone, Mood, and Style

Carlin’s narration is intense, sometimes graphic, thoroughly compassionate toward the suffering of ordinary people, and skeptical of facile historical utilitarianism. He often draws modern parallels, uses vivid analogies, and voices empathy for chroniclers haunted by what they describe. His style is immersive and relentless, matching the subject matter’s gravity.

Conclusion & Lead-In to Next Episode

The destruction unleashed by the Mongols in both China and the Islamic world generates ongoing trauma, debate, and revisionism. The episode sets up Subedai’s reconnaissance-in-force into Europe, promising even larger-scale events to come.

“Round two of the Mongol conquests begins, and it makes round one look positively pacifistic. All that and more in the next episode of Wrath of the Khans.” (2:40:22)

For Listeners New to the Series:

This episode is a harrowing, in-depth examination of the fiercest years of the Mongol juggernaut, offering critical insight into how shock, awe, and terror toppled not just armies, but civilizations—while raising timeless questions about the nature and price of "progress."