Podcast Summary: Noble Blood — "The Mad Baron in Mongolia (Part 1)" (April 14, 2026)

Episode Overview

In this episode of Noble Blood, host Dana Schwartz delves into the tumultuous and violent life of Baron Roman von Ungern-Sternberg, known as the "Mad" or "Bloody" Baron. Part 1 traces his origins, psychological makeup, early military career, and the dramatic events that led to his rise as a fearsome warlord in Mongolia—a precursor to his infamous reign of terror. Schwartz frames the story within the intersection of royalty, madness, and revolution, blending dramatic anecdote with a critical historical lens.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Daring Seizure of Urga and "Saving" the Bogd Khan

• Schwartz recounts the snowy morning of January 18, 1921, in Urga (now Ulaanbaatar), where Ungern-Sternberg—commanding an unlikely army of "Mongolians, Tibetans and Russians"—stormed the capital to free the exiled spiritual leader, Bogd Khan (02:00).
  • Notable chaos: Tibetan horsemen, animal menagerie panic, and the legendary escape of the Khan’s elephant—though historians doubt its veracity.
  • Quote: "Roman von Ungern Sternberg shouted, now Urga is ours." (04:28)
• After the coup, Ungern-Sternberg establishes a military dictatorship, holding power through violence while claiming to restore theocratic rule under the Khan.

2. Ungern-Sternberg’s Twisted Personal Worldview

• Schwartz explores the Baron’s fierce elitism and megalomania—even among the Russian aristocracy:
  • Quote: Historian James Palmer called him "a psychopath who was, quote, an appalling human being in almost every way." (05:17)
  • Roman's writings reveal deep contempt for "dirty workers" and a belief that leadership is divinely reserved for aristocrats.

3. Origins: Identity, Upbringing, and the Making of a 'Villain'

• His ancestry is German, despite self-identifying as deeply Russian—a reflection of the complex colonial history between Russia, Estonia, and Germanic settlers (07:20).
• Early signs of cruelty and rebelliousness: attempted strangulation of a cousin’s owl, frequent disciplinary infractions, contempt for authority and rules.
  • Quote (On school years): "Roman was a terror to his fellow pupils and his masters." (10:41)

4. The Impact of Revolution and Social Upheaval

• During the 1905 Estonian peasant revolts, Ungern-Sternberg’s family estate was destroyed—deepening his reactionary views and sense of embattled privilege.
  • Led to embracing reactionary, racist aristocratic ideology: belief that peasants had "black blood" and were "biologically inferior." (13:10)
  • Quote: He saw peasant revolts as “an omen of, quote, famine, destruction, the death of culture, of glory, of honor, of spirit, the death of states and the death of peoples.”

5. Adrift in the Russian Far East: Isolation and Occult Fascinations

• After middling performance at a military academy, he is assigned to the far-flung Transbaikal region in 1908 (17:00).
  • Schwartz paints scenes of the Baron wandering the vast steppes, learning Mongolian, driven by obsession with war and hierarchy.
  • Ungern-Sternberg develops an interest in Eastern religions and the occult—mixing personal mysticism with elitist beliefs.
    • Quote (Palmer): "Occultism rests on the principle that there is secret knowledge only a few worthy people can understand." (19:41)
    • Possibly drawn to Buddhism for its aura of esoteric authority, though motivations remain speculative.

6. The 'Holy Emperor' Bogd Khan: Myth and Reality

• The Bogd Khan, mixing the sacred and profane: Blindness, binge drinking, cruelty, and bizarre acts, such as using an electrified rope to “bless” subjects and keeping exotic, often mistreated animals (22:20).
  • Schwartz notes European accounts may have projected orientalist and colonial biases, though Khan's volatile nature is corroborated elsewhere.

7. From Failure to Heroism and Downfall

• Brief mention of him as an “upper class loser” until World War I, where he earns admiration for reckless heroism in battle (24:34).
  • However, discipline problems resurface—disciplinary discharge after drunken violence and assault on a fellow officer (26:09).
• The Russian Revolution shatters Roman's world; he clings to the reactionary White cause, deploying escalating brutality in the chaos of civil war.
  • Quote: "From 1917 to 1920, Roman enacted his sadistic reign of terror, overseeing beatings and interrogations of suspected Bolsheviks in a Siberian detention center."
• As the Bolsheviks seize Siberia, the Baron escapes to Mongolia, "about to embark on the most ambitious military campaign of his life…this time, on his own." (28:58)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On the seizure of Urga:
  • "Apparently, Roman von Ungern Sternberg shouted, now Urga is ours." (04:28)
• On his elitist beliefs:
  • "He believed, like many aristocrats, that commoners were an inferior species. And that's just the tip of the iceberg when it came to Roman's odious views." (05:10)
  • "Roman wrote in his journals that…‘it was preposterous that dirty workers who've never had any servants of their own but still think they can command should influence Russia's rule.’" (06:19)
• On his schoolboy years:
  • "Roman was a terror to his fellow pupils and his masters." (10:41)
• On his interest in the occult:
  • "Occultism rests on the principle that there is secret knowledge only a few worthy people can understand." (19:41)
• On the revolution:
  • "To Roman, it seemed like the Estonian riot in 1905 had spread to the rest of the country, upending life as he knew it." (27:58)
• On Ungern-Sternberg’s legacy today:
  • "All these people telling me I should reclaim the throne to Mongolia, but I'm literally just a girl who drinks Matcha." —Leonie von Ungern Sternberg (31:14)

Important Timestamps

• [02:00] — Introduction to the siege of Urga and the Baron’s campaign
• [05:10–06:19] — The Baron’s violent elitism, contempt for commoners
• [07:20–10:41] — Childhood and family background; patterns of violence and entitlement
• [13:10] — The 'black blood' ideology and response to revolution
• [17:00] — Assignment to Siberia, growing mysticism
• [19:41] — Occult and Buddhist interests
• [22:20] — The legend and reality of the Bogd Khan
• [24:34–26:09] — World War I heroics, followed by disgrace
• [27:58] — The collapse of the monarchy, Roman’s reaction
• [28:58] — Baron flees to Mongolia, setting up Part 2
• [31:14] — The Modern Legacy: Leonie von Ungern Sternberg on TikTok and renouncing far-right ideology

Final Remarks

Schwartz concludes Part 1 as Ungern-Sternberg escapes to Mongolia, foreshadowing the next episode’s exploration of his brutal rule. A postscript touches on his modern descendant, a TikTok “Baroness” who distances herself from her notorious ancestor’s ideology, offering a witty, humane counterpoint that closes the episode on a note of reflection.

Noble Blood continues to provide a riveting, darkly fascinating look at the intersection of royalty, madness, and violence through carefully researched storytelling—infused with Dana Schwartz’s characteristic narrative verve.