Invasion of Ghengis Khan in Central Asia
By the beginning of the 13th century, from the tribes of Hi and Tibet, was founded a feudal empire with Ghengis Khan as its ruler. By that time Ghengis Khan, obsessed by the idea of conquering the world and having united the numerous tribes of Mongols, began his invasion of Central Asia.
In his first campaign (up to 1218) Mongolian troops headed by Chingizkhan's elder son Juchi conquered the "forest peoples" living on the banks of the Yenisey River.
The Uigurs submitted to Chingizkhan's authority, too. General Khibulai annexed the northern part of the Seven-River Valley. Chingizkhan himself waged a campaign against northern China and occupied Chzhunda (Peking), which was then the capital of the Tzin State.
In 1218 Ghengis Khan began a campaign against the Kara-Chinese and Khorezm emperors. In 1218-1219, a host of Mongols under the command of Ghengis Khan's general Jebe occupied Kara-China (the Seven-River Valley and East Turkestan).
In September 1219, Ghengis Khan came to Otrar, where he divided his army into three parts: one under the command of his sons Uktai (Ugadey) and Chgatai to siege Otrar; another was given to Juchi and sent in the direction of Jend for the seizure of the towns along the banks of the Syr-Darya while he himself, with his son Tuluy, headed for Bukhara. All of the three campaigns of the Chingizids met with success.
After the conquest of Bukhara in April 1220, Ghengis had occupied Samarkand, then Khojend (Khujand) where he made a short pause before the campaign in the direction of the Qarshi steppe and Termez. After the sanguinary massacres in Qarshi and Termez, Ghengis Khan crossed the Amu-Darya and in 1221 captured the town of Balkh. In the meantime, his sons besieged the capital of the state of the Khorezm sheikhs, Gurganj (Urgench). At the beginning of 1222, Ghengis's son Tuluy conquered Khorasan and Merv. Thus, Ghengis Khan, having conquered all of Central Asia, expanded his empire.
Later on, Ghenhis Khan divided his empire between his sons. The older son Juchi, as far back as 1207, got the "Forest peoples" as a domain. These nations inhabited a vast territory from the lower reaches of the Selenga River to the Irtish. By the time of Ghengis's death (1227) those lands were joined by the territory inhabited by the Kazakhs and Kirghiz and the northern part of Khorezm. Possessions of the second of his sons, Chagatai, stretched from the Uigur lands (East Turkestan) to Samarkand and from the southern part of the Altai to the banks of the Amu-Darya. The horde's main forces of Khan Uktai were situated in Turbagat. The youngest son Tuluy, according to the custom of nomads, inherited the main lands of his father. The Maverounahr formed a part of the possessions of Chagatai, but actually was controlled by Khan Uktai (1229-1241) who doled out to Chagatai and his family part of the revenue obtained from Maverounahr.
The breakdown of the Mongol empire began early in the 15th century. Having freed Central Asia from the Mongol yoke, Tamerlane formed a new empire, an empire of his own.