Genghis Khan (1162-1227) was the founder, Khan (ruler) and Khagan (emperor) of the Mongol Empire, which became the largest contiguous empire in history after his death. He came to power by uniting many of the nomadic tribes of northeast Asia. After founding the Mongol Empire and being proclaimed "Genghis Khan", he started the Mongol invasions that would devastate most of Eurasia. These included raids of the Kara-Khitan Khanate, Caucasus, Khwarezmid Empire, Western Xia and Jin dynasties. These campaigns were often accompanied by wholesale massacres of the civilian populations - especially in Khwarezmia. By the end of his life, the Mongol Empire occupied a substantial portion of Central Asia and China. Before Genghis Khan died, he assigned Ögedei Khan as his successor and split his empire into khanates among his sons and grandsons. Beyond his great military accomplishments, Genghis Khan also advanced the Mongol Empire in other ways. He decreed the adoption of the Uyghur script as the Mongol Empire's writing system. He also promoted religious tolerance in the Mongol Empire, and created a unified empire from the nomadic tribes of northeast Asia. Present-day Mongolians regard him highly as the founding father of Mongolia.
Author Biography:
Jacob Abbott (1803-1879) was an American writer of children's books. A licensed minister, his career outside of writing included serving as a professor of mathematics and natural philosophy at Amherst College, founding the Mount Vernon School for Young Ladies in Boston in 1829, and founding (with his brothers) Abbott's Institute and the Mount Vernon School for Boys. Jacob Abbott was a prolific author, writing juvenile fiction, brief histories, biographies, religious books for the general reader, and a few works in popular science. His Rollo Books, such as Rollo at Work, Rollo at Play, Rollo in Europe, etc., are the best known of his writings, having as their chief characters a representative boy and his associates. Other works of note include Lucy Books, Jonas Books, Harper's Story Books, Marco Paul, Gay Family, and Juno Books. His brothers, John Stevens Cabot Abbott and Gorham Dummer Abbott, were also authors. His sons, Benjamin Vaughan Abbott, Austin Abbott, both eminent lawyers, Lyman Abbott, and Edward Abbott, a clergyman, were also well-known authors.
