When was the Mongol Empire founded?

In 1206, when a kurultai on the Mongolian steppe proclaimed Temüjin as Genghis Khan. The exact day is not recorded.

How large did it become?

By the late thirteenth century it was the largest contiguous land empire in history, reaching from Korea to Eastern Europe.

Why is the date approximate?

Sources record the year and the assembly, not a calendar day or hour. The page uses a spring UTC marker and labels it as approximate.

May 1, 1206

1206-05-01 12:00 UTC

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Temüjin becomes Genghis Khan

A council on the Mongolian steppe proclaims Temüjin ruler of all the tribes, founding the Mongol Empire.

Source ↗

What happened in this minute

A kurultai on the Onon River gave Temüjin the title Genghis Khan after two decades of war among the steppe tribes. He replaced clan loyalty with a decimal military structure and a written legal code.

Within seventy years the empire his successors built stretched from Korea to Hungary, the largest contiguous land empire in history, with a postal relay system that moved messages faster than anything in Europe.

The year is documented; the day and hour are not, so this entry uses a conventional spring marker in UTC.

Questions and answers

When was the Mongol Empire founded?: In 1206, when a kurultai on the Mongolian steppe proclaimed Temüjin as Genghis Khan. The exact day is not recorded.
How large did it become?: By the late thirteenth century it was the largest contiguous land empire in history, reaching from Korea to Eastern Europe.
Why is the date approximate?: Sources record the year and the assembly, not a calendar day or hour. The page uses a spring UTC marker and labels it as approximate.