The History of Mongolia Timeline
Mongolia history timeline: The first inhabitants of Mongolia appeared 500,000 years ago. The earliest known Mongol people is the Uyghurs of Central Asia, between 1600 and 1160 BC.C. Its influence on today’s Mongolian culture is very important. In 1155 Temujin was born, the future Khan, a Mongol conqueror who marked the history of the country so much so that even today he is considered a mythical figure.

A History of Mongolia: The term “Mongol” was first used by the Chinese at the time of the Tang Dynasty (618-907). Between the fourth and twelfth centuries of .C, however, there is not much information on the tribes, mainly Huns, who were found in this vast prairie of central-northern Asia.
He became Emperor of Mongolia in 1206. It is then that the great Mongol conquests began. At its peak, the empire controlled most of the territories of China, Korea, Indochina, Burma, Iran, Iraq, Asia Minor, Russia, Poland, Hungary, and part of Siberia and the Balkans.

History About Mongolia
Total Area Of Mongolia 1,564,100 km² (603,863 sq. mi.)
Capital Of Mongolia Ulaanbaatar
Language Of Mongolia Mongolian is the official language of Mongolia
Currency Of Mongolia The tögrög or tugrik is the official currency of Mongolia.
Religion Ratio Of Mongolia
According to the national census of country, the percentage of adherents by religion in Mongolia is as of below:
- Buddhists – 47%
- Not religious – 39%
- Muslims – 8%
- Shamanic traditions – 3%
- Chirstians – 2%
- Others – 1%
From the Chinese invasion to the communist revolution
The expansion of the Mongol Empire continued until 1260, and the death of Genghis Khan marked the beginning of the collapse of the Mongol Empire. In 1650, the Qing Chinese Dynasty controlled Mongolia. The country regained its independence in 1911. It is led by Bogd Gegen, one of the most important characters in Mongolian history. In 1919 the Chinese returned to the attack, but the intervention of the Russians prevented them from doing so.
1921 is the year of the communist revolution in Mongolia, the first country after the Soviet Union to become communist. Upon the death of Bogd Gegen in 1924, the People’s Republic of Mongolia was proclaimed. The latter, in 1935 will face the internal invasion of Mongolia by the Japanese. The USSR helps Mongolia and obtains the withdrawal of Japanese forces in 1939. In 1961, Mongolia joined the UN. It remains decidedly allied with Moscow, from which it receives substantial help. History of Mongolia.
History Of The Mongolian Empire
History of Mongolian Empire: But the power of the Mongols over their empire did not last forever and in 1691 the remnants of the Mongol Empire passed to China. From 1691 to 1911, Mongolia, together with China, came under the rule of manchu (see also History in China). In 1911, Mongolia declared its independence, but was under the strong influence of Russia. In 1924, the Mongolian People’s Republic was formed, which remained under the influence of the Soviet Union. Meanwhile, the Russian Revolution had taken place. History of Mongolia.

A Socialist Mongolia?
Socialism History of Mongolia Country: The dependence on Russia led to the desire to turn Mongolia into a modern socialist state, and the nomads who moved through the country and lived traditionally did not fit in with this. In 1937/1938, so-called “purges” of Stalin’s then Soviet leader took place in Mongolia. This is how nomadism was smashed and many people were killed in the process. These purges were also directed against culture and religion. In the course of these purges, Buddhist monks were also murdered and many valuable cultural assets and monasteries were destroyed. History of Mongolia.
Republic of Mongolia
In 1990, the communist government in Mongolia abdicated. The one-party state developed into a democracy. The market economy prevailed. A constitution was adopted in 1992. The People’s Republic of Mongolia was renamed the Republic of Mongolia. History of Mongolia.
Russia’s withdrawal and openness to the world
When Russia ends aid and demands the repayment of $6 billion in debt, the Mongolian economy collapses. A quarter of the population falls below the poverty line, and thousands of unemployed people return to live in yurts. In the 90s, the country began to approach democracy. At the same time, the transition between communism and capitalism takes place. Mongolia opens up its Japanese and Korean neighbors, while maintaining a policy in balance with China and Russia. History of Mongolia.
Mongolia Year By Year, From Its Origins To Today
- BIRTH OF MONGOLIA
1200 a.C. First evidence of the presence of the Xiongnu (Huns) on Mongolian territory. The expansion to the Chinese territories begins, which
will last more than a millennium. History of Mongolia. - 220 d.C. The Huns are pushed back to altai. History of Mongolia.
- 445 Attila (photo 1) unifies the populations of the steppe, becomes king of the Huns and initiates the systematic conquest of the western lands up to Europe. History of Mongolia.
- 451 – Invasion of Gaul, defeated at the Campi Catalauni by the Roman army.
- 453 Attila dies, the kingdom of the Huns falls apart.
- 745 The Uyghurs drive the Turks out of Mongolia.
- 960 Dominates the Chinese Song Dynasty.
- 1034 – Mongol territories pass into the hands of the Tangut (Xia Dynasty).
- 1115 Invasion of the Jurcen (Jin dynasty)
THE GREAT HORDE OF GENGHIS KHAN
- 1162 Temüjin is born (photo 2) and, in fact, Mongolia is born. The young leader will succeed in a few years in transforming quarrelsome tribes
scattered in the steppe into the largest and most powerful empire in history. History of Mongolia. - 1206 – On the banks of Khökh nuur, Temüjin is crowned emperor of the oceans, Chinggis Khan.
- 1207 The Mongols repel the invaders and initiate the first conquests of China: a great millennial civilization is bent in a short time thanks to the organization, courage and determination of an extraordinary army. History of Mongolia.
- 1221 Chinggis Khan turns to the West and conquers Samarkand.
- 1223 – The Mongol army defeats the Russians and Bulgarians.
- 1227 Death of Chinggis Khan: He is buried in an unknown location in Khentii, along with warriors, women, horses and an immense treasure that, as requested by the leader, has never been discovered. History of Mongolia.
- 1229 Ögödei (photo 3),third son of Chinggis Khan, is elected Grand Khan and the Mongol Empire expands further, thanks also to the strategic acumen of General Sübedei, former right-hand man of Temüjin. History of Mongolia.
- 1231 – The Mongols subdue Korea. History of Mongolia.
- 1235 The construction of the new capital Karakorum, already conceived by Chinggis Khan, begins.
- 1241 Ögödei dies. Defeated Poles and Germans. History of Mongolia.
- 1246 Guyuk, eldest son of Ögödei, is appointed Grand Khan.
- 1248 Güyüg dies, his wife Oghul assumes command. History of Mongolia.
- 1251 Mönkh, eldest son of Chinggis Khan’s youngest son, is elected Grand Khan.
- 1252 The Mongols invade Persia. History of Mongolia.
THE WEST MEETS THE MONGOLS
- 1253 The Franciscan William of Rubruc, sent by Pope Innocent IV, arrives in Karakorum. From this journey will be born the “Historia
Mongalorum”, the first Western written testimony on the Mongol Empire. History of Mongolia. - 1256 The Mongols continue their expansion to the East: they invade present-day Vietnam. History of Mongolia.
- 1257 They conquer Baghdad. Mönkh dies. History of Mongolia.
- 1260 Khubilai is the new Great Khan and founds the Yuan Dynasty. History of Mongolia.
- 1267 Khubilai moves the capital of the Mongol Empire to Beijing (Zhongdu), surrounds himself with wealth, builds palaces, favors the arts, sciences and philosophy. The nomadic culture of the Mongols is gradually overshadowed by the sedentary culture of the Chinese. History of Mongolia.
- 1274 The invasion of Japan begins, although the shamans have announced its failure: two hurricanes of extraordinary strength drive back the Mongols who, for the first time, do not complete a conquest. History of Mongolia.
- 1275 Marco Polo meets Khubilai and reports on his journey in the Million.
- 1277 – The Mongols invade Burma.
- 1288 Conquered part of India.
- 1294 Khubilai dies. Three centuries of bloody succession followed that fatally weakened the Mongol Empire, swallowed up by the various Chinese dynasties. History of Mongolia.
- 1368 In the south of the Mongol Empire, the Ming Dynasty is founded.
- 1418 Peace is restored between the Western and Eastern Mongols.
- 1578 Avtai Khan meets the head of the Tibetan school and proclaims him the Dalai Lama.
- 1579 The Khans convert to Buddhism.
- 1586 Avtai Khan dies after founding the monastery of Erdene Zuu near the ancient capital Karakorum.
- 1616 In Manchuria Nurkhachi proclaims himself Grand Khan of the Manchus.
- 1619 – The Manchus defeat the Ming army.
- 1624 They also subdue the Eastern Mongols.
- 1635 Zanabazar is born (photo 4), future Bogd Khan, artist and head of Mongolian Buddhism.
- 1687 – The Khan of the Zün gar attacks the Mongols and destroys the monastery of Gandan.
- 1691 The Mongols ask the Manchus for help and submit to them.
- 1697 – The Zün gar are defeated by the Manchus.
LIBERATION FROM THE CHINESE
- 1837 Reconstruction of the monastery of Gandan in Urga (the current Ulaanbaatar).
- 1904 The 13th Dalai Lama is forced to flee Lhasa and takes refuge in Urga.
- 1905 On July 23, one of the most powerful earthquakes ever recorded (8.7 on the Richter scale) struck the northern regions of Uvs, Zavkhan and Khövsgöl leaving a scar of 400 kilometers, 10 meters wide and 60 meters deep.
- 1906 The rebellion of the Mongol population against the Manchu occupiers begins.
- 1907 Journalist Luigi Barzini crosses Mongolia during the Beijing-Paris car raid aboard the Itala.
- 1910 – The Manchu governor is forced to flee Urga.
- 1911 – On December 28, Mongolia declares independence under the leadership of the Bogd Khan, the eighth living Buddha who establishes the monarchy with a five-minister government.
- 1915 In Kyatha, on the border between Russia and Mongolia, an agreement is signed between the Chinese and the Russians that establish the Mongol borders: Inner Mongolia becomes a Chinese region while Outer Mongolia can enjoy an apparent autonomy, but with direct influence from both Moscow and Beijing.
- 1916 Violent Chinese internal struggles lead to a change of power. The new government no longer recognizes the autonomy of Outer Mongolia and the authority of the Bogd Khan. The Chinese are once again invading the country.
- 1917 – During the Bolshevik Revolution, delegates of the Mongolian People’s Party travel to Russia to ask for support from the Soviets, but the answer is no. The Austrian baron Ungern-Sternberg, an anti-Bolshevik general, organizes an army, drives out the Chinese and declares Mongol autonomy, boasting a descent from Chinggis Khan. He will then be captured and executed.
- 1919 China invades Mongolia again, the Soviet Union does not intervene.
- 1920 Lenin agrees to speak with a delegation of Mongol revolutionaries, promising an anti-Chinese intervention.
THE REVOLUTION AND THE REPUBLIC
- 1921 In July the Soviet troops enter Urga together with the Mongolian revolutionary army, led by Sükhbaatar (photo 5), nicknamed “the red hero” (Ulaan Baatar). The People’s Government of Mongolia is established, headed by the Bogd Khan without effective powers. The Mongolian Revolutionary People’s Party (prpm) is formed. Choibalsan, the future pro-Stalinist dictator, becomes Minister of War. Sükhbaatar dies two years later under mysterious circumstances.
- 1924 On November 26, the People’s Republic of Mongolia is born. The Bogd Khan dies. The first session of Parliament is convened (the Ikh Khural, literally “great meeting”). Urga is renamed Ulaanbaatar, in honor of Sükhbaatar. Lenin dies, Mongolia frees itself from Bolshevik influence, at least until Stalin’s seizure of power.
- 1925 The tögrög, the official currency of Mongolia, comes into force.
- 1926 – The USSR takes power away from the Mongol religious authorities.
- 1928 The era of Stalin and the Soviet purges begins. During the Seventh Congress of the People’s Revolutionary Party, Mongolian representatives demand greater autonomy from Moscow and an independent police. The response of the Comintern delegates is a coup d’état and a return to terror.
- 1929 On the Soviet model, the assets of the wealthier classes and landowners are confiscated and redistributed to the shepherds. In a few days the soldiers of the Red Army requisitioned goods for over 10 million tögrög (a sheep at the time was worth 50 tögrög). Monasteries are stripped of all treasures, which end up in Russia.
- 1932 The Mongols are exhausted. Thousands arm themselves with stones and sticks and try to oppose the pro-Soviet government, improvising riots in the capital and other capitals. A sort of civil war with a predictable outcome: the number of arrests and executions is incalculable. Thirty thousand Mongols flee abroad.
- 1933 Despite the dramatic situation, the first radio broadcasts start in Mongolia, which turn out to be above all a vehicle of Soviet propaganda.
- 1936 Choibalsan (photo 6),a failed monk, protagonist of the 1921 march alongside Sükhbaatar, establishes absolute power in the mold of
Stalin, to whom he swears absolute allegiance.
STALINIST REPRESSION
- 1937 Stalin orders systematic repression throughout the Mongolian territory: in less than two years thirty thousand people
(about 20% of the total male population) are slaughtered, more than half are monks. The army demolishes six thousand cultural and religious
buildings, 700 monasteries are razed to the ground with tanks. Books, sculptures, precious sacred objects, ancient Buddhist tapestries are
burned by the millions. Choibalsan himself notes in his personal notebook that 56,938 people have been arrested in this period, against a total
population of 700,000 inhabitants. - 1939 In the midst of international conflict, Hirohito’s Japan, Hitler’s ally, is extending its empire to all of Asia and threatening Mongolia through
Manchuria. The Soviet Union sends troops to the eastern Mongolian border. In May, a frightening war breaks out that will last five months and
will leave 70,000 dead, including 237 Mongols. The averted Japanese invasion opens a new scenario of alliance between Mongols and
Russians. - 1940 Choibalsan is elected Prime Minister.
- 1941 The new Cyrillic alphabet is imposed, replacing the old Uyghur script.
- 1942 In the middle of the Second World War, the first Mongolian university is founded. Many teachers come from Russia to teach social and
economic doctrines. From Mongolia 50 thousand young people are welcomed to study at Soviet universities. In Mongolian schools the Russian
language becomes the main subject of study. - 1945 With the end of the World War, Mongolia held a referendum in October to demand the country’s independence.
- 1946 On January 6, China recognizes Mongolia’s independence. On November 27, Russia also officially accepted its autonomy: Zhou Enlai
signed the agreement before Stalin and Mao Tse Tung (photo 7). After 40 years of struggle, the Mongolian people are finally free. Mongolia is
asking for entry into the United Nations, which is rejected due to the veto of China and Western countries. - 1952 Choibalsan dies. He replaced him in the Tsedenbal government, which continued the pro-Soviet management but with greater softness,
until 1984. Also fundamental is the figure of his Russian wife Filatova, who will be a close collaborator of the Soviet leader Brezhnev. - 1953 Stalin dies and this event also helps to give breathing space to the Mongolian population.
THE REBIRTH OF THE MONGOLIAN PEOPLE
- 1956 The cultural revolution starts to restore dignity and identity to a people subjugated for too many centuries by foreign powers. A capillary work of literacy is carried out that reaches the entire territory, even the most remote areas populated by nomads. Venereal diseases, which affected most Mongolians, are eradicated with a campaign of prevention, vaccination and drug therapy. Factories are opened all over the territory, houses are built, some roads of great connection begin to be paved. The campaign of sedentarization of nomadic populations begins:
the goal is to implement an overall census and bring the shepherds to the factory to increase industrial productivity. In remote and strategic areas, villages are born from nothing, such as that of Tsagaan nuur, north of Mongolia. The Darkhad ethnic group accepts the compromise and abandons the nomadic life. The Tsaatan (Reindeer Men) do not bow to government blackmail and maintain their lifestyle in the taiga. The tugof-war will continue: in 1989 the army requisitions a thousand reindeer, but three years later surrenders to the courage of the Tsaatan and returns them. History of Mongolia.
- 1957 A devastating earthquake similar to that of 1905 strikes the Gobi-Altai
- 1959 The government decides the collectivization of lands and herds, based on the Soviet model.
- 1960 Nomads rebel and converge en masse in the capital, which in the meantime has reached 100,000 inhabitants. The protest leads to a series of social reforms both in the city and in the countryside.
- 1961 Mongolia joins the UN with the unanimous consent of the world’s countries.
- 1962 Mongolia joins Comecon, the economic organization of communist states.
- 1966 On December 27, the record temperature of -56° is recorded in the Zavkhan region.
- 1967 At the height of the Cold War with the Soviet Union, China gathers troops on the border with Mongolia and threatens invasion. Eighty thousand men of the Red Army enter Mongolian territory with tanks and heavy artillery, averting the Chinese threat. The first television in Ulaanbaatar opens.
- 1972 To support Mongolia’s economy and society and to secure its loyalty, the Soviet Union lends the Ulaanbaatar government a sum equivalent to 5 billion euros today. The city of Erdenet, 250 kilometers northeast of Ulaanbaatar, is founded from scratch to exploit the great resources of the subsoil: the copper mine is the largest in Asia and the fourth in the world. The population of Erdenet goes from 4,000 inhabitants in 1975 to almost one hundred thousand today.
- 1979 The Dalai Lama visits Mongolia welcomed by hundreds of thousands of faithful.
- 1981 Jugderdemidiin Gürragchaa is the first Mongolian cosmonaut to go into space with the Soviet Soyuz 39 and Salyut 6 expeditions.
- 1984 After 32 years, Tsedenbal leaves the leadership of Mongolia for health reasons. He is replaced by Batmönkh who will govern until 1990.
DEMOCRACY AND FREE ELECTIONS
- 1989 The collapse of the Soviet regime opens a new social season, with the establishment of a series of political camps that stand as an alternative to the historic Revolutionary People’s Party (PRPM): the Democratic Party, the Social Democratic Party and the Party for National Development are born. On March 9, following a massive demonstration in Sükhbaatar Square, the cadres of the Revolutionary People’s Party resigned. The parliament (Ikh khural) is open to all political forces. Two hundred thousand Russian soldiers stationed in Mongolia return to their homeland. History of Mongolia.
- 1990 Religious ceremonies are again authorized in Mongolia, prohibited for sixty years. In the summer we go to the first democratic elections. The first Mongolian president is the engineer Punsalmaagiin Ochirbat who will remain in power until 1997. To triumph is the Communist Revolutionary People’s Party, which wins 61.7% of the votes with a participation in the plebiscite vote. Voters, coming on horseback from the most remote areas, are stamped on a finger with a marker (indelible for a few days) to testify to the vote. History of Mongolia.
- 1991 Parliament decides to privatize the herds (22 million heads then, today there are almost 35 million). Today, 80% of livestock is privatized. Autonomy from the former Soviet Union leads to the collapse of the Mongolian economy: exports fall by 97 percent, industrial production by 40%, inflation rises by 120%. History of Mongolia.
- 1992 On January 13, the People’s Republic of Mongolia is officially born and the first Constitution is compiled. The name of the capital Ulaanbaatar is more correctly transliterated into Ulaanbaatar. On June 28, the Revolutionary People’s Party won 70 out of 76 seats in Parliament with 95.2 percent of the vote. World organizations bring $550 million in social assistance to Mongolia. History of Mongolia.
- 1996 For the first time the elections are won by the opposition of the Revolutionary People’s Party: democrats and social democrats win 50 of the 76 seats in Parliament but the new government will be stained with scandals and manipulations. The Mongols after not even two years will readmit to power the communists of the Revolutionary Party. History of Mongolia.
- 1997 Natsagiin Bagabandi (photo 8),) a member of the PRPM, is President of the Republic at the age of 47. A bust of Chinggis Khan is erected in the government office. Bird flu explodes in Asia, but in Mongolia there will be only a few cases in 2003.
- 1998 On October 2, Sanjaasurenghiin Zorig (photo 9, with loudspeaker), leader of the Democratic Party and ardent opponent of the PRPM, was found dead in his apartment in Ulaanbaatar. His body is devastated by knife and axe blows. He was 36 years old. History of Mongolia.
- 1999 An exceptional wave of frost kills millions of animals, bringing the country’s economy to its knees and causing despair and suicide among nomads. In April, a statue dedicated to Zorig is erected in the center. History of Mongolia.

References
https://www.kinderweltreise.de/kontinente/asien/mongolei/daten-fakten/geschichte-politik/
https://www.mongoleireisen.de/reisetips/geschichte-mongolei
https://www.evaneos.it/mongolia/viaggio/informazioni-utili/2103-la-storia-della-mongolia/
https://www.goasia.it/storia-della-mongolia/