Genghis Khan’s Greatest General: Subotai the Valiant Paperback – March 27, 2006

We all know about Genghis Khan and his charisma as an overall leader of his people as well as an astonishing military genius. But a part of that military genius was his ability to spot and develop talent in his corps and assemble military leadership that probably has no equal in history. The likes of Alexander and Caesar pretty much had to do "everything" themselves. They didn't have the type of talent that Genghis Khan had around him - certainly no one even close to the talent and vision of Subotai. It is amazing to ponder that two of the possibly 10~20 greatest military commanders of all time were on the same side leading their armies together. Looking at things strictly from a military strategy and tactics perspective, Subotai may have exceeded Genghis himself. Certainly, Genghis had an enormous amount of respect for Subotai's skills and talent. Subotai was the de facto "chief of staff" of the Mongol military machine.This book about Subotai is for those who are already fairly familiar with Genghis Khan and the Mongol conquests of the 13th century. I had already read dozens of books about this sweeping subject but only recently have I really started delving into the military strategies and tactics of the Mongols. The more I dug in, the more I realized that I needed to find out more information about Subotai and what he achieved. So that prompted me to get this book at a fairly high cost but I don't regret it one bit. I wasn't really interested in a personal biography of Subotai. I was much more interested in what he did and how he did it, not his personal life or background. This book delivers on that end with a good in-depth analysis of his campaigns and the strategies he employed to overrun such a vast amount of territory in such a dominant fashion.The chapter about his 'Great Cavalry Raid' in 1221~3 through the Caucasus Mountains area in between the Caspian Sea and the Black Sea up to the southwestern Russian regions was one of the most enthralling and fascinating things I have ever read in military history. I'm a military history buff (mainly of ancient warfare up to around the 17th century) and have studied the likes of Alexander, Hannibal, Caesar, Scipio Africanus, etc., but this cavalry raid through such a vast landmass with a relatively small force (roughly 20,000 or two tumans) doesn't seem to have a parallel in history. Over a 3-year reconnaissance-in-force campaign through this area, the much smaller force led by Subotai destroyed numerous armies much larger in size with guile and sheer military brilliance with superior strategies, tactics, and maneuvers. As I read this chapter, I found my jaws dropping to the floor - "No... that couldn't be... Get outta here!" and laughed out loud in incredulousness.I don't think there is any doubt that Subotai would have conquered western Europe over the following campaign to the West had Ogedai Khan not died unexpectedly in 1241. The Mongol armies led by Subotai had thoroughly conquered and destroyed greater parts of what are now western Russia and most of eastern Europe. The Holy Roman Empire was in no condition to field an army that could even slow down the Mongol juggernaut. Subotai would surely have reached the Atlantic and perhaps as far as Scotland. The Mongols preferred fighting in the cold; after all, they attacked the Russian municipalities during the winter, which even the Russians didn't expect. The Mongols didn't like campaigning or fighting in hot weather and I believe that's the reason why they weren't successful in the Middle East, southeast Asia (areas that are now Vietnam, Thailand, Laos, etc) and India. It seems the Mongols lost interest in those areas and they had their hands full anyway pacifying the various vast territories they had conquered.If you're already familiar with the general history of Genghis Khan and the Mongols and have a specific interest in Mongol military strategies and tactics, I highly recommend this book. Subotai is undoubtedly one of the greatest military commanders of all time and it is no wonder why Genghis Khan and his descendants were so successful in their various military campaigns that were conducted over such an amazingly vast area covering lands from eastern Siberia and Korea all the way west to the eastern fronts of Germany and from areas as far south as Hong Kong all the way to Damascus. It is of a scale, range and scope that is mind-boggling to ponder - especially in that era. In my opinion, it is easily the most impressive empire in history strictly from a military perspective.To me, the Western colonization of the Americas, Africa and Asia during the 16~19th centuries aren't really empires in the true sense of the word. The Mongols had to defeat and conquer much larger and much more powerful empires and nations. The Mongols were almost always heavily outnumbered in their wars against the Chinese kingdoms of Chin and Sung, the Khwarezmian Empire of central Asia, the Arab caliphates in the Middle East, and the Russian and eastern European kingdoms in the West. The Spanish, Portugal, French, and British subjugation of North and South American lands, Africa, and Australia over several hundred years cannot even be compared to what the Mongols achieved over mere 60 years in the 13th century. Subotai was a very big part of the Mongols' unmatched military successes at that time and this book gives you a good idea of how he achieved what he did.

I am a sophomore in college. I have a paper due in a month about the Mongol invasion of modern day Russia, so I read this book (among others) to understand the Mongol military system. I have never read a book about a general or military strategy & tactics, but I still found this book easy to understand and enjoy. Diagrams of battles are shown which came a long way to helping me understand each battle field.This book concentrates on Subotai, but it's not ALL about Subotai. I feel like I learned a lot about the old general and Mongol military life. If you are specifically interested in Subotai, I would recommend this book (1) because it seems like not a lot of people wrote decent books about Subotai, and (2) it details his campaigns. In the end, it does not concentrate on Subotai the man, but Subotai the general.Definitely worth it to read and purchase. Glad I added to my historical knowledge with this book.

I have to say I really enjoyed this book, but I love reading about Mongolian military campaigns so I am easy to please. There is a very finite amount of information available on Subotai the man, so Gabriel needs to be cut a little slack if he filled the book with a lot of other information.The author is absolutely correct that not enough attention is paid by military historians regarding the incredibly talented field staff that commanded the forces of Genghis Khan. Perhaps a better book would rather have covered all the main staff figures instead of just Subotai. Arguments can be made of the greatness of Jochi, Mugali, Jebe and others, and whether Subotai was more brilliant is hard to know.Even though I have read considerable Mongol history, I found some very useful information and really did enjoy reading the book. For example the description on p120 regarding the Battle of Liegnitz, "...The Hungarians had been steppe dwelling horse archers before settling in the Danube basin less than 2 centuries earlier. They were well led and accustomed to the tactics of mobile warfare as practiced by the Mongols. Its an interesting question to investigate: at what distance were the Mongol's neighbors aware of their style and capabilities. Not an easy question to answer.In the Sajo River campaign section he also adds, "...Bella's army was perhaps 100,000 strong, and outnumbered the Mongols. Comprising numerous contingents of armored knights, the major part of this army of former Magyar nomads was horse archers thoroughly familiar with Mongol tactics."I think everything I read specifically concerning Subotai I had already read and reread via other sources, but that is not surprising. The book is well illustrated with maps and diagrams and various images of Mongols and their gear. The end of the book includes a good bibliography, though it is far from complete. If you're a Mongol fan, than I highly recommend the book.