Measuring against the linchpin was a method of determining which enemy civilians would be beheaded, used by the

Mongols The Mongols ( mn, Монголчууд, , , ; ; russian: Монголы) are an East Asian ethnic group native to Mongolia, Inner Mongolia in China and the Buryatia Republic of the Russian Federation. The Mongols are the principal member of ...

and other tribes that lived in the Mongolian plateau.

Genghis Khan ''Chinggis Khaan'' ͡ʃʰiŋɡɪs xaːŋbr />Mongol script: ''Chinggis Qa(gh)an/ Chinggis Khagan'' , birth_name = Temüjin , successor = Tolui (as regent)Ögedei Khan , spouse = , issue = , house = Borjigin , ...

used this method against

Jamukha Jamukha ( mn, Жамуха; ) was a Mongol military and political leader and the chief rival to Temüjin (later Genghis Khan) in the unification of the Mongol tribes. Biography Jamukha was born in the Jadaran, a sub-tribe of the Khamag Mongol c ...

's coalition of tribes in 1202. All male captives were forced to walk beside a wagon wheel. If their heads were higher than the

linchpin A linchpin, also spelled linch pin, lynchpin, or lynch pin, is a fastener used to prevent a wheel or other part from sliding off the axle upon which it is riding. The word is first attested in the late fourteenth century and derives from Middle ...

(a pin inserted at the end of the axle) they were immediately executed. The wagon wheel was a large wheel used to transport

yurt A yurt (from the Turkic languages) or ger ( Mongolian) is a portable, round tent covered and insulated with skins or felt and traditionally used as a dwelling by several distinct nomadic groups in the steppes and mountains of Central Asia. ...

s and other goods. This technique was probably used to preempt against revenge attacks that were common between tribes at this time. If one tribe were to attack another, there was always the possibility that there would be a revenge attack soon after. By eliminating the older males, there was less chance of a counterattack from tribes that were in perpetual conflict due to centuries of distrust and robbery.

References

Gabriel, Richard A. (2004) ''Subotai the Valiant: Genghis Khan's greatest general'' Greenwood Publishing
* Cummins, Joseph (2006) ''History's Great Untold Stories: Obscure events of lasting importance'', Murdoch Books, {{Authority control People executed by the Mongol Empire Military history of the Mongol Empire Genghis Khan Violence against men in Asia

See also

References