Ancient Iran

Mongol invasion (1219–1221)

Before his death in 1227, Genghis had reached western Azerbaijan, pillaging and burning many cities along the way after entering Iran from the northeast. The Mongol invasion was by and large disastrous to the Iranians. Although the Mongol invaders eventually converted to Islam and accepted the culture of Iran, the Mongol destruction in Iran and other regions of the Islamic heartland (particularly the historical Khorasan region, mainly in Central Asia) marked a major change of direction for the region. Much of the six centuries of Islamic scholarship, culture, and infrastructure was destroyed as the invaders leveled cities, burned libraries, and in some cases replaced mosques with Buddhist temples. The Mongols killed many Iranian civilians. Destruction of qanat irrigation systems in the north east of Iran destroyed the pattern of relatively continuous settlements, producing many abandoned towns which were relatively quite good with irrigation and agriculture. In 1221, Genghis Khan destroyed the city of Gurganj. Most if not all the ancient IranicKhwarazmian people were killed or pushed out, paving the way for the Turkification of Khwarazm.