With the sudden death of Ögedei Khan (Oh-geh-day), the greatest general in Mongol history was ordered to turn his war machine around and ride back to Karakorum (Kah-rah-koh-room) for a new kurultai (koo-rool-tie) to pick the next Great Khan. Cullen walks you through the chaos this created, the grudges it inflamed between Batu (Bah-too) and Güyük (Goo-yook), and why Mongol politics were every bit as dirty and self-destructive as anything in modern Washington or Nazi Berlin. Through first-hand-style POVs from Rus’ peasants, Polish knights, and even a Mongol scout seeing Europe for the last time, this episode blends brutal war stories with sharp commentary on how power struggles can cripple empires — no matter how invincible they look on paper.

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