So I had an "original thought" that Genghis Khan might have never got in a boat his entire life. Can that be disproven? This lead to a building curiosity within myself, and I subsequently researched the question in depth. [This map] (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Genghis_Khan#mediaviewer/File:Genghis_Khan_empire-en.svg) was my original inspiration for this thought. To me it showed that he generally avoided major crossings, and in the instances he did, there would be strategical purpose to have bridges already in place by the rulers of said lands (silk road.) I have three questions on this matter: How did Ghenghis Khan deal with river crossings? Did the Khan's use rivers and/or boating to transport goods for trade or war? And are there any acceptable writings on certain instances where Genghis Khan embarked himself? (even in something as small as a canoe)
Below is mostly links to sources I found, none which gave me the answer I crave.
/u/saltlick35's [comment on Mongolian logistics] (http://www.reddit.com/r/AskHistorians/comments/1in0pk/how_did_the_armies_of_genghis_khan_handle/cb64zhc)
This is one of the better instances I found:
[In November, Genghis laid siege to the Tangut city Lingzhou and crossed the Yellow River, defeating the Tangut relief army. According to legend, it was here that Genghis Khan reportedly saw a line of five stars arranged in the sky and interpreted it as an omen of his victory.] (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Genghis_Khan#Western_Xia_and_Jin_Dynasty-)
Now this mentions Genghis crossing the Yellow, but he could have done it via bridge. I did some research on the Yellow river near Lingzhou (now Lingwu) and feel that crossing the Yellow river would be fairly easier than almost anywhere else on the Yellow and the probability of a bridge here is high. [Here's a map of where I would cross in relation to modern-day Lingwu.] (https://mapsengine.google.com/map/edit?mid=zr80l1apWZvQ.ke3g1sNfpMQ0)
Another snippet from [The battle of the Kalka River] (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_the_Kalka_River#Aftermath)
The Mongols executed Mstislav of Kiev and the Kievan nobles with the traditional Mongol caveat reserved for royalty and nobility: without shedding blood. Mstislav and his nobles were buried and suffocated under the Mongol general's victory platform at the victory feast. Meanwhile, Mstislav the Bold managed to reach the western side and the Dnieper with what remained of his army. To stop the Mongols from crossing to the western side of the Dnieper, Mstislav destroyed all the boats he could find.
His coronation took place at the Onon River, but I had a hard time finding out anything further.
I'm going to cut myself off here. If you read this much, thanks!
So, disclaimer here first: Jack Weatherford's book "Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World", while highly compelling, is more pop-history, and not entirely accurate, as seen here.
That said, there is this paragraph on bridges that you might find interesting:
The only permanent structures Genghis Khan erected were bridges. Although he spurned the building of castles, forts, cities, or walls, as he moved across the landscape, he probably built more bridges than any ruler in history. He spanned hundreds of streams and rivers in order to make the movement of his armies and goods quicker. The Mongols deliberately opened the world to a new commerce not only in goods, but also in ideas and knowledge....
Also, there is a mention of ice skates:
Although the Secret History does not mention their use of skates, a European visitor in the next century wrote that hunters in the area frequently tied bones onto their feet to be able to race across frozen lakes and rivers both for sport and in pursuit of animals. These skills later gave the Mongols a great advantage because, unlike almost every other army, the Mongols easily rode and even fought on frozen rivers and lakes. The frozen rivers that Europeans relied upon as their protection from invasion, such as the Volga and the Danube, became highways for the Mongols, allowing them to ride their horses right up to city walls during the season that found the Europeans least prepared for fighting.
Urgunge Onon's edition of the "Secret History of the Mongols" has this note:
Chinggis Qahan never fought a battle that he was not sure of winning, and used his troops with cunning as well as power, sending one section to attack from the front while he and his picked forces galloped along seemingly impassable roads and poured down on the enemy from behind. The strategy and tactics of Mongolian warfare are described briefly in Section 195, but Chinggis’ two great battles of Chabchiyal and Kwarizm are perfect examples of his style. In the second battle, being so far away from his homeland, he adopted the tactics of a lightning strike. He was aided by newly acquired techniques in bridge-building and the use of gun powder."
So it seems that Genghis did build bridges at least. No mention of boats or ships, however.
