ABSTRACT
The Chinggisid confederation was a large extended family formed by Chinggis Khan and his female kin, largely through marriage alliances between Chinggisid women and vassal rulers or military commanders. The Chinggisid confederation occupied an intermediate military and administrative level between the two best-known of Chinggis Khan’s military structures: the imperial guard and the atomized army. Chinggis Khan’s atomized army arose in response to existing nomadic military customs, in which rulers from particular lineages led their subjects in raids or war. Militarily, sons-in-law gained particular privileges. The most prominent vassal sons-in-law commanded military units ranging between 2,000 and 5,000 men, which were larger than the army norm of 1,000. All members of the Chinggisid confederation were required to participate personally in the campaigns of conquest, which gave them opportunities to work directly for or with Chinggis Khan and acquire wealth and renown.
