Mongol Empire and post-imperial As a unified state, Mongolia traces its origins to the
Mongol Empire created by
Genghis Khan in the 13th century. Genghis Khan unified the various tribes on the
Mongolian plateau, and his descendants eventually conquered almost the entirety of Asia, the Middle East, and parts of Eastern and Central Europe. The Mongol Army was organized into decimal units of tens, hundreds, thousands, and ten thousands. A notable feature of the army is that it was composed entirely of cavalry units, giving it the advantage of maneuverability. Siege weaponry was adapted from other cultures, with foreign experts integrated into the command structure. The Mongols rarely used naval power, with a few exceptions. In the 1260s and 1270s they used seapower while conquering the
Song dynasty of China, though they were unable to mount successful seaborne campaigns against Japan due to storms and rough battles. Around the Eastern Mediterranean, their campaigns were almost exclusively land-based, with the seas being controlled by the Crusader and Mamluk forces. With the disintegration of the Mongol Empire in the late 13th century, the Mongol Army as a unified unit also crumbled. The Mongols retreated to their homeland after the fall of the
Mongol Yuan dynasty, and once again delved into civil war. Although the Mongols became united once again during the reign of
Queen Mandukhai and
Batmongkhe Dayan Khan. In the 17th century they were annexed into the
Qing dynasty.
Period under Qing Rule Once Mongolia was under the Qing, the Mongol Armies were used to defeat the Ming dynasty, helping to consolidate Manchu Rule. Mongols proved a useful ally in the war, lending their expertise as cavalry archers. During most of the Qing dynasty time, the Mongols gave military assistance to the Manchus. With the creation of the
Eight Banners, Banner Armies were broadly divided along ethnic lines, namely
Manchu and
Mongol.
Bogd Khanate (1911–1919) In 1911,
Outer Mongolia declared its independence from
Qing China as the
Bogd Khaanate under the
Bogd Khan. This initial independence did not last, with
Mongolia being occupied successively by the Chinese
Beiyang Government, and
Baron Ungern's White Russian forces. The modern precursor to the Mongolian Armed Forces was placed, with men's conscription and a permanent military structure starting in 1912.
Mongolian People's Republic With Independence lost again to foreign forces, the newly created
Mongolian People's Revolutionary Party created a native communist army in 1920 under the leadership of
Damdin Sükhbaatar in order to fight against Russian troops from the White movement and Chinese forces. The MPRP was aided by the
Red Army, which helped to secure the Mongolian People's Republic and remained in its territory until at least 1925. However, during the
1932 armed uprising in Mongolia and the
initial Japanese border probes beginning in the mid-1930s, Soviet Red Army troops in Mongolia amounted to little more than instructors for the native army and as guards for diplomatic and trading installations.
Battles of Khalkhin Gol The Battles of Khalkhin Gol began on 11 May 1939. A Mongolian cavalry unit of some 70–90 men had entered the disputed area in search of grazing for their horses. On that day, Manchukuoan cavalry attacked the Mongolians and drove them back across the Khalkhin Gol. On 13 May, the Mongolian force returned in greater numbers and the Manchukoans were unable to dislodge them. On 14 May, Lt. Col.
Yaozo Azuma led the reconnaissance regiment of 23rd Infantry Division, supported by the 64th Infantry Regiment of the same division, under Colonel
Takemitsu Yamagata, into the territory and the Mongolians withdrew. Soviet and Mongolian troops returned to the disputed region, however, and Azuma's force again moved to evict them. This time things turned out differently, as the Soviet–Mongolian forces surrounded Azuma's force on 28 May and destroyed it. The Azuma force suffered eight officers and 97 men killed and one officer and 33 men wounded, for 63% total casualties. The commander of the Soviet forces and the
Far East Front was
Comandarm Grigory Shtern from May 1938. Both sides began building up their forces in the area: soon Japan had 30,000 men in the theater. The Soviets dispatched a new
Corps commander,
Comcor Georgy Zhukov, who arrived on 5 June and brought more motorized and armored forces (I Army Group) to the combat zone. Accompanying Zhukov was Comcor
Yakov Smushkevich with his aviation unit.
Zhamyangiyn Lhagvasuren, Corps Commissar of the Mongolian People's Revolutionary Army, was appointed Zhukov's deputy. The Battles of Khalkhin Gol ended on 16 September 1939.
World War II and immediate aftermath In the beginning stage of World War II, the
Mongolian People's Army was involved in the Battle of
Khalkhin Gol, when Japanese forces, together with the puppet state of Manchukuo, attempted to invade Mongolia from the Khalkha River. Soviet forces under the command of
Georgy Zhukov, together with Mongolian forces, defeated the Japanese Sixth army and effectively ended the
Soviet–Japanese border conflicts. In 1945, Mongolian forces participated in the
Soviet invasion of Manchuria under the command of the Red Army, among the last engagements of
World War II. A Soviet–Mongolian
Cavalry mechanized group under
Issa Pliyev took part as part of the Soviet
Transbaikal Front. Mongolian troops numbered four cavalry divisions and three other regiments. During 1946–1948, the Mongolian People's Army successfully repelled attacks from the
Kuomintang's Hui regiment and their Kazakh allies in the border between Mongolia and Xinjiang. The attacks were propagated by the
Ili Rebellion, a Soviet-backed revolt by the
Second East Turkestan Republic against the
Nationalist government. This little-known border dispute between Mongolia and the Republic of China became known as the
Pei-ta-shan Incident. These engagements would be the last active battles the Mongolian Army would see, until after the democratic revolution.
After the Democratic Revolution 2013 in Ulaanbaatar. Mongolia
underwent a democratic revolution in 1990, ending the communist one-party state that had existed since the early 1920s. In 2002, a law was passed that enabled Mongolian Army and police forces to conduct
UN-backed and other international peacekeeping missions abroad. Then-
Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff,
General Richard Myers, visited Ulaanbaatar on 13 January 2004 and expressed his appreciation for the deployment of a 173-strong contingent to Iraq. He then inspected the
150th Peacekeeping Battalion, which was planned to send a fresh force to replace the first contingent later in January 2004. All troops were withdrawn on 25 September 2008. In June 2005, Batzorigiyn Erdenebat, the Vice Minister of National Defense, told Jane's Defence Weekly that the deployment of forces in Mongolia was changing away from its Cold War, southern-orientated against China posture. "Under Mongolia's regional development concept the country has been divided into four regions, each incorporating several provinces. The largest capital city in each region will become the regional center and we will establish regional military headquarters in each of those cities," he said. However, at the time, implementation had been delayed. In 2009, Mongolia sent 114 troops as part of the
International Security Assistance Force to
Afghanistan. The troops were sent, backing the U.S. surge in troop numbers. Mongolian forces in Afghanistan mostly assist NATO/
International Security Assistance Force personnel in training on the former
Warsaw Pact weapons that comprise the bulk of the military equipment available to the
Afghan National Army. In 2021, on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the armed forces, it was awarded the
Order of Genghis Khan by President
Khaltmaagiin Battulga. == Peacekeeping operations ==