Jochi

Jochi was the eldest son of Genghis Khan and Börte, born soon after Börte’s rescue from Merkit captivity. Doubts about his paternity became a source of tension with his brother Chagatai, although Genghis publicly treated him as a son.

Jochi commanded campaigns in Siberia and the west and received territories that later formed the basis of the Golden Horde. He died shortly before Genghis, leaving his sons Batu and Orda to inherit his ulus. Jochi was born in Beijing and died in Cumania.

Conn Iggulden’s Lords of the Bow shows Jochi growing within the newly united Mongol nation as Genghis Khan turns tribal victory into campaigns against settled kingdoms. Bones of the Hills gives him a more dangerous political role during the Khwarazmian war, as rivalry with Chagatai and doubts about Jochi’s birth force Genghis to confront the succession question even while his sons command armies across Central Asia.