Khutulun: The Warrior Princess Who Refused to Lose

Khutulun was the great-great-granddaughter of Genghis Khan and possibly the most feared warrior in the Mongol Empire. While other princesses were married off for political alliances, Khutulun had a different plan - she would only marry a man who could beat her in wrestling. The stakes? Suitors had to bet horses. If they lost, she kept the horses. She never lost.

By the time she was done, Khutulun had won 10,000 horses and remained unmarried, despite her father's pressure to settle down. Marco Polo himself wrote about her, describing how she would ride into enemy ranks, snatch a captive like a hawk grabbing a chicken, and bring them back to her father. Mongol commanders feared facing her in battle because she was simply unstoppable.

Her father, Kaidu Khan, wanted her to succeed him as ruler, but the male nobility refused to accept a woman as Khan. When she finally did marry (on her own terms), it was to a man who understood she was the superior warrior. Even in marriage, she continued leading armies and wrestling challengers who thought they could finally beat her. They couldn't.

This episode explores how one woman defied Mongol conventions, became a legendary warrior, and inspired centuries of stories - including possibly influencing Disney's Mulan. Khutulun proved that in the Mongol Empire, strength mattered more than gender.

Keywords: weird history, Khutulun, Mongolian history, women warriors, Genghis Khan, Mongol Empire, female fighters, wrestling history, warrior princess, Asian history

Perfect for listeners who love: warrior women, Mongolian history, underrepresented historical figures, sports history, and stories of women who refused to play by the rules.

Another inspiring episode from Weird History - where history's most badass women get their spotlight.

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