In 1258, a Mongol army numbering between 120,000 and 150,000 soldiers laid siege to and sacked Baghdad, then the capital of the Abbasid Caliphate and the center of Islamic power. The Mongol army, led by Hulagu (also spelled as Hulegu) Khan and the Jalayir general Koke Ilge and the Chinese commander Guo Kan in vice-command, set out for Baghdad in November of 1257. Hulagu marched with what was probably the largest army ever fielded by the Mon...