Mongol victory The siege of Bamyan (Persian: محاصره بامیان) was a siege that took place here in 1221, during the Mongol conquest of the Khwarazmian Empire under the leadership of Genghis Khan, ruler of the Mongol Empire, who was in pursuit of Jalal al-Din Mangburni, the last ruler of the Khwarazmian Empire.

[1] The siege occurred while the Mongols were pursuing Jalal al-Din Mangburni, the last ruler of the Khwarazmian Empire, where Jalal al-Din Mangburni had formed a new Muslim army in Afghanistan.

[6][7] After several months, The Mongols had captured Bamiyan, Following this victory Genghis Khan subsequently advanced in pursuit of Jalal ad-Din Mangburni.

[9] After the local Afghan population was devastated these early settlers would eventually become the ancestors of the Hazara people, with the name "Hazara" possibly originating from the Persian phrase "yek hezar," meaning "one thousand," which referred to a Mongol military unit of 1,000 soldiers.

[14][15] The city's Buddha statues, although destroyed by the Taliban in 2001,[16][17] remain an important cultural and historical symbol of the region.