Bogd Khaan of Mongolia (Franco-American War)

Bogd Khaan was the monarch of Mongolia from 1911 to 1926, reigning from even before Mongolia was a sovereign state. He served as the first Khan of the new Mongol state from December 29, 1911, to his death in August 1926. His early personal life is relatively unknown; the identities of both of his parents have never been identified, his birthday is unknown, and all that is known of his birthplace is that it is in Tibet.

He was the third most important person in the hierarchy of Tibetan Buddhism, right below the Dalai and Panchen Lamas; he was known as the "Bogdo Lama". He was the spiritual leader of Outer Mongolian Buddhism, though Tibetans and Inner Mongols looked up to him as well. Because he was born in Tibet and was most likely an ethnic Tibetan, marriage unions were planned between the two nations after the death of Khaan's wife, Tsendiin Dondogdulam, though Bogd Khaan himself died before any of these could be worked out.

He also supported sending troops to Tibet to aid local militias, hoping to help Tibet regain their independence under the Dalai Lama. Although minor skirmishes did happen between Mongol and Chinese troops, no war was officially declared. Tibet would never gain true independence, though it would gain autonomy in the Union of Greater China.

He also oversaw the World War, and planned to send troops to aid the Allies, in hopes of liberating Mongolia for good. This didn't happen, though it did give Mongolia recognition from fellow East Asian nations Japan, Thailand, and Vietnam. Bogd also oversaw the beginning of the Mongolian Revolution, an attempt by Mongolia to liberate itself from China. As Mongol troops were already in Tibet, Mongolia had to withdraw troops from their allies and instead focus on the regions bordering China. With help from Russia, Mongolia won the revolution, albeit eight years after Bogd Khaan's death.

As he was a monk, he didn't have access to most physical means of imposing power, though some enemies were executed for blasphemy. Because of this, Bogd is generally a disliked figure in Mongolia, mostly because the later reigns of Sükhbaatar and his wife nearly destroyed the strict Buddhist laws of the country and made it more liberal, creating coexistence between Mongols of all religious backgrounds. Bogd also did execute a few Communist rebels lurking in Mongolia, in hopes of creating political unity.

Bogd Khan died from cancer in 1926, and as he had no successor, government officials picked Mongolian military general Sükhbaatar to reign as monarch, despite his unknown religious stance, mostly due to the lack of decent successors; Tögs-Ochiryn Namnansüren wasn't considered as he already had served as prime minister, but he still had a high place in the government after his leadership ended. Sükhbaatar exposed the religious-based atrocities committed at the hands of Bogd, creating a wave of religious rethought in Mongolia and a mass conversion to atheism, though Buddhists still remained the largest religious group in Mongolia. Bogd Khan is buried at Bogd Khan's Mausoleum, to the left of the mausoleums of Sükhbaatar and Sükhbaataryn. The Winter Palace of the Bogd Khaan has been preserved and is a tourist attraction in Ulaanbaatar.

First Mongolian Revolution
By the spring of 1911, some pro-independence movements popped up in Mongolia, mostly due to the falling Qing Dynasty and the internal revolution occurring in the nation. This was led by self-proclaimed Prime Minister Tögs-Ochiryn Namnansüren, first Mongol Prime Minister. During this time, Bogd Khan was also appointed as monarch, giving him more power than even Tögs. The first Mongolian revolution was largely a failure, leaving Mongolia as part of the newly established Chinese republic. It did, however, create thoughts of revolution in the minds of the Mongol people.

World War
Under Bogd Khaan, Mongolia joined the Allies mostly to counter the Chinese activity with the Central Powers. Bogd Khan ordered the Mongol militia to invade northern China and Manchuria, in hopes of gaining independence and potentially annexing the invaded and occupied regions. Because of this, rumor has it Bogd Khaan wanted to create the second Mongol empire, a concept later approved of by Sükhbaatar, but never executed due to Mongolia's position between two great powers. Despite this, Sükhbaatar expressed ideas of union between Tuva and Mongolia, as well as ideas of Russia selling Buryatia to Mongolia to unify all the Mongol peoples. Their participation in the World War give Mongolia recognition as an independent state from Japan, Thailand, and Vietnam.

Civil War and Second Revolution
During the early 1920s, the Russian Civil War reached Mongolia, creating the short Mongolian Civil War between the "khanist" Mongolian troops and Communist rebels. During this time, influence from Russia was common, coming from both the Whites and the Reds. Under Bogd Khan, Communism was successfully removed from Mongolia, albeit only militaristic Communism. Even though most of the modern-day Mongol population looks down on him, most people forget that without Bogd's decent military actions Mongolia could have become a Marxist state. Bogd also helped lead a small portion of the second Mongolian Revolution, which unlike the first, was actually a success. However, Bogd died during the second year of the war, letting Sükhbaatar command the Mongol armies, leading Mongolia to its independence.