Samarkand is one of the oldest existing cities on our planet. Warriors from the armies of many great conquerors marched along its streets, and medieval poets sang about it in their works. This article is devoted to the history of Samarkand from the moment of its foundation to the present day.
Ancient history
Although the history of the city of Samarkand dates back more than 2500 years, archaeological finds indicate that people lived in these parts already in the Upper Paleolithic era.
In antiquity it was known as the capital of Sogdiana, which is described in the sacred book of the religion of Zoroastrianism - the Avesta, dating back to the 6th century BC. e.
In Roman and ancient Greek sources it is mentioned under the name of Marakanda. In particular, biographers of Alexander the Great, who conquered the city in 329 BC, call Samarkand so. e.
In the 4th-5th centuries AD, it came under the rule of the Eastern Iranian tribes. Perhaps this causes some politicians to misinterpret the history of Samarkand and Bukhara. These cities cannot be called the land of Tajiks. At least onat the moment there is no serious scientific justification for this.
At the beginning of the 6th century, ancient Samarkand, in whose history there are many blank spots, was part of the Hephthalite empire, which included Khwarezmia, Bactria, Sogdiana and Gandhara.
Early Middle Ages
In 567-658 AD, Samarkand, the history of which has not been fully studied, was in vassal dependence on the Turkic and Western Turkic Khaganates. There is no reliable information about the events that took place there during this period.
712 in the history of Uzbekistan and Samarkand was marked by the invasion of the Arab conquerors, led by Kuteiba ibn Muslim, who managed to capture the city.
During the Muslim Renaissance
875-999 entered the history of Samarkand as the heyday of the city. During this period, it turned into one of the largest cultural and political centers of the Samanid state.
When the Turkic Karakhanid dynasty came to power, the foundation of the first madrasahs began in Samarkand. The most famous of them was an educational institution opened at the expense of Ibrahim Tamgach Khan.
The heyday of Samarkand was also marked by the construction of a luxurious palace decorated with paintings in the city. It was erected by order of Ibrahim Hussein Karakhanid, who ruled from 1178 to 1200.
Decay
The events that took place in the region almost always left their mark on the history of Samarkand, because without the capture of this important political and cultural center of Central Asia, no onethe ruler could not consider his influence absolute.
In particular, at the beginning of the 13th century, the city was drawn into the confrontation between the Karakhanid Osman and the Khorezmshah Ala ad-Din Muhammad II. The latter managed to defeat the rebellious vassal and make Samarkand his capital. However, this was only the beginning of the troubles that awaited its inhabitants.
Conquest by Genghis Khan
In 1219, Genghis Khan, enraged by the disrespectful attitude towards his ambassadors from the rulers of Khorezm, stopped the aggressive campaign against China and moved his troops to the west.
Khorezmshah Mohammed found out about his plans in time. He decided not to give a decisive battle, but to sit out with the army in the cities. Khorezmshah hoped that the Mongols would scatter around the country in search of booty, and then it would be easier for the garrisons of the fortresses to deal with them.
One of the cities that should have played an important role in this regard was Samarkand. By order of Muhammad, high walls were erected around it and a ditch was dug.
In March 1220, the Mongols destroyed and plundered Khorezm. Genghis Khan decided to use the captured soldiers for the siege of Samarkand, where he moved his troops. The garrison of the city at that time, according to various sources, ranged from 40 to 110 thousand people. In addition, the defenders had 20 war elephants. On the third day of the siege, some representatives of the local clergy went on a betrayal and opened the gates to the enemy, surrendering Samarkand without a fight. 30,000 Kangl warriors who served Khorezmshah Muhammad and his mother Turkan Khatun were captured andwere executed.
In addition, the soldiers of Genghis Khan took everything they could carry from the locals, and left behind only ruins. According to travelers of that time, out of the 400,000 population of Samarkand, only 50,000 people survived.
However, the hard-working people of Samarkand did not reconcile themselves. They revived their city at some distance from the former place, where modern Samarkand is located today.
The Epoch of Timur and the Timurids
At the end of the 60s of the 14th century, a new empire called Turan was formed on the territory of the former Chagatai Ulus, as well as the southern part of the Jochi Ulus of Great Mongolia. In 1370, a kurultai took place, at which Tamerlane was elected emir of the state.
The new ruler decided that his capital would be in Samarkand, and decided to turn it into one of the most magnificent and powerful cities in the world.
Flourishing
According to historians, during the reign of the Timurid dynasty, Samarkand reached its highest development.
It was under him and under his descendants that architectural masterpieces were built there, which even today arouse admiration for the perfection of the architects' design and the skill of those who worked on their construction.
The new emir forcibly brought craftsmen from all countries where he made conquests to Samarkand. For several years, majestic mosques, palaces, madrasahs and tombs were built in the city. Moreover, Timur began to give the names of the famous cities of the East to the nearest villages. So Baghdad appeared in Uzbekistan,Damascus and Shiraz. Thus, the great conqueror wanted to emphasize that Samarkand is more majestic than all of them.
At his court, he gathered prominent musicians, poets and scientists from different countries, so the capital of the Timurid Empire was rightfully considered one of the main cultural centers not only in the region, but also in the world.
Timur's initiative was continued by his descendants. In particular, under his grandson Mirzo Ulugbek, an observatory was built in Samarkand. In addition, this enlightened ruler invited the best scientists of the Muslim East to his court, turning the city into one of the centers of world science and the study of Islam.
Late Middle Ages
In 1500 the Khanate of Bukhara was founded. In 1510, Kuchkunji Khan ascended the throne in Samarkand. During his reign, large-scale construction continued in the city. In particular, two well-known madrasahs were erected. However, with the coming to power of the new ruler Ubaidulla, the capital was moved to Bukhara, and the city became the capital of the bekstvo.
A new round of the revival of Samarkand fell on the period from 1612 to 1656, when the city was ruled by Yalangtush Bahadur.
New and Recent Times
In the 17-18th centuries, the city lived a calm measured life. Cardinal changes in the history of Samarkand and Bukhara occurred after Russian troops entered the territory of modern Uzbekistan in 1886. As a result, the city was annexed to the Russian Empire and became the administrative center of the Zeravshan District.
In 1887, the locals raiseduprising, but it was crushed by the Russian garrison under the command of Major General Friedrich von Stempel.
The speedy integration of Samarkand into the Russian Empire was the construction of a railway connecting it with the western regions of the state.
After the October Revolution
After the well-known events in Petrograd in 1917, Samarkand was included in the Turkestan ASSR. Then, from 1925 to 1930, it had the status of the capital of the Uzbek SSR, later changing it to the title of the administrative center of the Samarkand region.
In 1927, the Uzbek Pedagogical Institute was founded in the city. This first institution of higher education later became a university and was named after Navoi.
In general, during the Soviet period, other universities were also founded in Samarkand, thanks to which the city became a major educational center on the scale of the entire Soviet Central Asia.
During the Second World War, the Artillery Academy evacuated from Moscow and several large industrial enterprises operated in Samarkand.
The Soviet period was also marked by the active development of tourism. In addition, several large industrial enterprises were opened in the city.
After the collapse of the Soviet Union
In 1991, Samarkand became the capital of the Samarkand region of the Republic of Uzbekistan. Three years later, the largest university in Uzbekistan, the Samarkand State Institute of Foreign Languages, was opened there.
Now you knowwhat a long history Samarkand has. In recent decades, much has been done there to develop tourism, so when you are in Uzbekistan, be sure to visit the ancient capital of Sogdiana to see the masterpieces of medieval architecture, recognized as part of the world heritage of mankind.
