Amir Temur Plan

Tamerlane (Amir Timur, Timur the Great) (1336-1405) was a man of a complex, multi-faceted personality. He forged his own destiny and became a prominent historical figure.
It was near Samarkand, in the town of Kesh, which later was given the name Shakhrisabz, Shakhrisabz ("a green town"), where in 1336 to the chief of a small tribe was born a son.
The boy was named Timur. The wounding of his right leg by an arrow made him lame. That is why he is known as "Lame Timur" or
"Tamerlane" in English.  From his youth he appeared on the political scene as an active politician and military figure. Having become the ruler of Samarkand he built a great army and carried on many annexationist campaigns. Thus he expanded his empire that stretched from the Volga River and the Caucasian ridges in the west to India in the Southwest. But the center of the empire was in Central Asia. Tamerlane wanted to designate his hometown, Shakhrisabz, as his capital, but certain political considerations forced him to leave with Samarkand the loving moniker of "Shining Star of the Orient".
Tamerlane made an outstanding contribution to the national state system, education and culture, and general development of his state. He promoted the construction of monumental historic buildings, especially in Samarkand. Some of them can be seen today. The inscription on the portal of Tamerlane's Palace Ak-Sarai in Shakhrisabz, reads "If you doubt our might, look at our buildings". The impressiveness of the architecture was aimed at the demonstration of the greatness of the empire. All possible means and every effort were exerted to construct these magnificent buildings. A vast range of building materials from neighboring regions, famous architects, suppliers, and a great number of workers were brought to work. Different specialists were taken from occupied lands.
During the entire 14^th century there were many experienced architects and artists gathered in Central Asia, most of them particularly in Samarkand. Skilled craftsmen from Iran, Azerbaijan, Khorezm, and India were invited without hesitation. Both foreign and local masters realized the great importance of the projects. They represented different arts and crafts which were mastered by others. They adopted each others' styles, which combined into a completely original type of design.
Tamerlane's political status required him to have friendly relations with the leaders of many religions.
Such relations were established by constructing mosques, madrassahs, and especially mausoleums. Many of them, for example the Juma Mosque, Gur-Emir Mausoleum and Shahi-Zinda Architectural Ensemble, all in Samarkand, and the Dorus-Siadat Mausoleum in Shakhrisabz, Chashma-Ayub Mausoleum in Bukhara, and Hadji-Ahmad Jassaviy Mausoleum in Turkestan, have stood the test of time and can be seen today.
Amir Temur, a famous statesman and commander, was born in the Khoja Ilgar village, near Shakhrisabz. He was the son of Taragai from to the Barlas clan. From his youth, Temur participated in various campaigns, delved into the system of government. He had run a vast empire for over 30 years. He built one the biggest empires in the history.
Amir Temur founded a centralized state in Movarounnahr, eliminated the fragmentation, and created favorable opportunities for the development of the country’s economy, undermined by the long-term domination of the Mongols. Due to the political energy and purposeful activities of Amir Temur, the institutions of state, social and military administration were revived and improved.
The time of his reign was marked by a brilliant rise of architecture, urban planning, literature, decorative and applied arts, which is a unique phenomenon on a global scale.
More information about the life and work of the Temurids dynasty can be found in the State Museum of the Temurids’ history, located next to the square.
The State Museum of the Temurids’ History, created on the initiative of the First President I. A. Karimov, was opened in the centre of Tashkent on October 18, 1996, to the 660th anniversary of Amir Temur. Unusually shaped structure with a dome in the style of famous architectural monuments is eye-catching and attracts attention.
Timur began his rise as leader of a small nomad band and by guile and force of arms established dominion over the lands between the Oxus and Jaxartes rivers (Transoxania) by the 1360s. He then, for three decades, led his mounted archers to subdue each state from Mongolia to the Mediterranean. He was the last of the mighty conquerors of Central Asia to achieve such military successes as leader of the nomad warrior lords, ruling both agricultural and pastoral peoples on an imperial scale. The poverty, bloodshed, and desolation caused by his campaigns gave rise to many legends, which in turn inspired such works as Christopher Marlowe’s Tamburlaine the Great.
The name Timur Lenk signified Timur the Lame, a title of contempt used by his Persian enemies, which became Tamburlaine, or Tamerlane, in Europe. Timur was heir to a political, economic, and cultural heritage rooted in the pastoral peoples and nomad traditions of Central Asia. He and his compatriots cultivated the military arts and discipline of Genghis Khan and, as mounted archers and swordsmen, scorned the settled peasants. Timur never took up a permanent abode. He personally led his almost constantly campaigning forces, enduring extremes of desert heat and lacerating cold. When not campaigning he moved with his army according to season and grazing facilities. His court traveled with him, including his household of one or more of his nine wives and concubines. He strove to make his capital, Samarkand, the most splendid city in Asia, but when he visited it he stayed only a few days and then moved back to the pavilions of his encampment in the plains beyond the city. Timur was, above all, master of the military techniques developed by Genghis Khan, using every weapon in the military and diplomatic armory of the day. He never missed an opportunity to exploit the weakness (political, economic, or military) of the adversary or to use intrigue, treachery, and alliance to serve his purposes. The seeds of victory were sown among the ranks of the enemy by his agents before an engagement. He conducted sophisticated negotiations with both neighbouring and distant powers, which are recorded in diplomatic archives from England to China. In battle, the nomadic tactics of mobility and surprise were his major weapons of attack.
Timur’s most lasting memorials are the Timurid architectural monuments of Samarkand, covered in azure, turquoise, gold, and alabaster mosaics; these are dominated by the great cathedral mosque, ruined by an earthquake but still soaring to an immense fragment of dome. His mausoleum, the Gūr-e Amīr, is one of the gems of Islamic art. Within the sepulchre he lies under a huge, broken slab of jade. The tomb was opened in 1941, having remained intact for half a millennium. The Soviet Archaeological Commission found the skeleton of a man who, though lame in both right limbs, must have been of powerful physique and above-average height.