Lecture history of Uzbekistan in brief. The main dates and events. Main dates and events of Uzbekistan

LECTURE 2. History of Uzbekistan in brief. The main dates and events.

Main dates and events of Uzbekistan

September 1, 1991 - the Independence of the Republic of Uzbekistan was proclaimed.

November 18, 1991- the establishment of the State Flag of the Republic of Uzbekistan.

December 29, 1991- the election of the first President of the Independent Republic of Uzbekistan.

March 2, 1992 - the admission of the Republic of Uzbekistan to UN (United Nations Organization).

July 2, 1992 - the establishment of State Arms of the Republic of Uzbekistan.

December 8, 1992 – adoption of the Constitution of the Republic of Uzbekistan.

December 10, 1992 – adoption of the National Anthem of the Republic of Uzbekistan.

March 4, 1993 - the establishment of the first independent state order “Soglomavloduchun” (For the healthy generation).

July 1, 1994 - the National currency of the Republic of Uzbekistan was introduced into circulation.

April 26, 1996 - establishment of the order “Amir Temur”.

August 28, 1998 - adoption of the Law on establishing the order “El-yurt khurmati”(“Respect of the nation”).

December 23, 2007- Election of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan for the third turn of his presidency.

December 27, 2009 Elections to the Legislative Chamber and regional and city Kengashes of the Republic of Uzbekistan.

Territory of the Republic of Uzbekistan – 448,9 thousand square kilometers.

The state boundary of the Republic of Uzbekistan- 6221 kilometer.

Population - 33 million people.

Capital of the Republic of Uzbekistan - Tashkent city

The Republic of Uzbekistan is composed of:

The Republic of Karakalpakstan

Provinces-12, Districts-170, Towns-120

The distance between Tashkent and the central cities of Karakalpakstan and provinces (in kilometers):

Nukus-1255

Andijan-447

Bukhara-616

Gulistan-118

Samarkand-354

Urgench-1119

Jizak-203

Karshi-558

Navoi-509

Namangan-432

Termez-708

Ferghana-419.

Head of state: The president of the Republic of Uzbekistan.

National Symbol: national flag, national emblem, national anthem.

National holidays:

1-st of January – New Year.

8-th of March – International Women’s Holiday.

21-st of March - Navruz ( Muslim’s New Year).

9-th of May - Memorial Day.

1-st of September – Independence Day.

1-st of October – Teacher’s day.

8-th of December - Constitution Day.

There is official day off work at the mentioned days. Ramazan-Khait and Kurban-Khait (the holiday of sacrifice and charity to the needy) holidays are also day off work.

Antiquity. Uzbekistan is the ancient cradle of civilization. Archeologists have discovered a camp of primitive man in the Surkhandarya Region, which dates back to over a 100 000 years. The skeleton and bones of a Neanderthal man and marvelous rock drawings have been discovered in the south of Uzbekistan. Traces of primitive man have been found near Tashkent and Khoresm, the Karakalpak, Fergana and in Karakalpakistan.

Central Asia is one of the most ancient regions inhabited by men and one of the oldest centers of human cultures. The territory of present day Uzbekistan was the crossroads of Eurasia and a branch of the ancient Silk Road. It connected Europe and China. In the antiquity the people of Central Asia maintained trade and cultural relations with the people of China, India, Iran, the Arabic countries, Eastern Europe, the Caucasus and Siberia.

The periods of economic upsurge experienced by the people living on the territory of the present day Uzbekistan alternated with periods of great economic oppressions connected with the history of wars and conquests that destroyed whole towns and villages. Foreign invasions brought untold destruction.

In IV century BC Central Asia was conquered by Cyrus, founder of the Persian Empire. In 330 B.C. the Persian Empire was destroyed by Alexander the Great. In subsequent centuries Central Asia became a scene of struggle of numerous nomadic Turkic tribes that had invaded its territory from the north.

The Turkic Kaganate

The Turkic Kaganate, a huge Turkic state appeared in 500-600 A.D. as a result of the union of diverse nomadic tribes and peoples of the Altai. During the 6^th century the tribes extended their rule over the territory of Central Asia. It was a period of the assimilation of various ethnic groups of the kaganate and the formation of large and small alliances of tribes with related languages and dialects. The kaganate played a great role in uniting and consolidating nomadics speaking Turkish which roamed and settled down in the Central Asian steppes and oases.

Arabs and Islam

At the end of the 7^th century and the beginning of the 8^th century the Arab conquerors under Emir Kotaibe Ibn Muslim conquered Khorezm (Khiva) and Sogdiana (Samarkand, Bukhara). The Arabian influence became dominant in the oasis cities of Central Asia. In about 874 the country was conquered by the Samanid dynasty from Balkh. In 999 a Turkic Karakhanid dynasty, the first to embrace Islam, supplanted the Samanids in Samarkand and Bukhara. The new rules even pushed down south of the Amu Darya, but they were stopped by Makhmud of Ghazn and then that river became the diving line between Iran and Turan. The conquerors brought along a new religion- Islam. Arab domination caused people to rise against the invaders.

The Samanid dynasty.

Ismail Samanid is the representative of the Eastern dynasty that ruled in 819-999 over the vast territory of Mavara-Un–Nahr(the Arabic name of the territory between the Amu-Darya and Sir-Darya rivers in Central Asia since the 7^th century A.D.).Ismail Samanid reigned from 892 till 907. It was who erected this marvelous Mausoleum over his father’s grave. This has been testified by the archeological excavations held in 1926-1928. It has been established that there were several graves inside the Mausoleum, and the grave of Ismail himself was situated aside at the entrance. Next to him his son and grandson were buried.

The collapse of the Arab Caliphate led to the resurrection of the independent statehoods in Central Asia. Between the 9^th and 15^th centuries a succession of the large independent feudal states replaced one another in Central Asia. For example, the monarchies of Samanids, Seljuks, Khorezmshah and Timurlane empire. The rule of the Samanids was marked by a great upsurge in economy and culture in Khorosan and Mavara-Un-Nahr. Under the Khoerzmshahs the country’s economy, science and culture continued to develop. The conquest of Central Asia by Makhmud of Ghazn in the 10^th century, by the Karakhanids at the end 11^th centuries and by Genghis Khan at the beginning of the 13^th century brought sufferings to the peoples inhabiting the territory of Central Asia. Many towns were reduced, thousands of peasants and craftsmen were either killed or driven into slavery. However, these rules established huge, centralized states at these periods. The land was ruthlessly plundered by the Tatar- Mongols. It was revived only under the rule of Temur, the great Central Asian military leader and conqueror. He built a huge empire with its capital in Samarkand.

The future ruler was born in 1336, near Shakhrisabz, into the family of emir Taragay from the Barlass clan of the "great Moguls" dynasty. His family tree was engraved in the Gur-Emir, in Samarkand.

As a matter of fact, in his youth Temur had no comprehensive education. Yet he knew several languages, including Turkic and Persian, and, at a mature age, he displayed the erudition equal to that of the most educated people of his time. In fact, the ruler valued any kind of knowledge, particularly the one of practical use such as medicine, astronomy, mathematics, and architecture.

No reliable portraits of Temur have survived, and the verbal description of Temur given by an Arab scholar Ibn Arabshakhis probably the most thorough one. He wrote: "Temur was well built, tall, with a wide forehead, a big head, and a strong voice; his strength equaled his courage. He was a broad-shouldered man with high colour in his white face, with thin fingers, and strong muscles. He wore a long beard; his right hand as well as his right leg was mutilated in battles. However, his look was rather tender." Other authors, each in his own way, expanded and supplemented the characterization of this ruler of the world, noting for instance that in his spare time Temur used to hunt or to play chess, in which he was highly skilled.

According to Temur's historian, Sherefaddin Ali Ezdi, Temur "was concurrently the scourge of his enemies, the idol of his warriors and the father of his nations."

Since his youth, Temur served many local rulers. But the time came when the young warrior said to himself, that henceforward he would fight for himself and his own interests alone. He started with the conquest and subjugation of his native land -Movarounnahr. This blessed region that spread between the Amu-Darya and Syr-Darya. It took Temur ten years to force emirs and beks to obey him and to become an absolute ruler of Movarounnahr - the country between two rivers. His last enemy and formerally the ruler of Samarkand,Husein, was caught in Balkh and then was taken prisoner and killed. Soon Temur married Husein'swidow, a real beauty Saray-mulk-Khanym, the princess of Chagatai frorruihe clan of Genghiz Khan descendants. Saray-mulk-Khanym became his senior wife -Bibi-Khanym. Owing to this marriage Temur won the title of 'gurgan'. This title was used by Temur during all solemn occasions and was engraved on coins. In that same year of 1370 at the assembly of emirs (kurultay), Temur was elected the absolute ruler of Movarounnahr.

During the whole period of his reign, Temur was constantly dealing with building activities: he created new and reconstructed old towns, built fortresses, and constructed irrigation systems. Having established a huge empire and having become its absolute ruler - Emir, Temur made Samarkand the capital of his state.

A glut of wealth brought by Temur from his campaigns, allowed him to build in Samarkand unique monumental buildings, which served as a symbol of greatness and of the empire and its ruler. The best architects, artists and masters from Khorezm, Iran, India took part in construction works and development of the city. The city made a deep impression on Temur's contemporaries; it was named "the Sparkling Point of the World".

In the suburbs of Samarkand huge gardens with fruit-trees, remarkable flowerbeds, ponds and fountains were laid out in the alleys there were pacing deer, peacocks and pheasants. In the gardens there were built palaces for Temur'swives; they fascinated viewers by originality of architecture and luxury of coloured and golden tiled decoration. The wails of the palaces were decorated with paintings that depicted his victories, the floor was covered with carpets and the rooms were draped with expensive silk fabric. In these country-houses sakhibkiran and his wives held celebrations and feasts,ceremonial receptions. But much more amazing in terms of luxurious decoration was Temur's palace and garden Kok-Saray built by him in the Samarkand citadel. It was faced with azure and turquoise patterned tiles; the ceilings in bedrooms were shining with gold. Unfortunately, these structures have not survived to our time and we know of them only from descriptions of Temur's contemporaries. Today the names such as Bogishamol, Bogidilkush, and Bogichinor remind us of once magnificent constructions. However, the unique architectural monuments of Temur's age, which have survived up till now in their almost original beauty, allowed UNESCO to include Samarkand into the World Heritage List.

The most grandiose construction to be built on the emir's order was the Bibi-Khanym cathedral mosque which was named after his senior wife. It was started in 1399 after Temur'svictorious campaign in India and continued till 1404. According to Temur's idea this new mosque had to outshine anything he had seen before in the conquered lands. The best architects, artists and craftsmen from different countries were employed for the construction. Day after day two hundred stonecutters erected the walls; five hundred workmen quarried stone in the mountains and sent it to Samarkand. Ninety elephants, brought from India, worked on the construction site.

For many centuries the Bibi-Khanym mosque had been exposed to destruction because of frequent earthquakes and vandalism of conquerors, and only at the end of the 20th century it was restored and gained its former greatness.

To the earliest constructions associated with Temur'sname, there can be also referred several mausoleums in the Shakhi-Zinda necropolis. On the southeastern hill of the most ancient part of Samarkand, Afrasiyab, there is a sacred burial-vault of Kusam ibn-Abbas, the cousin of Prophet Muhammad, who was assassinated, in the 7th century. His grave has been considered a holy place from the old times. The mausoleum itself was built in the 11th century; its dome was reconstructed on Temur's order. At the same time there was mounted a unique tombstone faced with majolica tiles. To be buried next to a saint was always considered a great honour for a Muslim, and soon several burial-vaults of emir's close relatives appeared close to the mausoleum of Kusam ibn-Abbas. Fourteen mausoleums dating back to the 11th-15th centuries form a whole street along the staircase that leads from the burial-vault of Kusam ibn-Abbas down to the entrance portal, constructed in the later period, during the reign of Temur'sgrandson Mirzo Ulugbek.

Another masterpiece of medieval architecture, the Guri-Emir Mausoleum, was constructed under supervision of Amir Temur for his favourite grandson and successor MukhammadSultan, who died in 1404 during one of his campaigns. Soon after this event, in February 1405, at the very start of his campaign to China, Temur himself died in Otrar. The coffin with his body was secretly delivered to Samarkand, and the Guri-Emir mausoleum became that very place where he found eternal peace. Here too there were buried the remains of Temur's spiritual tutor, Mir SayidBereke, and his grandson Mirzo Ulugbek, the governor of Samarkand, who was an outstanding scholar and thinker.

At the same time Amir Temur always remembered and took care of his smaller homeland, Shakhrisabz - the ancient Kesh, which actually was the second capital of the empire. On Temur's order the best architects, builders, and craftsmen were brought here, and in cooperation with local masters they constructed majestic buildings, making use of experience and traditions of different countries.

The Ak-Saray Palace can serve as an example of the main government building - the residence. The construction of the palace began in 1380, and completed in 1404. The ogive of this huge construction had a span of about 22 meters, the biggest one of all Temurid's structures. An entire coverage of luxury tiles wrapped its surface, the dark blue mosaics and majolica prevailed all over it, where stylized ornaments and fancy ligature of scripts were unfolding in their ingenious diversity. High doors led into the yard, in the center of which there was a wide mirror of a pond. The yard was encircled with magnificent apartments, reception halls, private premises and rooms for feasts. According to Ruy Gonzales de Clavijo, ambassador of the King of Castilia and Leon, a mosaic picture of a lion against the background of a rising sun decorated the central entrance to the palace. The palace, encircled with gardens and ponds, stood out in its beauty of decoration, strength of its dimensions, monumentality of its silhouette, with the purpose of confirming in the minds of subjects the greatness and stability of the monarchic power. Unfortunately, only the picturesque ruins of Ak-Saray have survived to this day, but even these scarce fragments provide an idea of the former beauty of this architectural work of art.

In Shakhrisabz one can see the mausoleum of Shamsuddin Kulol, the spiritual tutor of the young Temur, who is being revered even in our days. Next to this mausoleum in 1374 the sakhibkiran ordered a tomb to be built for his father, Emir Taragay, and here too he ordered a vault for himself, though it has stood empty to this day.

Temur's structures have survived not only in Samarkand. In Yassa, a little town in the present-day Turkestan, there was built the mausoleum of Saint AkhmadYassaviy just above the grave of this saint in 1397. A huge dome, 18 meters in diameter, raises over the numerous rooms, grouped around the gurkhona - the sepulchral hafl. -

Among the architectural monuments of Bukhara, the most notable construction is the Chashma-Ayubmazar with its rare conic- shaped dome resting on a high drum. The craftsmen who were brought here by Temur from his campaigns in Khorezm constructed the mausoleum.
Questions

1. 
   How does the study of history help people learn the past life?
   
2. 
   What was the notion of the present day Uzbekistan in the period of antiquity?
   
3. 
   Which areas on the territory of Uzbekistan have been found the traces of primitive men in?
   
4. 
   Why did the level of life on the territory of present-day Uzbekistan sharply fall down when it was conquered by Gingiz-khan?
   
5. 
   Who were the significant representatives of Temurid’s dynasty?
   
6. 
   Tell the peculiarities of Temurid’s dynasty rule on the territory of present day Uzbekistan.
   

History of Uzbekistan in brief

The decline of feudalism. The invasion of Shaibani Khan at the end of the 15^th and at the beginning of the 16^th centuries retarded the country’s development for hundreds of years. As a result of frequent wars some parts of the country which had attained a high level of development began to decline and towns fell into decay. From the end of the 16^th century, feudalism began to backslide in Central Asia.

In the 18^th century there were three states – the Bukhara Emirate, the Kakand and the Khiva Khanates in Central Asia.

Russian rule. In the 1860s and 1870s the Kakand and Khiva Khanades as well as the Bukhara Emirate and other lands of Central Asia were conquered into the Russian Empire, thus forming the Turkistan General Governorship. Turkistan became Russian’s principal supplier of cotton. Large fields of irrigated lands were turned into cotton plantation. Tsarism had absolutely no intention of introducing a new progressive order in Turkistan and thus promote the all round growth of its economy, science and culture. Its prime concern was to open the way for Russian to run the territory of Turkistan into a source of raw materials and cheap labour.

The inflow of Russians into Central Asia. During the colonialization of Central Asia a large number of people moved from Russian’s internal regions into this area. The inflow of Russians into the Central Asia welled particularly following the completion in 1899 of the Transcaspian and in 1906 of the Orenburg railways. They settled down in towns, got jobs, at enterprises or engaged in various crafts or trade. A part of them went to live in the rural districts, where they took up farming on the newly developed lands. New towns were built and new districts appeared in the old towns of Turkistan.

Revolution in Uzbekistan. The local working people came under the influence of the revolutionary Russian proletariat. Turkistan became an autonomous Republic within the RSFSR. Still the Emirate of Bukhara and the Khiva Khanate remained independent states during several years. During the revolutionary years some part of Uzbek intelligences didn’t accept the Russian Revolution and undertook measures to prevent it. The opposition considered that the young Turkistan Republic should have its own national way of future development connected with his historical past, mentality of its people etc.

This opposition was connected with so called “Bosmachi movement”. Russian red army under the leadership of Frunza, Kuybeshev and others confronted armed resistance and at the end “the Bosmachi movement” suffered a defeat and the country was proclaimed the Uzbek SSR in 1924. In May 1925 the 3^rd all union congress of soviets Admitted Uzbekistan into the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics as an equal part republics.

The Soviet Period. A great deal has been accomplished during the soviet period. First of all poverty and illiteracy and all forms of oppression and exploitation have been overcome. The communist party became the guiding force of the Soviet society in all its spheres: culture, economy, science etc. It should noted that during the Soviet power the appearance of Uzbekistan the Uzbek towns, cities and even kishlaks have changed greatly. New relations among people have been established. The development of economy increased in that period. The highest yields of cotton have been obtained. The modern transport system was built in Tashkent. The Communist party has awakened the political and labour activity of the masses and mobilized them for the fulfillment of the plans of Socialist construction and for the decisive economic social and cultural transformations. The ideas of the communist party were to built “a new society” which mankind has never known before. It was designed to be a society with a crisis- free, steadily growing economy, mature socialist relations and genuine freedom”. But all these Communist prospects failed.