History of Uzbekistan

The history of Uzbekistan is rich in events which go deep to antiquity. Archaeologists established the fact of the settlement of people in the present territory of Uzbekistan even in the epoch of lower paleolith. The settlements of primitive people in the cave of Selengur south of Fergana existed already 500 thousand to 1 mln  years B.C. Experiment of the remains of boy -Neanderthal discovered in the cave of Teshik-Tash proves, that Uzbekistan belonged to the regions, in which was formed contemporary human. The progress of settled- agricultural culture is observed in the epoch of Neolithic period (IV of thousand B.C.) and especially bronze (III- II thousand B.C.), when wide acceptance receive the implements of labor and weapon, made from the bronze.
Then follow the millennia, in which Central-Asian region was the arena of achievements. In 539 and 529years B.C. Central Asia was conquered by Akhemenid’s tsar Kir, moreover Kir himself died in the battle with the saks (ancient tribe), headed by tsarina Tamaris. The dominion of Akhemenids perishes by the aggressive marches of Alexander the Great. After the death of Alexander the south of Central Asia since 306. B.C joins into the Selevkids Empire. But at the middle of III century B.C.  Selevkid’s satrap (ruler) of Baktriya (territory of Selevkids) Diodot raised against the metropole and created independent state, which is known in history as Greco -Baktriy
From the middle VII c. active role in the political arena of Central Asia began to play the Arabs. In 651y they took Merv (close to Bairam- Ali city in Turkmenistan), from where they began to accomplish attacks to Central-Asia which is located between two rivers, since then its named Maverannakhr (from the Arabic “that across the river”). To the middle of VII c. the Arabs as a result of many marches, in particular headed by Quteyba Ben Muslim, between 704 and 712 yr., finally subordinated the Central-Asian interfluve, included in Abbasids caliphate. To IX c. Islam becomes the established religion of the population of Central Asia.
In the second-half of XIIc occurred the elevation of the Turkish dynasty of Khorezmshakhs - Anushteginids. As a result of military successes was created the most powerful state in the Middle East - state of Khorezmshakhs with the capital in Gurgandzh (present Old-Urgench). However, the state of Khorezmshakhs in 1220 ended its existence. The decisive hit of its failure delivered Mongolian army headed by Chingizkhan.
In the middle of XIV c. to the political arena in Maverannakhr advanced Amir Temur(Tamerlan), which became in the consequence creator of one of the most important states in the history of the east. Temur was born in 1336 in the settlement Hodja - Ilgar near City Kesh which is called Shahri Sabz since XIV century.  Amir Temur created the enormous state, which occupied, besides Central Asia, the entire territory of the near and Middle East and from the Mediterranean to North India inclusively. All conquered regions he gave into the hereditary possessions to its sons and to grandsons. After his death the state of its descendants of Temurids began to be tended to the decline, only during Shakhrukh’s (1409-1447 g.)ruling it preserved sizes the approximately equal empires of Tamerlan. Maverannakhr at that time was governed by famous Ulugbek (he was killed by his own son in 1449.).
The state of Timurids was subjugated by Uzbek nomads at the beginning XVI c., sultan Babur (one of the descendants of Timur) established lately the new dynasty of Timurids, which ruled to the middle of XIX c.