Uzbekistan, in the ancient cradle between the Amu-Darya and Syr-Darya rivers, is the most historically fascinating of the Central Asian republics. Within it are some of the oldest towns in the world, the Silk Road's main centres and most of the region's architectural splendours.
The wealth and strategic importance of the region has attracted covetous invaders across the ages including Macedonians, Russians, Arabs and Turks and the legacy they have left behind can be seen in the towering fortresses of Khiva and Bukhara and the glorious Islamic architecture of Samarkand; their beauty and inaccessibility continue to live on in the imagination of the West as symbols of oriental beauty and mystery. There’s natural beauty too with the verdant Fergana Valley, home to fine silk, and far to the west, the parched basin of the Aral Sea.
The land along the upper Amu-Darya, Syr-Darya has always been different from the rest of Central Asia. Its people are more settled than nomadic, with patterns of land use and social structures that changed little from the 6th century BC to the 19th century. Some of the most influential and savage conquerors came and ruled these lands. Alexander the Great set up at least 8 cities in Central Asia between 334 - 323 BC; the caravans began travelling through the Silk Road around 138 BC after China opened up its borders. Between 484 - 1150 Huns, Turks and Arabs came from the west and the latest brought with them the new religion of Islam. Many mosques and medressas were built in Uzbek cities of Samarkand, Bukhara and Khiva during this period although most of these cities were destroyed during the invasion of the Genghis Khan in 1220. Later Tamerlane, a native Uzbek, resurrected once famous cities by using the labour of slaves and artists captured during successful crusades. Tamerland conquered Persia, captured Baghdad, and lead expeditions to Anatolia and India. Most of the architecture that is found in Samarkand was build by him or his grandson Ulugbek.
Group Adventure Tours and Tailor-Made Holidays in Uzbekistan and on the Old Silk Road.
All our “Silk Road” trips take in Uzbekistan and with WILD FRONTIERS, you can chose whether you want a purely cultural trip such as “Cities of the Silk Road” or to combine the grandeur of Uzbekistan with some of its wilder neighbours including Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan or Turkmenistan.
If you would like to see a short clip from the BBC World Wonders series about the ancient Silk Road city of Samarkand in Uzbekistan click here
