Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Samanids gave up the administration of Left Khorezm (Gurganch),
with high commercial importance, to a governor who was directly con-
nected to them, called Ma'mun ibn Muhammed. The descendants of
this governor, named Mamunids, defeated the Afrighids ruling Right
Khorezm in 996 and united Khorezm. They patronized important schol-
ars such as Al-Biruni and İbn Sina, known as Avicenna (?-1037) in the
Ma'mun Academy that they established in Gurganch (today Urgench).
Ghaznevids took over Khorezm sovereignty in 1017, resulting in the start
of the Turkization period of Khorezm (Togan, 1951).
Ghaznevid Mahmud (998-1030) gave Khorezm's administration to
governor Altuntash (1017-1032). Then Seljuks conquered Khorezm with
the leadership of Chagri Bey (died 1059). Although they kept local gov-
ernors at the beginning, Sultan Malik Shah I (1072-1092) handed over
the governance to Anush Tigin (1077-1097). During the Anush Tigin's
son Qutbuddin Muhammad (1097-1128) period, the greatest state which
chose Khorezm as its center and reached its largest borders from Syr Darya
to Iraq at the beginning of the 13th century, the Turkic Khwarezmid (or
Khwarezm-Shah) State, was established (Kafesoğlu, 2000). In their sov-
ereignty, Kunya Urgench became the capital and caught the high level of
Khorasan cities. Many scholars like Al-Zamakhshari, Fahraddin Al-Razi,
Najmuddin Kubra were active in this period (Taneri, 1997).
In 1221, Mongols conquered Kunya Urgench, destroyed it and put an
end to the Khwarezm-Shah State. When Genghis Khan was partitioning
his conquered lands among his sons, the Eastern Dasht-e Kipchak (the
Kipchak plain on the Volga River sides) and Khorezm were left to Cudji
Khan (1206-1227). But as Cudji died before his father in 1227, Khorezm
was given to the founder of the Golden Horde State, Batu Khan (1240-
1255). In the second land partitioning after the Ilhanid State establish-
ment, Northern and Western Khorezm were decided to be governed by
the Golden Horde, and Khiva and Kath by the Chagatai Hanate. The Qun-
grads, one of the most important tribes of Golden Horde, came to govern
Khorezm in the 15th century by establishing the Sufi Dynasty (Kafali,
1976). Timur (1370-1405), the founder of the Timurid State, not only con-
quered Khorezm in 1388, but destroyed Kunya-Urgench worse than the
Mongols had. The Timurid period was closed by the Uzbek Sheybani Han
(1500-1510), when he took over Khorezm in 1502 (Özaydin, 1997).
Khorezm Uzbeks, defeated by the Persian ruler Shah İsmail (1501-
1524) at Merv in 1510, rebelled against the Persians in 1511 and declared
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