Baxtiyorova Sarvara

      Hi everyone 🖐🏻. Have a good day 💞.  Our second practice took place at the Ark fortress . The practice organized at 10:30 🕥 and we gathered there on time . The weather was  clear and sunny 🌞. First ,  our teacher Jalilov Bahodir asked for information related to the fortress. Next we carried on the practice. 

       The Ark Fortress is one of the most interesting Bukhara historic buildings. Its foundations were laid in the 4th - 3rd centuries BCE. The fortress has been, of course, several times destroyed and rebuilt. Until 1920 it had served as Bukhara rulers’ residence. 

   The fortress stands on an artificial hill of up to 20 meters in height. The approximate area of the site is 4.2 hectares.

     The architects of the fortress planned to make it polygonal. According to legend, the base of the fortress had seven pillars set up as to the locations of the Great Bear brightest stars. The say the builders succeeded in constructing the walls of the fortress only when they put the base pillars in this order.

       Although the fortress was quite strong and many khans were safe in it, it was completely destroyed and remained ruined for a long time until Bidun, one of Bukhara rulers, rebuilt it in the 7th century. During the rule of the Samani dynasty in the 9th - 10th centuries the fortress was thoroughly reconstructed. They added watchtowers and made its walls twice as thicker.

   When Genghis Khan’s troops entered Bukhara in the 13th century, its residents took shelter in the fortress. The troops could not get inside it for a long time but finally succeeded. The defenders were killed; the fortress was ransacked and destroyed.

    The citadel occupies the territory of almost four hectares. It is surrounded by massive walls, with a total length of about 800 metres and a height of 16 to 20 metres. The buildings on the palace territory have been replaced repeatedly; those that survive date back to the 17th-20th centuries.

    In its historical past, Ark was a city within a city. Around 3,000 people lived within its walls: apart from the ruling family, other noble families and high-ranking officials lived here with their families. The fortress housed government offices such as barracks or mint and outbuildings such as warehouses and stables.

    In 1920, an anti-monarchical coup took place in the Bukhara Emirate, overthrowing the Bukhara Emir and establishing the Bukhara People’s Republic. The Emir’s supporters used the citadel as a shelter: the Red Army launched air attacks on Ark under the command of General Mikhail Frunze. The bombardment damaged about 80% of the citadel.

     The fortress was last seriously damaged in 1920. The Bolshevik troops led by Mikhail Frunze laid siege to the Ark, trying to defeat the last Bukhara emir Sayyid Alim-Khan. Mikhail Frunze ordered that the fortress be bombed by aircraft. The eastern part of the Ark was ruined. Today this part contains an archeological reserve and two surviving structures: Childukhtaron Mosque built in memory of the 40 girls killed by Nassrullokhan, and the Sufi monastery Battol-Ghozi Khanaqa.

     Today's practice was over .  I really liked this historical place . There has many ancient items.  If you have not seen this place before, I offer 

you to visit here. Of course i think you will be pleased with your decision. 🥰💗