The State of the Karakhanids (940—1212)

Karakhanid State (940—1212 years). From the mid-10th century to the early 13th century, the Turkic dynasty of the Karakhanids dominated Central Tian Shan.

The formation of the new state was facilitated by the fact that the Karluk Khaganate, whose central territories included (Semirechye, Chuy, and Talas valleys, in the first half of the 10th century, split into a number of independent city-states.

It was Satuk Abd al-Kerim Kara-khan who managed to reunite these fragmented territories into a single new Turkic state in Central Tian Shan. His title — kara-khan (Old Turkic — strong, powerful khan) — gave the name to the new state: it became known as the Karakhanid Khaganate. The khaganate united the Turkic tribes of Chigil, Yagma, Karluk, Kyrgyz, and others that inhabited Central Tian Shan.

Satuk Abd al-Kerim Kara-khan was a descendant of the royal blood from the Chigil tribe. After the death of his father, Bazyr, he lived and was raised by his uncle Ogulchak Qadir-khan — the ruler of Kashgar.

In the mid-10th century, Satuk Kara-khan secretly accepted Islam with the assistance of the fleeing Samani Nasr, who had escaped to Kashgar (as a result of a power struggle). But the anger of the "infidel" Ogulchak forced Satuk to retreat to the At-Bashi valley. After some time, together with his companions, who also embraced the Muslim faith, Satuk captured the city of Kashgar and seized power from Ogulchak.

During the reign of Satuk and his sons — Baytash and Suleiman — under the banner of the war for the Islamic faith, they undertook military campaigns in the regions and cities located south of Kashgar. However, the local inhabitants offered such stubborn resistance that the Karakhanids were forced to shift military operations northward. Capturing the Talas and Chuy valleys, they took control of the city of Balasagun and proclaimed it one of their capitals. The Karakhanids then conquered Semirechye.

The strengthening of the state's power, as well as the successes of the military campaigns, prompted the Karakhanids to seize the territories of their western neighbor — the Samani state. In the second half of the 10th century, the power of the Samani dynasty weakened due to internal feudal strife. Taking advantage of this situation, the Karakhanid ruler Harun Bugra-khan annexed lands up to Shash (Tashkent) to the khaganate in 992. Seven years later, in 999, the ruler of Eastern Fergana (capital — the city of Uzgen) Nasr ibn Ali occupied Bukhara and annexed the Samani possessions up to the Amu Darya to the khaganate.

Thus, the territories of Eastern Turkestan, Southern Kazakhstan, and the lands of Central Asia lying east of the Amu Darya were included in the Karakhanid Khaganate.

As a result of the internecine wars among the Karakhanid rulers, the state split into two khaganates - western and eastern. There were no clear borders between them. The capital of the Eastern Karakhanid Khaganate was the city of Kashgar, then Balasagun, while the capital of the Western Karakhanid Khaganate was Uzgen.

The Karakhanid Khaganate reached its peak and political power in the first half of the 11th century.

In the mountainous and steppe regions of the state, livestock breeding predominated. The sedentary lifestyle of the nomadic population and its transition to agriculture gained wider development.

During this period, trade and various crafts — pottery, weaving, blacksmithing, glassmaking, jewelry, etc. — flourished in Central Asia and Southern Kazakhstan. This was an important condition for the growth of cities and settlements, transforming them into major cultural centers. Thus, the central parts of large cities were rebuilt and adorned, with the construction of Muslim temples and shrines.

The development of crafts, culture, and everyday life is evidenced by the numerous ruins of buildings, domes, remnants of ancient aqueducts, craft workshops, and various artifacts from the time of the Karakhanids found during archaeological excavations.