Central Asia is an ancient region inhabited by man and one of the oldest centres of human cultures, as attested by numerous relicts that have been excavated.

Uzbekistan had been home for many ancient states, such as the Bactria and the Khorezm, Sogdiana and the Parthia. The Great Silk Road passed across this land, stretching from China to the Mediterranean.

Thousands of years ago, fabulous cities with beautiful palaces, colourful bazaars and magnificent gardens had flourished here.

This land of ancient civilisations had witnessed rise and fall of many empires and kings. The Sogdians, the Macedonians, the Huns, the Seljuk’s, the Mongols, the Timurids and the Khanates of Bukhara, Khiva and Kokand all held sway here at one time or another.

The history of Central Asia is that of endless wars and conquests.  

In the 6th century BC Cyrus the Great, the founder of the Persian Achaemenid Empire, conquered Central Asia. In 330 BC Alexander the Great destroyed the Persian Empire. In the 6th century AD the Turks ruled the whole of Central Asia. The Arabs followed them in the 7th and 8th centuries. The Arab conquest affected the social structure of the whole of Central Asia converting the local population to Islam.

The rise of the Samanids in the 9th century inaugurated a different period for the region. This land saw the invasion of the Mongols under the leadership of Genghis Khan in 1219. Towns and settlements were ravaged, burnt and depopulated. Much of damage was repaired and cities were rebuilt in the 14th century under Tamerlane. He created a huge empire with its capital in Samarkand and brought artisans and men of learning to his court. Palaces, madrasahs, mausoleums and public gardens were erected. The dynasty of Timurids is associated with the development of architecture, science and arts. Soon after Tamerlane's death his empire disintegrated into several fiefdoms and different clans wrestled for power. His grandson Ulugbek, known for his great works in astronomy, soon fell victim to the forces of jealousy. Later Tamerlane's great grandson Zaheruddin Mohammad Babur founded the famous Moghul Dynasty in India. The period of struggle for power and consolidation among various Uzbek clans, resulted in the establishment of khanates like Khiva, Bukhara and Kokand. But the continuous warfare among them brought the weakness of the authority of governing system. The centuries old feudal disintegration and internecine wars led to the annexation of Turkestan (the name of the land used in that time) to Russia between 1865 and 1876, the Bukhara and Kokand Khanates recognised their vassalage to the Russian Empire. The Bolshevik revolution in Russia also affected Central Asia giving rise to the Uzbek Soviet Socialist Republic in 1924. Being one of the fifteen republics of the Soviet Union it was governed by the Communist Party.

After collapse of the Soviet Union Uzbekistan proclaimed its independence on 31st August 1991 and since then it has been reviving its national statehood.