ARK, EMIR'S FORTRESS

This artificial hill of about twenty meters high was the residence of the Lords of Bukhara. Twenty metres high, many of which are due to the piling up of the ruins of palaces and citadels destroyed and rebuilt in the same place, as a result of the conquests and looting of the city. The oldest foundations found on the site date back more than 2,500 years, but the part visible today is from the 18th century. According to the legend reported by a 16th century Bukhara historian, the founder of Bukhara is Prince Siyavush-ibn Keivakus. The young prince, fleeing from his father, crossed the Jeihun (Amou Daria) and took refuge with Afrosyab, the legendary king, founder of Samarkand. He was welcomed with kindness and married Afrosyab's daughter. Siyavush built a citadel on his new land, but he came into conflict with his father-in-law, and his father-in-law had him murdered a few years later. His body was buried at the foot of his palace, near the east gate, and for a long time the inhabitants of Bukhara worshipped his grave. In the 8th century, the Zoroastrian city was invaded by the Arab conquerors, the citadel destroyed, and a mosque was erected there in 713, in place of the Temple of Fire. Rebuilt by the Samanids, then by the Karakhanids, it was each time destroyed successively by the Kara-Kitai and the Korezmshah and then, in the 13th century, by the Mongols, who, faithful to their reputation, left only ashes. In the 16th century, the Chaybanids undertook the construction of a citadel worthy of their ambitions by raising an artificial hill 800 m in diameter and 20 m high, but it did not withstand the attacks of Nadir Shah. The palace that can be visited today dates back to the Uzbek khanats of the 18th and early 20th centuries. At that time, the Ark was a city within the city inhabited by more than 3,000 people. The complex included gardens, administrative buildings, cowsheds, depots, the Treasury, the armoury, stables, prisons, a mosque, mausoleums, jewellers' shops and the residence of the emir, his wives, family members and slaves in their service. Unfortunately, only 20% of these constructions remain today. Indeed, in September 1920, the Bolshevik army, commanded by General Mikhail Frounze, fired a cannon on the citadel. A fire broke out as Emir Alim Khan fled. We're guessing he might have set it off himself before he fled. The tour begins with the west gate built in 1740 by Nadir Shah. The monumental gate is flanked by two turrets. When Armin Vambery stayed in Bukhara in 1863, he described the Ark as a "den of tyranny" and shuddered at the thought of the Westerners who were then confined there. The door was surrounded by fourteen ornate bronze cannons, a trophy of the Emir's victorious campaign against the Khanate of Kokand. It was also adorned with a clock - disappeared - with an unusual history. Giovanni Orlandi, the Italian watchmaker who made it, had been kidnapped by slave traders in Orenburg in the mid-19th century. The Italian saved his head by promising the Emir to build him a time measuring machine. The Emir was capricious and never tired of the wonders of European technology, but the watchmaker was a believer, stubborn, loved wine and refused to convert to Islam, which was fatal to him. He was the last European to have his head cut off. The covered terrace above the arch of the gate was intended for the Emir and the princely family, who had a front row seat to attend the celebrations and public executions that took place in Registan Square. Beneath the gate, the only remnant from the 19th century, a vaulted corridor is pierced by twelve dark niches, narrow, unsanitary prisons where the personal enemies of the Emir were locked up. One of the niches housed a lantern that burned permanently, to celebrate the memory of Siyavush. It is through this corridor that visitors enter the Ark where souvenir vendors have replaced the prisoners. Most of the buildings such as the apartments of the kushbegi or the kori khana have been transformed into museums: museums of History, Archaeology and Numismatics.

The korunishkhana or throne room. The vast courtyard surrounded by iwan dates from the 17th century. Almost entirely destroyed in the fire of 1920, it has been restored. In the iwan at the back of the court is the throne of the emir in engraved marble, made by craftsmen from Nourata in 1669. During the coronation and official events, the floor was covered with carpet. In the agorakhana, or musical pavilion, an orchestra punctuated the various events of the day, and traditional makom accompanied the Emir's outings and all the official events that took place in the main square. The western part of the fortress offers a splendid view of the monuments of Bukhara, especially Poy Kalon. You can also climb to the steel tower in front of the fortress on the other side of the boulevard (40,000 soums). There you will have a dominant view of the historical center of Bukhara. At sunset, low lights illuminate the fortress walls.