History of Turkmenistan
Categories: Turkmenistan | History of Central Asia | History by country
The territory of Turkmenistan has been populated since ancient times, as armies from one empire to another decamped on their way to more prosperous territories. Tribes of horse-breeding Turkmen drifted into the territory of Turkmenistan from ancient times, possibly from the Altay Mountains, and grazed along the outskirts of the Karakum desert into Persia, Syria, and Anatolia. They developed the Akhal-Teke horse breed.
Alexander the Great conquered the territory in the 4th century BC on his way to India. One hundred and fifty years later the Parthian Kingdom took control of Turkmenistan, establishing its capital in Nisa, an area now located in the suburbs of the modern-day capital of Ashgabat. In the 7th century AD Arabs conquered this region, bringing with them the Islamic religion and incorporating the Turkmen into Middle Eastern culture. It was around this time that the famous Silk Road was established as a major trading route between Asia and Europe.
In the middle of the 11th century, the powerful Turks of the Seldjuk Empire concentrated their strength in the territory of Turkmenistan in an attempt to expand into Afghanistan. The empire broke down in the second half of the 12th century, and the Turkmen lost their independence when Genghis Khan took control of the eastern Caspian Sea region during his march West. For the next 7 centuries the Turkmen people lived under various empires and fought constant intertribal wars amongst themselves.
From the 16th century on, with the decline of the Timurids, Turkmen raiders on horseback preyed on passing caravans, pillaging and taking prisoners for the slave trade. After kidnapping Russians from the expanding Tsarist Empire, the Turkmen fell into trouble. Russia sent forces to Turkmenistan under General Mikhail Skobelev, and in 1881 fighting climaxed with the massacre of 7,000 Turkmen at the desert fortress of Geok Depe, near modern Ashgabat; another 8,000 were killed trying to flee across the desert. By 1894 imperial Russia had taken control of Turkmenistan.
Following the October Revolution of 1917 in Russia, Ashgabat became a base for anti-Bolshevik counter-revolutionaries, who soon came under attack from the Tashkent Soviet. A small British force occupied Ashgabat and parts of southern Turkmenistan until 1919. After the British withdrawal, the Turkmenistan became the Turkmen oblast (provonce) of the Turkestan ASSR from 1919-1924.
In 1924, the Turkestan ASSR was dissolved, and the Turkmen SSR became of the republics of the Soviet Union. At this time the modern borders of Turkmenistan were formed. The Turkmen SSR was under full control of Moscow, which exploited its raw materials resources for the purposes of the Soviet Union. Sovereignty was only a formality, since Moscow ultimately ruled all Soviet states. Incensed by attempts from Moscow to end their nomadic lifestyle, establish collective farms, and destroy their religion, Turkman basmachi staged guerilla warfare against the communist government until 1936. More than a million Turkmen fled into exile in Afghanistan or Iran. Of the 441 mosques that existed in Turkmenistan in 1911, only 5 remained open in 1941. In the meantime, the ethnic balance of Turkmenistan was altered by an influx of thousands of Russian immigrants from other parts of the Soviet Union.
In the 1950s, the 1375 kilometer long Qaraqum Canal was built. Draining the Amu-Darya river, it enabled huge areas to be opened for cotton production, but resulted in the destruction of the native toghay forests. It also greatly diminished the inflow of water to the Aral Sea, resulting in an ecological catastrophy.
Turkmenistan became independent on October 27, 1991 amidst the dissolution of the Soviet Union. The former head of Turkmenistan's Communist Party at the time of independence, Saparmurad Niyazov, was elected president of the newly independent nation in an uncontested election. The authoritarian Niyazov, who has assumed the title of "Turkmenbashi", or "Leader of all Turkmen", is accused of developing a cult of personality. His writings are mandatory readings in Turkmenistan's schools and months of the calendar have been renamed after members of his family. Opposition parties are banned in Turkmenistan and the government controls all sources of information. In December of 1999, Turkmenistan's constitution was amended to allow Niyazov to serve as president for life.