Khiva, a fascinating desert city

It's at sunrise, through the plane's windows, that we discover Uzbekistan, in particular the Khorezm region, a vast area of oases on the lower course of the Amu Darya, the Oxus of the Greeks. Khiva, our destination, is 35 kilometres from Ourguench airport. The entire life and history of this city, bordered by the Kyzylkum and Karakum deserts, is dictated by this river, the Amu Darya, which flows into the Aral Sea.

One legend has it that Khiva was founded by Shem (one of the sons of the biblical Noah), who dug the well of Keivah. Another says that Shem, after seeing a fortress in his dream, decided to build a city on the spot where he had drunk the finest water when he woke up. Whatever the case, its geographical location on the edge of the Karakum desert prompted its inhabitants to develop a complex irrigation and water supply system very early on, harnessing the waters of the Amu Darya river some forty kilometres away.

The last stop for caravanners before crossing the desert

Historians believe that the city existed as early as the 5th century BC, and some even claim that the prophet Zoroaster was born here, the man whose real name in Avesta - the sacred text of the Zoroastrians - is Zarathustra. Nietzsche brought him particular fame in the West with the book Thus Spake Zarathustra.

The region then became part of the empires parthe (247 BC to 224 AD) and then sassanide (from 224 to 651). Before succumbing in the 710s to the destructive madness of the Arab conquerors and their leader Kouteyba ibn Mouslim . Scholars and intellectuals were killed and codices and manuscripts burnt. Khorezm was split into two parts before being reunited in 992 by Amir ibn Muhammad. With his descendants, science, literature and the arts flourished. It was the 11th century and the city was attracting universally renowned scholars. But peace never lasts long in these regions. Khorezm was once again invaded by the Turks Karakhanides before being taken by two other Turkish dynasties, the Ghaznevids and Seljuks. The final stopover for caravanners before crossing the desert to Persia, the Khiva oasis was a strategic location that attracted a great deal of interest.

From invasions to insurrections

Caught up in the turmoil of the great Mongol invasions, Khiva found itself subservient to the empire of Genghis Khan in 1220 and was destroyed again. In 1388, Tamerlan (Amir Timur) took control of the region. The Timurids reigned here until the arrival of the Chaybanides . But in 1512, the Uzbek conquerors established Khiva as an independent khanate, which prospered until the 19th century as a trading centre and fortress protecting caravans. There was an interlude of a few years when, in 1740, the region fell to the Afghan conqueror Nadir Shah (founder of the Afcharide dynasty who reigned between 1736 and 1747).

Then, in 1873, the Russians subdued Khiva and the khan became the Tsar's vassal. It was during this period that the railways were built to link Central Asia to Russia (the railways proved to be a hundred times more profitable than the caravan route) and slavery was abolished. "Before the 1873 expedition, Khiva was one of the main slave markets in Asia: it was here that the Turkmen sold their bands of captives, taken or bought on the banks of the Caspian, on the plateaux of Persia, Herat and Afghanistan. The slaves most valued for their labour were the Russians: each was worth four camels" , wrote Elisée Reclus in Nouvelle géographie universelle, Russian Asia (1881). Russian historians estimate that nearly a million Persians, Russians and Turkmen were enslaved and sold by the Khans of Khiva. Hence their immense wealth!

However, the Russian revolutions of 1917 changed everything. In 1920, the Khanate of Khiva and the Emirate of Bukhara bore the brunt of the arrival of the Bolsheviks, who proclaimed the creation of the Khorezm People's Soviet Republic with Khiva as its capital. Russian colonies were formed on the territory of the two monarchies - Khiva and Bukhara. They would later become centres of revolutionary protest. By applying the principles of the socialist revolution: nationalisation of all property, forced emancipation of women, restrictions on religious worship, etc., the Russians were able to create the conditions for revolutionary change. As a result, the Bolsheviks alienated the population and the Muslims. The insurrection by the clergy and the Turkmen leader Dunayd Khan led the region into a bloody war, until the Red Army restored order in 1924.

An accumulation of masterpieces

Khiva is divided into two parts: Dichan-Kala, the outer city, and Itchan-Kala, the inner city, entrenched within its crenellated and undulating walls of brick and adobe. Most of the buildings still standing date from the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries. A rehabilitation programme that began nearly forty years ago has given the city such a polished look that it sometimes feels like you're in a theme park.

The inner city is entirely pedestrianised and full of tourist stalls. Here you'll find fur hats, carved wooden crafts, puppets, ceramic crockery, carpets and more. The squares, monuments and alleyways make up a charming urban landscape. The historic centre includes more than 50 monuments and 250 traditional houses built between the 16th and 19th centuries.
We go from palaces to mosques, from medersas to caravanserais: a host of marvels in a city that is almost too perfect. With its pediments, ogives and towers covered in blue or green majolica.

The truncated minaret of Kalta Minor

Built of brick covered in a turquoise and jade green glaze that glows in the sun, the truncated Kalta Minor minaret glows in the setting sun. It is the undisputed landmark of Khiva. It stands outside the Muhammad Amin Khan medersa. He wanted to make himself famous by building the highest minaret in Islam. Work began in 1851, but was interrupted when the ambitious man died. What remains is this curious edifice that we never cease to admire.

Mouhammad Amin Khan Medersa

This medersa was once the largest Koranic school in Central Asia and could accommodate up to 260 students at any one time. It is topped by five domes and flanking towers. The façade is decorated with rich ornamentation in glazed brick and the wooden doors abound in ornamental carvings. The building comprises 125 khoudjras (cells) and all those on the ground floor have two rooms. Those on the first floor have small balconies. Such balconies were never before included in the construction of medersas. Its richly decorated facades and special balconies make it a masterpiece of Islamic architecture.

Djouma Mosque

Rebuilt in 1789, this astonishing Friday Mosque consists of a vast space with a flat roof surrounded by a wall, supported by 217 carved elm columns, some of which date back to the 10th, 11th and 12th centuries! The motifs on the shafts and plinths are all different, and it is lit by two skylights.

Tach Khaouli Palace

Residence of the Khans of Khiva until 1880, this palace was built for the sovereign Alla Kouli Khan. It has 260 rooms, some of which are pure marvels.

The palace comprises three courtyards: that of the harem, organised around an inner courtyard lined with summer and winter flats for the Khan and his 4 wives; that of the Ichrat Khaouli (or courtroom) and the courtroom where the khan decided disputes.

The harem flats all follow the same architectural design: a high iwan facing north-west for the summer and an adjoining room for the winter months. The whole complex was decorated in blue and white majolica by the renowned ceramist Abdullah Djinn, who also designed the Ark Palace. The harem courtyard is divided into five iwans lined with blue ceramic tiles, where the four official wives and the khan lived. Each iwan is supported by a slender carved wooden column set on a marble base. Between the wood and the marble, a felt disc prevented the column from slipping in the event of an earthquake. Servants, concubines and slaves lived in the northern part of the harem.

Night stroll in Khiva

In the warmth of the evening, after tasting "plov", a rich national dish (rice, sesame oil, yellow carrots, onions, chickpeas, spices and fatty pieces of mutton), a digestive walk is in order. This is the time to discover the skilfully illuminated monuments. Freed from its shoppers, the city takes on a magical dimension. The buildings take on an amber hue. It's a languid atmosphere that so many travellers have dreamt of. Tomorrow we leave for Bukhara . An eight-hour drive between the Kyzylkoum desert (black sands) and the Amou-Daria river and its cotton fields. Time for a rest!

Text and Photos : Brigitte Postel