Andijan Uzbekistan, Silk Road

Uzbekistan marks the third modern-day country on this journey, where caravans once passed through Andijan, Kokand, Samarkand, and Bukhara along the ancient Silk Road route, leaving behind some of the most incredible Islamic architecture. The country is bordered by Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, and Kyrgyzstan, making it one of only two double landlocked countries in the world—meaning it is surrounded entirely by other landlocked nations. The other such country is Liechtenstein in Europe. 

Uzbekistan has a varied landscape, with large deserts like the Kyzylkum Desert in the north, the second largest in Central Asia, mountains in the east that are prone to earthquakes, and the fertile Fergana Valley, which is watered by the Syr Darya river. 

The city of Andijan sits within the fertile Fergana Valley and has long been historically linked to agriculture. The region is known for cultivating cotton, silk cocoons, grains, and fruit trees such as apricots, peaches, and grapes. Its rich soil and irrigation systems, fed by rivers from surrounding mountains, made it an ideal location for farming. Archaeological evidence shows that Andijan is over 2,500 years old, making it one of the oldest cities in Central Asia. 

The region around Andijan was controlled by many powerful empires, beginning with the Persian Empire, which ruled in the early centuries BCE, until Alexander the Great's conquest in the 3rd century BCE and the rise of the Greco-Bactrian Kingdom, when Greek culture spread across Central Asia. Over the centuries, further empires like the Kushans and Sassanids took control until the city became part of the Arab Caliphate during the Islamic conquest in the 8th century. By the 10th century, the Samanid Empire had taken control, and the area was transformed into a centre of Islamic culture.

A notable figure from Andijan is Zahīr ud-Dīn Muhammad Bābur. Born in 1483, toward the end of the overland Silk Road era, Bābur was a descendant of Timur (14th-century founder of the Timurind Empire) on his father's side and Genghis Khan (13th-century founder of the Mongol Empire) on his mother's side. Babur was a statesman, poet, and author renowned for his memoir, the Baburnama, which recounts his exploits as a minor ruler of Fergana who twice attempted to capture Samarkand but failed. Setting his sights further afield, Babur conquered Kabul in present-day Afghanistan and later invaded northwestern India. He founded the Mughal Empire there, which his descendants expanded over 300 years of rule. They became famous for their prolific constructions and the development of Mughal architecture, such as the Taj Mahal in Agra and the Red Fort in Delhi.