The situation in Central Asia in the 10th century
In the VIII—IX centuries, the most powerful state in the Middle East was the Abbasid Caliphate. In Central Asia, Transoxiana and Khorasan were ruled by Persian governors of the Caliph.
The governors founded their own dynasties, which formally obeyed the Abbasids. These were the Tahirids, Safarids and Samanids.
By the end of the 10th century, the most powerful among them was the Samanid state with its capital in Bukhara.
It was a full-fledged state with all the attributes of power and public administration (sofas): the sofa of the vizier, the sofa of the mustafi (treasurer), the sofa of the «pillars of the state» («sofa of official documents»), the sofa of the supreme military chief, the sofa of the head of the post office, the sofa of mukhtasib (police), the sofa of mushrifov (secret police), the sofa state property, the sofa of the waqfs, the sofa of the judges.
Agriculture and handicraft production are well developed in the Samanid state. Silk and cotton fabrics of the Zeravshan valley, metal products, especially weapons produced in Ferghana, and Samarkand paper were bought from them. The latter has become the main writing material in the Middle East. The Samanids produced everything that was in the world at that time. They were a trading hub through which trade between China and the West, the settled and nomadic world, passed.
Since the middle of the 10th century, the Turkic state of the Ghaznavids has been strengthening in Central Asia. They came from the Samanid governors of Ghazna (in modern Afghanistan). By 994, the Samanids had actually passed into the hands of the Ghaznavids (as vassals) all the territories of modern Afghanistan.
There was also a strong Turkic Karakhanid state in Semirechye and East Turkestan. It was headed by one of the Uighur clans of the Yagma, who conquered the local Karluks (Chigili). It was the population of the Karakhanid state that became the first to call themselves Turks.
Having strengthened, in 999 the Karakhanids captured Bukhara and deposed the Samanids. Taking advantage of this, the Ghaznavids captured Khorasan, the pearl of Central Asia.
Now the Karakhanids and Ghaznavids were separated only by the Amu Darya. As a guarantor of peace, the Karakhanid Bugra Khan married his daughter to the ruler of the Ghaznavids, Mahmud.
The Ghaznavid Mahmud took advantage of the peace to strengthen the state and the army. All Samanid officials were left in place, whose activities were closely monitored by the secret police. If an official stole or did not work well with citizens’ appeals, he simply disappeared, his property was confiscated.
The army was divided into Ghulam mercenaries (Turks) and Hindu mercenaries (infantry). In addition, the Hindu corps included detachments of Arabs and Kurds. There are also 1,030 elephants in the Ghazni army.
In 1006, the Karakhanids crossed the Amu Darya and captured Khorasan. Mahmoud knocked them out. In 1008, the Karakhanid ruler Nasr once again tried to capture Khorasan, but in the battle the war elephants overturned the mounted militia of the Karakhanids. Most of the troops were destroyed.
The Ghaznavids’ neighbor was the Iranian state of the Buyids (935-1055). Its ruling dynasty originated from the Dalem region on the southern coast of the Caspian Sea. In 955, the Shiite Buyids captured Baghdad and deprived the caliph of secular power. For 100 years, the Buyids were the de facto rulers in the Abbasid Caliphate.
