Siege of Samarkand
Siege of Samarkand was a siege conducted in 1220 at Samarkand, in what is now Uzbekistan. It was part of Mongol invasions and conquests, which ran from 1206 to 1337. The recorded result: Mongol victory. Recorded strength: 50,000 troops against 30,000 Qanquli troops, 50,000 local forces, 20 war elephants.
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Stork nests on Tupchiboshi (Тупчибоши) madrasa in Bukhara. Early color photograph from Russia, created by Sergei Mikhailovich Prokudin-Gorskii as part of his work to document the Russian Empire from 1. Sergei Mikhailovich Prokudin-Gorskii, digital rendering by Natalia Anatolevna Pekova, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons .
Fought 1220
Where Samarkand, Uzbekistan 39.654N, 66.960E
Outcome Mongol victory
Belligerents Mongol Empire against Khwarazmian Empire
Casualties and losses Unknown and 2,500,000 killed (Claim by Ata-Malik Juvayni; exaggerated)
Where it sits in Mongol invasions and conquests Irghiz River skirmish, 1209 Mongol invasion of Khwarazmian Empire and Eastern Iran, 1219 Mongol invasion of Persia and Mesopotamia, 1219 Otrar Catastrophe, 1219 Siege of Samarkand, 1220 Mongol invasion of Khorasan, 1220 Mongol invasions of Azerbaijan, 1220 Siege of Khujand, 1220 Mongol invasion of Alania, 1220 Siege of of Ray, 1220 Siege of Bukhara (1220), 1220 Siege of Gurganj, 1220 Siege of Nishapur, 1220 Battle of Parwan, 1221 Siege of Taliqan, 1221 Siege of Herat, 1221 Siege of Termez, 1221 Siege of Ustunavand, 1221 Sack of Balkh, 1221 Siege of Merv, 1221 Siege of Jand, 1221 Siege of Bamyan, 1221 Battle of Indus, 1221 Mongol invasions of India, 1221 Siege of Ghazni, 1222 Mongol invasion of Europe, 1223 Battle of Gorgan, 1223 Battle of the Kalka River, 1223 Siege of Isfahan, 1228 Mongol invasions of Korea, 1231 Battle of Amid, 1231 Siege of Bilär, 1236 Sack of Erbil, 1236 Siege of Kolomna, 1236 Siege of Ryazan (1237), 1237 Mongol invasion of Circassia, 1237 Siege of Vladimir, 1238 Siege of Kozelsk, 1238 Battle of the Sit River, 1238 Siege of Kyiv, 1240 Sack of Kraków, 1241 Battle of Tursko, 1241 Battle of Tarczek, 1241 Sacking of Sandomierz (1241), 1241 Battle of Racibórz, 1241 Battle of Opole, 1241 Battle of Chmielnik, 1241 Mongol incursions in the Holy Roman Empire, 1241 Battle of Legnica, 1241 Battle of Mohi, 1241 Siege of Esztergom (1241), 1241 Battle of Grobnik field, 1242 Mongol invasion of the Latin Empire, 1242 First Mongol invasion of Hungary, 1242 Mongol campaign against the Nizaris, 1253 Siege of Gerdkuh, 1253 Siege of Maymun-Diz, 1256 Siege of Alamut, 1256 Siege of Lambsar, 1256 Siege of Erbil (1258), 1258 Siege of Baghdad, 1258 Mongol invasions of the Levant, 1260 Sack of Sandomierz, 1260 Mongol invasion of Byzantine Thrace, 1263 Mongol invasions of Sakhalin, 1264 Kublai Khan's Campaigns, 1266 Mongol invasions of Japan, 1274 Battle of the Maritsa river, 1284 Battle of Beas River, 1285 Third Mongol invasion of Poland, 1287 Battle of Kili, 1299 Chem River Battle, 1300 Second Mongol invasion of Burma, 1301 Mongol invasion of Byzantine Thrace, 1324 Battle of Kulikovo, 1380 1209 1380 Siege of Samarkand, 1220 77 placed engagements of Mongol invasions and conquests in time order; taller ticks are more widely documented. Each tick is a link.
Record
Date 1220 (year precision) Place Samarkand, Uzbekistan39.654N, 66.960E Kind Siege, medieval Strength 50,000 troops 30,000 Qanquli troops, 50,000 local forces, 20 war elephants Casualties and losses Unknown 2,500,000 killed (Claim by Ata-Malik Juvayni; exaggerated) Commanders
Siege of Samarkand Siege of Samarkand Siege of Samarkand Siege of Samarkand Siege of Samarkand Siege of Samarkand Battle of Qatwan Siege of Samarkand Battle of Qatwan Dushanbe Shahrisabz Qarshi Jizzax Navoi Uroteppa Kattaqorgon Urgut 100 km 39.654N, 66.960E The recorded site, with the nearest other engagements in the atlas. Present-day coastlines, rivers and borders; towns from Natural Earth.
Nearest engagements
Contested ground: this site was fought over 5 times between 1220 and 1868.
Siege of Samarkand is one of 629 engagements of the 13th century in the atlas and one of 41 in present-day Uzbekistan.
Sources
Identity, coordinates, dates and the war from Wikidata Q7510363 , released under CC0. Result, belligerents, commanders, strength and casualties from the infobox of the English Wikipedia article Siege of Samarkand (1220) , revision 1382470633, read 2026-11-14, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0; the article's text is not reproduced here. Present-day country and state from Natural Earth. Dates before 1582 follow the Julian calendar as recorded.
