Russian Satellite Discovers Volga Bulgaria's Khan Palace

Society » ARCHAEOLOGY | June 25, 2009, Thursday // 13:07
Russian Satellite Discovers Volga Bulgaria's Khan Palace: Russian Satellite Discovers Volga Bulgaria's Khan Palace Today, both the Republics of Tatarstan and Chuvashia are considered to be descendants of Volga Bulgaria. Photo by images.ibox.bg

The presumable location of the Khan palace in the capital of the ancient Volga Bulgaria State has been discovered with the help of a Russian satellite.

The news was reported for the Russian information agency ITAR-TASS by the Constructor in Chief of the Rocket-Space center in the Russian city of Samara, Ravil Ahmetov.

Ahmetov said the palace's remains have been located in the historical reserve "Ancient Bolghar" with special technology used to decode the satellite data.

The "Ancient Bolghar", was the capital of Volga Bolgaria also known as Volga-Kama Bolghar for several centuries. Volga-Kama Bolghar, is a historic Bulgar state that existed between the seventh and thirteenth centuries around the confluence of the Volga and Kama rivers in what is now Russia.

It is believed that the State was founded in 660 by Khan Kotrag, on of the sons of Khan Kubrat.

Most scholars agree that the Volga Bulgars were subject to the great Khazarian Empire. Sometime in the late 9th century unification processes started, and the capital was established at Bolghar (also spelled Bulgar) city, 160 km south from modern Kazan. Most scholars doubt, however, that the state could assert independence from the Khazars until the latter were annihilated by Svyatoslav of Rus in 965.

Islam was adopted as the state religion in the early tenth century. Commanding the Volga River in its middle course, the state controlled much of trade between Europe and Asia prior to the Crusades (which made other trade routes practicable). The capital, Bolghar, was a thriving city, rivaling in size and wealth with the greatest centres of the Islamic world.

In September 1223 near Samara an advance guard of Genghis Khan's army under command of Uran, son of Subutai Bahadur, entered Volga Bulgaria but was defeated in the battle of Samara Bend. In 1236, the Mongols returned but it took them five years to subjugate the whole country which at that time was suffering from internal war.

Today, both the Republics of Tatarstan and Chuvashia, which are on the territory of the Russian Federation, are considered to be descendants of Volga Bulgaria. People of Tatarstan do not accept to be called Tatars and indentify themselves as Bulgarians

 

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Tags: Khan palace, Volga Bulgaria, Russia, satellite

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