Dimishk

Dimishk was a village near Samarkand, founded by Timur and named after Damascus. It stood west of the great city, near the remains of an older outer wall. Its name belonged to a group of villages around Timur's capital that recalled famous cities elsewhere in the Islamic world.

In October 1449 Dimishk became the setting for a struggle within the Timurid dynasty. Ulugh Beg, ruler of Samarkand and a noted astronomer, faced the army of his son Abd al-Latif near the village. Ulugh Beg's forces were defeated, and the victory opened the way for his son's seizure of power. The encounter brought a violent end to Ulugh Beg's rule after years in which his court had supported scholarship as well as government.