a city of Tartary, in Asia, and capital of Great Bukharia, situated one day's journey to the north of the river Jehun, or Amu; in E. Long. 65. 50. N. Lat. 39. 15. In 1219 it was besieged by Jenghiz Khan, as being part of Sultan Mohammed's dominions, a descendant of the famous Mahmud Gazni. At that time, besides the city-walls, which were very strong, Bokhara had an outward enclosure 12 leagues in compass; which that in not only the suburbs, but also many pleasant seats and farms watered by the river Soghd, from whence the ancient Sogdiana took its name. The Mogul army arrived before the place in July, and continued the siege during the following winter. In March 1220, they forced the outer wall, and began to besiege the city in form. Sultan Mohammed had left in the city a very numerous garrison under the command of three generals, who made a sally at the head of 20,000 men: but being repelled with great loss, their courage failed them; and, instead of staying to defend the inhabitants, as soon as they had got into the city by one gate, passed out by another with their families, and almost all their soldiers, hoping to escape by the darkness of the night; but their design being discovered, they were pursued by a detachment of 30,000 Moguls; and being overtaken at the river Amu, they were, after a bloody dispute, almost all cut to pieces. Mean time, Jenghiz Khan, being informed of the confusion into which the city had been thrown by the desertion of the garrison, ordered an attack to be made on all sides at once; but while he was preparing for this, the magistrates and clergy went out and presented him with the keys of the city. Jenghiz Khan granted them their lives, on condition that they gave no shelter to any of the sultan's soldiers, and put out all who should be suspected of being in that prince's interest; which they promised to do upon oath. All the young people, however, who were displeased with the surrender, retired with the governor to the castle, which was very strong, and resolved to defend themselves to the last extremity. Jenghiz Khan having taken possession of Bokhara, entered on horseback into the great mosque, and asked merrily if that was the sultan's palace? On being answered that it was the house of God, he alighted; and giving the principal magistrate his horse to hold, mounted the gallery where the ecclesiastics usually sat, and then taking up the Koran, threw it under the feet of his horses. Having stayed there for some time, he retired to his camp; where, some days after, having assembled the principal people of Bokhara, and ascended a pulpit erected for that purpose in the midst of them, he began his speech by praising God, and recounted all the favours he had received from the Almighty: he then mentioned the perfidious behaviour of their sultan towards himself, telling them that God had sent him, to rid the world of such wicked men. As to them, he testified his satisfaction for their having freely furnished his army with necessaries; and promised that his soldiers should not meddle with any goods which they made use of in their houses; but commanded them to deliver up what they had hidden, under pain of being tortured. This speech had such an effect, that the poor inhabitants delivered up every thing, as well what they had concealed as what they had present use for; notwithstanding which, the tyrant soon after caused the city to be burnt, on pretence that some of the sultan's soldiers were concealed in it. As all the houses were made of wood, except the sultan's palace which was built of stone, and some few private houses of brick, the whole was utterly consumed; and Jenghiz Khan having found some few soldiers that had actually concealed themselves, put them all to death without mercy. The castle surrendered at discretion soon after; and though it was demolished, the governor and garrison, out of a very extraordinary piece of clemency from so bloody a tyrant, had their lives spared. Bokhara continued in ruins for some years, but at length Jenghiz Khan ordered it to be rebuilt. It is now large and populous; and is the residence of a khan who is altogether despotic, though his power reaches but a little BOL little way without the city. The town is seated on a rising ground, with a slender wall of earth and a dry ditch. The houses are low, built mostly of mud: but the caravanseras and mosques, which are numerous, are all of brick. The bazars or market-places, which have been stately buildings, are now mostly in ruins. The inhabitants are more civilized and polite than some of their neighbours; and yet are cowardly, cruel, effeminate, and very perfidious. Great numbers of Jews and Arabians frequent this place, though they are much oppressed, and frequently deprived of all their properties by the khan or his attendants at pleasure. At best they pay heavy taxes, and it is almost criminal to be rich.