Bakhchysarai is a town in central Crimea and the former capital of the Crimean Khanate. First mentioned in 1502, Bakhchysarai's name means "garden palace", and Khan Sahib I Giray established his residence at Bakhchysarai in 1532, becoming the capital of the Crimean Khanate and the center of Crimean Tatar culture. In 1737, the Russian general Burkhard Christoph von Muennich burned down Bakhchysarai, which was annexed by the Russian Empire in 1783, returning to being a normal town. During the Crimean War, Bakhchysarai served as a hospital town for wounded Imperial Russian Army soldiers, and the 1854 Battle of the Alma was fought nearby. On 18 May 1944, during World War II, the Soviets began their deportation of the Crimean Tatars in Bakhchysarai, accusing them of collaborating with the Axis Powers. The Tatars were unable to return until 1989, when the Soviet policies were relaxed. By 2011, Bakhchysarai had a population of 26,215 people.
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