The Battle of Geok Tepe (1879) occurred in 1879 during the Russian conquest of Central Asia. In the 19th century the Russians tried to capture the area of the Turkmens. A Russian army under command of general Lomakin besieged the Turkmen fortress of Geok Tepe. The Akhal Teke Turkmens managed to repel the Russian assault causing the Russians to retreat, but eventually the Russian returned two years later, captured Geok Tepe and massacred most of the Turkmen population.