DIA AfghanHistory

Directorate for Human Capital
History of Afghanistan
Instructor: Tim Hollifield, LTC (Ret’d)
This presentation is Unclassified

"Remnant of an Army" (1879) by Victorian artist Elizabeth Southerden Thompson, Lady Butler (Nov 1846 – Oct 1933)
3
Four “Founding Fathers”

Learning Objectives
TLO: Participants will be able to identify key events,
civilizations, empires, and personalities in Afghanistan’s
history and explain how each have shaped Afghanistan
today
ELO 1.1 Identify key historical events and personalities

from early civilization to the “Great Game” in the 19th
century and explain the significance and legacy of each
ELO 1.2 Identify key historical events and personalities

in the 20th to the 21st century and explain the significance
and legacy of each
The Graveyard of Empires?

Afghanistan’s History: Key Themes

 A crossroads, roundabout, fulcrum, crucible,
battleground & buffer-zone for civilizations & nations
 Center & periphery of empires & world powers
 Both “cradle” & “graveyard” of empires
 Geography is Destiny: Likely will remain arena for the

“Great Game” between regional or world powers
 Kabul & Provinces (Markhaz-i Hukumat va Yaghistan)

Equilibrium not Stability
 Last 50 years: Unrelenting violence, political

instability, & social disruption (PTSD)
PRE-MODERN
HISTORY
Where 3 Worlds Overlap

 Crisscrossed by invaders, raiders, missionaries, &
traders for millennium
 Bridge & “melting pot” for

civilizations & religions
 Often seen as remote

frontier to be exploited
or ignored
 Epicenter of “Turko-
Persianate” World
9
Afghanistan: Pre-Islamic Empires or Dynasties

Empire / Dynasty / Origin / Era and Duration Areas of Control or
Conquest Civilization Influence
Indo-European / Aryan Central Asian 2000 - 500 BC (2,500 yrs) North and West
Achaemenid Empire Persian 550 - 334 BC (300 yrs) All
Alexander the Great Hellenic / Persian 334 - 330 BC (4 yrs) All
Seleucid and Greco- Hellenic / Persian 312 - 63 BC and (310 yrs) North and West
Bactrian Empires 256 BC - 10 AD
Mauryan Empire Indian 321 - 185 BC (250 yrs) South and East
Indo-Parthian and Indo- Central Asia / 12 BC - 100 AD (110 yrs) All
Scythian (Saka) Persian
Kushan Empire Central Asia / 60 - 375 AD (315 yrs) All
Turkic
Hephthalite (Huns) and Central Asia / 420 - 567 AD and (250 yrs) North and East
Tokharan Satrapi Turkic 567 - 650 AD
Sassanid Empire Persian 224 - 651 AD (375 yrs) South and West
Hindu (Kabul) Shahi Central Asian / 565 - 1026 AD (525 yrs) Kabul and East
Turkic and Indian
Timeline: Early History of Afghanistan

Pre-Islamic Dynasties 100 CE
Hindu Islamic Dynasties
Central Asia Turko- Shahi
Mongol Invasions begin
Durrani
Turkic Dynasty
BCE CE Shahi
332 BCE Seljuk Hotaki
Invasion by
Hephthalites Dynasty
Turks
Alexander the Great ( White Huns )
Safavid
Scythians ( Saka) Yuezhi ( Kushans )
Samanids Empire
Graeco- Sassanid Empire Timurids

3000 – 1500 BCE Saffarids Ghorids
Aryans Cross Oxus Bactrian
into Afghanistan and Kingdoms
South Asia
Umayyad Ghaznavid Moghul
Seleucids Caliphate Empire Empire
Achaemenid 652 CE
Empire Arab Invasions begin
Mauryan
Dynasty Greek Paganism Nestorian Christianity
1219 CE
Hinduism and Buddhism Genghis Khan’s
Mongol Invasion
Aryan Vedic Religion and Zoroastrianism Islam
1500 … 600 500 400 300 200 100 0 100 200 300 400 500 600 700 800 900 1000 1100 1200 1300 1400 1500 1600 1700 1800
Legacy
Zardushti (Zoroastrianism)
- Persian solar calendar
 6000-1000 BC -- Prophet Zoroaster (b. in and Nowruz (New Year)
holiday
Balkh) modified Indo-Aryan polytheism into
ethical system of dualist monotheism - Along with RgVeda,
Avesta is oldest liturgical-
 Believed to have influenced Judaism, historical scriptures
Christianity and Islam…priests known as
- Heavily influenced
“Magi” (“Three Wise Men”) Persian culture and
nearly all world religions,
 First religion to introduce concepts of: esp. in eschatology
 Duality of Good vs. Evil
- Main symbol: fravashi
 Afterlife with Heaven and Hell aka faravahar (“guardian
 Mankind's free choice spirit”)
 Possible salvation through belief
 Messianic redemption; final judgment
“Good Thoughts, Good Words, and Good Deeds”

Achaemenid Empire (550 - 330 BC)
3 Famous Kings
Khoryush (Cyrus the Great) Shahanshah

Daryush (Darius) III
d. 530 BC 380 – 330 BC
Daryush (Darius the Great)

d. 486 BC
Khashayar (Xerses)
d. 465 BC
Sikander III: Three Major Campaigns (334 - 326 BC)
OP Noble Anvil OP Desert Storm OP Enduring Freedom

Sikander’s Afghan Campaign
Recognize the
hat?
4th and 3rd Century
BC terracotta
statues depicting
Macedonians
wearing the kausia
Left: Boy wearing a cloak and a
kausia (Macedonian cap);
Terracotta, made in Athens, ca.
300 BC / British Museum
Right: Young man wearing

clock, long shirt, and kausia;
Terracotta, made in Macedonian
ca. 400BC / München Museum
18
Timeline: Early History of Afghanistan

Pre-Islamic Dynasties 100 CE
Hindu Islamic Dynasties
Central Asia Turko- Shahi
Mongol Invasions begin
Durrani
Turkic Abbasid Dynasty
BCE CE Shahi Caliphate
332 BCE Hotaki

Invasion by
Hephthalites Seljuk Dynasty
Alexander the Great ( White Huns ) Turks
Safavid
Scythians ( Saka) Yuezhi ( Kushans )
Samanids Empire
Graeco- Sassanid Empire Timurids

3000 – 1500 BCE Saffarids Ghorids
Aryans Cross Oxus Bactrian
into Afghanistan and Kingdoms
South Asia
Umayyad Ghaznavid Moghul
Seleucids Caliphate Empire Empire
Achaemenid 652 CE
Empire Arab Invasions begin
Mauryan
Dynasty Greek Paganism Nestorian Christianity
1219 CE
Hinduism and Buddhism Genghis Khan’s
Mongol Invasion
Aryan Vedic Religion and Zoroastrianism Islam
1500 … 600 500 400 300 200 100 0 100 200 300 400 500 600 700 800 900 1000 1100 1200 1300 1400 1500 1600 1700 1800
The Arab Conquests & Advance of Islam

The Advance of Islam
21
The Advance of Islam

The Advanced of Islam
23
The Caliphate (660 – 850 AD)

 Arab-Islamic Empire ruled by caliph under two
successive dynasties
 Umayyads (650 – 750 AD) - Damascus
 Abbasids (750 – 850 AD) - Baghdad
 Umayyads distant relatives of 3rd Caliph

Uthman; former governors of Syria &
Palestine
 Abbasids legitimacy based on blood

ties to Prophet’s family (distant Uncle);
raised army in Khorasan (Persia,
Afghanistan, and Central Asia)
Islamic Conquest of Afghanistan(700-900 AD)

 First Arab presence 650-670;
fought with Turks, Huns, Chinese
(Tang Dynasty) and Tibetans
 Arab Conquest begun during

Umayyad; completed during
Abbasid Caliphate (c. 850)
 Sufi orders: Large role in conversion; allowed

accommodation of other cultural and religious rites
and practices
 Afghans predominately Buddhist, Zoroastrian,

Manichaean, Hindu, and Pagan until c. 997;
many Nestorian Christians and Jews until 14th cent.
Rise of Regional Dynasties (850 – 1050)

 Abbasids retained power until 1258, but political
authority dissolves in late 800’s
 Caliph’s authority becomes more symbolic than political
 Regional sultans (“those who hold power”) and emirs
(“commanders”) emerge as power of caliphate erodes
 Regionally based Islamic states (empires) emerge

 819 AD: Persian Saminids, later Saffarids form Emirates in C. Asia
 963 AD: Turkish Mamluks form Ghaznavid, Ghorid, Delhi Sultanate
 966 AD: Ismai’li Mamluks (later Imami Shi’a) take over Cairo; rule
Egypt and Syria as Fatamid dynasty
Mamluks and Ghilman (Soldier-Slaves)

 Islamic Empire expanded rapidly; by 10th
Century Arabs no longer able to from large
armies
 Caliphate imported slave-boys from Central

Asian Turks (or Caucasus and Balkans)
 Mamluks (“owned”) trained as soldiers,

cavalrymen, and elite guards; soon
seized power and formed own dynasties
and empires
 Also called Ghilman (singular, ghulam)

reference to young male servants in
paradise (counterpart of female houris); aka
janissaries (“new soldiers” ) in Ottoman Empire
Ghaznavid Sultanate (962 – 1151 AD)

 Mamluk (Turkish) Dynasty; former soldier-
slaves of Samanid Emirate (819 – 999 AD)
 Established capital in Ghazni
Sebüktigen, founder of Ghaznavid Empire, r. 962 - 998 AD
 First Central Asia Islamic dynasty to raid deep into

South Asia (Pakistan and India)
 Campaigns into India (Hindu temples / idols destroyed,

treasures plundered) empire’s economic engine
 Sebüktigen’s son, Mamud of Ghazni (962 – 1030 AD)

regarded as “ghazi” and nat’l hero by PAK and AFG
Ghazni, c. 1000 AD
Ghaznavid Empire (c. 1030 AD)
Mahmud of Ghazni
(971- 1030 CE)
Mongol Rule (1220-1332)

 Chinggiz Khan destroys Khwarizm
(Uzbek) Empire by 1221
 Chinggiz personally leads destruction

of Balkh, Herat, Bamiyan, and Ghazni
 Dies 1227; Empire divided by 4 sons
Legacy
- Descendants of Mongol Hordes: 8% of males in Asia;
Hazara, Aimaq, and others
- Title of “khan” and chai sabs (Green Tea)
- Possible destruction of ancient karez (irrigation) network:

contributes to desertification of region
Mongol Empire (c. 1206 - 1294 AD)

Borders of the Mongol
Empire from founding
by Genghis Khan in
1206, Genghis Khan's
death in 1227 to the
rule of Kublai Khan
(1260–1294)
Mongol Empire
By 1294 the empire had

split into:
Golden Horde
Chagatai Khanate
Ilkhanate
Yuan Dynasty
(Great Khanate)
Ilkhanate and Chagatai Khanate (1294 - 1369)

 Chagatai (2nd son) controls Central
Asia and Eastern Afghanistan
 Ilkhanate (founded by grandson,

Hulagu) controls Iraq, Persia, and
Western Afghanistan
Hulagu and Christian wife Dokuz
 Many Mongols Kathun (14th Cent.) from Rachid
Ad-Din’s “History of the World”
convert to Shi’a
Islam in 1300s
Mongol Khanates (c. 1300 AD)

Timur-e lang (r. 1366 – 1404 AD)

 Persian-speaking Sunni Warlord;
Turko-Mongol (Barlas-Chagatai)
descent from Central Asia
 At 60 yrs of age conquered:

 Central Asia, Persia, and Iraq
 Afghanistan-Pakistan; raided India
 Portions of Middle East, Caucasus
 Responsible for > 17 million

deaths; slew 90,000 during
attack on Baghdad
 His trademark: Skull pillars

Timurid Empire (1370 – 1526 AD)

“Gunpowder Empires” (1528 - 1700)

 External invasions and internal threats lead to fall of
existing states; ---
rise of powerful new
“Gunpowder Empires”
 Ottomans (Turkey)
 Safavids (Persia)
 Mughals (India)
Hotaki (Ghilzai) Dynasty (1709 - 1738)

 1400s: Ghilzai ruled Delhi Sultanate badshahgardi
(~“ruler-turning”)
 Founder: Mirwais Khan Hotaki feuds over
(r. 1709 – 1715) dynastic succession
 Revolts against & defeats Safavid armies
 Rules greater Kandahar w/ Mughal support
 Remembered as Naika
 Mir Mahmud (son of Mirwais)

(r. 1715 – 1725)
 Sacks Isfahan in 1722
 Declares himself “Shah of Persia”
 Mentally unstable, badshagardi exploited
by Abdali Pashtuns Haji Mirwais Khan Hotak
(1673-1715)
Four “Founding Fathers”

Ahmad Khan Abdali (Durrani)

 1740: Abdalis join Nadir Shah
 Raid Mughal Delhi
 Seize Peacock Throne and
Koh-i Noor Diamond
 Young Ahmad Khan dubbed

Durr-i Durrani (“pearl-of-pearls”)
 “Favored” by Nadir Shah
 Wore looted pearl earring
 Served as Nadir Shah’s Actor Lee Marvin as

villainous silver-nosed
commander of elite Calvary Gunslinger “Tim Strawn”
in Columbia Pictures film
 Half of nose lost from shrapnel Cat Ballou (1965)
 Turned gangrenous
 Wore Silver Nose
Timeline: Rise of the Durrani

 1722 - 30: Ghilzai-Hotaki conquest
of Iran allows the Abdali to seize
Herat and Kandahar
 1729: Nadir Shah defeats Ghilzai
 1740: Abdalis join Nadir Shah
 1747: Nadir Shah killed by own

troops
 4,000 Abdalis flee for Kandahar with Malang Sabir Khan places wheat in
booty (to include Koh-I Noor Diamond) Ahmad Shah’s turban during
1747 Loya Jirga, Kandahar
 Loya Jirga held by tribal leaders,

Ahmad Abdali declared “King”
Rise of the Durrani “Empire”

 1747- 48: As “King” of Afghanistan, Ahmad Shah Durrani
captures Ghazni from Ghilzai, then takes Kabul
 1749: Turns towards India;

Mughal ruler cedes Punjab,
Sindh, and Kashmir
 1757: Ahmad Shah controls

all of Afghanistan Persia
 Mahrati and Sikhs challenge
hold on Indian territories India
 1761 Battle of Panipat;
victory for Ahmad Shah but
zenith of power Lands under control of Ahmad Shah Durrani, c. 1760
Peak Expansion of the Durrani Empire

North America (Mid-Late 1700s)
47
Durrani Empire Disintegrates

 Ahmad Shah’s son Timur Shah
 Moves capital from Kandahar to Kabul
 Has 23 sons; 3 attempt to hold throne
 Early 1800s: Empire fragments into

Durrani-Sadozai fiefdoms Timur Shah
 Fight centers on “Kingdom of Caubool” r. 1773-1793
 10 year Civil War (1818-1826)
 Sons & regions of control

 Muhammad Zaman (Kabul)
 Shah Mahmud (Herat)
Zaman Shah Shah Mahmood Shah Shujah
 Shah Shuja (Peshawar) r. 1793-1801 r. 1801-1804; r. 1804-1809;
1809-1818 1839-1842
49
Rise of Muhammadzai-Barakzai Dynasty

 Dost Mohammad Khan (r. 1826 - 1863)
 1826: Takes throne in Kabul; founds dynasty

(Muhammadzai-Barakzai)
 Mother was Qizilbash, provided Height of

1793 - 1863 additional powerbase “Great Game”
between Britain
 Fought with Ranjit Singh (Sikh and Russia
ruler of Punjab) for control of Peshawar
 1836: Sent letter to Lord Auckland, British

governor general in India, for help with Singh
1825 - 1879  Sher Ali Khan (r. 1863 - 1869) 3rd son /
successor (unsteady relations with British)
Amir Dost Muhammad vs. Maharaja Ranjit Singh

The Great Game (18th - 19th cent.)
When he comes to the Great Game he must go alone --- alone,

and at the peril of his head…From time to time, God causes men to be
born --- and thou art one of them --- who have a lust to go abroad at the
risk of their lives and discover news --- today it may be far-off things,
tomorrow of some hidden mountain, and the next day of some near-by
men who have done foolishness against the State.
These souls are very few; and of these few, not more than
ten are of the best…We of the Game are beyond protection. If we
die, we die .
Our names are blotted from the book…When everyone is

dead the Great Game is finished. Not before.
“The Great Game”
(19th century)
-- from Kim (1901), by Rudyard Kipling
The term "The Great Game“ attributed to Arthur Conolly (1807–1842), an intelligence officer for British East
India Company, but introduced into mainstream British novelist Rudyard Kipling in his novel Kim (1901).
First Anglo-Afghan War (1838 - 1842)

 Simla Manifesto, Oct 1838
 Convinced Russians planned
to invade India through Kabul
 Trustworthy ally in Kabul
necessary for welfare of India
 “Lord Auckland’s Folly”
 1839: British army takes
Kandahar, Ghazni, Kabul
 Dost Mohammad deposed
 Shuja enthroned (again)
 1842: 16,000 retreat, only a
few survive
 Dost Mohammad returns
 Invasion unmitigated disaster
Auckland’s “Army of the Indus”

FIRST ANGLO-AFGHAN WAR (1838-1839) Invasion Route
Afghanistan under
Amir Sher Ali Khan
Meanwhile back West:
 Mexican-American War
ends (1848)
 Irish Potato Famine Ends
(1845 -1849)
 California Gold Rush
(1848 -1855)
 Second Anglo-Sikh War
(1849)
 Zachary Taylor
becomes12th POTUS
 Crazy Horse, Oglala
Sioux chief born (d. 1877) Afghanistan, 1849
Legacy of 1st Anglo-Afghan War (1838-1842)
“…a war begun for no wise purpose,

carried on with a strange mixture of rashness
and timidity, brought to a close after suffering
and disaster, without much glory attached either
to the government which directed, or the great body of
troops which waged it.
Not one benefit, political or military, was acquired
with this war. Our eventual evacuation of the
country resembled the retreat of an army defeated.”
-- British Army Chaplain Rev. G.R. Gleig, 1843
57
Second Anglo-Afghan War (1878 - 1880)

 Jun 1878: Russian send uninvited
mission; British demand same but refused
 Aug: Britain sends 40,000 man army

under Gen. Frederick “Bobs” Roberts
 Feb 1879: Sher Ali dies in Mazar-e Sharif
 May: Sher Ali son and successor Yaqub

signs Treaty of Gandamak (gives British
control of Afghan foreign affairs)
 Sept: Envoy Sir Louis Cavagnari killed in

riot over unpaid Afghan army wages
 Mar 1880: British Army fights insurrection;

replaces Yaqub with Abdur Rahman, then leaves
Battle of Maiwand
The Battle of Maiwand, 1880, 2nd Anglo-Afghan

War (Great Britain vs. Ayub Khan)
Battle of Maiwand
 Most decisive action of 2nd Anglo-Afghan war; rare
19th-cent victory by Asian force over Western power
 Gen. Burrows force of 2,700 caught in open by Ayub

Khan’s (7 times larger)
 Afghan losses: 2,700 victory by r
 British losses: 1,000
 Humiliating defeat for

British Army / Empire
MODERN HISTORY
Modern History of Afghanistan

and
Impact of Recent Regimes:
Soviet Invasion, Civil War, and the Taliban
Instructor:
Tim Hollifield, LTC (Ret’d)
This presentation is Unclassified
Geography is Destiny…
Czarist Russia
Qajar
Iran
Afghanistan: Modern Dynasties & Regimes
Empire / Dynasty / Conquest Reign or Duration Flag(s)
Mughals (Kabul & Eastern AFG) 1501 - 1738
Safavids (Kandahar & Western AFG) 1510 - 1709
Hotaki Dynasty 1709 - 1738
Afsharids 1738 - 1747
Durrani Empire 1747 - 1826
Muhammadzai - Barakzai Dynasty 1826 - 1973
Tajik Rule (Bacha-e Saqqao) 1929 (Jan - Oct)
Musahiban (Barakzai) Dynasty 1929 - 1973
Republic of Afghanistan (Daoud) 1973 - 1978
Democratic Republic (Communist) 1978 - 1992
Islamic State (Mujahidin) 1992 - 1996
Islamic Emirate (Taliban) 1996 - 2001
Islamic Republic (Karzai) 2001- Present
The “Iron Emir" (r. 1880 -1901)

 Son of Mohammad Afzal (Dost Mohammad’s oldest
son who fought Shir Ali for control of Kabul)
 Calculating, focused despot; used espionage and

force throughout 21 year reign
 Crushed and forcibly converted Shi’a Hazaras

and tribes in Kafiristan (re-named “Nuristan”)
Amir Abdur Rahman
Khan (1844 -1901)
 Suppressed tribal rebellions with
executions, forced deportation Legacy
and relocation; esp. Ghilzai - First to establish Central rule
and Provincial governance
 Accommodated Britain and Russia - Relocation of Pashtuns to North
on foreign affairs and borders but
controlled all domestic policies - Negotiated 1893 “Durand Line”
Kokayty
Chitral
1895-96
Wars in Kafiristan
Bagram
Abdur Rahman
Khan 1891-93
(r. 1880-1901) Shindand
Wars in Hazarajat 1886-88
Pakistan
Wars against Ghilzai
Miramshah
• Abdur Rahman
Wana Khan used force to
centralize state power
• Co-opted and coerced Pashtun tribes in
July-Aug 1881 the South
Revolts in Kandahar,
which were crushed • Reduced autonomy of three groups:
 Eastern Pashtun tribes
 Non-Sunni ethnic groups (Hazara)
Low  Kafiristan / Nuristan
The Durand Line

 Negotiated in 1893 by Sir Mortimer Durand
& representatives of Amir Abdur Rahman
 Cut through tribes and villages with

no regard for realities of topography,
demography, or strategy
Wakhan Corridor
 Created
“How can a smalltopower
establish buffer
like Afghanistan,
Durand Line
whichbetween
is like a goat between
British these
India & lions
[Britain & Czarist Russia], or a grain of wheat
Czarist Russia
between two millstones, stand in the midway
without being ground to dust?”
--- Emir Abdur Rahman Khan
Habibullah Khan (r. 1901-1919)

 Relatively secular, reformist
 Instituted legal reforms
 Eliminated repressive internal
intelligence organization
 Influenced by cousin, Mahmoud

Beg Tarzi, passionate Afghan Amir Habibullah
(1872-1919)
nationalist intellectual
 Published newspaper that
Seraj-al-Akhbar,
agitated for reform Afghanistan’s 1st
Newspaper
 Neutral in World War I
 Assassinated on hunting trip Mahmud Tarzi

(1865 - 1933)
King Amanullah (r. 1919- 1929)

 Third Son of Habibullah
 Controlled national treasury and

army; --- easily seized power
Flag of Afghanistan
after father’s murder (1919-1928)
 Initially gained allegiance of

tribal leaders and ulem’a
 Spent lavishly on secular school Flag of Afghanistan

system, hospitals, radio-stations, Ghazi Shah Amanullah 1928-1929
Khan, 1892 - 1960
and national airline
Legacy
 Declared women liberated; - Secular modernist reformer
banned beards and burkhas - Created first liberal constitution
- Established control over cities
3rd Anglo-Afghan War (May-Aug 1919)

 Sensing Post-WWI fatigue, --- Amanullah
order attacks on British garrisons in
Peshawar, Quetta, and FATA
 Amanullah calls for jihad against British,

Border skirmish lasts ~ 1 month
British BE2C Biplanes, used during
3rd Anglo-Afghan War
 British Indian Army retaliates with
decisive air strikes, infantry, and cavalry
 Tactical victory for British Empire, but

Strategic victory for Amanullah
 Aug 1919: Treaty of Rawalpindi British
relinquish control of Afghanistan’s foreign policy
 Amanullah declared “ghazi” by ulem’a and tribes Afghan Lashkar near Jamrud Fort
near Khyber Pass, 1919
Reform, Reaction, and Abdication

 1921: Established Air Force
 Discouraged veiling and seclusion of

women; abolished slavery and forced
labor
 Introduced secular education (adults

and nomads); National ID cards
 Established legislative assembly
 1929: Abdicated after revolt by tribal

leaders (with ulem’a support)
Tajik Rule (r. Jan - Oct 1929)

 Habibullah Khan seizes Kabul
 AKA bacha-e saqqao (“son of water carrier”)
 Illiterate AWOL soldier and bandit
 Kohistani Tajik from Kalakan (30km N. of Kabul)
 First tajik to rule since 12th cent. Ghorids
 Seizes power with Ghilzai support

 Short 9 month reign
 Repeals all of Amanullah’s reforms & all taxes
(except for zakat) Habibullah Kalankani
(1890 – 1929)
 Pashtun tribes soon chafe under non-Pashtun rule

 Musahiban brothers (Muhammadzai-Barakzai) led by Nadir
Khan (returning from Paris) raise force in Peshawar
Muhammad Nadir Shah (r. 1929-33)

 Reunited fragmented Afghanistan
 Abolished most of Amanullah’s social

reforms
 Gave tacit support for anti-Tajik Pashtun

aggression (Shomali battlefield)
 1931 Loya Jirga; Declared constitutional
monarchy (in reality: royal oligarchy)
 Took steps to modernize Afghanistan
 Great North Road through Hindu Kush
 Started banking system & economic planning Mohammad Nadir
Shah (1883 – 1933)
 Created 40,000-strong Army
Zahir Shah (r. 1933-1973)

 Son of Nadir Shah; witnessed
father’s assassination
 40 year reign; longest and most

stable in Afghanistan’s history
 Last 10 years of reign marked by:

 Economic stagnation
 Tension between educated Afghans

and the establishment (royalty,
tribal leaders, and ulem’a)
 Superpowers vying for influence

Timeline: Zahir Shah’s Rule

 1933: Age 19, assumes throne
 1937: Accepts Turkish assistance to modernize

Army
 1939 - 45: Declares neutrality during WWII
 1947: Pakistan Created; “Pashtunistan” Issue

creates tension
 1955: Afghanistan abstains from Baghdad Pact
 1960s: Soviet Union accelerates outreach
 1964: Constitutional Monarchy declared;

allows for formation of political parties
Once Upon a Time…

Girl-Scouts, Pencil Skirts , and “Mad Men”

Furniture
Daoud Khan’s Republic (r. 1973 – APR 1978)

 Zahir Shah overthrown in 1973 bloodless coup
led by Mohammed Daoud Khan (his cousin and
brother-in-law & former PM )
 Daoud, a modernist reformer, proclaimed

Afghanistan a republic, with himself as president
 Daoud originally backed by

Parcham faction of PDPA
 Promised to introduce progressive,

democratic reforms
 Term increasingly repressive, arrests and

executes former Parchami allies and Islamist
opposition
The “Pashtunistan” Issue

 Idea of independent country or
semi-sovereign region for
Pashtun majority areas
 First political expression:
Ghaffar Khan and Khuda
Khidmatgar in 1940s
 Promoted by Afghan PM
Daoud Khan in 1970s
 Still sensitive sovereignty &
border security issue with
Pakistan
People’s Democratic Party of AFG (PDPA)

 Jan 1965: PDPA founded by Marxist
Afghans
 1966: Split into two factions

 Khalq (“The Masses”) led by Taraki
 Parcham (“Banner”) led by Karmal
PDPA Demonstration in Kabul 1970s;
marchers hold banner for Taraki, later
first Marxist president of Afghanistan
 Khalqi – More militant revolutionary and
Pashtun Nationalist (esp. Ghilzai)
 Parchami – More elitist; advocated

gradualist approach to reform
(nicknamed “royal communist
party”) Nur Muhammad Taraki and Hafizullah Amin Babrak Karmal
(Khalq) (Parcham)
PDPA Factions: Recruitment and Platforms

Khalq (‘The Masses’) Parcham (‘Banner’)
 Leaders:  Leaders:
Nur Moh. Taraki (1978-79) Babrak Karmal (1980 – 86)
Hafizullah Amin (1979) Moh. Najibullah (1986 – 92)
 Mainly Ghilzai Pashtun;  Mainly Durrani or non-Pashtun;

formed majority of PDPA elitist minority of PDPA
 Mostly urban middle-class  Mostly urban civil servants and

intellectuals and rural farmers upper-class intellectuals
 Pro-nationalist but radical;  Advocated moderate socialist

wanted immediate revolution reform led by vanguard of elites
(“Stalinist” or “Trotskyist”) (“Marxist-Leninist”)
Rise of Pan-Islamist Ideology

 Mid-1970s: Organizations estab. to transcend
national boundaries and unite ummah:
 Muslim World League (MWL)
 Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC)
 University of Medina
 Organizations advocated charity not war

 Most staffed by Muslim Brotherhood members
(MB) in exile (from Palestine, Jordan, and Egypt)
 All organizations located in hijaz region of
Saudi Arabia; aka “Wahhabi heartland”
 Most “Afghan Arabs” members of MB or MWL

Muslim Youth Organization (1966 - 1978)

 Sazman-i Jawanan-i Musulman (Organization of
Muslim Youth) strongly influenced by
Ikwan al-Muslimeen (MB)
 1969: Several Kabul University professors and students

found underground Islamist group
 Founding Members: Burhanuddin

Rabbani, Ahmad Shah Massoud,
`Abdul Rasul Sayyaf, and Hekmatyar
 Inspired by Dr. Niazi; but Sibghatullah
Mujaddidi also claims role as founder
Rabbani, Sayyaf, et al. studied at al-Azhar (Cairo)…joined and influenced by MB
The Saur Revolution (April 1978)

 27 April 1978: PDPA overthrows gov’t,
slaughters Daoud and family
 Promises and enforces:

 Freedom of Religion (but
abolishes Islam as state religion)
 Equal Rights for Women
 State Control of Agriculture
 Farmer Debt Relief
 Mujahideen violence increases; large

backlash from ulemāʾ& tribal leaders
 KGB advisors increase; warn of

imminent collapse of DRA gov’t due to
“extremist” factional violence
The Anti-DRA Rebellion Spreads (1979)

 Herat Revolts
 Most of 17th INF DIV joins rebellion
 Soviet Advisors Flee
28 April 1978 attack in Kabul, one

day after Saur (Marxist) Revolution
• Other Desertions & Mutinies

• Kabul: Mech BDE / 7th DIV; INF BDE / 9th DIV
• Units in Jalalabad & Ghazni
Location of uprisings, revolts, • Local civilians in Nuristan & Kabul attack
mutiny, or attack on DRA
government offices / ANSF DRA government offices & ANSF
Democratic Republic of AFG (1978 – 1987)
Nur Muhammad Taraki (04 / 1978 - 1979) Hafizullah Amin (09 / 1979 - 12 / 1979)
Assassinated: Sept 1979 (Suffocation) Assassinated: Dec 1979 (Gun shot)
Babrak Karmal (1980 - 1987)
Replaced by Najibullah 1986 & exiled

to Moscow, died 1996 of Liver Cancer
Mujahideen Tanzim
 May 1985: Seven tanzim (parties)
form alliance; Islamic Unity
of Afghanistan Mujahidin
 Based in Peshawar but each

controls own region in AFG
Tanzim (Party / Faction) Leader
 Most groups Sunni Muslim PDPA Dr. Najibullah
Hezb-e Islami Hekmatyar
and majority Pashtun; only
Jami’at Islami Rabbani
Jamia’t-i-Islami mostly Tajik
Hezb-e Islami Khalis
Nat’l Islamic Front Gailani
 Wahedat alliance based out Islamic Revolution Muhammadi
of Iran; composed of Shi'a Wahedat (Shi’a) Mazari
Panjpiri / Other Groups Various
Afghans (mostly Hazara)
Sparsely Populated N/A
Mujahideen Gruh-e Haftganah

(“Peshawar Seven”)
 Gulbuddin Hekmatyar
 Burhanuddin Rabbani
 Younis Khalis
 Abdurrasul Sayyaf
 Mohammad Nabi Mohammadi
 Pir Sayyid Ahmed Gailani
 Sibghatullah Mojaddedi
Mujahideen Groups and Orientations

Leader Party Supporters Orientation Notes
Gulbuddin Hizb-e Islam Eastern Pashtuns, Pashai, Islamist b. 1947 -

Hekmatyar Nuristanis,(Konar, Nuristani,
Laghman, Kunduz)
Younis Khalis Hizb-e Islam Eastern Pashtuns Islamist 1999 - 2006
Khalis (Nangarhar)
Burhanuddin Jamiat-e Islami Tajiks and Uzbeks (Panjshir Islamist b. 1940 -
Rabbani and Northern Alliance)
Abdul Rasul Ittehad-al Islami KSA, Gulf states, Ikwan al- Islamist b. 1946 -
Sayyaf Muslimeen (Wahhabi)
Mohammad Nabi Harakat-e Eastern and Southern Traditionalist 1920 - 2002

Mohammadi Inqilib-e Islam Pashtuns (Logar) (village-based) &
Islamist
Pir Sayyid Ahmed Mohaz Mille Nationalist/Pro-Democracy Nationalist / b. 1932 -

Gailani Islami Pashtuns, Qadiri tariqat Royalist, pro-West
Sibghatullah Jabhe Mille Nationalist Pashtuns, Nationalist / b. 1926 -

Mojaddedi Nejad Nasqhbandi tariqat Royalist
Soviet Machinations (1979)

 Amin unable to quell uprisings
 Soviets send more KGB, SF

(Spetnaz) & military advisors
 DRA 7th & 8th Div told to unload
ammo “faulty ammo”
 DRA Tank units told to drain fuel &
pull batteries for “winterization”
 Kremlin makes decision to invade

12 Dec 1979
 Attempt to poison Amin 13 & 27 Dec
 28 Dec: Amin “true believer” even

as Soviets storm Taj-Bek Palace
Afghan-Soviet War (Dec 1979 - Feb 1989)

Major Insurgent Groups (in 1982)

Minorities During Afghan-Soviet War

 Many minorities sided with Soviets;
joined PDPA
 Esp, Uzbeks, Hazara, Ismai’liis
 Benefited the most from PDPA land
re-distribution schemes
 Less conservative; inclined towards Rashid Dostum (1982)
(Parcham) Pro-DRA Militia Leader
secularism
 Soviet/DRA outreach to Minorities

 Uzbek-language newspaper
 Promoted minority languages in school
 C. Asia education & culture exchanges
 First Hazara PM & VP; dismissed Sultan Ali Kishtmand

in ‘91 after clashes with Najibullah (Parcham) PM 1981-90, VP 1990-91
“Ghost Wars”: CIA - KSA - ISI Nexus

 Afghan Arabs (and Al Qaeda) reputedly a creation of CIA
 Usual “Blowback” narrative:

 Bin Laden a miscalculated product of CIA
 In 1980s he was armed by CIA and funded by Saudis
to wage jihad against Soviets
 However, Pakistan’s policy was to take money and munitions

but limit American involvement
“It was,…a cardinal rule of Pakistan's policy that no Americans
ever become involved with the distribution of funds or arms once
they arrived in the country. No Americans ever trained or had
direct contact with the mujahideen,…no American official ever
went inside Afghanistan.” -- Pakistani General Ret’d Mohammad Yousaf,
Director of ISI's Afghan operation, 1983 - 1987
The “Afghan Arabs” (1980s – Present)

• Arab (& other) Muslim fighters who
came to help Mujahidin fight Soviets
and Afghan Government forces
• Questionable effectiveness as fighting

force
Afghan and Arab Mujahidin
• Within Muslim / Arab world attained cross Pakistan Border to

fight Anti-Soviet Jihad, 1985
hero-status for role in defeat of
atheist superpower
• Many stayed and married local Pashtun women; formed

strong bonds with tribes in FATA, RC East/South
Shaikh Abdullah Yusuf Azzam

Graduate of al-Azhar University (Cairo)
and member of Muslim Brotherhood
Brilliant writer, organizer, lobbyist
Issued 1979 fatwa “Defense of Muslim
Lands, the First Obligation after Faith”
1981 evicted from Jordan, moved to KSA,
then Pakistan; estab. Maktab al-Khadmat
(“Services Office”)
First volunteers in anti-Soviet Jihad were his
students and associates
Palestinian Shaikh Abdullah Yusuf
Salary at International Islamic University Azzam, 1941-1989
(Islamabad) paid by Muslim World League
"Whoever can, from among the Arabs, fight jihad in Palestine, then he must
start there. And, if he is not capable, then he must set out for Afghanistan"
Charlie Wilson’s War

 U.S. sees conflict as means to weaken the Soviet Union
 1978: Anti-Soviet Propaganda

intensified
 Operation Cyclone: financial

support increases ($20 million
1980 to $630 million in 1987)
 1980s: U.S. authorizes Stinger

MANPADS & PM trainers
 1985-87: Soviets focus on Exit Strategy

Najibullah Regime (1987-1992)

 Sept 1987: Dr. Muhammad
Najibullah Ahmadzai replaces
Pres. Karmal
 Becomes 4th President of DRA
 Effective manager
 Charismatic politician-orator
 Ghilzai Pashtun, born in Kabul, family from
Gardez, Paktia
 AKA Najib-e Gaw (“Bull”) for wrestler’s
physique & bullish manner
 1980 - 85: Serves as Min. of

State Security (KHAD)
 Arrested & tortured many Afghans
 Pol-e Kharki Prison becomes more infamous
The Soviet Withdrawal (1988 – 1989)

 Najibullah advocates “National Reconciliation” program
 Feb 1988: Gorbachev

announces Soviet
plan to withdraw
(May 1988- Feb1989)
 Najibullah negotiates
ceasefire w/ Mujahidin
 40% Accept c-fire
 20% Join DRA gov’t
 12% Irreconcilables
 Strategic Pause (87- 89)

100
Afghanistan (1989)
DRA (Najibullah) Control
Hezb-e Islami (Gulbuddin)

Hezb-e Islami (Khalis)
Jamiat-e-Islami
Harakat-e-Inqilib-e-Islami
Ittihad-e-Islami (Sayyaf)
Mahaz-e-Milli
Wahedat; various Shi’a
tanzim
No tanzim or Uninhabited
Aftermath of Soviet War

 Over 1 million Afghans dead
- 1.2 million disabled
- 3 million maimed or wounded
 Afghan refugees & IDPs

- 5 million fled Pakistan & Iran*
- 2 million internally displaced
 Irrigation systems destroyed; livestock killed and forests decimated
 10 - 15 million land mines (mostly hidden) were left in place
 Traditional Afghan culture was pushed aside
 Becomes one of world’s least developed countries (170 of 174)

* Estimated > 3.69 million have returned Afghanistan since 2002 (U.S. CRS & UNHCR, 2009)
Civil War (1989 – 1994)

 1992: Najibullah government finally
collapses; he tries to flee but trapped
on UN compound
 Civil War worsens in Power Vacuum;

ethnic conflict and friction increases
 Former Mujaheddin Commanders

become regional Warlords; battle
and barter for control of Kabul
 Series of Mujaheddin governments

formed but collapse
 Rampant criminality; no system

of redress
Civil War in Kabul (1992 – 1996) Directorate for Human Capital
Mujahidin Factions
Shura-e Nazar (Massoud)
Ittihad-e Islami (Sayyaf)
Junbesh-e Milli (Dostum)
Hizb-e Wahdat (Mazari)
Hizb-e Islami (Hekmatyar)
Rise of the Taliban

 1994: Emerged in Kandahar
 1995: Siege and secure Herat
 1996: Siege and secure Kabul
 1997-98: Attack Mazar-e Sharif Taliban Goals

1. Restore peace
2. Disarm Population
3. Enforce Shari’ah
4. Defend Islamic
character & integrity
of Afghanistan
Afghanistan in 1996
Mazar-e
Sharif
Herat Kabul
Kabul: Taliban drag

Najibullah from UN
Compound, castrate,
drag through streets,
Kandahar and hang 27 Sept 96
The Taliban (1994 – 2001)

 1994: "student militia" appears;
many are former students of Malvi
Muhammad Nabi Muhammadi
 Most raised and trained in

Pakistani Deobandi madaris (esp.
Darul Uloom Haqqania)
 Intention was to impose shari’ah
 Initially welcomed by war-weary

populace for bringing security
 Ruled Afghanistan from 1996-2001;

Fought Northern Alliance until 2001
 “Pariah State” – Only recognized by

Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, and UAE
Timeline: Taliban’s Conquest

 November 1994  September 1996
 Kandahar and Helmand  Taliban take
Provinces Jbad, Abad, &
Kabul
 February 1995
 Push north toward Kabul  May 1997
 Taliban capture Mazar-e Sharif;
but expelled by the end of May
 March 1995
 Taliban move into the
southern districts of Kabul  August 1997
 Repelled by Massoud;  Taliban begin siege of Hazarajat
Taliban effort shifts to the  Block all major roads into region -
west tantamount to a food embargo
 September 1995  August 1998

 Taliban capture Herat  Taliban recapture Mazar-e Sharif
 Ismail Khan retreats to
Iran  September 1999
 Taliban destroy Shomali region
Al Qaeda & Assassination of Massoud

 Taliban and Al-Qaeda
cooperation since at least 1994
 9 Sept 2001: Assassination of

Northern Alliance Leader Ahmad
Shah Massoud (age 48) in
Takhar Province
 AQ assassins from Tunisia

posed as Belgian-Morrocan
journalist
 Pakistan ISI and Abdul Rasul

Sayyaf considered probable
collaborators
Ahmad Shah Massoud (Sept 1953 - 2001)
aka “Lion of Panjshir”
aka “Hero of the Afghan Nation”
Key Events in 2001

-- MARCH
Taliban Destroy
Giant Buddhas
in Bamiyan
09 SEPT --
AQ assassinates Ahmad
Shah Massoud in Panjshir
11 SEPT --
AQ attacks U.S.:
WTC in NYC &
Pentagon in D.C.
-- OCT
U.S./Coalition
Invasion (OEF) begins
NOV --
Northern Alliance & Coalition Forces
push Taliban from MeS, then take Kabul
DEC --
Afghan political groups & power brokers
meet in Bonn, from Interim Gov’t, Choose
Karzai as Chairman
The Bonn Agreement (Dec 2001)

 Prominent Afghans meet under UN auspices in Bonn
 Northern Alliance | Other Regional Power Brokers
 “Peshawar Group” | “Cypress Group”
 “Rome Group”
 Four-step Plan Devised

 Cobble together interim gov’t to
manage country for 6 months
 Convene Loya Jirga to forge 2-year
“transitional gov’t” & elect leader
 During 2-year transition, commission of
learned Afghans will draft new constitution
 Presidential & parliamentary elections
would then be held
Review of Afghan Geography and History

 The Durand Line originally defined the approximate (but
never fully accepted or recognized) border between which
two political entities?
a. Afghanistan and British India
b. Afghanistan and Pakistan
c. Afghanistan and the Federally Administered Tribal Areas
d. Afghanistan and Czarist Russia
 Which phrase best expresses the literal meaning of

Afghanistan?
a. “Land of the Afghans”
b. “ Land of the Believers”
c. “ Land of the Horsemen”
d. “Land of the Hindu Killers”

 Which ethnic group have served as the traditional rulers of
Afghanistan since 1747?
a. Tajiks and Uzbeks
b. Pushtun Ghilzai Confederation
c. Pushtun Durrani Confederation
d. Baluchis
 Who is considered the “Father of the Afghanistan” in modern

history (19th – 20th centuries)?
a. Abdur Rahman Baba, “The Iron Amir”
b. Ahmad Shah Abdali
c. Ghazi Amanullah Shah
d. Khusal Khan Khattak

 The Saur (April) Revolution resulted in a government controlled
by which party?
a. The People’s Democratic Party of Afghanistan (PDPA)
b. The Khalqi (Masses) Faction
c. The Parchami (Banner) Faction
d. All the above
 Which answer best identifies Afghanistan’s 4 largest ethno-

linguistic groups?
a. Nuristanis, Pashai, Turcomans, Aimaq
b. Durrani, Ghilzai, Sarhadi, Ghurghghust
c. Pashtuns, Tajiks, Hazaras, Uzbeks
d. Baluchi, Punjabi, Sindhi, Pathans
QUESTIONS?
115
Fate of Afghan Heads of State (since 19th c.)

Leader Reign Downfall or Death
Amir Abdul Rahman Khan 1880 - 1901 Died naturally in Kabul
(aka “The Iron Amir”)
Amir Habibullah Khan 1901 - 1919 Assassinated
“Ghazi” Amir Amanullah 1919 - 1929 Abdicated and Self-exiled

Khan
Bacha-e Saqqau 1929 - 1930 Deposed and Executed
(Habibullah II aka Kalakani)
(King) Nadir Shah 1930 - 1933 Assassinated
(King) Zahir Shah 1933 - 1973 Deposed (Died from

natural causes 2007)
President Daoud Khan 1973 - 1978 Assassinated
Fate of Afghan Heads of State (since 19th c.)

Leader Reign Downfall or Death
President Noor 1978 – 1979 Assassinated
Mohammad Taraki
President Hafizullah Amin 1979 Assassinated
President Babrak Karmal 1979 – 1986 Deposed (Died of natural

causes 1996)
President Najibullah 1986 - 1992 Deposed (Executed by
Taliban in 1996)
President Sibgatullah 1992 Effectively deposed by
Mujadidi bloodless coup
President Burhanuddin 1992 - 1996 Deposed by Taliban (killed by
Rabbani suicide bomber Sept 2011)
Mullah Omar 1996 - 2002 Deposed (Still alive)
MODERN HISTORY
124
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128
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Directorate for Human Capital

Instructor: Tim Hollifield, LTC (Ret’d)

This presentation is Unclassified

Four “Founding Fathers”

ELO 1.1 Identify key historical events and personalities

ELO 1.2 Identify key historical events and personalities

The Graveyard of Empires?

Afghanistan’s History: Key Themes

 Center & periphery of empires & world powers

 Both “cradle” & “graveyard” of empires

 Geography is Destiny: Likely will remain arena for the

 Kabul & Provinces (Markhaz-i Hukumat va Yaghistan)

 Last 50 years: Unrelenting violence, political

Where 3 Worlds Overlap

 Bridge & “melting pot” for

 Often seen as remote

Afghanistan: Pre-Islamic Empires or Dynasties

Alexander the Great Hellenic / Persian 334 - 330 BC (4 yrs) All

Timeline: Early History of Afghanistan

Graeco- Sassanid Empire Timurids

Aryan Vedic Religion and Zoroastrianism Islam

“Good Thoughts, Good Words, and Good Deeds”

Achaemenid Empire (550 - 330 BC)

Khoryush (Cyrus the Great) Shahanshah

Daryush (Darius the Great)

Sikander III: Three Major Campaigns (334 - 326 BC)

OP Noble Anvil OP Desert Storm OP Enduring Freedom

Right: Young man wearing

Timeline: Early History of Afghanistan

332 BCE Hotaki

Graeco- Sassanid Empire Timurids

Aryan Vedic Religion and Zoroastrianism Islam

The Arab Conquests & Advance of Islam

The Advance of Islam

The Advance of Islam

The Advanced of Islam

The Caliphate (660 – 850 AD)

 Umayyads distant relatives of 3rd Caliph

 Abbasids legitimacy based on blood

Islamic Conquest of Afghanistan(700-900 AD)

 Arab Conquest begun during

 Sufi orders: Large role in conversion; allowed

 Afghans predominately Buddhist, Zoroastrian,

Rise of Regional Dynasties (850 – 1050)

 Regionally based Islamic states (empires) emerge

Mamluks and Ghilman (Soldier-Slaves)

 Caliphate imported slave-boys from Central

 Mamluks (“owned”) trained as soldiers,

 Also called Ghilman (singular, ghulam)

Ghaznavid Sultanate (962 – 1151 AD)

 First Central Asia Islamic dynasty to raid deep into

 Campaigns into India (Hindu temples / idols destroyed,

 Sebüktigen’s son, Mamud of Ghazni (962 – 1030 AD)

Ghaznavid Empire (c. 1030 AD)

Mongol Rule (1220-1332)

 Chinggiz personally leads destruction

 Dies 1227; Empire divided by 4 sons

- Title of “khan” and chai sabs (Green Tea)

- Possible destruction of ancient karez (irrigation) network:

Mongol Empire (c. 1206 - 1294 AD)