AFGHANISTAN SADDOZAI KINGS AND VIZIERS 1747 - 1842

8/9/2019 AFGHANISTAN SADDOZAI KINGS AND VIZIERS 1747 - 1842

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Born on 19th Oct. 1939 Wg. Cdr. (retd.) Sardar Ahmed Shah Jan has a

family tree that dates back to the period of Shah Abbas the Great of

Persia. He comes from the Saddozai clan of the Popalzai tribe of

Afghanistan whose forefathers migrated to the Indian Sub-Continent

in 1842. He is the great grandson of Col. Sir Nawab Wazirzada Sardar

Muhammed Aslam Khan, K.C.I.E., and K.C.V.O. He studied at

Lawerence College, Ghora Gali, and Presentation Convent Murree

initially, but for his ‘O’ and ‘A’ Level Cambridge Certificates he went

to Burn Hall School, Abbottabad which was run by European priests.

He did his B.A. (Hons.) from Islamia College Peshawar and Mastered

in M.A. English from Peshawar University. He taught English at PAF

Academy, Risalpur and retired as a Wing Commander in 1984. He

writes in ‘Letters to the Editor,’ in Daily DAWN. Besides he is a

layman horticulturist and tends to his garden.


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A F G H A N I S T A N

S A D D O Z A I K I N G S A N D V I Z I E R S

1 7 4 7 – 1 8 4 2


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This book is dedicated to my father Brig. S. Ahmed Jan M.B.E.


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S a r d a r A h m e d S h a h J a n

A F G H A N I S T A N S A D D O Z A I K I N G S A N D V I Z I E R S

1 7 4 7 – 1 8 4 2


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Copyright © Sardar Ahmed Shah Jan

The right of Sardar Ahmed Shah Jan to be identified as author of this

work has been asserted by him in accordance with section 77 and 78

of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced,

stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any

means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise,

without the prior permission of the publishers.

Any person who commits any unauthorized act in relation to this

publication may be liable to criminal prosecution and civil claims fordamages.

A CIP catalogue record for this title is available from the British

Library.

ISBN 978 1 84963 322 2

www.austinmacauley.com

First Published (2015)

Austin & Macauley Publishers Ltd.

25 Canada Square

Canary Wharf

LondonE14 5LB

Printed and bound in Great Britain


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Contents

a)

PART ISADDOZAI/DURRANI KINGS

b) PART II

SADDOZAIS IN BRITISH INDIA

c) PART III

SADDOZAIS WHO DISTINGUISHED THEMSELVES

INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................... 21

PART IAHMED SHAH ABDALI (DURRANI) 1722-1773 ................................................ 28 THAIMOOR SHAH 1746 – 1793 ............................................................................ 67

SHAH ZAMAN 1793 – 1800 .................................................................................. 78 SHAH MEHMUD SADDOZAI 1800 – 1803 .......................................................... 89 SHAH SHUJA-UL-MULK 1803-1809 and 1839-1840 ........................................... 94

SHAH MEHMUD SADDOZAI REIGNED WHILE FATEH KHAN BARAKZAI

RULED 1800-1809 ................................................................................................. 119 SHAH SHUJA REVISITED 1839-1841 ................................................................ 125

NIZAM-UD-DAULA VIZIER SARDAR USMAN KHAN 1802-1865 ................ 134 CONCLUSION ....................................................................................................... 142PART II

LIEUTENANT COLONEL SIR* NAWAB WAZIRZADA SARDARMUHAMMED AFZUL KHAN, C.S.I. (1835 – 1896) ........................................... 146

NAWAB COL SIR WAZIRZADA SARDAR MUHAMMED ASLAM KHANO.M., K.C.I.E., K.C.V.O. 1838-1914 ..................................................................... 150

BRIGADIER SIR BAHADUR WAZIRZADA SARDAR HISSAM-UD-DIN

KHAN H.Q.A., K.C.I.E., I.D.S.M., O.B.E. 1881 – 1960 ....................................... 164

BRIGADIER SARDAR AHMED JAN M.B.E. 1903-1978 ................................... 177

COL AL-HAJ SARDAR KHALID JAN 1906-1982 .............................................. 186 LIEUTENANT.COLONEL HAJI SARDAR IFTIKHAR-UD-DIN.1913-1989 .... 191 SARDAR MUHAMMEDASIF KHAN ................................................................. 193

MAJOR SARDAR ASHRAF JAN ........................................................................ 195 LIEUTENENT SARDAR ABDUL HAMEED ................................................... 198

PART III ................................................................................................................. 200

WAZIRZADA SARDAR MUHAMMED AKRAM KHAN 1866 – 1924 ............. 201

CAPTAIN SARDAR TARIQ AZIZ-UD-DIN 1951- ............................................. 203

MAJOR SARDAR ASAD JAN (SHAHEED) ....................................................... 207

COLONEL SARDAR MUHAMMED ASLAM 1949-1999 .................................. 208

EPILOGUE ............................................................................................................. 212


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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

If there is anybody who can rightly be called a co-author in the writing

of this book it is Wazirzada M. Yusuf Khan Saddozai. No amount of

thanks and gratitude would be sufficient for an individual who was the

main inspiration and driving force behind the writing of Part I & II of

this book. His knowledge on Afghanistan and its people is

phenomenally encyclopaedic; he has researched books whether

written in Persian, Pashto, English or Urdu on Afghanistan and

consulted libraries the world over through the web and forwarded the

material to me for my perusal. For the sake of brevity I have not been

able to include all that he sent me, but I have touched upon almost

every aspect that he has referred.

My thanks are also due to Mr. Muhammed Azam Khan (Former Chief

Secretary NWFP) who helped me in correcting the Saddozai family

geneology and proofreading the manuscript. He took great pains in

pointing out some serious flaws which would have marred an

otherwise painstaking effort. He also sent me excerpts of Ahmed Shah

Abdali's poetry as translated by H.G. Raverty, for which I am deeply

indebted. In this regard I would also like to mention Mr. Kamal Khan,

my nephew who did an excellent job at formatting the family

genealogy and deserves my deepest thanks

I would be failing in my words of thanks if I did not mention,

Brigadier Haroon Rashid S.I. (Military), author of “History of the

Pathans,” (of the ten volumes five are already in the market) who took

time out to proof read my manuscript and in a record time of ten days

sent back my manuscript to me with all the necessary corrections and

on my request wrote an outstanding ' Foreword' to my book. I offer

him my deepest gratitude.

Lastly, my brother Colonel Sardar Iqbal Ahmed Jan who has been a

constant source of support and encouragement throughout the writing

of the book has made useful inputs from time to time. My thanks are

due to him as well.


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From among the Saddozai clan, I must admit I received scant

cooperation, except for Mrs. Amina Rashid and Amina Aslam. Of the

two, Mrs. Amina Rashid with photographic precision reproduced

events of the early twentieth century; Other than that Sardar Khels onthe whole were a disappointment. Mrs. Amina Rashid remembered

wedding dresses; who wore what; the preciseness of events; in fact,

every detail was etched on her memory so vividly that it literally

transported you there as she narrated events of her times. One could

sit and listen to her for hours without getting bored for a second. She

is a wonderful lady and my whole-hearted gratitude goes out to her.

Amina Aslam was very prompt in giving me a very detailed write-up

of her father’s career. I offer her my sincere thanks. Another SaddozaiI am most indebted to is Mrs. Farida Iftikhar for her detailed

genealogical table of Wazirzada Sardar Abbas Khan’s descendants.

She also wrote a detailed account of Sardar Tamasab Khan and his

children.

Finally, last but not least, I must give a word of thanks to my wife,

Mrs. Nazparwar Ahmed, who patiently sat by her TV while I worked

for hours at a stretch on my book, year after year. However, that wasnot all; she was of great help to me also in remembering names,

relationships, and wedding dates with precision and frequently

corrected me whenever I went wrong. I was also greatly encouraged

whenever she quoted me in front of guests regarding the Saddozai

clan and jealously guarded the authorship of my material.


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FOREWORD

I feel honoured to write a foreword for the prodigious work of Wing

Commander (retd.) Sardar Ahmed Shah Jan on the “Saddozai Kings

and Viziers of Afghanistan 1747 – 1842.” Indeed it is a unique

attempt at linking the present descendants of Sardar Usman Khan

Saddozai, whose father was Vizier to Shah Zaman and later he himselfwas Vizier to Shah Shuja, with their ancestors. It is an authentic and

veritable account of the Saddozais that provides extensive and factual

information on the Saddozai Kings and their Viziers. Undoubtedly it

will be read with deep interest by Afghans and non-Afghans, alike,

and all those who have interest in the history of the Afghan people.

Khurasan in the early 18th century was plagued by intertribal

hostilities, exploited by the Mughals in the northwest and the Persiansin the south. Mir Vais Hotaki (Ghilzai) rose to the occasion and not

only drove away the Persians from the Afghan territory but his

descendants also occupied the Persian throne. Notwithstanding the

Ghilzai lead in establishing the Afghan government in Persia, it was

the Saddozais who for the first time ever gave the Afghans a national

and political identity of their own.

In the first part of the book Sardar Ahmed Shah Jan discusses AhmedShah Abdali and his descendants in the light of the views offered by

various renowned historians. His analysis of the events, policies and

conduct of the kings and their aides is objective, dispassionate, even-

handed and logical. He is straightforward in his approach and does not

mince words in apportioning blame for the inefficiencies and

misconduct of the persons responsible that led to the decay and

decline of the Saddozai rule.

The second part of the book deals with the Kamran Khel Division ofDurranis, once considered to be the pillars of the Saddozai Empire. In

this part of his book he covers the progeny of Sardar Usman Khan

Kamran Khel and links the present generation with their ancestors.

Indeed, it is very informative and interesting study, shedding light on


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the struggle for honourable living by the descendants of Sardar Usman

Khan after the overthrow of the Saddozai rule in Afghanistan. It is

interesting to note that the descendants of Ahmad Shah Abdali, the

Khizer Khels got dispersed and merged into the background, while the

Kamran Khels, in particular the Sardar Khels of Peshawar, providedwell educated and dedicated officers who rose to prominence during

pre and post Partition era, and earned laurels for their families.

I offer my sincere congratulations to Wing Commander (retd.) Sardar

Ahmed Shah Jan, the scion of the reputed Family of Sardar Khels of

Peshawar, for the hard work and pains taken in producing the book,

“Saddozai Kings and Viziers of Afghanistan 1747 – 1842.” I wish him

success in this and other similar endeavours in future.

Kohat Brig.Brigadier (retd.) Haroon Rashid

January formatted 2007. SI(M)


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PREFACE

This book is a history of the Saddozais and the amazing trials and

tribulations they went through in order to lay the foundations of the

modern state of Afghanistan. The second portion of the book deals

with the biography of those Saddozais who were a part of the British

Indian Army.The region known as Afghanistan, for centuries in the past was a

strategic gateway for invaders to India: ‘Looking to the west of the

Michni Post,’ writes Jules Stewart, ‘lies a land drenched in the blood

of Greek, Persian, Moghul, British, Russian and American invaders.’

He says it invokes an, ‘uncomfortable reminder of the fate that befell

those who throughout history have entertained thoughts of Afghan

conquest.’ *

From 1587 to 1629 the territory now comprising Afghanistan was

either with the Mughals or the Persian Empire. In 1621 when it came

under Persia, the Emperor, Shah Abbas the Great, appointed

Asadullah Khan Abdali as its governor at Qandahar. After Asadullah’s

death, in the intervening ninety five years (1626-1721), Herat and

Qandahar repeatedly changed hands between the Abdalis and

Ghilzais. In 1721 the Ghilzais swept Qandahar and the Abdalis fled to

Herat and Khorasan and those left behind were imprisoned. TheGhilzais in 1722 were even able to occupy the Persian throne. The

Ghilzai rule in Persia only lasted 8 years and was brought to an end by

Nadir Shah in 1730, who was now the Emperor of Persia. He

conquered the Afghan dominions of Qandahar in 1736 and Kabul in

1738. This brought him in conflict with the Afghans in general and

Abdalis in particular, who were leading the Afghan bid to free

themselves from the Persian yoke. The Afghans made a number of

attempts, none of which were successful and the fall off Herat andFarah in 1738 sealed their fate for the time being. Nadir Shah on the

other hand was not satisfied with just his victories and therefore he

* ‘The Khyber Rifles’ by Jules Stewart, p.1


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exiled 6,000 Abdalis to Khurasan to mitigate the risk of their rising

against him again. In addition, some Abdali chiefs were taken into

service and some he retained in his army. However, during the siege

of Daghistan, Zulfiqar Khan and other Abdalis conscripted by the

Persian Emperor Nadir Shah showed such feats of valour that itimpressed the king and, as a general amnesty, he released them and

returned them their lands. Their valour and courage left a lasting mark

on the king and he decided to employ them as his personal bodyguard.

In 1738 Haji Ismail Khan Ghilzai, in whose care Ahmed Khan had

been entrusted by his mother, introduced Ahmed Khan, who later

came to be called Ahmed Shah Abdali, to Nadir Shah. Ahmed Khan

turned out to be an able and loyal commander of a cavalry of Afghansfighting under the flag of Nadir Shah. He was young, ambitious and

an astute commander of men. In the field of warfare he was un

chevalier sans peur et sans reproche (a knight without fear and

without blemish). Nadir Shah admired his chivalry and in open

gatherings spoke of his bravery with respect and admiration. He chose

Ahmed Khan’s cavalry for his personal bodyguard and blindly trusted

in them.

In 1747 Nadir Shah, suspecting some of his Qizilbash generals, asked

Ahmed Khan to round them up and probably execute them. Before

Ahmed Khan could carry out the orders an eavesdropper informed the

Qizilbash generals, and they in the middle of the night attacked Nadir

Shah in his sleep and beheaded him and fixed his head on a lance and

paraded it to show that he was no more. The purpose of my narrating

this brief episode of Nadir Shah’s death was to highlight Ahmed

Khan’s shock, grief and disbelief at having failed his leader and henever forgave himself for it.

The field now lay open for a leader of Nadir Shah’s calibre and who

else but Ahmed Khan could fill the void. The elders of Qandahar

chose him to become their ‘Badshah’ and so Ahmed Khan became

Ahmed Shah Abdali. Ever since then, Ahmed Shah never looked

back. In 1747 he founded the state of Afghanistan and having learnt

Nadir Shah’s art of warfare honed it to perfection. He expanded thislittle state into a Durrani Empire that was second only to the Ottoman

Empire of the Muslim world.


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honest and hardworking individuals. This is what this book is all about

- the rise and fall of the Saddozais.

The first person to initiate the idea of writing the history of the

Saddozais was Brigadier Sir Wazirzada Sardar Hissamud-Din Khanwho on his dying bed at the Combined Military Hospital (CMH) in

Abbottabad in 1959 called me to his bedside and asked me to write

while he dictated his life story. However, soon after, he became so ill

that I was no longer able to visit him. Next, the effort to write this

personal narrative of the Saddozai family, the Saddozai Sardar Khels

of Peshawar, was prompted by Nawabzada Shahryar Khan Hoti, who

sent his personal assistant, requesting that I provide a historical

background of his mother’s family. At first I thought I would be briefand give him just a genealogy table, so I told him that I would ring

him back when I was ready. That phone call I failed to make. Almost

three years passed and I was no closer to the end of a project that had

taken me sleepless nights sitting at my computer, tracing from where

we all started and where our roots began.

Being a student of English Literature, I had no idea of history writing,

and believed that it would be a piece of straightforward narration. Narration it certainly is, but with a difference. My facts are neither

laid out before me, nor what I have to write is clear in my head; as Sir

Olaf Caroe said in the preface to his book, ‘The Pathans’, “The

voyage is long and the seas for the most part unchartered.” I am no

historian, but I have collated facts and figures from a horde of books

that have dealt with the history of the KamranKhel Saddozais of

Afghanistan and drawn my own conclusions. After Usman Khan and

his sons facts are literally non-existent, and I had to rely mostly onfolklore and narratives from the family. I have given it continuity by

putting it in the narrative form. However, I must point out here that,

‘the conclusions are my own and may not always stand up to

academic assault.’

I have avoided controversies wherever possible by sticking strictly to

the children of Malik Kamran, the offspring of Asadullah Khan,

commonly known as ‘Saddo Baba’. From Malik Kamran I havefurther restricted my self to the children of Nizam-ud-Daula Vizier

Sardar Usman Khan Saddozai.

My biggest hurdle was to find a starting point. It was all right saying

that I would start from Usman Khan, but then he was a ‘Saddozai’ and


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I had to trace where the Saddozai link came from. This took me to

Asadullah Khan, Saddo, and he, it was said, was an Abdali, the off-

spring of Abdal. So I finally came to the conclusion that first I would

have to make a Saddozai Family Tree. This genealogy chart became

more difficult to trace after the children of Vizier Usman Khan. I hadto fall back on friends and relatives to supply me with data where the

history books and gazetteers had left off. It was a slow, tedious and

time-consuming work, which luckily I have finished.

As I said, I’m no historian and I may have made many mistakes, both

in my presentation and facts and figures, for which I tender an

apology. However, Sir Olaf Caroe at the end of his preface said, ‘….

if it should please and stimulate Pathan writers to follow suit, it [his book] will have achieved a real purpose,’ and that is exactly what my

effort represents. I have narrated the role of Saddozais on the Afghan

canvas from 1747 to 1842 followed by Vizier Usman Khan’s progeny

known as the SardarKhels of Peshawar and how they impacted on the

turbulent hundred and fifty years that followed.

I request all those who read my book to bear in mind that out of the

children of Shah Shuja-ud-Doulah and Vizier Rehmatullah Khan, itwas the children of the latter that rose to prominence and got a passing

reference with most of the writers of the British and latter period. On

the other hand, the history of the progeny of Ahmed Shah Abdali,

especially that of Shah Shuja-ud-Doulah makes pathetic reading. In

fact starting with Taimoor Shah, down to Shah Shuja and Shah

Mehmud it is nothing but a tale of the decline and fall of this vast

Durrani Empire. These were men who lost their bearings from the

very beginning, because they felt they could better Ahmed ShahAbdali’s record. They rose to become profligate wastrels full of pride

and haughtiness, giving in to palace intrigues and treachery that comes

with royalty, and painstakingly undid what the great Abdali king had

established in a short period of twenty six years.

However, the Kamran Khels, especially the children of Rehmatullah

Khan, imbued with the qualities of Abdal and SaddoBaba, were more

straightforward and honest and went by the surname of “Wazirzada”,

meaning the children of the Wazir. With the passage of time after theSaddozais lost the throne to the Barakzyes, the fourth generation of

Usman Khan’s children dropped the title of ‘Wazirzada’ from their

names, retaining only the title of 'Sardar'. This is that grey zone in the

history of the remanants of Kamran Khel Saddozais – i.e. the Sardar


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Khels of Peshawar – that has received scant mention by writers in the

past, simply because they faded out of the politics of Afghanistan and

held miniscule jobs in India and Pakistan. However, among them there

were such towering figures like Colonel Sir Aslam Khan, lieutenant

Colonel Sir Afzul Khan and Brigadier Sir S. Hissamud-Din Khan whowere acknowledged by historians of their time for their valour,

courage and statesmanship and were looked upon with respect and

dignity. It is this little mentioned clan of Saddozais that I would like to

highlight because they form a large population here in Peshawar and

go by the name of ‘SardarKhels.’

I have detailed the Khawaja Khizer Khan Khel tribe – i.e. Ahmed

Shah Durrani’s progeny and their progress – meticulously, and

pointed out their achievements as well as their drawbacks. Where thelatter Durrani rulers have come for severe criticism from writers of

every shade and opinion, I have researched and presented contrary

views for the readers as well so that they can draw their own

conclusions.

Lastly, I would be delighted if my writing would draw attention, for

no other reason than to bring out errors and mistakes that need

correction. I would add them either as an addendum to the book or inthe revised second edition. However, it must be borne in mind that all

corrections, where necessary, must be authentic and with a reference

in order to be included.

Peshawar SASJ

January 2007


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INTRODUCTION

The Saddozais have a family tree that dates back to the period of Shah

Abbas the Great (1587-1629). Their ancestors came from the famous

Abdali tribe of Afghans of Herat. Tarin, the son of Sharkbun, was the

father of Abdal. His son Sulaiman, commonly called Zirk , – The name

could be ‘Zeerak ’ which in Persian means ‘a very sharp mind’*1 – acontemporary of Mahmud of Ghazni, was the father of Popal who

fathered the Popalzai tribe. The Saddozais were a sub-tribe of the

Popalzais.

The Persian ruler Shah Abbas in 1621 made Malik Asadullah Khan,

(‘Saddo’), of the Abdali tribe, the titular head in return for services

around Qandahar. The children of Asadullah Khan were later called

Saddozai

(‘zai’

meaning ‘son of’). The frequent incursions into Persia by the Saddozais brought them into the limelight. Intent upon

extending their tribal lands in the regions of Herat and Mashed, the

Saddozais were known for their repeated invasions of a decaying

Persian Empire. However, these frequent invasions were repulsed

because this small band of Saddozais was no match against a

disproportionately larger Persian army, yet determination and grit

were their forte. It was during this period that the Saddozais came into

the limelight. However, it was in 1747 under Ahmed Shah Abdali thatthe Saddozai tribe finally made its mark by founding the modern state

of Afghanistan.

Afghan/Pukhtun Genealogy

It is interesting to note, that the Abdalis as mentioned above were the

offspring of Sharkbun who was the son of Sarbanr . An Afghan

historian Niamatullah in his book *2

traces Sarbanr to Qais Abdur

Rashid. Qais had three sons, the eldest being Sarbanr. It is said thatQais, Abdur Rashid, belonged to Khalid-bin-Walid’s ansars (the most

*1 ‘History of the Pathans, Vol. 1’ by Brigadier Haroon Rashid, p.125*2 ‘Makhzan-i-Afghani’ by Khawaja Niamatullah Khan, p. 119

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famous of the Prophet’s Ansars) and was invited by him to Islam. Sir

Olaf Caroe says*3 that the “Afghan Chronicles tell us that the Afghans

were from the Bani-Israel tribe settled in Ghor….”, the Prophet

Muhammed, Peace be upon him, lavished all sorts of blessings upon

them; and having ascertained the name of each individual, remarkedthat Qais was a Hebrew name, whereas they themselves were Arabs.

The contradiction here is that Qais came from Ghor so he could not

have been an Arab but a Jew from Ghor since he carried a Hebrew

name. He (the Prophet) gave Qais the name of Abdur Rashid and

observed further to the rest that, they being the posterity of Malik

Talut it was quite proper and just that they should be called Malik.

Likewise, the Prophet predicted that God would make the issue of

Qais so numerous that they would out vie all other people; that theirattachment to the faith would in strength be like the wood upon which

they lay the keel when constructing a ship which seamen call Pahtan;

on this account he conferred upon Abdur Rashid the title of Pathan,”

writes Olaf Caroe,* adding, “we must return to Qais alias Abdur

Rashid alias Pathan --- it is from his loins that the chroniclers derive

the whole nation of Pathans.”

However, Caroe himself does not believe the Chroniclers; quotingBiruni and Al-Utbi writing in early eleventh century A.D. that Islam

came to the Ghor Afghans at the time of Mahmud of Ghazni and not

before. Even the name Pathan he questions as “smells of the Delhi

lamp”; as a concotion of Moghal Afghan courtiers who had forgotten

their own language and referred to the crude Afghan soldiery as

Pathans, knowing full well that an Afghan calls himself a Pukhtun or

Afghan and not Pathan, and as a race they refer to themselves as

Pukhtana.

It is narrated in the Chronicles that dismissed by the Prophet,

Qais/Abdul Rashid returned to Ghor successfully to propagate the new

faith, and died there in the forty first year of Hijrat, aged eighty seven,

leaving sons, the eldest being Sarbanr .

Although the Afghans firmly believe the legend of their Jewish origin,

yet indications exist which support a contrary opinion. Afghanistanhas been the antechamber of India for centuries, beginning with ages

of which no knowledge exists. It is reasonable to suppose that some

*3 ‘The Pathans 550 B.C. – A.D. 1957’ by Sir Olaf Caroe, p.8* ‘The Pathans 550 B.C. – A.D. 1957’ by Sir Olaf Caroe, p. 8-9

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part of the immigrating nations must have remained in Afghanistan

and that from them descended the semi-pastoral tribes who call

themselves Afghans. These may have come to regard in course of time

the Jewish Prince, Saul, of Ghor as their overlord and as time passed

considered themselves as members of that community. Interminglingand marriages must have taken place for this belief to have taken hold.

The spread of Islam, which for some six centuries had put an end to

the recurring immigrations on a large scale of nations from Central

Asia into the countries to the south of Oxus, has to a great measure

obliterated all knowledge of their origin among those who follow the

teachings of that religion. The name ‘Afghan’ appears in the

chronicles of the eleventh and succeeding centuries A.D. when theyhad passed under the rule of the dynasty founded by Sabaktakin

whose capital was Ghazni, now a town of not great importance in

Afghanistan. At that time the Afghans appear to have been located in

a country to the south and east of that city – the tract which now

belongs to Afridis and Waziris.

Afghans at that time were famous for their turbulence and being bad

subjects. G.P. Tate says that in the first quarter of the thirteenthcentury, the barriers set up by the followers of Islam had weakened

because they had broken up into schisms and then political rivalry

finally led to help being sought from the Pagan Changiz Khan against

the other political rival. The fabric of society and civilisation was over

thrown by the onslaught of the Mongols. The Mongols devastated the

area and the Afghans were pushed south and east towards the Indus

valley. These conditions which lasted for nearly 300 years left their

impression on the population which now comprised, Hazaras (who areMongols), Tajiks and Afghans.

They are easily recognised by their physiognomy, character and mode

of life. The Hazaras are hardy, generally round faced, fair and slit-

eyed, strongly built and industrious, and the ranks of servants and

labourers throughout the country are recruited from them. The Tajiks

are Persian speaking Farsiwans, appreciative of education, tasteful in

their living, keep their houses neat and clean and have a bent towardsagriculture and commerce. In all probability they were Iranian or

Aryan and worship the Zorastrian Doctrine…. A thousand years later

the soldiers of Islam offered the alternative of the Quran, the poll tax

Jazia, or the sword. While the Mongol Hazaras hold aloof, the Tajiks

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and Afghans hold together by common interests and a Tajik first calls

himself an Afghan and then a Tajik. The Afghans pride themselves on

their nomadic proclivities, and on those qualities which they

complacently regard as military virtues, which others might

stigmatise, with good reason, as brutality. Herodotus and other writersof antiquity frequently speak of the Afghan as Pat-han in which some

have professed to recognise the name of a people mentioned,1 “The

Paktues, and the Paktas of the Vedas. The Afghans call themselves

Pakhtun (the plural is Pakhtana) from which the change to Pahtana

and again Pathan is easy,” Tate writes in the footnote. “After the rise

of the Saddozais to power as sovereigns of Afghanistan and in the

reigns of the first and second kings of this dynasty efforts were made

to collect these traditions (history). The accounts compiled by nativeAfghans of this period (18-19th

century) are therefore of too recent a

date to be regarded as being in anyway authoritative.”

With regards to the early history of the Afghans, these authors repeat

the standard genealogy of all Afghan tribes that Saddo, a corruption of

the name Asadullah, was the eponymous ancestor of the branch of

Abdur Rashid. He is said by the author of Tazkirat-ul-Mulk to have

been born on the night of the 30

th

of September 1558. His father Umarhad grown up in straitened circumstances, for his father had

squandered the resources of the family. His mother of the family

belonging to the Ishakzai tribe had brought a holy man or Pir of her

own tribe, to bless her son Umar. One day they were visited by Sheikh

Ako, belonging to the Alizai tribe. After being feasted, Shek Ako

stayed the night in their house. In the morning he told them that he

had two dreams; in the first he saw a lion enter Umar’s house, which

meant that a son would be born to him whom he should nameAsadullah, meaning ‘the lion of God.’ The second dream was that he

saw the skin of a hog spread in the house but he should not regard it as

an unfavourable omen. Willem Vogelsang writes that in the early

seventeenth century, a Pashtun from North India by the name of

Khawaja Niamatullah described the tribal structure and origin of

1 ‘The History of Afghanistan’ by G.P. Tate, p.15Note:.. You will be surprised to know that three Saddozais carried out the National Geographic Society,

Genographic test in the year 2005 and interestingly their genetic markers were a close match to those of aman, Joseph John, from Kerala in Southern India. He says their clan Kananyas were Jews who later

turned to Christianity and came to India by ship in 345 A.D.. They say the Kananyas are a much closedsociety and don't marry outside their clan and so there is no outside blood. The genographic tests are

taken in their infancy and the future holds promise of unraveling the truth of the Bani Israel origin of thePukhtun race.

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‘Pashtun’ society in his work ‘Makhzan-i-Afghani.’ Although it

undoubtedly contains information on the ethnogenesis of the Pashtuns,

this generally should not be read as a sound historical source that

indicates how the Pashtuns came into being as a distinct ethnic group.

Instead, it should be read as a source of information, from theseventeenth century or earlier for the way in which the Pashtuns saw

themselves as a group.

Niamatullah differentiates between four main groups of Pukhtuns.

These are all the descendants of the putative ancestor of all Pukhtuns,

Qais Abdur Rashid Pathan. The putative ancestor himself descended,

according to traditional genealogies from King Sarul (Saul), the

Jewish king. Sarbanr was the eldest son of Qais Abdur Rashid. Thoseof Sarbanr’s sons living in the west of Afghanistan are the Abdalis.

Bitan’s daughter, Bibi Mato, married outside the family. Shah Husyn

of Ghor, an area in central Afghanistan, and the Ghilzais descended

from a son of Shah Husyan and Bibi Mato before their marriage.

Niamatullah held a low opinion about this branch.

A fourth branch of Pukhtuns descended from Karan or Karlan. He was

the ancestor of Afridis, Khattaks, Mengals and Waziri, the Bangash,the Masuds and many others.

Despite Vogelsang’s criticism, we find nothing in his book to suggest

that he, or for that matter any of the other authors, have a better

alternative to the genealogy of the Pukhtuns than the one given by

Niamatullah Khan. At first Brigadier Haroon Rashid in his book 1

discounts the Jewish theory of the Afghan origin because the reference

to Bakht-un-nasr is from the second captivity and not the first and he believes the only credence given to this theory is the similarity of

features, which Sir John Malcom has mentioned. However, in the

conclusion of his ‘Analysis’ he writes, “After deliberate consideration,

I am inclined to conclude from the great affinity that exists between

Pashto and the Semitic and Iranian dialects; since the Jews, Arabs and

the Iranian migrants had very frequent interaction with the Pakhtues of

Helmand valley; from the numerous traditions on the subject; from the

tribal customs until prevalent amongst the Afghans, after the lapse oftwenty six centuries from the Jewish captivity; from their great and

decided difference in feature from any other people; from the

1 ‘History of the Pathans, Vol. 1’ by Brigadier Haroon Rashid pp. 48, 65.

AFGHANISTAN SADDOZAI KINGS AND VIZIERS 1747 - 1842

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