historical region Historical regions (or historical areas) are geographical regions which at some point in time had a cultural, ethnic, linguistic or political basis, regardless of latterday borders. They are used as delimitations for studying and analysing soc ...

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is borde ...

Tajikistan Tajikistan (, ; tg, Тоҷикистон, Tojikiston; russian: Таджикистан, Tadzhikistan), officially the Republic of Tajikistan ( tg, Ҷумҳурии Тоҷикистон, Jumhurii Tojikiston), is a landlocked country in Centr ...

Taxkorgan Tajik Autonomous County Taxkorgan Tajik Autonomous County (also known as Taxkorgan County, sometimes spelled Tashkurgan, Tashkorgan and Tash Kurghan Tadzhik Autonomous Hsien) is an autonomous county of Kashgar Prefecture in Western Xinjiang, China. The county seat is t ...

Badakhshan Province Badakhshan Province (Persian/ Uzbek: , ''Badaxšān'') is one of the 34 provinces of Afghanistan, located in the northeastern part of the country. It is bordered by Tajikistan's Gorno-Badakhshan in the north and the Pakistani regions of Lowe ...

provinces of Afghanistan Afghanistan is divided into 34 provinces (, '' wilåyat''). The provinces of Afghanistan are the primary administrative divisions. Each province encompasses a number of districts or usually over 1,000 villages. Provincial governors played a ...

Tajikistan Tajikistan (, ; tg, Тоҷикистон, Tojikiston; russian: Таджикистан, Tadzhikistan), officially the Republic of Tajikistan ( tg, Ҷумҳурии Тоҷикистон, Jumhurii Tojikiston), is a landlocked country in Centr ...

Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Region Gorno-Badakhshan, officially the Badakhshan Mountainous Autonomous Region,, abbr. / is an autonomous region in eastern Tajikistan, in the Pamir Mountains. It makes up nearly forty-five percent of the country's land area, but only two percen ...

music of Badakhshan Badakhshan is a region of Tajikistan and Afghanistan with a unique musical heritage, especially that of the remote Pamiri Ismailis. Badakhshan's unique folk scene is said to be characteristed by the use of many chromatized tones (especially in fa ...

Sasanian The Sasanian () or Sassanid Empire, officially known as the Empire of Iranians (, ) and also referred to by historians as the Neo-Persian Empire, was the last Iranian empire before the early Muslim conquests of the 7th-8th centuries AD. Named ...

Tajiks Tajiks ( fa, تاجيک، تاجک, ''Tājīk, Tājek''; tg, Тоҷик) are a Persian-speaking Iranian ethnic group native to Central Asia, living primarily in Afghanistan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan. Tajiks are the largest ethnicity in Taj ...

Pamiris The Pamiris, russian: Пами́рцы, Pamírtsy, zh, s=帕米尔人, p=Pàmǐ'ěrrén, ur, are an Eastern Iranian ethnic group, native to the Badakhshan region of Central Asia, which includes the Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Region of T ...

Kyrgyzs The Kyrgyz people (also spelled Kyrghyz, Kirgiz, and Kirghiz; ) are a Turkic ethnic group native to Central Asia. Kyrgyzstan is the nation state of the Kyrgyz people and significant diaspora can be found in China, Russia, and Uzbekistan. T ...

Uzbeks The Uzbeks ( uz, , , , ) are a Turkic ethnic group native to the wider Central Asian region, being among the largest Turkic ethnic group in the area. They comprise the majority population of Uzbekistan, next to Kazakh and Karakalpak mino ...

Pamir languages The Pamir languages are an areal group of the Eastern Iranian languages, spoken by numerous people in the Pamir Mountains, primarily along the Panj River and its tributaries. In the 19th and early 20th centuries, the Pamir language family was ...

Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Region Gorno-Badakhshan, officially the Badakhshan Mountainous Autonomous Region,, abbr. / is an autonomous region in eastern Tajikistan, in the Pamir Mountains. It makes up nearly forty-five percent of the country's land area, but only two percen ...

Pamiris The Pamiris, russian: Пами́рцы, Pamírtsy, zh, s=帕米尔人, p=Pàmǐ'ěrrén, ur, are an Eastern Iranian ethnic group, native to the Badakhshan region of Central Asia, which includes the Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Region of T ...

Ismaili Islam Isma'ilism ( ar, الإسماعيلية, al-ʾIsmāʿīlīyah) is a branch or sub-sect of Shia Islam. The Isma'ili () get their name from their acceptance of Imam Isma'il ibn Jafar as the appointed spiritual successor ( imām) to Ja'far al-S ...

Sunni Islam Sunni Islam () is the largest branch of Islam, followed by 85–90% of the world's Muslims. Its name comes from the word '' Sunnah'', referring to the tradition of Muhammad. The differences between Sunni and Shia Muslims arose from a disag ...

Nasir Khusraw Abu Mo’in Hamid ad-Din Nasir ibn Khusraw al-Qubadiani or Nāsir Khusraw Qubādiyānī Balkhi ( fa, ناصر خسرو قبادیانی, Nasir Khusraw Qubadiani) also spelled as ''Nasir Khusrow'' and ''Naser Khosrow'' (1004 – after 1070 CE) w ...

antiquity Antiquity or Antiquities may refer to: Historical objects or periods Artifacts *Antiquities, objects or artifacts surviving from ancient cultures Eras Any period before the European Middle Ages (5th to 15th centuries) but still within the histo ...

Lapis lazuli Lapis lazuli (; ), or lapis for short, is a deep-blue metamorphic rock used as a semi-precious stone that has been prized since antiquity for its intense color. As early as the 7th millennium BC, lapis lazuli was mined in the Sar-i Sang mine ...

4th millennium BC The 4th millennium BC spanned the years 4000 BC to 3001 BC. Some of the major changes in human culture during this time included the beginning of the Bronze Age and the invention of writing, which played a major role in starting recorded history. ...

Silk Road The Silk Road () was a network of Eurasian trade routes active from the second century BCE until the mid-15th century. Spanning over 6,400 kilometers (4,000 miles), it played a central role in facilitating economic, cultural, political, and rel ...

silk Silk is a natural protein fiber, some forms of which can be woven into textiles. The protein fiber of silk is composed mainly of fibroin and is produced by certain insect larvae to form cocoons. The best-known silk is obtained from th ...

Marco Polo Marco Polo (, , ; 8 January 1324) was a Venetian merchant, explorer and writer who travelled through Asia along the Silk Road between 1271 and 1295. His travels are recorded in '' The Travels of Marco Polo'' (also known as ''Book of the Marv ...

Shighnan Shighnan, also Shignan, Shugnan, Shughnan, and Khughnan ( tg, Шигнон, fa, شغنان, Pashto: ), is an historic region whose name today may also refer to a town and a district in Badakhshan Province in the mountainous northeast of Afghani ...

Asia Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an are ...

Panj River The Panj (russian: Пяндж; fa, رودخانه پنج) (; tg, Панҷ, پنج), traditionally known as the Ochus River and also known as ''Pyandzh'' (derived from its Russian name "Пяндж"), is a tributary of the Amu Darya. The river ...

Oxus River The Amu Darya, tk, Amyderýa/ uz, Amudaryo// tg, Амударё, Amudaryo ps, , tr, Ceyhun / Amu Derya grc, Ὦξος, Ôxos (also called the Amu, Amo River and historically known by its Latin name or Greek ) is a major river in Central Asi ...

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cultural diffusion ...

Tajikistan Tajikistan (, ; tg, Тоҷикистон, Tojikiston; russian: Таджикистан, Tadzhikistan), officially the Republic of Tajikistan ( tg, Ҷумҳурии Тоҷикистон, Jumhurii Tojikiston), is a landlocked country in Centr ...

spinel Spinel () is the magnesium/aluminium member of the larger spinel group of minerals. It has the formula in the cubic crystal system. Its name comes from the Latin word , which means ''spine'' in reference to its pointed crystals. Properties S ...

Amu Darya The Amu Darya, tk, Amyderýa/ uz, Amudaryo// tg, Амударё, Amudaryo ps, , tr, Ceyhun / Amu Derya grc, Ὦξος, Ôxos (also called the Amu, Amo River and historically known by its Latin name or Greek ) is a major river in Central Asi ...

Khyber Pass The Khyber Pass (خیبر درہ) is a mountain pass in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan, on the border with the Nangarhar Province of Afghanistan. It connects the town of Landi Kotal to the Valley of Peshawar at Jamrud by traversing p ...

Mohenjo-Daro Mohenjo-daro (; sd, موئن جو دڙو'', ''meaning 'Mound of the Dead Men';Necropolis of Thebes), and other places was proven. There was a special

caravan route A trade route is a logistical network identified as a series of pathways and stoppages used for the commercial transport of cargo. The term can also be used to refer to trade over bodies of water. Allowing goods to reach distant markets, a sin ...

from Badakhshan to these civilizations, which introduced Badakhshan to the world in ancient times through these two precious stones. There is also evidence in Badakhshan from the

Stone Age The Stone Age was a broad prehistoric period during which stone was widely used to make tools with an edge, a point, or a percussion surface. The period lasted for roughly 3.4 million years, and ended between 4,000 BC and 2,000 BC, with ...

. In the Stone Age, the construction of new clay huts in Badakhshan began. Later, in the Neolithic period, the tribes of the Middle East, including the Badakhshans, used wooden gates with their heels running over stone holes. Scientists also attribute the appearance of a window for smoke and light to the

Neolithic The Neolithic period, or New Stone Age, is an Old World archaeological period and the final division of the Stone Age. It saw the Neolithic Revolution, a wide-ranging set of developments that appear to have arisen independently in several pa ...

period. Archaeologists call the Neolithic artifacts in Takharistan (Badakhshan) in the historical literature "Mountain Neolithic of Hissar culture". This civilization lasted from the 6th to the 3rd millennium BC. The

Bronze Age The Bronze Age is a historic period, lasting approximately from 3300 BC to 1200 BC, characterized by the use of bronze, the presence of writing in some areas, and other early features of urban civilization. The Bronze Age is the second pri ...

in Badakhshan, from the 3rd millennium BC to the 9th-8th centuries BC, was the most important historical stage of development and evolution. The development of productive forces and significant changes in the social system took place during this period. People learned the production and use of minerals, learned how to melt metals to make iron stronger, and began to produce weapons and household items. On this basis, handicrafts developed, and new and large camps were built. Other production activities, such as agriculture, animal husbandry, handicrafts, the emergence of horses and carts, road construction, etc., accelerated the division of society into classes. The construction of shields, sickles, axes, pickaxes, and shovels flourished during this period of bronze. The great ruby road appeared on the maps of merchants during this period and became known as the

Silk Road The Silk Road () was a network of Eurasian trade routes active from the second century BCE until the mid-15th century. Spanning over 6,400 kilometers (4,000 miles), it played a central role in facilitating economic, cultural, political, and rel ...

, which later became a major trade route and served the peoples of different nations until the 17–18th century. Badakhshan was at that time a land called Ariana vaeqah, and “Varena” in the

Avesta The Avesta () is the primary collection of religious texts of Zoroastrianism, composed in the Avestan language. The Avesta texts fall into several different categories, arranged either by dialect, or by usage. The principal text in the lit ...

refers to a part of Badakhshan in the Khatlon conflict. Badakhshan gained its status among the world civilizations with these two types of precious stones, both in the time of the

Elam Elam (; Linear Elamite: ''hatamti''; Cuneiform Elamite: ; Sumerian: ; Akkadian: ; he, עֵילָם ''ʿēlām''; peo, 𐎢𐎺𐎩 ''hūja'') was an ancient civilization centered in the far west and southwest of modern-day Iran, stretc ...

ites, in the time of the Maud, and in the time of the

Achaemenids The Achaemenid Empire or Achaemenian Empire (; peo, 𐎧𐏁𐏂, , ), also called the First Persian Empire, was an ancient Iranian empire founded by Cyrus the Great in 550 BC. Based in Western Asia, it was contemporarily the largest emp ...

when the roads of communication were so long that the "Road of the King" was 2400 km long, and was used to transport rubies from Badakhshan, turquoise from

Khorezm Khwarazm (; Old Persian: ''Hwârazmiya''; fa, خوارزم, ''Xwârazm'' or ''Xârazm'') or Chorasmia () is a large oasis region on the Amu Darya river delta in western Central Asia, bordered on the north by the (former) Aral Sea, on the ea ...

, and

jade Jade is a mineral used as jewellery or for ornaments. It is typically green, although may be yellow or white. Jade can refer to either of two different silicate minerals: nephrite (a silicate of calcium and magnesium in the amphibole group ...

from

Lake Baikal Lake Baikal (, russian: Oзеро Байкал, Ozero Baykal ); mn, Байгал нуур, Baigal nuur) is a rift lake in Russia. It is situated in southern Siberia, between the federal subjects of Irkutsk Oblast to the northwest and the ...

. The mineralogist A. E. Fersman wrote that one stone was known throughout the long history of culture – the bright blue

lapis lazuli Lapis lazuli (; ), or lapis for short, is a deep-blue metamorphic rock used as a semi-precious stone that has been prized since antiquity for its intense color. As early as the 7th millennium BC, lapis lazuli was mined in the Sar-i Sang mine ...

of Afghanistan (Badakhshan), which was transported by caravan routes to Egypt, China, Rome, and Byzantium. Some scholars claim that the " mountain valley" mentioned by the Greeks was Badakhshan.

Early modern history

Sultan Muḥammad Vays offers Babur a healthy horse to replace his ailing one

The region was ruled over by the mirs of Badakhshan. Sultan Muhammad of Badakhshan was the last of a series of kings who traced their descent to

Alexander the Great Alexander III of Macedon ( grc, Ἀλέξανδρος, Alexandros; 20/21 July 356 BC – 10/11 June 323 BC), commonly known as Alexander the Great, was a king of the ancient Greek kingdom of Macedon. He succeeded his father Philip II to ...

. He was killed by

Abu Sa'id Mirza Abu Sa'id Mirza ( Chagatay/ fa, ابو سعید میرزا; 14248 February 1469) was the ruler of the Timurid Empire during the mid-fifteenth century. Born a minor prince of the Timurid dynasty, Abu Sa'id quickly established himself as the most ...

, the ruler of

Timurid Empire The Timurid Empire ( chg, , fa, ), self-designated as Gurkani (Chagatai language, Chagatai: کورگن, ''Küregen''; fa, , ''Gūrkāniyān''), was a PersianateB.F. Manz, ''"Tīmūr Lang"'', in Encyclopaedia of Islam, Online Edition, 2006 Tu ...

, who took possession of Badakhshan, which after his death fell to his son,

Sultan Mahmud Mirza Sultan Mahmud Mirza ( 1453 – January 1495) was a prince of Timurid branch of Transoxiana, son of Abu Sa'id Mirza. Biography His father gave him the government of Hisar and Termez in 1459 (according to Babur Astarabad), but lost to Sultan Husa ...

, who had three sons, Baysinghar Mirza, Ali Mirza, and Khan Mirza. When Mahmud died, Amir Khusroe Khan, one of his nobles, blinded Baysinghar Mirza, killed the second prince, and ruled as a usurper. He submitted to the Mughal Emperor

Babur Babur ( fa, , lit= tiger, translit= Bābur; ; 14 February 148326 December 1530), born Mīrzā Zahīr ud-Dīn Muhammad, was the founder of the Mughal Empire in the Indian subcontinent. He was a descendant of Timur and Genghis Khan through hi ...

in 1504 CE. When Babur took

Kandahar Kandahar (; Kandahār, , Qandahār) is a city in Afghanistan, located in the south of the country on the Arghandab River, at an elevation of . It is Afghanistan's second largest city after Kabul, with a population of about 614,118. It is the c ...

in 1506 CE from Shah Beg Arghun, he sent Khan Mirza as governor to Badakhshan. A son was born to Khan Mirza by the name of Mirza Sulaiman in 1514 CE. After the death of Khan Mirza, Badakhshan was governed for Babur by Prince

Humayun Nasir-ud-Din Muhammad ( fa, ) (; 6 March 1508 – 27 January 1556), better known by his regnal name, Humāyūn; (), was the second emperor of the Mughal Empire, who ruled over territory in what is now Eastern Afghanistan, Pakistan, Northe ...

, Sultan Wais Khan (Mirza Sulaiman's father-in-law), Prince

Hindal Mirza Abu'l-Nasir Muhammad (4 March 1519 – 20 November 1551), better known by the sobriquet Hindal ( Chagatai: "Taker of India"), was a Mughal prince and the youngest son of Emperor Babur, the founder of the Mughal Empire and the first Mughal e ...

, and Mirza Sulaiman, who held Badakhshan till October 8, 1541, when he had to surrender himself and his son, Mirza Ibrahim, to Prince

Kamran Mirza Kamran Mirza ( fa, ) (1512 – 5 October 1557) was the second son of Babur, the founder of the Mughal Empire and the first Mughal Emperor. Kamran Mirza was born in Kabul to Babur's wife Gulrukh Begum. He was half-brother to Babur's eldest ...

. They were released by Humayun in 1545, and again took possession of Badakhshan. When Humayun had taken

Kabul Kabul (; ps, , ; , ) is the capital and largest city of Afghanistan. Located in the eastern half of the country, it is also a municipality, forming part of the Kabul Province; it is administratively divided into #Districts, 22 municipal dist ...

, he made war upon and defeated Mirza Sulaiman who once in possession of his country, had refused to submit; but when the return of Prince Kamran Mirza from

Sindh Sindh (; ; ur, , ; historically romanized as Sind) is one of the four provinces of Pakistan. Located in the southeastern region of the country, Sindh is the third-largest province of Pakistan by land area and the second-largest province ...

obliged Emperor Humayun to go to Kabul, he reinstated Mirza Sulaiman, who held Badakhshan till 1575. Bent on making conquests, he invaded

Balkh ), named for its green-tiled ''Gonbad'' ( prs, گُنبَد, dome), in July 2001 , pushpin_map=Afghanistan#Bactria#West Asia , pushpin_relief=yes , pushpin_label_position=bottom , pushpin_mapsize=300 , pushpin_map_caption=Location in Afghanistan ...

in 1560, but had to return. His son, Mirza Ibrahim, was killed in battle. When

Akbar Abu'l-Fath Jalal-ud-din Muhammad Akbar (25 October 1542 – 27 October 1605), popularly known as Akbar the Great ( fa, ), and also as Akbar I (), was the third Mughal emperor, who reigned from 1556 to 1605. Akbar succeeded his father, Hum ...

became Mughal Emperor, his stepbrother Mirza Muhammad Hakim's mother had been killed by Shah Abul Ma'ali. Mirza Sulaiman went to Kabul, and had Abul Ma'ali hanged; he then had his own daughter married to Mirza Muhammad Hakim, and appointed Umed Ali, a Badakhshan noble, as Mirza Muhammad Hakim's agent in 1563. But Mirza Muhammad Hakim did not go on well with Mirza Sulaiman, who returned next year to Kabul with hostile intentions; but Mirza Muhammad Hakim fled Fayzabad and asked Akbar for assistance, so that Mirza Sulaiman, though he had taken

Jalalabad Jalalabad (; Dari/ ps, جلال‌آباد, ) is the fifth-largest city of Afghanistan. It has a population of about 356,274, and serves as the capital of Nangarhar Province in the eastern part of the country, about from the capital Kabul. Jala ...

, had to return to Badakhshan. He returned to Kabul in 1566, when Akbar's troops had left that country, but retreated on being promised tribute. Mirza Sulaiman's wife was Khurram Begum, of the Kipchak tribe. She was clever, and had her husband so much in her power that he did nothing without her advice. Her enemy was Muhtarim Khanum, the widow of Prince Kamran Mirza. Mirza Sulaiman wanted to marry her; but Khurram Begum got her married, against her will, to Mirza Ibrahim, by whom she had a son, Mirza Shahrukh. When Mirza Ibrahim fell in the war with Balkh, Khurram Begum wanted to send the Khanum to her father, Shah Muhammad of

Kashgar Kashgar ( ug, قەشقەر, Qeshqer) or Kashi ( zh, c=喀什) is an oasis city in the Tarim Basin region of Southern Xinjiang. It is one of the westernmost cities of China, near the border with Afghanistan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Pakistan. ...

; but she refused to go. As soon as Shahrukh had grown up, his mother and some Badakhshi nobles excited him to rebel against his grandfather Mirza Sulaiman. This he did, alternately rebelling and again making peace. Khurram Begum then died. Shahrukh took away those parts of Badakhshan which his father had held, and found so many adherents, that Mirza Sulaiman, pretending to go on a pilgrimage to

Makkah Mecca (; officially Makkah al-Mukarramah, commonly shortened to Makkah ()) is a city and administrative center of the Mecca Province of Saudi Arabia, and the holiest city in Islam. It is inland from Jeddah on the Red Sea, in a narrow v ...

, left Badakhshan for Kabul, and crossing the

Indus The Indus ( ) is a transboundary river of Asia and a trans-Himalayan river of South and Central Asia. The river rises in mountain springs northeast of Mount Kailash in Western Tibet, flows northwest through the disputed region of Kashmir, ...

went to India in 1575 CE. Khan Jahan, governor of the

Punjab Punjab (; Punjabi Language, Punjabi: پنجاب ; ਪੰਜਾਬ ; ; also Romanization, romanised as ''Panjāb'' or ''Panj-Āb'') is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the I ...

, received orders from Emperor Akbar to invade Badakhshan, but was suddenly ordered to go to

Bengal Bengal ( ; bn, বাংলা/বঙ্গ, translit=Bānglā/Bôngô, ) is a geopolitical, cultural and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the eastern part of the Indian subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal, predom ...

instead, as Mun'im Khan had died and Mirza Sulaiman did not care for the governorship of Bengal, which Akbar had offered him. Mirza Sulaiman then went to

Ismail II Ismail II (; Born Ismail Mirza; 31 May 1537 – 24 November 1577) was the third Shah of Safavid Iran from 1576 to 1577. He was the second son of Tahmasp I with his principal consort, Sultanum Begum. By the orders of Tahmasp, Ismail spent twen ...

of

Safavid Safavid Iran or Safavid Persia (), also referred to as the Safavid Empire, '. was one of the greatest Iranian empires after the 7th-century Muslim conquest of Persia, which was ruled from 1501 to 1736 by the Safavid dynasty. It is often conside ...

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...

. When the death of that monarch deprived him of the assistance which he had just received, he went to Muzaffar Husain Mirza at Kandahar, and then to Mirza Muhammad Hakim at Kabul. Not succeeding in raising disturbances in Kabul, he made for the frontier of Badakhshan, and luckily finding some adherents, he managed to get from his grandson the territory between Taiqan and the

Hindu Kush The Hindu Kush is an mountain range in Central and South Asia to the west of the Himalayas. It stretches from central and western Afghanistan, Quote: "The Hindu Kush mountains run along the Afghan border with the North-West Frontier Province ...

. Soon after Muhtarim Khanum died. Being again pressed by Shahrukh, Mirza Sulaiman applied for help to Abdullah Khan II, king of Turan, who had long wished to annex Badakhshan. He invaded and took the country in 1584; Shahrukh fled to the Mughal Empire, and Mirza Sulaiman to Kabul. As he could not recover Badakhshan for himself, and rendered destitute by the death of Mirza Muhammad Hakim, he followed the example of his grandson, and repaired to the court of Akbar who made him a Commander of six thousand. He lived out his life at Akbar's court in Lahore where he died in 1589 CE. Like neighboring

Balkh Subah ), named for its green-tiled ''Gonbad'' ( prs, گُنبَد, dome), in July 2001 , pushpin_map=Afghanistan#Bactria#West Asia , pushpin_relief=yes , pushpin_label_position=bottom , pushpin_mapsize=300 , pushpin_map_caption=Location in Afghanistan ...

, Badakshan was shortly conquered in 1641 by Mughal padshah (emperor)

Shah Jahan Shihab-ud-Din Muhammad Khurram (5 January 1592 – 22 January 1666), better known by his regnal name Shah Jahan I (; ), was the fifth emperor of the Mughal Empire, reigning from January 1628 until July 1658. Under his emperorship, the Mugha ...

, who turned it also into a short-lived

subah A Subah was the term for a province (State) in the Mughal Empire. The word is derived from Arabic and Persian. The governor/ruler of a ''Subah'' was known as a '' subahdar'' (sometimes also referred to as a "''Subeh''"), which later became ''sub ...

(imperial top-level province), only to be lost again in 1647.

Later emirates and khanates

The old capital of Badakhshan was located in

Kishim District Kishim District is one of the 29 districts of Badakhshan province in eastern Afghanistan.The district capital is Mashhad. The district is located in the Keshem Valley, a primarily rural area on the western edge of the province, and is home to app ...

.Christine Noelle. ''State and Tribe in Nineteenth-Century Afghanistan: The Reign of Amir Dost Muhammad Khan (1826–1863)''. Surrey: Curzon Press, 1997. p. 62 In the 18th century the capital of Badakhshan was the town of Khamchan, located three miles west of Fayzabad and situated on both sides of the

Kokcha River The Kokcha River ( fa, رودخانه کوکچه) is located in northeastern Afghanistan. A tributary of the Panj river, it flows through Badakhshan Province in the Hindu Kush. It is named after the Koksha Valley. The city of Feyzabad lies alo ...

. Ludwig W. Adamec. ''Historical and political gazetteer of Afghanistan Vol. 1. Badakhshan Province and northeastern Afghanistan''.

Graz Graz (; sl, Gradec) is the capital city of the Austrian state of Styria and second-largest city in Austria after Vienna. As of 1 January 2021, it had a population of 331,562 (294,236 of whom had principal-residence status). In 2018, the popula ...

: Akad. Druck- und Verl.-Anst., 1972. p. 99. After the conquest of Badakhshan by

Ahmad Shah Durrani Ahmad Shāh Durrānī ( ps, احمد شاه دراني; prs, احمد شاه درانی), also known as Ahmad Shāh Abdālī (), was the founder of the Durrani Empire and is regarded as the founder of the modern Afghanistan. In July 1747, Ahm ...

in the later half of the 18th century, the capital was relocated to Fayzabad, then known as Jauzun. In the 19th century the capital was moved to Jurm, until if finally was relocated back to Fayzabad. The Khan of Badakhsan Asks to Surrender

In 1750, Mir Sultan Shah ruler of Badakhshan rebelled against Khizri Beg, Governor of

Balkh ), named for its green-tiled ''Gonbad'' ( prs, گُنبَد, dome), in July 2001 , pushpin_map=Afghanistan#Bactria#West Asia , pushpin_relief=yes , pushpin_label_position=bottom , pushpin_mapsize=300 , pushpin_map_caption=Location in Afghanistan ...

. After consulting Ahmad Shah Durrani, Khizri Beg marched against Sultan Shah and the ''Wazir'' Shah Wali aided the invading column. The pickets of Badakhshan, Chief of Taloqan, fled from their postal approach of enemy and men of Badakhshan disgusted with their Chief because of his partiality to Kalmak and

Kashghar Kashgar ( ug, قەشقەر, Qeshqer) or Kashi ( zh, c=喀什) is an oasis city in the Tarim Basin region of Southern Xinjiang. It is one of the westernmost cities of China, near the border with Afghanistan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Pakistan. ...

foreigners waited on ''Wazir'' Shah Wali and hailed him as deliverer. Sultan Shah finding resistance hopeless fled to Ailu Basit in hills between Chiab and Pasakoh. The ''Wazir'' Shah Wali returned with force to

Kabul Kabul (; ps, , ; , ) is the capital and largest city of Afghanistan. Located in the eastern half of the country, it is also a municipality, forming part of the Kabul Province; it is administratively divided into #Districts, 22 municipal dist ...

leaving his country in charge of an Afghan Governor. Sultan Shah returned slew the Governor and regained his country He was attacked by another rival Turrah Baz Khan who, supported by Khizri Beg, advanced on Faizabad and besieged it. Sultan Shah was taken prisoner. The Kunduz Chief, unwilling to lose an opportunity, seized Turrah Baz Khan and sent both captives to

Kunduz , native_name_lang = prs , other_name = , settlement_type = City , image_skyline = Kunduz River valley.jpg , imagesize = 300 , image_alt = , image_caption = , image_ ...

and annexed Badakhshan. In 1751 Sultan Shah was restored to liberty and his country. He punished marauders of the Saki tribe who had desolated Chiab, Takhta Band, Khalpan in Badakhshan. He slew a large portion and 700 horses were taken. Place was marked by 200 heads of raiders on Kotal of Khoja Jarghatu and Saki gave no more trouble during Sultan Shah's lifetime. This Chief built a fortress at

Mashad Mashhad ( fa, مشهد, Mašhad ), also spelled Mashad, is the second-most-populous city in Iran, located in the relatively remote north-east of the country about from Tehran. It serves as the capital of Razavi Khorasan Province and has a ...

in which he settled 600 families. He had a rest house built for travelers at Daryun. In 1756 he made the Chinese recognize ''Akskal'' of Badakhshan at

Alti This is a list of significant characters from the television programs '' Hercules: The Legendary Journeys'', its prequel ''Young Hercules'', and '' Xena: Warrior Princess''. Main characters * Hercules (portrayed by Kevin Sorbo as an adult, Ian ...

in

Xinjiang Xinjiang, SASM/GNC: ''Xinjang''; zh, c=, p=Xīnjiāng; formerly romanized as Sinkiang (, ), officially the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region (XUAR), is an autonomous region of the People's Republic of China (PRC), located in the northwes ...

and levied taxes from Badakhshan families in city. In 1759 another enemy appeared led by Kabad Khan. The Kataghans attacked Fayzabad, and took and put to death Sultan Shah and Turrah Baz Khan. Mir Muhammad Shah, son of Sultan Shah, escaped and retired to Tang i Nau from whence later he attacked Faizabad, put to death his youngest brother Nasarullah Khan Chief of that place under the government of Kabul, and took the Kingdom. His father's old enemy Kabad Khan, whom the patronage of Timur Shah Durrani (successor of Ahmad Shah Durrani) had elevated to the Chiefship of Kunduz, sent a force against Muhammad Shah under Kubadcha. They wintered at Sang i Mohr and were joined by Kabad Khan in person. Muhammad Shah submitted and was detained at Kunduz for two years. After that fortune turned against Kabad Khan. Throwing off his allegiance to Kabul when Timur Shah Durrani was marching against

Sindh Sindh (; ; ur, , ; historically romanized as Sind) is one of the four provinces of Pakistan. Located in the southeastern region of the country, Sindh is the third-largest province of Pakistan by land area and the second-largest province ...

and Kashmir, Mizrab Bi, grandson of Muhammad Bi (the old Chief of Kunduz) united with the Chief of Kubab to attack Kabad Khan, seized him and gave him to Mir Muhammad Shah, who put him to death to avenge his father Mir Muhammad Shah. He returned to Badakhshan to find throne occupied by Bahadur Shah, son of a former Chief who had taken Faizabad during the captivity of Mir Muhammad Shah in Kunduz. Bahadur Shah was deposed and the rightful owner recovered the throne. Fortune frowned again on Mir Muhammad Shah. Bahadur Shah obtained aid of the Mir of Shighnan and took Fayzabad. Mir Muhammad Shah fled to Chiab. In two years, Bahadur Shah was put to death by an agent of the Shighnan Chief named Bahadur, who took the throne. Muhammad Shah repeatedly attempted to expel him. But aid was refused him by the Shighnan Chief and Kurghan Tappa. He regained the throne on the assassination of Bahadur by his servant. The late usurper's ministers were all killed. Immediately Mir Muhammad Shah was engaged in hostilities with Jalal ud din Chief of Shighnan, who rebelled and held out in fort till Mir Muhammad Shah invested it and the rebel submitted. By clemency of the victor he was reinstated as Chief of Fayzabad. In same year Shah Abul Faiz, son of Shah Shuja of Ragh, rebelled against Mir Muhammad Shah and was vanquished. The territory of Mir Muhammad Shah was divided as follows: Iskashim was given to Mir Khan; Rushan to Shah Wali and Warduj to Mahmud Khan, brother of Mir Ahmad Beg Kataghan. Mir Muhammad Shah also built a new fort named ''Sarai Bahadur''. Khodai Nazar Beg Kataghan, brother of Darab Bi, expelled his five nephews from Kunduz and Aliwardi Beg, Chief of Kurghan Tappa on pretence of avenging their wrongs attacked Khodai Nazar Beg and drove him from Kunduz. His avarice caused him to occupy the country himself. Darab Bi's sons wandered to Badakhshan and Balkh Aliwardi Beg did not long enjoy fruits of treachery. In 1795, Emir Haidar of

Emirate of Bukhara The Emirate of Bukhara ( fa, , Amārat-e Bokhārā, chg, , Bukhārā Amirligi) was a Muslim polity in Central Asia that existed from 1785 to 1920 in what is modern-day Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Kazakhstan. It occupied the land ...

invaded Balkh and Kunduz annexed them and took Aliwardi Beg to

Bukhara Bukhara ( Uzbek: /, ; tg, Бухоро, ) is the seventh-largest city in Uzbekistan, with a population of 280,187 , and the capital of Bukhara Region. People have inhabited the region around Bukhara for at least five millennia, and the city ...

as prisoner. In 1812, Mir Sultan Shah II succeeded as mir of Badakhshan after his father Mir Muhammad Shah's death in 1810. He remained friendly with his neighbors and the country prospered. He recovered arrears of taxes from Chinese settlers and levied payment in advance. In 1814 he invaded

Chitral Chitral ( khw, , lit=field, translit=ćhitrār; ur, , translit=ćitrāl) is situated on the Chitral River in northern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. It serves as the capital of the Chitral District and before that as the capital of Chitral ...

and took thousands of prisoners, whom he sold in Balkh, Bukhara,

Farghana Fergana ( uz, Fargʻona/Фарғона, ), or Ferghana, is a district-level city and the capital of Fergana Region in eastern Uzbekistan. Fergana is about 420 km east of Tashkent, about 75 km west of Andijan, and less than 20 km fr ...

and

Khiva Khiva ( uz, Xiva/, خىۋا; fa, خیوه, ; alternative or historical names include ''Kheeva'', ''Khorasam'', ''Khoresm'', ''Khwarezm'', ''Khwarizm'', ''Khwarazm'', ''Chorezm'', ar, خوارزم and fa, خوارزم) is a district-level city ...

. He died in 1815, leaving five sons of whom

Mir Yar Beg Mir Yar Beg was a ruler within Badakhshan, who in the early 19th century was defeated by the Khan of Kunduz , native_name_lang = prs , other_name = , settlement_type = City , image_skyline = Kunduz River ...

succeeded him as ruler. Meanwhile, Kunduz was still under Emirate of Bukhara and the wandering sons of Darab Bi Kataghan decided to attack and retake the city, which they did in 1810. The Amir of Kunduz was now Mir Muhammad Murad Beg, one of the brothers. Mir Yar Beg was now worried about the rising popularity and power of Mir Muhammad Murad Beg in the region. Eventually, in 1820, the two would face off at Darah Aim in which Mir Muhammad Murad Beg would be the victor. In 1822 four brothers under the service of Mir Muhammad Murad Beg rebelled, led by Kokan Beg. Mir Muhammad Murad Beg and Kokan Beg often fought with each other over territory inconclusively while battling against rebels in their own respective territories for years. Kokan Beg would be assassinated by his ally in Kashkar (lower Chitral) by being pushed down a precipice. Mir Muhammad Murad Beg, taking advantage of this situation, took Badakhshan by occupying Fayzabad. But despite invading Badakhshan Mir Muhammad Murad Beg had little to no control over it. In fact Badakhshan was now contested by again by Mir Yar Beg, Sikandar Shah, Shahzada Mahmud, Abdul Ghazi Khan and Shah Suliman Beg, who were in exile at Tashqurghan (Kholm) under the protection of Mir Wali. Fayzabad had a small population under spiritual preceptor Mian Fazal Azim, ''Sahibzada'' of

Sirhind Sirhind-Fategarh is a town and a municipal council in the Fatehgarh Sahib district in the Indian state of Punjab. Demographics In the 2011 census Sirhind-Fatehgarh had a population of 60852. Males constituted 54% of the population and fema ...

. Jirm, Zardeo, Mashad, Daraaim and Fayzabad were successively occupied by these chiefs. Fayzabad fell to Mir Yar Beg, who rebuilt his fort and lived in the city. The old dynasty thus was restored.

Between Afghanistan, Britain and Russia

In 1839 the occupation of Afghanistan by British drove Amir

Dost Muhammad Khan Dost Mohammad Khan Barakzai (Pashto/Persian: ; 23 December 17929 June 1863), nicknamed the Amir-i Kabir, Also titled Amir al-Mu'minin, was a member of the Barakzai dynasty and one of the prominent rulers of the Emirate of Afghanistan. His 37-year ...

into exile. He visited successively Khulam and Kunduz and was well received. They could not aid him against British and Dost Muhammad proceeded to the Emirate of Bukhara. The Emirate of Bukhara was then governed by Amir Nasrullah Khan who was addicted to the society of boys.

Sher Ali Khan Sher Ali Khan (); c. 1825 – 21 February 1879) was Amir of Afghanistan from 1863 to 1866 and from 1868 until his death in 1879. He was one of the sons of Dost Mohammed Khan, founder of the Barakzai dynasty in Afghanistan. Life Sher Ali Khan ...

The son Dost Muhammad Khan was then a beardless youth and Nasrullah Khan coveted him. The Afghan pride of Sher Ali was however inflamed and he informed his father and brothers of the insulting desire of Nasrullah Khan. Dost Muhammad Khan then determined to leave Emirate of Bukhara but he found himself a prisoner and with difficulty escaped together with his sons to Balkh. Also in 1839, Mir Muhammad Murad Beg again attacked Rustak in Badakhshan and appointed an officer of his own in

Farkhar Farkhor ( tg, Фархор), also called Parkhar (russian: Пархар), is a city in southwestern Tajikistan, located on the border with Afghanistan. It is the capital of Farkhor District in Khatlon Region. The population of the town is 25,300 ...

. Two months later he also attacked Mashad. But he failed to obtain a footing in Badakhshan which remained in possession of its hereditary Mirs. In 1844, Mir Yar Beg while shooting was poisoned by Mir Ahmad Shah at the instigation of Sulaiman Beg and died on his return to Fayzabad. The instigator of the murder had been fascinated by the extraordinary beauty of the wife of Mir Yar Beg and was impelled by his passion for the lady to accomplish the death of her husband. On his death Sulaiman Beg took possession of Fayzabad and married his widow. Mir Ahmad Shah now discovered that the murder of Yar Beg was instigated by Sulaiman Beg with the object of possessing his wife and advancing against him expelled him from Faizabad of which he took possession himself. He then wrote to Mir Atalik Beg, Chief of Kunduz, requesting his aid against Yusuf Ali Khan and Mir Shah to drive them out of Rustak. The letter did not reach its destination but fell by some means into hands of Mir Shah who forwarded it to Sulaiman Shah and invited him to a consultation at Rustak. Both chiefs then united and marched against Mir Ahmad Shah who was expelled to Kunduz. A new distribution was made of country Mir Shah occupied Fayzabad as supreme ruler of Badakhshan. Shah Sulaiman Beg received Dara Aim; Nasrullah Khan got Kashmir and Mashad. Rustak and Chiab were allotted to Yusuf Ali Khan. Jirm to Sikandar Shah and Zardeo Sarghalan was given to ''Shahzada''

Mahmud Mahmud is a transliteration of the male Arabic given name (), common in most parts of the Islamic world. It comes from the Arabic triconsonantal root Ḥ-M-D, meaning ''praise'', along with ''Muhammad''. Siam Mahmud *Mahmood (singer) (born 19 ...

. From 1840 to 1859 CE, Afghanistan and Emirate of Bukhara would struggle for Balkh and Badakhshan with Afghanistan succeeding. Mir Shah, chief of Badakhshan and his feudatory of Rustak went to wait on

Muhammad Azam Khan Muhammad Azam Khan (1908–1994) was a senior general of the Pakistan army who was a minister under Field Marshal Ayub Khan, the first military ruler of Pakistan. Azam was the first commander of the Pakistan Army's I Corps, and was Governor o ...

(son of Dost Muhammad Khan) with presents and offer of submission. Mir Shah, betrothed his niece (daughter of his brother Nizam-ud-din Khan) to Muhammad Azam Khan. A treaty was made with the Muhammad Azam Khan as follows:

Ruler of Badakhshan, children and successors, agree to remain firm in allegiance to Amir of Kabul and officers in Balkh not to join foreign enemy against Amir of Kabul. Ruler of Badakhshan to furnish suitable contingent in difficulty and to aid Amir of Kabul and to give annual presents.

But Mir Shah had troubles governing his region. Family quarrels over territory kept him busy till his death in 1862. He was succeeded by his son Mir Jahandar Shah. He too would get involved in various intrigues in the region as well as issues of succession in his neighborhood taking one side or the other. In 1865, Mir Jahandar Shah sent his ambassador Syed Muhammad to the British Commissioner in

Peshawar Peshawar (; ps, پېښور ; hnd, ; ; ur, ) is the sixth most populous city in Pakistan, with a population of over 2.3 million. It is situated in the north-west of the country, close to the International border with Afghanistan. It is ...

to establish friendly relations. However, peace would not last long as Dost Muhammad Khan died and his sons began to fight for the throne. eventually Mir Jahandar Shah was forced to take the side of Sher Ali Khan and Muhammad Azam Khan (who was now married to Mir Jahandar Shah's daughter as well). But

Mohammad Afzal Khan Mohammad Afzal Khan (1815 – 7 October 1867; Persian: ) was the governor of Afghan Turkestan from 1849 to 1863 and Emir of Afghanistan from May 1866 to October 1867. The oldest son of Dost Mohammad Khan, Afzal Khan was born in Kabul in 1815. H ...

would secure Kabul forcing Sher Ali Khan to retreat to

Herat Herāt (; Persian: ) is an oasis city and the third-largest city of Afghanistan. In 2020, it had an estimated population of 574,276, and serves as the capital of Herat Province, situated south of the Paropamisus Mountains (''Selseleh-ye Safē ...

. Mir Jahandar Shah would hand over his allies to Mohammad Afzal Khan this angered Sher Ali Khan and his deputy in Akhcha, Faiz Muhammad Khan who went into battle at Gulaugan against Mir Jahandar Shah and defeated him. After flight of Mir Jahandar Shah the country was divided. Mir Jahandar Shah seeks refuge in Kabul where he is restored a year afterwards to his ancestral throne by the influence of Abdur Rahman Khan son of the Mohammad Afzal Khan and by his popularity. His rival Mahmud Shah leaves without a struggle in October 1868. Mir Jahandar Shah of Badakhshan never asked forgiveness for hostilities to Amir Sher Ali Khan with Azam Khan and failed to wait on Governor of Balkh at

Takhtapul Takhteh Pol ( Dari: تخته‌پل), also known as Takhtapul, is a village in Balkh Province in northern Afghanistan. It was created in by Afzal Khan (son of Dost Mohammad Khan) as a cantonment after the Afghan conquest of the Balkh Wilayat i ...

. Sher Ali in October 1869 invited Mizrad Shah, Muhammad Shah and Ibrahim, deposed chiefs of Badakhshan and restored them. Mir Jahandar Shah fled to Kulab. In December 1869, Mir Jahandar Shah left camp of Emir of Bukhara in Kulab and attacked Badakhshan and burned fort Zang Kila. After being annexed by Afghanistan, Badakhshan was joined with Qataghan to create the Badakhshan-Qataghan district located in Afghan Turkestan Province. Eventually

the Great Game The Great Game is the name for a set of political, diplomatic and military confrontations that occurred through most of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century – involving the rivalry of the British Empire and the Russian Empi ...

would begin with the Russians instigating the Emirate of Bukhara to claim certain territories of Afghanistan and the British recognizing Afghanistan's claim to the territories of dispute. Badakhshan's boundaries were decided by the Anglo-Russian agreement of 1873, which expressly acknowledged "Badakhshan with its dependent district Wakhan" as "fully belonging to the Amir of Kabul", and limited it to the left or southern bank of the

Amu Darya The Amu Darya, tk, Amyderýa/ uz, Amudaryo// tg, Амударё, Amudaryo ps, , tr, Ceyhun / Amu Derya grc, Ὦξος, Ôxos (also called the Amu, Amo River and historically known by its Latin name or Greek ) is a major river in Central Asi ...

(also called Oxus). On the west, Badakhshan was bounded by a line which crosses the

Turkestan Turkestan, also spelled Turkistan ( fa, ترکستان, Torkestân, lit=Land of the Turks), is a historical region in Central Asia corresponding to the regions of Transoxiana and Xinjiang. Overview Known as Turan to the Persians, western Turk ...

plains southwards from the junction of the

Kunduz , native_name_lang = prs , other_name = , settlement_type = City , image_skyline = Kunduz River valley.jpg , imagesize = 300 , image_alt = , image_caption = , image_ ...

and Amu Darya rivers until it touches the eastern water-divide of the Khulm River (Tashqurghan River), and then runs southeast, crossing

Kunduz , native_name_lang = prs , other_name = , settlement_type = City , image_skyline = Kunduz River valley.jpg , imagesize = 300 , image_alt = , image_caption = , image_ ...

, until it strikes the

Hindu Kush The Hindu Kush is an mountain range in Central and South Asia to the west of the Himalayas. It stretches from central and western Afghanistan, Quote: "The Hindu Kush mountains run along the Afghan border with the North-West Frontier Province ...

. The southern boundary was carried along the crest of the Hindu Kush as far as the

Khawak Pass Khawak Pass (elevation ) sits across the route heading to the northwest from near the head of the Panjshir Valley through the Hindu Kush range to northern Afghanistan via Andarab and Baghlan. This is the route traditionally thought to have been ...

, leading from Badakhshan into the

Panjshir valley The Panjshir Valley (also spelled Panjsher or Darah-I-Panjshir; Pashto/Dari: – ''Dare-ye Panjšēr''; literally ''Valley of the Five Lions'') is a valley in northeastern Afghanistan, north of Kabul, near the Hindu Kush mountain range. It is di ...

. Beyond this it was indefinite. It was known that the

Kafir Kafir ( ar, كافر '; plural ', ' or '; feminine '; feminine plural ' or ') is an Arabic and Islamic term which, in the Islamic tradition, refers to a person who disbelieves in God as per Islam, or denies his authority, or reject ...

s occupied the crest of the Hindu Kush eastwards of the Khawak, but how far they extended north of the main watershed was not ascertainable. The southern limits of Badakhshan became definite again at the

Dorah Pass Dorah Pass, also called ''Durah Pass'', connects Badakshan Province of Afghanistan with Chitral District in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. The Dorah Pass is more than high. It is located along the Durand Line border and crosses the Hindu Kush mou ...

. The Dorah connects Zebak and Ishkashim at the elbow, or bend, of the Oxus with the Lutku valley leading to Chitral. From the Dorah eastwards the crest of the Hindu Kush again became the boundary until it effects a junction with the Muztagh and Sarikol ranges, which shut off China from Russia and India. Skirting round the head of the Tagdumbash Pamir, it finally merged into the

Pamir Mountains The Pamir Mountains are a mountain range between Central Asia and Pakistan. It is located at a junction with other notable mountains, namely the Tian Shan, Karakoram, Kunlun, Hindu Kush and the Himalaya mountain ranges. They are among the wor ...

boundary, and turned westwards, following the course of the Oxus, to the junction of that river and the Khanabad (Kunduz). So far as the northern boundary followed the Oxus stream, under the northern slopes of the Hindu Kush, it was only separated by the length of these slopes (some 8 or 10 miles) from the southern boundary along the crest. Thus Badakhshan reached out an arm into the Pamirs eastwards - bottle-shaped - narrow at the neck (represented by the northern slopes of the Hindu Kush), and swelling out eastwards so as to include a part of the great and little Pamirs. Before the boundary settlement of 1873 the small states of Rushan and Shugnan extended to the left bank of the Oxus, and the province of Darwaz, on the other hand, extended to the right bank. Then, however, the Darwaz extension northwards was exchanged for the

Russian Pamir The Russian Pamir (russian: Русский Памир) is a former territory of Imperial Russia, now the province of Gorno-Badakhshan of Tajikistan. The regional capital is Khorugh Khorugh ( tg, Хоруғ, ; russian: Хорог, translit=Khor ...

extension westwards, and the river throughout became the boundary between Russian and Afghan territory; the political boundaries of those provinces and those of Wakhan were no longer coincident with their geographical limits. Chitral, Yarkand and Ferghana became shelters for refugees in 1887 and 1883 from Badakhshan who fled from the campaigns of

Abdul Rahman Abd al-Rahman ( ar, عبد الرحمن, translit=ʿAbd al-Raḥmān or occasionally ; DMG ''ʿAbd ar-Raḥman''; also Abdul Rahman) is a male Arabic Muslim given name, and in modern usage, surname. It is built from the Arabic words '' Abd'', '' ...

. The following were the chief provincial subdivisions of Badakhshan, omitting Rushan and Shugnan: on the west Rustak, Kataghan, Ghori, Narin and Anderab; on the north Darwaz, Ragh and Shiwa; on the east Charan, Ishkashim, Zebak and Wakhan; and in the center, Faizabad, Farkhar, Minjan and Kishm. There were others, but nothing certain is known about these minor subdivisions. Consequently, most western part of modern

Gorno-Badakhshan Gorno-Badakhshan, officially the Badakhshan Mountainous Autonomous Region,, abbr. / is an autonomous region in eastern Tajikistan, in the Pamir Mountains. It makes up nearly forty-five percent of the country's land area, but only two percen ...

became part of

Emirate of Bukhara The Emirate of Bukhara ( fa, , Amārat-e Bokhārā, chg, , Bukhārā Amirligi) was a Muslim polity in Central Asia that existed from 1785 to 1920 in what is modern-day Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Kazakhstan. It occupied the land ...

, while most of it became part of Fergana Province of

Russian Turkistan Russian Turkestan (russian: Русский Туркестан, Russkiy Turkestan) was the western part of Turkestan within the Russian Empire’s Central Asian territories, and was administered as a Krai or Governor-Generalship. It comprised the ...

. This arrangement was lasted till 1920. In 1890 Qataghan-Badakhshan District was separated from Afghan Turkestan and

Qataghan-Badakhshan Province Qataghan-Badakhshan Province ( prs, ولایت قطغن-بدخشان) was a province located in Afghanistan. The province was originally created in 1890 when the districts of Qataghan and Badakhshan was separated from the Afghan Turkestan province. ...

was created. Administration of the province was assigned to the Northern Bureau in

Kabul Kabul (; ps, , ; , ) is the capital and largest city of Afghanistan. Located in the eastern half of the country, it is also a municipality, forming part of the Kabul Province; it is administratively divided into #Districts, 22 municipal dist ...

.Fayz Muḥammad Katib. Siraj al-tawarıkh. V. III. Afghanistan Digital Library. <> In 1895, the

Panj River The Panj (russian: Пяндж; fa, رودخانه پنج) (; tg, Панҷ, پنج), traditionally known as the Ochus River and also known as ''Pyandzh'' (derived from its Russian name "Пяндж"), is a tributary of the Amu Darya. The river ...

was defined as part of the border between Afghan and Russian Badakhshan. This border persisted despite changes in governments.

20th century

In 1902, the

Bukhara Bukhara ( Uzbek: /, ; tg, Бухоро, ) is the seventh-largest city in Uzbekistan, with a population of 280,187 , and the capital of Bukhara Region. People have inhabited the region around Bukhara for at least five millennia, and the city ...

n (Western) Pamir came under the Russian military administration. In November 1918 the last Czarist Russian troops recognized Bolshevik rule, but in December 1919 the anti-Bolshevik Russian "Peasant's Army" from

Fergana Fergana ( uz, Fargʻona/Фарғона, ), or Ferghana, is a district-level city and the capital of Fergana Region in eastern Uzbekistan. Fergana is about 420 km east of Tashkent, about 75 km west of Andijan, and less than 20 km ...

took over. From April 1920, the vacuum of power was filled by an attempt to establish Bukharan rule until June 1920, when the Bukharans were expelled by local forces, Bolshevik rule was restored: the Stalinist

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nationa ...

seized the Bukharan part of

Gorno-Badakshan Gorno-Badakhshan, officially the Badakhshan Mountainous Autonomous Region,, abbr. / is an autonomous region in eastern Tajikistan, in the Pamir Mountains. It makes up nearly forty-five percent of the country's land area, but only two perc ...

. It was merged with the Russian (since 1895) part in 1924 to become the Gorno-Badakhshan autonomous ''oblast'' (province) within the Tajik SSR in 1929. Between April 1992 - 1993, a Pamiri-Badakshoni

Autonomous Republic An autonomous republic is a type of administrative division similar to a province or state. A significant number of autonomous republics can be found within the successor states of the Soviet Union, but the majority are located within Russia. M ...

was declared within independent post-Soviet

Tajikistan Tajikistan (, ; tg, Тоҷикистон, Tojikiston; russian: Таджикистан, Tadzhikistan), officially the Republic of Tajikistan ( tg, Ҷумҳурии Тоҷикистон, Jumhurii Tojikiston), is a landlocked country in Centr ...

, on 6 November 1994, becoming the Kohistan-Badakhshan Autonomous Province, alias Gorno-Badakhshan

Autonomous Province Autonomous province is a term for a type of province that has administrative autonomy.Collins Dictiona ...

or Mountainous Badakhshon Autonomous Veloyat. In 1963, Badakhshan included the districts of Baghlan, Pul-i-Khumri, Dushi, Dahan-i-Ghori, Kanabad, Andarab,

Kunduz , native_name_lang = prs , other_name = , settlement_type = City , image_skyline = Kunduz River valley.jpg , imagesize = 300 , image_alt = , image_caption = , image_ ...

, Hazrat-i-Imam, and Taloqan. In 1963 Qataghan-Badakhshan Province was abolished its territory was divided into four separate provinces: Badakhshan, Baghlan,

Kunduz , native_name_lang = prs , other_name = , settlement_type = City , image_skyline = Kunduz River valley.jpg , imagesize = 300 , image_alt = , image_caption = , image_ ...

and Takhar. Ludwig W. Adamec. ''Historical and political gazetteer of Afghanistan Vol. 1. Badakhshan Province and northeastern Afghanistan''.

Graz Graz (; sl, Gradec) is the capital city of the Austrian state of Styria and second-largest city in Austria after Vienna. As of 1 January 2021, it had a population of 331,562 (294,236 of whom had principal-residence status). In 2018, the popula ...

: Akad. Druck- und Verl.-Anst., 1972. p. 26. Tajik Badakhshan witnessed fierce fighting during the

Tajikistani Civil War The Tajikistani Civil War ( tg, Ҷанги шаҳрвандии Тоҷикистон, translit=Jangi shahrvandiyi Tojikiston / Çangi shahrvandiji Toçikiston; russian: Гражданская война в Таджикистане), also known ...

in the 1990s. At the height of

Taliban The Taliban (; ps, طالبان, ṭālibān, lit=students or 'seekers'), which also refers to itself by its state (polity), state name, the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a Deobandi Islamic fundamentalism, Islamic fundamentalist, m ...

strength during the Afghan Civil War circa 2000, Afghan Badakhashan was a stronghold for the Northern Alliance.

Geography

The conformation of the mountain districts, which comprise all the southern districts of Badakhshan and the northern hills and valleys of

Nuristan Nuristan, also spelled as Nurestan or Nooristan (Dari: ; Kamkata-vari: ), is one of the 34 provinces of Afghanistan, located in the eastern part of the country. It is divided into seven districts and is Afghanistan's least populous province, wi ...

(the former Kafiristan), is analogous to that of the rest of the

Hindu Kush The Hindu Kush is an mountain range in Central and South Asia to the west of the Himalayas. It stretches from central and western Afghanistan, Quote: "The Hindu Kush mountains run along the Afghan border with the North-West Frontier Province ...

to the west. The Hindu Kush represents the southern edge of a great central upheaval or plateau. It breaks up into long spurs southwards, among which are hidden the valleys of Nuristan, almost isolated from each other by the rugged and snow-capped altitudes which divide them. To the north the plateau gradually slopes away towards the Oxus, falling from an average altitude of 15,000 feet to 4,000 feet about Fayzabad, in the center of Badakhshan, but trailing off to ~100 feet at

Kunduz , native_name_lang = prs , other_name = , settlement_type = City , image_skyline = Kunduz River valley.jpg , imagesize = 300 , image_alt = , image_caption = , image_ ...

, in Kataghan, where it merges into the flat plains bordering the

Oxus river The Amu Darya, tk, Amyderýa/ uz, Amudaryo// tg, Амударё, Amudaryo ps, , tr, Ceyhun / Amu Derya grc, Ὦξος, Ôxos (also called the Amu, Amo River and historically known by its Latin name or Greek ) is a major river in Central Asi ...

. The

Kokcha River The Kokcha River ( fa, رودخانه کوکچه) is located in northeastern Afghanistan. A tributary of the Panj river, it flows through Badakhshan Province in the Hindu Kush. It is named after the Koksha Valley. The city of Feyzabad lies alo ...

traverses Badakhshan from southeast to northwest, and, with the

Kunduz , native_name_lang = prs , other_name = , settlement_type = City , image_skyline = Kunduz River valley.jpg , imagesize = 300 , image_alt = , image_caption = , image_ ...

, drains all the northern slopes of the Hindu Kush west of the

Dorah Pass Dorah Pass, also called ''Durah Pass'', connects Badakshan Province of Afghanistan with Chitral District in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. The Dorah Pass is more than high. It is located along the Durand Line border and crosses the Hindu Kush mou ...

. Some of its sources are near Zebak, close to the great bend of the Oxus northwards, so that it cuts off all the mountainous area included within that bend from the rest of Badakhshan. Its chief affluent is the Minjan, which Sir George Robertson found to be a considerable stream where it approaches the Hindu Kush close under the Dorab. Like the Kunduz, it probably drains the northern slopes of the Hindu Kush by deep lateral valleys, more or less parallel to the crest, reaching westwards towards the

Khawak Pass Khawak Pass (elevation ) sits across the route heading to the northwest from near the head of the Panjshir Valley through the Hindu Kush range to northern Afghanistan via Andarab and Baghlan. This is the route traditionally thought to have been ...

. From the Oxus (1,000 feet) to Faizabad (4,000 feet) and Zebak (8,500 feet) the course of the Kokcha offers a high road across Badakhshan; between Zebak and Ishkashim, at the Oxus bend, there is but an insignificant pass of 9,500 feet; and from Ishkashim by the

Panj River The Panj (russian: Пяндж; fa, رودخانه پنج) (; tg, Панҷ, پنج), traditionally known as the Ochus River and also known as ''Pyandzh'' (derived from its Russian name "Пяндж"), is a tributary of the Amu Darya. The river ...

, through the Pamirs, is the continuation of what must once have been a much-traversed

trade route A trade route is a logistical network identified as a series of pathways and stoppages used for the commercial transport of cargo. The term can also be used to refer to trade over bodies of water. Allowing goods to reach distant markets, a sing ...

connecting Afghan

Turkestan Turkestan, also spelled Turkistan ( fa, ترکستان, Torkestân, lit=Land of the Turks), is a historical region in Central Asia corresponding to the regions of Transoxiana and Xinjiang. Overview Known as Turan to the Persians, western Turk ...

with

Kashgar Kashgar ( ug, قەشقەر, Qeshqer) or Kashi ( zh, c=喀什) is an oasis city in the Tarim Basin region of Southern Xinjiang. It is one of the westernmost cities of China, near the border with Afghanistan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Pakistan. ...

of China. It is undoubtedly one of the great continental high-roads of Asia. North of the Kokcha, within the Oxus bend, is the mountainous district of Darwaz, of which the physiography belongs rather to the Pamir type than to that of the Hindu Kush. A very remarkable meridional range extends for 100 miles northwards from the Hindu Kush (it is across this range that the route from Zebak to Ishkashim lies), which determines the great bend of the Oxus river northwards from Ishkashim, and narrows the valley of that river into the formation of a trough as far as the next bend westwards at Kala Wamar. The western slopes of this range drain to the Oxus either northwestwards, by the Kokcha and the Ragh, or else they twist their streams into the Shiwa, which runs due north across Darwaz. Here again the main routes which traverse the country follow the rivers closely. The valleys are narrow, but fertile and populous. The mountains are rugged and difficult; but there is much world-famous beauty of scenery, and almost phenomenal agricultural wealth in the valleys of

Bukhara Bukhara ( Uzbek: /, ; tg, Бухоро, ) is the seventh-largest city in Uzbekistan, with a population of 280,187 , and the capital of Bukhara Region. People have inhabited the region around Bukhara for at least five millennia, and the city ...

and

Ferghana Fergana ( uz, Fargʻona/Фарғона, ), or Ferghana, is a district-level city and the capital of Fergana Region in eastern Uzbekistan. Fergana is about 420 km east of Tashkent, about 75 km west of Andijan, and less than 20 km fr ...

to be found in the recesses of Badakhshan.

References

External links

Travel article:The Rubies of Badakhshan

{{Authority control Geography of Tajikistan Historical regions Regions of Afghanistan

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