Sardar Mohammad Azim Khan Barakzai () was the last Durrani Afghan governor of

Kashmir Kashmir ( or ) is the Northwestern Indian subcontinent, northernmost geographical region of the Indian subcontinent. Until the mid-19th century, the term ''Kashmir'' denoted only the Kashmir Valley between the Great Himalayas and the Pir P ...

(1812–1819). He was the second son of the

Barakzai Bārakzai (, plur. , ) is the name of a Pashtun tribe from present-day Kandahar, Afghanistan. '"Barakzai" is a common name among the Pashtuns and it means "son of Barak" in Pashto. According to the Encyclopædia Iranica, "In the detailed Pash ...

chief Payinda Sarfaraz Khan, while his elder brother Fateh Khan was the

kingmaker A kingmaker is a person or group that has great influence on a monarchy or royal in their political succession, without themselves being a viable candidate. Kingmakers may use political, monetary, religious, and military means to influence the ...

and

Vizier A vizier (; ; ) is a high-ranking political advisor or Minister (government), minister in the Near East. The Abbasids, Abbasid caliphs gave the title ''wazir'' to a minister formerly called ''katib'' (secretary), who was at first merely a help ...

Mahmud Shah Durrani Mahmud Shah Durrani (Pashto/ Persian: ); 1769 – 18 April 1829) was born prince and later ruler of the Durrani Empire (Afghanistan) between 1801 and 1803, and again between 1809 and 1818. From 1818 to 1829 he was the ruler of Herat. From an eth ...

. He was one of 21 brothers from eight mothers including his half-brother

Dost Mohammad Khan Dost Mohammad Khan Barakzai (Pashto/; 23 December 1792 – 8 June 1863), nicknamed the Amir-i Kabir, was the founder of the Barakzai dynasty and one of the prominent rulers of Afghanistan during the First Anglo-Afghan War. With the decline of ...

who would later become Emir of Afghanistan.

Career

In 1810, Azim Khan was tasked by Mahmud Shah Durrani to capture his rival for the throne,

Shah Shujah Durrani Shah Shuja Durrani (Pashto/ Persian: ; November 1785 – 5 April 1842) was the ruler of the Durrani Empire from 1803 to 1809. He then ruled from 1839 until his death in 1842. A son of Timur Shah Durrani, Shuja was of the Saddozai line of the A ...

, who had raised an army of partisans in

Peshawar Peshawar is the capital and List of cities in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa by population, largest city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, Pakistani province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. It is the sixth most populous city of Pakistan, with a district p ...

. He successfully defeated Shah Shuja's armies and was subsequently involved in the 1812-13 joint Afghan-Sikh capture of Kashmir from its rebellious governor Atta Khan Bamzai. He was appointed governor of Kashmir and in 1814 successfully repelled an attempted invasion by the Sikhs led by

Ranjit Singh Ranjit Singh (13 November 1780 – 27 June 1839) was the founder and first maharaja of the Sikh Empire, in the northwest Indian subcontinent, ruling from 1801 until his death in 1839. Born to Maha Singh, the leader of the Sukerchakia M ...

. After the blinding and murder of Fateh Khan by Shahzada Kamran Durrani, Mohammad. Azim Khan became Barakzai chief and along with his brothers swore revenge against the Emir. All former

Durrani empire The Durrani Empire, colloquially known as the Afghan Empire, or the Saddozai Kingdom, was an Afghanistan, Afghan empire founded by the Durrani tribe of Pashtuns under Ahmad Shah Durrani in 1747, which spanned parts of Central Asia, the Iranian ...

provinces except

Herat Herāt (; Dari/Pashto: هرات) is an oasis city and the third-largest city in 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 (''Se ...

came under Barakzai control and he set himself up as Governor of

Kabul Kabul 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. The city is divided for administration into #Districts, 22 municipal districts. A ...

having left Kashmir in the hands of his half-brother Jabbar Khan Navab. He invited Shah Shujah Durrani back from exile but installed

Ayub Shah Durrani Ayub Shah Durrani (Persian language, Persian/Pashto: ), also known as Ayub Shah Abdali, son of Timur Shah Durrani, ruled Afghanistan from 1819 to 1823. He was an Afghans, Afghan from the Pashtuns, Pashtun ethnic group. He was the second oldest ...

puppet ruler A puppet ruler is someone who holds a title of political authority, but is loyal to or controlled by outside persons or groups. When a foreign government wields such outside control, the puppet ruler's territory is referred to as a puppet state. ...

instead. In the summer of 1819 his half-brother Yar Mohammad. Khan, governor of

, failed to impede Ranjit Singh on his march towards Kashmir and the Sikhs annexed the province after defeating Jabbar Khan in the Battle of Shopian. He attempted but failed to secure an alliance with the British while trying to secure his wealth and political position against his brothers, other Afghan nobles, the Sikhs and neighbouring rulers. In March 1823, Azim Khan alongside other Pashtuns faced off against the Sikh Khalsa Army of Ranjit Singh at the Battle of Nowshera near Peshawar. After being repulsed on the first day he abandoned his allies, who had regrouped to continue fighting and retreated to Kabul where he died shortly thereafter. As a result, the Afghans lost their former stronghold of

Peshawar Valley The Valley of Peshawar (; ) is a broad area situated in the central part of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan. The valley is in area, and is traversed by the Kabul River. It has a mean elevation of . The valley takes its name from the c ...

to the Sikh Empire. He was reputed to have acquired great wealth through war plunder and excessive taxation, especially during his time as governor of Kashmir. Azim Khan died shortly after the battle of Nowshera from

Cholera Cholera () is an infection of the small intestine by some Strain (biology), strains of the Bacteria, bacterium ''Vibrio cholerae''. Symptoms may range from none, to mild, to severe. The classic symptom is large amounts of watery diarrhea last ...

. His son Habiballah Khan inherited his estate and took control of Kabul after his death but was soon ousted by Dost Mohammad Khan.

References

Bibliography

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Khan, Azim Pashtun politicians Governors of Kashmir Governors of provinces of Afghanistan Year of death unknown Year of birth unknown