Gholam Serwar Nasher (also known as Ghulam Sarwar Nashir; 1922–1984) was the last ruling

Khan Khan may refer to: * Khan (surname), including a list of people with the name * Khan (title), a royal title for a ruler in Mongol and Turkic languages and used by various ethnicities Art and entertainment * Khan (band), an English progressiv ...

of the Nashir and

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

of Spinzar Cotton Company in

Kunduz Kunduz (; ; ) is a city in northern Afghanistan and the capital of Kunduz Province. The city has an estimated population of about 268,893 as of 2015, making it about the List of cities in Afghanistan, seventh largest city of Afghanistan, and the ...

, the most profitable company and one of the largest companies in pre-war

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. It is bordered by Pakistan to the Durand Line, east and south, Iran to the Afghanistan–Iran borde ...

Life

Nashir was born in Qarabagh, Afghanistan to Mohammad Alam Khan Nasher, brother to

Sher Khan Nasher Sher Khan Nashir (also: Nasher) was the hereditary Grand Khan (Loy Khan) of the Nashir clan of the Kharoti (Ghilji) tribe and governor (Wali) of Northern Afghanistan in the 1930s, known as the "father of Kunduz. He was apparently poisoned by the ...

, to an ethnic

Pashtun Pashtuns (, , ; ;), also known as Pakhtuns, or Pathans, are an Iranic ethnic group primarily residing in southern and eastern Afghanistan and northwestern Pakistan. They were historically also referred to as Afghans until 1964 after the ...

Ghilzai family of Khans. Nashir led the Spinzar Cotton Company in Kunduz, exporting cotton overseas, producing cotton seed oil, soap and porcelain. He built hotels under the Spinzar brand in Kunduz, Kabul and other northern cities, employing over 20,000 people including woman working in the porcelain factory.Reuter, Christoph: Power Plays in Afghanistan: Laying the Groundwork for Civil War, 49/2011 (5 December 2011) of DER SPIEGEL
/ref> He opened factories in the north, providing free housing for the employees, hospital, the only girls school in the city of Kunduz, sport clubs, and hotels. Nashir founded the ''Nashir Library and Museum''. During his khanat,

become the richest

province A province is an administrative division within a country or sovereign state, state. The term derives from the ancient Roman , which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire, Roman Empire's territorial possessions ou ...

of the pre-war country, Spinzar being Afghanistan's most profitable company. Nashir was awarded "The Order of the Golden House" by King

Zahir Shah Mohammad Zāhir Shāh (15 October 1914 – 23 July 2007) was the last King of Afghanistan, reigning from 8 November 1933 until he was deposed on 17 July 1973. Ruling for 40 years, Zahir Shah was the longest-serving ruler of Afghanistan since t ...

and "The Order of the Sacred Treasure" by the Emperor of Japan, in 1971.

Death

He died in exile in West Germany in 1984 at the age of 62. He was survived by two wives, nine children and eight grandchildren.

Discovery of Ai-Khanoum

On a hunting trip, Nashir discovered ancient artefacts of Ai Khanom and invited Princeton-archaeologist

Daniel Schlumberger Daniel Théodore Schlumberger (19 December 1904 – 21 October 1972) was a French archaeologist and Professor of Near Eastern Archaeology at the University of Strasbourg and later Princeton University. Biography After having been invited by ...

with his team to examine

Ai-Khanoum Ai-Khanoum (, meaning 'Lady Moon'; ) is the archaeological site of a Hellenistic city in Takhar Province, Afghanistan. The city, whose original name is unknown, was likely founded by an early ruler of the Seleucid Empire and served as a mili ...

.Bernard, Paul: Aï Khanoum en Afghanistan hier (1964-1978) et aujourd'hui (2001), p. 971 www.persee.fr/web/revues/home/prescript/article/crai_0065-0536_2001_num_145_2_16315?_Prescripts_Search_tabs1=standard& It was soon found to be a major city of the

Greco-Bactrian kingdom The Greco-Bactrian Kingdom () was a Ancient Greece, Greek state of the Hellenistic period located in Central Asia, Central-South Asia. The kingdom was founded by the Seleucid Empire, Seleucid satrap Diodotus I, Diodotus I Soter in about 256 BC, ...

and was extensively studied before the outbreak of the Soviet-Afghan War in 1979, during which it was comprehensively looted. Artefacts from the ruins have been exhibited worldwide.

Life

Death

Discovery of Ai-Khanoum

References

Further reading