The Katoor dynasty (also spelled Katur and Kator) was a

dynasty A dynasty is a sequence of rulers from the same family, usually in the context of a monarchy, monarchical system, but sometimes also appearing in republics. A dynasty may also be referred to as a "house", "family" or "clan", among others. H ...

, which along with its collateral branches ruled the

sovereign ''Sovereign'' is a title that can be applied to the highest leader in various categories. The word is borrowed from Old French , which is ultimately derived from the Latin">-4; we might wonder whether there's a point at which it's appropriate to ...

, later princely state of

Chitral Chitral () is a city situated on the Kunar River, Chitral River in northern area of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan. It serves as the capital of the Lower Chitral District, and was previously the capital of Chitral District, and before ...

and its neighbours in the eastern

Hindu Kush The Hindu Kush is an mountain range in Central Asia, Central and South Asia to the west of the Himalayas. It stretches from central and eastern Afghanistan into northwestern Pakistan and far southeastern Tajikistan. The range forms the wester ...

region for over 450 years, from around 1570 until 1947. At the height its power under Mehtar Aman ul-Mulk the territory controlled by the dynasty extended from Asmar in the

Kunar Valley Kunar Valley is a valley in Afghanistan and Pakistan Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a popul ...

Sher Qilla Sher Qilla Valley () or Sherqilla is a village in Ghizer District (2019–), Ghizer District, from Gilgit, Pakistan. It is the largest village of Ghizer District by area. The Ghizer District ضلع غذر‎ formed in 1974 is the westernmost ...

in the

Gilgit Gilgit (; Shina language, Shina: ; ) is a city in Pakistani-administered Gilgit-Baltistan, Gilgit–Baltistan in the disputed Kashmir region.The application of the term "administered" to the various regions of Kashmir and a mention of the Kas ...

valley. The Mehtar of Chitral was an influential player in the

power politics Power politics is a term which denotes an approach to political matters which aims to enhance the power of government actors. The term has much usage in the realm of international relations, and it is often used pejoratively. The German term fo ...

of the region as he acted as an intermediary between the rulers of

Badakhshan Badakhshan is a historical region comprising the Wakhan Corridor in northeast Afghanistan, eastern Tajikistan, and Taxkorgan Tajik Autonomous County in China. Badakhshan Province is one of the 34 provinces of Afghanistan. Much of historic ...

, the

Yousafzai The Yusufzai or Yousafzai (, ), also referred to as the Esapzai (, ), or Yusufzai Afghans historically, are one of the largest tribes of Pashtuns. They are natively based in the northern part of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa ( Malakand, Dir, Swat, Shangl ...

pashtuns Pashtuns (, , ; ;), also known as Pakhtuns, or Pathans, are an Iranian peoples, Iranic ethnic group primarily residing in southern and eastern Afghanistan and northwestern Pakistan. They were historically also referred to as Afghan (ethnon ...

, the Maharaja of Kashmir and later the

Amir of Afghanistan This article lists the heads of state of Afghanistan since the foundation of the first modern Afghan state, the Hotak Empire, in 1709. History The Hotak Empire was formed after a successful uprising led by Mirwais Hotak and other Afghan tr ...

Origins

The name Katoor is an ancient one and has been in use long before the ancestor of the Katoors settled in Chitral in 1520. According to one theory, Katoor was a

Kushan ''Kushan'' or Kushana may refer to: * Kushan Empire The Kushan Empire (– CE) was a Syncretism, syncretic empire formed by the Yuezhi in the Bactrian territories in the early 1st century. It spread to encompass much of what is now Afghanistan ...

title of nobility. Katoor also means

dragon A dragon is a Magic (supernatural), magical legendary creature that appears in the folklore of multiple cultures worldwide. Beliefs about dragons vary considerably through regions, but European dragon, dragons in Western cultures since the Hi ...

in the archaic Bashgali dialect of Kohistani. According to the royal history of the Katoor dynasty, their ancestor Ayub Baba who came to Chitral in 1520. The title of Shah Katoor was given to Mohtaram Shah, the first ruler of the house, by a local holy man who claimed that his bravery and integrity were reminiscent of the pre-Islamic Katoor rulers of the region.

Territorial expansion

When the dynasty was first founded by Shah Katoor, his domains included lower Chitral,

, Lot-Kuh, Torkhow and Mulkhow regions of upper Chitral. Under Shah Katoor the II,

Mastuj Mastuj () is a tehsil and a valley in Upper Chitral District in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan. Mastuj is the principal settlement. It is located at 36°17'0N 72°31'0E with an altitude of 2359 metres (7742 feet). There are ruins of ...

and the Yasin Valley also came under Katoor domination. The

Kati KATI (94.3 FM), branded as 94.3 KAT Country, is a radio station which broadcasts country music and St. Louis Cardinals baseball. Licensed to California, Missouri, the station serves the Jefferson City Jefferson City, informally Jeff City, ...

and Kom tribes of

Kafiristan Kāfiristān, or Kāfirstān (; ; ), is a historical region that covered present-day Nuristan Province in Afghanistan and its surroundings. This historic region lies on, and mainly comprises, the basins of the rivers Alingar, Pech (Kamah), La ...

, tribes of Dir Kohistan,

Swat Kohistan Behrain, also known as Upper Swat Valley and Swat Kohistan, is a tehsil located in Swat District, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. The population is 270,620, according to the 2023 census. Behrain has an area of , comprising more than half of total ar ...

and

Kalam ''Ilm al-kalam'' or ''ilm al-lahut'', often shortened to ''kalam'', is the scholastic, speculative, or rational study of Islamic theology ('' aqida''). It can also be defined as the science that studies the fundamental doctrines of Islamic fai ...

paid a yearly

tribute A tribute (; from Latin ''tributum'', "contribution") is wealth, often in kind, that a party gives to another as a sign of submission, allegiance or respect. Various ancient states exacted tribute from the rulers of lands which the state con ...

to the Mehtar. Shah Katoor the III invaded

Wakhan Wakhan, or "the Wakhan" (also spelt Vakhan; Persian and , ''Vâxân'' and ''Wāxān'' respectively; , ''Vaxon''), is a rugged, mountainous part of the Pamir, Hindu Kush and Karakoram regions of Afghanistan. Wakhan District is a district in ...

in retaliation for a raid on Chitral from Wakhan, and forced the Mir of Wakhan to pay

as well. In 1876, Mehtar Aman ul-Mulk conquered the Ghizer and Puniyal and laid siege to the

Dogra __NOTOC__ Dogras, or Dogra people, are an Indo-Aryan ethnic community of Pakistan and India. Dogra, Dogras or Dogri may also refer to: * Dogra dynasty, a Hindu dynasty of Kashmir * Dogri language, a language spoken by Dogras and other ethnic commu ...

Garrison of the Maharaja of Kashmir in the

fort. During this time the tribes of

Darel Darel is a given name. Notable people with the name include: * Darel Carrier (born 1940), former professional basketball player * Darel Dieringer (1926–1989), former NASCAR Grand National and Winston Cup driver * Darel Hancock, better known as Bom ...

, Tangir and Kandia and the state of Nagar also paid tribute to the Mehtar of Chitral. The Katoor dynasty's influence reached its peak under Mehtar Aman ul-Mulk, when territories of Ghizer, Yasin and

Ishkoman The Ishkoman () valley lies in the north of Ghizer District in Gilgit-Baltistan, Pakistan. It borders Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asi ...

were conquered in 1880.

Rulers

The rulers of the Kator dynasty with the date of their accession

Origins

Territorial expansion

Rulers

References

Further reading