Afghan in India(Page 1 of 1)
Afghans in India
Afghans in India came as conquerors, as mercenaries to serve the various Princely states and in the Nineteenth Century as exiles. Famous Afghans like Ayub Khan who defeated the British during the Second Anglo Afghan War were forced to seek exile in British India when he had nowhere else to turn (See Victor of Maiwand by M Ali). Descendants of Ayub Khan lived in Allahabad India and Lahore Pakistan.
Afghans as Conquerors
Many towns and cities were established by the Pakhtuns in India. One of the many examples was founded by the Lodhi dynasty is the city of Ludhiana on the banks of the Sutlej located in Eastern Punjab Modern day India. The graves of the Lodhis were located in this city before 1947 which was used to be a Muslim Majority city. The city was founded in 1480 AD by the Lodhi Chief Nihand Khan of Lodhi dynasty in Mir Hota village.Ludhiana was initially called as Lodhi-ana. The Lodhis built a fort in this city, which is now dilapidated.
Afghans as Exiles
The city of Ludhiana figured prominently in Afghan history since it was the place to which Shah Shuja ul Mulk and his brother Zaman Shah were exiled under British protection until the First Anglo Afghan War of 1839-1842 when Shuja was placed on the throne of the Kingdom of Kabul.
Pakhtuns settlement to achieve security and the state of Rohilkand
Figure 1Najib Ud Daula Rohilla Leader from Ganda Singh – ‘Ahmed Shah Durrani the Father of Modern Afghanistan’
In Pashto Roh means mountains and Rohilla means mountaineer. The area was made famous by the settlement of Pakhtuns of the Yusufzai tribe who were awarded this region in northern India by the Mughal emperor Aurangzeb to suppress Rajput uprisings. Similarly in Jullundher there was a large settlement of Pathans from the Niazi tribe(See Imran Khan Warrior Race ). The large settlements of Rohilla Pakhtuns in the City of Bareilly and Rampur were also included in the territory of Rohilkand. Very few books in English have been written on the Rohillas one of the few is Rise and decline of the Rohilla Chieftancies in 18th Century India
Rohillas were distinguished from local people by their tall stature, fair complexion, and by their separate language and culture. They used to speak Pashto among each other but gradually lost their language. Indeed the loss of native language fluency has long been a feature of the Pakhtun settlement in India:
“It is interesting to note that the Pukhtun (Afghan) Kings ruled Delhi for almost five centuries(1193-1526 CE) but they couldn’t rule their own people in the territory between Kabul and the Indus. This was due to the nature of a tribal society that didn’t permit unity under one banner. However, these Pukhtun kings encouraged many of their kind to migrate to India to help govern the local population there. After a few generations, these migrants were effectively. Cut off from their land, their culture and their language. Today, millions of Indian Muslims trace their roots to the Peshawar Valley and eastern Afghanistan.”(Page23 Hussain, Sayed Amjad:The Frontier Town of Peshawar A Brief History
1 |
Ali Mohammed |
The Victor Of Maiwand |
Biography of Ayub Khan who defeated numerically superior British Forces at Maiwand. In original stiff card covers 1971 Kabul. Very good condition. £80 |
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2 |
Gommans, Jos J.L |
The Rise of the Indo-Afghan Empire C1710-1780 |
E.J.Brill Publishers Hardback first edition mint in protected dw. The Rise of the Indo Afghan Empire deals with the magnificent world of Afghan nomads, horse dealers and mercenaries bridging the frontiers between the old metropolitan centres of India, Iran, and Central Asia. During the eighteenth century they succeeded in establishing a vigorous new system of Indo-Afghan States. In Central Asia, the Afghans created an imperial tradition on the basis of long standing Perso-Islamic ideals. In India, along the caravan routes with Turkistan and Tibet, they carved out thriving principalities in association with military service and the breeding and trade in war horses. By fully incorporating this ascendancy into the fabric of Islamic and world history the author challenges the widely held notion of a gloomy Afghan past. Gommans teaches Indian history at the University of Leiden. £95 |
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3 |
Husain Iqbal |
The Rise and Decline of the Ruhela Chieftancies in 18th Century India |
Published by OUP. Author is a Professor of History at Aligarh University India. PHD
thesis of author includes three maps. Fascinating account of the fate of Afghan controlled
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4 |
Hussain, Sayed Amjad |
The Frontier Town of Peshawar A Brief History |
23 pages soft cover the Interlit Foundation Peshawar Pakistan. A review of the history of Peshawar by a Pukhtun doctor Page 23 of the book: “It is interesting to note that the Pukhtun (Afghan) Kings ruled Delhi for almost five centuries(1193-1526 CE) but the couldn’t rule their own people in the territory between Kabul and the Indus. This was due to the nature of a tribal society that didn’t permit unity under one banner. However, these Pukhtun kings encouraged many of their kind to migrate to India to help govern the local population there. After a few generations, these migrants were effectively. Cut off from their land, their culture and their language. Today, millions of Indian Muslims trace their roots to the Peshawar Valley and eastern Afghanistan.” Published in 2000 third edition. £19 |
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5 |
Khan, Imran |
WARRIOR RACE |
Khan belongs to the Niazi tribe of Pashtuns who were settled during the Durrani empire in the Eastern Punjab city of Jullundhur. In 1947 Khan’s relatives came under Sikh attack and the Pashtun women joined in the defence of their community. Many Pashtuns were settled in the Punjab during the Durrani empire in order to control the territory for Afghanistan. A journey through the land of the tribal Pathans. An insider's view of the North-West Frontier today. 154pp. Large format with map and fine colour photographs. Detailed images and description of places now much in the news. Fine in fine dw. 1993 First edition, Chatto & Windus. £45 |
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6 |
Nichols Robert |
A History of Pashtun Migration 1775-2006 |
350 pages, 2008 Oxford Univ Press. £30 |
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7 |
Singh, Ganda |
Ahmed Shah Durrani the Father of Modern Afghanistan |
1959 Asia Book House Bombay 457 pages |
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