KABUL UNDER THE MUGHAL RULE (1504-1738 AD) BY SUMAIRA A dissertation submitted to the University of Peshawar, Pakistan in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy February 2016 KABUL UNDER THE MUGHAL RULE (1504-1738 AD) BY SUMAIRA AREA STUDY CENTRE (RUSSIA, CHINA & CENTRAL ASIA) UNIVERSITY OF PESHAWAR, PAKISTAN Februrary 2016 DECLARATION I hereby declare that this dissertation is the outcome of my individual research and that it has not been submitted to any other University for the grant of a degree. February 2016 Sumaira AREA STUDY CENTRE UNIVERSITY OF PESHAWAR Peshawar 2016 FINAL APPROVAL This is to certify that we have read the dissertation submitted by Ms. Sumaira and it is our judgment that this is of sufficient standard to warrant its acceptance by the University of Peshawar, Peshawar, for the award of the Degree of Philosophy. Supervisor: Prof. Dr. Zahid Anwar Internal Supervisor: Dr. Syed Wiqar Ali Shah Director. Area Study Centre: Dr. Sarfraz Khan DEDICATION Dedicated to my parents who always prayed for the successful Completion of my Ph. D thesis AKNOWLEDGMENTS All praise to Allah, the almighty who gave me the courage, temerity, health and strength to complete this work. The completion of the research work took many years.For the accomplishment of this task I am indebted to many individuals without whose help and guidance it would have been intricate to complete the thesis. I am particularly grateful to my supervisor Dr. Zahid Anwar, who was extremely helpful and supportive throughout the process of this thesis. It was his supervision, support and guidance that enabled me to complete this research project. My colleagues and especially my principle Shaheen Kausar of Govt, Girls degree collage Timargara were very supportive to me in completion of this work. I would like to express my deep and sincere gratitude to my former supervisor Dr. Muhammad Anwar Khan, he passed away during the initial stages of my thesis. I am grateful to the staff of libraries that I had consulted during my research including Area Study Centre (Russia, China and Central Asia), Islamia Collage library, Directorate of Archives and libraries Peshawar, Central library, and particularly the staff of Pashto Academy Library Peshawar University for their cooperation and support. Some special thanks to my family and friends whose support always remained with me particularly my mother who has always been a source of inspiration for me. I am also very grateful to my brothers, Jawad Ghani, Bilal Ahmad and Danial Khan who gave their unflinching support to me throughout this research project. SUMAIRA i ABSTRACT KABUL UNDER THE MUGHAL RULE (1504-1738 AD) Kabul was a bridge between Indian Mughal Empire and Central Asia, the ancestral homeland of the founders of the empire. Kabul, one of the most important areas of Afghanistan, carries about 3,500 years old historical records mentioning Kabul with different names like, Kubha, Gandahara, Kabura, Ortospana, Kapul, Zavul, and Zabul etc. all the great warriors and conquerors from Central Asia used Kabul as their route to India and used Kabul as a tool for invading India. It has also remained a trade route to India and was known as a gateway to India. This work intends to shed light on geostrategic significance of Kabul under Mughals and to explore geopolitics, history and etymology of Kabul. Attempts were also made to uncover the area, its inhabitants, their ethnicity, traditions and tribes etc. Kabul flourished under Mughals greatly. Kabul became the foundation stone for the Mughal Empire at India. During the Mughal era Kabul entered into a new phase and with the invasion of Babur the area got the position of the capital of the Mughals. Babur loved the city and it was that love which convinced him to choose Kabul his burial place despite establishing vast Indian Empire. The early Mughal rulers paid much attention to the affairs of Kabul, because their existence at greater extent belongs to their strong hold over Kabul. It was under Mughals that a number of Afghan tribes came to prominence and got important positions, a huge number of them also migrated to India, particularly Bengal. It was not only from Kabul that the Mughals secured the Indian borders from the invaders but from there they could also fulfill their ambitions of conquering the ancestral homeland of Central Asia.Kabul became a gateway for the northern invaders of India, and also a gateway to Central Asia, the Mughal homeland. With the passage of time the Mughal priorities changed in India which also affected Mughal concerns at Kabul. Besides introduction and conclusion there are six chapters in this dissertation. The work deals with the Geography, early History and culture of Kabul. The Babur‟s ii advent at Kabul, his tribal settlement and his foundation of the Indian Mughal Empire affected his rule at Kabul. After the invasion of India Babur never came back to Kabul during his life time but buried there after his demise. His sonHumayun after Babur`s death found himself surrounded by difficulties not only in India but also in Kabul. Humayun also faced wars in India particularly threats from Suris. Humayun after getting defeat from the hands of Sher Shah Suri at India turned towards Kabul to seek the help of his brother Mirza Kamran, but failed. After the loss of India to Sher Shah Suri, the importance of Kabul increased for Humayun and became the centre of attention for both of the brothers, Humayun and Mirza Kamran. Both fought with one another several times for the supremacy of Kabul. At last Humayun got full control over Kabul and it was his control of Kabul that paved the way for him to recapture his lost Indian Empire. Akbar realized that Kabul was the notheren key of India and it was essential to keep the areaunder his control for the safety of his empire. Due to this realization his hold always remained strong on Kabul. It was during the reign of Akbar that Kabul recived great importance and he after getting the possession of Kabul introduced a uniformed system of administration in the area. Akbar at start after his accession to the throne faced many problems in Kabul like his father Humayun. Akbar brother Mirza Muhammad Hakim under the guidance of his mother Mah Chuchak or Juchak begum ruled Kabul independently from Akbar‟s Indian empire. That was the period in which Kabul became a place of disturbance and a home for the rebels of the neighboring areas including India affected also the lives of the general masses of Kabul. Akbar with his strong policy and diplomacy at last became able to grab the authority of Kabul in his own control and made proper extension of Indian administration to Kabul. Akbar carrot and stick policy at last restored peace in Kabul. It was during his rule that the Roshniya movement strengthened itself against the Mughals. The Roshniya threat increased during the reign of Jahangir and Shah Jahan which caused disturbance in the Kabul valley as well as in other parts of India. To control the Roshniyas a number of expeditions were launched against them and Jahangir paid a number of visits to bring peace in the Kabul valley but failed to fully tame the Roshniyas. During Jahangir the Roshniyas were became very strong iii in the area. It was the reign of Shah Jahan that the movment lost it spirit to a greater extent. Uzbegs attacks on Kabul diverted the attention of Shah Jahan to that city. It was Shah Jahan Central Asian expeditions that brought a number of reforms in the valley of Kabul. For the passing of huge army to Balkh and Badakhshan the roads were reconstructed. The expedition ensured the security of Kabul and with the appointment of a number of Afghans to high posts in the army improved their livings.Aurangzeb was the last great and efficient ruler of the Mughal dynasty but it was during his rule that the Mughal authority at Kabul started decreasing because of his negligence of the area. Due to his Deccan policy he could not pay proper attention to Kabul which increased commission there. The history of the region highlights ups and downs in the relations between Mughals and Afghans, the guardians of the valley. Mughals sometimes fought with Yousefzais and sometime allied them. On the other hand Mughals soldiers sometime allied Khattak tribe and sometime fought with them as immortalized by Khushal Khan Khattak in his Pashto poetry. With the passage of time particularly after the death of Aurangzeb the Mughal rulers changed their priority from the security to entertainment and luxury the declined of the empire ushered. The condition of Kabul moved from bad to worst and in spite of changing several governors within a short period of time the situation remained the same. The weak Mughal rulers were not in a position to crush out those disturbance at Kabul which not only encouraged the displeasure of the people of Kabul but it also encouraged the outsiders particularly the Persians to invade the area. At last the Mughals lost the valley of Kabul for good after the invasion of Nadir Shah Afshar in 1738 AD. The march of Kabul in time under Mughals brings to limelight the geostrategic and politico-economic worth of the city. iv Contents DEDICATION ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- i ABSTRACT--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- i AKNOWLEDGMENTS -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- iv INTRODUCTION