GS302 Lecture Notes - Lecture 9: Ahmad Shah Durrani, Mohammed Zahir Shah, Saur Revolution
Document Summary
Emerges from the british empire in 1919. Ancient history ties to indus valley, mauryan, kushan, mughal. Ethnicities: pashtun (major afghan group), uzbek, tajik, hazari: peoples are mostly eastern iranian ethnicity. Area of tremendous significance part of the subcontinent which acts as one of the corridors past the hindu kush mountains into the plain of the subcontinent: significant for the history of the region. Strategically for the modern period a region of importance for britain, russian, american empires throughout history. Central for the history of the area. Beginnings of an idea of a larger regional afghanistan begin to take shape following the demise of the mughal empire: that has its own independent identity apart from the rest of the subcontinent. Marathas are emerging power in the subcontinent. City of delhi in mughal court is still important center culturally and politically (even though as a military power it has significantly declined)
