| Dost Mohammad Khan دوست محمد خان | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Amir al-Mu'minin | |||||
 | |||||
| Emir of Afghanistan | |||||
| Reign | 1826 – 2 August 1839 1843 – 9 June 1863 | ||||
| Predecessor | Sultan Mohammad Khan | ||||
| Successor | Wazir Akbar Khan Sher Ali Khan | ||||
| Born | 23 December 1793 Kandahar, Durrani Empire | ||||
| Died | 9 June 1863 (aged 69) Herat, Emirate of Afghanistan | ||||
| Burial | |||||
| Spouse | 16 wives[2] | ||||
| Issue | 27 sons and 25 daughters at the time of his death[3] | ||||
| |||||
| Dynasty | Barakzai dynasty | ||||
| Father | Sardar Payinda Khan Muhammadzai (Sarfraz Khan) | ||||
| Mother | Zainab Begum[4] | ||||
| Religion | Sunni Islam | ||||
Emir Dost Mohammad Khan Barakzai (Pashto/Dari: دوست محمد خان بارکزی; 23 December 1793 – 9 June 1863), nicknamed the Amir-i Kabir,[5][6][7] was the founder of the Barakzai dynasty and one of the prominent rulers of Afghanistan during the First Anglo-Afghan War.[8] With the decline of the Durrani dynasty, he became the Emir of Afghanistan in 1826.[9] He was the 11th son of Payendah Khan, chief of the Barakzai Pashtuns, who was killed in 1799 by King Zaman Shah Durrani.[3]
At the beginning of his rule in 1826, the Afghans faced a period of decline by losing the Peshawar Valley in March 1823 to the Sikh Khalsa Army of Ranjit Singh at the Battle of Nowshera. The Afghan forces in the battle were led by Azim Khan, half-brother of Dost Mohammad Khan.[10] By the end of his reign, he had reunited the principalities of Kandahar and Herat with Kabul. Dost had ruled for a lengthy 36 years, a span broken only by Zahir Shah more than a century later. His rule saw the reconsolidation of Afghanistan, which was long divided following the Durrani civil wars which started in 1793, triumphing and leading his last campaign to capture Herat in the Herat campaign. Shortly dying weeks later in 1863 at the age of 69.
The Musahiban family started with his older brother, Sultan Mohammad Khan, nicknamed "Telai", meaning "golden", a nickname he was given because of his love of fine clothing.[11]
Early Life and rise to Power
Dost Mohammad Khan was born to an influential family on 23 December 1793 in Kandahar, Durrani Empire.[12] His father, Payinda Khan, was chief of the Barakzai Tribe and a civil servant in the Durrani dynasty. Their family can be traced back to Abdal (the first and founder of the Abdali tribe), through Hajji Jamal Khan, Yousef, Yaru, Mohammad, Omar Khan, Khisar Khan, Ismail, Nek, Daru, Saifal, and Barak. Abdal had Four sons, Popal, Barak, Achak, and Alako.[13] Dost Mohmmad Khan's mother belonged to the Qizilbash group.[14][15][16][17] Dost Mohammad Khan spoke Persian, Pashto, Punjabi and Turkish, but also had knowledge of the Kashmiri language.[18]
His elder brother, the chief of the Barakzai, Fateh Khan, took an important part in raising Mahmud Shah Durrani to the sovereignty of Afghanistan in 1800 and in restoring him to the throne in 1809. Dost Mohammad accompanied his elder brother and then Prime Minister of Kabul Wazir Fateh Khan to the Battle of Attock against the invading Sikhs. Mahmud Shah repaid Fateh Khan's services by having him assassinated in 1818, thus incurring the enmity of his tribe. After a bloody conflict, Mahmud Shah was deprived of all his possessions but Herat, the rest of his dominions being divided among Fateh Khan's brothers. Of these, Dost Mohammad received Ghazni, to which in 1826, Dost Mohammad toppled his brother, Sultan Mohammad Khan in a coup for Kabul,[19] Dost Mohammad did this by capitalizing on Mohammad Khan's unpopularity, mostly due to his alienation of the Qizilbash factions in his country, leading to attacks on Shia Muslims. [20] adding in Kabul as apart of his realm. Kabul was the richest of the Afghan provinces.[21] At the time of his unofficial enthronement in 1826, his government revenue was about 500,000 rupees, and by the 1830s it had increased to 2.5 million rupees.[22]
Reign in Kabul
Having consolidated his rule in Kabul in 1826 after assuming power there, Dost Mohammad made no claim to the Kingship of Afghanistan,[23]