User:Noorullah21/Dost Mohammad Khan Revamp

Emir Dost Mohammad Khan Barakzai (Persian: ; 23 December 1793 – 9 June 1863), nicknamed the Amir-i Kabir, was the founder of the Barakzai dynasty and one of the prominent rulers of Afghanistan during the First Anglo-Afghan War. With the decline of the Durrani dynasty, he became the Emir of Afghanistan in 1826. He was the 11th son of Payendah Khan, chief of the Barakzai Pashtuns, who was killed in 1799 by King Zaman Shah Durrani.

At the beginning of his rule, the Afghans lost their former stronghold of 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. 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.

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.

Early life (1792-1818)
Dost Mohammad Khan was born to an influential family on 23 December 1792 in Kandahar, Durrani Empire. 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. Dost Mohmmad Khan's mother belonged to the Qizilbash group. Dost Mohammad Khan spoke Persian, Pashto, Punjabi and Turkish, but also had knowledge of the Kashmiri language.

Payendah Khan Barakzai was the head of the house of Barakzai until his assassination in 1800 as orchestrated by Zaman Shah Durrani and his wazir, Wafadar Khan. Following this, His elder brother, Fateh Khan, became the chief of the Barakzai tribe and took an important role in raising Mahmud Shah Durrani on both of his reigns to the throne of the Durrani Empire, deposing Zaman Shah. Dost Mohammad came under the guardianship of his elder brother during the second reign of Mahmud Shah. Dost Mohammad accompanied his elder brother Fateh Khan, the then Wazir of the Durrani Empire, to the Battle of Attock against the invading Sikhs. Dost Mohammad's early knowledge of military command was noted there, including leading brilliant cavalry charges. During this period of time, Dost Mohammad Khan was appointed the governor of Kohistan in 1813. Dost Mohammad also accompanied Fateh Khan on a campaign to Herat in 1818. The two brothers arrived before the city in April 1818 and entered the city, sacking it and seizing loot from Firoz al-Din, the now deposed ruler there. Dost Mohammad's party instigated a dispute in the harem of Firoz al-Din, which led to Kamran Shah Durrani swearing revenge, but Dost Mohammad fled to Kashmir before any retaliation could be done. Mahmud Shah repaid Fateh Khan's services by having him brutally assassinated in 1818, thus incurring the enmity of his tribe.

Civil war (1818-1826)
Following Fateh Khan's imprisonment and execution, the many Barakzai governors revolted against Shah Mahmud and planned to topple his regime. Sher Dil Khan and Kohan Dil Khan fled from Herat to Sistan and began consolidating there. In Kashmir, many of the other Barakzai brothers were then led by Azim Khan, the new family head after Fateh Khan's death. With permission from Azim Khan, Dost Mohammad marched on Kabul, with the majority of the army of the Barakzais remaining with Azim Khan due to ongoing war with the Sikhs. Upon hearing Dost Mohammad's march on Kabul, Shah Mahmud departed from Kandahar to prevent the fall of his capital. However as he reached Ghazni, he became aware that Kandahar had fallen under the control of the Dil brothers. As a result, Mahmud Shah was stunted in the course of action to take. While this was happening, Ata Mohammad Khan, one of the conspirators that had a principal role in the death of Fateh Khan Barakzai came to Kabul and wished for reconciliation. However, he was immediately seized when he entered the camp of Dost Mohammad Khan, and his eyes were removed with a dagger.

Following this, Dost Mohammad Khan occupied Kabul, and when Shah Mahmud heard news of this, he fled to Herat alongside his family and retainers through the Hazarajat.