About Chitral
Chitral was semi-independent until 1972 when the Pakistani government abolished all former states in North West Frontier Province. Since 1950, Pakistan was also running all practical matters of the state, but de-facto, the ruler, or Mehtar, was still recognized as sovereign. The last Mehtar of Chitral was Said-ul-Mulk Nasir (1954-72).
Chris Kretowicz, 29 March 2001
A Short History of Chitral and Kafirstan
by Mohammad Afzal Khan
Little is known of the early history of Chitral and
rock inscriptions and early traditions give little
evidence on this subject. This mountainous country
which was first referred to as Kohistan or land of the
mountains was said to be inhabited by a race called
"Khows" speaking a separate language Khowar, or
language of the Khows. Some people say that it was
Khowistan - the abode of the Khows. Separate parts of
the country came to be called Torkhow - Upper Khow,
Mulkhow - Lower Khow, names which persist to the
present day. An early Sanskrit inscription at a
village called Barenis (27 miles away from Chitral) of
about AD 900 records that the country was Buddhist,
under King Jaipal of Kabul. It is believed that Upper
Chitral was under Buddhist influence in the past and
even today there are a few rocks in Torkhow area known
as "Kalandar-i-Bohtni" (Mendicant of Stone). It is a
figure of a stupa; the upper part of which has been
cut into the figure of Buddha and may be of Chinese
origin. No records of this period exist.
Marco Polo, who passed through the Pamirs, referred to
the country as Bolor. History relates that first a
Chinese army and then an Arab (Mongols?) army invaded
Chitral from the north by the Broghal pass when the
upper part of the country is said to have been
converted to Islam. The southern district remained
non-Muslim till very late and were then converted to
Islam. A Mongol tribe called Yarkhuns invaded Chitral
via the Broghal pass and may have given their name to
the Yarkun valley. They were opposed by Somalek,
leader of the Khows. Another incursion is attributed
to Changez Khan and his Tartars.
In the 16th century, the Shah Rais dynasty ruled
Chitral. Shah Rais had an adviser by name of Sangin
Ali, who apparently came from Khorasan. On the death
of Sangin Ali in 1570, his sons ousted Shah Rais and
gained control of the country. It is from the second
of these sons that the present royal family of Chitral
is descended. The highest class, Adamzadas (Katoras),
take their names from Sangin Ali's grandsons. The
Katoras are believed to have been descended from
Moguls. Headed by Baba Ayub in the middle of the 16th
century, they have been ruling the country with
varying fortunes for the last 350 years, 350 years of
war with the nearby states of Yasen, Baltishan, Gilgit and the
Pathans of Dir.
Aman-ul-Mulk, Mehtar of Chitral, with some of his many
children, in 1890
History books report that Aman-ul-Mulk always had a
falcon sitting on his arm. What is that sitting on his
left shoulder?
In 1854, the Maharaja of Kashmir made an alliance with
Shah Afzal, the Mehtar of Chitral, against the ruler
of Yasin and Mastuj (at that time separate from
Chitral) who were invading Gilgit, a tributary state
of Kashmir. Mehtar Shah Afzal died in 1856 after
ruling for 16 years. His eldest son, Mukhtaram Shah
II, became the Mehtar. He was a tyrannical ruler and
within one year he was removed by his own ministers
and advisers. His younger brother, Aman-ul-Mulk, was
installed as Mehtar in 1857. Aman-ul-Mulk invaded
Gilgit in 1860 because of increasing influence of
Maharaja of Kashmir in that area after the death of
its ruler, Gohar Aman. His troops clashed with Dogra
troops but nothing decisive was achieved and he
withdrew his troops from Gilgit. In 1868, Mir Mahmud
Shah, the ruler of Badakhshan, invaded Chitral from
the north, but his advance was halted by the Chitralis
near Durband Pass in Yarkhun Valley. After three days
fierce fighting, the ruler of Badakhshan was defeated
and he withdrew to his country.
In time of Great Mehtar Aman-ul-Mulk (1857-1892), the
state had extended up to Chigha Sarai in Afghanistan
and Ghizar and Thui in Gilgit. This great man died
suddenly on 30th August 1892 and left the dispute of
succession amongst his 16 sons. In a short period of
three years, they slaughtered each other to a void
throne in his way of rule. Briefly Afzal-ul-Mulk
declared himself Mehtar on the death of his father
Aman-ul-Mulk. Nizam-ul-Mulk, who was the eldest son
and real successor to the throne, was away in Northern
Chitral at the time of the death of his father. On
hearing the news of his brother declaring himself
Mehtar, he proceeded to Gilgit to obtain assistance
from the British Agent for installing himself as a
Mehtar. In the meanwhile, Mehtar Afzal-ul-Mulk killed
his three brothers, Shah Mulk, Wazir-ul-Mulk,
Bahram-ul-Mulk and many other leading personalities.
Umra Khan, the Pathan Chief of Jandul and Dir who had
offered to help Afzal-ul-Mulk against Nizam-ul-Mulk,
seized the Chitrali fort at Nazrat (or Narai) district
(now part of Afghanistan), which gave him command of
both banks of the Chitral River between Arandu and
Bailam. Afzal-ul-Mulk was about to march against Umra
Khan when he heard that his uncle Sher Afzal was
advancing from the Dorah Pass and had arrived at
Drushp in the Lotkuh Valley. Sher Afzal continued to
march to Chitral and attacked the fort and in the
fight Afzal-ul-Milk was killed. Sher Afzal proclaimed
himself Mehtar. When this news reached Gilgit,
Nizam-ul-Mulk was allowed to proceed to Chitral and
oust Sher Afzal, if he was able to. A fight occurred
between Nizam and Sher Afzal near Drasun in which Sher
Afzal was defeated and he fled to Afghanistan.
Nizam-ul-Mulk was proclaimed Mehtar. The British
government recognized Nizam as Mehtar.
Early in 1893, Amir Abdur Rehman Khan of Afghanistan
summoned Sher Afzal to Kabul and placed him under
surveillance, while a few months later the Amir gave a
written promise to the Government of India that he
should not again be permitted to create disturbances
in Chitral. At the invitation of Mehtar Nizam-ul-Mulk,
the government of India made arrangements to send a
Mission to Chitral. The mission reached Chitral on the
25th of January and under its influence the position
of affairs improved. In May 1893, the mission returned
to Gilgit, but a political officer, Capt.
Younghusband, with a small escort, was left in the
country for the purpose of supplying the government of
India with trustworthy information as to the events on
that part of the frontier and giving encouragement to
the Mehtar.
In January 1895, Nizam-ul-Mulk was murdered while out
hawking at Broz, at the instigation of his younger
half-brother, Amir-ul-Mulk. Amir-ul-Mulk then seized
the Chitral fort and sent a deputation to Lieut.
Gurdon, assistant political agent at Chitral,
demanding his immediate recognition as Mehtar. Lieut.
Gordon replied that the orders of the government must
be awaited. Amir-ul-Mulk's sister was married to Umra
Khan and there is little doubt that the murder of
Nizam-ul-Mulk was inspired by Umra Khan in conjunction
with the party of Sher Afzal. Amir-ul-Mulk being a
tool in the hands of the Pathan Chief, who was used in
a similar manner by the Amir of Afghanistan, Umra Khan
remained in possession of the Narsat (or Narai)
district, and all proposals of Nizam-ul-Mulk to
attempt the recovery thereof by force had been
discouraged. Shortly after the murder of Nizam, Umra
Khan with a force of 1200 fighting men and 1500
coolies crossed the Lowari Pass and occupied Lower
Chitral, giving out that he was conducting a religious
war against the inhabitants (Kafirs) of the Bashgal
area. He asked Amir-ul-Mulk to join him but the latter
was both unwilling and unable to comply. Umra Khan
accordingly laid siege to Drosh Fort. Meanwhile, the
political agent at Gilgit, Surgeon Major George
Robertson, had been sent to Chitral by the government
to report on the situation with his escort of 400 men,
300 being Kashmir state forces. He occupied Chitral
Fort. Robertson had previously demanded an explanation
from Umra Khan as to the presence of his forces in
Chitral and requested him to immediately withdraw.
Umra Khan, however, replied that his aim had been to
assist and strengthen Amir-ul-Mulk and combine with
him on an attack on the Kafirs. Since Amir-ul-Mulk had
refused his friendship and acted in a hostile manner,
therefore he, Umra Khan, had no alternative left to
him but to act as he had done. Owing to the poor and
weak leadership of Amir-ul-Mulk and the treachery of
Mehtarjao Kokhan Beg and other influential Chitralis,
the resistance by the Chitralis collapsed and on 25th
January 1895 they were driven away from their position
before Drosh Fort itself until the 9th February when
the whole garrison surrendered to Umra Khan. After
losing the Drosh Fort, the Chitralis concentrated at
Ghairat position.
According to the report of Surgeon Major George
Robertson dated 1st February 1895, all was well at
Chitral and the Chitralis were cheerful and helpful.
He also reported that Ghairat, a strong defensive
position 10 miles north of Drosh, was still held and
that Umra Khan's followers had deserted him. Suddenly,
however, the whole picture changed by the reappearance
of Sher Afzal, who was supported by the ruling class
of Adamzadas and their adherents. On the 27th of
February, Sher Afzal demanded that Robertson along
with his troops should withdraw to Mastuj and it
became apparent that Sher Afzal and Umra Khan had
joined hands to induce the British Officers and their
troops to quit Chitral territory, by force if
necessary. Having achieved that, the two chiefs would
decide who should be the Mehtar. The Adamzadas in the
beginning did not side openly with Sher Afzal, but
before the end of February they changed their mind and
practically joined him in a body along with their
followers. Ghairat position was thus denuded of its
defenders and was occupied by Sher Afzal's outposts.
Mehtar Amir-ul-Mulk now made overtures to Umra Khan.
Robertson therefore placed him in custody in the fort
and formally recognized Shuja-ul-Mulk, a boy of 14
years old, provisional Mehtar pending orders of the
Government of India.
The British garrison at Chitral Fort now amounted to
419 fighting men besides the administrative staff,
transport personnel, servants and 52 Chitralis. The
strength of Umra Khan's force is not known. It was
variously computed at 3000 to 5000 men. On 3rd March,
Sher Afzal arrived along with armed men following and
took positions on the Chitral plain, mainly in the
vicinity of the fort. In order to ascertain the
strength of the enemy, the garrison of the fort made
an ineffective sortie on the afternoon of 3rd March.
They suffered heavy casualties and made a difficult
retreat to the fort where they were besieged from 3rd
March until 19th April, 1895. During the siege period,
Chitralis gained two other successes firstly at Reshun
where two British officers were captured, their
following destroyed and 40,000 rounds of ammunition
taken, secondly the annihilation of about 100 men of
the 14th Sikhs under Captain Ross at Kuragh defile.
The British garrison at Chitral Fort held out until
the approach of a small force from Gilgit under
Colonel Kelly which caused Chitralis to withdraw. The
Chitral relief under General Low which had approached
from the direction of Malakand and the Lowari pass
arrived a week later and took Sher Afzal prisoner,
while Umra Khan fled to Afghanistan. Sher Afzal with
Amir-ul-Mulk and their leading followers were deported
to India on the 1st May and the selection of
Shuja-ul-Mulk as Mehtar was conformed. A prominent
British garrison was ordered to be located at Chitral
and it comprised two infantry battalions, one company
of Bengal Sappers and Miners and one section of
Mountain Battery with two guns. This garrison was
annually relieved. In 1899, Chitral levies were raised
to occupy three posts viz Zairat, Mirkhani and Arandu
in defensive role. Consequently, in 1899, the British
garrison was reduced to one infantry battalion, two
mountain guns, and a company of Sappers and Miners.
Shortly after this, Chitral Scouts were raised in 1903
with Mehtar as Honorary Commandant and two British
Officers in command. The object of the scouts in those
days was to provide a wholly irregular force of
cragsmen for defensive role of the whole Chitral
Frontier. The corps was never embodied at one time but
each company came up in turn for a short period of
training each year. The Strength of the Chitral Scouts
was 891 and that of the Chitral Levies 100.
In the winter of 1899-1900, Mehtar Shuja-ul-Mulk in
company of the chief of the Gilgit Agency visited the
Viceroy of India at Calcutta. In May 1902, the Mehtar
was present at the Vice-Regal Durbar at Peshawar and
on 1st January 1903 he attended the Coronation Durbar
at Delhi, when he was made C.I.E. ("Companion of the
Indian Empire"). The only event of importance during
the period 1902-1914 was the handing over of District
Mastuj, including Yarkhun and Laspur, to the Mehtar,
who signed an agreement regarding his relations with
the inhabitants of those areas. In 1919 during the 3rd
Afghan War, the Chitral Scouts and Mehtar's bodyguard
cooperated with the British garrison at Drosh in an
attack on Afghan regulars and tribesmen who had
occupied Arandu (Arnawai) in Chitral limits. The
action was most successful and the intruders were
disbursed and the Afghan fort of Birkot taken. For his
services in this connection, the Mehtar received a
grant of 1,00,000 as contribution towards expenses
incurred by the state. Later in the year, the Mehtar
was granted the title of His Highness with a salute of
11 guns and was created a knight (K.C.I.E.). In 1926,
the Mehtar agreed in consideration of a further annual
subsidy of Rs. 15,000/- to take steps to prevent the
smuggling of the drug Charas into India by way of Dir
and Swat states. In 1928, another agreement was
concluded with the Mehtar under which he undertook to
supply local produce to the British garrison on the
raising of his subsidy to Rs. 30,000/- a year.
In the year 1936, Sir Shuja-ul-Mulk died after 41
years of rule. He was succeeded by his eldest son Sir
Nasir-ul-Mulk. Nasir-ul-Mulk was born at Chitral in
the year 1898. He was sent to Peshawar for schooling
and later did his graduation from Punjab University.
He did one year's military training with a British
regiment in India. He was an intelligent man with
somewhat advanced political ideas.
In 1939, the Mehtar married the daughter of the Nawab
of Dir. On the outbreak of the Second World War in
1939, he expressed his loyalty and that of his
subjects to the British Crown. He instituted an office
of propaganda under the Governor of Drosh, Shahzada
Hissam-ul-Mulk, to counter anti-British mischievous
rumors. He also instructed the mullahs to preach
against the enemies of Britain. The Mehtar was granted
the rank of Honorary Major in the British Indian Army
in late 1939. Sir Nasir-ul-Mulk died in 1943 after a
short reign on about seven years. Nasir left no son
but only two daughters, so he was consequently
succeeded by his brother, Muzaffar-ul-Mulk.
Muzaffar-ul-Mulk was married to the daughter of Sayed
Lais Shahzada, a refugee from Zebak in Badakhshan,
Afghanistan, living in the Arkari valley at a place
called Miragram and it was by her that he had his
sons, the elder named Saif-ur-Rehman. In the Spring of
1946, Muzaffar-ul-Milk was taken seriously ill and his
chances of survival seemed slight. This set those not
well disposed towards the Mehtar thinking and the
outcome was that many claimed that Hissam-ul-Mulk,
then the governor of Drosh and a true son of
Shuja-ul-Mulk and brother of Muzaffar-ul-Mulk, should
succeed in place of Saif-ur-Rehman on the grounds that
the latter was not born from a ruling house on his
mother's side. False information was passed to
Hissam-ul-Mulk that the Mehtar was already dead. This
led Hissam-ul-Mulk to proclaim himself as heir to the
throne. When the news reached Chitral, a force of
bodyguard was sent to Drosh and Hissam-ul-Mulk
surrendered. The Government of India recognized
Saif-ur-Rehman as heir and Hissam-ul-Mulk was deported
to Loralai in Baluchistan.
The grounds that Saif-ur-Rehman could not succeed do
not seem firm in the light of the past history of the
state. For instance, during the period after the death
of the Great Mehtar Aman-ul-Mulk, four of his sons had
possession of the throne at different times and it
should be noted that Amir-ul-Mulk and Shuja-ul-Mulk
were sons by the daughters of Asmar Khan, an Afghan
Prince, whereas Nizam-ul-Mulk and Afzal-ul-Mulk were
his sons by a Sayed woman, and finally no mention was
made of the non-royal blood being a ban on the right
of succession. In the Spring of 1946, Muzaffar-ul-Mulk
made a partial recovery. Muzaffar-ul-Mulk declared
accession to Pakistan in August 1947. He died in 1948
and his son Saif-ur-Rehman was proclaimed as Mehtar.
The rule of Saif-ur-Rehman was a complex entanglement
of different policies. Unrest was in fact brewing
since February 1949, when soon after the end of the 40
days of morning for Muzaffar-ul-Mulk (his father), the
previous Mehtar of Chitral, various shahzadas and
others started hatching their plots too overthrow the
young, gentle and inexperienced Mehtar. Khan Bahadur
Dilaram Khan, the prime minister, Shahzada
Birhan-ud-Din, the Commander in Chief, and Shahzada
Siraj-ud-Din, the Chief Secretary, joined hands to
upset the administration. The young Mehtar also had
his advisors like Jillani, Usman and Pir Salah-ud-Din.
The Mehtar's officials and advisers were either
immature or had a defective vision to foresee trouble.
Due to conflicting policies being pursued by each
through the Mehtar, there was chaos and confusion in
the state. In April 1949, the arrest of Ataliq
Sarfaraz Shah and his relatives and confiscation of
their properties aggravated the situation and the
government of Pakistan was compelled to intervene. The
Political Agent Malakand was sent to Chitral and he
remained there during April and May 1949 and a senior
civil service officer was posted as Assistant
Political Agent at Chitral so as to have effective
control over the state administration. Ataliq Sarfaraz
Shah and his relatives were released and as many
movable properties as could be collected were restored
to them. As a result of inquiries made by the
political agent, Dilaram Khan and Shahzada
Birhan-ud-Din were sent to Haripur Jail in 1949. In
September, however, not only Dilaram Khan and
Birhan-ud-Din, but also Hissam-ul-Mulk and
Mata-ul-Mulk, the uncles of the Mehtar, who had been
removed from Chitral earlier, were allowed to return
to their homes on giving written undertaking of
loyalty. Another reason for this was that the Mehtar
wanted to enlist a few supporters and he therefore
arranged with the government of Pakistan and got his
uncles Hissam-ul-Mulk and Mata-ul-Mulk released from
jail.
The eldest daughter of late Sir Nasir-ul-Mulk was
engaged to the head of Dir state and it was arranged
that she should be sent to Dir on 6th October 1949.
Accordingly, the marriage party arrived at Chitral.
But the Mehtar declined to abide by the undertaking he
had given to the Nawab of Dir, on the plea that he had
himself married the girl in June that year but had not
made it public until then. This unwise step on the
part of the Mehtar seriously strained the relations
between Dir and Chitral states and the Nawab of Dir
threatened to march into Chitral with a force to
avenge this deliberate insult. At this stage,
Saif-ur-Rehman sought the help of the Government of
Pakistan. He was evacuated to Peshawar by air. In
Peshawar, he confessed his folly to the Governor and
agreed to go to Pakistan Administrative Services
Agency, Lahore, to receive training. He signed a
supplementary instrument of accession and accepted a
privy purse of Rs. 9500/- per annum and to rule as a
constitutional head of state. He signed a farman
appointing Shahzada Shahab-ud-Din, Ataliq Sarfaraz
Shah and Syed Badin Shah as members of a Board of
Administration, with Assistant Political Agent Chitral
as its Chairman or chief adviser for Chitral.
The Board of Administration had to face difficulties
from the beginning, due to the non-cooperation of
those who were jealous of them. The shahzadas,
particularly Hissam-ul-Mulk, Governor of Drosh, Khan
Bahadur Dilaram Khan, Mata-ul-Mulk, Governor of
Lutkoh, and Birhan-ud-Din let loose their wrath on the
poor population to force the hands of the government
to appoint one of them as Mehtar is place of
Saif-ur-Rehman, or Regent in his absence. This
unfortunately for them made the public dislike them
even more.
From 1949 to 1954, Saif-ur-Rehman virtually remained
in exile at Lahore, Peshawar and Abbottabad. He paid a
brief visit to Chitral in April of 1954, but returned
to Peshawar. In October 1954, he decided to return to
Chitral and the Government provided him a Harward
aircraft of the Pakistan Air Force for his journey.
But the young Saif-ur-Rehman met his tragic end when
his aircraft crashed over Lowari Pass.
After his death, his four year old son, Saif-ul-Mulk
Nasir, was proclaimed Mehtar of Chitral and recognized
by the Government of Pakistan. The Political Agent at
Malakand was appointed regent, until the young mehtar
became major. Saif-ul-Mulk Nasir was sent to Lahore
for schooling.
As mentioned earlier, the state administration was
taken over by the government of Pakistan in 1950,
which was headed by assistant political agent up to
1966. From 1966, Chitral State became a full-fledged
agency and a political agent was posted who was known
as Wazir-e-Azam. In August 1969, Chitral became a
district and the first Deputy Commissioner was posted.
On break-up of one unit in July 1970, Chitral District
became a district of the newly created Malakand
Division of the North West Frontier Province. The
Chitral District Police Force was raised for the first
time headed by a Superintendent of Police. Also full
time, the Executive Engineer of Public Works
Department was posted to look after the communications
and buildings. In April 1972, the President of
Pakistan through an ordinance abolished the titles,
privileges and privy purposes of all the former rulers
of the states. Mehtar Saif-ul-Mulk Nasir therefore
ceased to be the Mehtar of Chitral.
[From "Chitral and Kafirstan, a personal study" by
Mohammad Afzal Khan, pages 12-23, published in
Peshawar, Pakistan.]
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