The Khan of Lalpura with Robert Warburton 1879

 

The Khan of Lalpura and followers, with British Political Officer, 1879 (c). Photo by John Burke. Source

Ranjit Singh did not rule present-day Afghanistan and Khyber Pass

Ranjit Singh did not rule Khyber Pass

There is a common but incorrect notion among Indians and Pakistani-Punjabis that Maharaja Ranjit Singh ruled Khyber Pass (extending from Jamrud to Torkham) as well as Jalalabad city (in the Nangarhar province of Afghanistan) and the Kabul city. Ranjit Singh and his successors neither ruled Khyber Pass nor the cities of Jalalabad and Kabul.

The westernmost outpost of Sikhs under Ranjit Singh was Jamrud fort, located in the Khyber district of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan. Since Jamrud fort is located in the Khyber district, Indians (as well as some Pakistanis) often mistakenly assume that it is located in 'Khyber Pass'. Khyber district is not to be confused with Khyber Pass. Jamrud fort is located in the plain area near the border with Peshawar district. The entire Khyber Pass was part of the Barakzai Kingdom of Kabul in 1830s and the Ali Masjid fort (located in the middle of Khyber Pass) was garrisoned by Afghan troops of Amir Dost Muhammad Khan.

Location of Jamrud fort in the plain area near Khyber Pass

Ranjit Singh did not build any dam in the Khyber Pass

Yesterday a Pakistani-Punjabi nationalist account posted an article in the comments section of my page, written by someone named Rahsid Yousafzai in which the latter showers high praises on Ranjit Singh. Ahmad Rashid Yousafzai writes that Ranjit Singh was a modern and broad-minded ruler and had scientific mind. He is of opinion that Ranjit Singh was thousand times more progressive and sharp-minded person than any Pashtun and Mughal rulers of India.

رنجیت سنگھ کا مقرر کردہ درہ خیبر کا حاکم برطانوی مہم جو کرنل لیزلی ،(جس کا ہیڈکوارٹر علی مسجد تھا)، ہی وہ شخص تھا جس نے جمرود تک پانی سپلائی کا منصوبہ بنایا اور اسے عمل میں لا کر اس حوالے سے ایک نئے دور کا آغاز کیا۰ یہ سباق فاٹا میں پہلا ڈیم تھا۰ (کرنل لیزلی بعد ازاں مسلمان ہوگیا تھا اور فدا محمد خان نام اختیار کیا

Translation: "Ranjit Singh appointed a British adventurer Colonel Leslie as his governor of Khyber Pass, and Ali Masjid was headquarter [of Colonel Leslie]. The latter initiated a project of supplying water to the areas up to Jamrud. This was first ever dam in the former FATA. He later converted to Islam and adopted the name of Fida Muhammad Khan."

Rashid Yousafzai has butchered and botched history here and is viewing the word 'dam' from modern lens. Leslie was in the service of Amir Dost Muhammad Khan, not Ranjit. He did not construct a 'Tarbela Dam' or a welfare project of any sort in Khyber Pass. In summers Sikh soldiers stationed in the Jamrud fort were dependent on a seasonal stream issuing out of Khyber Pass. Leslie, commanding "Cabool troops", would block that stream and Sikhs had to give bribes to him to resume the flow. This is reported by Captain John Wood ("Journey to the source of the River Oxus", p-100), Alexander Burnes ("Cabool", p-127) and Mohan Lal (Journey in the Punjab, Afghanistan...., p-457).

Portrait of Ranjit Singh

Portrait of Maharaja Ranjit Singh. Louvre Collection

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Historical photos of Pakhtunkhwa taken in 1919 (c)

Ghilzai nomads, 1919 (c).

A Pashtun wedding procession, Peshawar, 1919 (c).

A Mahsud with donkey and a Wazir, near a country sign post, 1919.

The "Mundi" (Fair) outside Peshawar city, women in white burqas, 1919 (c).

Pashtun grey-beards with rifles, photographed in 1919 (c).

Mahsud tribesmen, 1919 (c).

Islamia College (at right), Peshawar, 1919 (c).

The bride in the dholie, Peshawar city, 1919 (c).

The barber at work, Peshawar city, 1919 (c).

Kohat Pass - boundary between "administered" and "tribal" territory, 1919.

Rural scene of Peshawar district, 1919 (c).

Pashtun woodcutter, NWFP, 1919 (c).

Pashtun axeman, NWFP, 1919 (c).

Grain market, Peshawar city, 1919 (c).

Caravan serai.

Caravan entering the Khyber Pass, 1925 (c).

Caravan enroute to Kabul in the Khyber, 1925 (c).

Road, rail and caravan routes in the Khyber Pass, 1925 (c).

Afridi tribesman, 1919 (c).

A beggar photographed by Holmes in Peshawar city, 1919 (c).

A city eating house, Peshawar city, 1919 (c).

Pashtun caravan on the Khyber road, 1919 (c).

Pottery stall at the 'Mela' outside Peshawar city, 1919 (c).

The 'Mela' outside Peshawar city, 1920 (c).

Jamrud fort, 1920 (c). Photo by R.B.Holmes.

Caravan in Khyber Pass enroute to Kabul, 1920 (c).

A scene of rural Peshawar, 1920 (c).

Sign post in the Khyber Pass, 1920 (c).

Camel caravan near Shagai railway station, Khyber, 1925 (c).

A forest of rifles at Pashtun jirga, 1920 (c).

Road signs, Khyber Pass, 1920 (c).

Chapli Kabab sellers, Peshawar city, 1919 (c). Photo by R.B.Holmes.

Bala Hissar and Golf Course, Peshawar, 1919 (c). Photo by R.B.Holmes.

A side street, Peshawar city, 1910 (c). Photo by R.B.Holmes.

A Pashtun of Daman (دامان), 1810 (c)

A Pashtun of Daman, 1810 (c).

By Delhi artist. From "An account of kingdom of Cabul" by Mountstuart Elphinstone. 

Note: the plain area between Sulaiman mountains and the river Indus in Dera Ismail Khan district, was referred to as Daman. The Pashtun tribes of Daman plains are Gandapur, Mian-Khel, Babar, Kundi, Daulat-Khel and Storyani.

19th century portraits of Ahmad Shah Durrani

Ahmad Shah Durrani. Made in Punjab or Delhi. Early to mid-19th century. Toor Collection. Source

Swati tribesmen, 1890 (c)

Swati tribesmen (Yousafzais), 1890 (c). From 'The tribes on our frontier' series of photos by Bourne & Shepherd.

Bajauri tribesmen, 1890 (c)

 

Bajauri Pashtuns, 1890 (c). From "tribes on our frontier" series of photos by Bourne & Shepherd.

Rohillas, 1860s

 

A Rohilla warrior, serving in Nizam of Hyderabad's irregular forces, 1860 (c). Photo by Hooper and Western.

 In 1868 the irregular army of Nizam of Hyderabad (largest Princely State) consisted of Arabs, Sikhs, Sindhis, Balochs and Rohillas, and numbered about 29,000.

Yousafzais of Swat and Buner in 1890

Yousafzais of Swat and Buner in 1890

Bunerwals (Yousafzais) with spear and scimitar, 1890 (c). From The Tribes on Our Frontier series of photos by Bourne & Shepherd. Source

Swati tribesmen (Yousafzais), 1890 (c). From The Tribes on Our Frontier series of photos by Bourne & Shepherd. Source

Yousafzai tribesmen of Swat, 1890 (historical photo).