Volume Four of The History of Afghanistan is published as a five-volume set and completes the previously published
six-volume set.
The
Sirāj al-tawārīkh is the most important history of Afghanistan ever written. It was commissioned as an official national history by Habib Allah Khan (reigned 1901-1919).
Volume Four of this monumental work includes the conclusion to the original volume three and the complete volume four. These volumes were written in final form in the mid-1920s. Unlike the earlier three volumes, they were subject to no official oversight. As a consequence, they are much more candid about life and politics in Afghanistan between 1896 and 1919 than the previous volumes.
The work is of unparalleled significance to anyone studying the social, political, and economic history of Afghanistan as well as its relations with British India, Qajar Iran, Tsarist Central Asia, and the emirate of Bukhara.
The History of Afghanistan is also available as a complete
set of 11 volumes, covering all four volumes of this unique resource on Afghanistan.
R. D. McChesney, Emeritus Professor, New York University, is the author of
Waqf in Central Asia (1991),
Central Asia: Foundations of Change (1996),
Kabul Under Siege (1999), and numerous articles and book chapters. He is also founder and director of the Afghanistan Digital Library.
M. M. Khorrami, Ph.D. 1996, University of Texas, Austin, teaches Persian language and literature at New York University. His research field is contemporary Persian fiction. His publications include, among others,
Modern Reflections of Classical Traditions in Persian Fiction (2003).
Volume 3 Conclusion (Tatimmah) and Volume 4, Part One Introduction
September 1896–July 1898
Volume 4, Part Two July 1898–October 1901
Volume 4, Part Three October 1901–July 1905
Volume 4, Part Four August 1905–February 1919
Volume 4, Part Five Appendices, Glossaries, Bibliography, Index
The work is of unparalleled significance to anyone studying the social, political, and economic history of Afghanistan, as well as modern Afghan society and its roots in tribe and state relations, the rule of law, gender issues, the economy.