An Account of the Kingdom of Caubul and its Dependencies in Persia, Tartary and India: Comprising a View of the Afghaun Nation and A History of the Dooraunee Monarchy, 2 Volumes
Elphinstone, Mountstuart
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Set
PRODUCT DETAILS
Book ID : 2957
ISBN-10 : 81-307-1860-X / 813071860X
ISBN-13 : 978-81-307-1860-6 / 9788130718606
Place
of Publication :
Delhi
Year
of Publication :
2015
Edition : (Reprint)
Language : English
xxi, 675p., 15 Col. Plates, 2 Maps, 23 cm. (Originally published in London in 1815)
CONTENTS
DESCRIPTION
Due to the Napoleonic Wars waging in Europe, British suspicion that a possible French alliance with the kingdom of Afghanistan and other Indian rulers including Maharaja Ranjit Singh might threaten British India from the North East became a real concern. This led to the mission that sent Elphinstone to Afghanistan as one of the earliest British visitors to this mountainous region. Elphinstone's commission was to persuade Shah Shuja to ally himself with the British while another envoy attempted to persuade the Sikh Maharajah. On the one hand, Elphinstone did not succeed in negotiating a treaty because he was unable to agree to the terms stipulated by the king. On the other hand, Elphinstone took back with him to British India not only significant strategic information about political conditions including the important role played by Muslim leaders but also geographical data, even mapping out routes. He also collected information on diseases, agriculture, local trade and industry and accumulated written materials. Elphinstone describes the geography, economy and political situation of the kingdom and provides a brief account of Afghan history. He also gives the first detailed ethnographic accounts of the various Afghan tribes and ethnic groups in the kingdom. This fascinating volume informed British military and diplomatic policy in the region until the 1840s, and remained the main source of information on the culture of the Afghan tribes for much of the nineteenth century.
