The Muslim conquests of Afghanistan began during the Muslim conquest of Persia as the Arab Muslims migrated eastwards to Khorasan, Sistan and Transoxiana. Fifteen years after the battle of Nahāvand in 642 AD, they controlled all Sasanian domains except in Afghanistan. Fuller Islamization was not achieved until the period between 10th and 12th centuries under Ghaznavid and Ghurid dynasties who patronized Muslim religious institutions.
Laghman is one of the 34 provinces of Afghanistan, located in the eastern part of the country. It has a population of about 502,148, which is multi-ethnic and mostly a rural society. Laghman hosts a large number of historical landmarks, minarets, monuments, and other cultural relics that are manifestation of its old history and culture. The city of Mihtarlam serves as the capital of the province. In some historical texts the name is written as "Lamghan" or as "Lamghanat".
The Ghaznavid dynasty was a Persianate Muslim dynasty of Turkic mamluk origin. It ruled the Ghaznavid Empire or the Empire of Ghazni from 977 to 1186, which at its at its greatest extent, extended from the Oxus to the Indus Valley. The dynasty was founded by Sabuktigin upon his succession to the rule of Ghazna after the death of his father-in-law, Alp Tigin, who was an ex-general of the Samanid Empire from Balkh.
Abu Mansur Nasir ad-Din wa'd-Dawla Sabuktigin was the founder of the Ghaznavid dynasty, and amir of Ghazna from 977 to 997. Sabuktigin was a Turkic slave who was bought by Alp-Tegin, the commander of the royal guard of the Samanid dynasty. Alp-Tegin established himself as the governor of Ghazna in 962, and died a year later in 963. Afterwards, Sabuktigin built his prestige among other slave soldiers in Ghazna until he was elected by them as their ruler in 977.
Abu al-Qasim Mahmud ibn Sabuktigin, usually known as Mahmud of Ghazni or Mahmud Ghaznavi, was Sultan of the Ghaznavid Empire, ruling from 998 to 1030. During his reign and in medieval sources, he is usually known by his honorific Yamin al-Dawla. At the time of his death, his kingdom had been transformed into an extensive military empire, which extended from northwestern Iran proper to the Punjab in the Indian subcontinent, Khwarazm in Transoxiana, and Makran.
The Ghiljī also spelled Khilji, Khalji, or Ghilzai and Ghilzay (غلزی), are one of the largest Pashtun tribes. Their traditional homeland is Ghazni and Qalati Ghilji in Afghanistan but they have also settled in other regions throughout the Afghanistan-Pakistan Pashtun belt. The modern nomadic Kochi people are predominantly made up of Ghilji tribes. The Ghilji make up around 20–25% of Afghanistan's total population.
Jayapala was a ruler of the Hindu Shahi dynasty from 964 to 1001 CE. He ruled over the area which stretched from Laghman in the west, to Kashmir in the east and from Sirhind to Multan. He was the son of Hutpal and the father of Anandapala. Epithets from the Bari Kot inscriptions record his full title as "Parama Bhattaraka Maharajadhiraja Sri Jayapaladeva".
Zabulistan, was a historical region in southern Afghanistan roughly corresponding to the modern provinces of Zabul and Ghazni. Following the Ghaznavid rule (977–1186), "Zabul" became largely synonymous with the name of its capital and main city, Ghazni.
The history of Peshawar is intertwined with the history of the broader Indian subcontinent. The region was known as Puruṣapura in Sanskrit, literally meaning "city of men". Being among the most ancient cities of the Indian subcontinent, Peshawar had for centuries been a center of trade between West Asia, Central Asia, and the Indian subcontinent.
Abu Ali Lawik of the Lawik dynasty was the son of Abu Bakr Lawik, and also a brother-in-law of the Hindu Shahi ruler of the region, Kabul Shah. He was invited by the people of Ghazni to overthrow Böritigin or Pirai and proceeded in alliance with the Shahi Rulers of the region in this venture.
'Yamini Turks had claimed their descent from Shahyar, the last of the Parthian ruler who was killed in 637AD in the battle of Cadesia. The family had migrated to Turkistan and after three generations had passed on as Turks. Their founder Sabuktgin had come into the service of Alptgin, a Samanid governor of Turkistan. The latter had captured Ghazni and settled there in 963AD. He raised Sabuktigin to the position of a general. After the death of Alptgin in 966 AD, Balktgin the commander of Turkish troops succeeded him who was later succeeded by Pirai a slave. The latter was a cruel king and the people of Zabul invited Abu Ali Lawik son of the last ruler of Zabul who in alliance with the Shahis of Udabhanda marched to recover Ghazni. On the way at Charkh, Sabuktgin defeated them and became a hero.
The History of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa refers to the history of the modern-day Pakistani province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
The Hindu Shahis, also referred to as the Uḍi Śāhis, were a dynasty established between 843 CE and 1026 CE. They endured multiple waves of conquests for nearly two centuries and their core territory was described as having contained the regions of Eastern Afghanistan and Gandhara, encompassing the area up to the Sutlej river in modern day Punjab, expanding into the Kangra Valley. The empire was founded by Kallar in c. 843 CE after overthrowing Lagaturman, the last Turk Shahi king.
The Battle of Peshawar was fought on 27 November 1001 between the Ghaznavid army of Mahmud of Ghazni and the Hindu Shahi army of Jayapala, near Peshawar. Jayapala was defeated and captured, and as a result of the humiliation of the defeat, he later immolated himself in a funeral pyre. This is the first of many major battles in the expansion of the Ghaznavid Empire into the Indian subcontinent by Mahmud.
The Lodi dynasty was the last dynasty to rule over Emirate of Multan, from their capital city of Multan in the 10th century.
The Battle of Chach or Battle of Chaach was fought in 1007 AD between the Ghaznavid army of Mahmud of Ghazni and the Hindu Shahi army of Anandapala, near Hazro, resulting in the latter's defeat. This left the north Indian region vulnerable to further invasions.
The Lawīk dynasty was the last native dynasty which ruled Ghazni prior to the Ghaznavid conquest in the present-day Afghanistan. Lawiks were originally Hindus, but later became Muslims. They were closely related to the Hindu Shahis, and after 877, ruled under the Hindu Shahi suzerainty.
The Second Battle of Laghman was fought between the Ghaznavid forces under Sabuktigin and the Hindu Shahi under Jayapala near Laghman in 991 AD. It took place near Laghman, present day Afghanistan.
The Ghaznavid campaigns in India refer to a series of military expeditions lasting 54 years (973–1027) launched by the Ghaznavid Empire, a prominent empire of the 10th and 11th centuries, into the Indian subcontinent, led primarily by Sultan Mahmud of Ghazni, leaving a profound impact on the region's history and culture.
The Ghaznavid invasion of Kannauj or the siege of Kannauj in 1018 was a military campaign conducted by Mahmud of Ghazni, the then ruler of the Ghaznavid Empire, against the Pratihara dynasty. During this siege, the Pratihara ruler, Rajyapala, eventually surrendered to Mahmud of Ghazni, thereby accepting nominal suzerainty under his rule. This event marked the decline of the Pratihara dynasty's power. In the aftermath of his surrender to Mahmud, Rajyapala met his demise at the hands of the Chandela ruler, Vidhyadara, for capitulating to the Ghaznavid conqueror.
Ghaznavid Empire