List of heads of state of Afghanistan

"Emir of Afghanistan" and "Leader of Afghanistan" redirect here. For the leader of the Islamic Emirate, see Supreme Leader of Afghanistan.

This article lists the heads of state of Afghanistan since the foundation of the first modern Afghan state, the Hotak Empire, in 1709.

History

The Hotak Empire was formed after a successful uprising led by Mirwais Hotak and other Afghan tribal chiefs from the Kandahar region against Mughal and Safavid Persian rule. ^{[1] [2] [3]}

After a long series of wars, the Hotak Empire was eventually replaced by the Durrani Afghan Empire, founded by Ahmad Shah Durrani in 1747. ^{[4] [5]}

After the collapse of the Durrani Empire in 1823, the Barakzai dynasty founded the Emirate of Kabul, later known as the Emirate of Afghanistan. The Durrani dynasty regained power in 1839, during the First Anglo-Afghan War, when former ruler Shah Shujah Durrani seized the throne under the British auspices. Shah Shujah was assassinated in 1842, following the British retreat. Afterwards the Barakzai dynasty regained power, eventually transformed the Emirate into the Kingdom of Afghanistan in 1926, and ruled the country (with an interruption in 1929) until the last king, Mohammad Zahir Shah, was deposed in the 1973 coup d'état, led by his first cousin Mohammad Daoud Khan. Despite being part of the Barakzai dynasty, Daoud Khan departed from tradition and did not proclaim himself Shah , instead abolished the monarchy and established the Republic of Afghanistan, with himself as President. ^{[6] [7]} The Republic lasted until the PDPA–led Saur Revolution in 1978. ^[8]

Since 1978, Afghanistan has been in a state of continuous internal conflict and foreign interventions. ^{[9] [10]}

President Hamid Karzai became the first ever democratically elected head of state of Afghanistan on 7 December 2004. His successor, Ashraf Ghani, was in power from 29 September 2014 to 15 August 2021, when he fled the country as Kabul fell to the Taliban following its 2021 offensive. ^[11]

Upon its recapture of Kabul, the Taliban reinstated the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, and its supreme leader since 2016, Islamic scholar Hibatullah Akhundzada, de facto succeeded Ghani as head of state. ^[12]

List of heads of state

(Dates in italics indicate de facto continuation of office)

Monarchs

Monarch of Afghanistan
د افغانستان پاچا (Pashto) پادشاه افغانستان (Dari)
Royal Standard (1931–1973)
Last to reign: Mohammad Zahir Shah 8 November 1933 – 17 July 1973
Details
Style	His Majesty
First monarch	Mirwais Hotak (Emir)
Last monarch	Mohammad Zahir Shah (King)
Formation	1709
Abolition	17 July 1973
Residence	Kabul: Bala Hissar (18th century – 1880) Arg-e-Shahi (19th century – 1973)
Appointer	Hereditary
Pretender(s)	Prince Muhammad Zahir Khan

Hotak Empire (1709–1738)

Name	Lifespan	Reign start	Reign end	Notes	Image
Mirwais Hotak	1673–1715	1709	1715	Established the Hotak dynasty in Kandahar.
Abdul Aziz Hotak	Died 1717	1715	1717	Brother of Mirwais Hotak

Durrani Empire (1747–1823)

Name	Lifespan	Reign start	Reign end	Notes	Image
Ahmad Shah Durrani	1720/1722 – 4 June 1772	June 1747	4 June 1772	Established the Durrani dynasty and the Durrani Empire; Considered founder of modern Afghanistan
Timur Shah Durrani	December 1746 – 20 May 1793	November 1772	20 May 1793	Son of Ahmad Shah Durrani Preserved the Durrani Empire following the death of his father after fighting off civil war in 1772, and multiple rebellions

Emirate of Kabul / Emirate of Afghanistan (1823–1926)

Name	Lifespan	Reign start	Reign end	Notes	Image
Sultan Mohammad Khan	1792–1834	1823	1826 (deposed)	First ruler of the Barakzai dynasty; Son of Sardar Payendah Khan, brother of Dost Mohammad Khan
Dost Mohammad Khan (1st reign)	23 December 1792 – 9 June 1863	Summer 1826	6 August 1839 (deposed)	Son of Sardar Payendah Khan Forged campaigns to re-unite Afghanistan which was divided due to the civil wars between the sons of Timur Shah Durrani. Reign disputed from 1839–1842 by Shah Shujah Durrani in the First Anglo-Afghan War

Kingdom of Afghanistan (1926–1929)

Name	Lifespan	Reign start	Reign end	Notes	Image
Amanullah Khan	1 June 1892 – 25 April 1960	9 June 1926	14 January 1929 (abdicated)	Son of Habibullah Khan
Inayatullah Khan	20 October 1888 – 12 August 1946	14 January 1929	17 January 1929 (deposed)	Son of Habibullah Khan

Saqqawist Emirate and the 1928–1929 civil war

Name	Lifespan	Reign start	Reign end	Notes	Image
Habibullāh Kalakāni	19 January 1891 – 3 November 1929	17 January 1929 [note 1]	13 October 1929	Styled as king and emir [note 2] ; contested the throne during the 1928–29 civil war; [18] deposed and executed [19]
Ali Ahmad Khan	1883 – 11 July 1929	17 January 1929	9 February 1929	Grandson of Dost Mohammad Khan (maternal) Styled as King; rose in opposition to Kalakāni during the 1928–29 civil war; captured and executed

Kingdom of Afghanistan (restored; 1929–1973)

Name	Lifespan	Reign start	Reign end	Notes	Image
Mohammad Nadir Shah	9 April 1883 – 8 November 1933	15 October 1929 [20]	8 November 1933	Great-nephew of Dost Mohammed Khan Assassinated by Abdul Khaliq Hazara [21]
Mohammad Zahir Shah	15 October 1914 – 23 July 2007	8 November 1933	17 July 1973 (deposed)	Son of Mohammad Nadir Shah Deposed by first cousin Mohammad Daoud Khan in the 1973 coup d'état [6]

Local monarchs

Some rulers tried to take advantage of internal conflicts in Afghanistan to claim the throne. However, their rule was limited only to certain areas.

Name	Lifespan	Reign start	Reign end	Notes	Image
Jehandad Khan	Died 1914	May 1912	May 1912 (deposed)	Styled as Emir; ruled only in Khost during the 1912 rebellion
Abd-al Karim	1897 – 18 February 1927	July 1924	30 January 1925 (deposed)	Son of Mohammad Yaqub Khan Styled as Emir; rule limited to the Southern Province during the 1924–1925 rebellion

Non-monarchs

Name		Portrait	Lifespan	Term of office			Political affiliation
				Took office	Left office	Time in office
Republic of Afghanistan (1973–1978)
	Mohammad Daoud Khan		1909–1978	17 July 1973	28 April 1978	4 years, 285 days	Independent (until 1974)
							National Revolutionary Party
				President; Member of the Barakzai dynasty (first cousin of Mohammed Zahir Shah); Assassinated with most of his family during the Saur Revolution; [22] Supposedly killed for refusing to surrender to the new authorities. [23] [8] [24]
Democratic Republic of Afghanistan (1978–1992)
	Colonel Abdul Qadir		1944–2014	28 April 1978	30 April 1978	2 days	People's Democratic Party (Khalq faction)
				Chairman of the Presidium of the Military Revolutionary Council.
	Nur Muhammad Taraki		1917–1979	30 April 1978	14 September 1979	1 year, 137 days	People's Democratic Party (Khalq faction)
				Chairman of the Presidium of the Revolutionary Council; Assassinated by orders of Hafizullah Amin.
	Hafizullah Amin		1929–1979	14 September 1979	27 December 1979	104 days	People's Democratic Party (Khalq faction)
				Chairman of the Presidium of the Revolutionary Council; Assassinated by Soviet special forces during the Operation Storm-333. [25]
	Babrak Karmal		1929–1996	27 December 1979	24 November 1986	6 years, 332 days	People's Democratic Party (Parcham faction)
				Chairman of the Presidium of the Revolutionary Council; Dismissed.
	Haji Mohammad Chamkani		1947–2012	24 November 1986	30 September 1987	310 days	Independent
				Chairman of the Presidium of the Revolutionary Council; Appointed as part of the National Reconciliation process.
	Mohammad Najibullah		1947–1996	30 September 1987	16 April 1992	4 years, 199 days	People's Democratic Party (Parcham faction) (until 1990)
							Homeland Party
				President (Chairman of the Presidium of the Revolutionary Council until 30 November 1987); Resigned.
	Abdul Rahim Hatif		1926–2013	16 April 1992	28 April 1992	12 days	Homeland Party
				Acting President; Deposed.
Islamic State of Afghanistan (1992–2002)
	Sibghatullah Mojaddedi		1926–2019	28 April 1992	28 June 1992	61 days	National Liberation Front of Afghanistan
				Acting President; Resigned.
	Burhanuddin Rabbani		1940–2011	28 June 1992	22 December 2001	9 years, 177 days	Jamiat-e Islami
				President; Fled Kabul following its fall to the Taliban on 27 September 1996; [26] Continued to serve as president in areas controlled by the Northern Alliance during the 1996–2001 Civil War until being fully reinstated following the recapture of Kabul on 13 November 2001; Between 1996 and 2001, the Islamic State remained the internationally recognized government, despite only controlling about 10% of Afghan territory.
	Mohammad Qasim Fahim		1957–2014	13 November 2001	22 December 2001	39 days	Jamiat-e Islami-allied
				Acting Head of State; Held the actual control in Kabul as Northern Alliance leader and head of the Supreme Military Council, even though Burhanuddin Rabbani returned to the city on 17 November 2001. [27]
	Hamid Karzai		born 1957	22 December 2001	13 June 2002	173 days	Independent
				Chairman of the Afghan Interim Administration; Appointed by the 2001 Bonn Conference. [28]
Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (1996–2001)
	Mullah Mohammed Omar		between 1953 and 1966 [29] – 2013	27 September 1996	13 November 2001	5 years, 47 days	Taliban
				Supreme Leader; Deposed during the fall of Kabul, [30] and went into hiding following the fall of Kandahar on 7 December 2001; [31] [32] Continued to claim the position in rebellion during the Taliban insurgency until his death on 23 April 2013; Between 1996 and 2001, the Islamic Emirate never attained widespread international recognition, despite controlling about 90% of Afghan territory.
Transitional Islamic State of Afghanistan (2002–2004)
	Hamid Karzai		born 1957	13 June 2002	7 December 2004	2 years, 177 days	Independent
				Transitional President; Appointed by the 2002 loya jirga.
Islamic Republic of Afghanistan (2004–2021)
	Hamid Karzai		born 1957	7 December 2004	29 September 2014	9 years, 296 days	Independent
				President; First democratically elected head of state; Elected in 2004 and re-elected in 2009.
	Ashraf Ghani		born 1949	29 September 2014	15 August 2021	6 years, 320 days	Independent
				President; First peaceful transition of power; Elected in 2014 and re-elected in 2019; Deposed during the fall of Kabul.
Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (2021–present)
	Mullah Mawlawi Hibatullah Akhundzada		Birth date not known	15 August 2021 [12]	Incumbent	3 years, 190 days	Taliban
				Supreme Leader; Claimed the position in rebellion during the Taliban insurgency from 25 May 2016 until the recapture of Kabul. The Islamic Emirate is currently not internationally recognized, despite controlling all Afghan territory. [33]

Family tree of monarchs

Family tree of Afghan monarchs

Salim Khan Hotak dynasty Mirwais Khan Hotak (1) r. 1709–1715 Abdul Aziz Hotak (2) r. 1715–1717 Mahmud Hotak (3) r. 1717–1725 Hussain Hotak (5) r. 1725–1738 Ashraf Hotak (4) r. 1725–1729 Durrani dynasty Ahmad Shah Durrani (1) r. 1747–1772 Sardar Payinda Mohammad Khan Barakzai dynasty Timur Shah Durrani (2) r. 1772–1793 Mohammad Khan (1) r. 1823–1826 Dost Mohammad Khan (2) r. 1826–1839, 1843–1863 Zaman Shah Durrani (3) r. 1793–1801 Mahmud Shah Durrani (4) r. 1801–1803, 1809–1818 Shah Shujah Durrani (5) r. 1803–1809, 1839–1842 Ali Shah Durrani (6) r. 1818–1819 Ayub Shah Durrani (7) r. 1819–1823 Mohammad Afzal Khan (5) r. 1866–1867 Akbar Khan (3) r. 1842–1843 Mohammad Azam Khan (6) r. 1867–1868 Sher Ali Khan (4) r. 1863-1866, 1868–1879 Sahira Begum Loinab Khush Dil Khan Ali Ahmad Mirza Sardar Mohammad Yahya Khan Hamdan Sultana Begum Abdur Rahman Khan (9) r. 1880–1901 Mohammad Yaqub Khan (7) r. 1879 Mohammad Ayub Khan (8) r. 1879–1880 Sharaf Sultana Hukumat Begum Sardar Mohammad Yusuf Khan Sardar Mohammad Asif Khan Habibullah Khan (10) r. 1901–1919 Nasrullah Khan (11) r. 1919 Mohammad Nadir Shah (15) r. 1929–1933 Mah Parwar Begum Inayatullah Khan (13) r. 1929 Amanullah Khan (12) r. 1919–1929, 1929 Ali Ahmad Khan (14) r. 1929 Mohammad Zahir Shah (16) r. 1933–1973

Timeline from 1880

Standards of heads of state

• 
  Standard of the king of Afghanistan, c. 1919–1929
• 
  Standard of the king of Afghanistan, 1931–1973.
• 
  Standard of the president of Afghanistan, 1974–1978.
• 
  Standard of the president of Afghanistan, 2004–2013.
• 
  Standard of the president of Afghanistan, 2013–2021.

See also

• President of Afghanistan
• Supreme Leader of Afghanistan
• Prime Minister of Afghanistan
• Deputy Prime Minister of Afghanistan
• Chief Executive (Afghanistan)
• List of Durrani Wazirs
• Politics of Afghanistan
• History of Afghanistan
• List of Pashtun empires and dynasties
• Name of Afghanistan
• Afghan (ethnonym)

Notes

1. Most sources list 17 January 1929, the day that Kalakāni captured Kabul, as the date that his reign began. ^{[13] [14]} However, he had been formally claiming the title of emir since 14 December 1928. ^[15]
2. Kalakāni referred to himself as both "king" ^[16] and "emir". ^[17]

References

1. "An Outline Of The History Of Persia During The Last Two Centuries (A.D. 1722-1922)". Edward Granville Browne . London: Packard Humanities Institute. p. 29. Retrieved 24 September 2010.
2. Otfinoski, Steven (2004). Afghanistan. Infobase Publishing. p. 7. ISBN   0-8160-5056-2 . Retrieved 27 September 2010.
3. Malleson, George Bruce (1878). History of Afghanistan, from the Earliest Period to the Outbreak of the War of 1878. London: Elibron.com. p. 227. ISBN   1-4021-7278-8 . Retrieved 27 September 2010.
4. "Afghanistan". The World Factbook . Central Intelligence Agency. Archived from the original on 26 July 2009. Retrieved 23 October 2010. Ahmad Shah DURRANI unified the Pashtun tribes and founded Afghanistan in 1747.
5. "Last Afghan empire". Louis Dupree, Nancy Hatch Dupree and others. Encyclopædia Britannica Online Version. Retrieved 24 September 2010.
6. "Afghan King Overthrown; A Republic Is Proclaimed". The New York Times. 18 July 1973. Retrieved 3 May 2020.
7. Barfield, Thomas (25 March 2012). Afghanistan: A Cultural and Political History (Princeton Studies in Muslim Politics). Princeton University Press. ISBN   978-0691154411.
8. William Borders (28 April 1978). "Coup Is Reported in Afghanistan". The New York Times. Retrieved 3 August 2021.
9. "A Look At Afghanistan's 40 Years Of Crisis — From The Soviet War To Taliban Recapture". NPR. 31 August 2021.
10. "Instability in Afghanistan". Global Conflict Tracker. Retrieved 23 April 2023.
11. "President Ashraf Ghani flees Afghanistan as Taliban enters Kabul". South China Morning Post. Reuters. 15 August 2021. Retrieved 15 August 2021.
12. • Sieff, Kevin (15 August 2021). "The Taliban has retaken control of Afghanistan. Here's what that looked like last time". The Washington Post . Retrieved 28 November 2021.
    • Mellen, Ruby (3 September 2021). "The Taliban has decided on its government. Here's who could lead the organization". The Washington Post . Retrieved 28 November 2021.
    • Faulkner, Charlie (3 September 2021). "Spiritual leader is Afghanistan's head of state — with bomb suspect set to be PM". The Times . Retrieved 17 January 2022.
13. Qassem, Dr Ahmad Shayeq (28 March 2013). Afghanistan's Political Stability: A Dream Unrealised. Ashgate Publishing, Ltd. p. 175. ISBN   9781409499428.
14. Wazir, Azmatullah Khan (2002). The immediate solution of Afghan crisis. A.K. Wazir. p. 8.
15. Muḥammad, Fayz̤; McChesney, R. D. (1999). Kabul under siege: Fayz Muhammad's account of the 1929 Uprising. Markus Wiener Publishers. p. 37. ISBN   9781558761544.
16. "ExecutedToday.com » 1929: Habibullah Kalakani, Tajik bandit-king". 1 November 2016. Retrieved 14 November 2019.
17. Muḥammad, Fayz̤; Hazārah, Fayz̤ Muḥammad Kātib; Muḥammad, Faiḍ (1999). Kabul Under Siege: Fayz Muhammad's Account of the 1929 Uprising. Markus Wiener Publishers. p. 1. ISBN   978-1-55876-155-1.
18. "Rebel Becomes King in Afghanistan". The New York Times. 18 January 1929. Retrieved 3 August 2021.
19. "Afghan Usurper Yields to New King". The New York Times. 24 October 1929. Retrieved 3 August 2021.
20. "Nadir Khan is Elected Amir of Afghanistan". The New York Times. 18 October 1929. Retrieved 3 August 2021.
21. "King of Afghanistan Is Slain at Kabul; Stable Boy Won Throne by Military Skill". The New York Times. 9 November 1933. Retrieved 3 August 2021.
22. "There was, therefore, little to hinder the assault mounted by the rebel 4th Armored Brigade, led by Major Mohammad Aslam Watanjar, who had also been prominent in Daoud's own coup five years before. Watanjar first secured the airport, where the other coup leader, Colonel Abdul Qadir, left by helicopter for the Bagram air base. There he took charge and organized air strikes on the presidential palace, where Daoud and the presidential guard were conducting a desperate defense. Fighting continued the whole day and into the night, when the defenders were finally overwhelmed. Daoud and almost all of his family members, including women and children, died in the fighting. Altogether there were possibly as many as two thousand fatalities, both military and civilian." p. 88 of Ewans, Martin (2002) Afghanistan: A Short History of Its People and Politics HarperCollins, New York, Page 88 ISBN   0-06-050507-9
23. "1978: Afghan coup rebels claim victory". 29 April 1978 – via news.bbc.co.uk.
24. Ghaus, Abdul Samad (1988). The fall of Afghanistan: an insider's account. Washington: Pergamon-Brassey's Intern. Defense Publ. p. 200. ISBN   978-0-08-034701-1.
25. "How Soviet troops stormed Kabul palace". BBC. 27 December 2009. Retrieved 3 August 2021.
26. "Afghan Fundamentalists Sweep Into Kabul". The New York Times. 27 September 1996. Retrieved 30 March 2022.
27. "Factions Asked To Join Together in Post-Taliban Afghanistan". KOMO News. 13 November 2001. Retrieved 22 July 2016.
28. "Bonn Agreement" (PDF). United Nations Department of Political and Peacebuilding Affairs. 5 December 2001. Retrieved 30 June 2022.
29. "Security Council 1988 Committee Amends 105 Entries on Its Sanctions List | Meetings Coverage and Press Releases". www.un.org. Archived from the original on 22 February 2016. Retrieved 8 September 2021.
30. David S. Rohde with Dexter Filkins (13 November 2001). "Taliban Troops Abandon Capital Without a Fight". The New York Times. Retrieved 30 March 2022.
31. David S. Rohde with Norimitsu Onishi (8 December 2001). "TALIBAN ABANDON LAST STRONGHOLD; OMAR IS NOT FOUND". The New York Times. Retrieved 4 November 2022.
32. Dam, Bette (2019). "The Secret Life of Mullah Omar" (PDF). Zomia Center. Retrieved 29 June 2022.
33. Trofimov, Yaroslav (13 September 2021). "As Taliban Seek International Acceptance, Countries Seek to Engage—but Stop Short of Recognition". Wall Street Journal. ISSN   0099-9660 . Retrieved 20 September 2021.

External links

• Presidency of Afghanistan (15 August 2021 archive)