Khanate of Kalat

The Khanate of Kalat, also known as the Brahui Confederacy, was a Brahui Khanate that originated in the modern-day Kalat region of Pakistan. Formed in 1666 due to the threat of Mughal expansion in the region, it controlled the wider Balochistan at its greatest extent in the mid-18th century, extending from Kerman in the west to Sindh in the east and from Helmand River in the north to the Arabian Sea in the south.

The Khanate of Kalat lost considerable area to Qajar Iran and the Emirate of Afghanistan in the early 19th century, and the city of Kalat was itself sacked by the British in 1839. Kalat became a self-governing state in a subsidiary alliance with British India after the signature of the Treaty of Kalat by the Khan of Kalat and the Brahui Sardars in 1875, and the supervision of Kalat became a task of the Baluchistan Agency. Kalat was briefly independent from 12 August 1947 until 27 March 1948, when its ruler Ahmad Yar Khan acceded to Pakistan, making it one of the Princely states of Pakistan.

Origins

The Khanate of Kalat was the first unified polity to emerge in the history of Balochistan. It took birth from the confederacy of nomadic Baloch and Brahui tribes in 1666 which under Mir Ahmad Khan I declared independence from the Mughal suzerainty and slowly absorbed the Baloch principalities in the region.

History

Background

According to Brahui and Baloch traditions, Kalat was ruled by a Hindu ruler named Sewa when they first conquered it. Historically, the regions surrounding Kalat were part of the Mughal province of Kandahar during 17th century. During the reign of Shah Jahan, Mughal expansion reached its high point, and caused the emergence for the first time a strong, unified "Baloch and Brahui Confederacy" or the Khanate of Kalat.

Establishment

The founder of the Khanate of Kalat was Ameer Meero Merwani Baloch in 1405. The first ruler of the Baloch and Brahui Confederacy was Mir Ahmad Khan I (r.1666–1695). He was strong enough to capture Quetta, Mastung, and Pishin from the Mughal governor at Kandahar. He spent his life fighting the Afghans and Kalhoras of Sindh, and became an ally of Mughal emperor Aurangzeb. During the reign of his successor, Mir Samandar Khan (r.1697–1714), He expanded the state till Karachi and Placed Mir Noor Muhammad Kalhoro on The Throne under his hand, He Plundered Districts of Zhob which were the country of Pashtuns, a Safavid army under Tahmasb Beg invaded western Balochistan. Safavids were defeated, and Tahmasb was killed. Samandar Khan was rewarded by Mughals with the gift of port of Karachi.Template:Sfn

Under Mir Abdullah Khan (r.1716–31), the state expanded from Upper Sindh and Kandahar to Persia till the port of Bandar Abbas. He was later killed while fighting against allied army of Hussain Hotak of Hotak dynasty and Kalhoras in 1734. His son and successor, Mir Mehrab Khan (r.1734–1749), was given the region of Kacchi, then under Kalhoras, by Nader Shah as blood compensation of his father.

The Khanate reached its peak during the reign of Mir Nasir Khan I (r.1749–94), who had unified the Kalat region and conquered cities of Khash, Bampur, Qasr-e Qand and Zahedan in the Iranian Balochistan. Since 1748, Kalat was a vassal state of Durrani Empire, and assisted in the campaigns of Ahmad Shah such as in the Durrani Campaign to Khorasan. However, in 1758 Mir Nasir Khan I revolted against Ahmad Shah. The Afghans were dispatched under Shah Wali Khan to Kalat, but were defeated. As a result, Ahmad Shah marched himself with an army and defeated the Baluch armies in battle.

Ahmad Shah laid siege to Kalat for over 40 days, and attempted to storm it, however it was unsuccessful. In the ensuing 1758 treaty of Kalat, the exact agreements are disputed. Some sources state that the Khanate of Kalat attained a sovereign status.Template:Sfn According to some other accounts, Mir Nasir Khan had recognized suzerainty of Ahmad Shah, who guaranteed non-interference in the matters of Kalat.Template:Sfn Nevertheless, Kalat did not pay any tribute to Durrani Empire thereafter, and provided military contingents in exchange of money only. Following the collapse of the Durranis, any trace of Afghan influence over Kalat ended after the death of Sher Dil Khan, the ruler of the Principality of Qandahar, in 1826.

Mir Nasir Khan, known to the Baloch "The Great",Template:Sfn undertook 25 military campaigns during his reign, and forced the Talpur dynasty of Sindh to pay tribute. He was the first Khan of Kalat to establish a centralized bureaucracy and issue own currency.Template:Sfn He established the office of Grand Vizier to look after the affairs of the state, as well as a standing army. He had also established diplomatic relations with Ottoman Turkey, Iran, Afghanistan and Sultanate of Oman.Template:Sfn In 1784, he gave refuge to the future Sultan of Oman, Sultan bin Ahmad, and gifted him the port of Gwadar. Gwadar continued to be part of Sultanate of Oman until it was purchased by Pakistan in 1958. Due to his achievements, he is considered a central figure and hero among Brahuis as well as Balochs.Template:Sfn

Decline

File:A ride to India across Persia and Baluchistan (1891) (14782070024).jpg

Palace of Mir Khudadad, Khan of Kalat.

The Khanate of Kalat declined in the early 19th century, losing much of its territory to Qajar Iran and Emirate of Afghanistan. The internal weakness of the state forced Khan of Kalat to sign the Treaty of Kalat (1876) with the British Agent Robert Sandeman in the late 19th century. Parts of the state to the north and northeast were leased or ceded to form the province of British Baluchistan, which later gained the status of a Chief Commissioners province. The Iran–Kalat Border was demarcated in 1896, and the former territories of Kalat Khanate now form part of Iranian province of Sistan and Balochistan.

Accession

Balochi language was one of the court languages during the rule of the Kalat Khanate. Writers in the era of the Baloch khanate of Kalat have enriched the Balochi language and literature by writing several books of prose. Jām Durrak, the court poet of Nasir khan composed love poems, some of it has been collected and published. The political centralization of the Khanate of Kalat failed to survive through the colonial era and did not lead to the standardization of the Baloch language. However, with the withdrawal of the British from the Indian subcontinent in 1947, the Indian Independence Act provided that the princely states which had existed alongside but outside British India were released from all their subsidiary alliances and other treaty obligations. The rulers were left to decide whether to accede to one of the newly independent states of India or Pakistan (both formed initially from the British possessions) or to remain independent outside both. As stated by Sardar Patel, "On the lapse of Paramountcy every Indian State became a separate independent entity."

The Instruments of Accession made available for the rulers to sign transferred only limited powers, namely external relations, defence, and communications. The Shahi Jirga of Baluchistan and the non-official members of the Quetta Municipality, according to Pervaiz Iqbal Cheema, stated their wish to join Pakistan on 29 June 1947; however, according to the political scientist Rafi Sheikh, the Shahi Jirga was stripped of its members from the Kalat State prior to the vote.

Kalat remained fully independent from 15 August 1947 until 27 March 1948, when its ruler, Ahmad Yar Khan (1904–1979), finally acceded to Pakistan, becoming the last of the rulers to do so.Template:Sfn Show elections were held during this period and a bicameral parliament was established. On the night of 27 March, All India Radio carried a story about Yar Khan approaching India with an unsuccessful request for accession in around February. The next morning, Yar Khan put out a public broadcast rejecting its veracity and declaring an immediate accession to Pakistan — all remaining differences were to be placed before Jinnah, whose decision would be binding.

Dushka H. Saiyid emphasizes that Yar Khan lost all of his bargaining chips with the accession of Kharan, Las Bela, and Makran, leaving Kalat as an island. Salman Rafi Sheikh largely concurs with Saiyid's assessment: multiple other Kalat sardars were preparing to accede to Pakistan and Yar Khan would have hardly any territory left, if he did not accede.Template:Rp

On 3 October 1952, the state of Kalat entered into the Baluchistan States Union with three neighbouring states, Kharan, Las Bela, and Makran, with Yar Khan of Kalat at the head of the Union with the title of Khan-e-Azam. The Khanate came to an end on 14 October 1955, when it was incorporated into West Pakistan.Template:Sfn

Geography

The Khanate of Kalat covered the area of Template:Convert. The territories of the Khanate of Kalat flactuated throughout its history. At the time of death of Mir Nasir Khan I in 1794, it comprised the Iranian province of Sistan and Balochistan, parts of Sindh and Afghan Balochistan as far as the Helmand river. Significantly reduced in the late 19th century, the princely state of Kalat occupied the central part of the territory of modern-day Balochistan province in Pakistan. To the north was the Baluchistan (Chief Commissioner's Province), part of British India.

Administration

Kalat state was divided into following sub-divisions:

• Jhalawan, an ethnic Brahui subdivision, headed by the chief nawab of the Zehri tribe, known as Chief of Jhalawan.
• Kacchi, in which various tribes had their own tribal lands under the Khan of Kalat.
• Sarawan, an ethnic Baloch subdivision, headed by chief nawab of Raisani tribe, called Chief of Sarawan.

Demographics

Religious groups in Kalat State (British Baluchistan era)

Religious group	1901		1911		1921		1931		1941
	Pop.	%	Pop.	%	Pop.	%	Pop.	%	Pop.	%
Islam File:Star and Crescent.svg	393,667		345,906		316,985		331,234		245,208
Hinduism File:Om.svg	13,780		10,102		11,205		10,806		7,971
Sikhism File:Khanda.svg	25		3,022		78		42		79
Christianity File:Christian cross.svg	0		51		13		15		45
Zoroastrianism File:Faravahar.svg	0		4		0		0		1
Judaism File:Star of David.svg	0		0		0		2		1
Jainism File:Jain Prateek Chihna.svg	0		0		0		0		0
Buddhism File:Dharma Wheel (2).svg	—	—	1		0		0		0
Tribal	—	—	—	—	—	—	0		0
Others	0		0		0		2		0
Total population	407,472		359,086		328,281		342,101		253,305
Note: 1901–1931: Including the divisions of Sarawan, Jhalawan, Kachhi, Dombki-Kaheri Country, Makran, and Kharan. 1941: Including the divisions of Sarawan, Jhalawan, Kachhi, and Makran.

Sarawan Division

Religious groups in the Sarawan Division of Kalat State (British Baluchistan era)

Religious group	1911		1921		1931		1941
	Pop.	%	Pop.	%	Pop.	%	Pop.	%
Islam File:Star and Crescent.svg	62,660		53,304		27,722		27,592
Hinduism File:Om.svg	1,003		896		729		592
Sikhism File:Khanda.svg	113		60		10		61
Christianity File:Christian cross.svg	5		2		3		25
Zoroastrianism File:Faravahar.svg	0		0		0		0
Judaism File:Star of David.svg	0		0		0		0
Jainism File:Jain Prateek Chihna.svg	0		0		0		0
Buddhism File:Dharma Wheel (2).svg	0		0		0		0
Tribal	—	—	—	—	0		0
Others	0		0		0		0
Total population	63,781		54,262		28,464		28,270

Jhalawan Division

Religious groups in the Jhalawan Division of Kalat State (British Baluchistan era)

Religious group	1911		1921		1931		1941
	Pop.	%	Pop.	%	Pop.	%	Pop.	%
Islam File:Star and Crescent.svg	83,914		79,293		88,780		52,194
Hinduism File:Om.svg	472		417		197		78
Sikhism File:Khanda.svg	12		0		1		0
Christianity File:Christian cross.svg	0		0		0		0
Zoroastrianism File:Faravahar.svg	0		0		0		0
Judaism File:Star of David.svg	0		0		0		0
Jainism File:Jain Prateek Chihna.svg	0		0		0		0
Buddhism File:Dharma Wheel (2).svg	0		0		0		0
Tribal	—	—	—	—	0		0
Others	0		0		0		0
Total population	84,398		79,710		88,978		52,272

Kachhi Division

Religious groups in the Kachhi Division of Kalat State (British Baluchistan era)

Religious group	1911		1921		1931		1941
	Pop.	%	Pop.	%	Pop.	%	Pop.	%
Islam File:Star and Crescent.svg	84,389		68,144		98,852		79,016
Hinduism File:Om.svg	7,176		7,009		7,019		7,095
Sikhism File:Khanda.svg	1,188		0		12		1
Christianity File:Christian cross.svg	6		0		1		0
Zoroastrianism File:Faravahar.svg	0		0		0		0
Judaism File:Star of David.svg	0		0		0		0
Jainism File:Jain Prateek Chihna.svg	0		0		0		0
Buddhism File:Dharma Wheel (2).svg	0		0		0		0
Tribal	—	—	—	—	0		0
Others	0		0		2		0
Total population	92,759		75,153		105,886		86,112

Dombki-Kaheri Country Division

Religious groups in the Dombki-Kaheri Country Division of Kalat State (British Baluchistan era)

Religious group	1911		1921		1931
	Pop.	%	Pop.	%	Pop.	%
Islam File:Star and Crescent.svg	20,574		16,937		24,349
Sikhism File:Khanda.svg	1,707		10		16
Hinduism File:Om.svg	1,262		2,611		2,588
Christianity File:Christian cross.svg	0		0		0
Zoroastrianism File:Faravahar.svg	0		0		0
Judaism File:Star of David.svg	0		0		0
Jainism File:Jain Prateek Chihna.svg	0		0		0
Buddhism File:Dharma Wheel (2).svg	0		0		0
Tribal	—	—	—	—	0
Others	0		0		0
Total population	23,543		19,558		26,953
Note: Much of the Dombki-Kaheri Country division was transferred to the administered areas of Sibi District between the 1931 and 1941 census.

Makran Division

Religious groups in the Makran Division of Kalat State (British Baluchistan era)

Religious group	1911		1921		1931		1941
	Pop.	%	Pop.	%	Pop.	%	Pop.	%
Islam File:Star and Crescent.svg	71,758		71,625		68,213		86,406
Hinduism File:Om.svg	137		216		233		206
Christianity File:Christian cross.svg	40		11		11		20
Sikhism File:Khanda.svg	2		8		3		17
Zoroastrianism File:Faravahar.svg	4		0		0		1
Buddhism File:Dharma Wheel (2).svg	1		0		0		0
Judaism File:Star of David.svg	0		0		2		1
Jainism File:Jain Prateek Chihna.svg	0		0		0		0
Tribal	—	—	—	—	0		0
Others	0		0		0		0
Total population	71,942		71,860		68,462		86,651

Kharan Division

Religious groups in the Kharan Division of Kalat State (British Baluchistan era)

Religious group	1911		1921		1931
	Pop.	%	Pop.	%	Pop.	%
Islam File:Star and Crescent.svg	22,611		27,682		23,318
Hinduism File:Om.svg	52		56		40
Sikhism File:Khanda.svg	0		0		0
Christianity File:Christian cross.svg	0		0		0
Zoroastrianism File:Faravahar.svg	0		0		0
Judaism File:Star of David.svg	0		0		0
Jainism File:Jain Prateek Chihna.svg	0		0		0
Buddhism File:Dharma Wheel (2).svg	0		0		0
Tribal	—	—	—	—	0
Others	0		0		0
Total population	22,663		27,738		23,358
Note: The Kharan division was divided from the Kalat princely state between the 1931 and 1941 censuses to become a separate princely state.

Rulers of Kalat

The rulers of Kalat at first held the title of Wali but in 1739 also took the title of (Begler Begi Khan), usually shortened to Khan. The last Khan of Kalat (Template:Langx) had the privilege of being the President of the Council of Rulers for the Baluchistan States Union. They also had the title of beylerbey.

Tenure	Khan of Kalat
1656–1666	Mir Altaz Sani Khan Qambrani II
1666–1695	Mir Ahmad I Khan Qambrani III (Changed his Royal family name from Qambrani to Ahmadzai )
1695–1697	Mir Mehrab Khan Ahmadzai I
1697–1714	Mir Samandar Khan Ahmadzai
1714–1716	Mir Ahmad II Khan Ahmadzai
1716–1731	Mir Abdullah Khan Ahmadzai
1731–1749	Mir Muhabbat Khan Ahmadzai
1749–1794	Mir Muhammad Nasir Khan I Ahmadzai
1794–1817	Mir Mahmud Khan I Ahmadzai
1817–1839	Mir Mehrab Khan Ahmadzai II
1839–1841	Mir Shah Nawaz Khan Ahmadzai
1841–1857	Mir Nasir Khan II Ahmadzai
1857–1863	Mir Khudadad Khan Ahmadzai (1st time)
1863–1864	Mir Sherdil Khan Ahmadzai (usurped throne)
1864–1893	Mir Khudadad Khan Ahmadzai (2nd time)
1893–1931	Mir Mahmud Khan II Ahmadzai
1931–1933	Mir Mohammad Azam Jan Khan Ahmadzai
1933–1955	Ahmad of Kalat (Mir Ahmad Yar Khan Ahmadzai); declared independent on 12 August 1947; acceded to Pakistan on 27 March 1948, while keeping internal self-government
14 October 1955	State of Kalat merged into One Unit of West PakistanTemplate:Sfn
1955–1979	Mir Ahmad Yar Khan Ahmadzai (titular)
1979–1998	Mir Dawood Jan Ahmadzai (titular)
1998–2006	Mir Agha Sulaiman Jan Ahmadzai (titular)
2006–present	Prince Mir Mohammad Khan Ahmadzai (titular)

See also

• Baluchistan (Chief Commissioner's Province)
• Makran (princely state)
• Las Bela (princely state)
• Kharan (princely state)
• Kalat State National Party
• List of princely states of British India

Bibliography

• Template:EI3

External links

• Swidler, N. (1972) "The Development of the Kalat Khanate Template:Webarchive" Journal of Asian and African Studies 7: pp. 115–21
• Kalat District – Planning and Development Department of Balochistan Government
• Genealogy of the Khans of Kalat