Youngdumbstoneddrunk t1_iu28146 wrote on October 28, 2022 at 12:31 AM

Reply to comment by Trav3lingman in Afghanistan Becomes World's 'Least Secure' Country: Report by Gopu_17

I always thought Afghanistan should never been a country, its always been a continental corridor.

Trav3lingman t1_iu2ah3h wrote on October 28, 2022 at 12:50 AM

It's a place just left to it's own devices. The last time anyone truly controlled the area was probably Alexander the Great.

os_kaiserwilhelm t1_iu2ufw7 wrote on October 28, 2022 at 3:25 AM

It was literally the seat of Ahmad Shah Durrani's empire. Before that it had been the seat of Timur's heir, and later the base for Babur for his invasion of India.

Does that mean every valley had state presence? But the cities and surrounding countryside were under a loose system of fealty not too dissimilar to feudalism.

Trav3lingman t1_iu2xj7m wrote on October 28, 2022 at 3:53 AM

IIRC Alexander had full control but he also retired troops there with land grants. Veteran soldiers flat out living in a region probably helped a lot. My memory could be faulty though. It's been 10+ years since I got a curiosity bug on Afghanistan.