History of the War in Afghanistan, Vol. 1 (of 3): Third EditionKaye, John William, Sir
History
History of the War in Afghanistan, Vol. 1 (of 3): Third Edition
Kaye, John William, Sir
Afghan Wars
The Disunion of the Barukzyes—Prospects of Dost Mahomed—Keane’s
Advance to Ghuznee—Massacre of the Prisoners—Fall of Ghuznee—Flight of
Dost Mahomed—Hadjee Khan, Khaukur—Escape of Dost Mahomed—Entry of Shah
Soojah into Caubul.
The disunion of the Barukzye brethren lost Afghanistan to the Sirdars.
The bloodless fall of Candahar struck no astonishment into the soul of
Dost Mahomed. He had long mistrusted his kinsmen. Candahar, too, was
the home of the Douranees. He knew that the Barukzyes had nothing to
expect from the allegiance of that powerful tribe. He knew that they
were little inclined to strike a blow for the existing dynasty; but he
knew at the same time, that they were so prostrate and enfeebled, that
the Suddozye Prince would derive no active assistance from them—that
they would only throw into the scale the passive sullenness and
harmless decrepitude of men broken down by a long course of oppression.
If Dost Mahomed and the Candahar Sirdars had leagued themselves firmly
together, without jealousy and without suspicion—if they had declared a
religious war, and appealed to the Mahomedan feelings of the people—if
they had, by their own energy and activity, encouraged Mehrab Khan of
Khelat to array himself against the invaders, and throwing themselves
heart and soul into the cause, had opposed our passage through the
Bolan and Kojuck Passes, they might have turned to the best recount
the sufferings of our famine-stricken army, and have given us, at
the outset of the campaign, a check from which we should not have
speedily recovered. But it seems to have been the design of Providence
to paralyse our enemies at this time, and so to lure us into greater
dangers than any that could have beset us at the opening of the
campaign.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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