Afghanistan first emerged as a defined territory under the reign of Ahmad Shah Abdali, who was chosen as its leader by an assembly of Pashtun elders in 1747. Using a mixture of conquest and diplomacy, Ahmad Shah succeeded in extending his writ from Kandahar to Kabul and territory west of the Indus. He occupied Delhi in 1756, but military victories did not translate into political control, and he was forced to withdraw from India.

LRB 20 March 2008 | PDF Download