Kushano-Hephthalite
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Template:History of Greater Afghanistan The Kushano-Hephthalites (565 - 670 CE) were the successors of Kushans and Hephthalites. They formed a dynasty in a small territory of Eastern Persia (i.e. Kabulistan) after that Kushans and Hepthalites were defeated by the Sassanids. They are also known as Ratbēl-Shāhān (Persian: رتبیل شاهان) or Kabul-Shāhān (Persian: کابل شاهان)
They ruled over the Hindu Kush regions (Badakhshan), Bamian, Kapisa, Kabul and Peshawar, conserving the same Buddhist culture of their ancestors.
Their rule was in two periods:
- From 565 to 644 CE with their capital in Kapisa
- In 644, the Rashidun Caliphate conquered most of the Kushano-Hephthalite territories, but the Turkshahi or Kabul-Shahan managed to re-establish their kingdom from 650 till 870 CE. They moved the capital from Kapisa to Kabul.
In 647, the Muslim invasions reached Khorasan. Zanboorak Shah, the last King of Kabul-Shahan, built a defensive wall around the city of Kabul, in order to defend against eventual Arab attacks. These walls have survived until today and are considered as an old historical site. The Muslim armies met the most strict defense in Kabul rather than in any other part of Khorasan.
The last Ratbēl-Shāh was defeated by the Saffarid ruler Ya'qub-i Laith-i Saffari in 870 CE, and was overthrown by his minister Kallar, who founded the Hindushahi dynasty of Gandhara.
- See also: History of Arabs in Afghanistan and Shahi dynasty
[edit] Sources
- Kohzad, Ahmad Ali. Afghanistan's History, 1946, Kabul, Afghanistan
