With the exception of two short periods of direct British intervention during the Anglo-Afghan Wars of 1839-42 and 1878-80, the history of nineteenth-century Afghanistan has received little attention from western scholars. This study seeks to shift the focus of debate from the geostrategic concern with Afghanistan as the bone of contention between imperial Russian and British interests to a thorough investigation of the sociopolitical circumstances prevailing within the country. On the basis of unpublished British documents and works by Afghan historians, it lays the groundwork for a better understanding of the political mechanisms at work during the early Muhammadzai era by analysing them both from the viewpoint of the center and the pierphery.

Seeks to shift the focus of debate from the geo-strategic concern with Afghanistan as the bone of contention between imperial Russian and British interests to a thorough investigation of the sociopolitical circumstances prevailing within the country during the early Muhammadzai era.

The attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon on September 11, 2001 instantly focused international attention on Afghanistan. Suddenly, we were confronted with the need to understand how and why social and political circumstances in that country could be diametrically opposed to the values and norms commonly associated with modern states and civil society.

This volume explores the question of whether Afghanistan is a country without a state. It includes contributions from twenty of the world's most distinguished experts on Afghanistan. Among the topics covered are the scope of humanitarian aid, the oppression of women, the logic of a war economy, and the potential for peace. Written and published prior to Afghanistan's liberation by U.S. forces, it nonetheless provides important background to Afganistan's past and future.