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Hotak dynasty

امپراتوری هوتکیان
د هوتکيانو ټولواکمني

1709–1738

Flag

Hotak dynasty at its greatest extent

Capital

Kandahar (1709–1722), (1725–1738)
Isfahan (1722–1729)

Common languages

Pashto (poetry)
Persian (poetry)

Religion

Sunni Islam

Government

Absolute monarchy

Emir

• 1709–1715

Mirwais Hotak

• 1715–1717

Abdul Aziz Hotak

• 1717–1725

Mahmud Hotak

Historical era

Early modern period

• Revolt by Mirwais Hotak

21 April 1709

• Siege of Kandahar

24 March 1738

Preceded by

Succeeded by

	Safavid Iran
	Mughal Empire

Afsharid Iran

The Hotak dynasty (Pashto: د هوتکيانو ټولواکمني Persian: امپراتوری هوتکیان) was a group of Afghan rulers. They were Ghilji Pashtuns who briefly controlled parts of Iran and Afghanistan. This dynasty started in April 1709.

Mirwais Hotak founded the Hotak dynasty. He led a successful uprising against the weakening Safavid empire. This happened in the area of Loy Kandahar, which is now southern Afghanistan.

Mirwais died in 1715. His brother, Abdul Aziz Hotak, took over. But Abdul Aziz was killed by his nephew, Mahmud Hotak. Mahmud then became the ruler of Iran. After Mahmud, his cousin Ashraf Hotak became the leader in 1725.

Ashraf's rule did not last long. An Iranian conqueror named Nader Shah defeated him in 1729. This battle was called the Battle of Damghan. Ashraf was forced to leave Iran and go back to southern Afghanistan. The Hotak dynasty then only controlled a small part of their old empire.

In 1738, the Hotak dynasty ended. Nader Shah defeated Ashraf's successor, Hussain Hotak. This happened after a long siege of Kandahar. After this, Nader Shah began to take back control of lands Iran had lost.

History of the Hotak Dynasty
- How the Hotaks Rose to Power
- Decline of the Hotak Dynasty
List of Hotak Rulers
See Also

History of the Hotak Dynasty

How the Hotaks Rose to Power

The Safavid Empire Weakens

The Shi'a Safavid empire ruled the region of Loy Kandahar. This area was their easternmost territory. They controlled it from the 1500s until the early 1700s. The local Afghan tribes in this area were Sunni Muslims.

To the east was the strong Mughal Empire. They sometimes fought the Safavids over southern Afghanistan. To the north, the Khanate of Bukhara was in control. By the late 1600s, the Safavids began to lose their strength.

After Shah Abbas died in 1629, later Safavid rulers were not as effective. This caused the empire to decline. In 1694, Sultan Husayn became the Shah. Under his rule, the problems got worse.

Shah Husayn rarely left his palace. This was common for many later Safavid Shahs. These rulers were not active, and their courts had many disagreements. Earlier rulers spent more time leading armies and had smaller courts. The government became weak, and the army was not strong. This weakness allowed different tribal groups to raid the border areas. These groups included the Turkmen, Baluch, Arabs, Kurds, Dagestanis, and Afghans.

Gurgin Khan's Rule in Kandahar

In 1704, the Safavid Shah Husayn appointed George XI as governor of Kandahar. George was a Georgian subject who had converted to Islam. He was also known as Gurgin Khan.

In May 1704, George marched to Kandahar. He quickly stopped any problems in the province. He soon met Mirwais Hotak. Mirwais was the mayor (kalantar) of Kandahar. He was also a very rich and important person among the Ghilzais.

At first, Mirwais had good relations with the Georgians. But things changed when Mirwais was removed as mayor in 1706. Alam Shah Afghan replaced him. The Georgians were not liked by the local people. They ruled very harshly. This made the Ghilzais want to rebel against Safavid rule. Mirwais was part of these revolts.

Gurgin Khan found out about Mirwais's involvement. He sent Mirwais to Isfahan, the Safavid capital. While there, Mirwais saw how weak the Safavid court was. He complained about Gurgin Khan's harsh rule. He managed to turn the Shah and his court against Gurgin Khan.

Then, Mirwais went on a religious journey to Mecca. There, he got a special religious ruling (a fatwa). This ruling approved his plan to overthrow the harsh Safavid rule. In late 1708 or early 1709, he returned to Kandahar. He waited for the right chance to kill Gurgin Khan.

The Hotak Rebellion Begins

The chance came in April 1709. The Kakar tribe refused to pay taxes and started a revolt. So, Gurgin Khan and his soldiers went to fight them. Mirwais and his men ambushed Gurgin Khan on April 21. They killed him.

The Hotak forces then drove the Georgian soldiers out of Kandahar. The remaining Georgians fled to Gereshk. When the Safavid court heard about this, they sent a large army. Kaikhosro Khan led 12,000 men to take back Kandahar. He left Isfahan in November 1709. Members of the Abdali tribe helped his army.

The army moved slowly because the court did not help much. They reached Farah in 1710. In the summer of 1711, Kaikhosro marched to Kandahar and surrounded it. The Ghilzais offered to make peace, but Kaikhosro refused. So, they kept fighting.

The Baluchis often attacked the Georgians. They forced them to retreat on October 26. The defenders of Kandahar came out and chased the Georgians. Kaikhosro was killed during this chase. Another Persian army was sent in 1712, but it never reached Kandahar. Its commander died in Herat.

This allowed the Hotaks to control the entire province of Kandahar. Mirwais Hotak died peacefully in November 1715. His brother, Abdul Aziz, became the ruler. But Abdul Aziz was killed by Mirwais's son, Mahmud Hotak, after only eighteen months.

Mahmud Hotak Invades Iran

In 1720, Mahmud's Afghan army crossed the deserts of Sistan. They captured the city of Kerman. Mahmud planned to conquer Isfahan, the Persian capital. On March 8, 1722, he defeated the Persian army at the Battle of Gulnabad.

After this victory, he began to besiege Isfahan. The siege lasted about six months. The people of Isfahan suffered greatly from hunger. They were forced to eat rats and dogs to survive. On October 23, 1722, Sultan Husayn gave up his throne. He recognized Mahmud as the new Shah of Persia.

For the next seven years, until 1729, the Hotaks ruled most of Persia. They also kept control of southern Afghanistan until 1738.

The Hotak dynasty faced many problems from the start. There were constant fights among family members for power. This made it hard for them to keep strong control. Most Persians did not accept the Hotak leaders. They saw them as invaders. The dynasty was very unstable due to bloody fights over who would rule next.

After many people were killed in Isfahan, the Hotak dynasty was finally removed from power in Persia.

Decline of the Hotak Dynasty

Ashraf Hotak became the ruler after Shah Mahmud died in 1725. He had to deal with a movement that wanted the Safavids back in power. This movement was led by Sayyed Ahmad in the south. Sayyed Ahmad had taken control of much of Fars, Hormozgan, and Kerman.

Ashraf's army was defeated in October 1729. This happened at the Battle of Damghan. His opponent was Nader Shah Afshar. Nader Shah was an Iranian soldier who later founded the Afsharid dynasty. This new dynasty replaced the Safavids in Persia.

Nader Shah drove the remaining Ghilji forces out of Persia. He then started to recruit some of the Abdali Afghans into his army. These Abdali Afghans were from Farah and Kandahar.

In 1738, Nader Shah's forces conquered Kandahar. Among his troops were Ahmad Shah Abdali and his 4,000 Abdali soldiers. They surrounded and destroyed the last Hotak stronghold. This stronghold was held by Hussain Hotak.

Nader Shah then built a new town nearby. He named it "Naderabad" after himself. The Abdalis were given back control of the Kandahar area. The Ghiljis were pushed back to their old home of Kalat-i Ghilji. This arrangement continues to this day.