afghanistanand defeated the invaders. This time he did besiege Mashhad, only for the
Saddozais to prove once again to be their own worst enemy. ‘Abd Allah
Khan had left Muhammad Zaman Khan, a Sarmast Khel Saddozai, and
Khalu Khan Alakozai, the father-in-law of both ‘Abd Allah Khan and
Muhammad Zaman Khan, to oversee the affairs of Herat while he was
away campaigning. The two men seized their opportunity and in May
1721 they took control of Herat, forcing Sultan ‘Abd Allah Khan to return
post-haste. On his approach, the guards opened the city gates and Zaman
Khan and Khalu Khan took refuge in the citadel of Qal‘a-yi Ikhtiyar al-Din.
‘Abd Allah Khan ordered his men to set fire to the citadel gates and sent in
a storming party, whereupon Muhammad Zaman, Khalu Khan and other
rebel leaders surrendered and sued for mercy. Sultan ‘Abd Allah Khan,
however, refused to grant them clemency. Khalu Khan was beheaded on
the spot and his head displayed on the citadel walls, and several other
leading ‘Abdali chiefs were sentenced to be crushed to death beneath
millstones. Two days later Muhammad Zaman Khan, too, was put to death.
Muhammad Zaman’s wife, Zarghuna, who was also Khalu Khan’s
daughter, was pregnant at the time. Fearing for her life and that of her
unborn child, she sought nanawatai, or sanctuary, by sending her veil to
Haji Isma‘il Khan, a Ghilzai malik. Haji Isma‘il was obligated under the
Afghan code of honour to protect her and eventually smuggled Zarghuna
out of Herat. She made her way to Multan and a few months later she gave
birth to a son, who was named Ahmad Shah.
The old city of Herat from the citadel, Qal’a-yi Ikhtiyar al-Din.