Dost Mohammad Khan

Dost Mohammad Khan's life was a masterclass in political endurance. Emerging from the bloody power struggles that followed the collapse of the Durrani Empire, he seized Kabul in 1826, founding the Barakzai dynasty that would rule for over a century. His first reign was defined by the Great Game, the imperial rivalry between Britain and Russia. After a disastrous war with the British, he was deposed and exiled to India. But the British occupation of Afghanistan collapsed spectacularly, and in a stunning reversal, he was restored to the throne in 1843. This second act saw a wiser ruler, consolidating power, modernizing his army, and unifying much of the territory that comprises modern Afghanistan. He died on the eve of another British invasion, having navigated a lifetime of existential threats to establish a lasting state.