Seistan

The Arab conquest of Seistan began in 683-4, but the hold of the country by some of the caliphs was precarious and uncertain. The only time Seistan played an important part in mediaeval history was during the reign of the Safavid dynasty—founded by Yaqub b. Layth, himself a Seistani—during which period it was naturally the central land of the dynasty. Af ter the downfall of the Safavids, Seistan belonged successively to the empire of the Samanids and Ghaznawids, but the land had its own maliks, or native rulers, under the suzerainty of the greater dynasties.

The early ravages of the Mongols reached the frontiers of Seistan and after their departure its history becomes confused and several persons strove for the supremacy. In 1300–I Seistan suffered from an invasion of the Chagatai and then, again, sus tained fearful damages from the Mongols at the hands of Timur, who destroyed Zaranj, the capital situated near the Sanarud canal, took prisoner the malik, Qutb ud Din Kayam (1383) and destroyed the canal system of the land.

Thenceforward Seistan had its own rulers until Shah Ismail conquered the country in 1508-9. The native princes of Seistan remained vassals of the Persian empire till the Afghan invasion of Mir Mohammed (1722), when the malik, Kayani Mohammed, by means of a disloyal treaty with the Afghans, secured for him self the possession of Seistan and Khurasan. He was slain by Nadir Quli Khan, the general of Shah Tahmasp who, afterwards, as Nadir Shah, retained Seistan as part of his Persian dominions. After Nadir's death (1736) Seistan came under the suzerainty of Ahmad Shah, the Durrani ruler of Afghanistan but, on his death (1773), the land became a bone of contention not so much between Persians and Afghans as between Herat and Kandahar.

Eventually the internal dissensions of Afghanistan gave Persia her opportunity—the Sarbandi chief, Ali Khan, allied himself with the Persian government, hoisted the Persian flag on the fortress of Sihkuha, the capital town, and sent his sons as hostages to the Shah at Meshed (1853). The Shah's army finally took possession of Seistan in 1865, and two years later it was placed under a Persian governor with the title of Hashmat ul Mulk.

Complications between Persia and Afghanistan during this period led to British arbitration and the delimitation of the border by the Seistan Commission of 1872, under the leadership of Sir F. J. Goldsmid. In accordance with the award, the Persian forces evacuated that part of Seistan lying on the right bank of the Helmund. The work of delimitation was finally completed by the MacMahon Mission in 1903-5.

Lovett, "Survey of the Perso-Kal

at frontier," Proc. R.G.S., 1871-72, XVI.; H. W. Bellew, From the Indus to the Tigris (1872) ; F. J. Goldsmid, Eastern Persia, i. (1876) ; G. N. Curzon, Persia and the Persian Question (1892) ; C. E. Yate, Khurasan and Seistan (1900) ; P. M. Sykes, "A fourth journey in Persia," Geogr. J., 1902, XIX. ; Ten thousand miles in Persia (1902), pp. ; H. R. Sykes, "Some notes on journeys in southern and south-eastern Persia," J. Manchr. Geogr. Soc., 1905, XXI.; E. Hunt ington, "The depression of Seistan," Bull. Amer. Geogr. Soc., New York, 1905, XXXVII. ; R. Pumpelly, "Explorations in Turkestan with an account of eastern Persia and Seistan," C rnegie Instn. Washington, No. 26 ; H. MacMahon, "Recent survey and exploration in Seistan," Geogr. J., 1906, XXVIII. and "Seistan: past and present," J. Soc. Arts, 1906, LIV. ; A. Hamilton, Afghanistan (1906) ; G. P. Tate, The Frontier of Baluchistan (1909) and Seistan: a memoir on the history, topography, etc. (Calcutta, 1910-12) ; Sven Hedin, Zu Land nach Indien durch Persien, Seistan, Belutschistan (Iwo) and Overland to India (Iwo) ; N. Annandale, "Notes on the vegetation of Seistan," J. & Proc. Asiat. Soc. Bengal, 1919, XV. and "Report on the aquatic fauna of Seistan," Rec. Indian Mus. Calcutta, 1919-21, XVIII.; H. Ficker, "Ergebnisse der meteorologischer Beobachtungen in Husseina bad (Persien Seistan)"; Met. Z., 1921, pp. 257-261; A. Mohr, "Seistan," Norsk Geogr. Tidss., 1927, Bd. I., Heft 6-7, pp. 386-415.

(P. Z. C.)