Afghanistan traces the historic struggles and the changing nature of political authority in this volatile region of the world, from the Mughal Empire in the sixteenth century to the Taliban resurgence today. Thomas Barfield introduces readers to the bewildering diversity of tribal and ethnic groups in Afghanistan, explaining what unites them as Afghans despite the regional, cultural, and political differences that divide them. He shows how governing these peoples was relatively easy when power was concentrated in a small dynastic elite, but how this delicate political order broke down in the n.

People and places -- Conquering and ruling pre-modern Afghanistan -- Anglo-Afghan Wars and state building in Afghanistan -- Afghanistan in the twentieth century : state and society in conflict -- Afghanistan enters the twenty-first century -- Some conclusions.