Afghanistan: Conquerable but Uncontainable

             Few nations in Asia have remained truly independent in the past several millenia. Even the powerful nations of China and India have been under foreign occupation for long periods of time. The people of Afghanistan, on the other hand, have been around to witness the great conquerors over many centuries, yet would never be under foreign domination for very long. The Persian Empire, Alexander the Great, Genghis Khan, the British Empire, and Soviet Russia all penetrated into the Afghan heartland, and managed to establish some degree of order in their favor. But these victories would only last a short while, and eventually, would lead to withdrawal or defeat. Today, the United States is currently pacifying Afghanistan, but the question remains for how long. Will history repeat itself and will the United States be forced to leave in shame, or will they be the first to tame the wild beast of the East. This essay will examine the nature of Afghanistan's occupations throughout history, and offer some analysis as to why these great conquering empires throughout history have never been able to contain or ultimately control the people of Afghanistan.
             Long before the invasions of foreign people (between the ninth and seventh centuries BC), Afghanistan had developed a culture of its own through the people known as the Bactrians. These people would eventually migrate out of Afghanistan into Southern Russia and the Ukraine and be known in history as the Scythians. Famous for their golden artifacts and their horsemanship, the Bactrians/Scythians were fabulous warriors who ravaged neighboring tribes and took with them the spoils of war. The Bactrians refused to be dominated when it came to foreign conquest, and they managed to defeat the Medes, predecessors to the Persians, at every attempt. Other cultures, such as that of the Indo-Iranians and the Indo-Aryan people, also settled in Afghanistan, but they were much smaller and of l...

More Essays:

APA     MLA     Chicago
Afghanistan: Conquerable but Uncontainable. (1969, December 31). In MegaEssays.com. Retrieved 11:29, March 28, 2024, from https://www.megaessays.com/viewpaper/5731.html