Kashmir: Map & History
Kashmir is the northernmost geographical region of the Indian subcontinent.
Wikipedia Encyclopedic Compendium
Historiographical synthesis & structured realm registry
Kashmir is the northernmost geographical region of the Indian subcontinent. Until the mid-19th century, the term Kashmir denoted only the Kashmir Valley between the Great Himalayas and the Pir Panjal Range. The term has since also come to encompass a larger area that formerly comprised the princely state of Jammu and Kashmir, and includes the Indian-administered territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh, the Pakistani-administered territories of Azad Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan, and the Chinese-administered territories of Aksai Chin and the Trans-Karakoram Tract.
Modern Countries Once Part of Kashmir
At its mapped extent, Kashmir covered territory in 2 present-day countries. The period shown is when the mapped borders include that country, and the note says how much of it.
States and Provinces
Largest Present-Day Cities in Its Territory
Each opens on the live map inside Kashmir's borders of that time.
Derived by testing mapped cities against this polity's dated territorial polygons, so the list is indicative and follows the borders in the source dataset.
Kashmir in Depth
History
After a period of cultural flowering under Hindu dynasties—most notably the Karkota and Lohara dynasties—Hindu rule in Kashmir ended in 1339 with the rise of the Shah Mir dynasty. Rule of the native Chak dynasty followed, and lasted until 1586, when the region was conquered by the Mughal Empire under Akbar. Kashmir was annexed by the Afghan Durrani Empire in 1752.
In 1819, the Kashmir Valley passed from the control of the Durrani Empire of Afghanistan to the conquering armies of the Sikhs under Ranjit Singh of the Punjab, thus ending four centuries of Muslim rule under the Mughals and the Afghan regime. As the Kashmiris had suffered under the Afghans, they initially welcomed the new Sikh rulers.
Economy
Kashmir's economy is centred around agriculture. Traditionally the staple crop of the valley was rice, which formed the chief food of the people. In addition, Indian corn, wheat, barley and oats were also grown. Given its temperate climate, it is suited for crops like asparagus, artichoke, seakale, broad beans, scarletrunners, beetroot, cauliflower and cabbage. Fruit trees are common in the valley, and the cultivated orchards yield pears, apples, peaches, and cherries. The chief trees are deodar, firs and pines, chinar or plane, maple, birch and walnut, apple, cherry.
Historically, Kashmir became known worldwide when Cashmere wool was exported to other regions and nations (exports have ceased due to decreased abundance of the cashmere goat and increased competition from China).
In culture
Irish poet Thomas Moore's 1817 romantic poem Lalla Rookh is credited with having made Kashmir (spelt Cashmere in the poem) "a household term in Anglophone societies", conveying the idea that it was a kind of paradise.
Geography
The Kashmir region lies between latitudes 32° and 36° N, and longitudes 74° and 80° E. It has an area of 68,000 mi2 (180,000 km2). It is bordered to the north and east by China (Xinjiang and Tibet), to the northwest by Afghanistan (Wakhan Corridor), to the west by Pakistan (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Punjab) and to the south by India (Himachal Pradesh and Punjab).
The topography of Kashmir is mostly mountainous. It is traversed mainly by the Western Himalayas. The Himalayas terminate in the western boundary of Kashmir at Nanga Parbat. Kashmir is traversed by three rivers, namely the Indus, the Jhelum, and the Chenab. These river basins divide the region into three valleys separated by high mountain ranges.
Sections adapted from Wikipedia: Kashmir (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Kashmir Map Over Time
Dated world maps on which Kashmir appears, with the other states of the time.
Kashmir Timeline
Key historical inflections from foundation to peak territorial expansion
Expansion to peak recorded area of 201,742 km² in 1338 CE.
Kashmir: Frequently Asked Questions
When did Kashmir exist?
Kashmir is dated to 626 CE – 1343 CE, in the Early Middle Ages era.
How large was Kashmir at its peak?
At its peak in 1338 AD Kashmir covered about 201,742 km².
How did the map of Kashmir change over time?
Kashmir appears on 6 dated world maps in the atlas, from 750 CE to 1300 CE. Each shows its borders in that year next to the other states of the time.
Other Sovereign Realms
High & Late Middle Ages • Capital: Avarga
Early Middle Ages • Capital: Constantinople
Early Modern & Age of Discovery • Capital: Söğüt, Bursa, Edirne, Constantinople
High & Late Middle Ages • Capital: Thanjavur, Gangaikonda Cholapuram