George Scott Robertson

Sir George Scott Robertson (October 22, 1852 - January 1, 1916) was a British soldier, author, and administrator who was best known for his arduous journey to the remote and rugged region of Kafiristan in what is now northeastern Afghanistan. He chronicled his Kafiristan experience in the book "The Kafirs of the Hindu-Kush". Some have suggested that Robertson's year-long expedition and subsequent book (originally published in 1896) provided background and inspiration for Rudyard Kipling's short story "The Man Who Would Be King". However, Kipling's work was originally published in 1888, predating Robertson's travels to the region.

=Travels to Kafiristan=

Robertson was born in London, England, and received his education at the Westminster Hospital Medical School (now Chelsea and Westminster Hospital, London). In 1878 he entered the Indian Medical Service and served throughout the Second Anglo-Afghan War of 1878-80. In 1888, he was attached to the Indian Foreign Office and assigned as agency surgeon in Gilgit, in northern Pakistan. According to his book, it was around this time that Robertson, having encountered several interesting Kafirs (people from Kafiristan) during the war and while in Gilgit, he became curious about their land and way of life. He asked the Government of India for permission to attempt the journey, and by October 1889 was on his way, departing from Chitral in northwest Pakistan in the company of several Kafir headmen of the Kam tribe. His journey lasted just over a year, ending in 1891, and providing Robertson with first-hand experience of the strange customs and colorful people of Kafiristan.

=The Siege of Chitral=

In 1893, after his travels in Kafiristan, Surgeon Major Robertson was assigned to the then-independent State of Chitral once again, this time as a political agent. In 1895 he brought a force of around 400 soldiers, under the direct command of Captain Charles Vere Ferrers Townshend, from Gilgit to oversee the transfer of power in Chitral following the murder of its ruler. After his arrival, Robertson engaged in a series of complex political and military maneuvers, including an unsuccessful sortie on March 3rd, 1895, from his base in Chitral Castle. The British forces took heavy losses during this sortie and retreated to the castle, where they endured a month-long siege from hostile factions. The siege was raised on the 19th of April when a relief force, under Colonel Kelly, arrived and dispersed the hostile tribesmen. For his service during the famous "Siege of Chitral" Robertson was made a Knight Commander in the Order of the Star of India (K.C.S.A.)and appointed British agent in Gilgit.

=Later Years=

Robertson continued in the Indian Service until his retirement in 1899. He then returned to England where he made an unsuccessful bid for political office in Sterlingshire in 1900, but later was elected in Central Bradford in 1906. He died on New Year's Day, 1916.

=The Book "The Kafirs of the Hindu-Kush"=

This detailed account of Robertson's tour throughout Kafiristan was originally published in London in 1896 by Lawrence & Bullen, LTD. It contains illustrations by A.D. McCormic, and was dedicated to Robertson's wife. This book exists in reprint edition (28 Feb 1999) from Munshiram Manoharlal Publishers (ISBN-10: 8121508843/ ISBN-13: 978-8121508841).

An online version of Robertson's book was scanned from an original from Stanford Library, but this electronic version is missing pages 656 and 657.

=References=Robertson, George Scott (1896) "The Kafirs of the Hindu-Kush." Lawrence & Bullen, LTD., London.

Mohammad Afzal Khan "Chitral and Kafirstan, a personal study." Peshawar, Pakistan.

1911 Encyclopedia Britannica (11th Edition): "Sir George Scott Robertson"