Comprehensive information and links about Pakistan Chitral

Chitral , or Chitrāl, is the name of a town (35° 53' N; 71° 48' E), valley, river, district, and former princely state in the Malakand Division of the Northwest Frontier Province of Pakistan.

35°52′52″N, 71°47′53″E

strong town, capital of the district, is situated on the west bank of the Chitral (or Kunar) River. The town is at the foot of Tirich Mir, the highest peak of the Hindu Kush, 7,708 m or 25,289 ft high. It has a population of about 20,000, while the District (of 14,833 sq km or 5,727 sq mi), has a population of about 300,000. The altitude of the valley is about 1,100 m or 3,700 ft.

Chitral has for millennia been an important point on the trade routes from northern Afghanistan (ancient Bactria) and the Tarim Basin to the plains of Gandhara (in northern Pakistan), and the region near Jalalabad, in eastern Afghanistan.

It was under the control of the Kushans by the 2nd century CE. The people converted to Islam in the 11th century. Some are members of the Ismaili sect headed by the Aga Khan. Chitral was ruled by the Katur Mehtars who claimed descent from Tamerlane, through his descendant Sultan Abul Ghazi Baiqara of Herat.

The easiest route during summer (it was closed by snow in the winter), and the only one which also allowed the use of pack animals, went over the Broghol Pass (3,798 m or 12,460 ft) to Mastuj and, from there, either east towards Gilgit, or southwest down the ChitralKunar Valley towards Jalalabad; a route which is open all year. This route was not only the easiest, but the most direct one to Kabul and all points south and west.

There is also a more difficult route over the dangerous Lowari Pass (3,200 m or 10,499 ft), 365 km (227 mi) south to the region of Peshawar. It is now jeepable, but used mainly because the easier route to Jalalabad is blocked by the border between Pakistan and Afghanistan. There is also a 405 km (252 mi) route to Gilgit over the 3,719 m (12,201 ft) Shandur Pass.

The main tribe, the Khos, speak Khowar (or Chitrali), one of the Dardic languages, which is also spoken in parts of Yasin, Gilgit and Swat. Chitral is known for the famous Kalash tribe that resides in three remote valleys west of Ayun, which is ten miles down from Chitral town.

Chitral remained an independent state under British and after 1947 Pakistani Suizerainity until 1971 when it was merged into the Republic of Pakistan. Historically Chitral was the largest and richest of the Dard Principalities, to the point that it was considered an independent kingdom. Eventually due to Afghan expansionism, the Mehtars had to build a relationship Kashmir and later directly with the British. The current Mehtar (ruler) is His Highness Saif-ul-Mulk Nasir.

, founded by Shah Katur (1585-1630), ruled Chitral until 1971 when the Government of Pakistan took over.

During the reign of Mehtar Aman-ul-Mulk, known as i, the dynasty's sway extended from Asmar in the Kunar valley of Afghanistan to Punyal in the Gilgit Valley.

Tribes in Upper Swat, Dir Kohistan and Kafiristan(present day Nuristan, not to be confused with the Kalash valleys which have always been an integral part of Chitral) paid tribute to the Mehtar of Chitral.

The ruler's title i as heir Apparent), was extended to all princes of the Mehtar's blood since the rulers at that point.

The Katur Dynasty and His Highness are still widely respected and honoured by the people of Chitral today, but the current Mehtar, H.H. Saif-ul-Mulk, has no actual power.