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in the Maqpon kingdom on the eastern side. During his campaigns in Gilgit and Chitral he was always accompanied by his illustrious brothers Sher Shah and Ali Shah as commanders of his Army. His exploits in the West have eclipsed those of Ali Sher Khan, Anchan, so much so that the names of Shah Murad, Sher Shah and Ali Shah are still on the lips of the people of Gilgit.

While dealing with period of Ali Sher Khan Anchan it was stated that the prisoners of war brought from Gilgit and Chitral were settled in various villages in Baltistan. Shah Murad and his brothers did similarly. At the risk of repetition the following extract from the Tribes of Hindoo Koosh is reproduced, “about the beginning or middle of the 17^th century the Makpon ruler of Iskardu was Ahmad Shah, who had four sons. The eldest of these succeeded him as prince of Iskardu and by the aid of his brothers subdued the country of the westward as far as Chitral. The Brokpas say that in the course of the different warlike expeditions of the four brothers, they were carried off from their own countries, Astore and Chilas and forcibly settled in the places in which we now find them”. 

The Gazetteer of India and Vigne have come to the conclusion that the bridge near the fort at Chitral was built by Sultan Murad, the grandson of Shah Murad. Local tradition goes counter to this statement. According to them the bridge was constructed by Shah Murad and he gave it the name of “Cho Zamba” meaning Royal Bridge. Even today the bride is called in Chitral “Cho Pul” The credit of repairing it goes to Sultan Murad during this campaign of Chitral.

Shah Murad is also responsible for reconstructing the forts at Dras and Shingo Shigar originally built by Ali Sher Khan. A village in Dras was named ‘Murad Bagh’ After him. The assertion of Hashmatullah is borne out by local tradition that Shah Murad brought sculptors, silver and blacksmiths etc. etc. from India and Kashmir into Skardu and settled them in the country. It was perhaps necessitated due to the destruction of buildings constructed by Ali Sher Khan during the great flood as well as the period of turmoil through which the Skardu Rulers had to pass after the death of the Anchan.

In Gilgiti songs and stories the exploits of Shah Murad, Sher Shah and Ali Shah are extolled. Even Hashmatullah says, “I remember when I was in Gilgit in 1894, people would sing the songs extolling the achievement of Shah Murah, Sher Shah , Ali Shah. The Shina song called “Sher