The New Student's Reference Work/Kandahar

Kandahar (kȧn-dȧ-hȧr), the largest city in Afghanistan, is situated about 200 miles west of Kabul. Kandahar is a place of extensive commerce, and among its residents are a number of Hindu and Persian merchants. The city is surrounded by a wall four miles in circumference, 25 feet in height and from 10 to 15 thick; and two miles north is a precipitous rock, crowned by a fortress impregnable to attack, save by the heaviest artillery. The town is supposed to have been founded by Alexander the Great, although the name is Persian. During the wars of 1879–81 the British entered Kandahar unopposed, and held the city for several months after they had evacuated the rest of Afghanistan. Population 30,000.