Afghanistan during the time. This proved effective in growing his dread, as his other Barakzai brothers did not challenge his power in Kabul over the fear of his growing large army. During the early years of his first reign, his influence was generally left to Kabul and Ghazni. Although Dost Mohammad controlled Bamiyan, the routes leading were controlled by independent Hazara chiefdoms. In the east of his realm, the extent of his rule ended at Jagdalak pass, while Jalalabad and Laghman were controlled by Muhammad Zaman Khan and Abd-Al-Jabbar Khan. The revenues of Balabagh were collected by Usman Khan, the city was governed by Dost Mohammad's brother, Amir Muhammad Khan. Despite Ghazni being a part of Dost Mohammad's sphere of influence, Amir Muhammad exercised direct control over the city, and it is unknown if he submitted revenue payments to Dost Mohammad. All these combined made the early Muhammadzai Kingdom surely possibly doomed to fail, having been isolated directly by most of the other powers of Afghanistan, and drawn into conflict with others occasionally, alongside nominal discontent including amongst his brothers who were seeking to fight for rule over Kabul, the early Muhammadzai Kingdom appeared as if it would not fare well. Kabul under early Muhammadzai Rule (1823-1834) Kabul was the capital of the Durrani Empire, however, after the Durrani Dynasty was banished to Herat, Kabul relatively remained as a prosperous trade city amongst all the political unrest that had developed in the region. In the early nineteenth century, Kabul consisted of three geographic and administrative centers, the Bala Hissar, the city of Kabul, and Chindawul. In the 1820s, the Muhammadzai Sardars inhabited the Bala Hissar, also referred to as "The Citadel". It was made clear that there was an upper and lower citadel, as the lower citadel was also erected between 1775 and 1779, with the upper citadel reserved for state prisoners. However under early Muhammadzai rule, as a result of political unrest, the upper citadel was left in ruins. According to Christine Noelle, the city of Kabul was estimated to consist of around 5,000 houses, and 2,000 shops. Mohan Lal's description of the Chaharsu Bazar in 1832 states, "The shops displayed a profusion of those fruits which I used to esteem costly luxuries. The parts of the bazar which are arched over exceed anything the imagination can picture. The shops rise over each other, in steps glittering in tinsel