Inspired by Hendryk's post at Chat, I bounced around and came across this at Wiki regarding Mohammed Zahir Shah, the former King of Afghanistan:
So, what if instead of Hamid Karzai, the US decided to back the restoration of the monarchy and thus have Mohammed Zahir Shah return to his throne? How would Afghanistan be different, compared with OTL?
Remember that, since Mohammed Zahir Shah would probably die as in OTL in 2004 (starting with complaints of an intestinal problem, and spiralling from there), so that would mean that upon his death, his son Ahmad Shah Khan would become King, followed by his son Mohammed Zahir Khan.
Wiki said:In April 2002, while the country was under NATO occupation, Zahir Shah returned to Afghanistan to open the Loya Jirga, which met in June 2002.[16] After the fall of the Taliban, there were open calls for a return to the monarchy.[14] Zahir Shah himself let it be known that he would accept whatever responsibility was placed on him by the Loya Jirga.[16] However he was obliged to publicly step aside at the behest of the United States as many of delegates to the Loya Jirga were prepared to vote for Zahir Shah and block the US-backed Hamid Karzai.[16] While he was prepared to become head of state he made it known that it would not necessarily be as monarch: "I will accept the responsibility of head of state if that is what the Loya Jirga demands of me, but I have no intention to restore the monarchy. I do not care about the title of king. The people call me Baba and I prefer this title."[14] He was given the ceremonial title "Father of the Nation" in the current Constitution of Afghanistan[17] symbolizing his role in Afghanistan's history as a nonpolitical symbol of national unity. The title of the 'Father of the Nation' dissolved with his death.[18]
So, what if instead of Hamid Karzai, the US decided to back the restoration of the monarchy and thus have Mohammed Zahir Shah return to his throne? How would Afghanistan be different, compared with OTL?
Remember that, since Mohammed Zahir Shah would probably die as in OTL in 2004 (starting with complaints of an intestinal problem, and spiralling from there), so that would mean that upon his death, his son Ahmad Shah Khan would become King, followed by his son Mohammed Zahir Khan.