Thanks to the National Archives and Records Administration, we can trace Afghan involvement in U.S. military operations back to the Civil War.

In pension documents available online, Afghan war veteran Pvt. Mohammad Kahn recalls arriving in the United States in 1861. Though he “could not speak one word of English,” Kahn’s lack of fluency was no hindrance around two and a half months later when he recalled being “persuaded to enlist” in the U.S. Army “under the influence of liquor.” Becoming a member of the 43^rd New York Infantry Regiment, Kahn said his “duty was that of a soldier and [he] carried a musket.”