Johnson City native Jonathan Billheimer of Appalachian State University’s history department has found that what began as scholarly research into the royal family of Afghanistan is taking an unexpected turn since the events of Sept. 11.
Billheimer became interested in Afghanistan while staying with an Afghan family in Switzerland. After a year and a half of research and correspondence, he was invited to meet with the exiled king’s family and closest advisers last March for interviews and a presentation before the king, Mohammed Zaher Shaw.
Last spring, few people were aware of the existence of an Afghan royal family, or their residence in exile. Recent events have brought the exiles, and Billheimer’s expertise, into the spotlight.
In Rome, Billheimer was invited to the home of General Abdul Wali, the king’s former military commander, who granted a two-hour interview. The New York Times featured Wali in an interview days ago, and he has appeared on CNN coverage.
Two days after meeting Wali, Billheimer was summoned to the Excelsior Hotel to speak to the king’s youngest son, Prince Mir Wais Zaher, for several hours of conversation and making arrangements for a brief presentation before the king.
Billheimer returned to the U.S. with notes for a scholarly article and photographs of himself with many of the principal figures he interviewed, in addition to personal photos of the king contributed by the royal family. He also gained an invitation to return to Rome for further contact, a visit he hopes to accomplish early next year.
In recent days, Billheimer has found what he thought would be an academic story becoming something of greater magnitude. His familiarity with the Afghan royal family has brought contacts from as far away as Paris, with a call from a French journalist with the television show Seven to Eight (a French equivalent of 60 Minutes). What began as a scholarly article may now become a book.
Billheimer is a graduate of University High School, with an undergraduate degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and a master’s degree in history from ETSU.

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