Khosru
a Persian prince, who flourished in the 6th century of our era and figures brilliantly in poetry and legend. His grandson, also named Khosru, reigned from 590 to 628.
KHOTAN (hō-tän'), called locally ILCHI, a city and district of eastern Turkestan, lying at the N. base of the Kuen-Lun Mountains, and only 6 miles from the desert. The district is rich in gold and jade, manufactures silk, and exports silk stuff, carpets, and jade ware. Pop. about 50,000.
KHYBER PASS (hī'ber), a military road between the Punjab and Afghanismiles between the projecting spurs of two inclosing ranges of hills. The pass is merely the bed of a narrow watercourse. The mountains on either side are in many places perpendicular walls of smooth rock, and can be climbed only in a few places; they vary in height from 1,404 to 3,373 feet. Over the roughest parts of the pass artillery has to be dragged by men. The Khyber Pass has been the key of the adjacent regions in either direction from the days of Alexander the Great. During the Afghan Wars of 1839-1842 it was twice traversed by a British army in spite of an obstinate defense by the natives. The first fighting in the Afghan War of 1878-1880 was in forcing an entrance into this pass. It was stipulated in the treaty of Gandamak (1879) that the Anglo-Indian authorities were in future to have full control of this pass.
KIAU-CHAU (kē-ō-chow'), a town in China, in the province of Shantung, occupied by Germany in 1897, and formally ceded to her on a 99 years' lease by China in 1898. The territory conceded with the town stretches about 160 miles along the coast, and extends inland to an average distance of 20 miles. Pop. (1915) 9,264. In August, 1914, the Japanese Government called on Germany to formally deliver to them this fortified port by Sept. 15, 1914. On Aug. 23, Japan declared war against Germany.
Japanese troops, assisted by a British contingent, attacked the fort on Nov. 7, 1914. The garrison, after a brave resistance, surrendered May 15, 1915. Japan, during the peace negotiations of 1919, solemnly promised to return the territory to China if allowed to control certain privileges and concessions previously held by Germany.