Amanullah loyalism

Last updated
Afghanistan's flag c. 1928 (one of several variants) under King Amanullah Flag of Afghanistan (1928-1929) (variant).svg
Afghanistan's flag c. 1928 (one of several variants) under King Amanullah

Amanullah loyalism was a series of early 20th century movements in the Kingdom of Afghanistan to restore Amanullah Khan as king of Afghanistan after he was deposed in January 1929 during the Afghan Civil War. Loyalists were sometimes referred to as Amanite. [1] Loyalists tried to achieve this in various ways, including armed rebellions, political parties, colluding with foreign powers and assassinations. These movements petered out by the late 1940s. Amanullah died in exile in 1960 in Zürich, Switzerland, without ever regaining control, except a brief period of control in southern Afghanistan in the 1929 Afghan Civil War.

Contents

Rebellions

1929 Afghan Civil War

In March 1929, during the 1929 Afghan Civil War, Amanullah assembled an army in Kandahar made up of Durrani, Khattak, Ghilzai and Hazara fighters. [2] However, his attempt to march on Kabul was unsuccessful, and he retreated to Qalat, where he fell under a Saqqawist siege on 19 May. [3] On 23 May, Qalat fell to the Saqqawists and Amanullah fled to the British Raj. [3]

Kuhistan rebellion

The Kuhistan rebellion was a rebellion in modern-day Kohistan District, Kapisa which took place in 1930 in the Kingdom of Afghanistan. It began in February 1930, when rebels seeking to restore Amanullah Khan as King of Afghanistan broke out in open rebellion against Mohammed Nadir Shah. After killing many, the rebellion was crushed in mid-April 1930. [4]

Shinwari rebellion

The Shinwari rebellion [5] was a rebellion by the Shinwari that took place in February [5] [6] or May [7] [8] 1930 in the Kingdom of Afghanistan. The Shinwari sought to depose Mohammed Nadir Shah and restore Amanullah Khan as king of Afghanistan. [7] [6] Due to lack of support by Shinwari elders (who had been bribed by Nadir [7] ), the rebellion was promptly suppressed. [6]

The Shinwari's support for Amanullah in 1930 apparently contradicted their earlier revolt against Amanullah in 1928. During this rebellion, the Shinwari claimed that the earlier revolt was "not so much anti-Amanullah as against the local tax-collectors at Jelalabad". [8]

Crazy Fakir's rebellion

Towards the end of February 1933, a "Crazy Fakir" appeared in the Khost district in the south of Afghanistan, proclaiming that the ex-king Amanullah Khan would soon arrive. At his instigation a number of tribesmen took arms with the intention of marching on Kabul, and they received considerable reinforcements from the Wazir and Mahsud tribes across the Indian border. They met the government troops which were sent south to oppose them in the neighbourhood of Matun, and some sharp fighting took place at the end of February and the beginning of March. The tribesmen from across the border then began to withdraw at the bidding of some of their elders who were sent by the British authorities to recall them, and the uprising soon came to an end. Later in the year one of the ringleaders, Tor Malang, was executed with some of his associates, but the "Crazy Fakir", who fled abroad, was allowed to return with the assurance of a free pardon, on account of his advanced age. [9]

Ghilzai rebellion

The Ghilzai rebellion was an uprising in the Kingdom of Afghanistan by the Ghilzai tribe in 1938. Its causes laid in a desire to reinstate Amanullah Khan as king of Afghanistan. [10] A relative of Amanullah, Said al-Kailani, also known as the Shami Pir marched on Kabul with an unknown amount of Ghilzai warriors. [10] There are 2 accounts as to how the rebellion ended - according to British records, the rebellion was defeated in the summer of 1938 by the Afghan army using British-supplied rifles. [11] According to Harvey Smith, the rebellion ended after the British bought off Shami Pir following frantic appeals by the Afghan government. [10] In either case, this rebellion prompted the Prime Minister, Mohammad Hashim Khan, to increase subsidies for Pashtun tribes near the Durand line. [10]

Mazrak's revolt

In February 1944, Mazrak Zadran, an Amanullah loyalist, [12] led an ambush against government troops in the Southern province, [13] after which he was beaten back and forced to retreat into the hills. [14] He continued to fight the Afghan government for the following years. In late 1944, he invaded the British Raj, where he was joined by a Sultan Ahmed, a rebel chieftain from Balochistan. [15] They were later joined by another rebel leader nicknamed Pak. [16]

However, Mazrak's fortunes were not to last. He was evicted from British territory due to British bombardment. [17] In October 1945, most Safi surrendered, [18] followed by the surrender of Sultan Ahmad in November. [19] Nonetheless, Mazrak and his brother Sher Muhd Khan continued to fight, [20] refusing to surrender until 11 January 1947. [21]

Political parties

Anti-Yahya Khel Party

The Anti-Yahya Khel Party (Hizb-i-Zid-Yahya Khel) was a small loyalist political party which was briefly active in 1933. [22] Members of the movement opposed the Musahiban dynasty for political reasons or out of personal spite. [22] In this case, Yahya Khel refers to an alternative name for the Musahiban.

Collusion with foreign powers

World War II

During World War II, some western press reported that Amanullah was working as an agent for Nazi Germany in Berlin. [23] It is believed that, he was involved in plans to regain his throne with Axis help, [24] despite Afghanistan's neutrality. However following the Axis loss in Stalingrad in 1943, the plans were given less importance and eventually never executed. [25]

Assassinations

Assassination of Mohammed Nadir Shah

In November 1933, Mohammed Nadir Shah was assassinated by Abdul Khaliq Hazara, a supporter of Amanullah. [26]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">European influence in Afghanistan</span> Overview of the influence of European colonial powers in Afghanistan

European influence in Afghanistan has been present in the country since the Victorian era, when the competing imperial powers of Britain and Russia contested for control over Afghanistan as part of the Great Game.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Afghan Civil War (1928–1929)</span> Military conflict in Afghanistan from 1928 to 1929

The Afghan Civil War was fought from 14 November 1928 to 13 October 1929. Rebelling, and subsequently governing Saqqawist (Saqāwīhā) forces under Habibullāh Kalakāni fought against various opposing tribes and rival monarchs in the Kingdom of Afghanistan, among whom Mohammed Nādir Khān eventually achieved a preponderant role. Despite early successes, such as the capture of Kabul and defeat of Amanullah Khan on 17 January 1929 or the capture of Kandahar on 3 June, the Saqqawists were eventually deposed by anti-Saqqawist forces led by Nadir on 13 October 1929, leading to Nadir's ascension as King of Afghanistan, who ruled until his assassination on 3 November 1933.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Amanullah Khan</span> Emir then King of Afghanistan from 1919 to 1929

Ghazi Amanullah Khan was the sovereign of Afghanistan from 1919, first as Emir and after 1926 as King, until his abdication in 1929. After the end of the Third Anglo-Afghan War in August 1919, Afghanistan was able to relinquish its protected state status to proclaim independence and pursue an independent foreign policy free from the influence of the United Kingdom.

Said Akbar Babrak was an Afghan militant who assassinated the first Pakistani prime minister Liaquat Ali Khan in the city of Rawalpindi on 16 October 1951. Khan, who had become the country's prime minister immediately after the partition of India in 1947, was addressing a crowd of more than 100,000 people at Rawalpindi's Company Bagh when Babrak approached him and shot him twice in the chest; Khan later succumbed to his injuries at a local hospital. As Babrak was shot dead by police officers at the scene shortly after the shooting, his motives for the assassination remain unclear. An ethnic Pashtun, he had previously taken part in the Afghan tribal revolts of 1944–1947, fighting against the governments of both Afghanistan and British India.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Habibullāh Kalakāni</span> Just ruler of Afghanistan in 1929

Habibullah Kalakani, derided by Pashtun as "Bacha-ye Saqao" was the ruler of Afghanistan from 17 January to 13 October 1929, and as well as a leader of the Saqqawists. During the Afghan Civil War, he captured vast swathes of Afghanistan and ruled Kabul during what is known in Afghan historiography as the "Saqqawist period". He was an ethnic Tajik. No country recognized Kalakani as ruler of Afghanistan.

The following lists events that happened during 1929 in Afghanistan. The Afghan Civil War continued from the previous year.

The Kabul Airlift was an air evacuation of British and a number of European diplomatic staff and their families conducted by the Royal Air Force from Kabul between 23 December 1928 and 25 February 1929, the first large-scale air evacuation, with a total of 586 people of eleven different nationalities being rescued and taken to India. The evacuation was conducted after forces of a bandit, Habibullah Kalakani, attacked Kabul in opposition to the Afghan king, Amanullah, leading to British fears that its legation would be isolated and cut off.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mohammad Nadir Shah</span> King of Afghanistan from 1929 to 1933

Mohammad Nadir Shah was King of Afghanistan from 15 October 1929 until his assassination in November 1933. Previously, he served as Minister of War, Afghan Ambassador to France, and as a general in the Royal Afghan Army. He and his son Mohammad Zahir Shah, who succeeded him, are part of the Musahiban.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Khost rebellion (1924–1925)</span>

The Khost rebellion, also known as the 1924 Mangal uprising, the Khost revolt or the Mangal Revolt was an uprising against the Westernization and modernizing reforms of Afghanistan’s king, Amanullah Khan. The uprising was launched in Southern Province, Afghanistan, and lasted from March 1924 to January 1925. It was fought by the Mangal Pashtun tribe, later joined by the Sulaiman Khel, Ali Khel, Jaji, Jadran and Ahmadzai tribes. After causing the death of over 14,000 Afghans, the revolt was finally quelled in January 1925.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Afghanistan–United Kingdom relations</span> Bilateral relations

Bilateral relations between Afghanistan and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland span a long and eventful history, dating back to the United Kingdom's Company rule in India, the British-Russian rivalry in Central Asia, and the border between modern Afghanistan and British India. There has been an Afghan embassy in London since 1922 though there was no accredited Afghan ambassador from 1981 to 2001.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ali Ahmad Khan</span> Amir

Amir Ali Ahmad Khan, Shaghasi was an Afghan king from the Shaghasi family of the Barakzai tribe who was declared king of Afghanistan twice in 1929. He was first declared amir of Afghanistan by an influential cleric, Naqib Sahib on 20 January 1929, in eastern Afghanistan, but was defeated by Kalakani at Jagdalak on 19 February 1929. He was also declared as the amir of Afghanistan for the second time on 23 June 1929 in Kandahar, Afghanistan, by another highly influential Mufti Abd. Wasi Kandahari, but was defeated and captured by Kalakani on 3 July 1929.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Saqqawists</span> 1920s and 1930s armed group in Afghanistan

The Saqqawists were an armed group in Afghanistan who were active from 1924 to 1931. They were led by Habibullāh Kalakāni, and in January 1929, they managed to take control of the capital of the Kingdom of Afghanistan, Kabul, reestablishing the Emirate of Afghanistan. Following military reversals in the Afghan Civil War (1928–1929), they were forced out of the capital in October 1929. Saqqawist activity ended in 1931.

Jehandad Khan was an Afghan rebel emir who ruled only in Khost. He was born as a member of the Ghilzai tribe, and spent most of his life as a chieftain. After start of the Khost rebellion on 2 May 1912, he briefly laid claim to the Afghan throne in opposition to Habibullah Khan, but an offensive by Muhammad Nadir Khan forced him to flee to the British Raj by the end of the same month. When Jehandad arrived in India, he was given the option of immediately returning to Afghanistan or staying in India, and he chose the latter. He then appealed to the British authorities for an intervention in Afghanistan to aid the rebellion, but was unsuccessful. Later in 1912, Jehandad managed to return to Afghanistan, where he was apprehended, put on trial, sentenced to death and finally executed by a firing squad in 1914.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Afghan tribal revolts of 1944–1947</span> Tribal conflict in Afghanistan

The Afghan tribal revolts of 1944–1947 or the Khost disturbances were a series of tribal revolts in the Kingdom of Afghanistan by Zadran, Safi and Mangal tribesmen which lasted from February 1944 to January 1947. The causes of the revolts laid in the worsening conditions of farmers, changes in conscription laws, the elimination of the power of Safi tribal leaders, Amanullah loyalism, trading monopolies, government surveillance, taxation, and poverty. The conflict began when government forces clashed with the forces of a tribal leader named Mazrak, who led the Zadran tribe in revolt. The Zadran uprising was followed by additional uprisings by the Safi and Mangal, the former of which elected their own king, Salemai. Faqir Ipi, a tribal leader from Waziristan, also fought for the restoration of former king Amanullah Khan alongside other rebels.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mazrak Zadran</span> Zadran chieftain

Mazrak Khan Zadran was a Zadran chieftain who fought against the Afghan government during the Afghan tribal revolts of 1944–1947 in order to support the restoration of King Amanullah Khan. Some sources render his first name as Mazarak or Zemarak.

Shahswar was an Afghan politician who served as minister in under Salemai, who ruled only in the Eastern Province. Alternative renderings of his name include Shah Sarwar and Shasawar.

Salemai or Salimai was an Afghan rebel king who ruled only in the Eastern Province.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Babrak Khan</span> Zadran chieftain

Babrak Khan was a Zadran chieftain who was the father of Said Akbar Babrak and of Mazrak Zadran.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Abdur Rahim Khan (governor)</span>

Abdur Rahim Khan was an Afghan governor of Herat. He was born in 1886 in Kohistan. He served as the commander of Habibullah Khan's bodyguard from age 16. In 1921 he was promoted to brigadier. During the Afghan Civil War of 1928-1929 he joined the Saqqawists and was sent to Mazar-i-Sharif to organize a revolution. In September 1932 he was appointed by Mohammed Nadir Shah as governor of Herat. Also in 1932, he prevented a mutiny in Herat. He was appointed head of Perso-Afghan Boundary Commission in September 1934. In January 1946, he was arrested for suspected complicity with the Safi during the Afghan tribal revolts of 1944–1947, together with his son-in-law Khalilullah Khalili. He was released in 1948.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Muhammad Umar Babrakzai</span> Afghan tribal chief

Muhammad Umar Babrakzai is the tribal chief of the Zadran tribe and Afghan jurist.

References

  1. ↑ The Assassination of Mr. Liaquat Ali Khan: Report of the Commission of Enquiry. Manager of Publications. 1952. p. 11.
  2. ↑ Muḥammad, Fayz̤; McChesney, R. D. (1999). Kabul under siege: Fayz Muhammad's account of the 1929 Uprising. Markus Wiener Publishers. p. 69. ISBN   978-1-55876-154-4.
  3. 1 2 Muḥammad, Fayz̤; McChesney, R. D. (1999). Kabul under siege: Fayz Muhammad's account of the 1929 Uprising. Markus Wiener Publishers. pp. 79, 80. ISBN   978-1-55876-154-4.
  4. ↑ Dixon, Jeffrey; Dixon, Jeffrey S.; Sarkees, Meredith Reid (2015-10-22). A Guide to Intra-state Wars. SAGE. p. 488. ISBN   9780872897755.
  5. 1 2 Adamec, Ludwig W. (2012). Historical Dictionary of Afghanistan. Scarecrow Press. p. 58. ISBN   9780810878150.
  6. 1 2 3 Gladstone, Soloman W. E. (2018-03-02). A History of Afghanistan Vol II. Creative Media Partners, LLC. p. 322. ISBN   9781378970881.
  7. 1 2 3 Emadi, Hafizullah (2005). Culture and Customs of Afghanistan. Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 35. ISBN   9780313330896.
  8. 1 2 Misdaq, Nabi (2006-04-18). Afghanistan: Political Frailty and External Interference. Routledge. p. 34. ISBN   9781135990176.
  9. ↑ M, Epstein (1934). The Annual Register 1933 Vol 175. p. 258.
  10. 1 2 3 4 Smith, Harvey Henry (1969). Area Handbook for Afghanistan. U.S. Government Printing Office. pp. 55, 56.
  11. ↑ "Coll 7/37 'Afghanistan: sale of 25,000 1914 pattern rifles from War Office stocks and 7 million rounds of ammunition from Government of India stocks; negotiations with Afghan Government' [206v] (412/1201)". Qatar Digital Library. 2016-09-28. Retrieved 2019-12-26.
  12. ↑ Khan, Sarfraz; Ul Amin, Noor (Winter 2014). "THE CONTRIBUTION OF INDIAN MUSLIMS IN DEVELOPING PRINT MEDIA AND SPREADING ENLIGHTENMENT IN AFGHANISTAN(1870-1930)" (PDF). Central Asia Journal. p. 130.
  13. ↑ "REPORT FOR THE MONTH OF APRIL 1944 FOR THE DOMINIONS, INDIA, BURMA, AND THE COLONIES AND MANDATED TERRITORIES". Secretary of State for Dominion Affairs. 25 May 1944. p.  6. Archived from the original on 14 August 2019.
  14. ↑ "REPORT FOR THE MONTH OF APRIL 1944 FOR THE DOMINIONS, INDIA, BURMA, AND THE COLONIES AND MANDATED TERRITORIES". Secretary of State for Dominion Affairs. 25 May 1944. p.  6. Archived from the original on 14 August 2019.
  15. ↑ Yapp, Malcolm (2001). British documents on foreign affairs: reports and papers from the foreign office confidential print. From 1946 through 1950. Near and Middle-East 1947. Afghanistan, Persia and Turkey, january 1947-december 1947. University Publications of America. p. 34. ISBN   978-1-55655-765-1.
  16. ↑ Yapp, Malcolm; Preston, Paul; Patridge, Michael; Office, Great Britain Foreign (1999). British documents on foreign affairs: reports and papers from the Foreign Office confidential print. From 1946 through 1950. Near and Middle-East. University Publications of America. p. 178. ISBN   978-1-55655-765-1.
  17. ↑ Preston, Paul; Partridge, Michael; Yapp, Malcolm (1997). British Documents on Foreign Affairs--reports and Papers from the Foreign Office Confidential Print: Eastern affairs, July 1944-March 1945. University Publications of America. p. 348. ISBN   9781556556715.
  18. ↑ Yapp, Malcolm; Preston, Paul; Patridge, Michael; Office, Great Britain Foreign (1999). British documents on foreign affairs: reports and papers from the Foreign Office confidential print. From 1946 through 1950. Near and Middle-East. University Publications of America. p. 178. ISBN   978-1-55655-765-1.
  19. ↑ Yapp, Malcolm (2001). British documents on foreign affairs: reports and papers from the foreign office confidential print. From 1946 through 1950. Near and Middle-East 1947. Afghanistan, Persia and Turkey, january 1947-december 1947. University Publications of America. p. 34. ISBN   978-1-55655-765-1.
  20. ↑ Yapp, Malcolm (2001). British documents on foreign affairs: reports and papers from the foreign office confidential print. From 1946 through 1950. Near and Middle-East 1947. Afghanistan, Persia and Turkey, january 1947-december 1947. University Publications of America. p. 109. ISBN   978-1-55655-765-1.
  21. ↑ Malik, Murtaza (2002-01-01). The Curtain Rises: Uncovered Conspiracies in Pakistan, Afghanistan. Royal Book Company. p. 38. ISBN   978-969-407-271-5. Eventually, he and his family surrendered to the Political Agent North Waziristan on January 11, 1947.
  22. 1 2 Yunas, S. Fida (1997). Political parties, groups, associations and movements, the pre 1964 period. p. 24.
  23. ↑ "Ex-King Amanullah Now Works for Hitler". Argus. 24 May 1941.
  24. ↑ "Afghan King, in Rome Exile, Tightens Belt". The New York Times. 29 April 1979.
  25. ↑ Crews, Robert D. (14 September 2015). Afghan Modern: The History of a Global Nation. ISBN   9780674286092.
  26. ↑ Gritzner, Jeffrey A.; Shroder, John F. (2009). Afghanistan, Second Edition. Infobase Publishing. p. 41. ISBN   978-1-4381-0480-5.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.