Anglo-Afghan Wars

Last updated: May 1, 2023

The Second Anglo-Afghan War was fought between the British Empire and the Emirate of Afghanistan from 1878 to 1880. The war was triggered by the British desire to maintain their influence over Afghanistan, which had become increasingly close to Russia. The British also sought to establish a permanent British resident in Kabul, which was resisted by the Afghan Emir Sher Ali Khan.

The war began with a British invasion of Afghanistan, and the British quickly captured Kabul and established a new government led by Abdur Rahman Khan, who was more friendly to British interests. British, pursuing their policy of divide and rule, wanted to divide Pashtuns just like they did to Bengal and Punjab later on. So they created a Durand Line cutting through the Hindukush mts. to which the friendly Emir Abdur Rahman Khan signed in 1893.

[Note : The Second Anglo-Afghan War is significant because it established a pattern of foreign intervention in Afghanistan that has continued to the present day. The war demonstrated the difficulty of maintaining control over Afghanistan, and the limits of military power in achieving political objectives in the region. In the years following the Second Anglo-Afghan War, Afghanistan became a pawn in the "Great Game" between the British and Russian empires, which contributed to the country's instability and political fragmentation. In the decades that followed, Afghanistan experienced multiple coups, civil wars, and foreign interventions, including the Soviet invasion in 1979 and the US-led invasion in 2001.]

In 1901, Lord Curzon adopted a Frontier policy to shield India from Afghan volatility. He made NWFP a separate province and treated it as a buffer between mainland India/Punjab and Afganistan. (Even today it acts like a buffer!)

In 1919, the Afghan Emir Amanullah Khan protested against both the Treaty of Gandamak and the Durand line, and getting help from Red Soviet and Indian nationalists, caused the 3rd Anglo-Afghan War. He wished to include Peshawar and other Pashtun areas west of Indus into Afghanistan. The fight was intense but local rebellions in Waziristan and Khurram against Bitish caused the British to get into peace deal with the Emir. Ultimately Gandamak treaty was dissolved leading to independent foreign policy of Afghanistan but Durand line stayed unchanged.

In the coming years Amanullah began modernising Afghanistan along western lines like Ataturk of Turkey, dissolving Emirate and becoming the first king of Afghanistan in 1925. The conservative Afghans revolted in the Khost rebellion ultimately leading to a civil war which led to the ousting of Amanullah in 1929 and an Afghan instability that continues till date.

References : https://www.thehighlandersmuseum.com/?p=30376 https://www.nam.ac.uk/explore/third-afghan-war-and-revolt-waziristan