Afghanistan: history from ancient times to our days

Afghanistan is a country that has been the sphere of interests of the most important players in world politics for more than 200 years. Its name is firmly entrenched in the list of the most dangerous hot spots of our planet. However, only a little is known about the history of Afghanistan, briefly described in this article. In addition, its people for several millennia created a rich culture, close to the Persian, which is currently in decline due to the constant political and economic instability, as well as the terrorist activities of radical Islamist organizations.

History of Afghanistan since ancient times

The first people appeared on the territory of this country about 5000 years ago. Most researchers even believe that it was there that the first settled rural communities appeared in the world. In addition, it is assumed that Zoroastrianism appeared on the modern territory of Afghanistan in the interval between 1800 and 800 BC, and the founder of religion, one of the oldest, spent the last years of his life and died in Balkh.

In the middle of the 6th century BC. E. The Achaemenids included these lands in the Persian Empire. However, after 330 BC. E. She was captured by the army of Alexander the Great. As part of his state, Afghanistan was until the collapse, and then became part of the Seleucid Empire, which planted Buddhism there. Then the region fell under the rule of the Greco-Bactrian kingdom. By the end of the 2nd century AD. E. Indo-Greeks defeated the Scythians, and in the first century AD. E. Afghanistan conquered the Parthian Empire.

Middle Ages

In the 6th century, the country's territory became part of the Sassanid Empire, and later the Samanids. Then Afghanistan, the history of which almost did not know the long peace periods, survived the Arab invasion, which ended at the end of the 8th century.

In the following 9 centuries, the country often passed from hand to hand, until in the 14th century it became part of the Timurid empire. During this period Herat became the second center of this state. Two centuries later, the last representative of the Timurid dynasty, Babur, founded an empire centered in Kabul and began to hike to India. Soon he moved to India, and the territory of Afghanistan became part of the Safavid country.

The decline of this state in the 18th century led to the formation of feudal khanates and an uprising against Iran. In the same period, the Guilian principality was formed with its capital in the city of Kandahar, which was defeated in 1737 by the Persian army of Nadir Shah.

Durranian Power

Strangely enough, Afghanistan (the history of the country in antiquity you already know) acquired an independent statehood only in 1747, when Ahmad Shah Durrani founded the kingdom with its capital in Kandahar. Under his son Timur-shah, Kabul was proclaimed the main city of the state, and by the beginning of the 19th century Shah Mahmud began to rule the country.

British colonial expansion

The history of Afghanistan from ancient times to the beginning of the 19th century is fraught with mysteries, since many of its pages are relatively poorly researched. The same can not be said about the period after the invasion of its territory by Anglo-Indian troops. The "new masters" of Afghanistan loved order and carefully documented all the events. In particular, from the surviving documents, as well as from the letters of British soldiers and officers, their families know the details of not only the battles and uprisings of the local population, but also of its way of life and traditions.

So, the history of the war in Afghanistan, led by Anglo-Indian troops, began in 1838. A few months later, a 12,000-strong group of British armed forces stormed Kandahar, and later Kabul. The Emir avoided a collision with a superior enemy and retired to the mountains. However, his representatives constantly visited the capital, and in 1841 in Kabul began unrest among the local population. British command decided to retreat to India, but on the way the army was killed by Afghan guerrillas. In response, a cruel punitive raid followed.

The First Anglo-Afghan War

The reason for the outbreak of hostilities on the part of the British Empire was the sending of Lieutenant Vitkevich to Kabul by the Russian government in 1837. There he was supposed to be a resident when Dost Mohammed was seized power in the Afghan capital. The latter at that time had already fought for more than 10 years with his closest relative Shuja-shah, supported by London. The British regarded the mission of Vitkevich as Russia's intention to strengthen itself in Afghanistan in order to penetrate into India in the future.

In January 1839, the British army, numbering 12,000 troops and 38,000 servants, for 30,000 camels, crossed the Bolansky Pass. On April 25, without a fight, she managed to take Kandahar and launch an offensive on Kabul.

Serious resistance to the British had only the fortress of Ghazni, but she was forced to surrender. The road to Kabul was opened, and the city fell on August 7, 1839. On the throne, with the support of the British, Emir Shuja Shah reigned, and Emir Dost Muhammad fled to the mountains with a small group of fighters.

The rule of the British protege did not last long, as local feudal lords organized unrest and began to attack the invaders in all areas of the country.

At the beginning of 1842, the British and the Indians agreed with them on the opening of a corridor through which one could retreat to India. However, in Jalalabad, Afghans attacked the British, and out of 16,000 fighters only one person was saved.

In response, retaliatory expeditions followed, and after the suppression of the uprising, the British entered into negotiations with Dost-Muhammad, persuading him to give up rapprochement with Russia. Later, a peace treaty was signed.

Second Anglo-Afghan War

The situation in the country remained relatively stable until the Russian-Turkish war began in 1877. Afghanistan, whose history is a long list of armed conflicts, once again found itself between two fires. The point is that when London expressed dissatisfaction with the success of the Russian troops moving quickly towards Istanbul, Petersburg decided to play the Indian card. To this end, a mission was sent to Kabul, which was honored by the emir Sher-Ali Khan. On the advice of Russian diplomats, the latter refused to let the British embassy into the country. This was the reason for the deployment of British troops to Afghanistan. They occupied the capital and forced the new emir Yakub Khan to sign an agreement according to which his state had no right to conduct foreign policy without the mediation of the British government.

In 1880 Abdurrahman Khan became emir. He made an attempt to enter into an armed conflict with the Russian troops in Turkestan, but was defeated in March 1885 in the Kushka area. As a result, London and St. Petersburg jointly identified the borders in which Afghanistan (the history in the 20th century is presented below) exists to this day.

Independence from the British Empire

In 1919, as a result of the murder of Emir Khabibullah Khan and the coup d'état, Amanullah Khan appeared on the throne, proclaiming the country's independence from Great Britain and declaring jihad against it. They were mobilized, and a 12,000-strong army of regular fighters moved to India, supported by a 100,000-strong army of partisan nomads.

The history of the war in Afghanistan, unleashed by the British to preserve their influence, also mentions the first massive air raid in the history of this country. The attack of the British Air Force was subjected to Kabul. As a result of the panic that arose among the residents of the capital, and after several lost battles, Amanullah Khan asked for peace.

In August 1919, a peace treaty was signed. According to this document, the country received the right to foreign relations, but was deprived of an annual British subsidy of 60,000 pounds sterling, which until 1919 was about half of the budget revenues of Afghanistan.

Kingdom

In 1929, Amanullah Khan, who after his trip to Europe and the USSR was about to begin radical reforms, was overthrown by the Habibullah Calakani revolt, nicknamed Bachai Sakao (Son of a water-bearer). Attempt to return to the throne of the former emir, supported by Soviet troops, was not successful. This was used by the British, who overthrew Bachai Sakao and put Nadir Khan on the throne. With its accession, Afghan modern history began. The monarchy in Afghanistan was called royal, and the emirate was abolished.

In 1933, Nadir Khan, killed by a cadet during the parade in Kabul, was replaced on the throne by his son Zahir Shah. He was a reformer and was considered one of the most enlightened and progressive Asian monarchs of his time.

In 1964, Zahir Shah issued a new constitution that was aimed at democratizing Afghanistan and eliminating discrimination against women. As a result, the radically inclined clergy began to express discontent and actively deal with the destabilization of the situation in the country.

Daud's Dictatorship

According to the history of Afghanistan, the 20th century (the period from 1933 to 1973) was truly golden for the state, as industry appeared in the country, good roads, the education system was modernized, the university was founded, hospitals were built, etc. However, in the 40th year after His accession to the throne of Zahir Shah was overthrown by his cousin, Prince Mohammed Daoud, who proclaimed Afghanistan as a republic. After that, the country became an arena of confrontation between various groups that expressed the interests of the Pashtuns, Uzbeks, Tajiks and Hazaras, as well as other ethnic communities. In addition, radical Islamic forces joined the confrontation. In 1975, they raised an uprising that swept the provinces of Paktia, Badakhshan and Nangarhar. However, the government of the dictator Daud struggled, but managed to suppress it.

At the same time, representatives of the People's Democratic Party of the country (PDPA) aspired to destabilize the situation. At the same time, it had considerable support in Afghanistan's Armed Forces.

DRA

The history of Afghanistan (20th century) experienced another turning point in 1978. April 27 there was a revolution. After the coming to power of Nur Mohammad Taraki, Mohammed Daoud and all members of his family were killed. Hafizullah Amin and Babrak Karmal were the top leaders.

Background to the introduction into Afghanistan of a limited contingent of Soviet troops

The policy of the new authorities to eliminate the backwardness of the country met the resistance of the Islamists, which turned into a civil war. Unable to cope with the situation on its own, the Afghan government repeatedly appealed to the Politburo of the CPSU Central Committee asking for military assistance. However, the Soviet authorities abstained, as they foresaw the negative consequences of such a step. At the same time, they strengthened the protection of the state border in the Afghan sector and increased the number of military advisers in the neighboring country. At the same time, the KGB constantly received intelligence about the fact that the US is actively financing anti-government forces.

Murder of Taraki

The history of Afghanistan (20th century) contains information about several political murders in order to seize power. One such incident took place in September 1979, when the leader of the PDPA, Taraki, was arrested and executed by order of Khafizullah Amin. Under the new dictator, terror developed in the country, which also affected the army, in which riots and desertions became a common phenomenon. Since the VCs were the main support of the PDPA, the Soviet government saw in the existing situation the threat of its overthrow and the coming to power of forces hostile to the USSR. In addition, it became known that Amin has secret contacts with American emissaries.

As a result, it was decided to develop an operation to overthrow him and replace him with a leader more loyal to the USSR. The main candidate for this role was Babrak Karmal.

History of the war in Afghanistan (1979-1989): training

Preparations for a coup in a neighboring state began in December 1979, when a specially created "Muslim Battalion" was transferred to Afghanistan. The history of this division is still a mystery for many. It is known only that he was staffed by GRU officers from the Central Asian republics, who knew the traditions of the peoples living in Afghanistan, their language and way of life.

The decision on the introduction of troops was made in mid-December 1979 at a meeting of the Politburo. He was not supported only by A. Kosygin, because of which he had a serious conflict with Brezhnev.

The operation began on December 25, 1979, when the 781st separate reconnaissance battalion 108 SSD entered the territory of the DRA. Then began the transfer of other Soviet military formations. By the middle of the day on December 27, they completely controlled Kabul, and in the evening they began storming the palace of Amin. It lasted only 40 minutes, and after its completion it became known that most of those who were there, including the leader of the country, were killed.

A brief chronology of events from 1980 to 1989

Real stories about the war in Afghanistan are stories about the heroism of soldiers and officers who did not always understand for whom and what they are forced to risk their lives. Briefly the chronology is as follows:

• March 1980 - April 1985. Conducting military operations, including large-scale, as well as work on reorganizing the Armed Forces of the DRA.
• April 1985 - January 1987. The support of Afghan troops by the air force, sapper units and artillery, as well as an active struggle to stop the supply of arms from abroad.
• January 1987 - February 1989. Participation in activities to implement the policy of national reconciliation.

By the beginning of 1988 it became clear that finding a Soviet armed contingent on the territory of the DRA was inexpedient. It can be considered that the history of the withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan began on February 8, 1988, when the Politburo meeting raised the question of choosing a date for conducting this operation.

She became on May 15. However, the last unit of the SA left Kabul on 4 February 1989, and the withdrawal of troops on 15 February was completed by the crossing of the state border by Lieutenant-General B. Gromov.

In the 90s

Afghanistan, the history and prospects for peaceful development of which in the future are rather vague, in the last decade of the 20th century plunged into the abyss of a brutal civil war.

At the end of February 1989 in Peshawar, the Afghan opposition elected the head of the "Interim Government of the Mujahideen", the leader of the "Alliance of Seven" S.Mojaddedi, and began fighting against the pro-Soviet regime.

In April 1992, opposition forces seized Kabul, and the next day its leader, in the presence of foreign diplomats, was proclaimed president of the Islamic State of Afghanistan. The history of the country after this "inaguration" has made a sharp turn towards radicalism. One of the first decrees signed by S.Mojaddedi, declared all the laws that contradicted Islam to have lost power.

In the same year, he transferred power to the Burhanuddin Rabbani group. This decision led to ethnic strife, during which field commanders destroyed each other. Soon, the authority of Rabbani weakened so much that his government ceased to carry out any activity in the country.

At the end of September 1996, the Taliban seized Kabul, seized the ousted President Najibullah and his brother, who were hiding in the UN mission building, and were publicly executed by hanging in one of the squares of the Afghan capital.

A few days later, the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan was proclaimed, announced the establishment of the Provisional Governing Council, consisting of 6 members, headed by Mullah Omar. Having come to power, the Taliban stabilized the situation in the country to some extent. However, they had many opponents.

On October 9, 1996, a meeting took place between one of the main oppositionists, Dostum and Rabbani, in the vicinity of the city of Mazar-i-Sharif. They were joined by Ahmad Shah Massoud and Karim Khalili. As a result, the Supreme Council was established and joint efforts were made for a common struggle with the Taliban. The grouping was called the "Northern Alliance". She managed to form an independent in the north of Afghanistan during 1996-2001. The state.

After the invasion of the international forces

The history of modern Afghanistan has developed after the famous September 11, 2001 terrorist attack. The US used it as an excuse to invade this country, declaring its main goal the overthrow of the Taliban regime that harbored Osama bin Laden. On 7 October, the territory of Afghanistan was subjected to massive air strikes that weakened the Taliban forces. In December, a council of elders of Afghan tribes was convened, which was headed by the future (since 2004) President Hamid Karzai.

At the same time, NATO completed the occupation of Afghanistan, and the Taliban switched to guerrilla warfare. Since that time and to this day in the country, terrorist attacks continue. In addition, it turns every day into a huge plantation for the cultivation of opium poppy. Suffice it to say that, according to the most conservative estimates, about 1 million inhabitants of this country are drug addicts.

At the same time, the unknown stories of Afghanistan, presented without retouching, were shock to Europeans or Americans, including because of the cases of aggression shown by NATO soldiers against civilians. Perhaps this circumstance is due to the fact that the war has already bored everyone. Acknowledgment of these words is the decision of Barack Obama on the withdrawal of troops. However, it has not yet been implemented, and now the Afghans are hoping that the new US president will not change plans, and the country will finally leave the foreign military.

Now you know the ancient and modern history of Afghanistan. Today, this country is going through bad times, and it remains only to hope that peace will finally come to its land.