Afghanistan: A History of Oversea Conquerors & Conflict - Essay Sample

Introduction

The country that is currently referred to as Afghanistan has a great account of being governed by oversea vanquishers as well as conflict amid inly factions. The state, located at the gateway between Europe and Asia, was once conquered by Darius I in 550B.C, and Alexander the great in 329B.C. Mahmud of Ghazni was the 11th century and greatest Afghanistan vanquisher, who made an empire from Indian to Iran. Genghis Khan conquered the land during the 13th century, however, it was until the 1700s that the territory got consolidated to the United States. In the 19th century, Britain tried to underjoin Afghanistan in an effort to safeguard its Indian territory from Russia, which resulted in a sequence of British-Afghanistan battles between 1838 and 1921 (News Desk, 2011). This essay will analyze the timeline of Afghanistan based on the themes of the birth of Afghan, the British invasion, independence, and Soviet invasion. From its time of establishment, Afghanistan has been a battlefield for Arab conquerors in an effort to give the country independence and also make the country an Islamic state.

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Afghanistan was born in the 1700s. In 1747, the quondam bodyguard of Nadir Shah the murdered Persian ruler, Ahmad Shah Duran established contemporary Afghanistan and placed its capital at Kandahar. Ahmad Shah further vanquished current Pakistan and some parts of India and Iran. In 1826, Dost Mohammad took the throne in Kabul. However, he was soon pressured by Sikh intruders and the British who were then governing adjacent India, because of his association with Russia and Iran. The British launched the first Anglo-Afghanistan battle in 1838 to put Shuja Shah on power in Kabul and stayed till 1842 when they withdrew via the Khyber Pass. During the terminal year of the battle, a combination of 4,500 troops and above 12,000 followers of British and Raj force were butchered on their way to Jalalabad from Kabul (ABC News, 2009). The second Anglo-Afghan battle happened in 1878 after Dost Mohammad's son Sher Ali, now the ruler to Afghanistan, rejected British representatives from his court. The war ended in 1880 after the British had all their objectives safeguarded.

Afghanistan gained independence in 1919, following the third battle against Britain. Amir Amanullah Khan was more concerned that Afghanistan had been left behind by other countries development-wise, and therefore started a sensitization campaign for socio-economic reformation. In 1926, Amanullah gives a declaration of Afghanistan as a kingdom, instead of an emirate, and announces himself king. He starts launching a sequence of modernization strategies and tries to bound the control of the Loya Jirga, the National Council. Opponents, thwarted by Amir's governance, revolts him in 1928 and by 1929, the monarch surrenders and flees from the kingdom. In 1933, Zahir Shah takes the throne and the kingdom gains stability for the next four decades. The British withdrawal from India in 1947 creates the Hindu state of India and the Pakistan Islamic state. Mohammed Daoud Khan, in 1953, turns to be prime minister and aspires to get economic and military support from the communist country. Daoud further introduces various social amendments such as permitting females more public presence. As part of Daoud's reforms, in 1957 females were allowed entry to universities and the job market. In 1973, Daoud overthrows Zahir, declares the state a republic and becomes the president. Daoud proposes the formation of a new constitution which gives women more rights and jobs (News Desk, 2011). A communist coup took place in 1978, which resulted in the death of Khan and Mohammad Taraki ascending to power. Taraki makes Babrak Karmal deputy prime minister and they announce independence from the influence of Soviets, proclaiming their governance to be based on Islamic nuggets, Afghanistan jingoism, and socioeconomic fairness. Taraki signs a friendship agreement with USSR, but the rivalrous amid Taraki and Hafizullah Amin results in fights between their groups. Mujahideen are created to battle the government.

The Soviet intrudes in Afghanistan in 1979 to help the weak communist government resulting in the Soviet war. The Soviets intervened after a power battle between Amin and Taraki led to the death of Taraki on 14th September. Amin, including many of his followers, were executed and Karmal became the prime minister. Ubiquitous opposition against Karmal and USSR results in a chaotic demonstration. By 1980, Mujahideen rebels unite against the Soviet invasion and the Soviet-supported Afghan military. By 1985, Mujahideen intensify their resistance and the following year they receive stinger missiles from the US enabling them to shoot down Soviet planes. This makes the Soviets retreat in 1989 and by 1992, Mujahideen had captured Kabul the capital (ABC News, 2009).

From the time Afghan was founded, Arab conquerors made it a battlefield in attempts to give it independence and make it an Islamic state. The inly conflicts in Afghan led to the death of many people. The British invasion, for example, led to the death of more than 16500 people as they were on their way from Kabul. The most important events among the ones I have described are the formation of the Afghanistan state and its installation as a republic since this led to the country gaining stability and women's rights being enacted. In choosing the events to tackle, I analyzed the impact these events had on Afghanistan's establishment as a country. The type of evidence to support my themes was chosen depended on how they helped in building that theme.

References

ABC News. (2009). Timeline: Afghanistan's Turbulent History. https://mobile.abc.net.au/news/2009-06-02/timeline-afghanistans-turbulent-history/1702156

News Desk. (2011). A Historical Timeline of Afghanistan. https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/asia-jan-june11-timeline-afghanistan