Sher Ali Khan Barakzai ( – 21 February 1879) was Emir of Afghanistan after the death of his father Dost Mohammad Khan on 9 June 1863, until his overthrow during the Battle of Sheikhabad on 10 May 1866, and was restored to the throne on 8 September 1868, ruling until his death on 21 February 1879. He was one of the sons of Dost Mohammad Khan.
Life
Sher Ali Khan was born to Dost Mohammad Khan, a Barakzai Pashtun and later founder of the Barakzai dynasty, and to Mermən (or Bibi) Khadija Begum, a Sadozai lady from the Popalzai clan. At the time of his father Emir Dost Mohammad Khan’s death, Sher Ali Khan, was recognised as the heir-apparent. The Emir had appointed him to this position after the earlier heirs-designate— Mohammad Akbar Khan, his full-brother, and Ghulam Haidar Khan—had died in 1847 and 1859, respectively. He didn't allow his sons to administer provinces and instead appointed governors loyal to him. He also had a council of 12 members to advise him on matters of state. He created various ministerial offices like Prime Minister (Sadr-i Azam/صدر اعظم), minister of finance, minister of the interior, minister of war, minister of foreign affairs, and minister of the treasury. Formerly Farah had been subject to Herat, but instead he made it a separate province and gave it to his cousin, Sardar Mohammad Afzal (not to be confused with Mohammad Afzal Khan).
During his reign, Sher Ali Khan embarked on a project to modernise his armed forces, standardising uniforms and equipment. After being gifted a battery of mountain guns and several howitzers by the British in 1868, Sher Ali realised the potential of breech-loading artillery and was determined to modernise Afghanistan's arsenal. Whilst his early attempts failed, Sher Ali's craftsmen had soon established new workshops at the Bala Hissar Arsenal and began to produce four to five modern breechloaders each month. Despite his successes in producing relatively modern weapons and equipment, poor discipline and a lack of competent officers meant the new cannons were quickly captured by the British during the Second Anglo-Afghan War. British forces captured more than 250 guns from the Afghans during their campaign.
Final days and death
Sher Ali's rule was hindered by pressure from both the British Empire and the Russian Empire, though he attempted to keep Afghanistan neutral during their conflict. His neutrality resulted in Afghanistan being invaded by the British which started the Second Anglo-Afghan War. This war resulted in a British victory and a devastating loss to Afghanistan as Sher Ali Khan was forced to give away a large amount of territory to British India including the city of Quetta. In 1878, the fragile neutrality fell apart with Sher Ali Khan's resisting of British demands for Afghanistan to accept a permanent envoy in Kabul. The British viewing this as confirmation of Sher Ali Khan's inclination towards Russia, gathered their forces and marched on Kabul. Sher Ali Khan opted to leave Kabul in order to seek political and military aid from the Russian Empire. He died in Mazar-e Sharif trying to reach the Russian border, leaving the throne to his son Mohammad Yaqub Khan.
See also
- Great Game