Habibullah Khan

This article is about the Amir of Afghanistan. For the pre-1947 Indian freedom fighter and post-1947 Pakistani political leader, see Amir Habibullah Khan Saadi.
Habibu'llah Khan (King Habibullah I)
Amir of Afghanistan
Emir of Afghanistan
Reign October 1, 1901 – February 20, 1919
Predecessor Abdur Rahman Khan
Successor Nasrullah Khan
Born June 3, 1872
Samarkand, Uzbekistan[1][2]
Died February 20, 1919(1919-02-20) (aged 46)
Kalagosh, Afghanistan
Father Abdur Rahman Khan
Mother Asal Begum, Uzbek consort

Habibullah Khan (June 3, 1872 – February 20, 1919) was the Emir of Afghanistan from 1901 until 1919. He was born in Samarkand,Uzbekistan, the eldest son of the Emir Abdur Rahman Khan, whom he succeeded by right of primogeniture in October 1901.[1][2]

Habibullah was a relatively secular, reform-minded ruler who attempted to modernize his country. During his reign he worked to bring modern medicine and other technology to Afghanistan. In 1903, Habibullah founded the Habibia school as well as a military academy. He also worked to put in place progressive reforms in his country. He instituted various legal reforms and repealed many of the harshest criminal penalties. But one of his chief advisors Abdul Lateef was sentenced to death in 1903 for apostasy. He was stoned to death in Kabul. Other reforms included the dismantling of the repressive internal intelligence organization that had been put in place by his father.

He strictly maintained the country's neutrality in World War I, despite strenuous efforts by the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire and a German military mission to enlist Afghanistan on its side. He also greatly reduced tensions with British India, signing a treaty of friendship in 1905 and paying an official state visit in 1907.

Habibullah was assassinated while on a hunting trip at Laghman Province on February 20, 1919.[3] His brother Nasrullah Khan briefly succeeded him as Emir and held power for a week between February 21 and February 28, 1919, before being ousted and imprisoned by Amanullah Khan, Habibullah's third son.[4]

Honours

References

  1. 1 2 Vogelsang, Willem (2002). "17-The dynasty of Amir Abd al Rahman Khan". The Afghans. LONDON: Willey-Blackwell, John Willey & SOns, Ltd, UK. p. 270. ISBN 978-1-4051-8243-0.
  2. 1 2 http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~royalty/afghan/i105.html#I105
  3. ↑ Islam and Politics in Afghanistan, Olesen, page 101
  4. ↑ Afghanistan 1919–1928: Sources in the India Office Records
  5. ↑

Sources

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Regnal titles
Preceded by
Abdur Rahman Khan		 Emir of Afghanistan
1901–1919 		Succeeded by
Nasrullah Khan
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