33 Facts About Amanullah Khan

Ghazi Amanullah Khan was the sovereign of Afghanistan from 1919, first as Emir and after 1926 as King, until his abdication in 1929.

Amanullah Khan's rule was marked by dramatic political and social change, including attempts to modernise Afghanistan along Western lines.

Amanullah Khan did not fully succeed in achieving this objective due to an uprising by Habibullah Kalakani and his followers.

On 14 January 1929, Amanullah abdicated and fled to neighbouring British India as the Afghan Civil War began to escalate.

Amanullah Khan's body was brought to Afghanistan and buried in Jalalabad near his father Habibullah Khan's tomb.

Amanullah Khan was born on 1 June 1892, in Paghman near Kabul, Afghanistan.

Amanullah Khan was the favoured and the third son of the Emir Habibullah Khan.

Amanullah Khan was installed as the governor of Kabul, and was in control of the army and the treasury.

Amanullah Khan gained the allegiance of most of the tribal leaders.

In February 1919, Emir Habibullah Amanullah Khan went on a hunting trip to Afghanistan's Laghman Province.

Amanullah Khan took control of Kabul and the central government, declaring war against Nasrullah.

Amanullah Khan told Amanullah that he could have the kingdom, and he would go into exile in Saudi Arabia.

Amanullah Khan swore upon the Quran that no harm would come to Nasrullah if he returned to Kabul and then he could do as he pleased.

On 13 April 1919, Amanullah Khan held a Durbar in Kabul which inquired into the death of Habibullah.

Nasrullah was sentenced to life imprisonment but Amanullah Khan had him assassinated approximately one year later while being held in the royal jail.

Amanullah Khan recognized the opportunity to use the situation to gain Afghanistan's independence over its foreign affairs.

Amanullah Khan led a surprise attack against the British in India on 3 May 1919, beginning the Third Anglo-Afghan war.

Amanullah Khan conceptualized a modernist constitution that incorporated equal rights and individual freedoms with the guidance of his father-in-law and Foreign Minister Mahmud Tarzi.

Amanullah Khan enjoyed early popularity within Afghanistan and he used his influence to modernise the country.

Amanullah Khan created new more cosmopolitan schools for both boys and girls in the regions and overturned centuries-old traditions such as strict dress codes for women.

Later, courses for teaching religious subjects and modern sciences were developed, with Amanullah Khan himself teaching some of them.

Amanullah Khan travelled to Great Britain as guests of King George V and Queen Mary.

In January 1929, Amanullah Khan abdicated and went into temporary exile in then British India.

Around 22 March 1929, Amanullah Khan returned to Afghanistan assembling forces in Kandahar to reach Kabul and to dispose of Kalakani.

Amanullah Khan's forces failed to advance and on 23 May 1929 he fled to India again.

Amanullah Khan attempted to return to Afghanistan, but he had little support from the people.

Meanwhile, Nadir Khan made sure Amanullah's return to Afghanistan was made impossible by engaging in propaganda.

Nevertheless, Amanullah Khan still had a group of staunch supporters in Afghanistan.

In 1941, some press in the west reported that Amanullah Khan was now working as an agent for Nazi Germany in Berlin.

Amanullah Khan died in 1960, either in Italy or in Zurich, Switzerland.

Amanullah Khan's body was brought to Afghanistan and buried in the eastern city of Jalalabad.

Amanullah Khan left behind his widowed wife and four sons and five daughters, including Princess India of Afghanistan.

Amanullah Khan was later married in Rome, before 1 July 1937, to an Italian lady, by whom he had one son.