SHERE

ALI

See also:

• KHAN (from the Turki, hence Persian and Arabic Khan)

KHAN (1825-1879)  , Amir of Afghanistan, was born in 1825, one of the younger sons of the amir Dost Mahommed, whom he succeeded in 1863 . For some time after his succession Afghanistan was in a state of anarchy, and his rebellious half-brothers overran the country while he remained at Kandahar mourning the loss of a favourite son . At length, however, the capture of Kabul in 1866 roused him to action; but in spite of his own bravery he suffered general defeat until 1868, when he regained Kabul . Supported by the viceroys of India, Lord Lawrence and Lord Mayo, Shere Ali remained on good terms with the British government for some years; but after the rebellion of his son Yakub Khan, 187o-74, he leaned towards Russia, and welcomed a Russian agent at Kabul in 1878, and at the same time refused to receive a British mission . This led to long negotiations, and ultimately to war, when the British forced the Khyber Pass in November 1878, and defeated the amir's forces on every occasion . Shere Ali fled from his capital and, taking refuge in Turkestan, died at Mazar-i-Sharif on the 21st of February 1879 .