Chitral (State)

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Chitral
1560-1969
Flag of Chitral
Chitral coat of arms
flag coat of arms
Capital Chitral
Form of government Princely state (11 shot salute)
Government system autocracy
Head of state , also head of government Mehtar
surface 11,655 km²
population 107,000 (1951)
founding 1560
resolution July 28, 1969
State religion: Islam
Dynasty: Kator
Chitral District (in red) in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province
Chitral District (in red) in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province

Chitral ( Urdu چترال Tschitral ) was a princely state in British India that joined Pakistan in 1947 and was completely integrated as a district of the same name in 1969 .

history

Since the 16th century the Kator dynasty ruled Chitral for over 400 years. The succession was regulated more pragmatically. The Mehtar (king) became those who knew how to conquer the throne and who enjoyed the support of the nobility.

In the 19th century the kingdom, like many other small Indian kingdoms, came into the interests of the British. But the Russian Empire from the north and Afghanistan from the south also threatened the small country.

In 1876 Amàn-ul-Mulk, the Mehtar of Chitral, entered into a defensive alliance with the Maharajah of Kashmir and thus became his vassal . But since the Maharajah was under the influence of the British, Chitral was soon also considered part of the British sphere of influence. A British representation was established in Gilgit , which is located on the border between Kashmir and Chitral, and the Mehtar was regularly supplied with weapons, ammunition and money in order to secure its rule. Initially payments were 6,000 rupees, but were gradually increased to 12,000 rupees.

In 1881 the representation in Gilgit was given up, but reopened in 1889. At this time the associated garrison was also enlarged.

When Amàn-ul-Mulk died in 1892, his son Afzahl secured power in Chitral by murdering his other brothers or driving them into exile. Nevertheless, he managed to maintain good relations with the British. For this reason they refused to support Nizam, a brother of Afzahls, who had fled to Gilgit and asked the British to appoint him as ruler in Chitral.

In November, Sher Afzul , a brother of Amàn-ul-Mulk, returned to Chitral and murdered his nephew Afzahl, thereby seizing power. In response, the Indian government decided to assist Nizam in seizing power in Chitral. When he marched into Chitral with 250 soldiers armed with rifles, his uncle Sher Afzul dispatched 1,200 men to stop him. However, these overflowed to Nizam, which is why Sher Afzul was ultimately forced to flee to Afghanistan.

In 1894, Amir, also a son of Amàn-ul-Mulk, returned to Chitral. After the death of his father , he had fled into the sphere of power of Umra Khan , the ruler of Jandul , and planned with him to take over power in Chitral. When he returned to his half-brother, he claimed to have been held captive by Umra Khan and to have finally fled. After he had won the trust of Nizam, he murdered him during the falcon hunt and thus took power in Chitral.

But since Amir refused to submit to Umra Khan, he marched into Chitral with his troops, defeated Amir's soldiers and installed Sher Afzul, who had fled to Afghanistan, as Mehtar.

However, when the British asked Umra Khan to leave Chitral with his troops, the latter refused, so that there was fierce fighting between British troops and those of Umra Khan. Although the British succeeded in using Shuja ul-Mulk , one of Amàn-ul-Mulk's sons, as the new Mehtar of Chitral, a company of the 14th Sikhs was wiped out in the course of the fighting, which is why the remaining British troops were forced to withdraw retreat to Fort Chitral, which was subsequently besieged by Umra Khan's troops.

On April 1st, Sir Robert Low crossed the border to Chitral with almost 16,000 soldiers in order to free the fort there from the siege by the enemy troops ( Chitral expedition ). On April 3, the British managed to drive the enemy fighters from the Malakand Pass , which allowed the soldiers to advance further so that Fort Chitral could be liberated. The defeated Umra Khan eventually fled to Afghanistan.

In 1947, the state of Chitral Pakistan joined and was finally integrated in 1969.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Winston Churchill : The Story of the Malakand Field Force. Dover Publications, 2010, ISBN 978-0-486-47474-8 , p. 19.
  2. ↑ Winston Churchill : The Story of the Malakand Field Force. Dover Publications, 2010, ISBN 978-0-486-47474-8 , p. 19.
  3. ↑ Winston Churchill : The Story of the Malakand Field Force. Dover Publications, 2010, ISBN 978-0-486-47474-8 , p. 20.
  4. ↑ Winston Churchill : The Story of the Malakand Field Force. Dover Publications, 2010, ISBN 978-0-486-47474-8 , p. 20.
  5. ↑ Winston Churchill : The Story of the Malakand Field Force. Dover Publications, 2010, ISBN 978-0-486-47474-8 , p. 21.
  6. ↑ Winston Churchill : The Story of the Malakand Field Force. Dover Publications, 2010, ISBN 978-0-486-47474-8 , p. 22.
  7. ↑ Winston Churchill : The Story of the Malakand Field Force. Dover Publications, 2010, ISBN 978-0-486-47474-8 , p. 22.
  8. ↑ Winston Churchill : The Story of the Malakand Field Force. Dover Publications, 2010, ISBN 978-0-486-47474-8 , p. 23.